Just like objects and people, Earth is also attracted by the sun’s gravity. If Earth’s gravity became zero, nothing would hold it and chances are that its inner core would eventually burst in a lethal titanic explosion due to intense pressure. Earth would break into pieces that would float around space, wreaking havoc.
What does zero gravity feel like? Zero gravity or weightlessness lets you float effortlessly due to the absence of acceleration forces on the body. This condition is similar to that of being in water where you are able to float with just the slightest effort.
nlfpmod: Biden and Trump accept CNN’s invitation to debate on June 27
President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump have both accepted an invitation from CNN to debate on June 27, a historically early showdown that will set the tone for the final months of the 2024 campaign.
“I’ve received and accepted an invitation from @CNN for a debate on June 27th. Over to you, Donald. As you said: anywhere, any time, any place,” Biden said in a post on social media.
A Trump campaign official later told CNN that Trump had accepted the offer.
The news is the latest development in a quickly escalating tit-for-tat over debates between the two political rivals. Biden’s campaign earlier called on Trump to join him for two presidential debates hosted by news organizations and formally informed the Commission on Presidential Debates that the president will not participate in its previously scheduled fall debates. The former president quickly said he was on board with earlier debates and told radio host Hugh Hewitt that he would accept any moderator.
Biden only recently said that he was happy to debate Trump, though he was non-committal on the format of such a debate, telling radio host Howard Stern, “I’m happy to debate him.” In a social media video and a subsequent letter to the Commission on Presidential Debates, Biden’s campaign laid out its proposed terms, including possible debate dates in June and September.
A whole lot of drama and rhetorics are gonna go down that day. Only the intangibles will lead to victory at the end of the election cycle for the best man out of the two.
Naija armed robbers full London and some of the street guys for Woolwich area dey go rob people for ATM and even them dey go rob themselves for house after one of them makes some money from some illegal stuff.
I once ventured to a music performance by one of Naija's Fuji musicians at Woolwich, Sout East London to celebrate the end of the Muslim fasting period and in the hall where the event occurred, I bet my bottom dollar that there must have been at least 10 or more armed robbers from Naija now settled in the UK and I prayed a silent prayer that "God, please do not let my children be unlucky as to marry these chaps children".
Circa 2005, I saw some guys on old Kent Road SE London and they were no different from Naija vulcanizers and they could not have passed a face to face UK Visa interview but the Brits shot themselves in the foot during the short period they did their non Appearance Visa regime that required no face to face Visa interview and anyone could get a Visa by forging the right documents and sending them to the Visa decision maker via the drop box.
London has really changed like you mentioned when compared to the pre-internet period that started in London in 1999.
The '80s and early '90s were a ball in London and you are correct that most Nigerians in London in the Pre Internet days were majorly those born in London but raised in Naija.
Now 2024 London is worse than living in some parts of Nigeria if you take away the 24/7 electricity and the fact that you can get an ambulance and police to your door within minutes although in London, there is a stabbing almost everyday and an example is that 14 year old Naija boy that was decapitated by a deranged chap in London a few weeks ago.
Give me enough money today and I will relocate back to Nigeria yesterday.
The current racist rhethoric in the UK against immigrants is out of this world by the inherently racist Oyibos hiding behind and egging on the sly politically ultra ambitious Rishi Sunak and the monstrous Right Wing but equally brown skinned former home secretary and former UK Attorney General Suella Braverman to spout clearly racist rhethoric on a daily basis like putting Asylum Seekers on the Bibby Stockholm barge (a floating prison that turned out to have a poisonous water supply) or the new law that will deport asylum seekers to Rwanda to have their application dealt with in Rwanda !!!!!
These racist policies signed into law under the watch of a brow skinned Prime Minister and crafted by 3 Home Secretaries (2 former ones were brown skinned and the current one is black skinned) will haunt all ethnic minorities (black, brown and yellow skinned) for decades to come and even if a new Labour Govt repeals the racist Rwanda law, the damage is already done as the majority white population who erstwhile kept their racist rhetoric under wraps have now been emboldened to the extent that they now have outrightly racist TV stations fronted by serving MPs like Jacob Rees Mogg and a few weeks ago a white guy started shouting racist rhethoric at anyone of colour in a crowded train carriage including at a black lady who worked in media who recorded his racist tirade and posted the video on social media.
Any black person who is not street wise should try and avoid going out alone at night especially in areas where there are not that many black people 'cos in the current climate in the UK where it is fair game to castigate and hate people of colour who are asylum seekers, ignorant oyinbo people will relish the change to attack, maim and kill any person of colour they can corner under the cover of darkness walking alone especially if the oyinbos know that CCTV does not cover that area.
Our women in the UK should be careful about going out alone after dark and those of them who do care work and have to leave their homes to go to work around 3am should be VERY careful and constantly look around them and immediately cross the road to the other side if they sense or see an Oyinbo man walking behind them in the very early hours of the day or at night when there are few people around.
Better still, our women should get better jobs they can work at between 9am to 5pm without having to wash another human beings poo. Nurses are an exemption because that is a more dignified job that being a carer.
Succinctly stated... That's a very deep post on the UK and non-strategic immigration.
Indeed, we live in a world of cycles. Only those who are mentally prepared will survive the cycles of boom and bust.
presidency: President Bola Tinubu congratulates Mr. Reno Omokri, author and influencer, on his 50th birthday, which is marked on January 22, 2024.
The President commends Mr. Omokri for his dutifulness in providing constructive opinions on national issues, regardless of his political disposition.
Mr. Omokri, a member of the Peoples Democratic Party, was the Special Assistant on Digital Media to former President Goodluck Jonathan from 2011 to 2015.
President Tinubu wishes Mr. Omokri many more years in good health as he continues to contribute his quota to national development.
Chief Ajuri Ngelale Special Adviser to the President (Media & Publicity) January 21, 2024
blamingthedevil: Emirates will resume services to Nigeria from 1 October 2024, operating a daily service between Lagos and Dubai, and offering customers more choice and connectivity from Nigeria’s largest city to, and through, Dubai.
The service will be operated using a Boeing 777-300ER. EK783 will depart Dubai at 0945hrs, arriving in Lagos at 1520hrs; the return flight EK784 will leave Lagos at 1730hrs and arrives in Dubai at 0510hrs the next day. Tickets can be booked now on http://emirates.com or via travel agents.
Adnan Kazim, Emirates’ Deputy President and Chief Commercial Officer said, “We are excited to resume our services to Nigeria. The Lagos-Dubai service has traditionally been popular with customers in Nigeria and we hope to reconnect leisure and business travellers to Dubai and onwards to our network of over 140 destinations. We thank the Nigerian government for their partnership and support in re-establishing this route and we look forward to welcoming passengers back onboard.”
With the resumption of operations to Nigeria, Emirates operates to 19 gateways in Africa with 157 flights per week from Dubai, with further reach to an additional 130 regional points in Africa through its codeshare and interline partnerships with South African Airways, Airlink, Royal Air Maroc, Tunis Air, among others.
As a major economic hub in Africa, Nigeria and the UAE have built strong bilateral trade relations over the years, headlined by Lagos as the nation’s commercial centre. With the resumption of daily passenger flights, the airline’s cargo arm, Emirates SkyCargo, will further bolster the trade relationship by offering more than 300 tonnes of bellyhold cargo capacity, in and out of Lagos every week.
Emirates SkyCargo will support Nigerian businesses by exporting their goods via its state-of-the-art hub in Dubai, into key markets such as the UAE, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Bahrain, among others with key anticipated commodities such as Kola Nuts, food and beverages, and urgent courier material. Emirates SkyCargo will also import vital goods such as pharmaceuticals and electronics as well as general cargo from key markets such as the UAE, India and Hong Kong. Keeping trade flowing seamlessly, these goods will be transported quickly, efficiently, and reliably via the airline’s multi-vertical specialized product portfolio.
The Emirates Boeing 777-300ER serving Lagos will operate with 8 First Class suites, 42 Business Class seats, and 304 seats in Economy Class. Offering the best experience in the sky, passengers can dine on regionally inspired multi-course menus developed by a team of award-winning chefs complemented by a wide selection of premium beverages. Customers can tune in to over 6,500 channels of global entertainment, including 23 Nigerian movies, in addition to series and other content on ice, Emirates’ award-winning inflight entertainment system.
Lanruze: Reuben Abati (Ph.D) is an all round Genius.
I have personally known him for over 20 years and his credentials, work experience and work ethics are intimidating.
You can imagine the quality of advise that President Goodluck Jonathan enjoyed from the eloquent Doctor of Letters.
I also remember his wife when she was a Co-presenter with Yourview on TVC. Her opinions were extreme and seemed somewhat to the left (Controversial). She has her own Podcast now.
Good to see Dr. Abati happy after three (3) attempts at Marriage.
That's truly impressive.
I can't recall ever seeing Kikelomo Atanda (I just got to know that her mother is originally from Argentina) on that TVC breakfast program from back in the day. Good to know though that Reuben Abati is happy about his choice of woman.
What all men want in life is near-absolute peace of mind while in a long-term relationship... NOT negative vibes from a woman who uses emotional blackmail at every little opportunity. Period.
The Abeokuta-born Reuben Abati has always been good with the written word right from the time I knew him and started reading his column when he started working with Guardian newspaper in his 20s.
I NEVER knew that Reuben Abati is such a LYRICAL gangster when it comes to women until now...
peekspot: The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ola Olukoyede, has revealed that unbeknownst to young cryptocurrency traders in Nigeria, terrorists are using their trade to fund terrorism in the country.
The EFCC boss said some of the people who receive money to trade in cryptocurrencies do not know that their financiers are sponsors of terrorism.
He added that some of the 1,146 bank accounts recently frozen by the anti-graft agency were conduits for terrorism funding.
Olukoyede revealed the development during an event organized by some Civil Society Organizations in Abuja.
The programme, titled, “Multi-stakeholders’ national dialogue on preventing terrorism financing and violent extremism,” was held at the Transcorp Hilton Hotels, Abuja on Wednesday.
Olukoyede revealed, “Some of you are aware of our activities in the area of investigating virtual currency trading and the likes of cryptocurrencies.
“They are potential platforms to fund terrorism. A lot of us don’t understand that. Some of our discoveries during the investigation of some of these platforms were mind-boggling.
“We thought Binance was a major one. Yes, it was. We are prosecuting them. But there are other platforms we have discovered.
“They used some of these young men. Some of them don’t know that the people who gave them money to trade are people who fund terrorism.”
The EFCC boss further said there is a need to adopt technology in tracking money used to fund terrorism in the country.
Olukoyede narrated how he was informed by a friend in the US Federal Bureau of Investigation, that dollar bills across the world can be tracked with technology.
“It is important for us to adopt the use of technology,” he said.
“I was comparing notes with an assistant director in the FBI — a friend of mine. He said: ‘My brother, from our systems in the US, we can track every printed dollar anywhere in the world’,” he added.
The EFCC boss added that Nigeria must get to that stage where technology can be deployed to track naira notes used for terrorism funding.
adamusuleiman1: Cross River State government, has secured a $3.5 billion funding from the Pan-African multilateral financial institution, African Export-importbank (Afreximbank), for some of its key infrastructure projects in the state.
The state governor, Senator Bassey Otu, who was in Egypt, last week for a workshop, also visited the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) in Cairo to explore partnership in key infrastructure projects to be undertaken in the state.
The workshops held during the visit culminated in the signing of a project preparation facility for the development of a deep seaport estimated to cost $3.5 billion.
Securing the funding at a workshop attended by the governor as well as some of the key members of his government at the bank’s headquarters in Cairo, the Egyptian capital, Otu noted that ”This is a world-class partnership that will result in positioning Cross River State economically.”
Otu, who expressed excitement about the collaboration with Afreximbank, emphasized the importance of the projects in driving economic growth and development in the state, highlighting the potential for attracting foreign investment and stimulating economic growth.
At the visit to Afreximbank, Otu also had extensive Government-to-Business (G2B) meetings with tier 1 companies, including Orascom Construction, Elsewedy Electric, and Hassan Allam Holdings.
One of the highlights of Governor Otu’s engagement in Cairo was the signing of Project Preparation Facility Agreement and Financial Advisory Agreement with Afreximbank for two major projects in Cross River – the Bakassi Deep Seaport and 217km Superhighway integrated Project, as well as the Obudu Cattle Ranch and Mountain Resort project.
KnowAll: I don’t think moneys made in late 1800’s is what made Fernandez make his way in life, he probably held on to both the Portuguese & Spanish language and with his Portuguese sounding name managed to allign himself with an Angola coming out of war, using his Street smart Nigerian sense got involved in building the institutions in this new oil heaven. His antecedents in Angola make him able to work his way into Mozambique. Hence why he came out with that his famous saying of “ 2 rams cannot drink from the same bucket” Nigeria been a basket case where millions where grappling with crumbs falling off the table of the then military hegemony .
I absolutely agree with your summations here. Very succinct.
That Afro-Cuban Spanish cum Afro-Brazilian Portuguese heritage of his indeed helped. I've also been fascinated about how he rapidly carved a niche for himself by penetrating those two formerly war-torn countries of Angola and Mozambique to make a significant part of his wealth. The knowledge of how the major English-speaking finance headquarters of the world functioned definitely enabled Antonio Oladeinde Fernandez to get the needed connections to finance his multimillion USD projects in those African countries.
On the other hand, Candido DaRocha's wealth had it's beginnings in the family wealth of the late 1800s, but at the turn of a new century (from the 1900s), he expanded his wealth base into other business concerns such as finance and properties to make him the FIRST Nigerian Pounds Sterling millionaire. The Water House mansion which he built on Kakawa Street, Lagos Island, has an exact replica in Bahia, Brazil which he also built.
BigIyanga: And most importantly, they were slave merchants and brokers
@Bigiyanga,
Thanks for bringing this point up. Yes, some of them who had bought their freedom before the plantation slavery in South America ended were indeed into the slave trade and slave brokerage and that is a sad part of history that I found a bit difficult to wrap round my head when I first read about it in some advanced history books and archival materials I read years ago. It was quite annoying to read then, but I guess they had NO choice because of the times they lived in. Those guys operated from the former Portuguese quarters (later renamed Brazilian quarters after the Portuguese slave traders left) on Eko Island (Lagos Island).
Thank goodness though, that dark chapter of history is over but then human trafficking and sex slavery still persists around the world with Africans, Chinese, Latin Americans and Slavic men and women still falling victim.
edogu: A Nigerian lady on social media has revealed her opinion on waist beads, saying some are not ordinary and are worn to 'trap' innocent guys..
She listed three ways to know if a waist bead carries supernatural powers.
Folasheycrown22
I've always liked thin waist beads and anklets though, especially those made of metal and corals. They accentuate the waist and ankle outlines of women. Less is also more for me... so, the fewer the waist beads, the better.
blamingthedevil: 530 CNG buses for deployment in Lagos, Oyo, Kwara, FCT, others
The process for nationwide deployment of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) vehicles has commenced.
Not less than 530 buses are to be deployed by the end of the month in six pioneering states.
These are Oyo, Lagos, Kwara, Kogi, Kaduna, Nasarawa, and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja.
Programme Director of the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative (PCNGI) Michael Oluwagbemi stated this yesterday.
It was during the event signaling the commencement of 15-day-long activities ahead of the rollout.
He said the distribution is on a demand-led basis. He added that efforts would be accelerated at the conversion of diesel and petrol-fuel engines across the country.
Elzazzi: Maybe he meant 2 captains can't sail a ship.
He's a descendant of returned slaves from Brazil. His family lineage are wealthy also.
A descendant of formerly enslaved returnee Yorubas from Cuba and Brazil is the way I like to put it. Antonio Oladeinde Fernandez was popular in Cuba and well known to Fidel Castro. I read a publication back in the early 1990s indicating that his forebears came back from Cuba. Of course the wealthy and influential Yoruba returnee families from Cuba and the Yoruba returnee families from Brazil also intermarried hence Antonio Oladeinde Fernandez would have Yoruba-Brazilian returnee ancestry as well.
These Yoruba-Brazilian and Yoruba-Cuban folks otherwise called African merchant princes were quite wealthy and they ran thriving International businesses shipping food commodities and other items from Lagos Island to Bahia and vice versa before 1900 because some Yoruba families and other Africans continued to live in Bahia, Brazil even after the abolition of plantation slavery. Some like the Ijesa-born Candido DaRocha family maintained two families on both sides of the Atlantic in Lagos Island, Nigeria and Bahia, Brazil. The wealthy Alakija patriarch who was the first Nigerian Queen's Counsel (QC) and founder of Daily Times newspaper was a returnee with his Egba family from Bahia, Brazil and was formerly known as Placido Assumpcao before he dropped his Brazilian name (after returning to Nigeria from his law studies in England in the 1910s), and adopted his full Yoruba name, Sir Adeyemo Alakija.
Just to add, the Yoruba-Cuban returnees (from Havana and Matanzas) in the late 1800s and part of the early 1900s settled around the Campos Square area of Lagos Island, while those from Brazil settled in the Brazilian quarters. Slave ship records show that about 250,000 folks of various Yoruba subgroups were brought to Cuba in the 1800s. About the same number of 250,000 were also taken to Brazil.
The Oyos were the largest of them all and they were known to lead several revolts against injustice by the White Spanish in Cuba because of the warrior backgrounds of many Oyos brought as prisoners of war to Cuba. The Ijesas from today's Osun State, and the Egbas originally from Ibadan and later Abeokuta also had significant populations among the Yoruba folks who were deported on slave schooners from majorly Nigeria and Benin Republic slave port areas (of Lagos Island, Badagry, Whydah) to Brazil, Cuba, Guyana, Trinidad, the United States, etc.
KnowAll: Antonio Oladeinde Fernandez, billionaire business magnate, diplomat, mining tycoon, Permanent Representative of Central African Republic to the United Nations, is dead.
Deinde Fernandez, as he was popularly known, died on Tuesday in a private hospital in Belgium.
Born in Lagos in 1936 to one of the first European migrants to the city, Mr. Fernadez grew up to become one of Nigeria’s most mysterious and reclusive billionaires with properties in several African countries as well as in Europe and America.
Not much is known about his early days, but in 1982, he was appointed an advisor to the Angolan government on Economic Matters.
Two years later, he became a Deputy Permanent Representative of Mozambique to the United Nations.
In 1992, he was made a Special Adviser to the President of Mozambique on International Economic Matters, a position he held till 1995.
In addition to his diplomatic duties, Mr. Fernandez ran a string of companies such as Petro Inett, a mining firm that had extensive oil, gold, and diamond interests in Angola as well as in the Central African Republic.
He also owned Sandcat Enterprises, View, Grantdale, Inuola, Sandcat Goldfields, Voguehope, Woods, Goldfields, and Petro-Inett Equatorial Guinea.
He also owned a string of properties, including a £3 million seven storey Gerogian town house in Edinburgh; a £4 million New York estate; a 25-acre £1 million 19th-century Chateau de Bois Feuillette in Paris; a £10 million property on the Premium Point peninsula, New York, among others.
Succinctly stated.
The iconic Ambassador Extra plenipotentiary and former Forbes-listed billionaire recluse, Antonio Oladeinde Fernandez.
2. Subsidised homes. Like the ones built by shagari in the 80’s . Little one two & 3 bedroom houses. They would pay N5000.00 per month
3. Build large cooperative stores that would sell groceries at rock bottom price. That means government would buy fruit and vegetables from farmers and subsidies them. Including meat rice& fish.
It can be done. There would be know reasons to increase wages which would eventually lead to a runaway inflation. The 650,000 labour is asking for would lead to runaway inflation just like in Zimbabwe.
The last two aspects of your suggestions were practiced in the former Soviet Union (USSR).
That socialist strategy proved to be unsustainable over the long-term hence the Russians after the peaceful break up of the former USSR into independent countries opened up to the free market economic system.
The BEST bet is to introduce more CNG refill stations such as those already in existence by NIPCO, and more CNG buses and vehicles fully to transport finished goods, farm produce, and people. This would rapidly drop the cost of transportation and goods and services would be cheaper. But this must be monitored because there are greedy people who would still want to game the economic system to maximize profits. So, whistleblower phone numbers can be provided for folks to report food items hoarders, and illegal check points were money is extorted by rogue policemen and soldiers, and state agents that collect illegal levies from food trucks moving from one state to another. There would be an instant drop of food prices in partnership with the market unions.
The second solution would be to invest heavily in drones for security purposes to prevent kidnappings by foreign Fulani nomadic invaders fleeing the drought and violence in the Sahelian region countries of West Africa and armed robberies that have made driving on some highways and going to the farms for commercial and subsistence farmers nearly all over Nigeria a nightmare.
The death penalty has to be implemented ASAP via electric chairs, lethal injections, or hanging. This is meant to serve as a deterance.
AjaanaOka: So, the internet is filled with sites/pages that list the Eze-Nris of Agukwu-na-Diodo-Akamkpisi, but not one single page online has much to say about each individual Eze-Nri apart from their names. I've wanted to put together brief profiles of the Eze-Nris for a long time now, but...little time. Now that everyone has a lot of time on their hands though, why not.
This write-up is based on information I have derived over the years from the works of Northcote Thomas, MDW Jeffreys, Michael A Onwuejeogwu, Douglas Chambers, Tony Nwankwo Nwaezeigwe and Nri local historians, like B.I.O Odinanwa. I have used Nri in this piece as the name of a town, one of the two centres that have an Eze-Nri (the other one being Oraeri); but it should be clear that no town went by that name until the 1940s. What we now call Nri Town was two loosely connected settlements, Agukwu and Diodo-Akamkpisi. But because Agukwu-na-Diodo-Akamkpisi is rather a mouthful, I'll stick to the modern designation, which is Nri Town.
The first seven Eze-Nris used the regnal title ‘Nri Namoke’ and came from the section of Nri Town known as Diodo. Most traditions have however telescoped them into one Eze Nri.)
1. Ogbuodudu Akakomme (Nri Namoke I) – Ogbuodudu Akakomme, the first Nri Namoke, was also known as Okporo Odudu. He was a son of Eri and migrated from Aguleri to Amanuke. Either this Eze Nri or his successor left Amanuke and migrated to the present site of Nri Town (after a brief stay at Achalla-Isuana) where he founded the Diodo section of that town. It was from the Diodo section of Nri Town that the Eze Nris originally came until the kingship passed to Nribuife from the Agukwu section some generations later.
2. Edu Anyim (Nri Namoke II) – Son of Ogbuodudu/Okporo Odudu. He appears to have been an Eze Nri of far-reaching prestige, because his name is still recalled in the traditions and the rituals of the people of far-away Aku, near Nsukka. For instance, the Aku people claim that the Odo cult was introduced to their town by ritual agents from Nri; and on the day that the Odo spirits are to depart to the spirit world after the Odo festival period, this proclamation is made in Aku: “Nshi Namoke Nwa Okporo Odudu, Ezitere Odo na onoghalu n'Igbo.” (Translation: Nri Namoke, son of Okporo Odudu [the first king of Nri], Has sent a message that Odo has overstayed outside.)
3. Nri Egbobe (Nri Namoke III) – According to traditions, Nri Egbobe was not qualified by blood to ascend the throne, i.e., he was a usurper. But because no eligible successor to Edu Anyim could be found from the line of Okporo Odudu, he was crowned. His reign was brief and characterised by disorder, for he was a tyrant. The Diodo people hated him, and finally decided to be rid of him. It was an abomination to shed kingly blood, so the people settled on carrying him away to the Evil Forest, tying him to a tree, and leaving him there to die. For seven days the deposed king rained curses on the people from the tree in the forest. He declared that they would be struck by misfortunes and disasters, depopulated and would remain a small community (Ana Nta). Then he died. The curse seemed to have worked. Many young men from Diodo were killed in a tree-felling accident. This was perceived as a bad omen and led to a mass exodus of people from the Diodo section. Diodo was left under-populated. The underpopulation may have affected the balance of power in Nri Town and may have been a remote contributing factor to the eventual shifting of power from Diodo to Agukwu.
Nothing is remembered about the careers of the next three Eze Nris: 4. Anwu Obele (Nri Namoke IV) 5. Odunukwe (Nri Namoke V) 6. Agufugo Egbeli (Nri Namoke VI)
7. Ezeagu Akubilo (Nri Namoke VII) – By the time of Nri Namoke VII, the Agukwu section of Nri Town had been established by Nri Ifikuanim who appears to have instituted a parallel kingship at Agukwu. Nri Ifikuanim and his people had migrated directly from the town of Ugbene, but were also ultimately of Umueri descent. A daughter of Nri Namoke VII was given in marriage to Nri Ifikuanim (or a descendant of his). This daughter had a son who became Nribuife.
In his old age, Nri Namoke VII was utterly neglected by his people, the Diodo section. It was during this time that one of his sons named Avo emigrated and established the 'rival' Nri centre at Oraeri. Nribuife, his (Nri Namoke VII's) daughter’s son, was the one who took care of him and brought him food. When he was nearing the end of his life, Nri Namoke VII cursed his family and declared that the eze-ship would depart from Diodo and never return to it, and that if any Diodo man attempted to take up the title of Eze Nri he would perish. He then handed the paraphernalia of royal office to his grandson, Nribuife from the Nrifikwuanim line. Nrifikwuanim kings from Agukwu have being reigning in Nri Town since then. (Although recently the Diodo people have tried to resurrect their claim to the kingship by having one of their sons Chikadibia Ogunmor crowned as Nri Namoke VIII, as a counterpoise to the more recognised king of the Nrifikwuanim line, Nri Enweleana II.)
8. Nribuife –Nribuife unified the two moieties of Agukwu and Diodo-Akamkpisi into one kingship and ruled as the first Eze Nri of both communities. He established the “Council of State” known as Nzemabua made up of twelve high-ranking ozo titleholders.
9. Nri Omalo – Nothing is remembered about him, except his name.
10. Nrijimofor I – Remembered as a great king during whose time Nri itinerant ritual agents spread the cult of ikenga all over the northern and western Igbo areas. According to Onwuejeogwu, Nri influence, during this time, reached Nsukka in the north, the vicinity of Orlu in the south, and as far west as the vicinity of Agbor. But, as we have seen, Aku traditions suggest that Nri influence had reached the Nsukka area earlier in the time of the Nri Namoke kings. What happened in the time of Nrijimofor I was probably consolidation of an already far-flung area of influence, and expansion into some new areas, especially to the west.
11. Nri Omalonyeso – Nothing is remembered about him, except his name.
12. Nri Anyamata –(mid 17th century.) The only notable event associated with this king was a long drought (probably in the 1640s), which was followed by severe famine all over the area within Nri’s sphere of influence. Onwuejeogwu puts his reign to between c. 1465 and 1511, and Douglas Chambers to between c. 1500 and 1530. The chronology of the Little Ice Age droughts in West Africa suggests his reign could have been in the middle of the 17th century.
13. Nri Fenenu – (later part of the 17th century.) Fenenu was renowned for his mystical powers. It was said that he lived to be over one hundred years. Because he lived to be so old, people began to believe he was immortal. His reign is associated with one of the earliest remembered appearances of a large host of locusts (igwulube) in the area. Eze-Nris are believed to have the ability to control the appearance and disappearance of locusts; it can then be understood how the Coming of Locusts during the reign of Fenenu added to his renown as a powerful mystic. In the last years of his reign (according to traditions), Nri Fenenu mastered the art of levitation, from which he got his ‘reign name’ – Fenenu. One evening, so goes the story, the old king came out into his courtyard to ‘bask in the evening sun’. There he floated away into the sky, and came to rest atop a tall iroko tree. This display of supernatural powers deeply troubled the townspeople. He remained there atop the tree until the elders of Agukwu with their ofo sticks assembled and petitioned him to come down and die like an ordinary eze. Everyone was relieved when the king descended from his lofty perch some hours later. The head of the Adama people went and touched him on the forehead with the ofo and he died at once and was buried. Jeffreys suggests that this ‘touching on the forehead with the ofo’ is probably a euphemism for ‘ritual killing the king’. In African history, divine kings who had reigned for too long or who were perceived to be dangerously too powerful were asked to die or were killed by their officials; and this might have been the fate of Nri Fenenu. His descendants and the people of his lineage (the Umunnechi lineage) were thereafter debarred from ever producing an Eze Nri again. This debarment still holds true today.
14. Nri Agu – The beginning of Nri Agu’s reign portended great promise. There was an increase in trade, resulting in an increasing accumulation of wealth by a section of the people. Dr TN Nwaezeigwe suggests that a number of Nri settlements sprang up in western Igboland during his reign, pre-eminently in the Aniocha-Oshimili axis, including Ogwashi-Uku and Ogboli Ibusa. Ogboli Ibusa is still called Ogboli Nshi-Agu and Ogwashi-Uku called Adaigbo Nshi-Agu, apparently after him; and a secondary school in Ogwashi-Uku still bears his name. However, it must be stated that the 'rival' centre of Oraeri also had an Eze-Nri who was known as Nri Agu, and it might have been this Eze-Nri, rather than the one who reigned in Agukwu, who was connected with the founding of Ogwashi-Uku and Ogboli Ibusa. The traditions closely link Nri Agu of Oraeri with the River Niger.
Nri Agu of Agukwu soon found his life as an Eze Nri with all its restrictions and rigid observances unbearable. He therefore abdicated and, with a few faithful followers, secretly left the town and went to settle in Oraukwu. It is said that a chiefly lineage in the latter town (Oraukwu) still traces its origin to Nri Agu.
15. Nri Alike and Nri Apia – After Nri Agu, two very wealthy men vied for the Nri throne – Alike and Apia. Being men of means and power, no one could stop them and they both succeeded in getting themselves crowned as Eze Nri – the first time the town had seen two crowned kings since the unification under Nribuife . Apparently, the trade boom that began in the reign of Nri Agu had affected the politics of Nri: a class of noveau riche had risen who could force or manoeuvre their way into power. They both died ominously. According to some traditions, they both died on the same day; according to other traditions, they died within one market week (four days) of each other. The reign of Alike and Apia witnessed a massive expansion of the trans-Atlantic trade in slaves. This trade appears to have only penetrated the Nri-influenced areas significantly from the middle of the 18th century, when we got the first reference to an Igbo slave in the New World with ichi marks, in 1752. Thus, it is likely the reign of Alike and Apia embraced the mid-18th century. And while these two Eze Nris authorised the inhumane trade in slaves (perhaps because they were traders themselves who might have also dealt in slaves), they declared it an abomination to kill or bleed a slave. This is the origin of the claim by the Nri people that they did not practise human sacrifice. (There are, however, indications that human sacrifice persisted in Nri.)
16. Nri Ezimilo – Before his selection as the next Eze Nri, Nri Ezimilo had been a ritual agent based in Asaba. He was recalled to Nri Town and consecrated. One night, however, shortly after he became Eze Nri, he was murdered by thieves from Enugu Ukwu. The thieves were raiders who had come to the king’s compound to steal the cattle paid to the Eze Nri as tribute. Nri Ezimilo had gone out into his yard to see what was going on when the men, not knowing his identity, murdered him. The death of Nri Ezimilo was followed by a severe drought which was said to have affected all of Igboland. This was probably in the late 18th century (sometime between the 1770s and the 1790s) when, according to records, several parts of the West African forest regions were affected by drought.
17. Nri Enwenetem – Because of Nri Ezimilo’s untimely death and because of the drought, which was attributed to the wrath of the murdered king, his son was allowed to step into his father’s position immediately (without the necessary interregnum), and he became Eze Nri Enwenetem. This was the first and only time a son was succeeding his father as Eze Nri, at least since the time of the Nri Namokes. It was also the first and only time an interregnum was not observed after the passing of the preceding king. The drought that followed his father’s death is said to have only ended when Enugu Ukwu made amends for the murder by giving up an Enugu Ukwu son and an Enugu Ukwu daughter to die in Nri in compensation.
18. Nri Añua – Around the turn of the 19th century, Añua was consecrated as Eze Nri. He was an aged man, and soon agreed to abdicate in favour of a younger candidate. He has officially been forgotten, and his name does not appear in the official kinglist. His descendants, however, (the Añua minimal lineage within UmuNri major lineage of Obeagu) have kept his memory alive by maintaining an Eze-Nri Añua Royal Band.
19. Nri Enweleana I – Nri Añua was to be succeeded by a man whose name is remembered as Nwankpo, but the position was forcibly wrestled from Nwankpo in what was essentially a coup by a young firebrand who assumed the position of Eze Nri as Nri Enweleana I. The reign of Nri Enweleana I coincided with the career of the notorious Aro slave dealer Okoli Ijoma of Ndikelionwu, who was raiding the Nri-Awka axis in the mid-19th century. Enweleana I sent his ritual agents to dissuade Ijoma from slave-raiding and from instigating towns to fight one another with arms and the Ada [Edda] warriors which he (Ijoma) supplied. But when Ijoma rebuffed the Eze Nri’s diplomatic overtures, Enweleana I placed an anathema on him and formed a military alliance called Amakom to resist the activities of the Aro slavers. The member-towns of the alliance were Awka, Nibo, Nise, Amawbia, Ugwuoba, Enugu-Agidi, Ebenebe, Ukpo, and Amansi. The military alliance is said to have achieved some success in checking the Edda raids in the Nri-Awka axis, notably defeating the hired warriors at Nawfia and Enugu-Ukwu. Nri Enweleana I died around 1869 and was succeeded after a long interregnum of about 20 years by Nri Obalike.
20. Nri Obalike – Nri Obalike became Eze Nri around 1889, and was the Eze Nri when British colonialism arrived in the heart of Igboland. Against the tradition that an Eze Nri must not leave his town, the British forced him to attend the Native Court at Awka. It was a reflection of the awe and terror in which the people of the Nri-Awka axis held the Eze Nri that when Nri Obalike entered the Native Court for the first time while a sitting was going on, the whole assembly rose and prepared to flee.There, in Awka, he was forced (at gunpoint, my sources say) to renounce the powers of his sacred office. In August 1911, the British colonial administrators struck the biggest blow on the power of Eze Nri Obalike when they compelled the Eze Nri to publicly abolish nso and alu (the very props of the Eze Nri’s authority) in a gathering of Ezeanas (chief priests of the Ani deity) at Nkwo Marketplace in Enugu-Ukwu. By this act, the Eze Nri was repudiating his ritual control of Igbo communities: the Nri hegemony had come to an end, in theory at least. Eze Nri Obalike passed on in 1926.
The attached picture was taken in 1911, probably during the abrogation of nso and alu in Enugu-Ukwu. Eze Nri Obalike is seated at the far left in the tall crown, surrounded by his attendants.
21. Nrijimofor II – The first Eze Nri of a ‘modern’ Nri Town. He was enthroned in 1936 after an interregnum of 10 years. 22. Nri Enweleana II – Eze Nri Enweleana II Obidiegwu Onyeso became Eze Nri in 1988. He died around 2018 (the death and burial of Eze Nris are not usually publicised, as they were supposed to be immortal), and his son Prince Ikenna Onyeso was confirmed as Regent of Nri in 2019.
~ Picture: Nri Obalike and his attendants, and some Chiefs, during the abrogation of nso and alu, 1911 (Courtesy: Northcote Thomas)
Bump.
This is an interesting thread.
What is the Igala ethnic connection to Nri?
Can you put a date to when Igalas through Eri the son of Achado arrived in the Nri axis and what role Igalas played in establishing the kingship system in Nri if the aborigenes never had kingship systems in the past according to the submissions I read online by some folks from the East of Nigeria.
I have read since the early 1990s that Eri was a Prince whose ancestry is originally from Igala and incidentally Ifa (which you folks called "Afa" in Nri) exists there. If Eri was an Igala man, then that explains how Ifa divination got to Nri.
I've also seen old photographs posted online of a past Eze Nri dressed and adorned with insignia that are originally associated with the Attahs of Igala.
Second, at what point did Nri adopt the Ifa divination traditions? There are also Igala-associated communities such as Nsukka in Enugu State, Oshimili axis of Anioma (in Delta North especially) Delta State, and Anambra State.
The Igalas who according to the late Attah of Igala Michael Ameh Oboni in a 2017 Sunday Punch newspaper interview CLEARLY stated are an amalgam of people who migrated from Wukari in Taraba State (Wukari people are of Jukun ethnicity) along the River Benue and they merged with the Yorubas and some Edos they met at the Rivers Niger and Benue confluence area now in Kogi State. The Attah said that is how the Igalas evolved. It's also NOT surprising that Igala is officially classified as a Yoruboid language due to the Yoruba ancestral lineages that fused into Igala. All these ethnic fusions between the Wukari migrants, Yoruba, and a small number of Edo people to form Igala happened within the last 700 years I believe.
Last but not least, the Attah also emphasized that Ifa priests (also known as Babalawos) are consulted before any new Attah of Igala is crowned. It's historically and internationally known that Ifa divination has it's original roots in Yorubaland and spread to areas where Yorubas had trade and imperial influences such as in the Oyo Empire, so, I'm fascinated about how folks from the Yoruba/Igala/Nri areas may have interacted with one another in the current Kogi State and Northernmost Anambra and Northernmost Enugu States areas centuries before British Colonialism.
I did read an online article that Igalas have been in the current Enugu State area for 500 years now.
teemy: This is NATO admitting that Ukraine weakened Russia for them without a cost of their own personnel lives. With Ukraine bombing Russian Warships and Oil Refineries, they are using Ukraine attacks to weaken the ability of Russia to win a war. Imagine when there is no ready fuel for your war vehicles and Russian Ships that could counter US Fleet are being decimated already ahead of a NATO invasion.
France spoke too early and it seems Russia has caught on that NATO wants an actual confrontation with Russia. Imagine one of the very things that got Russia into the war is now what this Blinken is saying they will push for.
FreeStuffsNG: President Bola Tinubu has received the report of the High Powered Presidential Committee on Nigeria’s Extended Continental Shelf Project which aims to extend Nigeria’s maritime boundaries by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, 1982.
This came with a commendation from the Preside to the team of experts whom he praised for working hard over the years to advance the project.
Tinubu expressed his appreciation on Tuesday in Abuja after listening to technical presentations by Professor Larry Awosika, a marine scientist and member of the Committee, and Aliyu Omar, Secretary of the HPPC.
The President’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, revealed this in a statement he signed on Tuesday titled ‘Extended continental shelf: Nigeria gains additional territory as President Tinubi receives the report from the committee.’
The experts have been involved in the project since Nigeria’s initial submission to extend its continental shelf to the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf in 2009.
They informed Tinubu that the UN has approved Nigeria’s submission, granting sovereignty over additional square kilometres of maritime territory.
”When the HPPC briefed former President Muhammadu Buhari in 2022 on the status of the project, the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf was still considering Nigeria’s submission and having technical interactions with the HPPC.
”These interactions and consideration have now culminated in the approval for Nigeria to extend its continental shelf beyond 200M (200 nautical miles).
”As it stands now, the area approved for Nigeria is about 16,300 square kilometres, which is about five times the size of Lagos State,’’ Omar told the President.
He added that the official notification of the decision was conveyed to Nigeria by the UN Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf in August 2023, shortly after President Tinubu assumed office.
Omar outlined the available options for Nigeria following the approval:
”The first option is to take the area gained and finalise the registration with the UN Secretary-General and close everything, meaning that we are satisfied with what we got. This will take at least one year.
”The second option is to take what we have right now, acquire more data, do a support write-up, and make a revised submission as recommended by CLCS for further consideration. This will take another four years. ”Either way (options), Nigeria will keep what has been approved.’’
In his presentation, Prof. Awosika explained that the approval came after years of meticulous scientific research on geophysics, geology, geography, and diplomatic efforts, which solidified Nigeria’s legal rights over a vast expanse of seabed and subsoil beyond its traditional territorial waters.
He highlighted the economic potential of the newly acquired territory, which includes hydrocarbons, gas, solid minerals, and a wide variety of sedentary species.
However, the marine scientist cautioned against total disclosure of sensitive data acquired during surveys, noting that this will jeopardize confidentiality as Nigeria is expected to monetise the information to recover project expenses.
Responding, the President thanked the experts for their diligence, emphasising the significance of the achievement for Nigeria’s economic and strategic interests.
‘‘This is big congratulations for Nigeria,’’ he said while recounting how former President Buhari had briefed him on the importance of the project.
”At COP28 in Dubai, I also exchanged views with President Lula of Brazil on the need for collaboration within our economic and maritime boundaries.
”Today, it is a great honour for me to receive this report. I have listened attentively to this very specialised report, and I know it took a whole lot of effort to get to this stage.
”I commend the team, and we must take advantage of this and invite you again to have a repeat of this knowledge exploration on geography, hydrography, and marine life,” he added.
According to him, Nigeria is grateful for the efforts invested into gaining additional territory for the country without going to war.
“Some nations went to war, lost people and economic opportunities.
”We lost nothing but have gained great benefits for Nigeria. We will pursue the best option for the country,” the President said.
Chairman of the HPPC, Hassan Tukur, Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, and the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, also attended the meeting.
teemy: Simple, for immediate effect, Complete the Yuan Swap Deal.
We import a lot from China. Why keep paying Chinese Sellers in dollars when there is an alternative? The lower the dollar demand, the lower the price.
Also, while using Nigeria as a clearing house for Africa, other African Countries that want to use the Yuan through us will first buy our Naira thereby giving our own currency more value.
For the long run, encourage massive exportation of goods and services.
ExportPortal: One of the side effects of the COVID pandemic for the air cargo industry was a fundamental shift away from long term contracted rates over to “spot booking”, as capacity shrunk and demand increased. According to air cargo industry experts, fixed rate bookings are not likely to make a comeback in the short term.
Spot Booking: an Advantage for Shippers, Forwarders and Air Cargo Carriers
“Spot booking” refers to freight shipments booked without a contract. In other words, each shipment is booked individually at its own price. Smaller shipping businesses have historically relied on spot rates, but pandemic-related supply chain disruptions have made them increasingly important for frequent shippers, too.
Unpredictable freight rates, constrained belly capacity due to the reduction of passengers flights, shipment disruptions, and fluctuating demand have all made contract rates less reliable.
This context facilitated the surging of digital market places for air cargo bookings, that automate the booking process for the shippers, by providing instant quotes across several freight forwarders, but also for the freight forwarders, by providing quotes across several air cargo carriers.
Most of these platforms are converting inbound email quotation requests into instant quotes and deliver published rates, contract rates and allocations, as well as spot or promo rates.
These platforms were real game changers for the air cargo business, as they allow shippers and forwarders to save time and money by providing market visibility, a clear picture of price trends and transparency on the quotes, which can significantly increase business flexibility and mitigate procurement risks.
Thanks to the uptake of digitalization accelerated by the pandemic, air cargo carriers could also adapt to this changing business landscape and the use of market places introduced huge efficiencies for them too, making pricing quicker and more responsive and building resilience and future proofing against the next challenge.
For this reason, even if air cargo capacity increases, either through increased passenger flights or investment in freighters, air cargo carriers probably won’t return to fixed rates, at least in the short term.
Stay In the Loop with Export Portal In the world of international trade, it’s vital to stay on top of current events. For information on how countries are doing during the pandemic, make sure to check out the rest of our export and import website!
As promised to share my trip experience I arrived Singapore from Lagos yesterday
Let me first start with the information on how I got my visa for others to learn. Meanwhile some of the information regarding visa I got them in this forum and also on the Singapore visa site online. I Arranged my documents with passport heads to the Singapore embassy Abuja where my visa was processed.
Lst of documents - Visa application form printed and filled - reference form filled by a citizen or permanent resident in Singapore. - passport photo - international passport - flight reservations - hotel reservations
Meanwhile you must submit your documents 30 days to your plan arrival date. I didn’t know about this and I went to the embassy 2 months to my plan trip but pleaded they should keep my passport and documents till 1 month to my trip date to start processin
It evokes the memories of the book that I bought and first read back in the early 2000s, entitled: "From Third World to First" by Lee Kuan Yew, the father of modern Singapore.
TonyeBarcanista: Lai Muhammed was Tinubu CoS during his first term as Governor, Fashola assumed that role in 2003 after Lai went to Kwara to run for Governor.
Meanwhile, the DCoS is attached to the Deputy Governor.
@TonyeBarcanista
It's been a long time.
Just as I read your first paragraph, I had a jolt and started having a proper memory recall.
You're indeed VERY correct... Thanks for the heads-up here. I'll make a quick correction to my post right away.
4mee: When Bayo bought a commercial tricycle, he had no idea what he was getting into.
Before he could put the vehicle on the road, he had to get approval from a unit, an axis, a zone, local government and state.
He had to pay tickets daily and marker costs with each trip. His life became a living hell. What he didn't know was that the NURTw mafia even had people who were extorting them also.
Below, Bayo and his colleagues debate NURTw officials on how much they collect, and what it is used for.
Why exactly does the NURTW exist? What exactly are the tolls for? if you have answers, please let me know
Many people who don't understand the Yoruba language are wrongly translating the word Agbero which literally means to carry passengers in English. Period.
Agbero was WRONGLY translated as a "thug" in the English subtitle of that video. A lot of those Agberos wear official NURTW uniforms and they are also bus drivers and those NURTW members are also registered Nigeria Labor Congress (NLC) members. So, these guys are NOT thugs and NURTW is a national organization with the headquarters in Abuja and 36 state branches.
Years back, I did my research and readings on the origins of the transport unions and Agberos in Lagos and Nigeria.
Now, there are some impostors and urban street gang members who migrated from other states to hustle in Lagos State, and they extort money from folks. Those are NOT the real Agberos but simply impostors and must be removed forcibly and given jobs to do in the modern agribusiness space for instance.
Tbh, it's better to have an e-payment system for collecting the daily dues from transport drivers by all the transport union bodies so as to remove the inefficiencies and financial leakages that can occurs using the current system.
Science/Technology › Re: See What Would Happen If There Were No Gravity On Earth (Photos) by Konquest: 7:32am On May 17, 2024
