₦airaland Forum

@morpheus

Quite nice of you giving that brother some good piece of advice. We need more of you.

Meanwhile, I am planning on going to South Africa for one year course. We will be staying in Bramley,Jo'burg and attending the course in Orange Grove. Do you know about these areas, how safe are they? I am just strictly going for studies and want to concentrate to the fullest. Your kind advice is highly appreciated.

@Okada_man

Gbam! More grease to your elbow brother. Our traditional wears are more flamboyant and our leaders should keep flying them high.

Sometimes I wonder, why we Africans are too obsessed with almost everything western.

@ Mr Erico

The poster emphasized 'English' and not 'Jewish or Hebrew' names. Westerners borrowed Jewish names, and anglicized it.

Binyamin to Benjamin, Yoshua to Joshua and so on. Even, there was a time when Europeans can tell who is Jewish by their names.

Mark zuckerberg--- Founder of facebook= Jewish
Paul Krugman= Nobel Laureate , Economics= Jewish and countless of them.

In fact , there was a time in Europe, Jewish people began to change their names to avoid discrimination. The core reason for the establishment of Jewish state--Israel, is for them to be able to espouse their Jewishness proudly without being a target of some sort.

@eric02k2

Go and learn some history. Africans have the longest history, even before the Europeans discovered themselves, They too can attest to that, hence, the research they have been conducting. Do not be brainwashed. It seems you are suffering from self hatred.

@OP

Some people give or bear names like "junior", "Eric", "Shelly", "Jessica", "Linda" without knowing what they mean. They even think it is trendy and wants their kids to belong. A famous African American once said "the white man knows you(African Americans/Africans) more than you know yourself".

During the Harlem Renaissance , Enlightened African Americans began to go back to their roots and started given their children African names like Kwame, Ashanti, Kanye, Adaeze and so on. Do some research. We need to stop this inferiority complex and educate our future generation in every facets of life to be proud of their heritage. The underlying truth is that, the white man tends to respect an African man that cherishes his culture than one who fakes himself to belong to the western world. Because, they know that we Africans have a very rich cultural heritage.

Has anyone heard of an operating system called "Ubuntu"? It is the 4th widely used system and growing fast. The project was initiated by a white South Africa that named it after a traditional African philosophy.

I think the most fundamentally problem wey dey kill our people for Niaja and Africa na massive dose of inferiority complex! Even our president they suffer from it, that is why he went ahead and recognized the Libyan "rebels" to please the WEST, why black Africans and black Libyans are being slaughtered by these same rebels. Bring back likes of Nnamdi Azikiwe, Obafemi Awolowo, Kwame Nkrumah, these are men who fought for Pan-Africanism with pride. Their names is a testament to that. Not "Good-luck Jonathan", "Mark David West", Haba, na when our eyes go open naaaaaaaa?

@Cap28

You are right on point and quite a critical thinker who understands the western society and their hypocrisy.

@Euromeko

No matter how long you live in the west, defend them and anything of that nature. You will never be seen as equal by them. Ask black Americans that have been living there for the past 400 years. In conclusion, You seem to be suffering from massive dose of inferiority complex.

@EuroMeko

I don't blame you. You are not in the shoes of those that have fallen into the rebels hands for what they did not do. Anyways, your user-name suggest that you are one of those that have been brainwashed by the west.

The so called rebels are slaughtering our black African brothers and black Libyans with impunity and No governmental entity or world body is doing anything serious about it. Obama in particular who gave the green light in the first place have not come out to condemn the killings. Maybe he is a closet Muslim of Arabic extraction from his Kenya side. Kenya has a sizable Arab African looking people because of the slavery by Arab merchants in that region.

I am planning on going for a one year course at an institute in Capetown, South Africa. I would like to know how life there is generally. Cost of things, accommodation at city center, security and any relevant information that i would need concerning my stay there. Your kind advice and information is highly welcome and appreciated.

One Love.

@Beaf

Right on point. Exactly what I was thinking going through the article. If he thinks UK is behind, what would he think of our beloved naija.

@Fayimora

Electricity is important. But what is most important is philosophy to computer science.

Google chairman Eric Schmidt has attacked the country's education system, saying a failure to appreciate the importance of computer science was holding the country back in the digital age.

In a lecture at a broadcasting conference in Edinburgh on Friday, the chairman of the Internet giant accused Britons of "throwing away your great computing heritage" by promoting a separation of arts and sciences in education.

"If I may be so impolite, your track record isn't great," he said.

"The UK is home of so many media-related inventions. You invented photography. You invented TV. You invented computers in both concept and practice.

"Yet today, none of the world's leading exponents in these fields are from the UK."

He said he was shocked that computer science was not taught as standard in British schools, adding: "Your IT curriculum focuses on teaching how to use software, but gives no insight into how it's made."

Schmidt also laughed off criticisms that Google was trying to "take over the world" and planned to make television content on a large scale.

"Trust me, if you gave people at Google free rein to produce TV you'd end up with a lot of bad sci-fi," he said.

Schmidt was the first non-broadcaster to give the landmark lecture at the Media Guardian Edinburgh International Television Festival, a major event in British broadcasters' diary.

Prominent figures from the broadcasting world have delivered it in the past, including News Corporation chief Rupert Murdoch and his son James.

@OP

South Africa is Africa's industrial powerhouse. We supply many of their products at major markets and malls in Lagos and Abuja. If your friend is keen on doing this. Let him holla.

One love

In a country where a money miss road is respected than a person with a great idea. A society that has been eaten deeply by materialism. what do you expect?

We have to be philosophical and apply critical thinking in our approach to things before any fundamental change will occur in that country. Other than that, Mediocrity will continue to be glorified the more.

Both using using it for paying for things online and withdrawing money from ATM abroad.

@OP

We still have a long long way to go. As you acknowledged, most of the sectors you mentioned are service sectors.

Nigeria as a country imports almost everything she uses. She earns 95% of foreign exchange through oil. About $200million a day, that is a huge sum of money. If the cost of oil on the international market is dwarfed by any new technology by a significant amount, it will hit the Nigerian economy badly overnight.

Internet is not reliable/stable. No electricity. Virtually no manufacturing industry. Substantial growth of an economy is calculated by the amount of goods manufactured in that country. If that foreign exchange from oil stops flowing, those service industry you mentioned will crumble overnight, even people will not have the money to put in the banks, government will not have enough money to pay workers,there will be lack of fund to boost other sectors which have been neglected by our leaders for years, consumers will not have the cash to buy things, which will drastically affect traders.

Without concrete infrastructure. No real economic growth. We are barely surviving behind the shadow of oil money. A mere illusion. We need fundamental development and deep thinkers push it forward.

•Senators earns more than VP, Senate President
The Sun Publishing
Saturday, July 16, 2011

With the authentic figures by the RMAFC, it means the four-year tenure of Mr. President will fetch him a total of N56m in salaries and allowances.

A table of the emoluments of all political office holders in the nation and those of judiciary made available at the commission’s website listed the figures.

With this revelation of what used to inhabit the realm of conjecture and secrecy, RMAFC must have laid to rest the argument on how much is spent on the members of the National Assembly (NASS) for instance, or elicited another season of hairsplitting.

The question of the earnings of the members of the NASS has been a vexed issue for a long time that towards the end of the Sixth NASS, the members earned recrimination and name calling for sitting on the wealth of the nation to the exclusion of other citizens. The matter remained at the front burner especially after the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria in a public lecture dropped a claim that the NASS spends about 25 percent of the overhead of the federal budget.

Saturday Sun’s access of the RMAFC site revealed the earnings of other top officers of the state as well. That also includes the details that the number two citizen, Mr. Vice President earns a take home of N12.12m per annum or N48.48m for the four years he will be in office.

Similarly, the Senate President earns, from RMAFC approvals, about N8.7m per annum or a monthly gross emolument of N724,570.73. The Deputy Senate President earns a little less with a total package of N8.08m in a year or N673,506.97 at the end of every month.

But you can easily see what looks like a discrepancy in the earnings of these major senatorial officers and others inferior to them. Every other senator earns N12,766,320 annually or a monthly take of N1,063,860. With that package, a senator earns more than the Vice President. That means it is more lucrative to be a senator than answer the VP. The commission has explanation for that. It is because most of the allowances for principal officers of the senate and other bodies come in kind whereas the rest get theirs in cash.
The second wing of the NASS had its emoluments also published by the commission, and indicated that the Speaker of the House takes home N4.95m in a year or N412,851 per month, as his deputy earns N4.574m in a year and N381,172.38 per month.

The rest of the members of the House are paid N9.529m annually or a breakdown of N794,085 in a month.
The principal officers of the NASS earn higher than the ordinary members and also the two chief officers.
If you have a relation that was appointed a minister and you took out advertorials congratulating him or rolled out the red carpet in celebration, you might not get much in return for the investment. RMAFC revealed in its table of emoluments that a minister, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and Head of Service earn a paltry N2.02m in a year as basic salary or a total emolument of N7.801m with a monthly take of N650,136.67. So with about 40 ministers in Jonathan’s cabinet, the nation spends about N312.4m on their salaries in a year or N1.248b in the four-year tenure.

However, the presidents special advisers and others enjoy a package of a basic N1.942m in a year or a gross pay of N7.091m with a breakdown sum of N590,957.81 total monthly salary with the allowances.
RMAFC indicated that the pay listed here is not inclusive of what it called ‘non-regular allowances’. These include the controversial furniture allowance that comes once in four years, accommodation, annual leave, severance gratuity, vehicle loan indicated as optional, duty tour and estacode per night. The rest of the allowances are denominated in naira with the exception of estacodes that come in US dollars.

With the 20 Special Advisers recently approved for Mr. President as part of his team two weeks ago, the state will cough out N141.830m to pay them in a year or N567,319,496m in the four years the tenure will last.
The RMAFC chart also included senior judicial officers from the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Supreme Court justices, justices of the Court of Appeal, the Federal High Court judges, state High Court judges and the chief judges of the state and the federal high courts.
The CJN earns N6.727m gross annual income and N560,662.08 in a month, whereas other Supreme Court Justices and the President of the Court of Appeal labour for a package of N10,899,284 and a monthly pay of N908,273.67.

Before you take all these figures as absolute truth or make disputations, there is a caveat or a proviso the RMAFC left for Nigerians.
It explained in its posting that “any other salaries, allowances or others being enjoyed by any political or public office holder outside those provided by the law or determined by the Commission from time to time in accordance with the constitution, are not known to the Commission.”
RMAFC also urged anti-corruption agencies, the police and other enforcers of the ethics of good governance to hold accountable the relevant accounting officer that made such extra-statutory emolument available to the officer.


I no fit shout. May God help and rescue us.

•Nigerian, wife shot by landlord
•Authorities out to burn body
By CHIOMA IGBOKWE
Saturday, July 16, 2011


Steve Uhegbu, a graduate of Economics of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka left Nigeria for overseas when it was obvious that things were not getting smoother for him.

He in life was a peculiar child. His mum died just hours after his delivery and it was so precarious a situation that the dad had no alternative but to hand the baby over to a motherless babies’ home for care. He remained there till he was four when the father took him back to grow with his only sister.

Later in life, Steve grew and got educated to the university level. After his graduation in 2002, things didn’t turn out rosy in Nigeria therefore he decided to try his luck elsewhere outside the shores. With the assistance of his only sister who resides in USA, he got papers to travel to France. That trip to France that later took him to Germany is what his return even while packaged in a casket and speechless is becoming doubtful.

In a feat of rage, a decrepit octogenarian German landlord pulled his gun and shot Steve dead pointblank. He was not done as he also got his (Steve) German wife down before police took him.

The issue of the killing is over. Steve is stone dead, his body chilled and frozen stiff in a coldroom, but the next agony for the family is that the time the German authorities gave them to take his body may elapse. The family has not found an equivalent of N2m to pick the body back to Nigeria. And the Germans threaten that if they don’t hasten to take the body, it would be fed to the flames in a crematorium. In Germany today, it is common to cremate (burn) bodies than bury them, especially the commoner who could not afford a burial space. But poor Steve’s family says it is unthinkable that the body of a man from their part of the world would be burnt as last rite. To them, it sounds absurd and akin to roasting in hell. While they ask for more time, the Germans won’t have that. Their word on the last date is definite and the grieving father in Nigeria is still asking them to see his plight and give him more time.

In tears Pa Uhegbu, a distraught bereaved old man said: “My son is supposed to bury me. But after my efforts to train him and Steve died this way, I accept my fate, but only plead that I be allowed the grace of seeing his remains and interring it in my ancestors’ soil. That is the way of life of my people and I would be glad to have that request granted.”

After Steve spent years in France without securing permanent residency, late Steve relocated to Germany where he met his untimely death as his landlord, a German reportedly shot him and his wife over an argument.  The suspect has since been arrested and jailed.
Steve’s body is still chilling in a morgue in Germany. But not only that, the corpse may soon be burnt to ashes as the German authorities have threatened to cremate the body if his family fails to take it on or before July 19.

In an emotional plea, his only sister, Juliet Nwoga called on the German authorities to give the family more time to raise money and transport his remains back home.
Juliet who is based in US recalled that his late brother, Steve left Nigeria for France sometime in 2009 when things were not working out for him in Nigeria. “He left Nigeria sometime in 2009 after his graduation from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka in 2002. After working for years in Port Harcourt barely saving money to fend for himself and their aged dad, that was why he did not hesitate to leave the country when the opportunity came. He filed his papers repeatedly in France and they refused to grant him green card. He later moved to Germany when he met a lady who agreed to marry him.

“When he moved to Germany, he told me that he had met someone and that he would soon get his papers. I was glad because he had threatened severally that he would return to Nigeria when all efforts to get permanent residency failed.  I told him to be patient, as he would surely get someone that would help him get his papers. Luck smiled on him, as he met a German lady who agreed to marry him. When they met, he was visiting her from France and eventually moved to her home in Germany. The lady who was a mother of two, started processing a German passport for him. Last month he told me that his papers were about to be completed and promised to visit me as soon as he gets his visa before I got news of his death.
“Earlier, he complained severally that he had been having issues with his landlord over repeated increase in the house rent. In one of the instances, he asked his landlord to include his name in the contract as requested by the authority to ascertain his permanent address: having lived there long enough but his landlord turned down the request. This development severed their relationship, as they were always at loggerheads.”

On that fateful day when he was shot, Juliet said: “Steve received an outrageous water bill and decided to sort it out with the landlord. Serious argument ensued and the landlord who is about 81 years old brought out his gun and shot him. Steve staggered out from the landlord’s house and went to meet his wife downstairs. Alarmed, his German wife picked up the phone to call the police and an ambulance. Unfortunately, the trigger-happy old man was not satisfied so he came down and shot the wife before she could make an emergency call to the police.

“The two kids in the house who saw when their mother was killed ran outside shouting for help. It was then that the neighbours who heard them called the police.  The police arrived the scene and discovered the landlord calmly waiting for them inside his apartment. He admitted to the killings and handed over his short gun. He is currently in jail pending the determination of the case.

“I am yet to understand why they take so lightly the case of a man that was shot by a German citizen. Rather they are threatening to cremate his body and throw away the ashes. They do not care that the family of the deceased has rights to see the body and bury him according to their traditions. I want his body to be transported to Nigeria. I am pleading with the German people and Nigeria government. He is the only son of my father and my dad would be devastated if they cremate his remains. I saw him last when I came home for my wedding. He was soft spokes and caring and took people’s problem to heart. I was actually looking forward to seeing him as soon as his papers were ready before he was shot.”

The grieving father pleaded with the German government to grant him a last wish of seeing his son’s remains before it is buried. He said Steve travelled to France in quest of a better future. “I have been a single parent all my life as I lost my wife few hours after Steve was born. I had no choice but to send him to a motherless babies home where he was weaned for four years while I took care of his sister who was of age then. I struggled to train him and his sister up to university level. After his graduation, his sister Juliet assisted him to travel to France. I can still remember his words when he was leaving that he would soon be back to turn around my life. If it God’s will that I should bury my son I accept my fate.”
He called on Nigerians to help bring his son’s remains to Nigeria so that he can honour him by burying him in his father’s house. “I retired from government work in 2003 and since then I am yet to get my gratuity. I have been suffering and its like I am meant to suffer more with death of my dear son Steve. Please help me beg anyone that can help to enable me receive the body and bury it properly.”

The plight of the Uhegbu family was drawn to the attention of Eddy Duru, the coordinator of a humanitarian organization - Home Sweet Home in Germany. Duru is on the neck of the German government and the Nigerian Embassy in Berlin to consider the nature of the case and extend the deadline.
“I am personally on a mission which is re-educating Nigerians on the risk and dangers of unplanned journey abroad.  I got the information from a Ghanaian and stepped into the matter. So far, we do not have any issue over the justice system as the man that killed him is already in jail. We might have cause to demand compensation for the family if the man is under any kind of insurance. Meanwhile we are pleading with Germany to stop further plans to cremate the body.

“I confronted them and they insist that they could give us up to July 19, but his sister is begging that the date be extended to August so as to raise about 10,000 Euros which is about N2m to transport the corpse back to Nigeria. They are saying that on no account can they keep the body until next month. They told me recently that it is no longer in the hands of the morgue but that the court would decide whether the body would be kept longer. I have visited the Nigerian Embassy in Berlin and pleaded with the office to do everything they can to help transport the body back to Nigeria for the family to pick up or make sure that the body is kept until August, as this is an exceptional case.

I spoke with Ambassador Okoye; He made me understand that the embassy cannot pay for transporting the body home to Nigeria, that it is not its duty. What they could do is to put the paper and logistics together; the family or Nigerian community could take care of the expenses. Let them consider the fact that this man did not die a natural death and deserved some respect at least for his family to see the remains and pay their last respect to their son.”

http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/features/living/2011/july/16/living-07-16-2011-001.html

Haba! Make una take am easy with our army naaaaa. At least they thought about it to begin with. Let us encourage them and believe in our abilities.

All this negativity tire me ooo or are we suffering from massive dose of inferiority complex that we are not good at anything as the oyibo's have made us to believe?

Our military is probably the most credible institution still holding our nation together. But, in Naija, damned if you do, damned if you don't.

The Sun News
By PHILIP NWOSU
Thursday, July 14, 2011


he Nigerian Army has started local construction of gunboats for use by its amphibious unit, thereby saving the country money.

The Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Onyeabor Azubuike Ihejirika said hitherto, N300million was used to service 10 boats for the unit, an amount which he said was high.

He said this N300million was being spent on the boats every six months, but rather than deploy such money to servicing of gunboats, the army has decided to deploy the fund to construction of new boats at N55million each.

He said: “We have decided to embark upon the local construction of these boats, because when I assumed office, we discover that N300million was spent to service 10 boats and the boats became unserviceable six months after and we made enquiry and we got a local builder who built for N55million each which means with N300million we will get five brand new and the boat we built are Amoured proof.

“This type of venture implies that if we have one billion we can build 15 boats and in the process of building we deploy our men from the signals and engineering unit to be able to determine the type of communication equipment needed.”

General Ihejirika spoke during the 2011 edition of the Combat Support Arms Training week in Lagos, revealing that the force has rehabilitated light armoured fighting vehicles essential for internal security operations, adding that they would be deployed to crisis areas soon.

He directed commanders of units and formation of the Nigerian Army in Lagos to immediately organize a “scale A” parade for all soldiers and officers in the state, to ensure discipline.
Ihejirika said: “The idea is that every single soldier or occupant of Army quarters in Lagos must be accounted for by his commander. This exercise is related to security and have far-reaching implication for discipline. I am happy with the recent measure undertaken by units in Lagos to enhance discipline in Lagos.


This Lieutenant General Onyeabor Azubuike Ihejirika seems to be doiing helluva of a good job. more grease to his elbow

They claim to despise everything western. Oh, I forgot, the phones they use was invented and manufactured at Boko Technologies. The bikes and cars they drive was designed and coupled in Haram Engineering Industrial Complex. I am hungry, give me some Ibrahim burger to cchop.

Ah! I almost forgot, they should be fighting with arrow and dagger.

On that premise alone, they should be condemned by stoning.

Language is a form of communication. If you don't or can't speak the language one understands very well to the bone, you are not communicating. And the person is not understanding fully. Which leads to limited information and knowledge being transmitted.

If you take a look at many countries, especially better developed ones. You will notice that they do almost everything in their native languages including teaching at schools from kindergarten to university level. But in Nigeria, students struggle to understand basic concepts at school due to the lack of good command of the foreign language "English" we exalt.

Come to think of it, even countries like China, India, Brazil and many European countries teach their students in their native languages. Some people in Naija will even mock you, that you cannot even speak "Good English". Do not get me wrong. I think English should be taught as a second language for business usage worldwide.

Do you think academic performance will improve should textbooks be written and lectures be held in our "pidgin or native languages" which everyone understands better ?

Language is a form of communication. If you don't or can't speak the language one understands very well to the bone, you are not communicating. And the person is not understanding fully. Which leads to limited information and knowledge being transmitted.

If you take a look at many countries, especially better developed ones. You will notice that they do almost everything in their native languages including teaching at schools from kindergarten to university level. But in Nigeria, students struggle to understand basic concepts at school due to the lack of good command of the foreign language "English" we exalt.

Come to think of it, even countries like China, India, Brazil and many European countries teach their students in their native languages. Some people in Naija will even mock you, that you cannot even speak "Good English". Do not get me wrong. I think English should be taught as a second language for business usage worldwide.

Do you think academic performance will improve should textbooks be written and lectures be held in our "pidgin or native languages" which everyone understands better ?

Hey Broda's ,

The points you raised are legitimate, and I must commend you all for taking the time to analyze this sensitive topic. I wish something drastic could be done to fundamentally change things and restore back our dignity.

What about the "American" democratic system we adopted. Is it too much for us or purely unsuited to our not so educated populace? How about implement something based on our cultures that works well? What are our philosophers doing to decipher this issue?

Nigeria and Africa Unite, let us move this great nation and continent forward.