Ooni:
If half of the country you govern is under travel warning, how do we explain it?

You explain it to Simon Ekpa and your fellows IPOB sympathizers!

Osinwi

Flets:
All tinubu has done is to set up Nigerian masses for absolute and perpetual suffering.

Why the urge to quickly float without plans? Do we have sufiicient USD to flood the market and meet the FX demands in the near term?

On fuel subsidy, Why should the masses bear the responsibility of the inefficiency of the FG?,

why can’t the FG protect the boarders to ensure subsidized PMS does not get to neighboring countries?

Why has the FG not prosecuted and jailed anyone involved in the subsidy fraud to stop others from doing so?,

The claim that subsisdy is a burden is fallacy cos the subsidizing the actual consumption of less than 10million liters per day is not a burden compared to the FG’s current fraudulent claim of 66million liters per day. Why not a gradual removal of the subsidy?
Where is the savings from Diesel and kerosene subsidy and what has it been used for?

The student loan bill is a plot by the Tinubu led FG t to stop funding tertiary education in Nigeria leading to the end all education subsidy. Who do you think are the final beneficiaries of these moves, same criminals who will end up looting the funds meant to fund the tertiary education.

What exactly is the role of the Nigerian FG if they relinquish every responsibility to the masses? What sacrifice has the political class made in all these mess? Have their allowances being reduced? Any efforts at stopping the lootings?

All Tinubu has done is to transfer responsibilities to the already suffering Nigerian Masses to ensure there is enough for him and his goons that supported him into office

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Now that the 2023 election is over (or not, depending on the political divide), and all fray nerves are relatively calm, I have decided to deviate a bit from my calling - business and technology. It feels imperative to put a word out there, who knows how many lives would be saved as a result. The election witnessed the most participation from Nigerian youths, across religious and ethnic lines. Major upsets were recorded in different places, with the mightiest humbled by the lightweights, and for the very first time, we get to realize that there are indeed polling units on social media, contrary to popular belief. As alluded to by internal and external observers, the election was like a typical Nigeria election, marred with rigging, violence, threat, and loss of lives and properties. But one thing that stands out is the divisive role religion and ethnicity played. Although this is not unusual, as it has always been from time memorial, this case seems to be peculiar with an open campaign and solicitation along religious and ethnic coloration, which was very evident in the pattern of the final results. Expectedly, the final declaration is being challenged in court with all parties claiming victory, and as a result, no further comment will be made to forestall contempt. Like a starter before the main menu, it's important to recall the role ethnicity and religion played in the past.

Nigeria Civil War
The Nigerian Civil War, also known as the Biafran War, was a conflict that took place in Nigeria from 1967 to 1970. The war was fought between the Nigerian government and the secessionist state of Biafra, which was declared by the easterners in Nigeria. The conflict began when the people declared their intention to secede from Nigeria and form the independent state of Biafra. The Nigerian government, led by General Yakubu Gowon, refused to recognizes the secession and launched a military campaign to bring the eastern region back under government control. The war was characterized by a series of brutal military campaigns, including a blockade that led to widespread famine and starvation. The conflict resulted in the deaths of an estimated 3 million people, primarily due to famine and disease. The war ended in 1970 when Biafra surrendered and was reintegrated into Nigeria. The aftermath of the conflict left deep scars and tensions between different ethnic groups in Nigeria. Nobody wants a repeat of this, irrespective of the outcomes, lives will be lost, limbs will be severed, and rape will become the least of all worries.

South Sudan Civil War
While the Nigeria civil war was learned from history, the South Sudan war was not. Experience has shown that war is indeed worrisome and not anyone should get close to it. With my heart literally in my mouth all through the six weeks spent in Juba the capital city, not only because the city was war-torn, deserted, and completely filled with hunger, famine, and sickness; but because of the screening we had to go through by machete wielding child soldiers whose average age is around 12 years. The data center deployment project I went for warranted leaving the office for the hotel late in the night, and with a country that was just delivered from the jaws of war, the entire episode shows a living standard that was well below the African standard. Innocent lives were sacrificed on the altar of ego between President Salva Kiir and Riek Machar which resulted in Machar's ouster as vice president, violence occurred in 2013 between presidential troops from South Sudan's two main ethnic groups - Dinka and Nuer. Troops of the Dinka ethnicity supported Kiir, while those of the Nuer ethnic group backed Machar. Kiir stated in the middle of the pandemonium that Machar had attempted a coup, and unrest swiftly expanded to Jonglei, Upper Nile, and Unity states. Both armed groups targeted people along ethnic lines from the start of the conflict, perpetrated rape, and sexual brutality, destroyed property, plundered communities, and recruited minors into their ranks. To make matters worse, Salva who has been the president since 2011 is still the ‘Emilokan’ today, despite all lives that have been cut short, and houses that have been thrown to eternal bereavement.

Rwanda Genocide
My experience at the KG 14 Ave, Kigali, Rwanda, the site of the Rwanda Genocide Memorial reveals the mass slaughter of Tutsi and moderate Hutu in Rwanda, that took place from April to July 1994. The genocide was triggered by the assassination of Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana, a Hutu, on April 6, 1994. Hutu extremists blamed the Tutsi ethnic minority for the assassination and began a campaign of violence and killing. Over the course of 100 days, an estimated 800,000 people, mostly Tutsi, were killed in the genocide. Many moderate Hutu were also killed for opposing the genocide. The killings were carried out by Hutu militias, as well as members of the Rwandan army and government. The international community was criticised for its slow response to the genocide. The United Nations had a peacekeeping mission in Rwanda at the time, but it was not authorised to intervene to stop the killing. The genocide ended when the Rwandan Patriotic Front, a Tutsi-led rebel group, captured the capital city of Kigali on July 4, 1994. The aftermath of the genocide left Rwanda in a state of devastation, with deep scars and trauma that still impact the country today. The government of Rwanda has made significant efforts to promote reconciliation and rebuild the country, but the legacy of the genocide continues to be felt both within Rwanda and in the international community. I was severely worn by co-workers not to inquire about the genocide in the office. One thing stands out as fuel to the fire of the genocide - radio stations. It was used by the Hutu government to broadcast the locations of the ‘cockroaches’, with their machete-wielding militants promptly arriving at the venue like first responders on an emergency call. If ordinary radio station can facilitate a war , one can only imagine what the volatility of social media will do. For the millennials and gen z on social media, the Hotel Rwanda documentary could be of use.

Most Villain Players (MVPs) of the Election
The real losers are Nigeria and Nigerians, we have done a wonderful job of further severing the graveyard peace among the ethnic and religious groups. We have also succeeded in showing that nepotism and bigotry know no bounds and have nothing to do with age, education, or exposure. We allowed age-long relationships between friends, siblings, co-workers, and neighbours to be truncated by religious and ethnic jingoists who paraded themselves as leaders. It's okay to live in self-denial and apportion blame because there is certainly enough to go around, but it will not change the fact that this is a self-inflicted wound, that will take ages to heal. To the Twitter and social media warriors, I say a big congratulations, when the day of recompense comes we will all become Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) on social media. Thanks to technology, we can possibly find the abode on the Metaverse. There are still enough leaves to borrow from the Pew Research Centre’s study of U.S. adults, which shows that about two-thirds believe social media has a primarily negative impact on the way things are going in the country now. Just one-tenth believe social media platforms have a primarily good impact on the way things are going, and a quarter believes they have neither a positive nor a bad impact. As always the contribution of our TV men, also known as journalists cannot be overemphasized, we now have a new star boy - Oseni Rufai with his ARISE News crew, the accidental mouthpiece of the nation, and voice of the voiceless. The once-celebrated Seun Okinbaloye is now subjected to mix-feeling, depending on who was invited on his show. The role played by those suffering from Attention-Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) but instead tagged celebrities will not be forgotten when the history of the 2023 election is written. As for the politicians, theirs is a special place in hell!

Religion, Ethnicity, Politics and The Rest of Us
A country polarized and bastardized by religion and ethnicity cannot stand the test of time, it is like a sand castle in the wind. Until religion and ethnicity are completely downplayed and relegated to the private abode of individuals, the polity will always be on the furnace of tension. Until the state of origin is totally replaced with the state of residence, and our diversity is seen as a strength, the country will be far from the promised land and instead will continue to be immersed in game blame and finger pointing. Nigeria has around 250 ethnic or cultural origins, while Canada with almost double of that, and easily one of the most multicultural countries in the world, hardly has any ethnic or religious tension. The reason is not far-fetched, there are no loudspeakers on the street or in the middle of the night when an innocent baby is sleeping, no preaching in public buses, religion is extremely regulated and relegated, and religious bodies have boards of trustees that are accountable to the government. Any anointed or haramist can be touched and subjected to the rule of law without even making the news. Prayers are private and not hypothetically and sentimentally proclaimed in schools and offices. Their land is a man’s land, and their rich culture and diversity, a major strength and unifier, is well celebrated, appreciated and showcased as cynosure to the whole world. Their streets are littered with businesses and malls not with prayer houses. They have lots more religions than Nigeria, yet the leave in peace, because they understand religion is personal, and doesn't need to be amplified unnecessarily. Growth and prosperity is not spiritual, metaphysical or sci-fiction, it’s pure science, it's a choice between production and consumption, import and exports.
Little wonder why the most religious country on earth is also the poverty capital of the world. To attain the level of prosperity we all yawn for, we will have to embrace our diversities, downplay and deescalate our differences (religious, political and ethnic affiliation) and focus on what is more important. The focus should be on increasing production capacity, human capital development, rapid education, personal development and empowerment, accountability and transparency from elected leaders and most importantly peace, unity and love.

https://www./religion-ethnicity-politics-rest-us-kehinde-idowu/?trackingId=dGLUGl2OSuauHoW90UBWfA%3D%3D

The naira redesign policy has caused a lot of havoc and no doubt is the most challenging of all the government policies implemented.
Oppositions are quick to jump on it as a political tool to criticize the ruling party, and surprisingly showed support for it. Not because they think its the most pressing need of the country nor being implemented at the appropriate time, but because they think some element in the ruling APC already have the old naira stacked in anticipation to buy vote. Even the main opposition candidates Atiku and Obi, has spoken from both side of the mouth while following the trend and drawing narrative that suits their political advantage.

APC presidential candidate, Tinubu was the first to criticize it at a rally in Ogun state, and at that point Nigerians were yet to feel the heat, so not much think he meant well, most people concluded he has ‘bullions’ stashed for vote buying. As the situation became worse, and the APC governors and aspirants, having seen that the populace could use it to unleash a protest vote against them, started voicing out, forcing CBN to extend till 10th of Feb. Now that a supreme court ruling has been secured to prevent the government from enforcing the 10th deadline, the government will have no choice than to comply, being the apex court. The poor note design, appalling implementation, wrong timing, and supreme court judgment, only allude to the fact from APC quarters that CBN governor is out for blood and being used by the opposition. Now that the whole things seem to have backfired on CBN, with sudden remorse as against the initial arrogance, Tinubu seems to be vindicated, and his outburst justified. He can go ahead to position himself as the voice of the masses, which was loud and clear when the need arose. He can campaign along that line to portray himself as friend of the masses, voice of the voiceless and a snippet of what is administration will be.

How this can be used as a political tool depends on if or not the mass will buy the narrative.

Obidients, this this is the time

Dear Obidients

hmmmm

Obidient, it’s your turn now

Okay o, we are watching....
Obedients , over to you !

This is for all well meaning Nigerians

Very important

Very important!

Please check this out !

1 MILLION FOLLOWERS FOR OBI
As the election draws nearer, we need to aggressively promote the Obidatti ticket. The least you can contribute to this revolution is to like the page and invite everyone on you list to like and follow all the social media handles below it as well.

JZK

JZK!
The only true religion. No advert, no thin-god, no broadcast yet it spreads.

Achuwa1:
Pmb & Apc has shown they have notn to offer.
its better to dine with the devil u know pdp than the devil u dont know apc.
atleast ppl werent suffering dis much under pdp neither did we queue for fuel as long as over 3 month under pdp,budget werent paded under pdp or stayed this long b4 it was passed into law under pdp,we did not see Gej sacking vc's or interferring with university activities without university governing board under pdp or promising unemployed graduate 5k when they know it cant be fulfilled,pdp werent witch-hunting its opposition during its rule & even welcomed freedom of free speech,elections under pdp was always conclusive unlike elections under apc tht has never been concluded so far in all state tht elections were conducted by apc govt,pdp never disobeyed tge rule of law unlike in apc govt.tht dusobedience of rule of law is an every day thing,pdp never restricted forex for student studying abroad or Gej saying the students abroad parent can go source for forex anywere they like but apc were telling parents to go source for forex anywhere they like while pmb,shehu garba & other apc stalwart are payung their kids fees abroad from same dollars they are avoiding cituzens to use....there are more & more tgings why pdp is far better than apc & i prefer they take over the senate so tht things can atleast move abit like b4 in this country

Mumu dey smell, PDP didn't disobey rule of law or what did you say, where u in trance when 16 was greater that 19, when fayose used 5 members to impreach a speaker in the house of 24, ekitigate. Talking abt freedom of speech, Wht is more tollerant than a gov wishing u dead everyday, and u simply look the other way. Let me educate u abt economy, when I - buffon was there, he makes $4b monthly and foreign education and health takes $2b, now the gov makes $1b a month, do you expect gov to print more dollar so ppl can send their wards to school abroad. Bros look inward, PDP is not the worst thing that hav happened to this nation, it's gullible and stupiid ppl like you.

Where were you when GEJ promised the family of the late immigration employment fraud employment, did you write the same emotional trash.

Anyone who beliv this will probably bliv obama is a white fulani man.
Typical of fayose and his touts, they would have produced, pic, video, audio etc if this is true, considering that governance is amala social media to them.
How will an apostle of stomach infrastructure that collected arnd $35 millions from ineffectual B reject million dollar.
I really pity ekiti ppl, by the time 4 years elapse, they will realise that all thier gov got to show is a 150 meter lighted road with just 8 street lights.

Nice

O ye who believe! Fear Allah as He should be feared, and die not except in a state of Islam.
Quran 3: 102

O ye who believe! Fear Allah as He should be feared, and die not except in a state of Islam.
Quran 3: 102.

Naira"A business class seat on British Airways is over 2 million naira, while Arik is a quarters of it, yet we travel with BA."

This will easily pass as the most debated economic policy in Nigeria in resent times, especially whenever there is drop in (foreign) earnings. Different opinions springs up as to how the government should treat the Naira, being the victim of our financial recklessness.

Everyone is quick to conclude on how the government should run the economy, but just like a football match, the best players are always the spectators on the stand. It takes political will to make strategic decisions that will affect the life of over 170 million Nigerians, and because of the ripple effect of these decisions, it tends to affect all sector of the economy . Policy decisions needs to be well evaluated and simulated before they are implemented by the leader, because of the burden of responsibility.

There has been series of debate about whether or not to devalue the Naira, mine is just another opinion. I'm a public commentator not an economist, but I have been around for a while to be able to lend one or two words to this debate that doesn’t seems to be ending any time soon. There are those that belongs to the school of thought that devaluation is the way to go, and others like the organized labor who threaten to demand for wage increment should the government dare devalue the Naira. Its is not out of place to find the third group who supports partial devaluation.

A simple analogy of devaluation is a situation where Nigeria makes $1 billion naira in a month, and exchange it at the official rate of 199 Naira to a Dollar. This means that the government now have N199 billion Naira to share among the states, with a state like Osun getting like 5 billion. The government can decide to devalue the local currency to the parallel market rate of 400 Naira to a dollar, the government, after exchanging will have double of the initial amount, and Osun state will have 10 billion. While the allocation of Osun state doubled, Nigerians earning is still $1 billion, we have only pretended to earn more, while in actual fact our earning has not changed, and the purchasing power of the Naira has been reduced by half. That is called " clever by half".

Resent history of devaluation in Nigeria

Devaluation is the act of reducing the value of a currency by it monetary authority like the central or principal bank.This is not the first time this issue will heat up the polity, in fact, the Naira had been devaluated several times in the past, and it has failed to make any meaningful in pact on the economy apart from increase in government revenue in local value, which will only weaken the Naira more. Naira was devalued by 71.5 per cent in 1986 by the then government of General Ibrahim Babangida; 23.9 per cent in 1989 by same government; 42.1 per cent in 1992; 74.65 per cent in 1999; 3.18 per cent by Obasanjo in 2001; 7.73 per cent in 2008; January 2013, 13.23 per cent, November 2014, 5.58 per cent, and February 2015, 14.25 per cent. The current shortage of forex as a result of sharp decline in the price of barrel of crude oil from as high as $140 to an abysmal $28 has necessitated some economic policies like, ban on sales of dollars to the parallel market operators also known as Bureau De Change (BDC), import restriction on certain 41 items to discourage unnecessary importation of goods that can be produced locally and prioritization of forex needs.

We can devalue as much as we want, but our forex earning remains same. If we want to have more earnings in Naira, instead of reducing the value of Naira to have more money, we should focus solely on increasing our forex earning, and starve our quest for forex spending. When a country earns more forex, it in turn has more revenue, and the local currency will appreciate. Depreciation is like a short cut that leads to no where, it will only end up addressing the symptoms while the disease (shortage of currency in this case) will continue to fester. The general assumption is that once we devalue, we will absorb the pressure on Naira and leverage on that, but in the real sense, we have never achieved that assumption.

Who Benefits From Devaluation

We have found ourselves on different divides, depending on our political, tribal, emotional affiliation. This situation is quite unfortunate has we have allowed emotions to take better part of us, we have sacrifice deep down analysis and patriotism for sentiment and sensationalization. Need to mention that both argument for and against devaluation are valid and both can suffix, but its strongly depends on determination and political will. This is what has been lacking over the years.

It is not uncommon to find state governors clamoring for devaluation as seen recently, the reason is simple - if at $1 to 200 naira, we share 2000 naira, by devaluing to 300 naira a dollar, we will have 3000 naira to share. This scenario has been well explained above with analogy, and its eventual implication mentioned.

Another set of people in this class are Nigerians in diaspora who earns forex, with a yearly forex inflow of $25 billion into the country, they might be tempted to see the Naira loose it value for their earning to translate to more Naira, especially when there is direct forex withdrawal (must be converted at the counter) restriction on domiciliary accounts in Nigeria.

Economist who want to apply theoretical angle to the issue might also want to argue that since our foreign reserve has been depleted, and decline in forex revenue, we don’t have the financial capacity to support the naira at present rate. But many at times, we have seen economic events defied bookmakers to unfold contrary to perdition.

The way forward: #BuyNaijaToGrowNaira

Much has been said about Naira devaluation, and virtually everyone has been able to argue out its own part, as earlier mentioned, both are valid, has we have seen seasoned economists on different sides on this matter, offering different explanation.

This most fascinating comment given by an economist was during the colloquium organized by TheCable. Bismarck Rewane, CEO Financial Derivatives urged Nigerians and indeed government to worry less about whether or not to devalue as this should be left to be determined by the market forces, government should worry more on generating forex through mass production and exportation, as this is the only means the dollar can be strengthened. In his words, the current situation has moved “from whether to devalue or not to devalue, to the implications of the absence of an exchange rate policy. In the end, we have two options: do something and have a policy, or do nothing,”. While he doesn't really subscribed to devaluation, he also doesn't want to give legitimacy to governments adamancy not to devaluate. Just has expected, only the end can justify the means.

The governor of Edo state, Adams Oshiomole, as the keynote speaker, on his part urged Nigerians “to curb the demands for imports and reorder our consumption pattern.” He further stated that foreign reserve was $65 billion in 2007, $42 billion in 2014, and now $28 billion. As this reserve is dwindling, our taste for foreign goods and importation is ever on the increase, even as the reserve can be totally depleted in the next one year if something drastic is not done.

We are where we are, and things needs to be done differently, we have to start producing, and not just producing, but also exporting and consuming our local produce. This is the only way the Naira can be eased of the pressure and more jobs will be available. The economy will be buoyant, and investor friendly. Nigerians spend half a billion dollars on education abroad, if half of this is diverted into our economy instead, our GDP will increase, the education sector will flourish and even generate income for government as it is in UK, US and other developed countries.

A situation where the rich and wealthy run abroad for ordinary checkup has to stop, medical is not cheap abroad, especially for foreigners, if a fraction of this amount can be expended on our health sector, no doubt we will compete with other nations like India. The cost of flying plain abroad also contribute to another country's GDP at the expense of ours. Its high time we get serious, the government needs to strengthen our health institutions to encourage people to treat themselves locally. A situation where FG budget 3 billion naira to upgrade the villa's health facility in order to ensure that medical trips abroad are reduced to the barest minimum is a welcome development.

We need to start patronizing local companies if we want our economy to improve. No matter the quality of the products locally produced, we have to keep patronizing to encourage competition that will ultimately makes the quality be at par with world standard. Chinese products was not long ago termed as a substandard and inferior goods, now it’s the cynosure of every consumer's eyes, not just in Nigeria, but all over the word. The Chinese leveraged on their population to woo potential investors, now virtually all manufactures and vendors has their production factory in China. Just like China, we have the population, we have the brains, what we lack in leadership, we gain in abundant natural resources, all these just needs to be harnessed. A business class seat on British Airways is over 2 million naira, while Arik is a quarters of it, yet we travel with BA. Manufacturers are folding up everyday due to lack of patronage, yet we want government to provide jobs for our youths. We can not possibly eat our cake and still have it.

I will end this by sharing a personal experience. I went to a book store to get a white board for my study room, the store attendant, with confidence presented a locally made one, though not as good looking as the imported one I used when I was in Ghana. I told the gentle man I wanted the imported one, the question he asked made me look stupid - "what do you want to use it for". It was then I realized both will serve the same purpose perfectly well, with a disappointed look, he advised I should always patronize made in Nigeria goods to encourage the local producers. I had to apologize to save my face. BuyNaijaToGrowNaira.

ValerianSteel:
This evening I came across this picture and I was very disappointed in what I saw.
www.nairaland.com/attachments/3447251_image_jpeg9f360c5ab7736510df54c882e9dbf188

As a minister in the Federal Cabinet of Nigeria signing a bilateral agreement on behalf of Nigeria in Qatar,tradition demands that She(Kemi Adeosun) is accorded the same respect as the President as her presence carries as much authority with the President.

Under no circumstances should a person of her capacity be subjected to conform to the cultural/religious practice of the host country.

Kemi Adeosun is a Nigerian Minister visiting Qatar,she is a foreigner,therefore she is not bound by Qatari laws or culture which can't be enforced on her.

It is utmost disrespect for her person and Nigeria as a nation to see her subjected to covering her hair to please Qatari officials.This attempt of cowardice to Qatari Islamic custom denigrates the office of the Minister of Finance and totally against Global Practice.

Madam Kemi Adeosun,next time you find yourself in an Arab nation,refuse vehemently to cover your hair,their laws are not binding on you.You are their visitor and your person must be respected.

Thats a lie, stop spreading hate speech. The attached picture shows that Michelle, Hillary, Queen Elizabeth all wear veil

See Hillary Clinton, Michelle Obama and the Queen all wear viel in Muslim land as a sign of respect for religion and culture.

Adesoun's case should be an exception.

Bflexing:
Just two ways will work bro
1. Be very rich. Some people will still grumble
the surest way is
2. Go to bank dressed like a herbalist, with a little juju as ur necklace, everybody will leave d queue for u without noise

Hahaha

Hilarious