₦airaland Forum

the lack of accurate census must be a major constraint to long-term planning.

i personally doubt there are 18 million residents in Lagos. But thats my own cigarette-packet estimate.

Afam, did you make that estimate looking out of your window?

Whats the point of all the made-up statistics I see on nairaland.

You could have simply said Igbos constitute a sizable proportion of Lagos, or that Igbos are the second largest ethnic group. That would have commanded respect.

Why make up statistics on your kitchen table and try to pass them off as credible estimates?

the Igbo situation in nigeria is a complex revolving cycle, and i think the Igbos can do a lot more to win friends.

their pride (justifiable) in recovering so well from the war has been allowed in part to turn into unwholesome arrogance & chest beating using many trumped up statistics to tell everyone else how superhuman they are.

A little dose of humility, stopping the constant blame-game will help reassure other nigerians. But Then again, these other nigerians have to extend a genuine hand of friendship devoid of suspicion.

it can happen in our lifetime, prob with an Igbo with Yoruba & Igbo parents. Never say never.

Publicly renounce Biafra? Massob?? I think thats unfair and unnecessary.

If someone is born in Lagos, lives all his life here, prob speaks Yoruba fluently, what has he got to do with Biafra?

Whats important is that he convinces people that he's best for the job of Governor. A preconditional public humiliation by way of renounciation of an extant cause is unnecessary.

I think Jason got that wrong. There's some competition between English, Scots, & the Welsh, but it's no where near the level of unhealthy rivalry in nigeria. There has been a Prime Minister even from tiny Wales.

Afam, I agree that an Igbo can become a Governor in the future.

Jason, wow wow, how can you say a scot cant be elected UK Prime Minister?

Several scots have been elected prime minister in the past, and others will in the future.

cameras hidden by who? Mossad, CIA, MI6??

nigerians will fix & at the same time corrupt the cameras  so they dont work on election day.

seems you guys have been away from nigeria too long. It's the people!

nigerian cameramen are not corruptible?

and how many punches will it take an area boy to knock a cameraman off his stride?

once we figure these questions out, then you'll see that the problem is people, us, nigerians! Not equipment.

am surprised by your Lagos/Anambra analogy. So an Igbo should be governor of Lagos, but we should understand and sympathise with your reason as to why a Yoruba or Hausa man cant be Anambra governor.

You can do better Afam.

to my knowledge, there's no law forbidding Igbos from contesting for Governorship or other political posts.

And since some of you claim Igbos represent up to 40% of the population of Lagos, an Igbo person should be confident enough to throw his/her hat in the ring and test their popularity.

Whinging about being denied Presidency & now Lagos Governorship without engaging in the party machinery is poor form.

Or are we to zone Lagos Governorship to Igbos?

'never' is a word I use cautiously.

So, i agree that some humans, irrespective of their background, education, religion etc are capable of the most heineous crimes. In the current international dispensation, a Yoruba moslem can strap a bomb to the body, though we pray not. In a future dispensation, it could be extreme xtians doing the same. Similar horrors happened in years gone by.

God forbid a new war btw christian Igbos and moslem north, would you be surprised if you heard a xtian Igbo strapped a bomb to his/her body to attack their perceived enemy?

In the minds of moslem terrorists, they are waging a 'war' hence anything goes.

It's unrealistic to expect an Igbo governor in Lagos at this stage, but it may well happen in the future.

Same is true as a Yoruba emerging as governor of Anambra, or Sokoto.

Why paint the Yorubas as uniquely insular?

- what has religion got to do with good government in the south west?

- also, there's no evidence that christians are descriminated against within party structures in Lagos.  As majority of indegineous lagosians are moslems, it is to be expected that more of their politicians would be moslems.

-I'm sure a leading (Governor) christian politician will emerge in the long run, not on the basis that he's a christian, but on the ground that he's his party's best candidate.

There can be no 'zoning' on the basis of religion.

ikeymann, an ill mannered ethnic bigot has landed.

Am out!

jason, no vex o.  Just wanted to make Akhenaten a little more comfortable in this section.

Pan Africanists seem to have strong views on certaon issues, so wld like to encourage postings/contributions fron him in the politics section.

Akhenaten, you're back!

Thought you wanted the easy life on the culture forum, away from the sharks on the politics section.

Now you,ve proved yourself an Igbo son - courageous & fearless. You couldnt be seen running away from lightweights (Oops!) like of Jason & Alh harem, could you?

harem, just as i thought you rarely respond to insults, you rubbished igbo language. Disapppointed!

jason,

Harem's certainly a smooth talker,, prob one of those who say more than he can deliver.

A lovable rogue I suspect

@Akhaeneten,

Africa must unite? why; against who; and how does African unity affect the price of fish at Abule Egba?

When was the last time Guinea Bissau threaten to invade Nigeria. A polite nod to our neighbours through those wasteful regional/continental (ecowas; au) quangos is enough.

We want development! Enough about zero-sum pursuit of continental unity.

And why go back to the cultural section. Dont you like a proper debate where people support & oppose your views as they see fit? Pls come back!

people are willing to look eastward for lessons in superior democratic norms, assuming such thing exists.

The challenge is that Igboland of today is a byword for political greed, selfishness, disunity, treachery etc, much like the rest of the country. So which lessons in democracy are we to learn from Igbo folks of today - orji kalu, uba brothers, nzeribe, urzor kalu, and many more?

Baba, I dont support a military takeover, as I dont believe we will be any better.

My point is that a military coup in the next 12 - 18 is a possibility.

You're frustrated with the current situation, and so am I and many others. But, you really think military will be better?

If you look at the US  and the UK, it took them a while to get their democracy right, though the Nigerian experience is beginning to leave many, who were willing to be patient, to question whether it will ever get better.

I really dont know the answer to our troubles.

by traditional igbo democracy, i assume you  mean something that existed in years gone by (at least 100 yrs ago), in which case, i agree that we need to step back & look inwards into how our primitive fore fathers managed in the end, to devise a largely agreeable way of governing themselves.

But if you are referring to the majority modern day, selfish, greedy Igbo lot, who practice politics of chaos, you have your work cut out trying to persuade  anyone to look east for vital positive lessons. They're as bad as the do or die politicians of the west,

Lol Jason

Finally, frustrated with Becomerich eh?

it's going too far to say the US will not allow it.

What will they do? Bomb Aso rock to dislodge the coupist??

Yes, they can make life difficult for the military administration, but you think they will aggravate their own precarious economy by blockading nigerian oil & sending the price of crude oil through the roof? Erm, no.

The US will make noises in the open about wanting a 'swift return to democratic rule' etc, but behind the scene t the new boys will assure them they only need 6mths to calm the security situation & hold elections. 6mths will prob turn to 12, during which they will steal a few billion dollars & hold a sham election installing people who wont probe them.

We've been here before,,, am surprised you think it can nver happen again. And why do you think nigerian democracy is a greater imperative to the US that their ability to secure our sweet, easily refined crude?

It would be too sensitive now for the boys in uniform to take over, particularly as any  coup will likely have a predominant northern leadership. SS folks will feel slighted & the breach of trust will take decades to repair.

Whats more likely to happen is a coup 9 - 12 mths into the  next administration, once the new civilian govt has failed to tame the deteriorating security, a deterioration that the military prob has a hand in!

One wld be a fool to discount even the more extreme eventualities given the way we are heading.

just spoke with someone in Akure, Mimiko is a practising xtian.

Apparently, his family's real name is Ifamimiko. He dropped the Ifa bit.

See how much info you can get in a few mins,,,the joys of cellfone!

Well done Jason.

Just to add, I've not been in a circle  where anyone has raised the issue of religion as a reason for voting or not voting for a candidate in the S West.

Most families have practising moslems, christians and  the lot, as well as non practising folks. The overarching influence in Yorubaland is culture  and the omo o wa ni' concept.

Lol, no need to tell him not to respond to you. You're both passionate contributors & are bound to have diff views.

Want to debate pple who only agree with u?

Although he is clever, I admit, some of Jason's comments on threads can b rather 'simple'  & made, in what appears to be, in hurry.  

Jason, why do you write like a nervous wreck Lol Has an overbearing girlfriend turned you into this

Relax sister.

Why after elections?

I said 'preferably' after elections. My thinking is that many will question the credibility of taking action before elections for the following reasons:

- I understand efcc investigated & saw no reason to take further actions in 2007!
- Now that this organisation has no new info to justify reopening the case, the govt allegedly wants to use another agency  to relaunch a closed investigation
- Tinubu is the man behind the impressive advances that ACN is making in parts of the country, to the detriment of the ruling PDP party

Against this backdrop, the moral hazard of launching what is clearly a judicial insurgency against a serious opponent, a few weeks to election should offend all right-thinking democrats, whether they support pdp, cpc, zzz, or acn.

We either want a fledging democracy or not.
To be above board, any new investigation should come after elections. If this guy has a case to answer, then I would rather an ensuing judicial process was as independent as possible & not be overshadowed by a cloud of political banditary on the part of the President.

a contributor said one only have to ask a surveyor in Lekki to know Tinubu is corrupt. Quite extraordinary!

If you or the surveyor have a body of evidence against this man, the rightful thing for you to do is compile a dossier, send it to Efcc (trust me they desperately need such info right now!), so they can investigate.

To come on the internet & tell citizens to go to 'a surveyor' in Lekki to find out about someone's alleged corruption, is pathetic.

Why dont I go to Ejigbo & ask a meat seller whether you are a child molester & if he says yes, I can tell the world, including your employer that I have incontrovertible evidence that you are indeed one.

I repeat, we have separation of powers in our constitution. A president does not have the power to order, orchestrate, plan, instigate, directly or covertly, the arrest of a citizen.

Akainzo, well done for a level-headed contribution.

Most pple say Tinubu is corrupt, like most nigeria politicians. Dont know much about the basis for this near-consensus view, but whatever the truth is, we must lend our voice to certain fundamental principles:

- a person is innocent until provenn guilty
- judicial intimidation of any form against any citizen is unconstitutional & condemnable
- it is not the job of a president to orchestrate a judicial kidnap of a political opponent few weeks to an election.

If there's a genuine case against this guy, it should be laid before a court, preferably after the elections. Any action taken before the elections will lack credibility & owill  only harden support amongst his followers.