₦airaland Forum

examhall3:
https://www.timenaija.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/2-298.jpg
https://www.timenaija.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/3-242.jpg

Former Governor of Zamfara State, Senator Sani Ahmed Yerima is not only rocking a new clean shaven look but has also ditched his traditional babariga for suits…well…sometimes.
The Senator representing Zamfara West was the first Nigerian Governor to introduce Sharia law in his state which came into effect on January 27, 2000…
lalasticlala

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Source: http://timenaija.com/oh-wow-check-out-sen-ahmed-yerimas-new-clean-shave-suited-look/

Pavore9:
We are all products of different formations. Political office in the first place do not attract me because l am well aware that l have a different calling in life.

aalangel:
Oghene biko!! 5 years, 3 kids, great career in the media is lonely? Are you alright??!!

Dakad:
These armed robbers still want to continue to enjoy even after leaving office. Anyway, a society deserves any leader she gets. Until we start to stone these crops of thieves and vote right during election, i don't see us coming out of this mess. And if these politicians refuse to change I forsee bloody revolution in this country. Majority of the citizen can't afford a square meal while these thief leave lavishly and yet still want pension even after. Nigerians are very resilience but I hope these creedy politicians will not push us to the wall. I hope they will be able to withstand when people push back

Pavore9:
The privileges they enjoy while in office is not enough but want it to continue after office....sick minds!

BeeBeeOoh:
Why did d gods curse Nigeria & Nigerians with thieves in the name of representatives, instead of them fighting for the masses they resort to fighting for their personal interest..

because Nigerians sold their vote for cups of rice and ponmo cutting display



LAST BULLET: And To Ye All That Fight & Kill Yourselves For These Thieves, Can You See How Heartless They Are?? Isn't Is Obvious That They Don't Even Have You In Their Budget..

MistadeRegal:
Do you know the meaning of 'rant' at all?

powerfulsettingz:
is the lady that blast them mentally derailed? Gender equality can't work in a continent like Africa, is she suggesting that women can fight for the post of a king in yoruba land likewise? Or women can begin to propose marriage? Absolute nonsence


I concur with olori

FlirtyKaren:
Lailan Mary Amara Jacob is vexed over the recent trending statements Ooni of Ife's wife, Olori Wuraola and OAP Freeze made concerning gender equality.

You recall Olori Wuraola had said she's not a huge fan of gender equality. While speaking at the Emerging Women's Forum in National Harbor, Maryland, she had said:

“I am not a huge fan of Gender equality. We can’t be equal, We can’t be men. We have our roles to play here, a very pivotal one. How about if we think about it this way that we are limiting our potentials and where we could get to as women by us keep saying that we want to be equal. I don't think we can ever be equal''.

OAP Freeze later backed Olori up saying:

The Olori of Ife, Her Majesty, Queen Wuraola-Zynab Ogunwusi, spoke what I consider words of absolute wisdom, when she stated her belief that gender equality is hardly achievable in the modern world.
I agree that men and women have equal rights I absolutely disagree that they are equal. If you are in doubt, attempt wearing your boxers on your head and your cap on your butt and then brush your teeth with your belt and hold your trousers together with your toothbrush, then perhaps, my point will be better illustrated.

Well, dear Olori, OAP Freeze, Amara has some strong words for you this morning. Kindly read:

When educated men and women display high level of ignorance, one is forced to speak. Before one makes a public speech, I think it is wise to do some research. It is always safer to get the facts right, before picking up a microphone to show off. Gender equality does not mean competing with ones husband. Neither does it mean rivalry between the man and the woman. Gender equality is not all about marriage. It goes beyond that. Let me educate you both, since you failed to do your home work.

What is gender equality?

In simple terms gender equality means the state in which access to rights or opportunities is unaffected by gender. This means that boys and girls, men and women should get equal opportunities in every area of life. I will give you few examples.

De dia de deceive yourself


Education[/b]Everyone should get an equal opportunity to go to school. The girl-child should not be denied access to education because she is a girl. Are you not aware that in some cultures/religion women are not allowed to go to school? [b]
Who is stopping women from school or jobs (except army job)


Work
Men and women should get equal employment opportunity. Look at our work force today, it is dominated by the men. Do u know why there are more poor women than men today? It is because women don't get same opportunity as the men.

Which opportunity is being denied women except in Islamic countries


Politics
There should be equal representation. How many women get political appointments? How many are elected into public offices? How many women are governors? How many women are in the state and National Assemblies? Can men truly represent the interest of women?

How many women participate in politics.
So we should reward indolence.



Culture

We have obnoxious cultural practices that relegate women to background. Little girls are forced into marriages against wishes. Of course you know what widows go through in this part of the world. Is it fair
on our mothers? Is it fair that men who are physically stronger should molest women they are meant to protect? And you proudly say you are not a fan of gender equality? What ignorance!

As if the guys were not also forced
And why do women present themselves for molestation


Marriage
Women should be given same treatment as men. A woman should be allowed to have a say in her matrimonial home.

Who is stopping her so long as she is ready to deal with the repercussion of freedom after speech


She is not a slave.

Yeah she is same as the guy


The man and woman are like two sides of a coin. They need each other. We have our different roles to play. If you have been pregnant before, then you will know what it means to carry a child for nine months in your womb, go through labour pains, then nurse the child to maturity.

If you've had to provide food and shelter and protection for another human being all the days of your life you will know what it means to be a man.


Most women are never appreciated by their men, what they get is abuse, abuse and abuse even when they are heavily pregnant.

Borrow for wedding ceremony.
Break bank for ring.
Feed.
Clothe.
Shelter.
Form Rambo even when he is smaller than person insulting you.
Buy house.
Buy car.
Take on vacation.
Christmas shopping.
Useless shopping.
Set up shop or boutiqu
Yet we don't appreciate you ba.
If we con appreciate nko


If I may ask, why did you leave your first marriage? And your second marriage? Why did you walk away and walked into a third one? Does it have anything to do with being treated like a slave? Does it have anything to do with
frequent abuse? Or did you just walk away without a reason? How can you convince me that you don't believe in gender equality when you already have two failed marriages? Why didn't you remain a slave in those marriages?

This nagging behaviour is why.
Keep imitating oyinbo ppl that divorce anyhow you hia.
She has learnt the hard way and she is warming you.
Besides dem no born am well to look into kings eyes


As for Freeze, my humble suggestion is that your university degree be investigated. It is shame that after passing through the four walls of the university and working in a media house for decades, you still don't know the meaning of gender equality. What are shame! Besides, you seem to be a man without principles. You are neither here no there. Speaking from both sides of your mouth at all the time in your desperate search for cheap popularity. Today you are here and the next moment you are on another side. Stay off social media in your own interest!
For all those who truly do not understand what gender equality means, here is your chance. It has been explained in plain simple English.

Mary
Amara Jacob

http://www.lailasblog.com/2016/06/vexed-lailan-admonishes-olori-wuraola.html[b]

After going through four walls of university.
You still think gender equality is about gender equality.
No, it's how the devil wants to scatter institution of marriage
[/b]

Ruuhh:
Faleke was never in the primaries, even though the electoral act is responsible for bringing the current cow, the constitution was not obeyed + he doesn't hold a pvc of any area, ward or LGA in kogi state,thus, did not even vote in his own election, after losing the primaries he went dark on the party, was never part of the general election, he was cooling off somewhere carrying out anti party activity with about hundred million bribe from the then incumbent. his replacement form for the supplementary election was incomplete as the deputy space was left blank. Aisha buhari, oyegun may have helped him in the tribunal but subsequent appeals will surely not favour him.even the state APC have denied him twice, he's turned the state upside down. you need to see him talk, empty carton! checkout his appointees, bunch of young thugs with no idea what management or governance is about. so pathetic.

MistadeRegal:
Before you condemn and rant, the video is real. It happened last year.

aalangel:
Your name is well noted, I'll avoid your threads. I'm sure you have enough fans.

Stevez32:
Just proving to you dat I know what you did. I don't learn dumb things niga

Breadmaker:
I honestly don't understand what you're trying to say.

Ruuhh:
Never! James Faleke was, that's why a lot of people are crying foul due to the injustice. the current carton was
Bankrolled by Dangote for the primaries ( protection of his interest in obajana)

2undeee:
no be only immunity na immunization this is totally fraud and we Nigerians say no to dis fake law the huz is trying to pass. Like if you say no and share if u say yes

BiafranJesus:
You need to learn to read. Tope made a ethnically-motivated comment by referring to my moniker so do not pretend like you do not know the basis for my reply. Yorubas love to give it but hate to receive it. Next time, focus on the contents of the thread.L

Ruuhh:
dude inherited votes oga. say what you know

Breadmaker:
When you combine the fact that human brain have negativity bias(ie it remembers more bad news than good news) and the fact that many Nigerians have short memory then you will understand why the things some people remember about Jonathan are the current lies the current administration tell about him.

It will also help you to understand why someone will wake up and ask this question

So if you're among those that wonders why people celebrate Jonathan then this post is for you.

Here's why.

He gave women in politics more prominent roles.
[b]

All thieves and incompetent

Nigeria under his tenure got 11 gold , 11 silver and 14 bronze medals at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, finishing 8thin the overall ranking.

Yet no reward. Even for paralympians
Useless man



Under the watch of President Goodluck Jonathan administration, Nigeria won the African Cup of Nationsfor the first time in 19 years in South Africa in February, 2013.


Still no reward


He introduced favourable economic policies that helped the Internet to penetrate deeply and increased from about 45 million users in 2011 to 63 million in 2014

Name the policies


He made Nigeria the world’s largest producer of cassava with an output of over 45 million metric tonnes in 2014


Na in garri cost.

He reduced food imports by over 40% as at 2013

Na in food prices de rise? Who be your econs teacher


He transformd the agricultural sector in Nigeria

No tractor no fertiliser no irrigation.you. sure say na transformer or compass set


He cleanly arrested the outbreak of the deadly and highly contagious Ebola Virus Disease. If not for him and his team, people would have been more scarce than tomatoes in Nigeria.
pesin wen say na political enemies.
Still no wan release moni for amaechi or fashola who did all the work


He established nine federal universities across the country in states.


You fit carry your pikin go dia .
Him ma sef no be abroad him pikin go school

He revived the comatose railway system of transportation in the country

28 hrs Lagos to Kano 1ce a week.
SMH


Under the Goodluck Jonathan administration, Nigeria became the first country in West Africa to host the World Economic Forum(WEF) in 2014.

Who e epp?


Goodluck Jonathan administration is the one behind the revival of the dead automotive industry

How many jobs CArs created


Unlike someone that said Nigerians corrupt except him, Jonathan took us a step closer to being fully integrated into the international e-commerce community with the approval and reinclusion of Nigeria as one of the Paypal-compliant countries after being banned from using the service at the peak of the advanced fee fraud.

The same way he brought facebook to Nigeria abi


He Initiated the YOUWIN program.

500 bn miss the first month


He opened up Nigeria to the global business community and becoming Africa’s number one destination of foreign investors.


Mtn and dstv na indigene ba

He liberalized the press and guaranteed freedom of speech

Abi he tried to curb it and failed


He conducted free, fair and conclusive elections in the country

Elections have always been free and fair


He promoted and practiced true democracy

Yeah yet refused to do primary


He constructed bridges

Name them


He constructed, beautified, and dualized many roads.

That won't last 2 rainy reasons


That Nigeria produced first ever 2.9 million metric tons of rice in 2013

Yet rice costs 18 k per bag from 9 k




Local rice production contributed 320 Billion Naira to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the country in 2014.

See above


He constructed dams


Their location may we Google Map am

He trained and empowered 2,000 women under G-WIN


Out of 180,000
That is a failure rate 0.9%

Nigeria recorded zero case of polio in 2014:


Oyinbo no fit allow you kobalise dem

He introduced dry season farming


Like facebook and PayPal ba

It was under his tenure that MasterCard made Nigeria its regional headquarters for its West/East and Indian Ocean islands zone raising the profile of Nigeria’s e-commerce industry.


Mumu wan sell naija to them

He launched the NigComSat-1Rsatellite which will help expand Internet Bandwidth, monitor the weather and provide early warning to prevent natural disasters.

Satellite wen dem no sabi wia e de again


The Federal Government under his tenure secured investment commitments worth 4.89 Trillion Naira.

All dem thief


Though you didn't benefit from the money shared but at least he increased the life expectancy of Nigerians from 47 to 54.

When Buhari lost in 2011, violence erupted in north with lead to the death of about 800 Nigerians including youth corpers but when Jonathan lost, he took it like a man and we all went back to our businesses.


Eh ehn
E for do stronghead see as Hague be. slowpoke

And Finally.

He still takes all blames for the wrongs and inefficiencies of APC which you can agree with me is the reason people haven't started stoning them.

justicewatchlaw:
THE STUPIDITY OF THE BIAFRAN QUESTION

I am from Oguta. It is the small tract of land blessed with the beautiful lake, bordered by the Orashi River, enhanced by the Obana river and peopled by fascinating characters. The memories of my youth in that wonderful community I wish could be experienced by people everywhere. The culture of communal living, folk tales with guitar accompaniment, haunting and captivating amidst the moonlight plays, provide joyful memories that will last for a lifetime.

That wonderful community of which I have many fond memories has changed greatly in our march to modernity. I wish I could turn back the clock to the Oguta where we shared much love, where we were one another’s siblings despite quarrels, envy and small acrimonies. I wish I could return to the Oguta where our cultural festivals brought everybody home (oh, what joy, what conviviality) amidst the chieftaincy disputes. That Oguta is gone forever but I still love my Oguta. I am proud of Oguta. It is a place I hope to retire to, play with my grandchildren, watch the sun rise and set, fish when in the mood to do so and be entertained by jolly gossip shared with my age grade. It is a place where I wish to die and be buried beside my father and mother.

That small community, beautiful no doubt, contains all the contradictions that I see in my state Imo State, in my ‘region’ South East, in my country Nigeria and in the entire world. One of Oguta’s most famous sons believed that he alone should be rich and others poor. He believed and would say in public: ‘How could I empower you to fight me?’ Having muscled his way into power, he did all in his power to diminish his people to ‘igirigu’ (crayfish). He supported every government’s bid to suppress Oguta people. Consequently, the Oguta that had two commissioners in the old East Central State – a territory that is five states now – has not produced a commissioner in Imo State. It is easy therefore for Oguta people to say they are marginalized. Yes. Do we then ask for a state of our own? I think it would be stupid to do so. Despite not having produced commissioners, Oguta has produced great people. Dr Alban is famed worldwide for his exploits in music. An Oguta indigene became a Justice of the Supreme Court, and his son Charlie Boy became the president of PMAN. Flora Nwapa was Africa’s first female novelist and Ernest Nwapa just retired as the pioneer head of Local Content Board and Lesley Obiora became a Minister of the Federal Republic. Individual strides? Yes. We have many of them worldwide and that small community still stands proud and majestic with its history, its road network better than that of any village in the whole of Nigeria.

I am not a ‘professional historian’ but I am a student of history. I have listened to the proponents of the ‘Biafran Republic.’ I lived in Lagos in the heydays of the Odua People’s Congress, pondered the rationalizations for the creation of Oduduwa Republic, and found them inadequate and empirically invalid. Recently, I heard a Fulani gentleman say: ‘Let the Ibos go, we shall take over their businesses and buildings. They own Nigeria. All the shopping malls and housing estates in Abuja belong to them. Are they going to go with those buildings?’ I felt sorry for the Fulani man, for buildings never a nation made.

But, my siblings of Biafra and the South West, it is an issue worth pondering. Our argument however is not for any region to agitate for the dissolution of Nigeria. To my Igbo brethren, I would say: ‘Yes, we have not produced the President, but Nigeria has been fair to you. The constitution we now have, whatever flaws it is deemed to have, will ensure that you are well-represented in any government, whether that government is anti-Igbo or not. My Oguta community has not been that fortunate with the Imo State Government. Successive governments in Imo State have rained slights on Oguta, but no government can ignore the Igbo community in Nigeria. Assuming that a federal government emerges that would treat Igbos as successive Imo State governments have treated Oguta, and fails to name an Igbo indigene to the federal cabinet, I would still say that Nigeria has been fair to us. Igbos have made strides in every facet of our social and economic life, here in Nigeria and all over the world.’

THE BIAFRAN QUESTION

The Biafran question has its roots in the conundrums of the 1960s, arising from man’s stupidity. The corruption and unrest of 1960s Nigeria cannot be compared with what obtains today. However, some majors set in motion events that ultimately led to the quest for secession. Reading about those events, it is difficult to apportion blame to any part of the Nigerian nation. The reaction of the North in killing Ibos although not justifiable can be explained. The Igbos’ struggle for safety and survival resulting in the secession struggle can be explained. The war produced unspeakable calamities and tragedies. The maturity of the Gowon-led federal government in the ‘no victor, no vanquished’ policy facilitated reconstruction, rehabilitation and reconciliation. There have been cases of marginalisation, most disgracefully in the abandoned property policy in Rivers State. Yet, since 1970, our country has made giant strides in the reconciliation effort. Our leaders, sensitive to the maintenance of balance, entrenched in our laws the federal character principle which insists that every state of the federation must be represented in the federal executive council. Buhari would prefer a leaner cabinet the law mandates him to have at least 36 cabinet members with each state represented.

The tragedies of the 1960s are gone. In philosophy, law and reality, the Igbo nation (nay every other ethnic group) has shared in the pie that is Nigeria and I daresay has been fairly represented. It is to me a tragedy that my people are talking of Biafra, and somebody dared to write, ‘In Biafra Africa died.’ The romance with resurgence of Biafra may have begun with MOSOP, a reaction to the unacceptable military dictatorship of the time. It became a rallying point for many disgruntled and hungry Igbo men. It was fuelled and financed by some Igbo elite who felt they would never get a bite of power in the then existing political structure. The money flowing into the purse of the proponents has enabled the agitation to survive till date.

I cannot say with certainty what prompted Nnamdi Kanu to start Radio Biafra. I have wondered whether Radio Biafra was established for money-making purposes or for historical goals. What I can say with certainty is that Radio Biafra does not project the Igbo cause and cannot represent the Igbo interest. In my address to an Igbo group in Texas in 2006, I touched on one or two issues I considered important and urgent to the Igbo cause. I said that Igbos had Onitsha and Aba, two major commercial cities of Nigeria, in the 1960s. To those two cities flocked people from all corners of Nigeria, the West African sub region and some Central Africa countries. In 2006, those two commercial centres were among the worst places in Nigeria in terms of infrastructure. The criminality that existed was beyond belief. All the roads were bad. No electricity. I proposed then that the South East governors should engage in establishing industrial parks and use those two centres as starting points. I proposed that if need be, the governments of the South East states should borrow, construct their roads, deal with issues of criminality (mostly armed robbery and kidnapping) and ensure adequate power supply. The provision of the suggested facilities in Onitsha and Aba, coupled with investment-friendly policies, would have established in those towns industries that would employ our youth and bring much wealth to the region.

When I made that proposal, I did not believe that a governor could transform Onitsha. However, a governor Obi did. He single-handedly built all the roads in Onitsha and made Onitsha an investment-friendly city. It is therefore sad that Governor Obiano, instead of building on what Obi did, has gone the Chimaroke Nnamani way of doing nothing and attacking his benefactor. Should Obiano bring electricity to Onitsha and deal sufficiently with criminality, Onitsha would become a haven for investment and might transform the fortunes of the South East.

What happened to Aba and Abia State? Weeks without electricity. No roads, yet successive governors of Abia State collect much tax from Aba businessmen. I would advocate that an Nnamdi and his ‘Biafran compatriots’ should concern themselves more with the bad governance that Abia State has had so far. Persistent broadcasts on his Biafran Radio on the conditions of infrastructure in Abia would have struck a chord and probably forced the Aba traders to agitate for decent infrastructure.

What I said in 2006 holds true today. The South East Governors Forum should consider seriously the issue of industrial parks. Incidentally, an Igbo man Ugwu, as minister, tried to start Industrial parks policy in Nigeria. I do not know whether he got the idea from my 2006 lecture. It is sad that despite his influence, he could not make the leaders of thought and governors of South East extraction implement the idea. Within that context, policies on agriculture should be articulated. In fact, whilst Ukpabi Asika was Administrator of the East Central State in the 1970s, many studies were carried out on how to make the South East economically viable. One of such studies centred on Oguta lake and its transformation into a tourist centre. Those studies should be exhumed from the archives and revisited. They should give us useful ideas on how the Igbos could work as a group and transform the South East.

MARGINALISATION

What is marginalisation? Who is marginalising who? I can relate to the South South’s claim on marginalisation. The evidence of marginalisation is clear and abundant. I am from an oil-producing community and can testify firsthand on the evil effect of oil exploitation on our soil. Oguta made Imo State an oil-producing state but what do we as a people in Imo State get from the oil? Nothing, yet we have not complained. But this is not about Oguta or the oil-producing minority communities. It is to stress that the Ibos have no claim to being marginalised.

Seriously, a cursory glance at Nigeria reveals stories of marginalisation from all corners. Examine the five states that constitute the heart of Biafra and say if you do not see marginalisation everywhere. In Imo State where I come from, Oguta people are totally marginalised. The tiny community considered breaking away to form Urashi State. The Mbaises and Owerris are disgruntled that Orlu zone alone has been producing governors. The next governor from Imo State may come from Orlu zone in the person of Senator Hope Uzodimma. In Anambra State, the Onitsha people despite all their educated elite cannot be elected to be the local government chairmen of their indigenous local government. I do not know where the aforementioned Nnamdi is from. It is possible that his community will never produce a local government chairman, let alone a House of Assembly member, or Senator because democracy is a game of numbers, and again because it is crudely practiced in Nigeria. A system that prevents Onitshans, despite all their wealth and education, from producing their own local government chairmen is not a good system and should be overhauled. It is however not a case for secession....

source:
http://justicewatchonline.com/the-stupidity-of-the-biafran-question/

BiafranJesus:
As a cowardly Yoruba snake, I know you have not clicked on the link. I wish you the same fate as the Christian in the video. Bloody hausa fulani and Islamic slave.

That's how you zombies behave. You have not taken time to read nor have you taken time to click on the links. You rushed to react like a zoological cowardly zombie that you are.

[/quote][quote author=Capital247 post=46686482]Open Letter To Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu

My dear Asiwaju,

I am compelled to write this open letter to you because of the state of affairs of the Yoruba nation. Firstly, I wish to acknowledge that fate has put you in a prime position to determine to a large extent the direction that the Yoruba people will go. The indisputable truth is that one may quarrel with your politics but your sagacity is never in doubt. Even those who don't see eye to eye with you agree that you are imbued with unusual native intelligence, uncommon people skills and unrivaled foresight. You, more than any other person, has been the game changer since the advent of democracy in 1999. It is for these reasons that I have chosen to direct this letter to you
My singular purpose is to tug at the strings of your heart. I am not writing to appeal to partisan considerations but to see, if per chance, I can pour out my heart to you in a manner of speaking. God has blessed you even beyond your wildest imagination. You have installed Senators and Governors. You have removed Governors and even a President. You have also installed a President. There is nothing you have wished for or desired that you didn't get. Fortune has smiled on you. Goodwill follows you everywhere you go. You have done very well- more than most men ever will. However, there is one area that is begging for your urgent attention. This area may well define you and all you have ever achieved. This matter, in my opinion, is the only difference between you and the late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo. Let me restate for the purpose of emphasis that this is the area in which the late sage and Leader of the Yorubas stand head and shoulders above you. It is the reason his name has been a constant denominator in our regional and national politics. It is the reason politicians, friends and foes invoke his name for political advantage and personal glory. It is also the reason why we can't stop talking about him almost thirty years after his death. What will anyone say about you thirty years after you have transited?

Asiwaju Sir, you may be wondering what I'm talking about? It is the issue of legacy. According to Peter Strople, 'Legacy is not leaving something for people, it is leaving something in people'. Legacy is building something that outlives you. Legacy is greater than currency. In the words of Leonard Sweet, ' What you do is your history. What you set in motion is your legacy'. You can't live forever, Sir. No one can. But you can create something that will. Enough of speaking in parables- I shall now speak plainly.
When destiny brought you on the scene, we were enamoured because you championed the case for true federalism. It was your belief then that the Yoruba nation will fare better under a restructured arrangement than under the type of unitary government we run while pretending by calling it a federal government. Everyone knows that there is nothing federal about our government at all. If truth must be told, the Yoruba nation has fared very badly since the advent of our new democracy. And this is not about holding power at the centre.
Let me bring this home: someone passed a comment recently that he would want Biafra to become a reality because he knows the Igbo nation will survive. That comment led me to deeper introspection as I wondered if the Yorubas can truly survive. Let me cite my first example. From Oyo to Osun, Ogun to Ondo, Ekiti to Kwara and Lagos, hardly will one see any serious industry or manufacturing concern owned by a Yoruba person. I am not talking about portfolio businesses or one-man business concerns. Most industries in Oyo State are owned by the Lebanese. The native business and industry gurus who dominated the landscape- Nathaniel Idowu, Amos Adegoke, Lekan Salami, Alao Arisekola, Adeola Odutola, Jimoh Odutola, Chief Theophilus Adediran Oni and others- are all gone with no credible replacements. I'm sure you remember the tyre factory of the Odutolas and how Jimoh Odutola was even asked by the Governments of Kenya and Ghana to set up a similar factory in their countries. Chief Theophilus Adediran Oni, popularly called T.A Oni & Sons started the first indigenous construction company in Nigeria. He willed his residence- Goodwill House, to the Oyo/Western state government, to be used as a Paediatric Hospital, which is now known as T.A Oni Memorial Children Hospital at Ring Road in Ibadan. This sprawling family Estate and residence was cited on a 15acre piece of land, 65 rooms, with modern conveniences, Olympic Swimming Pool and stable for Horses, etc.
People like Chief Bode Akindele started companies like Standard Breweries and Dr Pepper Soft drink factory at Alomaja in Ibadan. Broking House built by the late Femi Johnson, an insurance magnate, still stands glittering in the mid-day sun as an epitome to a rich history that Ibadan has. The most serious and only notable Yoruba entrepreneur we have now is Michael Adenuga. I say this quite consciously because most of the other names are oil and gas barons. Most of what stood as testaments of industry in Oyo State are gone- Exide Batteries, Leyland Autos and many others. In its place are shopping malls and road side markets but no nation develops through buying and selling alone- especially when you're not actually producing what you're selling. Hypermarkets and supermarkets have taken over because of the need to feed our insatiable consumer-appetite and foreign tastes. In one instance, an ancient landmark in the form of a hotel was demolished to pave way for a mall. That is how low we have sunk. If our past is better than our present- if we always look back with nostalgia frequently, then there is a problem.
The case of other states is not different. Osun's case is pathetic. Ditto for Ondo and Ekiti. Ogun State can boast of some factories at Sango-Otta and Agbara axis but most of them are not owned by the Yorubas. There is no significant pharmaceutical company owned by any Yoruba except for Bond Chemicals in Awe, Oyo State- and its wallet share is very insignificant. For Lagos State, more than 70% of the manufacturing concerns and major industries in the State are owned by the Igbos. If the Igbos were to stop paying tax in Lagos State, the IGR of Lagos State will reduce by over 60%. In contrast, Sir, go to the South East and look at the manufacturing concerns in Onitsha, Aba and Nnewi. Please don't forget those were areas ravaged by civil war a mere forty something years ago. The Igbos have certainly made tremendous progress but the Yoruba nation has regressed. I wish to state that this letter is not meant to whip up primordial considerations or ethnic sentiments but just to put things in proper perspective.
Asiwaju, I will like to also talk about the state of education in the Yoruba nation. Our education has gone to the dogs. We have a bunch of mis-educated and ill-educated young men and women roaming the streets. Ibadan, for instance, had the first University in Nigeria and the first set of research centres in Nigeria ( The Forestry Research Institute, the Cocoa Research Institute (CRIN), The Nigerian Cereal Research Institute Moor Plantation (NCRI), the NIHORT (Nigerian Institute of Horticultural Research), the NISER (Nigerian Institute of Social and Economic Research), IAR&T (Institute of Agriculture, Research and Training), amongst several others). Ibadan was the bastion of scholarship with people like Wole Soyinka, JP Clark, D.O Fagunwa and Amos Tutuola as residents. In the May/June 2015 West African Senior Secondary Certificate Examination, Abia came tops. Anambra came 2nd while Edo was 3rd. Lagos placed 6th while Osun and Oyo was 29th and 26th. Ekiti was 11th, Ondo State was 13th and Ogun State was 19th. In 2013 WASSCE, only Lagos and Ogun States were the Yoruba States above the national average. If we do an analysis of how Lagos placed 6th in 2015, you will discover that it was substantially because of other nationalities resident in Lagos. For proof, please look no further than the winners of the Spelling Bee competition which has produced One-Day Governors in Lagos State. Since inception in 2001, other nationalities have won the competition six times (Ebuka Anisiobi in 2001, Ovuwhore Etiti in 2002, Abundance Ikechukwu in 2006, Daniel Osunbor in 2008, Akpakpan Iniodu Jones in 2011 and Lilian Ogbuefi in 2012). Sir, there is something seriously wrong about our state of education. From the vintage times of Obafemi Awolowo who initiated 'free education', we have regressed into a most parlous state.
Let me talk about roads, housing and infrastructure . The first dualized road in Nigeria, the Queen Elizabeth road from Mokola to Agodi in Ibadan was formally commissioned by Queen Elizabeth in 1956. The first Housing Estate in Nigeria is Bodija Housing Estate (also in Ibadan) which was built in 1958. The state of roads in the Yoruba nation has become pathetic. Our hinterland are still largely rural. Even some state capitals like Osogbo and Ado-Ekiti are big villages when you compare them to towns in the South East. How many new estates have been built over the last decade? Even Ajoda New Town lies in ruin.
We have abandoned the farm settlement strategy of the Western Region and only pay lip service to agriculture. Instead of feeding others like we once did, others now feed us. We plant no tomatoes, no pepper and the basic food that we require. The Indians have bought the large expanse of water body that we have in Onigambari village. The water body in Oke Ogun of Oyo State can provide enough fish to feed the whole of the South West. From being a major cocoa exporter many years ago, one can point to just a few vestiges of factories that still deal with Cocoa in the Yoruba nation. 80% of Cocoa processing industries in the South West have been shut down. The Chinese have taken over the cashew belt at Ogbomoso in Oyo State. They have even edged out the indigenes as brokers. They now come to the cashew belt to buy from the local farmers, sell on the spot to other Chinese exporters who now process the cashew nuts and import them back into Nigeria at a premium. Sir, there are only 7 major cashew processing plants in Nigeria and you can check out the ownership. The glory has departed from the Yoruba natio
Apart from Asejire, Ede, Ikere Gorge and Oyan dams built ages ago, where are the new dams to cater for increased population and water capacity for the Yoruba nation? How have we improved on what our heroes past left us? Maybe apart from certain areas in Lagos State, others can't even supply their citizens with pipe-borne wate
Our youth which we used to take pride in are largely a mass of unemployed and unemployable people. Have you noticed the abundance of street urchins, area boys, touts and 'agberos' that we now have all across the Yoruba nation? Have you noticed the swell in the ranks of NURTW (I mean no disrespect to an otherwise noble union)? Have you noticed the increase in the number of Yoruba beggars? There was a time that it was taboo for a Yoruba man to beg- but no more. The spirit of apprenticeship is dead. There was a time that people who learn vocational skills celebrate what we referred to as 'freedom'. While that is largely moribund now in the Yoruba nation, the Igbos still practice it with great success.
The only thing we can boldly say the Yoruba nation controls is the information machinery- the press. We own largely the newspapers- the Nation, Punch, Nigerian Tribune, TV Continental and a few others. It is because of our control of this information machinery that we have rewritten the narrative in the country with the misguided self-belief that things are normal and we are making progress. A look beyond the surface will prove that this is so untrue.
We are largely divided. For the first time in the history of the Yoruba nation, religion is about to divide us further- and it is starting from Osun State. You are married to a Christian. My own father-in-law is an Alhaji. That is how we have peacefully co-existed but the fabrics are about to be torn to shreds because of poor management of issues. Afenifere has been reduced to a shadow of itself. OPC that once defended Yoruba interests has gone into oblivion. Yoruba elders have been vilified in the name of politics and partisanship. It is no longer news to see teenagers throwing stones at their elders because of their political indoctrination. Even under the late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, the Yorubas never belonged to just a single party- yet our unity was without blemish. Now, our values have gone down the drain.
Asiwaju, I believe I have said enough. The task is Herculean but I believe Providence has brought you here for such a time like this. It is time for the Yoruba nation to clean up its acts. What do we really want? How can we quickly right the wrongs? The Yoruba nation is in a state of arrested development. The Yoruba nation is gasping for breath and crying for help. Will you rise up to the occasion? I am aware you understand that all politics is local and charity begins at home. Our fathers gave us a proverb: 'Bi o'ode o dun, bi igbe ni'gboro ri'. I know there are no quick fixes but I also know that if there is anyone who has the capacity to do something about our current situation, that person is you. This should be the legacy you should think of. Your legacy is our future.
Yours Very Sincerely.
N

5oyad:
Please beg him for us. He has collected over 40 billion in the past 5 months but he has refused to pay us. First he said he was screening us, now he says he has pond new accounts for us in zenith and access withyout our consent and knowledge. You will get alert of salary paid to the new account but when you go there, the account is empty or has less money. We are helpless and be boning hopeless. God please touch bello heart. May God use his three wives to touch his heart

aalangel:
You're not, maintain your lane.

AuroraB:
Lol. He isn't earning 18k, you know? If he can afford it, he should buy it. What's with the rigidity
Lol @ miss your payment and watch them take your stuff away

bamirotola:
The state of course... or they device means of paying the... it's something that is possible