₦airaland Forum

Big B1:
@poster:
IBB is always making sense, in fact, I have never seen someone who has so much wisdom and ability to put smile on one's face. FYI: His thinking is so broad that it's almost unbelievable.
I can assure you people that in the next few months many haters will experience a change of heart; yes, he is that magnificent.

He he he -- "Jesus of Minna" - savior of the world not just Nigeria!

Haven't you read or heard the description of Lucifer in the Holy Bible. Or maybe you missed the shrewed twisting of the Bible that devil performed as he made an to tamper with the faith of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

@Oba234
Not many peopel would disagree with most of what you stated here, but:

1. These do not imply that anybody that answers Nigerian deserves to be discriminated against, especially when there is absolutely no other reason. That is the definition of bigotry.
2. Imply that South Africa needs a tighter immigration control, not some ad hoc repulsive "We Don't Allow Nigerians In Here' approach. Anything beyond your national laws and internationally accepted norms is discriminatory.

As long as a Nigerian is in your country legally, and commited no deportable crime, there is no justification for xenophobia. If the SA government wants to send all Nigerians packing let them do it openly rather than continue to harass innocent people.

The doctor that was harassed in this incident probably contributes more to the SA economy than the so-called bouncer - it goes both ways.

Your own experience should show you that this is patently wrong. If you felt it necessary to hide your Nigerian-ness in order to be accepted don't you think something is wrong - when you are the same perfectly good person whether you identified yourself as a Nigerian or not. Being nice is not unconditional - so the SA's you met might be nice to all as long no "Nigerian" showed up or they could just be nice people whether or not you are Nigerian. There is no way to tell, and you did not find out because you basically reversed the process and [size=15pt]banned [/size] your "Nigerian-ness" from showing.

Oba234:
Nobody is saying south africa is the promised land, but there are a lot of Nigerians that have this sense of deluded patriotism that really annoys me. They talk so much trash about the country without ever being there. I had a great time there and since south africans aren't here to defend themselves, I will defend them.  The Xenophobic riots in south africa was bad, but how can a country that just emerged from the Apartheid era handled the mass immigration of people that are coming to their country when they are still trying to develop their own country. Million of Zimbabweans are in south africa because of Mugabe and South Africa is forced to absorbed all those people into their economy and now the natives have to compete with them for a job when they are still  struggling. There are many people from the Congo there. Capetown is full of Somalis and Ethiopians. The security guards at my hotel were Congolese. The waiters at restaurants are all Zimbabweans. How did they get those jobs? Because they are willing to work for a lower pay than the natives and this doesn't make a lot of people happy. Many Nigerians are also there. This country is being forced to absorb all the immigrants from all over Africa because the rest of Africa can't get their Poo together. How can a developing country deals with all this? Frustration grows and it sometimes erupts into violence. In Nigeria, in the 70s or 80s, it was merely ghana and see how Nigerians treated them. Now imagine if the whole of west africa and south africa are now migrating into nigeria when Nigerians themselves are trying to find a job and see if violence won't erupt. Even in the developed country USA, anti immigration resentment is getting louder and louder and congress is in the midst of enacting a bill to not allow children of illegal immigrants to become a citizen all because they want to stop people from coming to the US. Arizona is now saying police can stop you to ask for your immigration status. Even in a developed country, it's a big problem, now a developing country like south africa, after emerging from Apartheid now has to deal with massive immigration into their country. I am not saying what they did is right, but frustration leads to anger. Also, the Xenophobic violence that occured in south africa two yrs ago was not as serious as they made it seemed in the media. The media is a propaganda machine. I even asked the locals there about that situation and they told me it wasn't as serious as they made it seemed and it was only restricted to a certain area

I don't really know what is wrong with people who find themselves with a lot of undeserved money in Nigeria - thinking everything is possible with money in your pocket. This man basically called the bluff of OBJ and PDP by joining the AC, and contesting the Presidency. Nobody followed him.

PDP under Yar'adua practically shuned OBJ, sent emissaries to him to return, he refused.

Yar'adua died, and one of the first things Atiku did was resign from the AC. He must be joking if PDP is going to allow him to jump back from AC and carry the flag.

He will still be in the courts when the elections are concluded in January, 2011!

manny4life:
hmmmm sad news, Nigerians need to buckle up and start fixing ourselves because it looks like other African nations hate us with a very good passion.

If you just noticed, welcome. The only hate worse is the way our leaders have effectively loved them more than Nigerians. We stand beside every African country in their time of predicament , yet these countries "unofficially" promote policies inimical to the welfare of Nigerians in their domain.

I was taken aback by the vehemency with which a radio station blasted the apparently false rumour of Obasanjo sleeping with his daughter as gospel, night and day, for the week I was in Ghana about 3 years ago. He spoke so loud and so certainly as if he was in the bedroom with them, and you would not know this had nothing to do with his country.

Yet, the reformation has to start with us - what we experience outside is not necessarily because we deserve it, as some people would like to make us believe. I bet that most other African countries are just as corrupt or even more corrupt than Nigeria. The main problem is that Nigeria, by necessity is prominent on the continent, but those who represent us to the world have no iota of shame. There is absolutely no policy for protecting Nigeria's reputation at home and abroad, and cannot be as long as the system we run is by nature corrupt.

Kobojunkie:
At least he has declared some Agenda. What about the other candidates?

Agreed. Other candidates need to speak up. Like Atiku, Jonathan has said he will implement his and Yar'adua's 7-point agenda, but what is necessary is a vision and a plan to accomplish the agenda. Anybody can list these issues - even IBB 

Yet another summary highlighting the Siemens Bribery case:

Home  News  US: Atiku Abubakar in $40m money-laundering accusation
US: Atiku Abubakar in $40m money-laundering accusation
Friday, 05 February 2010 01:27 Anonymous    .User Rating: / 1
PoorBest
A United States Senate report has accused former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of laundering over $40 million in suspicious funds into the United States between 2000 and 2008.
Also accused with him is his fourth wife, Jennifer Douglas. Douglas is sometimes known as Lady Jamilah Jennifer, or Douglas E, or Jennifer Iwenjora, the name by which she was known in the 1980s when she was a reporter with the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) in Lagos, reports Saharareporters.

According to the 330-page report, which was written by the Senate Homeland Security Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, most of the funds were through wire transfers sent by offshore corporations to U.S. bank accounts.

Of the $40 million identified in the US investigation, $25 million was reportedly wire-transferred by offshore corporations into more than 30 U.S. bank accounts opened by Douglas, primarily by Guernsey Trust Company Nigeria Ltd., LetsGo Ltd. Inc., and Sima Holding Ltd.
Atiku

[size=15pt]“In a 2008 civil complaint, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission alleged that Ms. Douglas received over $2 million in bribe payments in 2001 and 2002, from Siemens AG, a major German corporation,” the report says. “While Ms. Douglas denies wrongdoing, Siemens has already pled (pleaded) guilty to U.S. criminal charges and settled civil charges related to bribery and told the Subcommittee that it sent the payments to one of her U.S. accounts.” [/size]

The report also recalls the 2006/2007 corruption brouhaha in Nigeria between Abubakar and then President Olusegun Obasanjo over the Petroleum Technology Development Fund. At that time, both a government panel and an Economic and Financial Crimes Commission panel found Atiku guilty of diverting funds meant for the Fund’s operations nationwide to various banks to promote his private interests. Obasanjo dismissed his own extensive gains from the account as pointed out by Abubakar as mere “gifts” over which he had no control.

The report goes on: “The U.S. banks maintaining those accounts were, at times, unaware of her PEP (Politically Exposed Person) status, and they allowed multiple, large offshore wire transfers into her accounts. As each bank began to question the offshore wire transfers, Ms. Douglas indicated that all of the funds came from her husband and professed little familiarity with the offshore corporations actually sending her money. When one bank closed her account due to the offshore wire transfers, her lawyer helped convince other banks to provide a new account.

Here comes another charlattan trying to become president. Hear him:

The agenda, according to him, included employment generation and wealth creation; power generation and infrastructure development; security, good governance and [size=15pt]war against corruption[/size]; education, health and social services and the Niger Delta.

Atiku is a master of the game, and has wiggled out of almost all cases raised against him. However, only the dumb would not realize that when someone seems to be caught in the middle of two international fraud cases and a well celebrated internal one where he was an active participant it must be his modis operandi. There are probably hundred more corrupt cases yet to be unveiled.

This cannot be a guy to represent Nigeria to the world next!

The latest one is the following:

Atiku, Wife Laundered $40M -US Senate

AGENCY REPORTER

A report by the United States Senate has accused former Nigerian vice-president, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, of illegally bringing over $40m 'in suspect funds' into the US.

According to the Associated Press, the report released on Thursday detailed how Atiku allegedly laundered the money through his fourth wife, Ms. Jennifer Douglas, a US citizen.

Prepared by the US Senate Subcommittee on Investigations, the report said foreign leaders and their families were still able to channel hundreds of millions of dollars in potentially corrupt money into the US despite post-September 11, 2001 laws cracking down on money laundering.

According to the report, which had four money laundering case studies, the "fourth wife of the former vice-president of Nigeria, Atiku Abubakar, reputedly helped her husband bring more than $40 million in suspect funds into the United States. [size=15pt]Some $25m of that was wire-transferred by offshore corporations into more than 30 US bank accounts opened by Douglas[/size].

"Two offshore corporations transferred about $14m over five years to the American University in Washington, DC to pay for consulting services in setting up a university in Nigeria founded by Abubakar."

Prosecutors had last year said that former US Congressman William Jefferson, who received a 13-year sentence for accepting bribes, demanded $100,000 from a Virginia businesswoman to pay a bribe to Abubakar.

But the former vice-president has since denied the allegation.

The other three case studies involved the son of the president of Equatorial Guinea, Mr. Teodoro Mbasogo, who was alleged to have used US lawyers, bankers, real estate agents and escrow agents to move $110m into the US. An Angolan arms dealer, now in a French jail, maintained 30 US bank accounts for him, handling about $60m in transactions between 1997 and 2007.

Also, the report said Omar Bongo, the president of Gabon for 41 years until his death last year, wire-transferred more than $18m into bank accounts held in the name of a US lobbyist's company in an attempt to buy US-built military equipment.

A bank in New York was said to have closed an account of Bongo's daughter, a student, after discovering she had $1m in $100 shrink-wrapped bills in her safe deposit box, which she said her father had brought into the US using his diplomatic status.

The 330-page report concluded that powerful foreign officials and their families, known internationally as 'politically exposed persons' or PEPs had used lawyers, real estate and escrow agents, lobbyists, bankers and university officials to circumvent anti-corruption laws.

According to the AP, the head of a Senate Homeland Security panel, Senator Carl Levin, said that while financial institutions had become better at detecting possibly tainted money, glaring loopholes remained in the anti-money laundering law established in the 2001 Patriot Act.

He said this had allowed lawyers, real estate agents, lobbyists and others to act as conduits for foreigners seeking to move their wealth into the US.

"Laundered money is used to train and provide support for terrorists and terrorism. If we want to credibly lead efforts to stop illegal money abroad, we've got to stop it here at home as well," Levin said.

It noted that the US Treasury Department exempted some industries, such as hedge funds and the real estate industry, from Patriot Act anti-money laundering requirements. It also said that many of the professionals examined were under no legal obligation to take anti-money laundering precautions when dealing with a foreign official.

In hindsight, "We believe we should have done better," the global anti-money laundering and economic sanctions executive at Bank of America, Mr. William Fox, told the hearing. He said that in the past few years, "We have dramatically increased staff and spent tens of millions of dollars on sophisticated systems which help us to detect and report suspicious activity to appropriate authorities."

The report advised the US Treasury Department to adopt recent World Bank proposals to strengthen bank controls related to foreign officials and repeal anti-money laundering exemptions. Congress should require that the owners of shell corporations be named, according to the report, and should make acts of foreign corruption a legal basis for denying US entry to the person involved in the corruption and his family.

A Levin aide said one possibility was attaching anti-money laundering provisions to pending legislation to increase oversight of financial institutions.

Tribune
Written by Idowu Samuel, Okey Muogbo and Taiwo Adisa, Abuja
Monday, 16 August 2010

FORMER Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has put behind him the politics of exclusion by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as he formally announce his intention to contest the presidential election in 2011 on the platform of the party.

Atiku dismissed reports about question over his membership of the party, declaring rather that he was used to moving against the tide.

While declaring for presidential contest in 2011, Atiku described himself as “a man to beat in the election,” recalling the sacrifices he had made in politics, as well as the experiences he had gained in serving Nigeria.

While addressing his supporters at a ceremony held at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Atiku said he had all it took to win the election, adding that he had paid his dues in national politics since 1993.

Atiku berated the present-day leadership in the country, contending that the manner governance was being handled in the country of late had gradually been affirming Nigeria as a failed state, going by the world ranking.

The former vice-president, at the declaration, announced the five cardinal agenda which, he said, he would pursue with if voted in as president.

The agenda, according to him, included employment generation and wealth creation; power generation and infrastructure development; security, good governance and war against corruption; education, health and social services and the Niger Delta.

Atiku said he joined the mainstream politics of Nigeria on personal invitation by the late General Shehu Yar’Adua, adding that “my involvement in politics has, all along, been based on the need to give back to society, a society that has been good to me. “

He lamented that despite the modest achievements of the past, the country was still drifting like a rudderless ship, adding that it was difficult for anybody to say what vision was guiding the actions of those in charge of affairs of the country.

He also promised to invest in the Nigerian youth, whom he said he would properly mobilised for the task of rebuilding infrastructure in Nigeria.

Give the man a break already.

He's being in office for 3 months and has just over a year to repair the damage of the previous 3 years, conduct credible elections, pacify the anger over Abdul Mutallab, etc. Did Yar'adua even finish the amnesty program you attribute to him? In addition, wasn't it the same government, so how is the amnestry Yar'adua's legacy and not Jonathan's. What kind of legacy are amnesty program and paying down debt anyway?

All those leaders you mentioned ruled for at least 8 years, except Yar'adua, and it is not clear that some of these "legacies" are good - e.g. the world's largest cathedral when your citizens are living in poverty.

@mikeansy
I am not suggesting you won't be friends. I was refering to these political topics - especially wrt the 2011 elections.

That is the way it should be, but I am suggesting we argue in comparative terms. Youy summary of the two positions below is way too general. Both candidates need to come out with their agenda and people-relevant messages.

I don't know what anybody is waiting for - elections are only 4 months away. Donald Duke is in what party now? It seems to me that he is actually angling to be VP to somebody outside of PDP(?)

mikeansy:
Koruji

You got it all wrong. If I was in the same city with Beaf, we will probably hang out for a beer most times together.

We disagree a lot these days, but it is never personal nor abusive.

He thinks my candidate Donald Duke is vague, too polished and not for real. i think his candidate Jonathan Lameduck is damn right clueless .

But thats where the abuse ends and I think that is how it should be.

This is indisputable truth. However, only when the humans begin to treat themselves with utmost dignity would animals in their midst stop suffering horrific acts. In this light the call to do something about animal abuse in Nigeria sounds absurd - you have to save the humans first. Do you see helments on the heads of those two?

Jakumo:
The way in which animals are treated in any culture is a direct reflection of how humans beings are treated by that society.    Destitutes who die in the streets of Nigeria are NOT promptly collected by the "cadaver men" as they are in Mumbai, India.  No sir, in Nigeria, human bodies are often simply ground to shreds by passing traffic, or just left to putrefy, swell and burst by the roadside, as indifferent pedestrians walk by, all totally inured to such horrific sights, by frequent exposure.

In such a surreal landscape of human misery and abject squalor, the spectacle of livestock being subjected to prolonged torture will never raise an eyebrow, any more than does the sight of accused witches or prick thieves being lynched and set alight by baying mobs.   "Welcome to Hell", is what that Lagos airport road billboard sign ought to read, to really prepare visitors to Nigeria for what they will inevitably witness.

@Beaf
You and mikeansy are not going to see eye to eye. Mike has a candidate too - I just don't know who exactly (most likely Donald Duke) - but please don't stop the debate. We need it to focus on comparative strength of the candidates rather than showing someone to be generally unsuitable.

Now on the issue of quietness it would help for GJ to get out there more on the issues, since even when they are talking gibberish like IBB the louder you are as a politician, the more serious people are likely to consider you.

On the other hand, President GJ has delivered a couple of nationwide addresses, but that is what all his predecessors did. My hope is that GJ would find campaign managers that can get his message out - whatever it is. I believe he has the best interest of the nation at heart, unlike some other selfish contenders whose hands are soiled by past misdeeds, bad judgements and blatant corruption. The problem is that, while all those things are needed, they alone don't get you elected - you must simply play politics!

Beaf:
This is very funny. I mean that seriously.
Jonathan is a quiet man, when did that become a crime?
So you suddenly notice that you don't have to fight your neighbour to the death for a few drops of fuel; you can enjoy good times with your babe, because the fan stays on at night, because of improved power supply. All that and many more and you shoot the man down just because he is quiet?

I too, am a very quiet person, so I know where you are coming from. A lot of Nigerians mistake quietness for foolishness, most times to their detriment.
Jonathans actions speak for him (and its been a busy 3 months of action), that is what matters, not whether he is broadcasting his acheivements from the mountain top.

Kobojunkie:
Some folks are overly paranoid . . . what the heck has the movie to do with this? ROFLMAO!!

Kobojunkie the psychologist. What has someone pointing a gun at you yesterday got to do with a shot fired at you today?

Self-fulfilling nonsense out of their mouths all the time. Why does this particular "God" they are worshiping and talking to not show them how Nigeria can grow its economy 100% in one year!

BTW Nostradamus' predictions cannot be proven. He was successful as an astrologer for the people of his time -- much like today's astrologers live off one hit in a 1000 predictions. However, his century quatrains are mumbo-jumbo wrapped up in indecipherable numerology+astrology. I must admit that it is a great attraction to see if they could be proven to be true.

[quote author=Ileke-IdI link=topic=497404.msg6575492#msg6575492 date=1281836463]@koruji
oh that. thanks[/quote]Any time

Sunday, 15 August 2010 00:00 From Alifa Daniel, Asst Political Editor, Abuja News - National   .User Rating: / 0
Guardian

LESS than 90 days to the primaries of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and less than five months to the presidential election, the drumbeats of political warfare are resonating across the country, with former Vice President Atiku Abubakar holding a retreat with seven Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) in Abuja.
The former Vice President had, shortly after the 2007 elections, said he spent not less than N500 million on legal pursuits.
In the same vein, following the tacit approval given to President Goodluck Jonathan to contest the election, his strategists have started a round of meetings to gain lost grounds, which led to many political foes working against an outright endorsement from the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the PDP.
There is no firm word from the camp of former military leader, Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, on declaration date, though many suspect that he is planning a surprise “in his usual way.”
His spokesman, Kazeem Afegbua, could not be reached yesterday to confirm speculations that his birthday (August 17), or August 27, the date he stepped aside from power 17 years ago will be the date of his formal declaration.
Some of Jonathan’s men believe that what he got from the NEC was not good enough in view of the power at his disposal “and the ignoble role played by some governors, who see themselves as candidate materials.” But others think that in the prevailing circumstances, the President won a major victory in NEC.
One source reiterated that “there would be a lot of political engineering and clipping of wings,” without giving exact details of what would happen.
Details of the meeting between Atiku and his top legal minds were not clear even as his aides, especially Malam Garba Shehu, sought to play it down. The Guardian learnt it was the second of such meetings between the embattled politician and the legal team.
Shehu merely chose to state on telephone that Atiku had a meeting with his lawyers and said he did not have details. Atiku is expected to make a formal declaration today at 1.00 pm at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel.
But it was learnt that the move by the former Vice President was intended to see if he could be stopped by any of the laws in the country.  “They went through the 1999 constitution, the PDP Constitution, the Electoral Act and every other thing legal having to do with the forthcoming elections, and I suspect that the result of the last Retreat with the Senior Advocates led to his decision to throw in his hat into the presidential race,” a source said at the weekend.

blacksta:
hmm - abeg what film is that

[quote author=Ileke-IdI link=topic=497404.msg6575463#msg6575463 date=1281835778]Never seen it lol[/quote]https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-325776.0.html#msg4572616

https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-334807.0.html#msg4696745

[quote author=Ileke-IdI link=topic=497404.msg6575421#msg6575421 date=1281834867]Is this the beginning?

It's now a crime to be a Nigerian? [/quote]Does this remind anyone of a certain movie in which Nigeria was the only "real" country repeatedly branded with all kind of unimaginable acts? Anyone

mikeansy:
Some folks think appointing Attahiru Jega and releasing 74b is a substitute to implementing Mohamed Uwais report to the letter.

Jonathan's ambition is dangerous for the future of Nigeria, he does not seem equiped to lead the Nation effectively and yet thinks he has a devine right to continue in power beyond 2011. Some of his sycophants also tell us how his emergence is an act of God. Well what they have not told us is whether God killed Yar'adua in other for Jonathan to emerge and why God will do that?

I think both sides are making wild allegations here and trying their level best to minimize the other party. His action with regard to INEC were certainly commendable - I hope somebody is not suggesting that GJ & National Assembly hold back funds that Jega claimed is imperative for an election in 4 months. The selection of Jega himself was highly regarded, so those were achievements no matter how small.

I don't think you ever take the recommendations of a group of people hook, line and sinker - they have perspectives like everybody else. Many of those calling for implementation of the Uwais report have probably not read it - I haven't either.

On the other hand those claiming GJ is the best thing to happen to Nigeria must be dreaming dreams. He certainly was part of the Yar'adua fiasco in some way, and his queit approach to things may have been taken too far during that period that begged for national leadership - but we also all knew he was not in a position of strength. He has made some decisions that show he is not well coordinated - for I don't see how you announce you want to borrow $5.24 billion almost simultaneously with buying 3 (not 1) presidential jets, when we have just consumed $20 billion worth of excess crude reserves in less than 2 years (that was supposed to be extra money apart from budget).

At the same time, he is yet to outline a broad vision for Nigeria. None of the other candidates, except may be IBB, has outlined any kind of vision either. Before I forget, IBB's vision is gibberish and consists only of him in Aso Rock as the big dog once more.

All told, the last 100 days was a breath of fresh air compared with the fiasco of the previous 100 and the government since 2007.  Whether GJ is good long-term investment for Nigeria is all relative.  Let the really serious contenders stand up  - NOW! There is only 4 months to elections.

We have a case of two or more impossibilities in Nigeria.

We put money launderers, and at least one pedophile, in the position of lawmakers - then we send them a bill on money laundering. Same situation with Freedom of Information (FOI) bill.

So, we have a government that is broken to pieces here, yet these same people have the power to amend the constitution.

These are dishonourable men/women!

Osama10:
What do you expect from them, they are all money launderers that's why they wont allow the bill.

President Jonathan, I must agree, has shown a high level of sense of purpose during these 100 days.

It is really hard to believe it's been only 100 days - he has been everywhere and touched on many issues.

I am still on the fence about him for 2011, but between him and IBB he wins hands down - we 'll see what other serious contenders are out there.

More grease to our his elbows.

Beaf:
[size=14pt]President clocks 100 days in office[/size]
From JULIANA TAIWO, Abuja
Sunday, August 15, 2010

President Goodluck Jonathan. on Friday, marked 100 days in office, but it went unnoticed without fanfare unlike state governors are wont to do.
The President was sworn in on May 6 this year, a day after President Umaru Yar’Adua was pronounced dead.

Some of the notable things Jonathan has done in the last 100 days include measures to guarantee free and fair elections in 2011 such as the appointment of a credible chairman and national electoral commissioners for the Independent National Electoral Commission as well as ensuring that funds are made available for a new voters register; action to fulfill the promise of regular power supply to Nigerians through the Presidential Task Force on Power headed by a sector specialist, Prof. Barth Nnaji; and restoring normalcy to the downstream sector of Nigeria’s oil sector and ending of the queues at fuel stations across the country.

Other achievements are consolidating Nigeria’s banking sector reforms and strengthening its financial sector through the establishment of the Assets Management Company of Nigeria; forging a consensus among the three tiers of government for the creation of a Sovereign Wealth Fund that will facilitate sustainable economic growth and development; and raising $5.2 billion from the International Development Association to finance the provision of critical infrastructure.

To keep the economy on an even keel, President Jonathan also realigned the 2010 national budget with current financial realities by working with the National Assembly to adjust expenditure levels; disbursing N130 billion to commercial banks for the refinancing of loans granted to small and medium scale enterprises; sustaining the disbursement of the N200 Billion Agricultural Development Fund; and maintaining peace in the Niger Delta through implementation of the re-orientation and rehabilitation programme for former militants, among other actions.

On the global stage, the administration has repositioned Nigeria to reassume its leadership role in African affairs and its rightful place as a major player in the comity of nations. Jonathan currently chairs the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the Group of Eight Developing Nations.
The country also held the Presidency of the United Nations Security Council for July 2010.

http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/news/national/2010/aug/15/national-15-08-2010-012.htm

May be if we really talk they would listen. I am delighted to say that when I clicked on the same website today the first page that warns you of 419 in the Ministry since June 2009 has given way to a befitting front page.

http://www.mfa.gov.ng/

Up Nigeria 

@odumchi
I will not argue with you about what an Igbo president can or cannot do. All I am saying is that whether he does or doesn't would not be mainly due to being Igbo and not Hausa or Yoruba or Efik or Nupe or Kanuri. All these are irrelevant to the performance of a president.

I believe that it is unfounded arrogance to say the fact that Ojukwu led Biafra "well", in your estimation, meant that Igbos make good presidents. Without arguing with you the merit of whether Biafra was "the most advanced black nation on earth for 3 years" whatever Ojukwu achieved is firmly Ojukwu's achievements. I understand that you cannot divorce the context of his Igbo-ness from his achievements, but you kid yourself and open yourself to tons of weaknesses in arguing those achievements were due to his Igbo-ness. Three question to buttress my point:

1. Are you suggesting that unless an Igbo becomes president Igbos will not be able to achieve the same status they reached during three years of war? If you answer yes, then what you are actually suggesting is that war against Igbo is necessary for them to be motivated to greatness - one would have to wonder about that argument.
2. Are you suggesting that leaders of the various Igbo states since that war were not Igbos?
3. Are you willing to accept anything else that any other Igbo does as representative of the Igbo nation.

A "No" answer to any of these three questions ask you to have a serious re-think.

odumchi:
@ Koruji

Igbo men will definately change Nigeria for the better. When Chukwuemeka odumegwu ojukwu led Biafra he made it the most advanced black nation on earth in those 3years surpassing what Nigeria did in 50!
They drilled their own oil, made their own bombs and weapons even made planes and imported Europeans to train themslvs. Look at Nigeria they cannot make anything by themslvs import this import that.
Pray that an igbo man comes that is when Nigeria's tears will be wiped.

Keep up with repayments?

That is not all we need as criteria for borrowing. If we could keep up payments, why are we borrowing in the first place? This is not borrowing a couple of million dollars - it is $5.24 billion. For a government that had a $20 billion cushion as at January of 2009 to be borrowing $5.24 billion is beyond comprehension.

Deficit spending is here again, and setting the stage for another round of crisis in Nigeria - as if we got out crisis in the first place.

donspony:
Not a problem if we could keep up with the repayments

and as long as the T&C for repayment are not necessarily burdensome

People may think this is simply conspiracy theory and crazy, and ordinarily it is crazy. This may not be official, in fact it is not official policy, in any government capital of the world. However, there are sections of these societies, sometimes powerful and "respected" opinion leaders who think this way, and when given the opportunity go about their jobs in this particular way. It is hard to forget how legitimate issues surrounding 911 was quickly seized by Neo-cons in the corridors of power to produce a trillion dollar disaster for US foreign policy in Iraq.

Personally, I have heard someone promoting actions to combat climate change say something that is similar and equally shocking. After a lecture on reducing greenhouse gases he was asked about how developing countries would achieve the kind of emission cuts he was advocating, since they can ill-afford the needed technologies. Perhaps because he was put on the spot he simply said something like they can reduce their economic growth, pointing to how Russia's emissions had gone down dramatically due to economic crisis that began after the 1991 revolution. It sounded like an off-hand answer and nothing he would ever attempt to do, but sitting there from a country in dire need of rapid economic growth it sounded kind of callous for someone to suggest that developing countries should reduce economic growth to cut emissions - he will never suggest such a thing for developed countries!

Horus:
We should all read Confessions of an Economic Hit Man", a book written by John Perkin. According to his book, Perkins' function was to convince the political and financial leadership of underdeveloped countries to accept enormous development loans from institutions like the World Bank and USAID. Saddled with huge debts they could not hope to pay, these countries were forced to acquiesce to political pressure from the United States on a variety of issues. Perkins argues in his book that developing nations were effectively neutralized politically, had their wealth gaps driven wider and economies crippled in the long run. Economic hit men (EHMs) are highly paid professionals who cheat countries around the globe out of trillions of dollars. They funnel money from the World Bank, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and other foreign "aid" organizations into the coffers of huge corporations and the pockets of a few wealthy families who control the planet's natural resources. Their tools included fraudulent financial reports, rigged elections, payoffs, extortion, sex, and murder.

@hackney
You are claiming too much than any human being can reasonably do for Nigeria. There will be nothing special about an Igbo presidency, if that President is not the leader Nigeria needs.

Please get your mind out this "because he is Igbo, Yoruba, Hausa" thought process. Some of those actions you listed could easily make things worse for the Nigerian economy.

Still, if every ethnic group has a right to rule Nigeria, the Igbo, Efik, Ibibio etc. does too. Just stop saying things like when Igbo takes over Nigeria will become paradise!

hackney:
An igbo man as president will sort out the level of unemployment in one fell swoop but then naija is destined
for doom because that may never happen.

Basics:
Get experts to sort out NEPA (or whatever) ,shut the border to yeye chinese goods (fake anyway) imports.
Start making things ourselves and before you know it, thousands of factories and millions of jobs for the youths at least.
(which will stimulate almost every other sector).

Instead people are in Tincan island collecting bribes.
Fashola is building a tax-free haven for foreign goods on the island which means our industies have no chance.

Someone said in another thread that they are better in mainstream business while the igbos are selling spare parts.
Well, when 'Uncle' helps you get a job in Lever brothers, you call yourself a mainstream business man abi?
Keep shuffling papers.

@Ikengawo
Nice one. Could you share your data in some way? Also, how did you make the map (I ask because it looked like you actually traced the outline for each state in other to color it)?

Ikengawo:
according to media reports alone.



made it myself, tell me where im right and wrong

the response

THEY'RE ALL FAILING is illiterate and unfunny and im going to say it now so nobody has to say it for me

"THEY'RE ALL FAILING"

there. i dont want to here that.


red- failing, inactivity, unpopular governor or regressive

dark green- mixed reports

light green- progressive, developing/improving, popular governor.

@Beaf

I know President GEJ is your man, but unless we stand back and objectively examine things with full information Nigeria's case will always be a recurring decimal.

What the President is doing here is nothing different from what his predecessors did - Government promises to spend money for infrastructure; Government borrow money for infrastructure; Government spends money; Government has no infrastructure - it is a little white lie that we ought to be wise to by now.

How did he suddenly figure out that we need $5.24 billion, when it was the same government that emptied the Excess Crude Oil Reserves - by paying attention to the bellowing of the state governors? Now that reserve is down to $460 million from $20 billion in Jan 2009.

You are too much on the side of GJ to be unbiased. Otherwise, I would have expected you to make the connection. Nigeria is going broke, and the borrowing binge has started again. Here is an account of what happened to $20 billion between January 2009 and July 2010:

[size=15pt]Balance[/size]:  Jan 2009 - $20 bl;  July 2009 - $11.2 bl;   June 2010 - $4.6 bl; July 2010 - $3.2 bl; Aug 2010 - $0.46 bl

[size=15pt]Disbursements[/size]: Feb 2009 - $2 bl; Apr2009 - $5.3 bl (supposedly for power intervention to deliver 6GW by Dec. 09 ); June-Aug 2009 - $4 bl ; Sep 2009 - $2 bl; Oct 2009 - $2 bl (supposedly stimulus for economy  );  March 2010 - $3 bl; July 2010 - $2 bl; July 2010 - $1 bl (supposedly for sovereign wealth fund )

Many have being warning us for months, including the IMF and our eminent economist Dr. Okonjo-Iweala, about what would be the end result of depletion.

At this rate, I think GJ would probably NOT run for President next year. He can see what's coming next, given the parlous state of the world economy. This $5.24 billion is [size=15pt]not for any infrastructure[/size] - it is for deficit spending that hopefully would keep everybody happy until after the elections.

Nigeria is broke not because we have no money anymore, we are spending our regular income more than twice over.

Beaf:
[size=14pt]Why do Nigerians always want stuff for free? Awuf and abracadabra simply do not work![/size]

. . .The missing word here is "INVESTMENT!"

The money being borrowed is mainly to provide a new electricity power grid and to tremendously boost power supply by building new power plants and turning around existing ones. There are also requirements for urgent infrastructural interventions that will boost the private sector.

Already, with the servicing of existing power stations Nigeria supplies much more electricity than our rusty and decripit power transmission system can carry. As soon as the power is switched on, something blows, because the grid is old, weak and useless (kept deliberately so).
A brand new 700-Kilovolt grid has been signed into existence by Jonathan; when built, this grid will take Nigeria's energy supply capacity to developed World standards.

Our gas supply lines are in an atrocious state, because of early planlessness. We have gas lines that isolate the South East, money has to go into infrastructure to bridge gas supplies to the Eastern parts of the country, as well as merge gas distribution lines between East and West.

Money has to go into the dredging of the Niger and the creation of inland ports to open up new business routes and opportunities between North and South. The dredging of the Niger is of significant importance to the Northern, Eastern and Western regions of Nigeria; cargoes (eg fuel and timber) that are currently lumped unto our long suffering trailers that clog up and destroy our road surfaces, will be transportable by water at greatly reduced cost.

Nigerians, be patient and positive! The quiet dude is just quiet, but he's gonna turn the country around.

You, I am afraid have no sense of history. There was once a credible Igbo man seen by the majority of Nigerians as intelligent and people loving - and he worked for IBB.

Yes, Ebitu Ukiwe is his name - guess what happened to him. Used, dumped, humiliated.

Don't get me started - may be you are unaware or just playing ostrich, but this is one of the signatures of IBB. Lacking in real credibility, he surrounds himself with the most intelligent and upright citizens you can find in Nigeria.

The outcome was always the same, they end up getting humiliated. Wole Soyinka and Tai Solarin were honorable people with little or no political ambitions, but their credibility and status in society was without question. IBB induced them to join his "campaign" to save Nigeria, but they ended up getting used for credibility and dumped like Ebitu Ukiwe.

What became of the "Mayor" of Abuja, bossom friend of IBB and for whom IBB served as bestman on wedding night. He sent him to the slaughter house surreptitiously in the middle of the night - with animal-like unfeelingness.

So will be the fate of anybody that works to put IBB in the chair, with the objective of subsequently taking over from him. You need to read the tepidness with which IBB suggested power should move to the Southeast.

If Ken Nnamani is good enough to be president in 2015, why not 2011 - especially since IBB realizes that an Igbo president will resolve long-standing problems among Nigeria's ethnic nationalities. I forgot, that can wait so that IBB can have 4 more years of presidency. You better believe  - IBB is leading you by the nose to the sacrificial altar.

On whose honor are you believing anything that comes out of IBB's mouth - who is his surety. You!

Yoruba:
Some people are just crying foul . . . . IBB has already won the election so long as he picks a credible Igbo man like Ken Nnamani as a running mate.

Nigeria has a history that is nothing to write home about or as the case may teach anybody about. Humans are designed to forget bad memories, while keeping just enough to avoid repeating the most egregious ones. The problem with Nigeria is we never even stopped creating bad history. Good times are far in-between and end up in the mouth of the greedy.

IBB again for you: "it would be his [size=15pt]desire[/size] to see that power moves from the North to the South-east"

Nigerians, and especially Igbos, the operative word here is "DESIRE". Not promise, not imperative, not must - IBB's desire is the way he "desired" a solid democratic government in Nigeria in 1985. Look we are we are today!

In fact, if there is an Igbo man out there that is willing and can demonstrate to Nigerians his ability to provide the government they desire, 2011 is the time to take his case to the people. Not necessarily to win, but to show what this nation could have if it does away with archaic ideas that belong in ages long gone, and to put himself in the forefront to take power from whoever wins in 2011.

Exactly, you can't be bothered by the nitty-gritty of what would affect our lives. We get your message - just shut up and give us the government already. This time it is a NO, NO and NO!

Big B1:
Too much story, just name 1?