₦airaland Forum

afam4eva: Nigerians like titles a lot and we learned it from the British.

This is what I'm pointing out. Now, what sounds pompous is subjective. Ola Balogun has a doctorate degree, but he refuses to be addressed as " Dr ".

My argument is with the use of "Nigerians" in the thread title. Pompous people who give themselves titles exist everywhere (eg, Bokassa and Idi Amin).

Efo Riro

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I speak Nigerian english. I say "mineral", I don't say "soda" or "soft drink".

This is one of the problems caused by colonialism. We can never create anything, we can never make anything, we can only follow what's done in other places. Follow follow.

And so we'll always be behind, following.

Obiagu1: Some people don't get it especially naptu2, no one is talking about titles that exist. People use titles like Rt. Hon, etc. Such titles are valid so stop your numerous posts, they are out of order.

The titles Engr., Barr., Surv. and Arch. do not exist! You cannot find such in any commonwealth or English speaking nation and they are all purely Nigerian creation out of ignorance.

As an Engineer, I still go with Mr. but in professional settings, I only append PEng after my name. The only time I could have a title is when I get my Ph.D, then I will start using Dr.

They don't exist? They don't exist in the US or in Nigeria? Have you checked with COREN?

Admiral of the Fleet, The Right Honourable
The Earl (Louis) Mountbatten of Burma
KG GCB OM GCSI GCIE GCVO DSO PC FRS

The Baroness (The Right Honourable) Margaret Thatcher
(LG OM PC FRS)

The Right Honourable
(The Lord Judge) Igor Judge, Baron Judge (PC), Lord Chief Justice and President of the Courts of England and Wales

odumchi: Actually it is. Once a person becomes a qualified engineer he or she earns the title 'Engr' just as a medical student would earn 'Dr'. In fact, I have a relative who answers 'Engr'.

Titles awarded by institutions due to merit but not used in correspondence:

Chief Scout (The Scout Association), the head of The Scout Association,

Queen's Scout title conferred upon a scout upon achieving highest attainable award achievable in the Scouting movement

Queen's Guide title conferred upon a guide upon highest attainable award for members of the Girl Guiding movement

Eagle Scout, the highest rank attainable in the BSA, can be held as a title for life giving rise to the phrase "Once an Eagle, always an Eagle."

Senior Grecian, Tolly-keeper, and various other fraternal school titles

Engineer, professional qualifications such as Chartered Engineer, European Engineer, Incorporated Engineer, and Professional Engineer

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Title

Nairaland rules state:

"You may not bully a fellow Nairalander. 

NO PERSONAL ATTACKS OR PUBLIC FIGHTS"

https://www.nairaland.com/1026/nairaland-forum-rules-regulations

The topic below seems to contravene these rules. It is in the politics section, despite the fact that it has nothing to do with politics.

Female Okoro Ekwy_nwa Is Nnenna1, Watch Me Destroy The Female Okoro Tonight

https://www.nairaland.com/927827/female-okoro-ekwy_nwa-nnenna1-watch

Esquire (abbreviated Esq.)[1] is a term of West European origin. In Great Britain and Northern Ireland, it is a title of respect previously accorded to men of higher social rank,[2] but which has since come to be used, with no precise significance, as a general courtesy title for any man in a formal context.[3][4] Esquire is cognate with the word squire, which originally meant an apprentice or assistant to a knight. The title "Esquire" has been used continuously since it was created in the distant past in Europe and many uses continue uninterrupted today. For example, in the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, "Esquire" is the most junior title. In the United States, the suffix Esq. most commonly designates individuals licensed to practice law, and may be used by both men and women.

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esquire

It's too late at night for me to go find the book, but Lord Lugard wrote a whole section on styles, titles and protocol in one of his political memos. It included things, such as, how traditional rulers and British officials should be addressed, who is entitled to sit on a chair, who should sit on a raised platform, etc.

The Right Honourable
Sir John Major KG CH ACIB

The Right Honourable Sir Winston Churchill.

Inherited from the British, eg, General (Sir) Peter Edgar de la Cour de la Billière. Field Marshal, The Right Honourable Bernard Law Montgomery,
The Viscount Montgomery of Alamein
KG GCB DSO PC. The Right Honourable Tony Blair.

On The History of Nigeria Railways - The Lagos Steam Tramway 1902 - 1913

In 1895 the Lagos Government Railway began to force its way from Iddo, on the mainland, to Ibadan, and was opened six years later on March 4, 1901. Carter Bridge was completed the same year, construction having commenced in 1896, to connect Lagos with the mainland. Because of the mistake of terminating the railway at Iddo, Lagos, the administrative capital and port of the Colony of Nigeria, was without any public (or indeed, at that time, wheeled) transport to connect it with the railhead.

That this had been in the minds of the Administration is evidenced by mention of a tramway in the Colonial Report for 1899. By 1901 it had been decided to build a 2ft. 6in.-gauge line over Carter Bridge and construction commenced. The opening of the Lagos Steam Tramway took place on May 23, 1902.

The original line ran north-west along the waterfront, from a point near Government House and the European residential area around the Race course, to Customs Wharf, where it turned north-east towards Ereko Market and Idumata. A 95ft,-radius curve took the line north-westwards again, through Ebute Ero and over Carter bridge to the railway station at Iddo.

There was a run-in outside the station building, a short siding to the parcels office, sidings to the goods transit shed, five roads into the engine and car sheds and a run-round which encircled these sheds. The track was single, with seven passing loops en route. At the Post Office there was a double junction incorporated with the passing loop, connection to the Public Works Department stores, and a straight run-through from the PWD wharf to the generating station for direct coal transfer. At Kokomaiko, the terminus, there was a run-round siding, a 20ft.-diameter turntable, and a water tank.

The sleeping track was of 2ft. 6in. gauge with a route mileage of 2 miles 58 chains, partly laid on (not in) the streets and partly on roadside reservations. The running time was 21 minutes, giving an average speed of 7 ¾ mph. Fares were 3d. “all the way”, PWD to Iddo 2d., and Ereko Market to Iddo, 1d. The headway was 45 min., later improved to 30 min., with the first tram at 6.30 hr. to connect with the 7.00 hr. mainline train from Iddo to Ibadan. There was no running after dark (this timed the last tram at about 19.00 hr.) Freight services were operated 0 it was, in fact, the only link at this time between Customs Wharf for moving imports up-country and for evacuating produce from railhead to lighter. The tramway was operated by the Lagos Government Railway.

Rolling stock consisted of ten passenger trailers with longitudinal back-to-back seats, built by the Ashbury Railway Carriage & Wagon Company, of Manchester. They were 19ft. long by 7ft. 2in. wide, double ended and fitted with tramcar-type hand brakes. The bodies were constructed from tubes, with open sides and canvas screens for wet weather. The cars were four-wheeled, the axle-boxes being provided with coil springs. There were about 20 un-braked goods wagon, each 12 ft. long and 5ft. 6in. wide, all made by the same company.

Motive power was originally provided by three locomotives of a type unique among street tramway engines. They were designed by the Crown Agents for the Colonies and manufactured by the Hunslet Engine Co. Ltd., of Leeds, bearing maker’s Nos. 751-3, and LGR Nos. 101-3. Delivery was made in September 1901.

 

 

(Map) - Route of the Lagos Tramway

 

A curious design

I will skip this for the sake of brevity and for its technicalities.

Box-car mystery

When writing the book “Lagos Steam Tramway”, extensive inquiries were made as to why these locomotives were designed in the form of an articulated combination vehicle. No solution could be obtained from the Crown Agents, the makers, the Nigerian Railway, or from aged Africans (Nigerians). Flexibility is one factor (the sharpest curve was 80ft. radius) but a conventional four-wheeled tram engine would have satisfied this requirement. A more important aspect was the 5-ton weight limit imposed over the Carter Bridge. The additional bogie enabled the locomotive to comply with this but it does not explain the box-car at the rear.

One purpose of this, we are led to believe, was the conveyance of His Excellency the Governor and other senior Europeans. There is no evidence that the box-car was used in general service and, while passenger cars were used by the African population, it would not have been deemed suitable at the time for senior Europeans to travel with the general public! Fixed to the rear bulkhead was shelving, which suggests that another use was the carrying of coinage and valuables between the Treasury, Iddo Station and the wharf, in conditions of security. More certain is the transfer of mail and parcels from Customs Wharf and the GPO to Iddo. This is borne out by the short siding which was provided near the parcels office – just long about enough to accommodate the Hunslet articulated engine.

The design must have served its purpose because a repeat order for a further two such engines was placed and they were delivered in Lagos in 1910, becoming LGR Nos. 104 and 105, works numbers 1016 and 1017. Identical in design, except for improvements to the motion and two 45-gal. tanks instead of 30 gal. ones, they cost £718 each f.o.b. Liverpool! It should be noted that it was not practicable to run these locomotives in reverse service, and this accounts for the turning circle at Iddo, the turntable at Kokomaiko, and the double junctions at the Public Works Department and the Post Office, where turning could be effected.

In spite of the success of the improved services and after much track laying and a deficit of only £248 in 1913, the Government took a very short-sighted view and decided to close down the passenger service, principally because the original rolling stock needed renewal. Closure was effected on January 1, 1914.

The Lagos Sanitary Tramway, built in 1906 (see The Railway Magazine, July 1964, page 581), which ran from Dejection Jetty to a junction with the Lagos Steam Tramway at Ereko Market, continued to operate over its mid-town route, via Strachan Street, Glover Street and Faji Market, until 1933. With its closure, the island of Lagos lost its only remaining railway.

(Culled from The Railway Magazine, February 1966)

Interesting, isn’t it, that Lagos, and indeed Nigeria, actually had a tramway system as far back as the earlier part of the last century?

It is also interesting to know that apart from the Lagos Steam Tramway, 23 May 1902 - 31 Dec 1913,  the British also built the following:

Bauchi Light Railway, Zaria-Jos-Bukuru (229km), opened in sections 1912-1914, Jos-Bukuru (16km) widened to 1.067m in 1927, rest closed 30 Sep 1957. Several locos and coaches are preserved near the zoo at Jos.

Wushishi Tramway, Zungeru-Wushishi-Bari Juko (35km), opened in sections Dec 1901-1902, closed 1910

Lagos Sanitary Tramway 1906-30 June 1933. Extended to a wharf and was used to carry "nightsoil".

(Source: Durrant, A.E., A.A. Jorgensen, C.P. Lewis.” Steam in Africa”, London, 1981, Hamlyn)

Gone are those days. What was left for us by the British as a legacy of colonialism, we found it difficult to build on, not to talk of sustaining and improving it, contrary to such in other parts of the world. That is the way Nigeria has gone, to the dogs, ruled and managed by inept, corrupt, incompetent, selfish, indolent and clueless idiots since the British left.

I do hope you have found this historical journey interesting, intriguing, fascinating and reflective. I have. And there’s more on the Lagos Sanitary Tramway and others to come.

http://www.nigeriavillagesquare.com/articles/akintokunbo-a-adejumo/on-the-history-of-nigeria-railways-the-lagos-steam-tramway-1902-1913.html

Recently I stumbled on historical pictures that led me to believe that rail services ran on Lagos Island. I saw a picture of the bridge between Onikan and Victoria Island and there were tracks on it!

I did some research and found out about the Lagos Steam Tramway

Today you can go to the club @ night in Lagos, without the fear of being caught up in a military battle (I will never forget April 22nd 1990 for as long as I live).

In 1991, IBB attended an event @ NIIA on Victoria Island (it was at that event that MKO Abiola was locked out & had to be saved by Aikhomu), the traffic in Lagos on that day was HELL!

Getting to school late cos IBB or Buhari or whomever was attending an event.

Pls, they say Abuja is center of unity. Let it remain the capital.

Many Lagosians (both indigenes and residents) were very happy when the government moved to Abuja in 1991. Personally, I hope it never comes back.

Wrong diagnosis is quite dangerous. Indeed it can kill. Malaria and typhoid have similar symptoms. If you administer malaria treatment on someone who has typhoid, you might unknowingly be leading him to his death.

That's the case with Boko Haram. There are many causes of the Boko Haram menace, many objectives and many factions of Boko Haram. If you treat one aspect (especially if it's the least threatening) and ignore others (especially if you ignore the greatest threat), then you haven't done anything and you'll still be heading for death.


Some diagnosis

1) It's because we have a southern president.

2) It's being sponsored by election losers.

3) It's an extension of Al-Qaeda

4) It's caused by poverty and illiteracy.

5) It's caused by the West (this is especially believed by conspiracy theorists and those that are against the west because of colonialism, Patrice Lumumba, etc).


Some supposed aims.

1) To ensure we have a northern president

2) To ensure that those who lost elections are installed in government.

3) To impose their own brand of islam on the north.

4) To impose their own brand of islam on Nigeria and beyond.

5) The west wants oil/to stop the emergence of a powerful african country.

6)To ensure the north gets more money.

I believe that all these diagnoses might be correct (apart from the "west" angle obviously), but the most dangerous angle is the Al-Qaeda angle.

Now, with the Al-Qaeda angle, I believe if you give them an inch (move the capital), they'll take a mile (the whole country).

The law in Lagos mandates that you use a life-jacket when on the waterways. (I keep forgetting the acronym) LASWA enforces this law.

I've seen similar looking boats on Five Cowry Creek.

About the Fourth Mainland Bridge: At the last pre-election debate, I heard Fashola say that the cost of building the bridge had gone up since the idea was conceived in 2003 and that, in order to bridge the gap, they had commenced ferry services between Ikorodu and Badore while they worked out a way to fund construction of the bridge.

Some close friends of mine recently moved to Ikorodu. They use the ferry service between Ikorodu and Lekki. They report that it is faster, cheaper and more comfortable. I plan to try it out when I go visit them soon.

Please contribute to the discussion on this thread

https://www.nairaland.com/919777/lagos-state-orders-60-ferries

Federal Capital Territory, Abuja

297. (1) There shall be a Federal Capital Territory, Abuja the boundaries of which are as defined in Part II of the First Schedule to this Constitution.

(2) The ownership of all lands comprised in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja shall vest in the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

298. The Federal Capital Territory, Abuja shall be the Capital of the Federation and seat of the Government of the Federation.

http://www.nigeria-law.org/ConstitutionOfTheFederalRepublicOfNigeria.htm


1) You will need the support of 2/3rds of the members of the Senate and 2/3rds of the members of House, 2/3rds of all the state houses of assembly and the President to amend the sections of the constitution above

2) I wish you knew the level of corruption that took place between 1975-1991 when the capital was moved from Lagos to Abuja.

3) You are going to need to build new office blocks, new residences, etc for the thousands of civil servants, members of the armed forces, judges,national assembly members, etc that will move. Of course, the contracts to construct these structures will be inflated. Won't it be better to invest these funds into hospitals, schools, better equipment and training for the security forces, etc?

4) When the target moves, the hunter will also move.

5) The best way to spread development round the country is true federalism, fiscal federalism, resource control and the derivation principle. You will notice that whatever "development" a city gains from being the federal capital, will be lost once the capital is moved to another city. It's crazy to keep building these "civil service cities" up and down the country.

US sees terror attack threat in Nigeria

September 7, 2007 - 8:09AM

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US and other Western interests in Nigeria are at risk of "terrorist attack", the US embassy in Africa's top oil producer said.

The official warning, in a message for US citizens in Nigeria, gave few details, but said potential targets included official and commercial installations in the capital Abuja and the commercial city of Lagos.

"The US Mission in Nigeria has received information that US and other Western interests in Nigeria are currently at risk for terrorist attack," the statement said.

A private security consultant said he had also received a similar warning from the US embassy which stated that the threat was seen until mid-October.

Militant attacks on multi-billion dollar Western oil facilities in the Niger Delta are common, but there has never been any large scale terrorist attack on Western targets outside the Niger Delta in the far south of the country.

Nigeria's Foreign Minister Ojo Maduekwe berated foreign diplomats on Wednesday over what he said were excessive concerns voiced by their countries about insecurity in the delta.

The US and other Western states had warned their citizens against travel to the lawless region, where attacks have cut a fifth of Nigeria's oil production capacity since early 2006.

Nigeria's 140 million people are roughly equally split between Christians mostly in the south and Muslims in the north.

They co-exist peacefully most of the time but thousands have died in sporadic sectarian clashes since Nigeria returned to democracy in 1999 after nearly three decades of army rule.

Analysts said the alert on Nigeria, which is the fifth largest oil supplier to the United States, could be related to the anniversary of the September 11 attacks.

"Any 'Kenya-Tanzania' type attacks in Nigeria will further exacerbate the country's risk profile and raise operating costs for Western energy companies operating there," said Sebastian Spio-Garbrah of Eurasia Group.

Washington had previously said Nigeria was a natural target for terrorists looking to expand their operations because the allure of radical Islam was attracting many Nigerians.

In 2003 al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden included Nigeria in a list of six countries he said he wanted to see liberated from enslavement to Washington.

Shortly after bin Laden's comment, a little-known group called the Nigerian Taliban launched a series of armed attacks on police stations and government buildings in the remote northeast states of Yobe and Borno in late 2003 and early 2004.

This prompted a military crackdown in which at least 20 people were killed. The Taliban, who said they wanted an Islamic state in Nigeria, have hardly been heard of since.

© 2007 Reuters, Click for Restrictions

http://www.smh.com.au/news/WORLD/US-sees-terror-attack-threat-in-Nigeria/2007/09/07/1188783452965.html

Nothing new here. I remember Bin Ladin issued audio and video messages 2006/2007 in which he stated that they would attack Nigeria. Remember the 2006 terrorist warning (when the Nigeria police stationed APC at Mega Plaza and Walter Carrington Crescent)?

A little reminder

https://www.nairaland.com/303398/boko-haram-osama-bin-laden

hercules07: If Lagos state is going to embark on a tolled fourth mainland bridge, they might as well add a rail system to it jare, what is worth doing is worth doing well.

That's a really good idea. I was wondering why the LRT system doesn't have a route to Ikorodu. I imagine that, in future, the Blue Line will be extended to Badagry, the Green Line to Epe, etc, but there's no route to Ikorodu.


https://www.nairaland.com/898591/fashola-woos-foreign-investment-partners

I saw the interview with the retired soldier. He said he survived because, by his military training, he knew that it was better to duck, rather than to run when such things happen.

I remember that this was the same thing a survivor of the Ikeja Cantonement blast said (he lay down flat on the ground).

When something like this happens and you run, you just might run into more trouble (probably an ambush). It's better to go down, scan the area, see where the danger is coming from and what the danger is and plot your escape.

I've got to agree with Jakumo. I LOVE those two cars!

My favourite four Mercedes Benz cars are (in no particular order)

1) The Mercedes Benz 500/560 SEC. (Fell in love with it in 1989)

2) The 1991 Mercedes Benz 500SL/1993 Mercedes Benz SL600

3) The 1954 Mercedes Benz 300SL Gullwing (I first fell in love with "the first true supercar" in 1991)

4) The 2010 Mercedes Benz SLS Gullwing (I'm envious of my friend who works @ Mercedes Benz and has actually driven one).

Speech delayed. GEJ is currently meeting Malawian president, Joyce Banda (the last time GEJ's 9 o'clock speech was delayed, he eventually addressed the nation @ 7am).