₦airaland Forum

Wow!!! So MTN Nigeria & Globacom are included in this "astonishing" internet delivery? . If Nigeria has the fastest internet, then Africa's backward nature (real or perceived) is worse than anyone could have ever imagined.

pro01: I can't even imagine how any sane Chelsea fan would refer to Abramovich as an ingrate. Do you know what 'ingrate' even means? Without this man, Chelsea would probably be languishing in mid-table season after season. He came on board to create a champions mentality and instil a sense of entitlement in the club (unlike other clubs like Arsenal and Tottenham that are always happy with 4th place). He has proved that he is ready to do whatever it takes to keep the club up there at the very top. What else can real fans ask for?

Any Chelsea fan who knows anything about gratitude would NEVER utter a negative word about Roman Abramovich. Goodness.

It is because they don't any sense in their heads. Ask them where Chelsea was before Roman's emergence and hear the idiocy which they will spew.

Sacking Di Matteo is a hasty but ultimately inevitable decision. Chelsea's UCL victory is proof that God exists & Roman wasn't happy with the way in which they won hence his hesitation in giving Di Matteo a contract. Di Matteo was always going to be a stop gap until the Chosen One eventually decides to step up. For those who don't know; Roman decided to buy Chelsea after watching Man United versus Real Madrid at Old Trafford in the 2002/2003 season, a game which ended 4-3 and is probably the greatest Champions League match ever played. He has always wanted his team to win by playing attractive football, something Di Matteo was never going to be able to deliver.

N.B: Any Chelsea fan insulting Abrahmovich is a slowpoke who just started watching football. Before him, Chelsea was just an above average club and without his passion, commitment and money, they probably would be on the level of the Wigans, Boltons et al.

http://www.ekekeee.com/?p=3806

Last Friday, as I awaited my turn on the Petrol queue in suburban Lagos, I made new friends.

In between Tweeting from my mobile and nibbling on stale ‘gala’ and quaffing ‘La Casera’ in the sweltering temperatures, my new friends and I engaged ourselves in a conversation on Nigeria. Uzor was a clergyman, Tunde was an itinerant salesperson and Funke earned a living as a Banker. As has become the norm when Nigerians meet during a crisis, we took the Government at all levels to the cleaners; analyzing and cussing where applicable. My new friends were firebrands—passionate about their country and debating amidst caustic decibels.

As I posted my Tweets on my ordeal at the Petrol Station to my handful of followers, I asked the inevitable question intermittently: “So, guys, what can we do individually to save Nigeria?”

“E go beta”, said the Clergyman. “Only God can save us because the rot is so deep”, intoned the Banker. “Well, e go beta”, the Salesperson added resignedly, to compound my afternoon.

E go beta. Nothing sums up our woes as a Nation like those three words uttered passively. E go beta brings us to a point where we stop engaging our mental faculties—a dangerous and inert cul-de-sac.

Two months before, I was on a Job related tour around the country. In Nigeria’s oil rich Delta region, our tour-de-guide, a young man in his 30s, dwelt on the subject of our woes as a nation at every stop; at the slightest opportunity. “So what do you think of the Jonathan administration and who did you guys vote for around here?”

“Look, Oga, Nigeria’s problems are beyond Jonathan. We are dealing with a systemic rot here. Goodluck is doing his best and the Northerners are just doing all they can to frustrate and distract him with Boko Haram. Goodluck is trying….E go beta…….”

E go beta.

I hear these words all the time—in traffic, at the eatery, on campuses, at the office and while stocking up on groceries at the mall. I grew up to hear the cliché: ‘E go beta, na poor man prayer’. Some Nigerian artistes even did a duet bearing the sing-along: ‘One Day, e go beta’. The nerve of it!

I cringe whenever I hear those words. E go beta is probably why we are stuck with Politicians who do not know their onions. E go beta could be the reason why we do not ask our Local Government Chairmen or Councilors any questions. E go beta could be the reason why our representatives at the national assembly get away with murder. Our Pastors and Imams indulge us to keep praying and believing, dissuade us from joining the struggle to salvage Nigeria, because ‘One day, e go beta’.

E go beta is a national malaise. E go beta makes me cringe. E go beta is a death knell of some sort—the medical equivalent of a laparotomy leading to a complete cessation of life as we know it.

As we celebrate nationhood today amidst the long and boring speeches that will inevitably follow and the jaded goodwill messages from foreign embassies, the greatest gift we can offer our nation going forward will be to eschew the E go beta syndrome from our psyche.

E go beta has been an ill wind that has blown us no good.

The writer is on Twitter @egbas

http://www.ynaija.com/opinion-president-jonathan-is-neither-a-success-nor-a-failure/

In the final analysis, do we then describe Jonathan as a failure or a success? Hardliners hardly change their positions, no matter the strength of evidence before them.

The detractors of President Goodluck Jonathan will retort scornfully that he is a total failure, while his ardent supporters will scream that he is a huge success. But before we decide where to place him, let us look at a few indices upon which to assess him.

Through the Doctrine of Necessity by the Senate, President Jonathan was made the Acting President of Nigeria on February 9, 2010, when it was clear that the de jure President, Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, was seriously ill despite claims to the contrary by his aides. With that, Jonathan became fully in charge. Upon the death of Yar’Adua on May 5, 2010, Jonathan was sworn in as the President the next day. At the presidential election held on April 16, 2011, Jonathan polled 22,495,187 votes to beat his closest rival and candidate of the Congress for Progressive Change, Maj-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), who polled 12,214,853 votes. And on May 29, 2011, Jonathan was sworn in again as President on the strength of his victory at the poll rather than on good luck.

Therefore, President Jonathan has been the substantive chief executive officer of Nigeria for more than two years now. That is enough time to gauge his performance as the leader of the most populous nation in Africa and the seventh most populous nation in the world.

What, however, are the minuses of President Jonathan? His biggest negative, many will say, is his inability to stop the violence from the Islamic fundamentalist group, Boko Haram. From a radical group that fought policemen with guns, bows and arrows in 2009 in Borno State , Boko Haram metamorphosed speedily into a bomb-making, bomb-throwing, suicide-mission-savvy group that has become a terror in Nigeria. A few of the institutions the group has attacked include the Nigeria Police Force Headquarters in Abuja on June 16, 2011; the United Nations building in Abuja on August 26, 2011; St Theresa’s Catholic Church in Madala, Niger State on December 25, 2011; and the office of Thisday newspapers in Abuja and Kaduna on April 26, 2012.

Even though the security authorities have recorded occasional results against this group, the fact that Boko Haram has continued to operate in some parts of the North, causing bloodshed and anguish, is a factor that irritates Nigerians. Nigerians have pointed out that since the September 11, 2001 al-Qaeda attack on the United States and the July 7, 2005 attack on the United Kingdom, no other attack has succeeded in these two countries. It is therefore viewed as a failure on the part of the President.

Another point is corruption, which has been a sore point facing the Jonathan’s administration. Despite the claims of the President that he has zero-tolerance to corruption, the fight against corruption cannot be described as robust since he became the President. The President has not displayed righteous anger against the pervading influence of corruption in the polity. Even though the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo was viewed as selective in its fight against corruption, yet there was a clear sign that the war on corruption during his tenure was fervent and yielding results. Nigerians, especially public officers, were on their toes, for the fear of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission led by Mr. Nuhu Ribadu was the beginning of wisdom.

The economy is another point. Even though the economy of Nigeria is adjudged one of the fastest growing in the world, hovering at about seven per cent rate in the past few years, it beats economic logic that the poverty rate has continued to rise. According to records, about 70 per cent of Nigerians live below the poverty line. The unemployment rate is put at 21 per cent, placing Nigeria at the 166th position in the world. These are pointers to the fact that even though the Nigerian economy is generating wealth, the wealth continues to disappear and never gets into the hands of the masses.

But it has not been all woes and misery since Jonathan became the President. One glaring achievement of his administration, for which his detractors try as much as possible not to give him credit, is the level of transparency with which elections have been conducted since he took charge. Unlike before when it was rare for the ruling Peoples Democratic Party to lose an elective office, the PDP has lost many states that it had been in control of. For example, from controlling five of the six states in the South-West in 2003, the party now controls no state in that zone. In the election that just held in Edo State on July 14, the PDP lost too. Not only that it lost, the election was adjudged transparent to a large extent. But more importantly, unlike in the past when up to100 per cent turnout of voters was recorded in many states – which was clearly a sign of electoral manipulation – most of the elections conducted under Jonathan’s watch did not record up to 60 per cent turnout: a sign that ghosts no longer vote in Nigeria as they used to do.

There is also the case of revamping of derelict infrastructure. Even though some may say that the pace is slow, there is a clear evidence that infrastructure that had been left unattended to for decades is being taken care of. One is the airports, which were a source of embarrassment to the nation. Almost all the nation’s airports are currently undergoing extreme makeover. Roads are also being revamped. Some roads such as the Benin-Sagamu Expressway and Apapa-Oworonshoki Road, Lagos, which were in a sorry state, for many years, are being rehabilitated. Electricity supply, which had been a sore point for decades too, is receiving urgent attention, and there is a noticeable improvement in that sector. The abandoned railway transportation is also being revived.

Agriculture, which used to be the mainstay of Nigeria’s economy before the oil boom, is gradually being brought back to the front-row. Fertiliser distribution, which was always a thorny issue, seemed to have been tackled.

Since Jonathan took over, Nigerians seem to have forgotten that petrol scarcity, especially towards the end of the year, used to be the norm. Even though there are still unresolved issues about fuel subsidy matters, evidenced in the current scarcity, buying petroleum products had stopped being nightmarish in Nigeria for over two years now.

Our foreign policy, which used to leave us at the mercy of other countries, appears to have received a boost. Nigeria has put its foot down in dealing with countries that treated her shabbily. In addition, while the nation had jumped into conflicts in West Africa headlong hitherto (with the attendant huge loss of men and materials), since the coming of Jonathan, Nigeria has been vocal and in the fore-front in taking well-informed positions in conflicts in Africa, as she did on Ivory Coast and Libya, but our resources and men are no longer wasted fighting for countries that never give us credit after all our efforts.

In the final analysis, do we then describe Jonathan as a failure or a success? Hardliners hardly change their positions, no matter the strength of evidence before them. But for me, I would neither describe Jonathan as a success nor a failure. Rather, I would say that he has lost several opportunities to worm his way into the hearts of Nigerians but has taken advantage of a few. He has the potential to be a great president but seems to be too cautious not to step on toes. Nigeria’s situation is so serious that it demands robust and prompt attention and treatment. President Goodluck Jonathan must increase his pace or he will be out of rhythm.

Azuka Onwuka is a brand management strategist in Lagos.

*Walks in on thread, glances around, sees funny people everywhere, puts on his jacket and walks out*

Mandelaguy: STFU. Your mouth has turned to sewage pipe. Can you properly outline the basis of the insult you are hauling at a man light years ahead of you? Or are you here to air an already stale pattern of abuse? Keep quiet if you don't have anything to say.

I have no time for the likes of you, you are as insignificant as the condom used in an attempt to prevent your conception.

At first GEJ's gaffes were laughable, then it became incredible now its just so sad. So all the professional people who were at the protests; bankers, doctors, lawyers, clergy, business people et al, people who own and run their own businesses were "paid" with bottled water and walked from their homes to be "entertained"? Seriously, is there any media person in that place i.e. Aso Rock, if yes, they should be sacked and charged for dereliction of duty. This man's mouth leaks worse than an oil pipeline in the Niger Delta. He should be thoroughly scripted before he makes any comments in the future.

http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/index.php?option=com_content&amp%3Bview=article&amp%3Bid=99140%3Afifa-rates-nigeria-third-worst-football-developing-nation&amp%3Bcatid=59%3Ahome&amp%3BItemid=620#.UFl0zR5Q6uo.twitter

WORLD football ruling body, FIFA, has come out with a damning verdict on Nigerian football, saying the country is the third worst soccer developing nation in the world, according to the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) Technical Committee member, Adegboye Onigbinde.

Nigeria failed to qualify for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations, and the men and women football event of the 2012 Olympics. In 2011, both its men and women teams failed to qualify for the 2011 All Africa Games.

In a telephone chat yesterday, Onigbinde disclosed that the ratings, which were conducted during the annual meeting of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) Technical Committee in Seychelles last month, was contrary to the series of commendations the NFF has received from the same CAF for its development programmes.

The Super Eagles’ former coach and member of CAF and FIFA Technical Sub-committee, said the rating was informed by the number of technical trainings conducted by the various federations. He added that the inability of the NFF to appoint a technical director has contributed to the stagnant state of football development in the country.

“Let me tell you one thing, less than a month ago, we were in Seychelles for the annual technical committee meeting of CAF and Nigeria was rated one of the worst three countries in terms of football development,” he said.

“Do you know why the rating bothers me? I can show you commendation letters from CAF, and the development programme CAF is running emanated from my recommendations in 1988. Yet, it was my country that was not moving.

“Ghana has trained no fewer than 200 C-License holders, the same with B-License. I was in Ghana two months ago to supervise their A-License, but we are still battling with C-License in this country. I had to overstretch myself to make it a possibility.”

He pointed out that the technical department is the nerve centre of football development and urged the NFF to appoint a technical director, as doing so would lead to fashioning out functional technical policies that would lead to football development in the country.

“We all know that football is a technical matter. No matter how good an administrator may be, if the results are not coming, people would certainly call for your head,” he noted.

“But we cannot get good result without a functional, virile technical sector. That is what makes the position of a technical director very vital.

“From the president of the NFF to the messenger, they are there to worship the product of the technical department. So, if the technical department is not properly organised, they are not serious.”

I am hugely impressed with this incisive analysis by Victor Umeh, wish other leaders would take time out to critically analyze projects like these and not blindly praise or condemn without recourse to proper analysis. They should do everything to water down Obi's influence, he's not to be trusted.

So they want the Ukwuanis, Urhobos, Itsekiris & co to be under their peculiar brand of madness. Drunken collection of senseless lunatics.

Super1759: its not just about the gov brother. These sites are good in giving false news. On several occasion. One that made me loose it on sharafools was the press release by goodluck on fuel subsidy. He was meant to make a broadcast by 10pm but by 6pm, Sharafools have their formulated broadcast online, infact I believed it. It was the broadcast to end the strike on fuel subsidy. But by 10pm. D president gave his speech and it was just different from that. I don't know why they keep infiltrating our press with fake news. This not the first or last. PREMIUM is the worst self. Smh

Wrong bro. I read GEJ's speech about the N97 fuel price thingy at about 12 a.m on Sahara Reporters. About 12 hours later, Reno Omokri (SA to GEJ on New Media) shared the link to the speech and I downloaded it, it was the same, word for word, line for line. Wasn't it the same Sahara Reporters who published the Wikileaks chronicles on Nigeria, how many mainstream newspapers did that? Online media is the only platform I trust for news these days, Nigerian newspapers and TV stations are compromised, wasn't Channnels shut down for repeating a Reuter's quote during Yar'adua's health debacle? Whosoever is lying, the truth shall be known soon.

SMH

Wasn't it under a federal police structure that the brigandage of Andy Uba in Anambra happened? If we had state police, would Tafa Balogun, Kenny Martins, Jemibowon and co have stolen as much as they did? People ask for true federalism, they ask for resource control yet they want the very corrupt centre to continue providing security for a population of 150m plus? We've seen times without number how police commissioners posted to new offices struggle to perform due to their limited understanding of the terrain. We must have fiscal federalism, we must have resource control and we must be willing to take the responsibilities that come with it. What it means is that for every pickpocket in Mushin, every armed robbery attack in Asaba, every bomb blast in Maiduguri, every kidnap incident in Aba, every communal clash in Jos, GEJ and every other president that comes after him under this present structure should be blamed and not the governors in these places.

The beauty of crime and offence of hard work and education in Nigeria
Thursday, 23 August 2012

http://ediong..com/2012/08/the-beauty-of-crime-and-offence-of-hard.html?utm_source=&utm_medium=twitter

"What offence have we committed in choosing a path of peace and pursuing academic excellence that we now have to come out of school and be punished with unemployment? Must all of us take up militancy or Boko Haramism before the Government knows that the educated ones are part of the society and they too needed to be provided for and taken care of? Let us all be vigilant lest those who think they are standing fall"

The above quotation was a Facebook update of a good friend of mine who was a year my senior in the university and is presently undergoing his Masters Degree program in one of the federal universities in Nigeria. His thought above represents the thoughts of the majority of educated youths from the Niger-Delta of Nigeria. I had thought along same line many times. I have been seeing updates from Niger-Delta friends on social sites, some of whom have Masters Degrees, asking whether education or simply put, spending 4-6years in the university in the present Nigeria is of any worth. A neutral person from the west, east and north of Nigeria or any other part of the world, I am sure, will hurriedly say yes to the question above; but not an educated home-bred, young Niger-Deltan. An educated, young Niger-Deltan will give you a "yes and no" answer.

This reminds me of an argument that ensued in the Corps members' lodge I was staying during my service year. The nucleus of the argument was the reason why people go to school. While most of us were of the view that people go to school to acquire and broaden their knowledge, very few of us dissented on the ground that people go to school, majorly, for economic reasons because as at the time of beginning to go to school, the young child, usually 3-6years, had no idea of the reasons for his/her being sent to school by his/her parents. I was the chief proponent of the latter school. I told my fellow Corps members that if we had no idea of what school was all about when we started schooling, then it was, at least for all intents and purposes, the reason(s) of our parents, at that time, for sending us to school that must be adopted as the reason(s) for our going to school and we do know that majority of Nigerian parents send their ward to school for economic reasons – to end the sufferings and poverty in the family. To drive home my point, I asked them how many of them, while in the university or polytechnic, dreamed of graduating on time with a good grade that will fetch them get a good job, buy a nice car, marry, rent or build a good house and live a comfortable life? All of them did. I again asked how many of them had hoped to acquire their degree and go back to their father's house to stay with their knowledge? None did. It was then I submitted that though the need for knowledge is an inseparable, though infinitesimal, part of the reasons why people go to school in Nigeria today; the need to have food on the table, shelter to lay the head, clothes to cover the body and send some cash home at the end of the month is the be-all-and-end-all as the desire to acquire knowledge is no more what it used to be in the days of Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, etc., when knowledge alone was sufficient. After all, any knowledge that cannot be converted to economic realities is as good as cow dung. It is in the light of this argument above that an educated young Niger-Deltan, like my friend I quoted above and my humble self, will answer you "yes and no" if you ask us whether spending 4-6years in the university in the present Nigeria is of any worth.

The reason we (most young and educated Niger-Deltans) will tell you "yes" if you ask us whether education or simply put, spending 4-6years in the university in the present Nigeria is of any worth is because, lack of education or ignorance is in itself a disease – a chronic one; a disease that all men must strive to cure. However, we will tell you "no" because, in the Nigeria of today the government at all levels exalt, beautify and glorify crimes and criminals while conversely, by their acts and omissions, make hard work and education crimes.

Living in Warri, Yenogoa, Port-Harcourt, Uyo and most cities in the Niger-Delta will give you a vivid and practical picture of what I am saying. In these cities, you see young men of your age living in mansions and driving flashy cars. Some have fleets of cars. However, majority of them are chronic illiterates who got their wealth from militancy and continue, even after laying down their weapons, to receive "allowance" of N65, 000 minimum, depending on your rank in militancy, from the federal government of Nigeria. They do not work, yet the least of them who cannot write his name collects at least N65, 000 monthly. They have millions in their accounts. One was reported last week to be an ex-militant billionaire. Only God knows how many professors in Nigeria have seen a million naira other than the figures they read in newspapers as loots by our politicians talk more of having millions of naira in their accounts.

In these same cities I mentioned above, there are graduates who have paid the bitter price of schooling in Nigerian unfriendly universities and polytechnics. They have graduated for years without a job. To make ends meet, majority, who do not want to go into crime, ride motor-cycle, drive taxis, sell recharge cards or simply "hustle" to survive. The proceeds of these businesses/hustling cannot get you a decent accommodation in Warri, Yenogoa, Port-Harcourt, etc., where oil monies talk, hence they still stay with friends and families. They trek on the streets while their ex-militant age mates drive latest cars and splash dirty water on their bodies. The same government, who could not give them scholarships or pay bursaries as undergraduates or provide job for them as graduates, is the same government that pays these militants the millions of naira used in buying these cars. The same government that could not pay N18,000 minimum wage until the Nigerian Labour Congress declared a nationwide strike is the same government that is paying the minimum allowance of N65,000 to these uneducated ex-militants. As an educated, jobless young man seeing this scenario, the question that often comes to your mind is: is going to school and choosing to lead a lawful and peaceful life a crime in Nigeria?

The north is not left out of the whole issue. It was reported earlier in January this year that the reason, claimed a Boko Haram source, why the activities of the sect was reduced during Obasanjo's administration was because he played his cards well. The reason why he was not killed or attacked when he visited the late Boko Haram leader, Babakura Fuggu, on September 15th, 2011 was put thus: "Obasanjo was good to us. We had no problem with Obasanjo". When a terrorist says a Nigerian politician is good to him, you and I know what that means. It was also reported in the same story that former Kano State governor, Mallam Shekarau reached an agreement with the terrorist group in late 2004 for monthly disbursement of N5million which increased to N10m in 2009. In a similar vein, Mallam Yuguda of Bauchi, in June, 2008, was also reported to pay the sect N10m monthly with provision of training grounds on the many scattered mountains of Bauchi. Although the authenticity of these claims by Boko Haram could not be verified, we do know that in every rumour, there is an iota of truth. Now the federal government is reportedly negotiating with the members of the sect. Surely, it will end, inter alia, with an agreement which must lead to some money flowing from the government to the terrorists monthly if eventually an agreement is struck.

On the pages of newspapers, we daily read of kidnappers in the eastern part of Nigeria demanding awfully huge sums of money from their victims' families, the latest being the vice chancellor of Enugu State University. We read of political office holders looting billions. All these criminals become instant millionaires and billionaires. When charged to court, they negotiate with the government through the dubious doctrine called plea bargain or as an alternative, a nolle prosequi is entered by the law officers and soon, they are back home. They join and sponsor political parties. Sooner than later, they are given national honours by the federal government. "Who said crime does not pay" seems to be the motto of this generation. Little by little, the government, in negotiating with criminals, is legalizing crimes and illegalizing hard work and peace amongst the youths. It seems, today in Nigeria, that those who wish to suffer and wallow in poverty are the ones that go to school. "If you want to make it in Nigeria and make it fast and big, pick up arms and do some havoc", the government seem to be saying. "When you do that, the government will come waving an olive-branch and begging with billions of naira". There appears to be no end in sight to how long the government will continue to pat and negotiate with criminals while recklessly abandoning the graduates who have suffered to go to school. They are nobody; the government seems to be saying by its acts and omissions.

The writings on the wall are clear. The government neither value nor care for the youths except you are a militant, terrorist or a kidnapper. Though needless, the government should know that these ones "are part of the society and they too needed to be provided for and taken care of." Their continuous abandonment in favour of criminals amounts to indirect information to them to do what the militants, kidnappers and terrorists are doing in order to gain the attention of government. An idle hand, automatically, will be the devil's tool. Many Nigerian graduates today are frustrated with the Nigerian system. But it is more frustrating when you see an illiterate militant, kidnapper and terrorist reaping fruits of crime, living in mansions and driving flashy cars while you, a peaceful and hardworking graduate cannot even eat three times a day. While I encourage my fellow youths not to take to crime notwithstanding the carelessness on the part of government, but to continue to strive, as I can see lights at the end of our tunnels, the government should be reminded of its responsibilities that the welfare of the people is the supreme task of government, as my friend in the quote above warned: "lest those who think they are standing fall" into the temptation of crimes. Any government that neglects its youth will surely reap the bitter fruits of its neglect.

- Awhariado Belief Akpome, a Warri-based legal practitioner.

Too many unintelligent people on this thread. Footballers' careers are very short and they need to make the best out of the little time they have.Players leave Arsenal and win things elsewhere, why is that: Anelka, Vieira, Overmars, Petit, Henry, Van Bronckhorst, Sylvinho, Fabregas, Nasri, Adebayor, Toure, Clichy, the list is endless. Man U offers him better money and a more realistic chance of winning a trophy. And please stop with the idiotic "we supported him while he was injured" bullshit. Inter Milan stood by Ronaldo, clubs stand by players everywhere, its called business risks and everyone does it. Enough of this whiny, pathetic, childish nonsense, grow some cojones and pray Arsene self-servicer looks to spend the money on quality players

LWKMD!!! See people arguing to defend two corrupt, useless, good-for-nothing old buffoons who have been part and parcel of the problems that have bedeviled their regions and the nation in general.What has Edwin Clark done to uplift his region; zero. What has IBB done to change the situation in his region; less than zero. Abeg make we hear word jare!!!

[quote author=RUNS.TOEFL.GRE]FELA IS A COWARD...I NO LIKE HIM MUSIC AT ALL...ENCOURGING CHILDREN HOW TO SMOKE WEEDS..HE IS A BIG FOOL...[/quote]Usually, I don't like the way people throw insults on this forum but in your case, I will make an exception. You Sir, are truly a first class buffoon with the I.Q of a diseased rat and the mentality of an area tout. Your father should have used a condom.

Since long time I never write me thing, since long time I never sing my song.............
I must to looku and lafu(4ce)

Comments on this thread are wrong and not in order. If these women had been caught abroad, they would have arrested them as NIGERIANS not Igbos so every Nigerian irrespective of tribe will get labelled with the drug peddler name. Let's stop derailing threads with silly tribal quarrels, these foolish displays of tribal foolishness have gone far enough. And someone said drug peddling is a petty crime, have we really sunk that low as a nation? SMH.

http://ekekeee.com/index.php?p=3166


“We need to change our attitude on how we report things about our country and we should emulate the foreign reporters who never report negative things about their countries. – David Mark, Nigeria Senate President, complaining about social media being used to insult Nigerian leaders in a speech to reporters covering the Nigerian Senate.

I’m going to use some bad words in this column. If you cannot stomach them, please stop reading.

Right now.

Thank you.

I do not waste my thoughts on some Nigerian politicians. Despite their antics and cries for attention, I dismiss this bunch of political actors. Some are so rotten that I consider them irredeemable. Some are so insignificant in the overall reformation scheme that I feel they will wither away as soon as the cord of corruption is cut off. Some are nothing but stagnant balls of smoke made of sheer ignorance. Mr. David Mark was one of them. But he shouldn’t be.

On a second thought, David Mark is much more than all of the above. He is not just irredeemable. He is also contaminating. He is not just insignificant. His dirty fingers are scratching the canvas of Nigeria. He is not just a stagnant smoke of ignorance on Nigeria’s sky. He is also in motion.

In short, David Mark is a lucky bastard. And nothing is scarier than a government of lucky bastards in the life of a nation.

Mr. Mark went in front of reporters that cover the senate, men and women that he has pocketed, to complain that the social media is used by faceless people to insult Nigerian leaders like him. He grumbled that these disgruntled operators of social media have no way of retracting their stories. His solution: that the government should control social media to stop its users from insulting leaders like him.

What the likes of David Mark do not know is that social media does not operate in a vacuum. It needs content to exist. And social media content is provided by people like David Mark.

Social media thrives on the idiosyncrasies, excesses and stupidity of politicians and celebrities. Those in the limelight who do not wish to be in the spotlight of social media should retire to their villages and wait for death. For instance, nobody in social media is losing sleep over Arthur Nzeribe, who is currently at his Oguta home awaiting death. David Mark can do the same in one of his homes in Benue, Ghana, Caribbean, the US, Belize, the UK, Ireland etc.

For those unfamiliar with the pedigree of the senate president, here is it in brief. David Mark is a leader in that class of miseducated men and women who rode the wave of unaccountable leadership, looting and ruining Nigeria until the nation became a failure. These are the men and women who failed Nigeria with such a staged craftsmanship that the nation they failed works perfectly well for them. If Nigeria were a tree, these men and women cut the tree and told it where to fall.

For those who need more details, this is the essential biography of David Alechenu Bonaventure Mark. Born on April 18, 1948, in Otukpo, he joined the Nigerian army and became prominent as a Major when he was named Secretary of the Abandoned Property Implementation Commission after the Biafra-Nigeria Civil War. In the 1980s, he reemerged as one of the so-called Babangida boys. He became the military governor of Niger state from 1984- 1986. When Babangida took over as Nigeria’s military dictator, he brought Mark close as his Minister of Communication. He played a prominent role in the annulment of the June 12, 1993 election. He headed the gang that threatened to kill M.K.O. Abiola if the military had dared to hand power over to him. He fell out with Gen. Sani Abacha who retired him from the army and he went on exile. At the beginning of this current democratic dispensation in 1999, he became a senator representing Benue South senatorial zone. He supported Obasanjo’s effort to amend the Nigerian constitution to serve a third term. For that effort he collected the lion share of the billions that Obasanjo’s supporters used to bribe senators. He became the Senate president in 2007 as a reward for his loyalty to the PDP.

David Mark is a lucky bastard. Not even one of the 400,000 people of his other country, Belize, will nominate him to be a janitor for their senate.

Even though he believes that a sergeant in the army is better than a university graduate, nobody knows if Mr. Mark can write his name. But we know that he can open offshore accounts in New Jersey and the Cayman islands. We know that is the place he hid most of the Gulf oil windfall for himself and his boss, Babangida. We know that is where he hid proceeds from NITEL deals he cooked up as Minister of Communication when he famously said that poor people had no need for phones and as such he siphoned the money allocated to his ministry. We know that he spent about 6 million British pounds sterling to purchase significant interest in the 18-hole St Margaret’s Golf Club in Ireland. We know he owns a 2.5 million British pounds sterling home on Thames River in London. We know he has millions and millions of pounds sterling in trust for his numerous children and wives all over Europe and America. We know this because his nasty divorce from wife number five, Victoria Preye, exposed some of his hidden investments.

Despite his enormous stolen wealth, here is what David Mark’s epitaph will say. “Here lies a man who admired the trappings of Western civilization but was ignorant of its tenets.” It is the same epitaph for Idi Amin, Olusegun Obasanjo, Ibrahim Babangida and Mobutu Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu wa Za Banga.

On top of David Mark’s head roves a giant question mark. When he opens his mouth remarkable gaffes gush out. It is a mark of complete genuflection of a nation that such a scion of corruption is at the head of the upper house of the people’s assembly. His bland mind marketed as diplomatic is impervious of his environment. Otherwise he would have noticed from his hospital bed that it was Israeli media that kept the heat on until former Israeli President Moshe Katsav was sentenced to seven-years for rape.

David Mark is a shameless hypocrite who has absolute disdain for Nigeria. That such an uninspiring character is angling for the presidency of Nigeria is a testament to the hopelessness of the Nigerian project. Put aside his pedigree, Nigeria’s number three man is as shallow as they come. Otherwise he would have heard that it was Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein of the Washington Post newspaper that singlehandedly exposed President Richard Nixon as a crook and forced him to resign.

David Mark is old enough to know that “the only countries where newspapers are full of good news are those counties where the prisons are full of good people.” If David Mark is just ignorant, I won’t be scared. I will simply hope that soon, like other ignoramuses like him ruining Nigeria, he will die off with his stupidity and leave Nigeria to its fate. But David Mark is much more than ignorant. He is deliberately manipulative and mischievous. And that is dangerous.

David Mark is a lucky bastard. If an American newspaper places its searchlight on him for just 24 hours, as soon as the report comes out, Interpol, FBI, Scotland Yard, KGB, SSS, MSS, BNI, ICPC, EFCC etc will all be fighting over whose handcuffs will be on David Mark’s hands, legs, waist and ankles.

Mr. Mark hates a marketplace of ideas because he has no confidence in his own opinion. So he dislikes any media that challenges his opinion and tries to hold him accountable. He has been so used to being worshiped that any deviation from that is considered demeaning and insulting. For Mark and his likes, not appending to their names their fake doctorate degrees or their worthless grand commander of a corrupt and crumbling federal republic is already an insult in and of itself. But Mark is perfectly retaining his right to insult Nigerians, disrespect them and treat them as imbeciles who have no idea what one plus one is.

This is why David Mark does not like the social media. He cannot buy them over. He cannot pay them retainership to publish only favorable stories about him. He cannot get them to submit drafts of their stories to his office for approval before publication.

He cannot fly them to an expensive resort hotel and give them lectures on how to do their job as the Fourth Estate. He is mad because he cannot stop social media from writing what one of his six wives said in anger.

Mr. Mark loves the compromised media that does not ask him what he does for Nigeria for which he gets paid over N600 million a year. He loves the compromised media that will quote him as saying, “I will defend Nigeria’s unity with the last drop of my blood,” but won’t ask him why he renounced Nigeria’s citizenship to become a citizen of Belize when his investment in that country was threatened. He loves the compromised media that will not ask why he loves Nigeria so much but will rather go to Israel for a minor medical treatment.

David Mark is a lucky bastard. The best way to properly insult him is to ignore him. That is what I will go back to doing now that I have let out steam.

NOI is actually trying to do somethings right buts lets be factual, most of the policies she's trying to implement are I.M.F and World Bank programmes that have failed over and over again because they were designed to aid Western economic domination (pure and simple). Someone said IMF policies don't work in Africa because of corruption, that is not completely true. Most of the Asian Tiger nations did the exact opposite of what the Bretton Woods institutions told them, today they are the better for it. Latin America adopted the economics policies of the Bretton Woods agencies wholesale, their economies were rubbish until they broke away from these policies and implemented home grown policies that favoured their own citizens, case in point Brazil and Venezuela. Even in Russia, these policies failed, its only after Russians took control of their oil and gas sectors that things changed. Another problem she has is the system of squandermania, sleaze and patronage inherent across all levels of the nation, we can't run way from that fact. But she has not helped herself by some of her actions and utterances. Its unpardonable that a coordinating minister of the economy should come on air and claim ignorance of basic financial details that she should be the first to know about. She can do better. The NASS is incredibly corrupt, same thing with the executive but until 2015, they still have their constitutional rights, duties and authority and cannot be wished away.

@OP: Oga change the title of your topic, when did Ijaw become Niger-Delta?

This impeachment drama makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. The reasons being given are untenable. I have no love for GEJ but if he must be impeached, it should be on something tenable, not this wishy washy nonsense. As usual P.D.P are doing what they know how to do best: fight and squabble over money. Our constitution needs to change as soon as possible to allow for independent candidacy for a start. These monsters (P.D.P, A.C.N etc)need to be dismantled ASAP.

dedeike: Finally, a voice of dissent and am so glad about it.
My broda, you mentioned so many roads and ended up doubting only one.
Ibadan - Ilorin is ongoing. And I have never said its completed. Owerri to Onitsha is 90% completed by Gej. Then the Enugu -Onitsha is still in progress but though at a very slow pace but it's expected to peak upon the release of the next quarter. Afikpo -Okigwe was recently awarded. I forgot to add under the Energy sector that NNPC DEPOT ABA has Been refurbished by this govt.
The entire Aba has gone agog with the re opening of this depot which has been grounded for the past 10 years.

Correct me if I'm wrong but wasn't the Owerri-Onistha road awarded under Yar'adua's tenure? The axis starting from Amorka in Anambra to Owerri which was handled by Julius Berger has been completed since 2010 leaving the Onitsha axis which is being handled by CCC is status unknown.

coogar: that is because you did not understand what they were doing. after the towers came the nhs(gosh). rubbing it in the faces of america and others that health is wealth, health is free. then boyle was at his brilliant best when he played alll the tv programmes from the dark ages till now.......then the "abide with me" rendition at the end? what's not to like about the ceremony?

Dude, will you please S.T.F.U and stop condemning people's opinions like a bird of ill omen, it makes you look idiotic not intelligent.
@OP: Head and shoulders, it has to be Beijing.

No comment. *Picking up his hat and walking away*

bashr8: NIGERIANS are insultive by nature imagine when your in charge of 160 million insultive people that lack respect and wag their tongue ,thats fire for you , anyway GEJ is just unlucky to be president at the time use of internet and social network became common in nigeria .other leaders got theirs to but social media was not this common then. the country is just too large and over populated for one man (who is not a dictator)to be incharge.

Fantastic observation by bashr8. At no other time has access to information and the ability to air one's views been so easy and convenient as it is. Everything which our parents muttered in the privacy of their homes can now be seen, read and commented on by millions of people instantly. The people in government need to realize the rules of engagement have changed and they should react accordingly. This is the era of the citizen journalist.

We CAN host the Olympics but we should NOT contemplate it even for a second.

1. There are far more pressing issues to be fixed, issues that have been with us for the past 51 years and don't seem to be going anywhere in a hurry.We need every kobo we can get to fix these issues.
2. We've hosted U-20 World Cup in 1999, All Africa Games in 2003, U-17 World Cup in 2009: where are the statements of accounts: how much did we spend, on what did we spend these monies on, how much did we make?
3. Who is going to bankroll it?
4. What safety measures will be put in place to guard against light fingered Nigerian magic?

For once will you people stay on the issue? Its about 'Nigerian Politicians", a totality that encompasses tribe and religion. The question now is , where do we go from here?

@thegoodjoehunt: Thank you very much for pointing out the obvious. @Elueme: Where in the quotation is it written that I think IBB is better? Try and read before commenting, opinions are free but stupidity is indefensible. In what asylum is can calling someone the "Don of all criminals" a recommendation?. I posted those "achievements" to put in clear perspective that GEJ hasn't done anything different from that which has been done in the past. I am the master of my opinion and am firmly in the middle on this GEJ issue, neither he nor Buhari have what it takes to fix Nigeria and I hope to be proven wrong.