₦airaland Forum

I miss nearly all the positive attributes of Nigeria, like family, friends, culture, food, the scenery, and the slow paced life. I love Nigeria.

Africa's most beautiful campus? When did you arrive at the conclusion that OAU is the most beautiful campus in Africa. I even heard such, but were they any survey done on other campuses in Africa to come to such conclusions? The picture of the hostel that I saw on this board, is enough to convince anybody that OAU is overrated.

"y not fix the money in Oceanic bank.depending on how much u have.With 100k u will an interest of 8% for a month,500k and above, 9% for a month."


Ndipe's comment.


8% a month for 100k? that's like 96% per annum for an interest? Is that feasible in today's economy? I am curious to know. Heck, I could start investing in Naija, afterall, if it is true, it sure beats the miserly returns on your savings account, dollar or no dollar.

I almost joined that group, because I had the erroneous belief that they were the only adherent sticking to the principles of Christianity. What disuaded me from joining them is their denial of the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ even when it is clearly written that He Resurrected physically in the Holy Bible. That is the core of Christianity, the birth, death and physical resurrection of Jesus Christ. I would advise anybody to steer clear from that group and rely solely on your Holy Bible for guidance on living a life, acceptable to God. Jesus Christ had forewarned us that false prophets will arise in the end times.

Let love supercede the woman's inability to have a child. If it is the Will of God, the couple will be blessed with the fruits of the womb.

P/S: Why is it that our culture most times, it is the woman, who bears the brunt of the blame, regarding childlessness?

Those pictures, are they of the same person?

Quite common, among Naija men. They want to be like gangstas, speak ebonics, wear hoods, listen to rap and just copy the lifestyles of some African American men. It boils down to inferiority complex, and the chance to 'fit in' with the AA group.

I wanna visit conakry someday. Its unfortunate that the country of Guinea has been subjected to chaos, since independence.

And I thought that annual yield in savings in an American bank (which hovers between 1-6%) was low? Nigeria's case is not better. But the difference in America, is that any significant gains, accumulated from savings, is subject to being taxed by uncle Sam. Is that also applicable in Naija?

Icon, inspirational blog.

Majaje, I agree with you on your previous discourse. Some of our African leaders have stripped us of our dignity, worse than previous slave holders. You gotta compare the lives of African Americans in the USA and their African siblings, residing in the USA, and you would realize that, financially, they are better off in the USA.

Another question, if this money is eventually distributed, how would it be divvied up? Amongst the descendants of the slaves, or would it be to compensate Africa for its loss of manpower or what? There is no monetary value on a human life, but that does not exonerate this sad/ugly chapter that reshaped the lifestories of black Americans. If our people are very genuine in caring for the lives of their citizens, then they wont be stories of corruption/embezzlement, high unemployment, unpaid salaries for civil servants and constant civil unrest that has now plagued the nation.

VP seat: Supreme Court decides Atiku’s fate today
•INEC hints
By FRANCIS AWOWOLE-BROWNE, Abuja
Thursday, March 29, 2007

• Prof. Iwu

* More Stories on This Section

Fears that next month’s general elections may not hold heightened on Wednesday when the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared that recent developments may after all stall the polls.
According to the electoral body, "we are losing the game."

In a clear contrast to the position of the INEC chairman, Professor Maurice Iwu, who has consistently maintained that under no circumstances would the election be shifted, Federal Commissioner and Chairman of INEC Information and Publicity Committee, Barrister Phillips Umeadi, while briefing newsmen on the commission’s activities, expressed doubt over the likelihood of the election holding owing primarily, to the spate of court judgments against the commission as they relate to listing, for election, names for candidates earlier disqualified.

He said that although the commission would work hard to ensure the election holds as scheduled," the way things are going, at the end of the day, we may be boxed into a situation whereby it would be difficult for election to hold. As I speak to you, most sincerely, we might be boxed into a tight situation if the courts continue to give rulings against us, concerning listing of candidates."

The INEC commissioner, who was reacting to a court’s ruling on Wednesday asking the electoral body to list former Governor Chris Ngige as Alliance for Congress (AC) governorship candidate for Anambra State, wondered what will happen after the INEC might have appealed some of the rulings and loses the cases few days to the elections.

Umeadi said that the commission had already taken deliveries of the ballot papers for the elections and that "the biggest printing machine in the world could only print 1.2 million ballot papers a day, and with 61.5 registered voters, if the court rules that we include names of candidates, like that of Alhaji Atiku at the late hour, what do we do? There will be no end to this issue of candidacy controversies and it appears we are losing the game.

"Don’t forget that the National Democratic Party (NDP) is in court seeking to stop the election. What if they get an order in that respect? We just have to obey the order," he stressed.
The INEC commissioner argued that the situation got dicey because the commission has got to obey court orders, though it would appeal those it could and accept those it could not appeal against, adding that the fact that the INEC would be appealing some of the court rulings should not be mistaken to be that it is partial "We remain the umpire that we are," he said.

On the Ngige matter, the INEC boss told the former governor to exercise patience as the commission would appeal the ruling, even though it was yet to receive the judgment.
On the state of preparedness of the commission, Umeadi disclosed that a total of 1,009,374 persons would be needed for the elections, made up of 1642 returning officers appointed mainly from among the INEC staff, with the presidential election having 470 officers; governorship and state Houses of Assembly election having 1026 returning officers.

He explained that the INEC chairman would be the number one returning officer for the presidential elections with 360 INEC staff serving as returning officer for the Federal constituencies elections.
Said he: " There will be 1642 returning officers for the elections. This will be broken down as follows: governorship and House of Assembly 1026, presidential and National Assembly, 470; FCT area council chairmanship and councillorship, 68 and add five percent to it and we have a total of 1642 returning officers for the elections.

This 1026 will be as follows: 36 resident electoral commissioners, they are statutorily returning officers provided by law; six resident commissioners will act as governorship returning officers; 768 electoral officers will serve as state Houses of Assembly returning officers, while there are 222 management staff from the 36 state offices, which is seven per state and we have further broken down the statute because as you will appreciate"

It would be recalled that Professor Iwu had, times without number, boasted that nothing would stop the elections from holding despite the series of court cases instituted by aggrieved candidates, saying it was because of this that his commission would appeal any ruling that tends to disrupt the transition process and the INEC time table.


http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/news/national/2007/mar/29/national-29-03-2007-01.htm

It is not fair to compare our Nollywood stars with Hollywood stars. African actors need to strive to make their act prestigious by organizing their awards that would hold sway in the entertainment world. We don't have to tow the lines of hollywood, while neglecting our culture. This is quite similar to what I discussed in the music forum that Nigerian music are not internationally known, because we incorporate too much of western values in our rhythm.

We have Fespaco, organized in Burkina Faso, which, if we joined hands together would be prestigious. People have the mindset that winning the oscars has confirmed that "you have arrived". We shouldnt look upto the west to validate our acting abilities. We have to rise above such complexes.

Cheers.

People need to get over this ugly chapter that has bedeviled the black world for hundreds of years. As long as people keep dwelling on the injustices of the past, then, the shackles of bitterness would hover us and stall our progress. Geez, give it a break. I admire William Wilberforce, for his stance against slavery, and ironically, some of the black men, who are demanding for an apology, may have descended from family whose ancestors may have been involved in this tragic episode, in exchange for material goods.

Is it true that British citizens, enrolled as students in the Universities get a stipend/allowance from the Government?

That picture is a gross reflection on the current crisis in the Nigerian educational system. And someone had the nerve to brag that Nigeria's education is superior to the Western world? A tragedy indeed. Now, what is Obasanjo doing to remedy the problem? That's the reason, I don't care for civilian rule in Nigeria. During IBB's regime, no matter the financial impropriety that took place in his regime, the excesses, remember, that education was well taken care of by the administration. Go to FGC, then, and you will be like "Wow", check out the GRA's of our cities and they were nice. Today, those buildings are in disrepair and I am curious again, what exactly has OBJ done for Nigeria? Is Bursary still disbursed to University students, as it was, in the early 90's? I have to state here that OBJ's administration has been a disappointment to Nigerians

But at what price are people paying to be earning over 2 million Naira a year? Working 7 days a week nonstop just for that? I would gladly decline. There is more to life than making lots of money with no time to spend it.

The picture alone is a grave injustice to the state of education in Nigeria.

Incredible!
With N10,000, Abuja residents will soon become landlords
By FRANCIS AWOWOLE-BROWNE, Abuja
Monday, March 26, 2007

* Mores Stories on This Section


This may sound too good to be true, but it is a fact. Within the next three years, with the Private Public Partnership of the FCT authorities and a private estate management consultants, struggling residents of Abuja can have keys to his or her own house with payment of just between N10, 000 and N25, 000 as first installment.

That most Nigerians are living in squalor is undisputable. In fact, over 90 percent of the nation’s 140 million citizens, according to statistics, are vagabond. With the hope of owning a house sealed, each of this population segment, reports say, moves from one place to another in search of decent accommodation, which often times are beyond their income level. No thanks to the economic doldrums which confined majority to living below the poverty line.

However, in the next three years, starting from Abuja , the dream of most Nigerians to be a proud house owner may transform to reality, when the on-going Private Public Partnership (PPP) housing project between the federal authorities and a renowned World Bank certified real estate developer comes on stream. It would look a miracle of the century, if indeed, with as little as N10, 000. Nigerians would get a key to a house, as the project seeks to achieve. This should be a cheering news to those whose houses have been demolished by the FCDA and lost hope of building another one.

The pivot and principal consultant of the deal, which is being coordinated and executed by Blue Royal Site Services, Prince Olubunmi Faboro said the project of which the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCDA) had signed an agreement will mark the beginning of a revolution in the housing sector in the country. He explained that in the next three years 3000 low and medium income housing units, would have been delivered if everything goes as planned.
According to him, his organisation in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs has made trade missions to some countries, including Dubai which had conquered the problem of inadequate affordable houses to their citizens.

Housing problem in Nigeria
Prince Faboro pointed out that affordable housing to the citizens is a basic service any responsible government should be able to provide. No government according to him could lay claim to good governance without shelter. Shelter, he said, is a compulsory requirement in life after food and clothing. On the other hand, he explained that the business of provision of housing is not the exclusive responsibility of government.

He stated that the private sector holds the key to affordable housing and government world over, could only participate as a facilitator. In Nigeria , he noted, many private operators have come up with various types of housing arrangements and schemes, as would have expected.

"However, the problem is that these houses are too elitist and expensive for an average income earner to possess. This is why less than two percent of the population can afford the houses. The houses are that expensive because mortgage based housing has not worked in Nigeria. Any interest rate that is above a single digit cant help developers to deliver, except the Mega banks rolling out products in real estate reduce their interest rate, having a decent houses will continue to be a mirage for the low and middle income earners in the country.

"Going by the schemes on ground on housing as being bandied by the private developers, no civil servants can get his own house through any of the developers except of course, he or she steals. This is why we are devising a new method of mortgage housing which is accessible to all adults in public and private sector, entirely different from what we use to have.

How it works
Prince Faboro, who is Chief Executive Officer of FHT Venture Plc, the promoters of the Blue Royal Site and Services explained that under the deal the authorities would facilitate the acquisition of land that the investors would make use of. The investors both local and foreign are expected to deploy their expertise and technical know how. Federal Mortgage Bank, he added is involved in rendering mortgage services. Prince Faboro equally, suggested that there is an opportunity the billions of naira in the pension fund held by the pension fund administrators could be deployed to finance the houses, since the owners of the funds are the same people that will benefit from the mortgage based housing scheme.

"The availability of millions of naira mortgage can make for decent houses. Depending on the years of service and age of the beneficiary, when the scheme comes on stream, an average adult can posses a house with the first installment payment of between N10,000 and N15,000 and can pay for between 15 and 25 years." Incredible as this may seem, the Principal consultant maintained that the houses would be that cheap because materials for the house would be sourced locally and would therefore be cheap. "Mortgage institutions have low capital base and could not take on big housing projects, and therefore banks delve into the service with huge interest rates which when added together escalate the cost of the house and pushed it beyond the reach of the common man. Except people have access to mortgage, Nigerians would find it difficult to own a house.

FCT partnership
The mortgage housing scheme is to take off in Abuja as a pilot project. Prince Faboro disclosed that an agreement had been signed and a proposal made to the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCDA) on the basis of PPP for the provision of lands for both low and high income earners. Over 3,000 houses are to be delivered. By this arrangement, he is of the view that prices of houses will fall, by the simple law of demand and supply.

The consultant expressed satisfaction at the level of response of the people to the mortgage based housing scheme. According to him, people have been coming to obtain application. "We have to start early and have people expressed their interest so as to also ginger us into action. Application is available to every qualified adults, the mortgage bank is ready to embark on the processing while we undertake the practical and technical aspect of it. We want to show to the whole world that cheap and decent houses can be provided and that all Nigerians can be housed without draining their pockets since they will pay over a long period of time and we want to lead the way.

Culled from

http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/news/abujareports/2007/mar/26/abujaroport-26-03-2007-002.htm

Ever since I read "The African Child", I have always wanted to visit Conakry. Dakar is another spot that I would like to visit. Accra/Ghana is experiencing a renaissance, thanks to tourism and their recently concluded golden anniversary. To be honest, I dont think that I can comfortably live in any other part of Africa, apart from Nigeria.

I havent been to any African country, but i have heard that Abidjan, Abidjan (before the war) was, perhaps the most cosmopolitan city in West Africa. I think its moniker is "Little Paris of West Africa".

Novels set in the Victorian ages sometimes deal with respects, displayed by men towards the opposite sex. Back then, you were considered a gentleman, if you curtseyed to the woman. Along that line, you were expected to tip your hat (a a popular fashion accessory then) and women, who were not acquainted with the male subject could not be addressed by their first name. On a cold day during a date, the man (was) expected to lend his coat to the woman, walk on the side of the street, closest to the freeway, and open the door for the woman.

All those were courtesies. I don't know the history of such customs, or what led to the acceptance of it in the dating world. At work, when I broached the subject to the ladies at work, they were miffed by my responses. I told them that such etiquette were ancient and I wont even entertain them at all. They were more appalled at my suggestion that a first date, most likely would be at Macdonalds, or any fast food, with both parties, splitting (equally) the bill. BestBuy would replace the movie theatre as the spot to watch free DVD's. With amusement, I watched as the ladies remarked with disapproval that I wasnt a gentleman and that no American girl would ever accept to go out with me again, after the first experience.

Now, on a serious note, there are women who are demanding equality from men in today's society. Cooking, once considered a traditional role for women, is now spurned by them, because in their explanation, it reeks of slavery. Our role as the head of the family is now in 'jeopardy', as women, with a paycheck above their mate, measure their worth to the amount of money they bring home. I even read a letter sent into Marily Vos Savant, a columnist with Parade Magazine that the idea of females bearing their mother's last name, was practised in their household. Her stance was endorsed by the columnist, who bears her mother's maiden name, to perpetuate the female dynasties line.


If most women, still cling to outdated victorian customs in today's era of independence, shouldnt they also accept the customs of our homeland, like one that has traditionally allocated the duty of cooking as a woman's role in the house?

Na wao!!!

Postpone the marriage. The calls from his ex, on a regular basis should convince you that the girl may be emotionally attached to the guy.

In a bizarre/ghoulish twist, a woman fried her husband. This tragic act took place in Brazil.

Brazilian Woman Cuts Husband's Body Parts, Fries Them To Store In House

March 23, 2007 9:27 p.m. EST

Nidhi Sharma - All Headline News Staff Writer

Sao Paulo, Brazil (AHN) - A 52-year-old housewife from Brazil first stabbed her husband, then chopped off his dead body into small pieces to boil and fry it before hiding it into plastic bags in her house. A 15-member jury found Rosanita Nery dos Santos guilty of killing retired police officer Jose Raimundo Soares dos Santos.

The accident took place on June 23, 2005 in Vila Sao Cosme, a lower middle-class neighborhood in the Bahia state capital of Salvador, 930 miles northeast of Sao Paulo. The matter came into picture when police received an anonymous phone call saying that the woman has hid body parts in her house.

According to AP reports, police suspect black magic to be the motive behind the horrendous killing. There is also a possibility that she wanted to receive her husband's life insurance money worth US$34,000.

However, the woman's relatives have indicated that she suffered "humiliation" from her husband for many years and wanted to end the torture by ending his life. Santos, who has denied killing her husband, claims that some "masked assailants" broke into her house to kill husband.

She also adds that the "assailants" forced her to chop off the body and fry it to prevent the bad odors from the decomposing body that would have alerted neighbors.


http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7006839171

Yeah, they are victims of capitalism, because, of the corrupt practises of the state government. Is it not amazing that there is a bit of a relationship between unpaid salaries, and low wages, offered by some corporations to illegal immigrants in the USA? There have been stories of workers who have been unpaid for overtime work by their corporation, all for what? Greed?

Sorry, trading abuse with anybody online or offline isnt my cup of tea. Thanks for the information and have a good one.