₦airaland Forum

VillageBoi: Hey nrd_geek. really nice. I cant stop wondering what the story behind the 'snake on a wire' is
How have you been by the way? Very well I hope?

@VillageBoi, I'm doing very fine thank you, You?

Hmm ... as for the serpent, we only woke up that morning to find a long thing hanging on the wires. Guess the snake must have gotten the shock of it's life (pun intended)

How in the world it ever got there, I'll never know. It's quite a distance between the two NEPA poles and it got shocked midway. I guess I'll have to readjust my thinking to accommodate the fact that snakes can either climb concrete poles, or fly

Edit: I've actually seen a preview on NatGeo Wild where a snake leaped and covered quite some distance ... talk about weird

AlbinoNinja: Nice! I like the top one better. We are nearing fall colours here. Ill have lots of pic opportunities.

Hey thanks AlbinoNinja. Surprised you like the top one better. It's a road in Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria.

Please do snap and post lots of pictures! Autumn is one of the most colourful seasons for pictures!

Either

... good in bed (Tyrion Lannister ) and also ...

Here's a real world look:

Yesterday's gone but tomorrow is only a day ahead.

... our launchpad to reach for the stars.
In fact ...

... care, and probably pull Man. utd. along with ...

Head over heels about a girl I met today

Not entirely new. There's a similar therapy called fecal replacement.

Top: Don't let the Scottish sun fool you, it's winter in January!
Aberdeen beach bathed in wintery sunlight.

Bottom: Snake on hot wires!
Shot in the beauty of twilight. Sometimes, NEPA does it's job in good taste

Here's some more pics Sniper.
Anybody seen VillageBoi?

Top: 0645hrs Sunday morning ... Deserted Street in Akure.
Just dropped my sis at the motor park and driving home, had to park aside to seize a photo moment

Bottom: 0553 Wednesday morning ... Deserted Street in Aberdeen.
Briskly walking to work as I have to clock in before 0600hrs else, the manager'll have my butt for lunch

esere826: I can't believe that some folks are utilizing google and wikipedia as the tool to establish that
the intercontinental hotel building in Lagos is 'certainly' the tallest in this part of the world


,,yeahh, it is apparently one of the tallest,
-but I dont expect the hotel owners and the state government to be the best source for naming theirs the tallest building
-if the original aim of the builder was to create the tallest structure for sure, they should have made it more obvious my making it much taller

I think the tag of the building as the tallest is a bragging, marketing induced aftertought
(not a bad infrastructure sha)

I am wondering if you really read the post very well.

I clearly made a call for facts and figures. The only quoted figure of height available was obtained through a google search which returned a national daily website and a wikipedia quotation.

No where in my post did I claim that Intercontinental Hotel was (in your words) "certainly" the tallest.
My first statement was a warning that we should stop unnecessary bragging.
I put a disclaimer (clearly highlighted in red color) on the wikipedia figure because, as we all know, wikipedia is not a good source of reference, probably excusable if it contains a citation.


[quote author=nrd_geek]We need facts and figures here. We cannot just continue to brag and lay claims from our imaginations or throw numbers from our bum.

Hôtel du 2 Février in Lomé, Togo: 36 floors, standing at 102m (Note that wikipedia still requests for a citation for the buildings height)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotel_du_2_Fevrier

Intercontinental Lagos: 23-storey, 100 metres high
http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/west-africa-s-tallest-hotel-intercontinental-lagos-opens/149822/[/quote]

GustavoFring:

Them no reach.

We don't die, We Multiply......_{and nack their sisters as well}

make dem catch you

By Tim Ross, and David Barrett10:21PM BST 05 Oct 2013

End of free NHS care for migrants under new bill
Major restrictions on migrants’ free access to the NHS are to be introduced.
Figures published by the Office for National Statistics showed that 37,000 extra Romanian and Bulgarian workers have arrived since June last year.
There is uncertainty over how much is spent by the NHS on foreigners who are not entitled to free treatment.

Foreigners will have to prove that they are entitled to be in the country before they are given access to GPs and hospitals, while foreign students will have to make a “contribution” to the health service.
The measure will form the centrepiece of tough new legislation designed to reduce numbers entering the country and put pressure on illegal immigrants to leave.

A senior government source said it was an attempt to target “people who have no right to be here”.
Restricting access to the NHS is highly contentious politically.
GPs will be told they have to check that people seeking to register with them are here legally and issue only time-limited “NHS numbers” — the proof of entitlement to free care — to those who do not have a permanent right to be in the country.

Separately, students from outside Europe will have to pay a £200 levy before they can access the NHS.
Hospitals will be told to step up attempts to pursue “health tourists” for the cost of treatments they receive.
The measures will be outlined in the Immigration Bill, which is due to be put before Parliament within days.
It represents one of the most wide-ranging and ambitious pieces of legislation since the Coalition took office, spanning six Whitehall departments: health, local government, business, and transport, as well as the Home Office and the Ministry of Justice.
However, it will not affect migrants from inside the European Union, which is now the biggest single source of new arrivals.
Other elements of the Bill include:

• A ban on councils giving social housing to individuals with no connection to an area, with “penalties” if the rules are not followed;
• Fines of up to £3,000 if landlords do not conduct thorough background checks on their tenants to ensure they have a legal right to live in Britain, and fines of up to £20,000 for every illegal worker employed by unscrupulous businesses;
• A victory for The Sunday Telegraph’s campaign to end the farce that sees foreign criminals dodging deportation by appealing using the Human Rights Act.

Instead the law will allow immediate deportation and appeals from outside the country unless criminals can show they face “serious and irreversible harm” in their home countries.
The plans are intended to address what ministers see as public concern over the impact of the migration policies of the last Labour government.
The Bill is the Coalition’s flagship legislation for the year and Conservatives hope that the package of measures will allow them to win back voters who have been tempted to support the UK Independence Party.
“If you are not entitled to our free National Health Service you’ll have to pay for it,” a source said.
“If you are an illegal immigrant you won’t be able to rent a council flat and you won’t be able to rent a private sector flat.”
Many of the restrictions on free health treatment are likely to be opposed by some doctors, who have previously resisted attempts to make them “gatekeepers” to the NHS.

At present anyone registering for the first time at a GP is given an NHS number, which allows them to receive free treatment.
Under the reforms, they will have to prove they are entitled to be here to gain the number. By having no NHS number, they will be unable to receive anything except emergency treatment.
Jeremy Hunt, the Health Secretary, said: “We need to ensure that those residing or visiting the UK are contributing to the system, and that we do as much as possible to target illegal migration.
"We have a National Health Service not an international health service and I am determined to wipe out abuse in the system.”
The foreign students levy will end the current situation which allows free access to the NHS for all students here for more than six months.
Currently 300,000 students from outside Europe [/b]are studying at British universities.
Official projections have suggested that this number will rise to more than 480,000 by 2025.
Although [b]charging these students would raise less than £100 million, ministers believe it would be a significant disincentive to those who would abuse the NHS.

Analysis of Home Office figures suggests that one in five foreign students will remain living in the UK five years after first arriving, and many will settle permanently.
Efforts to step up the pursuit of health tourists will also be included.
There is uncertainty over how much is spent by the NHS on foreigners who are not entitled to free treatment, with current estimates ranging from £3million to £300million, and fears the figure may be even higher... .

A separate tightening of the rules on unemployment benefits is likely to follow, which will not require an Act of Parliament to introduce.
Certain unemployment benefits for European nationals will be stopped after six months, under the plan to amend the Immigration Regulations.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/immigration/10358569/End-of-free-NHS-care-for-migrants-under-new-bill.html

SniperInADiaper: A good photographer with a P&S is better than a bad one with a DSLR. The camera is only as good as its operator

Yep, you're right Sniper and I know that. It's not the camera, it's the photographer.
Just a lil surprised he could get such colours, shallow depth of field and do macro on a P&S

The Sony DSC-W630 has a Carl Zeiss lens though. You can always count on Zeiss for sharpness & superior colour quality

^^^ Nice Flickr stream there Dotun.

I gotta say, considering you don't use a DSLR but a Sony point and shoot, the vivid colour quality of your pictures are astounding!
I've always had respect for any camera with a Carl Zeiss lens though.

Nice work ... ! Good to have you here

Please do post and share some of your work for us to see.

I think we might do well to note that Paul was an apostle dedicated mostly to the Gentiles.
Peter, on the other hand was an apostle devoted mainly to the Jews.
The Jews are the original chosen people of God. God's covenant with them was in a written form: the laws or the Torah.

Jesus, as the Christ (Jewish messiah), preached salvation in his time, mostly to the Jews. He was rejected as the messiah and crucified.
After he died and rose, he gave his disciples the great commision: to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. This heralded the period of grace.

In Daniels 70 weeks prophecy, there is a gap unaccounted for between the 69th week and the 70th week. This gap is known as the "times of the Gentiles" or the "week of grace" or the "dispensation of the church".

We as gentiles were not originally reckoned with in God's program. The dispensation of the church is to extend God's love to all men that they might be saved.

After Jesus' resurrection, as gentiles began to become converted, there was a huge dispute as to whether they were to observe the Laws of Moses and whether they needed to be circumcised.
Paul rebuked Peter openly in Antioch for separating himself from gentiles in the presence of Jewish Church elders, that after he had earlier communed with them. (Galatians 2 and Chapter 3)

The whole essence of Paul's teaching on grace and faith is simply to combat the false doctrine from false brethren requesting gentiles to be circumcised in accordance with the Torah.

Galatians 2:
16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.

... 20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

21 I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.

jayblinx: boss u just lied....wat eva hotel mr fashola built isnt the tallest hotel in west africa....Hotel 2 fervrier in lome togo has 36 storeys...and has the record of the tallest...dont come here and deceive any1....if u want to b sure...use google or check the other post on lome togo and see dat tall building wit sumtn lyk an ''X'' on top....i live in togo

[quote author=Qc-1]Well..Google search said this hotel is the tallest in west Africa....see link below :

https://www.google.ca/search?q=tallest+hotel+in+west+africa&aq=f&oq=tallest+hotel+in+west+africa&aqs=chrome.0.57j60l2j0l2j62.7810j0&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#q=tallest+hotel+in+west+africa&tbm=nws[/quote]We need facts and figures here. We cannot just continue to brag and lay claims from our imaginations or throw numbers from our bum.

Hôtel du 2 Février in Lomé, Togo: 36 floors, standing at 102m (Note that wikipedia still requests for a citation for the buildings height)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotel_du_2_Fevrier

Intercontinental Lagos: 23-storey, 100 metres high
http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/west-africa-s-tallest-hotel-intercontinental-lagos-opens/149822/

smh ... So some people actually think anyone from the SW must be a member of APC?

The best thing GEJ could ever do is to give this extant country a Sovereign National Conference, far more important than 2015.

Let's put it all on the table then let each group get back what rightly belongs to them.

I bet the South-south stands to benefit tonnes from such an effort.

I had only heard comments about Enugu but respect to the Igbo's, it is a beauriful city!

Danger! Cocaine sells for N100 on Lagos streets

APRIL 11, 2013 BY CHUX OHAI

Contrary to popular belief, cocaine and heroin are no longer out of the reach of the common man, writes Chux Ohai

One afternoon in March, our correspondent set off in search of joints where hard drugs were sold and consumed in parts of Lagos. Along the line, the search led to a narrow street, just off the busy Olowu Street and adjacent to the popular Ipodo Market. Known as Ilo Street, it is lined on both sides with crowded shops on most days of the week.

On this particular afternoon, a number of people, idle men from the look of it, sat at the back of a wooden kioks in front of a storey building. One of the men occasionally passed tiny wraps to the others in exchange for money.

Our correspondent observed the transactions for a while and then, without being noticed by the others, beckoned to one of the men – a gaunt and wrinkled fellow whose bloodshot eyes darted a quick and suspicious glance.

The man gave his name as Yakubu Mohammed. Obviously guessing that our correspondent desired some of the stuff wrapped in paper, he offered to help him get it.

“If you want Charlie or Thailand, I can assist you to get some. Alaye won’t sell to you because you are new here,” Yakubu said in Pidgin English.

Alaye was the fellow who had been passing the wraps to the other men. As it turned out, he was a dealer in hard drugs and the words ‘Charlie’ and ‘Thailand’ stood for the street names of cocaine and heroin.

Our correspondent was able to buy two tiny wraps of cocaine and heroin at N100, but not without attracting curious stares from the other drug users.

“They suspect you may be a policeman or NDLEA official,” Yakubu explained. He cut the picture of a young man whose whole existence revolved around hard drugs. He had just had a fix that afternoon and was clearly a shade too excited.

Like Ikeja, like Mushin

After combing the area for a while, our correspondent discovered more addicted drug users and not less than six dinghy drug joints between Ilo Street and Ipodo Road, obviously the hub of a thriving illicit trade in narcotics in Ikeja.

Further investigation showed that most of the joints were located in filthy surroundings, often near crowded and busy streets, especially in densely parts of Lagos, such as Ikeja, Ogba, Agege, Mushin and Somolu.

Young men and women, some barely in their teens, often loiter around such places, eager to grab an opportunity for a quick fix. In a particular joint on Akala Street, Mushin, a nursing mother sitting on a mat quietly sniffed from a substance in a piece of paper, while her baby yelled for her attention.

“Some of these people you see here have no homes. This place is their home. Day and night, you will find them here. This is where they always hang out. The only time they leave here is when they need money desperately for another fix,” a resident of the street said, on condition of anonymity.

When asked why he had not bothered to report to the police or NDLEA, the man said, “It is risky. Some law enforcement agents are practically on the pay roll of these people. Some come here in disguise to buy drugs, too. What if I go to a police station to report and somebody leaks my identity to them? That will be too risky. Most drug addicts are criminals. They are capable of anything. They could kill or maim if they suspect that you are a threat to them.”

Also, in the Mushin area, Igbarere, Anifowoshe, Umoru, Akinbiyi and Alhaji Lasisi Streets, among others, are dreaded and avoided by many law-abiding Lagosians because of their collective role in the wider trade in hard drugs.

A resident once described the area as the “unofficial hard drugs market. Illicit transactions between drug pushers and their customers take place in many of the shops found on the streets. You can easily tell a drug joint by the filthy curtain hanging at the entrance. When our correspondent visited there, a few young men could be seen openly smoking Indian hemp, now a common ‘food’ in many parts of the city, as it is in many others in the country.

Normally, influential Nigerians are associated with cocaine, heroin and other related narcotics. While children of the rich, for instance, flaunt the drugs in schools, it is said that some wealthy people go as far as sharing cocaine and heroine to their guests at some social functions. But most of the addicts encountered on the streets of Lagos were clearly from poor backgrounds.

Methamphetamine factories

Sometime in January, Governor Babtunde Fashola expressed concern over the discovery of illegal methamphetamine production plants in parts of the state. This added another dimension to the general awareness of a looming drug crisis.

“The discovery of clandestine laboratories for methamphetamine production in Lagos is the first alarm of insecurity in the state,” the governor was quoted as saying during a meeting with the Chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, Ahmadu Giade, in Lagos.

“Since crimes like armed robbery and rape are often committed under the influence of drugs, we must first fight drugs in order to fight crime. At this time of high security challenges, drug control should be a high priority issue. Every society that wants to promote peace and security must fight drugs,” Fashola said.


... The three major drugs in popular demand among drug users in Lagos are cocaine (known as ‘Charlie’), heroin (‘Thailand’) and Methamphetamine ( ‘Meth’ or ‘Fast-track’).

“Meth is relatively new in Nigeria. But it is the most powerful, addictive and dangerous. It is three times as potent as cocaine. That is why those who are addicted to it are always hyperactive and restless,” says Pastor Ade Adeleye, the founder of the Word of Life Rehabilitation Centre.

Often referred to as the ‘poor man’s cocained’ Meth is a whitish, odourless and bitter substance that easily dissolves in water or alcohol. It can be taken orally, intravenously or by smoking and snorting.

In 2010, the drug became central to the Federal Government’s campaign to rid the country of narcotics after eagle-eyed NDLEA officials observed an outward flow of the drug from Nigeria to Western and Asian countries. This was the warning bell that foretold the possibility of illegal meth factories flourishing within the country.

Before then, Meth became popular for its capacity to enhance sexual performance and for its medical property as a pain killer.

For some time, it was imported into the country by drug barons perpetually on the lookout for quick profits.

Our correspondent tried in vain to obtain the drug, which sells for N50 per capsule. He was informed that it could only be purchased over the counter. Even then, most retailers will not sell to a buyer they hardly know, not until he is identified by a regular and trusted customer.

But a tip-off from a former drug addict compelled an unsuccessful search for an unidentified meth production plant in Oregun.

“I heard the plant is run by some Oriental people and they are very discreet,” the source said.

In terms of street value, meth is cheaper to buy than cocaine or heroin. But sources say drug barons are prepared to invest a lot of money on it because of the high profit margin. Perhaps this explains why it is relatively easily available.

...

http://www.punchng.com/feature/danger-cocaine-sells-for-n100-on-lagos-streets/

We need to constantly re educate ourselves to let new information come in.
The poor also take cocaine, even in Nigeria!

Welcome to "The Wire"

Bizibi: I remember reading a piece in vanguard newspaper were a wrap of cocaine is sold fr 100 naira in some slums in lagos and even in some part of south-east,so im nt surprise that danfo drivers are drug addicts

Very true, read a similar, if not same, article in a newspaper. I wonder why people assume only rich peeps buy cocaine?

In the States and even UK that I'm better familiar with, the crackheads and junkies I've seen are usually poor and sometimes homeless (some come around where I work, all stoned, begging for a fiver or tenner).

A former colleague who's mate was into such once identified his mate's pusher (a kid of 16/17yrs). I observed his corner and his clientelle consisted mainly poor, jobless hood rats from the council estates

Depends on the cut of the coke sha ... e be like say dem dey get first grade and other lower graded cuts.

... and who says Lagos drivers don't make good money?

Spring 2012_ Aberdeen, Scotland
Taken with hTC desire S

Twas the end of winter and spring was in the air
Scotland was in bloom - you could tell by the sight of flowers and the scents that hung around you.
I had just gotten a new phone and my flat had a view - Riverside drive (3rd pics), the river Dee and the Bridge O' Dee.
Took a short stroll, aligned and composed my camera, liked what I saw snap, snap ... there you go

SniperInADiaper: My boy got money for his birthday and wanted to buy a new video game.. My little girl said she had money too for a new video game. Photo-worthy

What a cute little girl and, by the way, nice pics.
Mind if I ask, are those pennies or cents?

VillageBoi: Hiya, the nifty-fifty is the 50mm f1.8 super tiny bit of plastic lens (some also call it the 'fantastic-plastic' lol) - not the f1.2 that is a hefty expensive 'L' lens.

Glad you like the 'Twisted' pic... I took it with my phone.

I'm actually more into filmmaking but happen to own a couple of DSLRs

A few samples of shorts -
Sweet Sixteen - https://www.nairaland.com/866173/new-short-film
Une Clope - https://www.nairaland.com/1105305/une-clope-short-film-nsfw
Don't Rock The Boat - https://www.nairaland.com/1107900/dont-rock-boat-short-film

Wow, nice vids there! I'm seriously looking to convert from stills to vids. Seen some awesome DSLR vids on youtube, especially from the group "Dod3032". Unfortunately, I'm no longer in the UK.

guseman: Yea...I work in Akure

Great! You'll probably recognise this: