Oshiite: U cannot compare black and white bt can only compare white and milk colour,enugu is too much,if ur entering owerri from ikeduru, u must weep and pity dat town.so horrendous

From Owerri (Orji - Obilubi Mbieri area)going towards Ikeduru


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSAtNhQVm1s&feature=player_detailpage

Watch the two videos at 50 secs and notice the change since Rochas


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ft7_4nd0ypc&feature=player_detailpage



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyO7Tf8_lLY&feature=player_detailpage

Guy please make your points without trying to drag other people into your mud fight. If Peter obi has achieved anything; state those things here and back them up with pictures, afterall the so called noisemakers provide pictures from time to time.

PointB: Conference members, ladies and gentlemen,
Below is the excerpt of what we have done so far (with little fleshing). Kindly review and comment before we move on to the next stage.
My apologies for the delay.

Thank you.


4.0 Article 4: Memberships, Responsibility Termination of Membership

The movement seeks primarily to effect positive developmental changes in Eastern Nigeria, through grassroots mobilization. Consequently, the membership of the movement shall be drawn with prejudice to this objective.

Memberships of this organization shall be grouped into:

4.0.1 Online Membership

Online members refer to members of the online community ENYI has a presence.

i. Online membership shall be opened to all who are able to contribute to a deliberation or vote, to the extent allowed by the technology of choice.

ii. Subject to the recognition accorded an online member, his/her opinions/suggestions may count or be discounted

iii. An online member nomination during electioneering process shall be subject to the rules stipulated by the electoral commission/organizers, subject to the constitution.

iv. Online members may also double also as offline members

4.0.2 Offline Membership

To drive ENYI’s vision, aims and objective, a massive offline movement shall be initiated. The offline ENYI membership shall be stratified into the following

i. Founding Membership: This shall include the first Eze and his council. The Founding members will have voting privileges and their votes will be weighted equally to that of votes from individual members. The first Eze shall have a right to his natural vote in addition to a swing/deciding vote entitlement/privilege; however, he cannot use such vote to bring any voting process to a tie/stalemate.

ii. Individual Membership – Individuals membership shall be drawn from the nationalities that make up Eastern Nigeria, Anioma, and other Igbo communities. Individual members shall have voting privileges, and shall abide by every other aspect of the constitution.

iii. Affiliate Membership - Affiliate Membership shall be opened to all friends/allies of ENYI and its cause. They will include non-Easterners, who are invited or convey interest in ENYI, as well as other Easterners, such as students, members of other organizations, or those who can't or do not wish to make payments yet. The Affiliate Member will not be required to pay fees or voting privileges as an affiliate.

4.0.3 Responsibility of Members

Members are encouraged to imbibe ENYI ideals including but not limited to:

i. Actively canvassing for economic development, and political advance of the Eastern Nigeria, and Igbo speaking areas of Nigeria

ii. Actively and personally engaged in developmental activities in Eastern Nigeria like centering business (SMEs, etc), physical building, etc in Eastern Nigeria

iii. Advocate hard-work, dignity, while eschewing crimes, violence and other misconduct

4.0.4 Termination of Membership

Application/invitation to join the movement shall be ratified by the council within a probation period of three month. An individual shall cease to be a member if:

i. His/her membership is not ratified

ii. The individual becomes deceased

iii. The individual membership is terminated by the council on the basis of action antithetic to the ideals of ANYI
ENYI
iv. If the individual is terminated after been determined to have fraudulently gained ENYI’s memberships and his /her activities might jeopardize ENYI’s objectives.

v. Membership is terminated for not meeting up with other obligations as spelled out by the constitution

5.0 Article 5: Committees and responsibilities

ENYI shall have standing committees as listed below, and from time to time set-up ad-hoc committees as exigencies may dictate.

i. Networking: This Committee shall be responsible for developing connections to every necessary person, groups, agencies and bodies.

ii. Lobby: This Committee shall be responsible for using the connections raised by the networking committee to mount effective lobbying campaigns.

iii. Politicking: This Committee shall be responsible for using various lobbying strategies to sway the political direction and maturity (grassroots awareness) of the East.

iv. Development Planning: This Committee shall be responsible for formulating development strategies and forming actionable plans for development (physical and economic) for the East

v. Audit Committee: This Committee shall be responsible for reconciling the financial transaction and other financial undertaking of ENYI.

6.0.0 Meetings And Quorum

6.0.1 ENYI shall have separate Annual General Meeting for both the Online and Offline Members toreview her activity. Notice of the AGM shall be sent well in advance of the date of the meeting. In addition to the AGM, the ENYI council, and patrons must meet at least monthly (online or offline) to facilitate the pursuit ENYI aims and objectives.

6.0.3 And emergency cabinet or AGM might also be called by the cabinet as exigency demands

6.0.2 QUOROM

i. Where notice of meeting is sent at least a month before the scheduled date, a quorum of shall be formed when 65% of concerned members are present. This is to prevent dormant members holding the organization hostage.

ii. In case of emergency meeting 51% percent attendance of members shall constitute a quorum

Looks good. Please pardon the slight amendments.

Onlytruth:

I agree with the bolded except that we should also add a provision that empowers any cabinet member to call an emergency meeting at any time. We should be able to react to emergency situations as they arise. The quorum is also fine.

My brother FACE, e be like say you be natural born bureaucrat.

Thanks for the compliment. This process is not very different from policy writing, which I have done in my areas of interest for large and small organisations. Once, I was discussing an issue with an architect and he asked me if I was sure of what I was saying when I referred to policy and I said; "we wrote the policy".

Guys, we have been sent to the 3rd page; let us hurry up and get this done and start real work.

Meetings and Quorum.

I suggest that meetings should be held by leadership once every month with one month advance notice and new dates agreed at meetings. We need full commitment at the moment; therefore a quorum of 75% is needed.

Minutes of meetings held by leadership should be produced and forwarded to members via newsletter.

Observations by members regarding the minutes or new ideas should be raised by members and forwarded to the leaders either by open publication via news letter or sent to any officer and copied to the Eze. Such suggestion or observation will be discussed under matters arising, which will be a permanent feature on the group meeting agenda.

PointB: Thanks for your comments on this section all of you.

But it is still necessary to suggest committees and the possible roles. Besides, we still have to discuss Officer and Cabinet Members.
Do the Patrons suffice as cabinet members, or do we still need officers, and in what capacity, and responsibility. Let's get this process inching forward. We are getting closer to the end of the conference, but more still needs to be done.

Let's continue the debate...

In my opinion, the officers should comprise of the Eze,patrons (Founding members ?) and the cabinet. Whilst the patrons are selected via the process proposed or a modification of it,the cabinet should comprise of the people the Eze has chosen to work with and may be drawn from other members or patrons. Overwhelming members objection (simple majority vote) to the cabinet member selection should nullify such selection.

The officers will set and direct the agenda of the organisation as ratified by other members. The need for ratification will be determined by formal member complaint backed by the support of not less than 25% of registered members.

The officers will create and enpower the committees to be set up and committee members may include other members. The committe level is where the different strengths and skills of members are utilised and is fully inclusive with regards to membership.

The members will expect the officers to achieve results as per the set objectives and mission statement. Updates will be given via news letters.

ebere1712: Failed from the start. Doing the same thing and expecting a different result.

It is very easy to stand aside and point at others. We are open to suggestions; so tell us what you think we are doing wrong and give us your own ideas of how to get it right.

ogugua88: Beneli,

That's a bit much, don't you think? That's six levels of membership.

What about simply 3.) Affiliateship, 2.) Individual membership, and 1.) Founding membership? I don't think so many ranks or titles are necessary.

Affiliateship can encompass all you said about it, plus student membership. If fees are required, and a student cannot make them, then he or she will be an affiliate without voting privileges. If he or she can pay the fees, then he or she is an individual member with voting privileges. Plain and simple.

The same can be said about organizational membership. I'm assuming that people can be members of ENYI as well as other groups? In this case, I would think someone who is already a member of another organization should start at the affiliate level before being allowed to apply for individual membership. There are other groups who may not have ENYI's best interests in mind, so I think it would be wise if the group gets to know someone from another organization before that someone can join.
Why would an entire organization need its own membership? At best, if their notions are in line with those of ENYI, they can be affiliate groups or allies with which ENYI works closely.

What's the point of honorary membership if it doesn't come with any privileges that an individual member already has? I think this one should be scrapped altogether. If there are people who deserve recognition for work they've done in the east, ENYI members can all put money together and award him or her with an actual plaque or something of that sort, and then invite him to be a member of ENYI.

In a nation where we have Chief Engineer Doctor Mister and Senator Professor Minister Lolo Mrs, we don't need too many titles. The fewer the better.

Here's my take alongside that of Beneli (my own are bolded):

i) Founding Membership - Eze OnlyTruth and council. This would probably also include other individuals that are here from the very beginning. It would be subject to Eze and council’s approval… Some of the Founding members have already started to contribute time and money, so probably may not have to pay a defined membership fee; however I suspect that a lot of them would be happy to donate when necessary, to help the organisation during its teething period. The Founding members will have voting privileges and their votes will be weighted equally to that of votes from individual members. The only exception is OnlyTruth, who cannot vote unless there is a tie. He will make a final decision after he's heard from all sides.

ii.) Individial Membership - Individuals from the nationalities that make up Eastern Nigeria. How they will become members will be circumstantial. Those who have displayed outstanding character in the East can become members through invitation from a Founding Member. As most people will become members through affiliateship, there should be a process, which includes application and a membership fee. How much the fee is, when it will be initiated, what the fee covers is a discussion for another time, but there should be a membership fee. Individual members will have voting privileges.

iii.) Affiliateship - Open to all friends/allies of ENYI and its cause. They will include non-Easterners, who are invited or convey interest in ENYI, as well as other Easterners, such as students, members of other organizations, or those who can't or do not wish to make payments yet. No fees or voting privileges as an affiliate.

Thanks for your input. I like how you have compressed the structure and I agree with the modification. Original ideas are always raw and sometimes need to be fine tuned by other people.

LOL at denying Onlytruth his vote. I know what you meant though. However, I was thinking that the leader, Eze or Figurehead would have a right to his natural vote + a swing/deciding vote entitlement/privilege for leadership, however, he cannot use such vote to bring any voting process to a tie/stalemate.

I know that presiding officers usually have deciding votes in order to refrain from influencing the process and to show neutrality; but we all know that it is not human to be completely neutral in matters that concern the person involved and I will lean towards preserving the person's freedom of choice.

Olodostein:

You are like Chino. In fact, Chino is even better than you. Because he is real and speaks his mind but you are a chameleon. You took swipe at Rochas attempt to build 4 new universities and Owerri in another thread and came to this thread to say another thing.

You are a confirm Hypocrite. If raising more embarrasing dust with you will further igbo unity, so be it, juggernaut. LOL

So you did not realise that chino,bestview,ayo011,one.east were just a few of many names used by the same person with multi personality disorder ? I see you as a smart fella, so please don't let "him" suck you into making blanket comments about Anambra people. You should know that the thin line between Imo and Anambra is only artificial.

I agree with the membership base as proposed by Beneli, Onlytruth and Point B. I understand Afam's concerns about fees, but fees are not required at the online formation stage as Point B explained. However, we should not rule out the need for some funding at some stage when we need to execute some of our objectives. I believe that funding is covered in Article 9 as proposed by Point B, so maybe we should talk about funding wnen we discuss Article 9.

Our primary objective at this point is to connect with like minds and expand our base and membership but there will come a time that we will go beyond being a cyber organisation because we are all about grassroot works . This means that we should be ready to unmask ourselves at some point !

Onlytruth: My proposal in continuation of a Section of Article 2 which deals with affiliations of the movement.

(a) The Movement should actively seek and maintain a constant liaison with ALL Igbo groups starting with youth organizations, to cultural, educational, and religious groups.

(b) The Movement should develop and maintain constant communication with all elected persons in the East.

(c) The Movement should develop and maintain constant synergy with ALL political groups in the East.

(d) The Movement should in the long run develop and maintain political rapport and rapprochement with ALL progressive groups in Nigeria.

(e) The Movement should develop and maintain working relationships with various international agencies for development,transparency, legal defence/representation, and human rights.


We can add a provision to develop this list as we go.

The most important nature of this movement is that it should be a slow moving FREIGHT TRAIN that is unstoppable when in full speed. The momentum should be able to crush any obstacle.

Eze Onlytruth, thanks for your input. We need some more inputs and someone to fuse all inputs into one document.

My people, this section of the constitution deals with how much power you are conceding to your leaders. It is all about checks and ballances and dictatorship is usually nipped in the bud at this stage. You will get what you are given if you don't contribute now; although I think that contributors have been fair so far. Once we close this chapter, we will have to go through a long process to amend it.

noiseless: We have no time and energy to entertain you at the moment, pls face borno state your sweet home thanks in advance.

Noiseless, please try and cut Ogugua some slack. You are putting her on the defence and I think it is harsh.Umunna, please lets discuss issues and not people. Thanx.

I will have a go at article 2 thus:

The Eze is the number 1 patron and figure head. The Eze can only be elected through a free and fair election arranged by the electoral committee to be set up. The tenure of the Eze shall be for 1 year only, but renewable via elections. All elections must be held and concluded at least 2 months before the end of the tenure.

Patrons; also to be known as Ndi Nze na Ozo shall be nominated and elected once only; the only exception being the selection of no more than three patrons by the pioneer Eze. Subsequently, each new Eze will become a patron automatically and the de facto leader of all patrons, but will not be able to appoint or remove patrons unilaterally.

Patrons must be people who believe that all human beings were born and created equal. Therefore, a person shall be barred for life from becoming a patron or a representative if that person had at anytime suggested, insinuated or advocated that any part of Igbo land is superior to any other part of Igbo land or used derogatory terms to refer to other nationalities that constitute Igbo land.

Patrons can only be removed or suspended via due process as follows:

i. Complaints raised by any member of the movement.

ii. Investigation and recommendation by committee set up by other patrons

iii. Action taken through a vote of simple majority by patrons and a deciding vote by Eze where there is a tie.

iv. The decision (refer to iii)can be appealed by the complainants or patron

v. The Eze can only unilaterally uphold the decision and will need 2/3 of the total votes of the patrons and council members to upturn any decision. Such votes will only be valid if 75% of all patrons and council members cast their votes.

vi. The Eze selects his council members and may select from any member of the movement including the patrons. Council members must be made known to the members and 51% member objection shall nullify such selection.

Powers

i. Patrons have the powers to set up committees for different projects and investigations.

ii. In the absence of elected assemblies, the patrons have the rights to make major decisions on behalf of members only after consultations with members.

iii. Powers to draft proposals and endorsements on behalf of members.

iv. Powers to create a platform towards electing representatives when the need arises. The need is determined by the advancement of the movement and level of calls by members for such.

v. Powers to start investigations on serious allegations against the Eze, in which case the Eze will not chair or assemble the panel of investigation.

vi. Powers to sanction the Eze following investigations. 75% vote by patrons is needed for such sanction. The Eze has the right of appeal and a public vote will be required for his removal or sanction, should the Eze chose to appeal. A simple majority vote of not less than 75% of members is required to ratify the Eze’s removal following his appeal.

vii. …..
viii. …..
ix. ……

x. The patrons are expected to spearhead the achievement of the objectives of the association and shall be dissolved if a 75% vote of no confidence is passed by members.

xi. The patrons and Eze shall not be able to alter any part of the constitution without consultations, similar to the writing of the original constitution.

Vii, Viii and ix have been left blank on purpose and all amendments must refer to the original documents. Additions may assume any of the vacant spaces and must be contained in articles of amendments. Articles of amendments can only be produced following a process similar to the writing of the original constitution. There will be no need to follow this process following the formation of assembly and election of representatives.

Scope and limitations of the association

i. The association must work within the law at all times. The association is non violent and shall use non violent means to achieve its objectives.

ii. The scope of the association must not be at odds with the objectives. The scope is dependent on the objectives and the objectives are subject to expansion as ratified by members.

iii. The organisation shall not give blind support to any political party or actively promote any single party without strong concessions from the party. Political supports and endorsements are dependent on the political paradigm of the day and will be subservient to Eastern Nigeria Interests and mutual interests based on concessions from our allies.

iv. Communication and association must be established through registration and free subscription to the news letter. Very important discussions to be carried out via news letter and publications of consensus delivered on Naialand or any other forum that we have membership base.

Ndata: @FACE

So these few villages you mentioned in Imo and Abia states have more mansions than the whole of Anambra villages?Bro wake up and travel through Anambra villages and come back and tell me what you see.A state that is adjudged to have more millionaires per square mile than any other state in Nigeria.Now if don't know it,the first thing an Anambra man does once he has made it is to erect a mansion in his village.Even if he is still a tenant whenever he may live.
Also having a large number of doctors or university professor doesn't translate to wealth in the case of Mbaise.You can ask Ekiti state people.

Guy, take a drive from Owerri to Umuahia and see the types of mansions littered along the way. The gaps between settlements are not much as well. The same scene you will experience from Owerri to Okigwe and Owerri - Okwelle-Ideato and Orlu.

Owerri - Mgbidi, Owerri - Ngor Okpala and Owerri - Egbema are sparcely populated, but you will also see their mansions in the sparcely populated areas.

Those directions above cover Imo state.

Mbaise is not solely acada and you need to visit to see the extreme mansions there and it is densely populated as well.

All I asked you to do is to stop unnecessary manliness measurements. Sometimes, I wonder if some of you have stepped out of your villages. You can promote your State without taking a swipe at others.

If you feel you gat it all; stake your claim like Spyder is doing with pictures. You and your cohorts like chino and his many akas launch unnecessary attacks at ndi Igbo ibe unu and they hold back and ignore you.The same way some of you tried to derail this thread; if not for Spyder's maturity.

This is my last response to you and you can continue to display your ignorance.

Abagworo, have you got other pixs of Orlu ?

[/b]

Ndata: @ZUBBY77

We shouldn't forget the fact that Enugu city was the capital of Eastern region.So most of the mansion seen in these pictures are not solely owned by Enugu indigenes but individuals from all parts of Igboland.
On the other hand Anambra state is the only state in Igbo land with highest concentration of mansions in the villages.I used to wonder why most Anambra people will spend as much as 15 million naira to build a mansion in their villages which they stay in only during Christmas festivities.You will hardly see mud houses in Anambra villages.

You have not been to Ideato/Okwelle /Izuogu axis of Imo. Mbaise people do not get heard for some reason; maybe because they are into acada and not politics.They produce the highest concentration of doctors in Imo state and by extension Nigeria. You need to see the houses in their Villas. Surely you don't know of Abiriba, Item and IsuIkwuato in Abia. Even small small boys of 26 are putting up mansions in my villa, with some locked up for two years, so STFU and stop measuring dciks.

Abagworo:


If what I saw was only Owerri, I wouldn't be impressed to this level. I always considered Orlu a road side town but what I saw surprised me.I really need to visit Okigwe.

Is that Orlu as well ? I have truly under estimated the level of works in that town.

P.S
Soil texture/stability will determine the level of reinforcement applied in road construction.

Name : Enyi
Motto: Reclaiming the future
Slogan : Ibu anyi danda

spyder880: @ one.east, please chill, my place in Nomeh Nkanu east has never ever had a road project since life began. Ngwo is 100% better than my place, and you are calling the govnor.

Chimaroke wanted to start that project at hill top, Onyeama and the youths chased out the workers, I was living around that project then.

You are actually responding to Chino ? The guys sees nothing good in any SE state apart from Anambra. Good luck !

PROUD-IGBO:
And he needs to either invest in mechanical road sweepers, or employ people to do it. All that dust/dirt by the road sides doesn't look nice and is very annoying; it gives the city an unkempt look. If Enugu and Uyo roads can look clean, i don't see why Owerri can't do likewise.

Those pictures are from Orlu.Okigwe is also receiving similar attention with some roads being expanded and dualised as well. Owerri is very clean and he is creating more roads in owerri as well.Imo state is on total overhaul.

Spyder, you need to show us the interchanges at Enugu.Enugu has the best road network in the East. My best one is the one near new market at Osha -Enugu Express. Like these

Choosing a name becomes very difficult due to the fact that the focus of this group covers Ala Igbo in all geopolitical locations in Nigeria. ENYI sounds good, but I would add a star to represent a wildcard thus: E*NYI. Our people outside the eastern region should speak up now if they feel excluded by the name and propose a more suitable name.

Ala Igbo is in Nigeria, so focusing on Ala Igbo is also focusing on Nigeria. I also realise that there is more potential if we cooperate with our immediate neighbours and other Nigerians at large, but such cooperation must be based on mutually beneficial agreements/understandings. We must not grant concessions to those who are unwilling to reciprocate.

In order to avoid conflict of interest, I think we should focus inward for now while also participating in the national scheme of things. Our objective is more or less centred on liaising with our political leaders for economic and political prosperity while holding them to account and also enlightening our populace.

Nigerian psyche is quite complex and intentions/actions are often misconstrued and viewed from ethnic/religious perspectives. Holding our own to account and charting our own economic course should not be a problem for other ethnic groups. They can copy from us if they wish or form alliances on mutually beneficial concerns.

Therefore, I think that our objectives should be as follows:

1. Political/Economic renaissance: I am unable to separate the two because I think that economic growth is largely driven by political decisions. Government is the policy maker and biggest spender as well and those in government are politicians. I think that our engagements with government should be advisory and based on networking rather than confrontation on all issues. To this end, we must find a way to have the ears of those that matter, so that our advice/suggestions will enjoy the considerations they deserve. To this effect, we should act as a lobby group by pushing and applying subtle pressure for economic reforms.

However, there are some economic needs that will require more aggressive demands and I am sure that we will identify those projects as we progress. E.g upgrading of facilities at Enugu and Imo Airports; Niger Bridge and the river port in Onitsha.

2. Watchman-ship /Accountability: This will involve knowing all our elected officers at the federal and state levels. I suggest that we split the task among an agreed number of committees to make the task easier. We should use The FOI bill as a tool or vehicle to achieve this objective. I have used the UK version of the bill on three occasions and have also responded to FOI inquiries so I understand the fundamentals of the bill.

3. Education and Awareness: This will involve reaching as many people as possible and educating our people about mass action, using Imo state election as a reference point. I also hope that we expand the scope to cover reaching our high institutions to understand their needs and how to help them educate our young ones. The main focus of this objective will be to help our people become interested decisive on election days.

All those objectives are expandable with time, but whatever we do; we must not set ourselves up to fail. I should also suggest that we do not get sucked into giving a carte blanche support for any political party; however we can make endorsements depending on the political paradigm of the day while retaining our neutrality, non-affiliation and our principle of bringing pressure on misguided political decisions or political office holders.

Finally, our overall objectives should be strategic by design while deliberating on the tactics to employ in order to achieve our strategic goals.

Re: Motto; I think that “Reclaiming the future” is good, but I will like to add a slogan like “onye a-ghala nwanne ya” or “Igwe bu Ike” or “Ibu anyi danda” or “Ikenga”. They all mean the same thing, which is “strength in unity”.

spyder880: why should the authorites allow these guys to spoil the city looks, people are dumping and selling granite along the road towards the express from Loma linda estates, somebody should do something about this

Govt should just seize the granite and use them for road repairs.

Considering that Lagos is a very small state in area; where then is "Fashola working" this "work" that we keep hearing if people are saying that roads in all LGAs are bad ?

Spyder, biko mee osiso tinye foto, akpiri adogbugo m

PROUD-IGBO:
Thanks for the pics and the effort you took in snapping them.

Maybe it's just me and the fact i'm something of a perfectionist, but i would advice the Governor to do a couple of things:

1) plant more trees by the road sides to give the city more of a lush green feel;

2) ban the pasting of posters willy-nilly as it defaces the city and itches my eyes just seeing them in pics ;

3) have at least two well maintained and manicured parks where families can go to to 'catch their fun' (that phrase makes me laugh anytime i hear it- it's so Nigerian );

4) maintain all street and traffic lights, immediately fixing any that gets damaged (i noticed some street lights were missing some parts, and i didn't see the traffic lights that were installed a few years back, though i hope those are still working as well). Taking care of little things like these are a pointer to tell if the bigger things in a city are managed well.

I also hope there's an adequate public water scheme, and that the intracity bus service is still working and maintained well.

The key word is MAINTAINANCE.

Number 3 was the main idea behind open spaces in Owerri and Enugu. I know for sure that parts of Achara layout and several other areas in Enugu were originally designated as open spaces.

In Owerri, parts of Ikenegbu, Ama JK park, garden park and other areas were also planned to be open spaces with the most significant park being the LAVAM park at the other side of Otamiri, near the dam. The military governors turned around and built other things on those lands and sold the remainder to private people.

Although , I was happy about the development of polo park mall in Enugu; I was also disappointed that they chose polo park when they could have chosen any other location for the mall and modernized the park. Polo park was part and parcel of the original Enugu and we had loads of fun there as kids. I think we should go back to our open space planning in order to avoid cluttering.

ACM10:

Efulefu can also mean someone who works against his/her people interest or engages in activities that conflicts with his/her people collective interest. It can never translate to someone who is lazy, lacks drive or hopeless. Sorry, daddy is wrong on this one.

Nwanna, I think Ogugua's definition can also be encompassed within the several meanings of efulefu.E.g a 30 year old man that has no job and does not make any effort to get one and indulges in useless activities like getting drunk all the time and steals stuff from people is an efulefu. A man who goes about squandering his inheritance or selling collective properties like land and has no intention of creating wealth is an efulefu. Those people can be classified as lazy, useless and drive-less. Your own definition is also very correct.

ogugua88:

It was out of anger. There are a few members in this group that I truly don't appreciate. I see them more as conspiracy theorists and fear mongerers who spin news to suit their theories. It may have been an attack on the group, but I assumed that the purpose of the leader was to represent this group. If that's not the case, then I apologize.

I've already registered for the newsletter but I'll still be keeping my eyes peeled.

Bless you. I should point out that what you call conspiracy theories and fear mongering may not be entirely baseless and might be from personal experiences and facts on the ground. They might just be their reactions to situations they found distasteful, just like you reacted during the occupy period.

I am sure that when you were eager for Nigerians to hit the streets, you went ahead and showed your support regardless of whether area boys and extortionists were also going to join the protests.

I am not saying that you should participate in something, regardless of the characters of your associates or their ideology, but you have to realise that they have the rights to express their fears and convinctions as long as their views and opinions do not set out to disparage others or to preach the hatred of other people. In other words, everyone's rights must stop where the next person's rights start.

Ogugua,

Thanks for being articulate. I do have my reservations concerning some of your points though, but that's down to individual differences, preferences and methodology so I wont argue with your position.

Thanks for acknowledging that your initial post "may have come acrosss the wrong way, but I stand by what I said", but there was nothing positive in that post to "stand by".

It was an unprovoked attack on an organisation you knew nothing about, without first finding out what the organisation was about.

It was an outright onslaught on other people's rights to free association and freedom of choice. It was an attempt to define what other people's priorities should be. I can go on but I will leave it at that.

I will leave you with your statement below; ponder on it and conclude if it has any bearing to answers you have received so far.

ogugua88:

I agree with this last bit. I don't know what "The Igbo Cause" is. Nigeria is a mess in its entirety. I don't know how they find time or opportunity to focus on "The Igbo Cause". It's embarrassing that there are people who are still calling themselves Biafrans, who are still fighting for a(n) Biafran/Igbo cause, who can't put their vendettas aside to deal with a much bigger problem. They may think Igbos are the best tribe or have their own agenda, but they still come from Nigeria, one of the most unstable, feared nations not only in the continent, but in the world. Some priorities need to be straightened.

Ogugua,

You assumed that we intend to use letter writing as the only tool for our task. You breezed through my post without pausing to read what I wrote. I said that:

We realise that Nigeria is hitting below par and that our reps are incorrigible. There are some people among us who have links and contacts to reach our leaders to bombard them with ideas and demands. Through this grp, we also intend to reach the grassroots to enlighten them of the responsibilities of our reps. We also intend to make direct contact with real people.

This association is still at infancy, but we are determined to make it work.


In other words, I said that we intend to galvanise our actions through the links and contacts we have at our disposals. We intend to reach REAL people as well as internet people. We also intend to reach the grass root through personal involvement and contacts. I don’t see how all those are different from your suggestions up there.

I do not do pessimisms and I never fail before trying. I consider all options and adopt a strategy which is most suitable in my judgement.

Apart from the president and vice, the remaining political office holders were elected at state level, so we will target our leaders at state level. There are some projects, which are of no concern to someone in Lagos or Kano but very important to SE region and neighbours. We do not want conflict of interests to limit or hinder our progress. We will be focusing on changing Igboland for now, while participating in the national scheme of things.


You mentioned setting up picket lines and using megaphones in market places and handing out pamphlets in order to get people into mass action to achieve Enugu airport for example. I am sorry to say that is being simplistic and naïve.

There are times for militancy, there are times for dialogue and there also times for subtle pressure. The potent weapon of all is the education and awareness you create through interaction, which arms the populace for election day fight.

You don’t set up pickets and disrupt other people’s lives just because you think that an airport is the best thing in the world. Your pamphlets and megaphones will be wasted resources. As a business owner and manager, I know that you have to target your resources to where they are most effective and productive.

Let’s take your occupy protests for example; do you think that all Nigerians support subsidizing petroleum products? Do you not think that those who disagree with subsidy also have their own rights and deserve to use communal roads without fear of molestation? Do you not agree that people have rights to protest or stay at home or open their businesses as normal? Do you believe in freedom of choice?

Do you agree that it is not a sin/crime to abstain from joining your protests just as we acknowledge that you have the rights to peaceful protests and demonstration while recognising everyone’s rights?

You talked about Facebook as a communication medium, which we have not discounted. How is writing your opinion on Facebook going to change the leaders, going by your own assertion that they don’t read beyond 2 paragraphs of mails ?

You see that you contradicted yourself , because on one hand you said we should be in the trenches as the only means to reach the people and on the other hand you said that Facebook, which is also an online forum is a potent tool (I don’t dispute that by the way).

The question then begs; why did you choose to cheer people on from the safety of Facebook rather than going to the trench yourself?

There are several online groups already and several Facebook accounts with regards to activism in Nigeria, but we will work with them differently. Rather than proliferate more Facebook accounts, we will try to establish links with like minded groups out there.

Our mission is to add pressure to the leaders while sensitising the society and creating a base and alliances for joint action if required.


I also believe in joint action, but in a different way. I have put myself in the firing line before and paid for it. As a fresher in Uni, I was at the lead of demonstrations.

I was once in a group where we decided to force the hands of an establishment against an unfavourable decision they made. Realising our strength in numbers, we decided that we would go into meeting with the executives and negotiate the situation. We also agreed to resign en masse if they refused to rescind some of their decisions.

We had to go into the meeting one after the other and being the most vocal and leader of the group, I was called in before the other 23 people to discuss the issue at hand. They wanted me to discuss personal terms but I insisted on group terms. They told me that I was a very valued member of the establishment and that they were keen to retain me. As agreed with my group before hand, I told them point blank I was resigning my position if they were not ready to make communally beneficial concessions.

They asked me to take a seat in the waiting room while they called the others in for talks and I informed the rest of the group of my resignation as planned.

The others went into meetings with the executives, and as they filed out one by one; none of them could look me in the face… all of them had accepted personal terms: I had been betrayed and let down by those who stood to benefit less than my self if I had discussed personal terms.

I was called back into the meeting room and they tried to persuade me by assuring me that they had reached personal terms with the others. I told them that I was still going to resign as I could not work with the same set of people ( I felt a million daggers on my back). Two days later, management called me and offered me a post as a branch manager in another branch and I accepted the post. One year later, I ventured out on my own.

The epistle up there was to tell you that I also have strong principles and will rather prefer to work for common good.

At this point, I will inform you that I am also in touch with the grass root and creating employment at home. I intend/hope to lead Abia State one day or speak for Abia at the federal level. It is a journey which has started and being followed to the best of my ability. When the time comes, I will make it known here if I find it necessary.

For now, join us if you are convinced that there are many ways to skin a rat.

Lastly, I think you are intelligent and very passionate but I will advise that in future you should consider stating your opinion and advice without launching outright attack, filled with scorn and no solution proferred. You should never jump into the deep end without understanding the depth of the sea.

Regards.

ogugua88:

After you've blessed him, I can't correct him for misunderstanding me just as you did earlier. Fine.

The question is are YOU interested in all of Nigeria's well-being? Yes, Igboland is on fire, but so is the nation. Nigeria is not our neighbor. It is our home and it encompasses several groups and regions, including Igboland. I'm not betraying loyalties when I say that Nigeria can use the efforts of all Nigerians, including fellow Igbos. All I've suggested is for Igbos to multitask. If you and the rest can agree to that, then I will assist Eze Ndi Igbo Nairaland Parliamentary Office wherever they wish me to to the best of my ability. If you can't, then just as you stated, you don't need me here.

Let me help you out a lil bit. Our aim is to form a pressure/advisory group through which we could reach our leaders/reps.

We realise that Nigeria is hitting below par and that our reps are incorrigible. There are some people among us who have links and contacts to reach our leaders to bombard them with ideas and demands. Through this grp, we also intend to reach the grassroots to enlighten them of the responsibilities of our reps. We also intend to make direct contact with real people.

This association is still at infancy,but we are determined to make it work.

The way politics works is that you have to hold your own reps/leaders to account. eg, if I need the Enugu international airport and FG is not coming forth with it, I cannot start bothering the Oyo state senators to press for it.
If I am annoyed that the power sector is bad and I can't get to the minister, I will contact my reps to take up the issue rather than writing Kaduna reps.

If my state governor is useless and the reps are corrupt,I cannot mobilize voters from Sokoto to vote them out. Charity begins at home.

If we succeed in improving Igbo land, Nigeria will benefit from it, unless you think that improvement of Igbo land will be non-beneficial to Nigeria.

All we want is to effect change from within.

Now that I have given you an insight on why we want you to join us, could you please, advice on how you think we can change Nigeria without looking inwards.

By the way,I am a strong supporter of reforms that will make Nigeria a better place in the long term; reforms like power sector deregulation, complete removal of fuel subsidy and a cashless/reduced cash economy.