₦airaland Forum

[size=14pt]YOU CAN LEAVE THE ARMY[/size]

In his convocation speech at the University of Benin last week, the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, remarked that, “Sango is the god of lightning and thunder, but all the sacrifices made to Sango have not generated one kilowatt of electric power.” Let me make it clear that I understand the point Fashola was making within the context of the entire speech but his choice of which god to denigrate is a cowardly decision. Fashola could have referred to the gods that dominate Nigeria’s public space – the Christian and Muslim – and risk being ripped into shreds by their adherents. Instead, he reaches for a marginal god, one that has already been endlessly disparaged in popular culture by a tribe of ignoramuses. Sango does not deserve such a gratuitous insult from a national public official.
Why allude to Sango, whom no public official sacrifices to (at least publicly) when both the Christian and Muslim adherents are the higher consumers of public resources? Sango’s shrine is not the largest in the country, competing with his peers to homogenise the public sphere; Sango is not the one we worship in business centres that have now been converted to religious houses; Sango does not have enough followers who can contend for their representative to be appointed to public office. Nobody gets forex subsidy to visit Sango’s shrine but Nigerian Christians and Muslims have had no qualms using public money to fund their pilgrimages. Why not take down the actual sources of religiosity that impede social progress rather than use Sango as a rhetorical diversion?
Besides, Sango worshippers are not simple-minded dolts who expect him to bequeath them electricity. The Greeks, for instance, see Apollo as the god of Music but European/western culture did not wait for him to write their classic music scores. They also take Bacchus as the god of wine but they do not chide him for not running a winery. Diana is the goddess of hunting while Athena is the goddess of intellection but who actually sacrifices to them so they can give anything back? These are mythological figures around whom people build a cultural economy and from there enrich their imagination. We see how much this has benefited mankind and we should be borrowing ideas from there, not running down our indigenous mythology.

The Punch


While governing Lagos State, mind-boggling figures were spent on a website for his office(N78million) & the car-park of his official residence(N600million). He declared himself free of any impropriety, on the grounds that, he neither negotiated those contracts, nor signed the cheques. Now he’s talking about Sango. Is Sango running the power ministry with him? He should be delivering improved power supply, not waiting for Sango’s response to the sacrifice, of his adherents.

Now, let me tell you, the origin of the topic above. An old friend and a colleague, a fellow retired Permanent Secretary came to my hospital in Umuahia two weeks ago. He wanted to know if he could go home and bring his father, to the hospital for review. The father had come from the village the previous day. When I asked what was wrong with his dad, he said, and I quote, “my dad is suffering from old age”. I was mad. “Come again?” I shouted. “Are you out of your mind. Your father is suffering from old age. Please tell me, what illness is that? For your your information – old age is not an illness!. I now exploded, and with expletives, I gave him a piece of my mind. When he saw I was very hurt by his choice of words. He apologised profusely, and said he was only cracking a joke.
We know as we age baring any complications from chronic illnesses like hypertension, diabetes or rheumatoid arthritis, majority of people age fine, but some manifest diminished functions, appropriate for that age. So my duty in these two-part-serial expositions, is to let elderly people know, what diminished functions are appropriate and normal for each age, so that if it deviates from expectations, they would alert their doctors.
What are the expectations of ageing and the society?
1) ♥ According to research on “Man’s Body”, by the “Diagram Group”, changes in temperament and behaviour in old people may be accepted as inevitable. But how far they are really due to neurological and mental deterioration is often hard to judge. The changes may rather be a psychic reaction to the person’s social, psychological, and physical situation.
2) ♥ Old age often brings with it, a dramatic change in a person’s experience of life. a) Declining physical ability and efficiency. b) Perhaps involving being looked after by others. c) The end of the working life. And d) Isolation, due to the disappearance of work contacts, family, mobility, and death of friends – all these can affect an old person’s self-esteem, and lead to depression and melancholia.
3) ♥ Old people find that they have no role to fulfil, and no social label or way of identifying themselves, other than by that derogatory term, “old man or woman”. The associated stereotypes of which are not inspiring.
4) ♥ Society’s subtle message can seem the same: you are no longer really useful, and though you are enjoying the deserved fruits of your labour, your difficulties and incapabilities are something of a problem for us.
5) ♥ Of course, many old people keep up a wide range of active interests – but for others it is difficult, due to lack of finance, isolation, pysical incapacity, and lack of mental stimulation.
6) ♥ The rate of change in modern society, adds to their disorientation; and the way of life in many extended family homes do little to help. All this, can result in apathy, listlessness, resentment and mental stagnation, which others then dismiss as inevitable senility.
Kharmic Caveat.
There is an unwritten law of retributive-justice, which states that if we neglect, abandon or disrespect our aged father, mother, uncle, aunt or relatives, maybe hoping to compensate the society with a befitting glamorous and obscene burial. That somehow we harvest the same treatment, when we are old, in equal measure, or even worse. Here is an order to all us, “if you have any living aged relative anywhere in the world, get up now, take action today, in cash and kind, and make the remaining part of their lives better. Or your conscience will flog you forever”.

FROM Sunday Sun
Dr Sun, old age is an illness, according to some of your colleagues. We consulted them at Surulere General Hospital, Lagos and at a private medical facility, while in search of help for a relative who was close to 80 years. Such a pronouncement was so annoying, we felt we needed to make an input, in effect teach them their job. We suggested to the senior female doctor at Surulere General Hospital, that a scan might be useful. We spoke in English, and she opened her mouth to reply in Yoruba, “Are you capable of paying for scan?” It looked like, she was trained in a Yoruba language medical school, wherever that exists.
The other doctor, at the private medical facility, was also advanced in years, but not as old as my relative. He told us, that much. He however, did not live long enough, to reach my relative’s age. The nigga could not cure himself of old age. Can you see why there is self-medication and medical tourism and alternative medicine?
As at present time, the Chief of Staff to Mr. President, Mr. Abba Kyari, is receiving treatment abroad. He was flown there after taking ill in Nigeria.

[size=14pt]Don't Give A Damn[/size]

[size=14pt]The Common Wealth Of Zion Assembly Invites You To Experience Worship, Word and Miracles With Pastor Benny Hinn. The Common Wealth Of Zion Assembly or COZA, is the former church of Ms. Ese Walter.
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[size=14pt]Everything President Obasanjo [url=http://saharareporters.com/2008/01/13/my-father-made-love-my-wife-%E2%80%94gbenga-obasanjo]did in office[/url] was for himself, and for himself, and for himself. It only GSM licences he issued that are benefitting the nation.[/size]

Reuben Abati's article is significant. It corroborates everything I ever said about the pervasiveness of witchcraft superstitions in our society and validates my position that superstitions hinder good governance. It gives us a glimpse into how decisions are made in Aso Rock. How convenient for Reuben to blame his lackluster performance and that of the government he served on witches? Shocking as this might be, he is not the first Nigerian public office holder to blame witches for poor performance. Femi Fani-Kayode blamed witches for the plane crashes that happened under his watch as the aviation minister in 2005/2006 (https://www.nairaland.com/147088/fani-kayode-blames-occultists-2006-plane). When will our people learn to take responsibility? Reuben recommends that the government converts Aso Villa to a museum and spends millions of dollars of taxpayers' money to build a new Presidential Villa.
What a fantastic proposition to boost our struggling economy, empower our industries and reduce youth unemployment (it is estimated that nearly one in four Nigerians is unemployed). I do not know what hallucinogenic substances Reuben has been messing with, but I know they are potent! Clearly, he is out of touch with the realities of daily living in Nigeria. When one considers that this man advised our former president for five years, then one is left with no choice than to weep for our country. He preoccupied himself with the sex lives of the employees in Aso Villa to the point he knew which men had erectile dysfunction and which women used intimacy gadgets. Although the employees all went their separate ways after President Jonathan lost the election two years ago, it appears that Reuben managed to keep a tab on everyone's sex life. He confirms that all the men who suffered from erectile dysfunction have now recovered the function of their organs.
Hallelujah!! Think about it - this man advised President Jonathan about the direction to steer this country for five years!
Let us indulge Reuben for a moment. Hear him, "Should I become President of Nigeria tomorrow; I will build a new Presidential Villa: a Villa that will be dedicated to the all-conquering Almighty, and where powers and principalities cannot hold sway. I am tempted to suggest that this is indeed a country in need of prayers. We should pray before people pack their things into Aso Villa. We should ask God to guide us before we appoint ministers." Did Obasanjo not dedicate Aso Villa to the all-conquering God when he became president? Does God no longer dwell in Aso Villa Chapel and Mosque? What happened to all the prayers that people like Bishop Oyedepo, Oritsejafor, and Pastor Adeboye went to say in Aso Villa - have those prayers expired? Reuben gives the impression that the witches in Aso Villa are stubborn and far more powerful than the prayers of these respected religious leaders. What is the guarantee that the all-conquering God will reside in the new Presidential Villa that Reuben proposes we build in His name? I feel sad to say Reuben has lost the plot. He needs to retire before he does his credibility more harm.
Let us hear from Reuben again, "But what I got in response was that I was coming to the villa using Lux soap, but that most people around the place always bathed in the morning with blood. Goat blood. Ram blood. Whatever animal blood. I argued. He said there were persons in the Villa walking upside down, head to the ground. I screamed. Everybody looked normal to me." To me, this is the only part of his article that makes sense. No normal person walks on their head. Therefore, it does not surprise me to learn that many people in Aso Villa walk on their heads. Why else is our country in such a mess? It is evident that President Jonathan surrounded himself with the wrong kinds of people. I wonder how many Reuben Abati's he employed to advise him. Oh well, look where that got him and the country.
There is no evidence for the existence of witches, wizards, evil spirits, demons et al. If these entities truly exist in Aso Villa, then I am confident they are the people who plunder our commonwealth and make the bad governance decisions that impoverish our country. It is curious how these witches play with electric switches and start fires in Aso Villa apartments, but they appear powerless and incapable of frightening the residents from sponging off the "national cake." I must remark though that what these witches and demons do, they do very well - they are always willing to accept the blame for the failures and poor judgment of our leaders who, as we well know, never like to accept responsibility for their actions.
On a final note, I hope President Buhari will pay attention to his wife's warning to stop surrounding himself with the wrong kinds of people. We know from previous experience how capable of derailing government members of the powerful "kitchen cabinet" are. It would be sad to see the ugly scenarios play out all over again.

http://saharareporters.com/2016/10/14/witches-aso-villa-reuben-abati-has-lost-plot-dr-ijabla-raymond
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Dr. Ijabla, according to you, there is no evidence for the existence of witches, wizards, evil spirits, demons et al. if that is so, why then do you refer to some pastors as, “respected religious leaders”. If witches, wizards etc, do not exist, they must be deceiving the people, and President Obasanjo must have fallen for their guile. I know they do exist, even in the parishes of, at least one of the, “respected religious leaders”. They exist, and are ministering as pastors. Pastors who were ordained by the hands of the, “respected religious leader”. If he cannot deal with the witches in his own turf, how can he do it in the Aso Villa. If the Holy Spirit has not exposed, the enemies within his constituency, then his relationship with the Holy Spirit is likely to have gone awry. In effect, using your own words, “his prayers have expired”. I was introduced to the ministry of one of those, “respected religious leaders” by a pastor couple, about a decade ago. Today, I can confidently say, they have soiled their hands with voodoo. I have been a victim, indirectly.

[size=14pt]A retired Commissioner of Police Alhaji Abubakar Tsav has attributed the failure of policemen to prevent the abduction of a former Minister of Environment, Mrs Laurentia Laraba-Mallam and her husband, Pius, to the pre-occupation of the police with extorting commercial drivers on the Kaduna-Abuja Expressway. – The Punch[/size]

[size=16pt]Seeing Is .....[/size]

#RCCG #FOL, #HGS, #Adeboye,
Samuel I 5:2 When the Philistines took the ark of God, they brought it into the house of Dagon, and set it by Dagon.
Samuel I 5:3 And when they of Ashdod arose early on the morrow, behold, Dagon [was] fallen upon his face to the earth before the ark of the LORD. And they took Dagon, and set him in his place again.
Samuel I 5:4 And when they arose early on the morrow morning, behold, Dagon [was] fallen upon his face to the ground before the ark of the LORD; and the head of Dagon and both the palms of his hands [were] cut off upon the threshold; only [the stump of] Dagon was left to him.

I know of a popular street in Lagos, Nigeria that hosts at least nine night-clubs located in different properties on the street. Co-existing with these clubs, are two parishes of the Redeemed Christian Church of God(RCCG), and one parish of another church. These clubs attract hordes of people to that street on Friday nights and public holidays. The last Sallah weekend was no exception. These churches also hold their vigils on Friday nights, when all sorts of undesirable elements are also on the street, because of the presence of the night-clubs. I am aware that one of the 2 parishes of RCCG, no longer holds vigils, because they do not want expose their members, especially the children, teens and youths, to the activities of night-clubbers and their kind, on the street.
I expect that as Dagon(in the scripture above) disintegrated in the presence of the Ark of God, so should the night-clubs have folded-up because of the parishes of RCCG, located there. The night-clubbers and their ilk should have been converted, or the fire of the Holy Ghost emanating from the house of God, should have driven them all away. What fellowship hath darkness with light? I hope the fire has not been withdrawn.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=at4i0bt7NBY

Foremost human rights lawyer, Dr. Tunji Abayomi on Friday said Lagos state has the potential to become like Dubai but that is impossible because of massive corruption going on in the state.

According to him, Lagos State will make significant progress if corruption in the state is reduced by 10 percent.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with Independent, Abayomi, who is a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), also described the Lagos State civil service as the most corrupt civil service in the world, saying it is time to have a reformation of governance in Lagos and the entire South West.

While adding that state governments in the South West are too corrupt, he said he had to force some officials in a particular ministry in the state’s civil service to return the sum of N4m which they illegally collected from a poor union in the state.

“I think it (South West) needs to be more diversified and accommodating to diverse opinion. The same people that are there remained there and continued there. It is not expanding to accommodate new thoughts. Because of that, it is not advancing”.
“The other issue is, the party needs to do a lot more in terms of meeting the needs of the people. There is a need for reformation of government in the South West. It follows the same old pattern”.
“Even in Lagos here, Lagos State civil service is one of the most corrupt civil service in the world. Only recently, I had to force a ministry in the civil service of Lagos state to return N4m which they took illegally from a poor union for no just cause. I made some officials of the ministry return the money. They are so corrupt. How long are we going to continue in this corruptive path?” he asked.

http://independentnig.com/lagos-civil-service-most-corrupt-in-the-world-abayomi-2/


This must have happened under the watch of Barrister Babatunde Fashola. He chose to look the other way, and the officials really grew wings. That is why Lagos State Government paid N640 million, for upgrading the car park at the Governor’s official residence on Marina, and N78.3 million, to upgrade the Governor’s personal website, and N139 million for two bore-holes at the Lagos State Secretariat, Alausa. If boreholes cost so much, it would be most prohibitive, to source water from vendors, whenever Lagos Water Corporation goes to sleep.

#FOL, #HGS, #Adeboye,

[size=13pt]Mama Peace, EFCC froze some accounts domiciled in Skye Bank holding a total of $31.5 million, of your personal money. I thought it was made up of the dollar component of your emoluments as Permanent Secretary in the Bayelsa State Civil Service, and as First Lady of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. You have proven that, this is erroneous. You have since declared that $15,591,700.00 of that money was for your overseas medical expenses, incurred in 2013. You must have had 5 kidney transplants then. Thank God for sparing your life. Nigeria has been greatly enriched by all the contributions you have made since that time. I guess the balance of the money was estacode that accrued to you, while you occupied the office of First Lady. I hear you have taken EFCC to court over the freezing of those accounts. That is the right course of action. You should be as bold as a lion, to defend what is rightfully yours. EFCC should be made to know that, “There is God Oh-h”. Chai!!! [/size]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fGrrhfLzQH8

[size=14pt]Really? Will that bring down the price of a loaf of bread or a bag of rice? Will that fix our roads? Will that give us reliable public electricity? South Africa generates over 40,000MW of electricity, compared to Nigeria's 3,000MW.[/size]

[size=16pt]Sir, you need to rid RCCG of pastors who have strayed into Satan’s territory. They laying hands on people and anointing them with oil, even at the Holy Ghost Service, and thereby contaminating them. [/size]

It was alleged sometime ago that the Lagos State Government, under the watch of Barr. Babatunde Fashola spent a fabulous amount of N78 million to build a website for the Governor(to perform his official duties). When this allegation was put to the Governor at the Senate Ministerial Screening, he denied responsibility, but not the allegation. Maybe he does not know that, the buck not stops at his table. EFCC and ICPC have since been silent on the matter. I hope they are not saying that N78 million is too small to investigate. They are currently after looters of far larger amounts. Probably, they are waiting to receive a petition from the public before they can do their job. If so, this is the petition.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QfkOTpqfeZA

Rory Tapner <admin@sltechsoft.com>

Jul 9 at 5:56 PM
Dear Friend,

I am Rory Tapner, Chief Executive of Wealth Management division at Royal Bank of Scotland. I am getting in touch with you regarding the Estate of a deceased client with similar last name and an investment placed under our Banks management worth millions in Great Britain Pounds, which he wished to have us invest on his behalf. Mr. Frederick died intestate and He has no next of kin indicated in the file and the reason I am writing you is because you share the same last name. And we can claim the funds for ourselves.

Nobody is getting hurt; this is a lifetime opportunity for us. I hold the KEY to these funds, and from my years as a banker, we see so much cash and funds being re-assigned daily.

I know within me that nothing ventured is nothing gained and that success. Do not betray my confidence. If we can be of one accord, we should act swiftly on this. Please get back to me as soon as possible.

I await your response
Rory Tapner

[size=16pt]Are churches adding value to anyone's life?[/size]

Lagos State through LAMATA, is constantly repairing or rebuilding the BRT lane and bus shelters. They do not seem to realise that gridlock traffic results when a section of the BRT lane is closed. Repairs continue to follow repairs, year in, year out. Is not better to do it right the first time, or maybe big money is changing hands, and some officials are smiling to the bank.

If he knew what’s in there, he would not bother at all

I used to think that ABC Transport PLC was one of the best managed
road transport companies in Nigeria, until I received new revelations, recently.
A short while ago, my nephew booked with ABC, to travel from Lagos to Abuja in a 14-seater bus, called “Sprinter”. He arrived the ABC terminal, only to be told to join the luxurious bus, because it had several empty seats. He complied, but ABC did not even bother to return the difference in fares.

On the return journey he chose to go by the luxurious bus, rather than the sprinter, so that he would not be short-changed again. As soon as the journey began he could tell from the sound of the vehicle, that all was not well with it. Six hours into the journey, somewhere between Okene and Kabba, the bus caught fire. Thank God for ATMs. I had to send money, to enable my nephew continue his journey, first to Akure, from where he boarded another vehicle to Lagos. He arrived home at 12:15am the following day.
Up ABC Transport PLC.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqemVwtHfYw

A few years ago, PHCN(now defunct) declared my meter non-functional, apparently because my bill was not high enough, for the neighbourhood where I was domiciled. From then on, my bill got progressively higher. When I complained in writing, there was a downward adjustment, followed by another round of steady increase.

I now have a prepaid meter, that came pre-loaded with 300 units of electricity. In the first 3 weeks, I did not consume half, i.e. 150 units, but in the past. I have been billed for, between 1,000 and 2,700 units, of energy that I did not consume. In short, I was robbed silly by these fellows.

My old meter is still connected and I have been able to compare energy consumed, as indicated by the old and new meters, and the difference is marginal. It was reported recently, that 70% of electricity consumers in the South-East, by-passed their prepaid meters and I don’t blame them. They are only trying to recover, what has been stolen from them in the past, via estimated billing.

OPEN LETTER TO THE HONOURABLE MINISTER OF POWER, WORKS AND HOUSING – BARR. BABATUNDE FASHOLA
Your Excellency,
At your ministerial screening at the Senate, you said,“I don’t sign cheques”. That was your answer to a question that alleged that you spent ₦78million on your official website. Honourable Minister, in your current assignment, please, you should, “sign cheques”. In other words, you should pay close attention to what is going on, under your watch. You also have to pay close attention to the activities of Eko Electricity Distribution Company Plc(EKEDP), and the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission(NERC).

EKEDP, should not be allowed to use “Estimated Consumption” to bill us, because this is very very much, open to abuse. They brazenly abused me, in March 2016, by billing me over ₦53,000.00, for a residential apartment equipped with a TV, fridge, freezer, standing fan, and an electric kettle. While EKEDP, was “robbing” me, Alhaji Lai Mohammed(the Honourable Minister for Information) was [url= http://thenationonlineng.net/fg-apologises-over-power-failure/ ]apologising to Nigerians for the poor power supply situation.[/url]

EKEDP, received money from me for a smart prepaid meter, early in January 2016. This has not been installed even though, the 45 working days, they gave for installation has elapsed, and another 45 working days is about to go by. It is beginning to look like, I have been defrauded, on the pretext of being given a prepaid meter.

As for NERC, I am yet to understand what they regulating, but the last board, headed by Dr. Sam Amadi, had the impudence to award itself [url= http://www.dailytrust.com.ng/news/general/nerc-board-okays-n2-7bn-severance-pay-for-members/117428.html ]a severance package of ₦2.7billion.[/url]

Honourable Minister, the ball is now in your, “court”. NERC and EKEDP, have charges to answer, and may I request that you preside over this case, speedily.

Your Excellency, please be assured of my highest regards.
Mark Sole.
[url= “<iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/QfkOTpqfeZA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>” ] [/url]