₦airaland Forum

@Ashiwaju

I am a bit passionate where issues concerning the NPF is debated, afterall "pops" was one of them before he relocated to heaven. there are really good men out there in uniform serving the nation, unfortunately we come across the jerks in our daily dealing with the men in blue. Get to know someone in uniform closely and privately you will be surprised how intelligent they are and how much they really want to make a difference in our society, go to any police school or colleges across the nation and see what those young men go thru, i just wonder why anyone even join the NPF.unfortunately most of the cadet cops, by the time they graduate are so well accustomed and addicted to that N20 that they believe its their birthright.

Guess the I G knows something afterall. NPF is sending 51 "officers" to Houston to learn about community policing. Its the rave among police Dept's worldwide, welcome on board NPF though it took you awhile. Having said that, hope our student cops also learn how to truly serve the citizen, by being courteous, friendly and dedicated to duty. And this hoping the top hierarchy provide them the equipments needed to make the NPF really capable. Its hermetically proven better equipment equate better services.

Wouldn't you pay to see a debate among the governorship candidates of Lagos? toks(ANPP) Pedro(Labour) and Koro(PDP), Whoa! these three will spill fire or maybe cold. just wondering who might win that debate. AC guy you ask? he is not relevant. all he has going for him is Ashiwaju's money.

The point i was trying to make by making this available to nairaland readers was that the Uba families are now turning on each other, by reading that commissioned opinion any egghead will know the writer was passing on the blame from chris to Andy. I am just damn grateful that this is happening now, so we all know who to cast our votes for. DEFINITELY NOT THE UBA BROTHERS.

Things are falling apart and the center cannot hold in the Uba brother house, hopefully this may turn around and be a blessing to Anambra and Nigeria. May there not be peace in every houseand families holding Nigerians hostage

OPINION :— Chris Uba: A plea for forgiveness
By Josephat Nwalusi
Thursday, January 11, 2007

THERE is perhaps no Nigerian who has in the last four years been demonized as much as Chief Chris Uba, the well-acknowledged godfather of Anambra State politics who in 2003 single-handedly delivered the state to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), from the House of Assembly; to the House of Representatives; to the Senate; to the governorship and to the presidential elections. The most important reason for the poor image which Chief Uba has had in the media is the fact that he did not have a competent and honest press secretary until recently.

Another reason for this unflattering image is a series of errors he committed as a result of his young age; This is to be expected from a young man who became a successful government contractor at an early age. For example, Dr Chris Ngige, the former Governor of Anambra State and a major beneficiary of Chief Uba’s effective godfather politics, has said that the chief asked for three billion naira compensation no sooner than he was sworn in. What Chief Uba did was in order, but we may quarrel with his lack of patience as the government had just been inaugurated. Sponsors of candidates into political offices the world over are entitled to one form of compensation or another.

Still, this short article does not intend to justify some of the controversial steps taken by the chief. Rather all he seeks from all Nigerians, especially the people of Anambra State , is forgiveness. Chief Uba’s trespasses have been a mistake of the heart, instead of the head. The plea for forgiveness has become imperative in the light of developments in the political scene as the 2007 general elections draw nearer and nearer. At this juncture, a special appeal goes to the national leadership of the PDP, which, to all intents and purposes, will be well beaten in the state in the forthcoming election if it continues with its obduracy of presenting a list of unmarketable candidates, especially in the gubernatorial race. All we want from the people is forgiveness, total forgiveness.


You see, Chief Uba was not personally responsible for all the actions attributed to him. As anyone who knows him at the personal level can easily say, he is not a man of violence. Therefore, the three-day mayhem which took place in the state from November 10 to 12, 2004 , was not actually his brainchild. He has been a mere fall guy. The person who goaded him to do all this should be well known to the public by now; recent events in the state reveal this person clearly. It is so funny that the person is now denying him publicly so as to realize his gubernatorial ambitions. Can this person deny using his presidential connections to get the police to work in tandem with the rioters? Why didn’t the police arrest even one rioter even when the Nigerian Television Authority Network News was showing the hoodlums burning every government property in sight and destroying personal possessions like cars and luxury buses of innocent individuals?

As has been stated above, Chief Uba is not a man of violence. In other words, he would not have been directly responsible for the abduction on July 10, 2003 , of Dr Ngige, who was then the Governor of Anambra State . Who gave the police Assistant Inspector General, Ralph Ige, the order to kidnap the Governor? Is it possible for a mere contractor like Chief Uba to give such an order? To repeat the obvious, only someone with deep presidential connections can give an order of this nature and it will be carried out with alacrity. Indeed, the time has come for Nigerians to demand a high-powered judicial probe panel to look into the mysterious and sudden death of Mr Ige and find out if his death has anything to do with a desperate effort by some people to cover their tracks.

The ruling by dismissed Justice Stanley Nnaji of the Enugu High Court on January 2, 2004 , purportedly ousting Dr. Ngige from office as Anambra State Governor has often been attributed to the so-called machination of Chief Uba. But this is far from the truth. Who conceived the whole judicial charade? Wasn’t the idea conceived in the Abuja office of a former presidential aide? Who provided the N15m which was used to bribe the dismissed judge, out of which one of his wives used N5m to procure a Toyota Prado jeep? The whole world has been made to believe that Chief Uba was behind all this tragic drama, but the truth is that his role has been minimal, if not non-existent. He has just been the fall guy, heroically bearing his cross in silence.

What no-one can ever deny Chief Uba is his assured place in the history and scheme of things as far as the PDP is concerned. His enthusiasm to risk his life and personal integrity for the party is well acknowledged by the leadership and the rank and file of the party. He is a gallant fighter. He fought the All Progressives Grand Alliance(APGA) and other formidable opposition parties to a standstill; hence PDP’s victory in Anambra in 2003. It is only a tested and valiant fighter like Chief Uba who could make it possible for Chief Olusegun Obasanjo of the PDP to defeat a whole Ikemba Nnewi, Dim Emeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu of APGA, in the presidential election in Anambra, the home state of Ikemba who turned APGA into a formidable vehicle for Igbo mobilisation throughout the Southeast during the last election. In appreciation of his wonderful work, the PDP made Uba a member of the Board of Trustees, even though he is far less than 50 years, the minimum age for the PDP board of Trustees membership.

@destiny2k7

Please see this as a feed back and not criticism, the endless looping of Pedro declaration video was the one for AC and not labour just don't make sense, it needs to be edited

The Pedro campaign website is void of his agenda for Lagos

There are too many picture that convey nothing on the site, soon someone smart might analyze it and find a pic that might be used against him. be less vulnerable by showing less

@Kitaun
Please tell the forum about Jimi Agbaje and Akeem Gbajabiamila,this should be about educating the electorate and not pulling others down. do a comparison as to why they will make a better governor.Enough of this what i cannot defend i will disparage syndrome.

I am intrigued by this dude and went on line to research him, am somehow impressed and would vote for him except i don't live in Naija. For what it matters I'M ADOPTING AND ENDORSING THIS DUDE! abeg, Mr Pedro no messup oh.

@AFAM

You raised a good question, but like terracotta said politicians are opportunist. Same issue happened in the recent election in USA when Sen Lieberman of Conneticut lost the primary and ran as an independent candidate and won, only Nigeria does not allow independent candidature. Anyway i wish Mr Pedro goodluck because he will definitely need it to win Lagos.

okay! so spending five million on one person buys you one vote or what?. I know in USA where i have been fortunate to work on a campaign money was spent on voters education, making phone contact radio, TV adv printing matrials for the candidates. but in Naija i just cant justify giving one person millions to get what in return.

When a politician spend millions of Naira on winning an election, where does all that money go.

I am just naive on how campaigns are run in Nigeria, so anyone who has been previledge to be a campaign worker please enlighten me. Who gets rich off politicians besides the kings and thugs?

you ask why i am after Atiku? well you know the story of how i got the nomination the first time, Right? you see this Atiku "boi" has not been easy to break, everytime i steal a dollar, he wants one too. haba how can this pikin want to be rich like me, he already beat me to owing a university and oil servicing company, this "boi" has no respect for me he made me prostrate for him in order to get the nomination the second time. his wife Titi was trying to outshine my late Stella(by the way i still don't know what happened to all the money she made and hid from me, if anyone knows like IBB money bring proof). This boi has made friends with all the senate and rep politician while i was busy trying to intimidate them by acting as a civilian military head of state instead of elected official like them, he has shown a mastery for horse trading while my antics has been force, he.he he(Atiku walks in silently),  holy sh-t! he is behind me now so i can't write this again. hmm, enhmm,eh  ribadu! ribadu! why this guy still dey roam about!? do something!.

@MAMAJAMA

Like the politician always say, all politics is local. the basic of community policing is getting to know each other at the local level, Yes! we will have the abuse of system in discharge of duties, but I'm not worried about that now lets identify and get the criminal out of our neighboorhood, one street at a time.

I have read a lot of criticism here of the police force but very little solution to the problem, so i will set the ball rolling. I am an advocate of community policing! What does that mean you ask?
Community policing is a collaborative effort between the police and the community that identifies problems of crime and disorder and involves all elements of the community in the search for solutions to these problems. It is founded on close, mutually beneficial ties between police and community members.Community policing offers a way for law enforcement to help re-energize our communities. Developing strong, self-sufficient communities is an essential step in creating an atmosphere in which serious crime will not flourish. At the center of community policing are three essential and complementary core components: community partnership, problem solving and change management.

Community partnership recognizes the value of bringing the people back into the policing process. All elements of society must pull together as never before if we are to deal effectively with the unacceptable level of crime claiming our neighborhoods.

Problem solving identifies the specific concerns that community members feel are most threatening to their safety and well-being. These areas of concern then become priorities for joint police-community interventions.

The system in place now in Nigeria where an officer is recruited in Ibadan and transfered to Kano is not ideal, community involvement is pushed back when such officer is alien to the custom he finds himself. Patrol officers are the primary providers of police services in community policing efforts. They handle the daily policing needs of the community. The entire police organization backs the efforts of the neighborhood officers.
Effective community policing depends on optimizing contact between patrol officers and community members so that the officer develops an intimate knowledge of the day-to-day workings of the community and becomes a familiar figure to community members.
Establishing and maintaining mutual trust is the central goal of community partnership. Trust will give the police greater access to valuable information that can lead to the prevention of and solution of crimes. It will also engender support for police activities and provide a basis for a productive working relationship with the community that will find solutions to local problems.

Given the current climate of distrust in many of our communities, police commissioners and their officers will need to make a concerted effort to forge bonds of understanding and cooperation with community members. Building trust will require ongoing effort, but it is essential to effective community policing.

What constitute an ideal police man, in searching for ways to reorganize,reorient and reposition our police force, i am seeking opinions on what your vision of an ideal model should be.Please don't just browse this, contribute!."they" do read this or have it read to them.

I seriously believe the next IG shouldn't come from the rank of our current police leaders. the president should look outside the force to appoint either a retired officer of the army or advertise internationally like Mexico did with the former mayor of NY Rudolph Giuliani and sign a contract to conduct a review of policing and criminal justice and make recommendation. Mexico police like ours were poorly trained, ill equipped  and unable to stand up to political bosses and criminals, organized crime. NIGERIA POLICE like Mexican police is a serious, multi-layered one of corruption, ineffectiveness, unaccountability and brutality. There are, however opportunities for change, as new administrations at all levels, will be voted in soon, our leaders should begin to recognize that they need to seek new models for policing, or risk losing voter support.Intimidation, torture and extortion of detainees are entrenched practices in Nigeria criminal justice. This is not simply because of “bad apples” in the police forces. Instead, the criminal justice system maintains incentives for the police to coerce statements out of defendants or witnesses – in other words, as the Mexican saying goes, “police detain in order to investigate, rather than investigate in order to detain. In Nigeria you are guilty until proven innocent

what is the selling price for a 1999 ml430 in Nigeria?

As much as i would like to the blame all this on the govt, its also a disruptive behavior on the part of the citizens to vandalize pipe lines. It's this get rich at all cost mentality that as been the bane of our society.Each time we have such occurrence, the development of Naija is also set back.

Of all the nations blessed with crude oil, why do we always have a recurrence of pipe line fire? (1) What can we do to stop this, (2) How do we educate the citizens about this danger, (3) What is the psychological reason that make Nigerians take such risk and who do we hold liable for all the loss?

@ otokx

I seriousely doubt that Nigeria values the life of the its citizens, just last week in colorado three men were stranded on the mountain, the county sherriff threw all they had to effect a rescue, will that have happened here? i say nope. Its only here that road accident happen with 2-40 lost life and we shrug it off, danfo runs over people, its OK. i could go on 4ever. The chief law enforcer died almost 5yrs ago and we are yet to fish out the killers, think about all the unnecessary deaths that could have been prevented by building better hospitals, equipping the police, fixing pothole on our highway etc. when a govt value its citizens, they in return put a premium on the survival of the the nation.

With or without legalizing the right to bear arms in Nigeria, criminal intent on committing murder or mayhem will always find a way to do so. What i advocate is the right for sane beings among us that want to defend their property and self from invasion, should be legally able to do so.

Criminals bent on causing wantom destruction cannot and will not be stopped, the Israel has not been able to effectively stop the Palestinians so far. I just want to make it a little harder for my life to be invaded by every asshole with a weapon, at least put up a fight without waiting for the boys in blue to show up.

Just recently Nigeria and OBJ were effectively held captive by Abacha and only by God grace did OBJ come out of this alive, to know think that this same man would now be playing God over the affairs of this nation at best makes me to marvel at the creator awesome power. This country is bigger than Atiku and OBJ and "they" shall find out that "HE" that protects NIGERIA does not sleep. This too shall pass. GOD BLESS NIGERIA.

In as much as i have tried, i cannot but lay this at the doorstep of our leaders who have turned governship into ability to share loot and be vindictive of their political enemies. Many future leader are being lost to road accidents and armed violence in this country and they have shown apathy. To those that still remain here(Nigeria) i will continue to say the LORD prayer for you and to others who have made it out i say congratulations at least you are now in a society that value human life.

pool. 

Intellectuals are the "planners and navigator of a countries future". Show me a striving country, and i'll show you a excellent Intellectual

This reasoning does not apply in Nigeria, our so called "intellectuals" are in cohort with thieves that have brought this country into ruin, you cannot put new wine in an old bottle, get rid of the old guards and see how the country might flourish

Reducing violence should be a laudable goal of any country, evidence abound that gun control laws made by many countries is worst than ineffectual. The weight of evidence suggest that gun bans and draconian restriction will not reduce criminal access to guns, but has instead disarmed good citizens who cannot be effectively protected by under armed police.
Criminals do not announce their intentions and our police resources is overstretched , so it its unsurprising that our police rarely arrive in time to prevent death or injury from much violent crime. I recently spoke with an "officer" who made me believe that policemen have no legal obligation ,nor even a theoretical obligation to provide protection to individuals, even if in immediate danger. The police are only obligated to provide some unspecified level of general protection to the community at large. It a bitter irony in deed that at the same time the police are relieved of responsibilities for our protection, we are forced to depend on their protection. We are often told we should not have the same tools(guns) that the police say they need to protect themselves from the same criminals  who threaten us.
In America one- third of the citizens live in 22 progressive states that have reformed laws that allow good citizens to readily protect themselves  outside their homes, openly or concealed. In those states crime rates are lower for all category of crime indexed by the FBI uniformed crime reports. what we need in Nigeria is an informed and educated citizens who will know the responsibilities that comes with that right to bear arms. As for me, i have taken the American option. U come unannounced i will introduce you to MR SMITHS.

What can we do to unseat public officials who do not know when to leave. over twenty police men have been killed this week and the IG is still there. what is OBJ really doing, how can we shame them out, really how?

OBJ has become an embarrassment to all well meaning Nigerians. THAT MAN IS DEMONIC

Jeez! Its becoming a routine hearing my dear mallam ribadu sounding like a scratched vinyl( black album u see on dad table in the living room) 4 those that were born in the compact disc era, just recently he vowed to stop corrupt politician from contesting and almost half the governorship candidates that won the primary will probably be in prison in a civilized society,now he is vowing to throw Fasawe in prison. Mallam do what you have to do, and stop trying your case on the pages of newspaper, we demand action and not words .Build super max prison and enforce the law. Threatening to take action is not the same as actually doing so.at least a broken clock is right twice a day.

I may understand the job security issue, atleast the man has nine children to take care of, but i grewup knowing that a good name was better that wealth. Abi na the otherway round now?

For months now, we have been reading and hearing from our famous EFCC that it will not allow corrupt politicians to vie for positions or force them out of the process, we now know Andy has gotten the nod in his state,so did Akala. With the roles played by ODILI AND IBORI  in funding the campaign of YAR'ADUA and his selection as the presidential flagbearer of the PDP, do you think RIBADU has the GUT to go after any of the sitting governors when their term expires, or should he just resign and accept, that he's been played by the politicians and his credibility will now be questioned. what do you think?