eleojo23:
Truth be told, you can’t berate yourself into a better version of yourself. And even though I know this, I sometimes still fall victim to my own negative thinking. Sometimes I’m downright rude to myself. I make a mistake, or fall short of my own expectations, and instead of treating it as a learning opportunity, I beat myself up about it.
I’m sure you can relate. We’ve all been there. We all have bad days and moments of self-doubt.
Sometimes the pressure coming from peers, family, work, and society in general is enough to make us feel completely broken inside. If we don’t have the “right” job, relationship, lifestyle, and so forth, by a certain age or time-frame, we assume we’re just “not good enough.”
So what can we do about it?
Here’s are some good reminders when you’re feeling “not good enough”:

1. You are walking your own path.
Sometimes the reason we struggle with insecurity is because we compare our behind-the-scenes circumstances with everyone else’s public highlight reel. Forget what everyone else is doing and achieving. Your life is about breaking your own limits and outgrowing yourself to live YOUR best life.
2.Where you are right now is a necessary step.
Sometimes we avoid experiencing exactly where we are because we have developed a belief, based on our ideals, that it is not where we should be or want to be. But the truth is, where you are right now is exactly where you need to be to get to where you want to go tomorrow.
3. Everything is coming together… maybe not immediately, but gradually.
When times are tough, remind yourself that no pain comes without a purpose. Move on from what hurt you, but never forget what it taught you. Pain is part of growing. Remember that there are two kinds of pain: pain that hurts and pain that changes you. When you roll with life, instead of resisting it, both kinds help you grow.
4. Every day brings a choice: to practice stress or to practice peace.
Choose to be miserable and you’ll find plenty of reasons to be miserable. Choose to be peaceful and you’ll find plenty of reasons to be at peace. Think about it. Are you skilled at making yourself miserable? With those same skills you can make yourself motivated, effective and fulfilled. Do so.
5.You are always good enough to try, and that’s what’s important in the end.
Everything you achieve comes from something you attempt. Make the attempt. Trust me, twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the things you did do. Give yourself a chance.
6. There’s always something small you can do.
There is absolutely nothing about your present situation that prevents you from moving forward, one tiny step at a time. Remember, vision without action is just a daydream; vision must be combined with venture. It is not enough to stare up the steps, you must step up the stairs. And all you have to do is take one step at a time. Sometimes the smallest step in the right direction ends up being the biggest step of your life. Tiptoe if you must, but take that step.
7. Failures are really just lessons that need to be learned.
No day is ever wasted when you live it with purpose and presence. Value and enjoy the journey, even when there are detours along the way.
8. Yesterday’s impossibilities may be possible today.
Experience is the hardest kind of teacher; it gives you the test first and the lesson afterward. But this is really a blessing. It means you’re growing stronger and more capable with every passing day. So don’t you dare give up on today because of the way things looked yesterday. Don’t even think about it.
9. The quality of your vision drives the quality of your life.
It’s up to you how you visualize things and what you focus on. Forget what you don’t like. Focus on what excites you. If you see a possibility, explore it. If you have a dream, live it. Those who are passionate and excited about what they’re doing have an advantage that is nearly impossible to conquer. Be one of these people.
10. You don’t need to get everyone’s approval first.
Stop listening to what the world says you should want. Start listening to who you are. Truth be told, there are only a few people in this world who will stay 100% true to you, and YOU should be one of them.
11. What you’re capable of achieving is greatly based on how much you want it.
When it means enough to you, then you can do it. When you are willing and committed and persistent, you will get yourself there, every time. Success is neither magical nor mysterious. Success is the natural outcome of consistently applying your focused effort to what you want. The fatigue might be there sometimes, but you must understand that putting it aside is the single most important factor in succeeding.
12. Your best bet is to give yourself no other choice.
It’s amazing what you can do when you have no other choice. In fact, achievement consists mostly of giving yourself no other choice. You are more than good enough; you just have to own it – you have to own everything you are and everything you’re up against. If you believe your troubles are too powerful, then you’ll never allow yourself to rise above them. Stop fretting. Quit worrying. Don’t complain. You know what you must do. So do it.
13. Earn the respect of others by having the audacity to respect yourself.
Self-respect, self-love, self-worth… there’s a reason they all start with “self.” You can’t receive them from anyone else. Earn the respect of others by having the audacity to respect yourself. Dare to love yourself as if you were a rainbow with pots of gold at both ends. It’s your responsibility, above all, to see your own value. And this responsibility to yourself means refusing to let others do your thinking, talking, and deciding for you; it means learning to use your own brains and intuition to make things happen.
14. You are stronger than whatever is troubling you.
Use each setback, each disappointment as a cue to push on ahead with more determination than ever before. When something bad happens, you can either let it define you, let it destroy you or let it strengthen you. The choice is yours. So pump yourself up! You are a lot stronger than you think you are. You may not be where you want to be yet, but look how far you’ve come. Celebrate the fact that you’re not where you used to be.
15. For everything you’ve lost, you’ve gained something else.
Appreciate what you have today. Life does not have to be perfect to be wonderful. No regrets, just lessons. No worries, just acceptance. No expectations, just gratitude. Life is too short. The story of your life has many chapters. One bad chapter doesn’t mean it’s the end. So stop re-reading the bad one already, and turn the page.
16. Your scars are symbols of your strength.
Don’t ever be ashamed of the scars life has left you with. A scar means the hurt is over and the wound is closed. It means you conquered the pain, learned a lesson, grew stronger, and moved forward. A scar is the tattoo of a triumph. So don’t allow your scars to hold you hostage. Don’t allow them to make you live your life in fear. You can’t make the scars in your life disappear, but you can change the way you see them. You can start seeing your scars as a sign of strength and not pain.
17. You are still here trying.
If you have no other testimony right now, you have this one: “I’m still here trying.” Be positive, patient and persistent. The more you feel like quitting, the more there is to be gained by continuing to do all three. Because the strongest people aren’t the people who always win, but the people who don’t give up when they lose.


The wisest, most loving, and well rounded people you have ever met are likely those who have known misery, known defeat, known the heartbreak of losing something or someone they loved, and have found their way out of the depths of their own despair. These people have experienced many ups and downs, and have gained an appreciation, a sensitivity, and an understanding of life that fills them with compassion, understanding and a deep loving wisdom. People like this aren’t born; they develop slowly over the course of time.
And you’re getting there.


Credits to www.marcandangel.com/2014/09/28/20-things-to-remember-when-you-think-youre-not-good-enough/

ibietela2:
We have been inundated with this narrative of how the Peoples Democratic Party destroyed Nigeria, and the media has been awash with same for quite a while now. The story is that all PDP did in Nigeria within the 16 years of its leadership is to destroy all that was built by our founding fathers. This was one of All Progressives Congress’ strong arguments during their campaigns, which preceded the 2015 general elections, and which saw General Muhammadu Buhari (GMB), now President Muhammadu Buhari (PMB) emerge as winner and consequently President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

I do not personally agree with, or subscribe to the assertion or perspective that Nigeria has been destroyed, or Nigeria is a failed state. But you see, that was the story APC sold, and it’s now such a tall order to change the narrative. It will take the APC much more than even 8 years (assuming they are lucky to be in power for that long) to undo this narrative. I still remember how APC celebrated and publicised that CNN interview, when Amanpour grilled Goodluck Jonathan and showed videos of streets in Lagos without electricity. I remember vividly.

This story began like a joke in the ears of Nigerians, but because it has become a constant refrain for the APC, it is beginning to sink. I am beginning to see sense in the postulation of Adolf Hitler’s chief propagandist Joseph Goebbels, that "If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it. The lie can be maintained only for such time as the State can shield the people from the political, economic and/or military consequences of the lie.” Of course, this seems to be the case.

The APC seems to use subterfuge to seek refuge under this narrative, which is now the explanation for their inability to deliver on any of their campaign promises. This is also the answer to any question which is thrown at the ruling party regarding their performance. It’s quite simple, just blame PDP or blame Goodluck. Blame for power, blame for fuel scarcity, blame for Boko Haram, blame for Fulani Herdsmen, blame for budget mess, blame for INEC’s failures, blame for the President’s frequent foreign trips. Blame for everything.

Just a few days ago, while receiving some guests, the President squirted his familiar tune. He said “In the First Republic, more enduring infrastructure was built with meagre resources. But in the past 16 years, we made a lot of money without planning for the rainy day…We showed a lot of indiscipline in managing our economy…” Of course he did not conclude the sentence without calling in PDP. In saying that, he probably forgot, or is unaware that two of his party’s high ranking chieftains were amongst those most opposed to the Sovereign Wealth Fund. They would rather have the monies shared for immediate spending. Those who even saved for their states emptied the savings before leaving office.

Now, let’s go back to the subject. Assuming the Assertion of APC that Nigeria has been destroyed, and this destruction was done over the 16 years of PDP governance, which paved way for the emergence of President Muhammadu Buhari, every sane mind should ask certain very pertinent and unavoidable questions. First, who is PDP and who is APC? Then, who is in PDP and who is in APC? If these questions are asked and answered, then we would have gotten a clearer picture of this discourse.

THE PEOPLES DEMOCRATIC PARTY (PDP)

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was founded on the 31st of August, 1998, by a group known as the G34. After the formation of PDP, the G34 formed its initial nucleus. This group was initially known as the G9, comprising of foremost old time politicians like Alex Ekwueme, Chief Solomon Lar, Sen. Francis Ellah, Alhaji Abubakar Rimi, Chief Bola Ige, Dr. Iyorcha Ayu, Prof. Jerry Gana, Alhaji Sule Lamido and Mallam Adamu Ciroma. The G9, which expanded to G18, and later to G34.

The PDP after its formation spread across Nigeria and became a national party. Its popularity grew very fast and attracted a lot of influential Nigerians. The party won the 1999 general elections and emerged the ruling party.

After successfully holding unto power for 16 years, the PDP lost power in 2015 to the All Progressives Congress (APC), which is an amalgamation of numerous political parties which were in the opposition while PDP held sway. APC capitalized on numerous internal crises which the PDP suffered, and attracted a lot of influential PDP chieftains, who eventually decamped to the APC.
Presently, the PDP is in the opposition.

THE ALL PROGRESSVES CONGRESS

The All Progressives Congress APC was formed in February 2013. It is an amalgamation of the three biggest opposition parties while PDP was in power, namely the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP). The alliance was also joined by a faction of the All Progressives Grand Aliance (APGA). The centrifugal driving force which served as the magnetic element in this merger was singular goal to kick the PDP out of power. This resolution which brought the merger to fruition was signed by representatives of the three opposition parties, namely Tom Ikimi for ACN, Sen. Annie Okonkwo for APGA, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau for ANPP, and Garba Shehu for the CPC. Shortly after the merger, Annie Okonkwo, Tom Ikimi and Ibrahim Shekarau resigned from the party and joined the PDP.

From thence, the APC grew bigger and stronger, drawing strong and influential characters to this new merger. The party also benefitted largely from an internal crisis which rocked the PDP, as 49 legislators of the National Assembly and a total of 5 Governors decamped from the PDP to the APC. Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State, Abdultafatah Ahmed of Kwara State, Rabiu Kwakwanso of Kano State, Murtala Nyako of Adamawa State, and Aliyu Wamako of Sokoto State were the 5 Governors, who formed the G5 and eventually decamped from the PDP and joined the APC to fight the PDP.

With Alliances drawn from various corners, the APC wrestled the PDP out of power in 2015, seeing President Muhammadu Buhari emerge as Nigeria’s new President.
During APC’s campaigns, certain sensitive and burning national issues were brought to the fore, and formed structure of the APC’s manifesto. The APC rode with a promise of CHANGE, which was the Party’s slogan. The party promised to bring Nigeria out of the many problems which were facing Nigeria at the time. Prominent amongst those promises were: To wipe out Boko Haram in 3 months; to stabilize the Nigerian Naira; to sweep out corruption; to provide stable electricity on assumption of office; to grow a robust economy; to feed all Nigerian school pupils; to pay unemployed graduates 5,000 naira stipends monthly; to rescue the Chibok girls who had been missing for months, and so much more.

Again, the APC constantly blamed the PDP for the many woes Nigeria was facing and begged Nigerians to give them the opportunity to lead, so as to put things right and fix PDP’s mess.
Today, one year after APC’s victory, Nigerians are yet to see the promised CHANGE. In fact, PDP is still blamed for the inability for the APC to fix Nigeria’s problems which seem to be growing in multiplicity and in geometric proportions.

SINNERS AND SAINTS

The picture that was painted by the APC was that the PDP was full of sinners who have destroyed Nigeria, and the APC was full of saints who have been sent from above to deliver Nigeria. While APC marketed this story line, a lot of Nigerians questioned the sincerity of Buhari’s posture, especially seeing that he was surrounded by a lot of people who are far from sainthood. However, Nigerians looked on, hoping that immediately after the elections, PMB will wave his magic wand and a new crop of saints will be delivered from heaven. After all, it is said that you don’t occupy a new territory with the same soldiers who conquered the territory. Let us look at navigators of the Saint-ship which will Navigate Nigeria with President Buhari to CHANGE.

THE SAINT MINISTERS

Amazingly, after many months of waiting, the saints who were delivered from heaven were mostly the same saints from the “Sinnerland”of PDP. Of the first list of 20 Ministers picked, 11 were former members of the PDP, who had served in different capacities both at the national and state levels, within the 16 years of destruction, constituting about 55% of the list. So, who destroyed Nigeria? Or had these ones been taken to a certain river, dipped and washed clean of their former sins? On the list we have names such as my own Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi.

Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi (CRA) was a principal player in “Sinnerland”. He was Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly under PDP for 8 years, When Governor Odili was governor. He was the number 3 citizen of the state. He became Governor of the state, and was Governor for almost 8 years under PDP before jumping ships to the Ship of change. He piloted the affairs of one of the biggest and richest states of the destroyed Nigeria. He served as the Chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum and championed the course which agitated for the depletion of the Sovereign Wealth Fund. It is safe to assume that his part of Nigeria was not destroyed, or he was ignorant of its destruction. For those who do not know, Rotimi is actually a saint. No jokes, or at least he is a Knight. He belongs to the Knight of Saint John’s Order in the Catholic Church. I like Rotimi because he is not corrupt, has never taken a bribe and does not even have a house. These to me are the most important prerequisites for sainthood.

Enter Saint Audu Ogbeh. Brother Audu, fellow of the Sainthood and Minister for Agriculture is one of the Navigators of Buhari’s Saint-Ship. He was Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party from 2001 to 2005, 4 good years. He is not a Knight in the catholic church like Amaechi, but at least he has earned his sainthood with the President.

Dr. Chris Nwabueze Ngige is one of the President’s best hands. He is Minister for Labour and Employment, and the one who will generate President Buhari’s 3,000,000 jobs. Like Rotimi Amaechi, Ngige is also a double Saint. He belongs to the Knight of Saint John in the Catholic Church too.

By 1999, Dr. Ngige was the Assistant National Secretary and Zonal Secretary, South East of the Peoples Democratic Party. In 2003, he was elected governor of Anambra State under PDP and was governor for 33 months. He was later elected into the Senate in 2011, within the period Nigeria was being destroyed. He served for 4 years, legislating towards the destruction of Nigeria. The same Nigeria he has been called to salvage.

For want of time and space, I will not bother about the long list of former PDP stalwarts, who now make up Buhari’s list of saints, not to talk of the great Bola Tinubu, the Jagaban and one of theChief Pilots of APC, the likes of Fayemi and Fashola who were governors while Nigeria was being destroyed.

THE CHANGE GOVERNORS AND SUPER SAINTS

Today, the APC boasts of 19 Governors, who will join the president to rebuild the wrecked Nigeria, which PDP had put in this sorry state. Interestingly, 12 of their 19 saint governors were senior members of PDP.

We may also take a quick look at the super governors, the saints who will drive the change process at the states in support of the Presidents reconstruction process.

Mallam Nasir El-rufai is the present governor of Kaduna State. He is one of the President’s right hand men and a strong stalwart of the APC. He was one of the loudest voices that screamed change and the need to kick out Goodluck Jonathan. He abused Goodluck without mercy and got very personal with his war of words. Mallam is a saint. Before he joined the Sainthood however, he was a part of the PDP. He was very powerful under the President Obasanjo administration, and was in fact described by Mallam Nuhu Ribadu as the de-facto number 2 citizen. From November 1999 to July 2003, he was the Director General of the Bureau of Public Enterprises and the Secretary of the National Council of Privatization. From 2003 to 2007, he was Minister, Federal Capital Territory (FCT). In september 2007, former President, late Yaradua appointed him into the National Energy Council. He joined the APC and was elected governor of Kaduna State.

Governor of Benue State, Dr. Samuel Ortom was Minister of Trade and Investment under PDP. He was State Secretary as well as Deputy Chairman of the People's Democratic Party (PDP), in Benue State. He was Director of Operations of the PDP gubernatorial campaign in Benue State in 2007 and Director of Administration and Logistics of the Goodluck/Sambo Presidential Campaign Organization in 2011. He was PDP National Auditor before his appointment as Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in July 2011.

In April 2015, he contested for Governor of Benue State and won under the platform of the All Progressives Congress. He is a super saint.

Kano State governor, Dr. Abdullahi Umar Gandule was a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The party which destroyed Nigeria. He was Deputy Governor of Kano State for 2 terms. Between 1999 and 2003, and between 2011 and 2015. Gandule was also appointed as the Hon. Commissioner for Local Government. From 2003 to 2007 he served as the special Adviser (Political) to the Hon. Minister of Defence, Federal Republic of Nigeria. Ganduje also served as member of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), and was at some point appointed chairman of the Federal Polytechnic, Ado-Ekiti in 2008. He was later appointed as the executive secretary of the Lake Chad Basin Commission. He participated in the 2006 Nigerian Political Reforms Conference. It is comfortable to say that he was never a part of the destruction.

Rochas Okorocha, Governor of Imo State was a member of the Peoples Democratic Party. Rochas left the party when he could clinch the ticket to be the party’s gubernatorial flag bearer. He later returned to PDP and was Special Adviser to President Obasanjo on interparty matters. He left the Party again in 2005 to form the Action Alliance (AA), to enable him run for President. He returned to PDP in 2007 and aspired to be the National Chairman of the Party. He decamped from PDP to APGA again in 2011 to run for Governorship. In 2015, he dumped the APGA and joined the APC. He is a saint.

The list goes on and on and on. Lalong the Governor of Plateau State was the speaker of the House of Assembly under PDP, Alhaji Ahmed of Kwara State was Commissioner for Finance and Economic Development under PDP, Alhaji Aminu Masari of Katsina State was Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State was Speaker of House of Representatives, Tanko Almakura of Nasarawa was a founding member of PDP, Bindu J. Umaro of Adamawa was member of House of Representatives under PDP, Abubakar Bagudu of Kebbi was a Senator under PDP, Badaru Abubakar of Jigawa was a stalwart of the PDP, and Abubakar Sanni Bello of Niger State was Commissioner for Commerce and Investment under PDP.

WHAT HAS THIS CHANGE CHANGED?

It is obvious that Nigerians have been sold a weapon of mass deceit. The same people who accuse the PDP of destroying Nigeria are the same people who destroyed Nigeria. The destroyer has come to rebuild. I cannot say that some members of the PDP cannot be said to be culpable or blamed for some of the challenges that we face as a country. It is however dubious and deceitful for the APC to completely absolve itself of blames on the situation we find ourselves. We must also stop the narrative that Nigeria has been destroyed. I do not agree that Nigeria has been destroyed. Let us continue building and forget about complaining about yesterday. I agree that all that have sinned and come short of the glory must be brought to book, but that must not take the place pushing the promised change. I am sure the President can multi task.

Rather than keep the blame game going, the President should realize that the buck now stops with him. He should begin to work towards achieving results and delivering on the many promises he made to Nigerians. So far the APC and the President have not brought anything to the table, after almost one year. No tangible change. This change has become synonymous to “flip flop”, and the changers have become akin to dogs who eat their vomit.

He should be able to come out and ask for forgiveness from Nigerians, having realized that he overpromised during the campaigns, because he did not completely appreciate the enormity and complexity of certain issues he saw from afar. Mr. President should also have the humility to call on Goodluck and the likes of Okonjo Iweala and Adesina to give him clues on how they were able to manage certain sensitive aspects of the economy.

The APC must realize that elections have come and gone, and it is now time to govern. The discourse can therefore no longer be about APC and PDP, but about Nigeria and its development. The APC must assume a nationalistic stance and forget about infantile bickering. Very importantly, they should also remind uncle Lai Mohammed that he no longer speaks for the APC, he now speaks for Nigeria. The good old man obviously has not still come out of the campaign frenzy. I wish the President well.

Source: https://www.facebook.com/enemialabo.george/posts/873400999437793?pnref=story

Xda59:
Hmmmm your friend is a green horn when it comes to sexuality. It is always the price you pay when you are slow. I used to be that way too until i lost three virgin girlfriends consecutively. The first one happened when i just finished secondary school then my virgin girlfriend was still in SSS2, we had a quarrel that lasted for about a month before we made up, but the damage had been done already by a youth corper posted to teach in her school. The second one was back in the university, she didn't let me touch her because she claimed to be a virgin and wants us to wait until we are married, guess what? she got disvirgined by her next door neighbour off campus who is always the first to greet and welcome me everytime i visited her. While the last that broke the camel's hump and the most painful was when a virgin girl i dated for 8 good years to the point that everyone thought we would finally get married, she even converted from islam to christianity because of me. I was so proud of her because she was 26 years old and still a virgin but to my greatest disappointment, she got disvirgined by her pastor of all people when she was posted to kaduna state for her NYSC. That was when i realised that i was as slow as a snail and too inexperienced when it comes to women. I don't think i was forgiven by God because of my slow pace and wasted chances which i still regret till date. I have become very aggressive when it comes to taking it first time but the virgins no longer come my way. What a shame!

bidexiii:
Continuation .....

According to the secret US document of 1 July 1967, Edith’s
parents, having lived in the North for 30 years, where she
too was born, had fled back to the East in October 1966
because of that year’s massacre of the Igbo. Not 30,000 but
around 7,000 were killed, according to the American
documents. Donald Patterson of the Political Section and
Tom Smith of the Economic Section travelled from the US
Embassy in Lagos to the North after the pogrom. “The
Sabon-Garis were ghost towns, deserted, with the detritus of
people, who had fled rapidly, left behind. Most Northerners
we talked to had no apologies for what had happened to the
Ibos, for the pogrom that had killed so many. There were
exceptions, but in general, there was no remorse and the
feeling was one of good riddance.
“One day, our Hausa gardener attacked and tried to beat up
our Ibo cook. We fired the gardener, but not long
afterwards, the cook left for the East,” said Patterson.
Earlier that week, Gowon called the West German
Ambassador in Lagos. The Germans were eager to be in the
good graces of the Gowon administration. A war loomed.
And in wars, buildings, roads, bridges, and other
infrastructure are destroyed. These would need rebuilding.
The contract for the 2nd Mainland Bridge (later called Eko
Bridge) was signed two years earlier by the Ambassador,
CEO of Julius Berger Tiefbau AG and Shehu Shagari, Federal
Commissioner for Works and Survey. That was Julius
Berger’s first contract in Nigeria. It was due for completion
in less than two years and they wanted more bilateral
cooperation. The ambassador assured Gowon over the
phone that he had taken care of all the details and
guaranteed the safety of Edith, the nation’s “First Girlfriend”.
On the evening of 30 June, just before her departure on a
commercial airline, Edith told the American Defense Attaché
Standish Brooks, and his wife, Gail, that she actually wanted
to go to the UK or USA, but Jack, as she affectionately called
Gowon, insisted that she could be exposed to danger in
either of the two countries. Germany, he reasoned, would
be safer.
To Major B.M. Usman and other northern officers around
Gowon, who had attributed his slow response to the
secession to the fact that his girlfriend was Igbo and that her
parents were resettled in the East, it was such a huge relief
that at the Supreme Military Council meeting of 3 July 1967,
Gowon authorized the long awaited military campaign.
Edith had safely landed in West Germany. Gowon told the
gathering: “Gentlemen, we are going to crush the rebellion,
but note that we are going after the rebels, not the Ibos.”
The military action, which was to become the Nigerian Civil
War or the Biafran War or Operation Unicord, as it was
coded in military circles, officially started on 6 July 1967 at 5
a.m. The North was minded to use the war as a tool to reassert its dominance of national affairs. Mallam Kagu, Damboa, Regional Editor of the Morning Post, told the American consul in Kaduna: “No one should kid himself that this is a fight between the East and the rest of Nigeria. It is a fight between the North and the Ibo.” He added that the rebels would be flushed out of Enugu within six weeks. Lt. Colonel Hassan Katsina went further to say with the level of
enthusiasm among the soldiers; it would be a matter of
“only hours before Ojukwu and his men were rounded up”.
The northern section of the Nigerian military was the best
equipped in the country. To ensure the region’s continued
dominance, the British assigned most of the army and air
force resources to the North. It was only the Navy’s they
could not transfer. All the elite military schools were there.
The headquarters of the infantry and artillery corps were
there. Kaduna alone was home to the headquarters of the
1st Division of the Nigerian Army, Defense Industries
Corporation of Nigeria (Army Depot), Air Force Training
School and, Nigerian Defence Academy.
Maitama Sule, Minister of Mines and Power in 1966, once
told the story of how Muhammadu Ribadu, his counterpart
in Defence Ministry, went to the Nigerian Military School,
Zaria, and the British Commandant of the school told him
many of the students could not continue because they failed
woefully. When Ribadu thumbed through the list, Sule said,
it was a Mohammed, an Ibrahim, a Yusuf or an Abdullahi.
“You don’t know what you are doing and because of this you
cannot continue to head the school,” an irate Ribadu was
said to have told the commandant.
Shehu Musa Yar’Adua was one of the students for whom the commandant was sacked. “You can see what Yar’Adua later became in life. He became the vice president. This is the power of forward planning,” Sule declared.
Unknown to the forward planners, according to the US
documents, Ojukwu had been meticulously preparing for
war as early as October 1966, after the second round of
massacre in the North. He had stopped the Eastern share of
revenues that were supposed to accrue to the Federation
Account. By 30 April 1967, he had recalled all Igbos serving
in Nigeria embassies and foreign missions and those that
heeded his call were placed on the payroll of the
government of Eastern Region. The 77,000 square
kilometres of the Republic of Biafra–a mere 8 per cent of the size of Nigeria–was already divided into 20 provinces, with leaders selected for each. They had their own judiciary,
legislative councils, ministries and ambassadors. Alouette
helicopters and a B26 bomber were procured from the
French Air Force through a Luxemburg trading company.
Hank Warton, the German-American arms dealer, had been
flying in Czech and Israeli arms via Spain and Portugal since
October 1966. The military hardware, they could not get,
they seized. A DC3 and a Fokker F27 were seized from the
Nigerian Air Force in April. NNS Ibadan, a Nigerian Navy
Seaward Defence Boat (SDB) that docked in Calabar Port,
was quickly made Biafran.
Major Chukwuma Nzeogwu, who was supposed to be in
Enugu in prison for his role in 1966 coup, joined in training
recruits in Abakaliki. Foreign mercenaries were training
indoctrinated old people, young men and teenagers
recruited as NCOs [Non-commissioned Officers] in jungle
warfare, bomb making, mortar and other artillery firing.
Ojukwu, through speeches, town hall meetings, market
square performances and radio broadcasts, succeeded in
convincing his people that their destiny was death or a
separate state. All his performances in Ghana that
culminated in the Aburi Accord of January 1967, or
discussions with the Awolowo-led National Conciliation
Committee five months later, turned out to be ruse.
The underground war preparations, the secret arms
stockpiles openly manifested themselves as Ojukwu’s
stubborn refusal to accept offers or concessions during
these peace meetings.
But the Biafrans knew that their vulnerable line was along
Ogoja, Ikom, Calabar, Port Harcourt, and Yenogoa. Support
from the six million people making up the Eastern
minorities was very much unsure. The minorities viewed
their leaders in Biafra high command as traitors. And
without the minorities, Biafra would be landlocked and most likely, unviable as a state. More so, their vast oil and gas resources were the reason they contemplated secession in the first place. The Biafra high command believed that if
there was going to be any troop incursion from there, they
are going to be transported through ship. They already had
a B26 bomber to deal fire to Nigeria’s only transport ship,
NNS Lokoja, anytime it approached the Biafran coastline.
The Biafrans also knew that Gowon wanted to respect the
neutrality of Midwest and not invade through Niger Bridge,
which would have driven the people of the Midwest into
waiting Biafran hands. But if Gowon changed his mind and
there was a general mobilization of the two battalions of the
federal troops there, they had trustworthy men there that
would alert Enugu. And if that failed, according to the US
documents, the Niger Bridge had been mined using
“explosives with metal covering across the roadbed at
second pier out from the eastern side”.
The Biafrans also knew that the Yoruba, who were sworn
enemies of the Northern hegemony, would never join the
North militarily or politically against the Biafrans. When
Gowon vouched to “crush the rebellion,” progressive Yoruba
intellectuals deplored the language. Professor Hezekiah
Oluwasanmi, Vice Chancellor of University of Ife, described
the use of the word as unfortunate. Justice Kayode Eso of
the Western Court of Appeal said: “Crushing the East was not the way to make Nigeria one.”
Mr. Strong, the American consul in Ibadan, whom they had
been speaking to, confidentially wrote: “As intellectuals and
modernizers, they see the conflict in terms of continuing
determination of conservative North to dominate the more
advanced South and they expressed fear that once North
subdues East, it will seek to assert outright dominance over
the West. The centre of trouble might then swing back to the
West, where it all started.”
The Biafrans understood, therefore, that their strongest
defence perimeter would be along Nsukka, Obudu, Gakem
and Nyonya in Ogoja province, where they share border
with the North. That was where they concentrated. On 8 July
after three days of fighting, only four Biafran troops were
dead and nine wounded in Obudu, while up to 100 Nigerian
troops were dead, according to the Irish Embassy official,
Eamon O’tuathail, who visited the Catholic Mission Hospital
in Obudu. He said: “Forty five (45) of the dead had already
been buried and the villagers were seen carrying the heads
of the remaining around town.” In June before fighting
started, Ojukwu charged on Biafra Radio: “Each Biafran
soldier should bring back ten or twenty Hausa heads.”
At Nyanya, Nigerian troops attempted to seize the bridge
linking Obudu and Ogoja, but were beaten back by the
Biafran troops on 7 July at 1400hrs. According to the New
York Times’ Lloyd Garrison’s dispatch of 8 July: “The Biafran
Air Force–a lone B-26 fighter bomber–flew sorties from
Enugu today, bombing and strafing enemy columns. Asked
what damage it had inflicted, its European pilot replied:
“Frankly, I don’t know. But we made a lot of smoke.
Hundreds of Enugu pedestrians waved and cheered each
time the plane returned from a mission and swooped low
over the city buzzing Ogui Avenue.”
Tunde Akingbade of the Daily Times, who was returning
from the frontlines, said the first Nigerian battalion in Ogoja
area was “almost completely wiped out by a combination of
mines and electrical devices (Ogbunigwe)”.
In the first few weeks of the war, the Biafrans were clearly
on top. “Enugu is very calm,” the confidential cable of 13 July 1967 noted. “Ojukwu is dining with Field Commanders in State House tonight.”
On the federal side, confusion reigned. They had grossly
underestimated Biafran capabilities. “Gowon and his
immediate military advisers believe they can carry out a
successful operation putting their trust in the superiority of
the Hausa soldier,” the British High Commissioner, Sir David
Hunt, told his American counterpart on 31 May 1967. He
said further: “A northern incursion would be hastily
mounted, ill-conceived and more in the nature of a foray.”
Even the Nigerian infantry, which advanced as far as Obolo
on Oturkpo-Nsukka Road, was easily repelled. It ran out of
ammunition. At the Supreme Headquarters in Lagos, they
were accusing Shuwa, the commander, of not sending
enough information about what was going on. Shuwa
counter-accused that he was not getting enough and timely
orders. Requests for ammunition and hardware
procurement were chaotically coming to the Federal
Armament Board from different units, not collectively from
the central command.
Major S.A. Alao, acting commander of Nigerian Air Force
(after George Kurubo defected to Biafran High Command)
together with the German adviser, Lieutenant Colonel Karl
Shipp, had travelled to many European cities to buy jets.
They were unsuccessful. Gowon had written to the American
president for arms. The State Department declined military
assistance to either side. Gowon replied that he was not
requesting for assistance, but a right to buy arms from the
American market. That too was rejected.
The CIA had predicted a victory for Ojukwu, but American
diplomatic and consular corps in Nigeria predicted victory
for the Federal side and concluded that a united Nigeria
served American interests better than the one without the
Eastern Region. Two conflicting conclusions from an
important department and a useful agency. The American
government chose to be neutral. Dean Rusk, America’s
Secretary of State said: “America is not in a position to take
action as Nigeria is an area under British influence.”
The British on the other hand were foot-dragging. At the
insistence of Awolowo, “the acting prime minister” as he was
called in diplomatic circles, Gowon approached the Soviet
Union.
According to a secret cable (dated 24/08/67) sent by Dr.
Martin Hillenbrand, American Ambassador in East Germany,
to his counterpart in Lagos, MCK Ajuluchukwu, Ojukwu’s
special envoy, met Soviet Ambassador to Nigeria, Alexandr
Romanov, in Moscow in June 1967. Romanov said that for
USSR to recognize Biafra and supply it arms, the latter had
to nationalize the oil industry. Ojukwu refused, saying that
he had no money to reimburse the oil companies and that
Biafrans did not have the expertise to run the oil
installations.
A month later, Anthony Enahoro, the Federal Commissioner for Information and Labour, went to Moscow, signed a cultural agreement with Moscow and promised to nationalize the oil industry, including its allied industries once they got arms to recapture them from the Biafrans. Within days, 15 MiGs arrived in sections in Ikeja and Kano airports, awaiting assemblage. There was no nationalization. Meanwhile, buoyed by the confidence from early success, the Biafrans went on the offensive. Their B26 (one of the six originally intended for use against the Nigerian Navy) was fitted with multiple canon and 50mm calibre machine gun mounts. It conducted bombing raids on Makurdi airfield, Kano and Kaduna. Luckily for Nigeria, the two transport DC3s had gone to Lagos to get more reserve mortar and 106-artillery ammo. In Kano, there were no fatalities, only a slight damage to the wing of a commercial plane.
Kaduna, however, was not that lucky. On 10 August 1967, the B26 dropped bombs on Kaduna airbase, damaging many buildings and the main hangar. The German consulate in Kaduna confirmed that a German citizen, a Dornier technician tasked with maintaining Nigerian military planes, was killed and two others injured.
A week later, the senior traffic control officer, A.O. Amaku,
was arrested for sabotage. He was accused of failing to shut
off the airport’s homing device, thus giving the Biafran plane
navigational assistance. His British assistant, Mr. Palfrey,
was similarly suspected. He resigned and immediately
returned to the UK. However, Major Obada, the airbase
commanding officer and an Urhobo from the Midwest,
strongly defended the accused.
The daring bomb raid provoked many more Northern
civilians to run to the nearest army base and enlist to fight.
According to a report by US Ambassador Elbert Matthews,
cabled to Washington on 3 July 1967, unidentified men tried
to bomb the police headquarters in Lagos on the night of 2
July. They attempted to drive an automobile into the
compound, but the guards did not open the gate. They
packed the car across the street near a small house opposite a petrol station. Leaving the car, the men fled and within seconds, an explosion took place. The house was
demolished and all its occupants killed, but the petrol
station was unaffected. Eleven people, including some of the guards at the police headquarters, were injured.
Two hours later, a second explosion, from explosives in a
car parked by a petrol station, rocked Yaba. This time, the
station caught fire. The ambassador remarked: “It is possible this is a start of campaign of terrorism…public reactions could further jeopardize safety of Ibos in Lagos.” And sure it
did. A Lagos resident, who visited the police headquarters after the attack, told the Australian ambassador “Ibos must be killed.”

estyvino:
In 1883, Henry Ziegland dumped his longtime
girlfriend. Heartbroken, she hanged herself. Her brother
vowed to avenge her and hunted down Ziegland. When
he finally found him, he aimed for his head and shot.
Ziegland fell to the ground. The girl's brother, believing
he had exerted his vengeance, committed suicide with
the same gun. Little did he know that Ziegland would
survive, for the bullet had merely grazed his cheek and
lodged itself in a nearby tree.
Several years later, Ziegland attempted to cut down
that particular tree. He had the brilliant idea of using
dynamite and the resulting explosion sent the dormant
bullet right through his skull. It seems the bullet
refused to miss its target.

That gat me wondering

ColinAdua:
I am 36+, single, loving it and will love to be single for life, forever. Infact, I have decided to be single forever. Today, I just looked back and I feel so happy, taking this decision 10 years ago during my NYSC.

My life is so clutter free and stress less when compared with those of my married peers. I said this is definitely one of the best decisions I have made in my life. Because my life is so peaceful and predicted. I work only on my business and starting post graduate studies.

I feel I need to celebrate my 10 years taking this decision to stay unmarried and single(MIND YOU I DON'T DO BOYFRIEND - GIRLFRIEND RUBBISH. I BELIEVE ITS A SIN).

In celebrating, I think it good to encourage more young men to embrace this way. Just like Bible says; "He that is able to receive it(singleness), let him receive it"(Matthew 19:12). You can read from verse 10 for better understanding.



140 Reasons Why You Should Consider never marrying.
There are lots of good reasons to stay single. At first you may think that staying single isn't a good thing, but there are few things you should consider, well 140 things to be exact. This is a comprehensive list about not being in a relationship or marriage and the perks that come with it. I bet a lot of these things don't even cross your mind, and perhaps after you read this you'll give the single life a second thought.

1. You can do what you want, when you want.
2. You don't have to dress up for anyone.
3. You don't have to cook for anyone but yourself.
4. No nagging. Ever.
5. You don't have to pay for your girlfriend/wife or children.
6. You can snore when you feel like snoring.
7. You don't have to meet her parents, especially if they dislike you.
8. You don't have to share scare resources.
9. No wife to invade your privacy (email, facebook, cell numbers, whatsapp etc).
10. Don't have to worry about marriage and it's costs.
11. Don't have to hear "But, honey.. we never have our alone time!"
12. You don't have to share the television.
13. You can play video games all day in your free time without feeling guilty.
14. You decide when to go to bed.
15. You don't have to make dinner for anyone.
16. You can scratch yourself, stretch, yawn and fart, and all that other rude stuff when you want.
17. Your food/foods stuff lasts much longer, only cooking for one.
18. You can sleep till noon on weekends without feeling bad.
19. Less pressure about your weight.
20. You are the king of the toilet seat, it can remain up or down, as you like.
21. Don't have to worry about "accidently" having a child.
22. You can vacuum when you feel like it.
23. You don't have to worry about being "dumped".
24. There is no jealousy, people won't know how poor/rich you are, if you don't want them to know.
25. You can "geek out" without being nagged.
26. Everything in your home is yours, and stays where you keep it.
27. You don't have to explain where you were last night.
28. You decide when to do the dishes.
29. A lot more time to spend with friends or at church.
30. Less pet peeves to deal with.
31. Don't have to worry about her hanging out with guy friends (and vice versa).
32. You are not morally obligated to do things against your will.
33. No one else is going to eat your leftover chicken and pepper soup.
34. You can concentrate more on your own life and targets.
35. You can answer the phone when you feel like answering the phone!
36. You can sit there all day in your underwear or even naked and not feel obligated to dress.
37. Going out to eat and then to a movie is cheaper for just one.
38. You won't have that "I want kids" discussion. Nonsense!!!
39. When your car gets old and has a lot of miles on it, you can trade it in for a new one without anyone complaining or feeling bad.
40. You can eat whatever you want, when you want, without a compromise.
41. You don't have to hang with her annoying, disrespectful, lazy, saucy, attitudinal friends.
42. You can walk around naked without fear of her bringing friends home.
43. No sharing of the fan, it's all yours.
44. Only have to deal with your own insecurities, and not hers too.
45. You can stare at the gals all you want without the "uh oh, busted" feeling.
46. You don't have to come up with excuses for things.
47. You don't have to worry about your checking account vanishing mysteriously. Well, not as much.
48. You don't have to suffer a pink puffy bathroom.
49. Speaking of bathrooms, you don't have to worry about "the smell" after you go.
50. You only have to deal with your own fetishes, and not some abnormal fetishes that are totally alien and nauseating to you.
51. No one is telling you that you need to work out and lose weight.
52. You don't have to buy gifts for the holidays for the 'extended family'.
53. You don't have to tell white lies. "Yes dear, that dress is pretty", when you know its whack.
54. If you live alone, you can pee(even on your bed and no one will know) with the door open without grief.
55. You don't have to suffer her going through your belongings.
56. You don't have to worry about your cell phone bill being huge because she borrowed it for a whole week or sending any one recharge card.
57. No one will steal your covers at night.
58. Paying for vacations for one is cheaper.
59. You don't have to suffer the aftermath of a breakup.
60. You don't have to hide your habits.
61. You don't have to shave.
62. You get the entire couch to yourself.
63. No one sees what you look like when you wake up in the morning.
64. No waking from the other person's snoring, farting or even bed wetting!
65. No one to accidentally see your dirty or torn underwear.
66. You get the entire boxed "meal for two" for just yourself!
67. No one telling you to get your clothes out of the washer or dryer.
68. When you cook you don't have to worry about how bad it is.
69. You don't have to share your soap.
70. No one telling you what you can or cannot buy when shopping.
71. No one is telling you to go to the gym because their embarrassed by how you look.
72. No one complaining about what you are listening to in your car.
73. You won't have someone throwing out your stuff because they think you don't need them any more.
74. All of the space in the closet is all yours.
75. All those dirty messes you made, you can leave them that way for as long as you want!
76. You can drink milk straight out of the container without anyone telling you to use a glass.
77. You won't have any other opinions to contend with.
78. You won't have to bother about birth control, pills, condoms or even whether your kids are yours and all those rubbish.
79. When you get home from work, you can do whatever you want without someone telling you to get something done around the house.
80. You won't have someone else telling you what is right and what is wrong.
81. You won't have someone taping over your favorite movies.
82. You don't have to laugh at jokes that are not funny.
83. Someone isn't telling you to cut the lawn.
84. Someone isn't telling you to not hang out with certain friends.
85. You don't have to appear to eat healthy around her.
86. You won't have your in-laws telling you about their religious beliefs, which are not your own.
87. You don't have to spend thousands on a engagement ring.
88. You won't have to tell them you love the ring they got you, even though you think it's rubbish.
89. Speaking of weddings, it's cheaper not having one. Imagine spending over N300,000 just for a wedding.
90. You won't have someone vacuuming during your nap.
91. You are the supreme master of the refrigerator.
92. You won't have doubts if the person you are with is really in love with you or not.
93. The only debt you have to worry about is yours.
94. You won't have to worry about marriage counseling.
95. You don't have to give anyone reasons for buying the 100" big screen 3D LED TV.
96. You won't have someone nagging you to get a better job or why you resigned.
97. You don't have to worry about compliments and if they're good enough.
98. There is less noise if you live alone.
99. You can run around in a make-shift toga and do a little dance while singing opera without someone giving you a strange expression.
100. You clean the bathroom when you feel like cleaning the bathroom.
101. You don't have to worry about coming up with vacations and if they are good enough for your significant other.
102. You don't have to buy gifts for her or her brood!
103. Your car is yours, no sharing.
104. You will always get the best seat in the house to watch your favorite shows and movies.
105. You are never late for anything. Ever.
106. You decide if you want pets or not.
107. You only have to worry about retirement for one.
108. If you want Tom and Jerry bed sheets, you can have them!
109. You don't have to listen to someone else meaningless preferred music, like Nigerian hip hop music(very meaningless).
110. The only sick person that you have to worry about, is you.
111. You won't bother about paying school fees(high rising school fees), except your own.
112. A cruise to Obudu Cattle Ranch is cheaper by yourself.
113. You don't have to clean up after anyone but yourself.
114. When you shop for food at a store, your have the authority on whats good for you or not.
115. You never have to hear the line, "Let's just be friends".
116. You control the thermostat and remote, in your house, if you are too cold crank that sucker up.
117. You can play video games all night without someone telling you to be more productive with your time or come to bed.
118. You can talk on the phone for hours with girls without hearing the "who's that, who's that??" line.
119. There is no compromising on how to decorate your house, it's totally up to you.
120. You don't have to explain why an entire pan of brownies have been eaten in a single night.
121. Speaking of desserts, you only have the ones in which you like. No fruitcake for you.
122. You decide when to do the pile of dishes in the sink.
123. You don't have to worry about bailing your wife out of custody at 3am in the morning on a work night.
124. You don't have to explain why you have a brand new expensive sports car in the driveway.
125. You can veg all day in front of the television watching your favorite TV football club without complaint.
126. No one complaining why girls are leaving comments on your Facebook, twitter, etc.
127. The only "voice of reason" is your own to deal with.
128. You don't have to say "I'm wrong, you're right" even though you know that you're right but you're just saying that you're wrong to stop argueing.
129. Pray as like, shout it as you like, as long as you like, without bothering how she feels..
130. There won't be any "meet the parents" problems.
131. You only have to support yourself.
132. You don't have to wonder what they mean when they say "No, I don't need flowers", yet when you don't get flowers for them they get mad.
133. All the money from the tax return is yours to spend on whatever, without being hassled.
134. You won't have to deal with the "I love you" question, and whether or not if they really mean it.
135. No one will throw your stuff out on the lawn.
136. There will be no one asking you "What time will you be home?" and giving you a guilty feeling about even going out.
137. No one is wondering why your are reading this list in the place, at all. Single or Not?
138. Bible even recommends it.(Matthew 19: 10 - 12, 1 Corinthians 7: 8, 26, 29, 32, 37, 38)
139. You can't worry how to explain to her people or police how she died, whether you used her for money rituals or those rubbish that in-laws usually throw up.
140. You won't bother whether she is lousy in bed, frigid, barren or even infected with STDs.

Let's keep it here for now.

In a nutshell, in fact you're as free as the air.

Is the single life better than being married? Single is better.

Waooo! Singlehood is strength! Singlehood is sweet! Singlehood is sumptuous!

Have a taste!!!

Royal155:
Why has Mbaka refused to speak again? Or abi prophetic messages don finish?
I remember during GEJ regime, how he was vocal, dropping prophetic messages every now and then. Now he has kept mute because the wind of CHANJI has now blew off what was used to blind fold him.

WE DEY WATCH IN 3D

fortunechy:
BREAKING NEWS!!!
Easter May Be Postponed!!!
Judas is refusing to betray Jesus this year. He claims that 30
pieces of silver is too small due to the current economy
situation and high rate of US dollar.
He is demanding 100% increment on the amount.
Negotiations are still ongoing.
You are hereby advised to free your cows, goats, turkeys and
chickens awaiting Crucifixion during the Easter season,
pending when he will receive alert from his bank.
Judas and his entire family duly apologize for the
inconveniences caused...