₦airaland Forum

Senators sef... don't you realize that you're also part of the problems, with your misappropriation of funds, overly fat compensation packages and allowances, do-or-die politics, and refusal to approve healthy wages to civil servants.

It's like urging your househelp to buy quality ingredients for 1 week soup, then you give them #450 and still ask for change.

Smh... and those striking would complain if they could not make phone calls, travel, buy food, or get press coverage or police protection. Those other people are not striking, mind you...

Good. Those of us who need to hustle daily to make money are going to sit out of this strike. Is NLC going to come and give me a job should I lose it because I was absent to go and protest? Or are they going to compensate me for lost customers because instead of being at my business, I was out and about protesting. Goverment should just forget about regulating or fixing any price and let the market decide

kenonze:
Gigantic Snake Killed By Fearless Fulani Herdsmen In Yenagoa

This is one the benefit of mutual respect /relationship having Fulani herdsmen around.
LOL

I really doubt that the two benefits of having Fulani herdsmen around - cattle and killing snakes - outweighs the nuisance some of them are being in their host communities.

Afterall, people in Yenagoa have been raising their own meat and killing their own pythons for centuries now, thank you very much.

The spiral staircase that inspired our design, and the fabrication. Our welder/engineer did a fantastic job to create a minimalist, yet safe spiral staircase. All the rungs are properly spaced, angled down at 1-2 degrees to run off water, and the supports are not visually intrusive.

We've been going slowly at this, but have finally plastered inside and outside.

The next important step - and I really need some expert advice - is how to close the space between wall and solar panels.

I'm inviting, in no particular order, spyder880 mufutau55 skimanski abdulwastecx EgunMogaji mavverick segcymoor erico2k2 n3xt FastShipping segzy14 KolaShangOne and more to please lend me their minds for a few minutes as to how to solve this issue.

I really didn't want to use traditional wood, because I think steel and aluminium would do the job better in terms of stability, ability to deal with panel weight, as well as longevity. As a result, I'm in this quandry, as I am loathe to start hammering nails into metal. I initially thought we could just apply plaster and fill up the holes, but that would leave the beams exposed, which can allow water to trickle inside.

I've considered true2home's advice that "a light weight parapet will work. The only obstacle will be that the panels will have to be removed to allow for the parapet crown around the perimeter of the wall, then the panels can be lay inward by sitting on the top of the wall, not the top of the parapet."

Wish I had considered this part earlier before the panels were placed, but is that really the only solution, that we have to remove the panels and (essentially) start all over? I was thinking of nailing 2x2 wood all around the top wall,right underneath the panels and then using that as a base to attach fascia planks or a foam parapet that can later be sputtered with plaster...

Any thoughts please, as the lack of fascia is letting a lot of water into the building when it rains.

Installing aluminium bars that span the h-beams and better support the panels. The square brackets are our own design, and have two bolts on either side. Although it's a cool design, and seems to hold very well, I think this step can be better accomplished with only binding wire. The steel and bolts are quite heavy and added cost to the project.

The second picture shows the first row of panels being placed (at the same time as plastering over the plumbing side of the building)

I'm proud of the team for making this roof very straight at the first try: it took a lot of measurements, preparations and rechecking, but by the time the panels were placed, everything was just straight. (the apparent curve you see in the third picture is mostly due to the curve in the camera lens... it's really straight)

The last picture shows the use of flashing and silicone to seal the gaps between panels. It's still leaking a bit so we have to revisit this issue.

Preparing the h-beams that will support the panels. Each of the 5 beams is supported by 6" legs that will be put into the hollow blocks. Then we pour cement mix into these holes to hold the beams solidly. The beams are all angled 5 degrees from the front of the building to the back, which aids in water runoff.

Finishing up the soakaway... we dug deep enough so it won't be visible once it's complete since I'm a big fan of hidden utilities.

I'm thinking we'll cover it with a 4-inch layer of sand so we can also put a small flower bed on it.

My biggest worry is will the top weaken over time as rainfall collects under the soil, since it cannot run off as normal. Any thoughts? I'm wondering if I should use a layer of DPM to protect the cement or will that make matters worse. Also any side effects of plant roots growing into the cement over time?

Here's the under-floor area that will house the batteries. This will eventually be covered by a false floor (made of plywood or even reinforced cement) that can be removed once a year for maintenance and remove the batteries. There is a small hole leading from this space to the outside to diffuse gases that may be created during battery charging. Note the conduits on the wall that will connect the batteries to the panels and the rest of the house.

We put batteries underground for three reasons:
- the primary being that the building is rather small, and the batteries take up a significant amount of space
- underground is the coolest place in the house, best to keep batteries cool while charging
- in case of chemical leaks, nothing will be above ground and should be easier to contain

Nice one... I'm looking forward to more cool spins from her now that she's done with school.

So they care about the welfare of Nigerians yet want to shut the entire country down? This will disrupt and hurt the economy more than the fuel price. Most of us are already buying fuel at around #145, so this latest government action doesn't really mean much, and strike is just going to do more harm than good.

In fact, when is the last time that NLC strike provided us with any long-term benefit? Occupy Nigeria only pushed the painful decision about stopping subsidies to now, but didn't really address the underlying issue of non-functional refineries.

How are we supposed to go to work, do business, or buy goods if the financial system is crippled? These people think that strike is going to affect the ogas at the top. Na lie... na we go suffer am. Smh

Ah hah hah hah hah hah hah

Please tell me another joke.

Lagos, please don't do that. How much more of Nigeria's wealth will be concentrated in Lagos if oil is pumped from there? Lagos will see an economy boom for sure, and a population boom as well that will stress already inadequate infrastructure, not to talk of pulling development from other parts of the country. Just save your oil, concentrate on the other industries in the state: finance, light industrial, trading, entertainment.

seguntijan:
This interesting piece written by Aniefok Udoabasi mirrors today's Nigeria unfortunately.
This one is not for everyone...

FANTASTICALLY CORRUPT.

<snip>

And the Police want a N10, 000 bribe before they can take any action!

And someone wants me to believe that Nigeria is not fantastically corrupt.

No way!

My broda, you are speaking the truth. If I count how much police has made from me this year alone for various matters including land and vehicle, it makes me weep for this country. But it's not their fault: government should
- make it possible for people to pay directly to a government bank account, not cash to these theives
- allow us to seek redress and complain to an office that will chastize corrupt officials
- pay these people on time, and a fair salary

But what am I talking, the very same ogas at the top are the cause of the problem...

Abeg, Dino is the embodiment of said fantastic corruption. Why is he even trying to raise a voice in protest?

I think it's fair. What is usually happening is that the state government subsidizes the cost of education for indigenes (or residents in some countries), in order to boost the number of indigenes who get higher education, which has important economic and social benefits. There is usually no compelling reason to do the same for non-indigenes/non-residents who, upon completing their education, would likely leave the state.

sonnie10:
Please name one country in the world where there is crude of good grade but no buyer.

What I'm getting at is that the fact that we sell oil at all is due to the efforts of may people, most of whom are not from the Niger Delta. It takes businessmen, diplomats, presidents, technocrats, etc. to see value in the resource called oil. We're only relying on the lucky fact that the substance exists under a ground we were lucky to have migrated to long ago, ignoring all the other factors that come into place.

Why don't we have powerful Delta men and women in business, in office, in industries, that will bring added value to this raw material? And when we do have powerful men and women, they tend to sell us out, protecting only their selfish interests. I'm saying that, instead of destroying federal property and harming the entire nation, these avengers should perhaps go and picket their representatives and governors.

brownskindude:
I'm not happy with the recent happenings currently taking place but let the truth be told for once, the hausas/fulanis and yorubas have contributed little or nothing to the economy but have taken more. Oil is our birthright and we are not going to wait for it to be given to us. We are going to take it even if it means using force.

Oil without buyers, is useless. If not for past Hausa/Fulani and Yoruba leaders negotiating for contracts and concessions, how much Delta oil would have been bought by the West? If not for the many other Nigerians using fuel for vehicles and generators, how much oil could Delta have sold? I am from Delta, but this talk about birthright is quite pitiable. What have Delta sons and daughters done to improve the lot of Delta, given this so-called birthright? We keep blaming others, yet not holding our own people accountable.

The oil producing states already earn a huge amount of money from the federal allocation, which I think is very fair, BTW. Now ask why the majority of the population is still poor. Maybe because of thieves like Ibori who decided to stash most of the wealth abroad.
Instead of thinking how we can productively use our share of the federal revenues (which belongs to all of Nigeria), we're insisting that we get more and more, and destroying Federal property instead of asking tough questions of our Senators and Governors.

erico2k2:
He is even polite here, few weeks ago did he not label us in London as fraudulent

Was he wrong?

We like to protest that we have a few good apples and saints among us, but seriously, most of us (and I'm including myself), have not been entirely straightforward in all our dealings. Even trying to get a government contract, I have to do the usual contract inflation and gift money to a series of officials if I want that contract.

MrPresident1:
Lemme tell you something, I am in the mood for a little lecture. As a representative of a nation, much more the sovereign symbol of that nation, you do not, you must not accept any poor labels for your country, you must deny it vehemently, you are an ambassador.

Yorubas say inu ile eni ni a ti nje ekute onidodo , roughly meaning you do not wash your dirty linen in public. It is elementary diplomacy and international relations.

Abi you think oyinbo are not corrupt? Oyinbo are the grandmasters of corruption, yet you nor go hear am for them mouth. Abi can Obama say Americans are all 'fantastically corrupt' people in an interview with Amanpour?

Abeg. So what if Oyinbos are corrupt? How does that help me when my leaders are stealing and sharing 2.1billion? I'm tired of defending Nigeria: we are a country hampered by an elite and by the common man who are disloyal to it. How can I defend the fancy mansions built by government officials in other countries; or their jets; or the fact that I don't have regular light; or the fact that I still have to queue for fuel in 2016, in an oil producing country.

We want to create a great country, yet we elect rubbish polithiefcians; we want to be like developed countries, yet we don't support our manufacturers; we want clean streets, yet we litter; we want an organized society, yet we jump queue; we want good roads, yet we evade taxes; we want safe communities, yet we spend all our money on our selfish selves; we want quality work, but we are the shoddiest workers on the planet.

Then when people tell us what utter crap our country is, we get super defensive. What we should do is shut up, and get hard at work to improve our country, instead of complaining that people call us names.

As they say, "the first step towards recovering from alcoholism is admitting you're an alcoholic". I commend our President for owning up to the label; we should stop pretending that we're not a fantastically corrupt nation. If we want change, we have to all realize that we can't change just by protesting what we read or hear in the news; we have to be willing to be that "man in the mirror" and make that change within each and everyone of us.

One of the disadvantages of using aluminium and steel in a roof is that, unlike wood, it's much more expensive and harder to attach to. For instance, if this was a wooden roof, we could have easily banged on a wood fascia or even light-weight parapet, but as it is we're having a hard time deciding how to close the space between roof and wall.

We've been buying fuel around 145 on average for a few months now. So what's the big deal now that we will buy fuel around that same 145? I just want scarcity to go away

Ontarget:
It's always Benin - ore road or Lagos - Ibadan road every time. What's up with these places?

They are the two major trunk roads in Nigeria, serving a major chunk of traffic headed North or East. They are also wide and smooth in most parts leading to over speeding. Statistically you'll have more accidents than most other roads

There are quite a lot of plastics (which are derived from petroleum by the way), that leach harmful chemicals into water or food when heated (via steaming or microwaving). Such plastics might be ok for storing food, but can be rather dangerous when exposed to high temperatures.

The Minister's warning are serious and well-founded, but he really needs to come up with a more comprehensive way of showing the dangers, as well as suggestions that the food industry can follow.

OK, since we're going around making unfounded predictions, I predict that the price of tomato will be halved in the next 2 weeks. Smh.

Na wah oh, see as FIRS just dey seal up and shutdown this week. Pay your taxes people, and epp government with revenue.

What's with all this bullcrap? I've never bought fuel at any so-called maximum price mandated by PPPRA. Stop wasting my time with your declarations of what the price of fuel is... PPPRA regulation is as reliable as the #86.70 displayed at the pump or on signboards (i.e. not at all). If the government wanted to save money, they should scrap this useless agency.

titiakins:
oil in Chad basin

Don't amuse me this afternoon
Which oil?
And what quantity?

Why not take the refinery over there
Why Kaduna

You do realize that we can pipe crude to Kaduna from Delta (even if there is no oil in the Chad basin). To me, it makes more sense to pipe crude to Kaduna and refine it there, than to put all that refined fuel on tankers travelling from Delta or Lagos to Kaduna. Besides you spread development, and produce value-added products closer to consumption (fuel, kerosine, tar, and hopefully plastics)

You know, it's usually wise to make sure you can properly utilize what you already have, before building more. I can just see it now: 3 more non-functional refineries.

40 years wasted for a crime he did not commit. The best and most productive years of one's life, just taken away because somebody gave false testimony. May we never be visited with such bad luck, AMEN!!!

The scary part is that (according to the article) 1 in 25 people in jail are being held for something they didn't do. Na wah!

This is not throwing shade, this is reporting facts. How many hours have I lost this year in queues for fuel? From Lagos, to Kwara, to Delta, Ogun, Osun. Can you blame anyone for being short-tempered, after spending two hours in the hot sun waiting for fuel?

Abeg we should stop spending time being sensitive, and more time actually working on solutions.