₦airaland Forum

This man sells HOPE to many...

He sells a special type of HOPE to many emotionally and mentally unstable wailers; the logic being that "if even a governor reasons like this, then we aren't actually crazy for reasoning the way we do when we say chibok is scam."

Sometimes I wonder if this Pastor Reno has any self respect at all. Some kind of childish invectives expected only from some low IQ wailers is what Reno keeps churning out publicly.

KingRex1:
Just thinking.. Kuwaiti dinar is the highest valued currency in the world, while crude oil accounts for over 90% of the country's export, it also lives mainly on imported products.

How is that? And why are we (naija) here?

What's the size of their foreign reserves and what's their population?

I dont know of Kuwait but I know of Saudi Arabia. S Arabia has a population of about 30million people, that's roughly one-sixth of Nigeria's population. But as at mid-2014 when the slump in price of oil started, their foreign reserves stood at $750 billion (that's like 25 times the size of Nigeria's reserves). Presently, their reserve has dipped to $550 billion, i.e. $200bn gone in the last 2 years. To checkmate this, they started imposing taxes and have increased pump prices of their massively subsidised fuels. Now this is a country that also gets billions of dollars from millions of tourist pilgrims every year.

The above example should sufficiently answer your question regarding why countries like Nigeria are deeply affected.

If the person who authored this is above 15 years old, then it's a pity.

joey150:
Africa should get rid of all these things..where was our so called tradition when the white man took us all as slaves.. These things help set us back many thousand years..that is why most of our big strides in development came when we where under our colonial masters.

We keep dwelling on tradition that adds no tangible meaning or advancement to our society at large.

Not every tradition is a problem. A person without tradition is like a lost soul.

The sensible thing to do is to throw away or modify retrogressive traditions whilst you hold on tight and proudly to harmless rich traditions.

Today all over Nigeria we have several states practicing borrowed caribbean traditional carnivals while we dump our own; but that's the height of inferiority complex.

[size=14pt]Air cargo exports up 39% as Nigerians cash in on weak naira[/size]

Nigerians are cashing in on the weak naira to increase exports of mainly agricultural products to boost their foreign exchange earnings. Data obtained by BuisnessDay from Nigeria’s two main cargo-handling companies shows a significant 39% increase in the volume of exported cargoes through Nigeria’s airports.

The two air cargo handling companies; Skyways Aviation Handling Company Limited, SAHCOL, and Nigerian Aviation Handling Company, Nahco Aviance (NAHCO) handle100% of all export and import cargoes going through Nigerian airports.

Data obtained from SAHCOL shows that while air cargo imports declined by 27.2% to 6,822,499kg in the first half of 2016, cargo exports handled by SAHCOL rose 84% to 2, 560,760kg within the same period.

Similar data obtained from NAHCO shows that air cargo imports also fell 24% to 21,858,976Kg, but cargo exports rose 25% to 5,241,269Kg within the same period.

Cumulatively, exports from the two main cargo-handling companies were up 39% in the first half of 2016.
Exports of Palm Oil, Vegetables (Fresh/Dry), Melon (Egusi), Ogbono Seeds, Cashew Nut, Ginger, Garlic, Zobo Leaves, Yam, Plantain, Pepper, Cocoa, Bitter Cola, Cola Nut, Garri, Dried Fish, Yam Flour, Cassava Flour, Plantain Flour, Coco Yam, mainly accounted for the increase according to a report by Chibyke Global, an air freight forwarding company in Lagos Nigeria.

“The high exchange rate has reduced importation but it is also encouraging Nigerians to export agro-allied products to other countries” Tayo Ojuri, industry expert and CEO of Aglo Limited, an aviation support service company told BusinessDay.
https://19080-presscdn.pagely.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Air-cargo-560x390.jpg

http://www.businessdayonline.com/air-cargo-exports-up-39-as-nigerians-cash-in-on-weak-naira/

The recession seems to be resetting the brains of Nigerians; if only food prices could come down a little to reduce the hunger, then this recession would surely be the best blessing that has happened to Nigeria lately.
[size=3pt]Attn: Lalasticlala, Seun, Mynd44[/size]

Suprnov3r:
An APC majority senate sponsored and passed a CPC agenda which will be likely accented by an APC president. Meanwhile the same APC majority senate threw out a bill to benefit the ACN arm of APC. If you do not see the connection there then there is nothing I can say to help you.

Except you are a card carrying memeber of apc

And you really think this happened because it is an APC majority?... You really do think this exact same scenario couldn't/wouldn't have played out 2 years ago under the PDP majority (even though it is just the same set of people that changed party colours)?...

If you really think there is a difference between APC and PDP in this particular regard, if you really think northern leaders because of 'party name' (apc or pdp) would abandon their primary (first priority) agenda which is to protect northern interests, then you must be very naive.

Marvel1206:
yeah, i partly agree with that... What about yours?

My opinion is what I had on the second paragraph. Chibok is not scam, young girls, women and children were kidnapped in large numbers by paedophile terrorists; the Chibok case just happened to be one of the many cases of abduction by bokoharam.

Chibok case gained prominence and popularity for different reasons, one of which is that they were all secondary school students picked up from their school dormitory. Chibok also got the attention of the world due to the loud outcry of activists who decried the lackadaisical attitude of the government then. No doubts when something like that happens and the leadership of the country responds coldly, it presents a beautiful opportunity for opposition politicians to capitalise on to further their own political game. The APC leveraged greatly on the Chibok incident to further dent GEJ's political image. And for this very reason, die-hard GEJ fans still believe anything Chibok is scam orchestrated to unseat their hero. Die-hard GEJ fans also will never forgive anyone (activist or not) who in any way, helped to popularise the Chibok incident.

For issues where one expects southerners to speak with one voice, these are typically the times you see the idiotic yoruba vs igbo fights reach the peak and at the end of the day, the north takes away all the spoils. Then again the southerners go home wailing about how the north gets everything. Education truly doesn't guarantee wisdom or common sense.

Marvel1206:
The answer you gave, is it your own personal opinion?

Not my personal opinion but the 'unspoken' opinion of 99% of those who say Chibok is scam.

nonsobaba:
I am Igbo, but I must admit that these northerners are political gurus. Did anyone even know about the existence of this bill at the senate before it was passed? No noise-making, no grandstanding, the northerners just closed rank to get what will benefit them! That is true representation. Nobody should begrudge this bill because that is why representaives are sent by their people to the national assembly- to get as much as they can for their constituency. That's why the north will continue to rule Nigeria till Jesus comes. No be by gra-gra or na me sabi pass. The northerners play the game with common sense.

Absolutely, the northern synergy is next to none. While we may laugh at some of them for their literacy level, it appears only their leaders actually know why they were sent to Abuja.

It has become clearer and clearer by the day that southern leaders have no clue why they were sent to Abuja, most believe they were sent there only to make money for their pockets. Meanwhile, instead of addressing this leadership gap, it seems the only thing southerners know how to do is complain about how the north keeps winning in the political chess game.

Suprnov3r:
For those who supported the northern trojan horse called "APC" , while your region has not benefited from the APC LOOT, congrats, you typify the phrase "useful idiots" . Don't worry, you have a few ministers appointed to head numerous portfolios as your reward. Am sure those ministers wake up every morning with your progress in his mind

I'm curious to know what PDP would have done differently or what PDP did differently since you claim that voting APC has brought this?

All I see from this development is the northern synergy, while we in the south laugh and mock them for their perceived illiteracy (a thread was opened recently to showcase the illiteracy of one northern Rep Kazaure), their leaders collectively work together to squeeze more juice to their region. The question I ask is, what stops southern leaders/representatives from creating this same synergy?... Everyday we come online to witness SE vs SW vs SS wars while the north carts away with the spoils, but the south actually believes it is smart.

Marvel1206:
I've seen alot of folks here claiming some things doesn't add up in the chibok girls saga... But for me i don't think it's a scam.
Come to think of it. If Chibok girls is a scam, doesn't that also make Boko haram a scam? If boko haram is a scam, does it not automatically make millions of people in the idp camps scammers?
This also doesn't add up...
Share your views and thoughts!

Q: Why do you think Chibok Girls is a scam?

A: Because it dented GEJ's image greatly.

The above is all there is, although a lot of inconsistencies and unanswered questions emanating from the way the story was/is reported gives room for some doubt, especially in the minds of those who already prejudged it as scam.

ArodewilliamsT:
Are they not the people you want to ride and die under the banner of 'one nigeria' and even ready to Kanu for their gratification. Getaway with your lamentations. Unstable creature.

With the sort of repulsive reasoning and comments that emanate from your stables, I dont regard you any differently from some of these folks.

yahmohy27:
God the creator of everything comes first before anything else and that's what Hausa's are doing .thou you may not understand coz your religious teachings different

Are some of you guys the only Muslims in the world?... are you even more Muslim than a Buhari who allowed his wife to shake a man?... Anyway, I forgot such strict Islamic teachings apply to only the poor in society. The point however is, Aisha isn't the wife of those people blasting her in those comments, people should learn to be tolerant of the views of others and allow God be the judge.

pacespot:
Ok, that's also good. But the key question is that, are we marginally better off with such kind of investment considering that the country is heavily dependent on importation?

If we sacrificed our currency to encourage people sending money home from abroad, what about the burden on the domestic prices of goods and services, since we are not yet self-reliant to cater for our consumption.

The burden would be heavy, I think

Absolutely we are better off with any kind of investment that would flood the country with forex. And NO, we arent sacrificing the Naira cos it is already dead remember?

After oil, the highest source of forex to Nigeria is diaspora remittances (CBN said that themselves). Need I remind you that the reason behind the low value of the Naira is a forex scarcity?

Now the Naira is virtually dead already due to this forex scarcity. CBN manipulating the exchange rate is just like standing up a corpse, dressing it on a 3-piece suit and presenting it as a live being.

If a Nigerian living abroad sends dollars to Nigeria and the CBN exchanges it for N305 instead of the true value of N450, the CBN has simply cheated the Nigerian abroad and there is absolutely no way this cheating would affect the price of things in Nigeria because after the CBN forwards these dollars to the banks, it still ends up in the black market and the common man still ends up buying the dollar for N450. So the the question is, 'who has taken that N150?'... definitely not the person abroad sending the money and definitely not the man on the street who needs the dollar to import goods. I hope you see the trend?. . At the end the man abroad get discouraged from sending more money because he knows a large chunk of the money gets eroded away to God knows where.

But by allowing the naira to be exchanged for its true value, contrary to your claim that the CBN would be 'sacrificing' the naira (which is already dead by the way), the CBN would actually be encouraging forex inflow which is more than capable of rescucitating the dead Naira. By doing anything in the contrary (as is currently the case), CBN is actually 'sacrificing' diaspora remittances and the inflow of foreign investors in a bid to artificially make the already dead Naira 'appear' alive.

At this point the CBN should encourage anything which entices people to send forex to Nigeria, arbitrarily fixing the exchange rate at an obviously lower value is definitely counter productive as it discourages people from sending money home.

bigtt76:
You read my mind! CBN be thinking the Diasporas would be the ones to revive the economy right? Let them be angling for it. The current gains of the Naira would soon be shortlived as CBN is now fixing the rate at which the money transfer organizations can payout in Naira in exchange for the dollar locally.

This means the remittance from the Diaspora would no longer be lucrative as you mentioned. Also, with the 19 banks suspended, they would experience a gloat in their system whereby they would no longer afford to remit Naira to the customers hence they would no longer partake in the in flow.

Absolutely, I really dont understand the level of reasoning in the CBN board, neither do I understand what they really hope to achieve with such a counter-productive policy of pegging rates at which IMTOs exchange money.

CBN's recent policy to register/license IMTOs was in a bid to harness the benefits of the massive forex from diaspora remittances. What I do not understand however is this move to dictate how much they should exchange for cos it has succeeded in discouraging a lot of people from sending money.

pacespot:
The issue of attracting foreign investors is a complicated economic model, there are many things that go into that. Infrastructure is key to reduce their overhead cost, and many more factors that are even beyond economic terms: trust, safety, alliance, even LOVE for the hosting nation.

After all, CBN's forex rate had dove-tailed with the parallel market rate for many years when exchange rate was still N150/$1, how many foreign investors did it attract?

In general, a higher exchange rate attracts people with forex. This simple logic also explains why Nigerians in diaspora have been sending far much more money back home lately. Foreign investors doesnt necessarily mean massive multinational companies, it includes the small and medium sized businesses, it also includes that simply Nigerian living in the US or UK for the past 15 years but who thinks he has to take advantage of the benefits the exchange rate gives him to set up that little restaurant or that little estate or farm he always dreamt of having. However you look at it, we're talking of forex capital inflow to the country.

pacespot:
Thank God you admit that the commodity is scarce. Now, if CBN allowed you to exchange pounds for N550 as an official rate, tell me how the parallel market rate would rise to N650. Try to understand, this is an austerity measure by government to save Naira from crashing completely.

There are a lot of speculative activities going on in the bureau de change, they hoard the dollars to create scarcity and sell at a far higher price. If government devalue the currency, that will give them the license to further inflate their selling price, so far the commodity is still scarce.

Hope you understand

What can be done to end/reduce the scarcity?... That is what should be encouraged and definitely, forcefully pegging the price wouldn't and isn't working. From our experience in the last one year, it's obvious that the government pegging the price doesn't help any more; rather it only encourages more speculation which further creates a larger and larger spread between the official and parallel rates and this in turn fuels further speculation and encourages more and more roundtripping. Right now i believe the only reason the last devaluation/floating that was done isn't working is because the CBN/govt still hasn't floated anything; they only devalued. You cannot say you have floated a currency yet the interbank rate and parallel rates are still miles apart (and growing).

What we should aim for now as a country is to find quick ways to end the scarcity cos the scarcity is what is really driving the rates, not the speculations. Nigerians in diaspora were said to remit $21bn last year, I can assure you that that figure is a massive increase from the preceding year and it would even be much more this year. People are encouraged to send more money back home when they 'think' they would make more money doing so. Whatever the CBN can do to encourage more people to send more money home is welcome but forcefully reducing the rate to a false value does not in any way encourage people to send money.

I live in the UK and I send money home from time to time, but I can tell you for a fact that the money I have sent back in 2016 alone is more than what i have sent home in the last 4-5 years put together, that is because I 'think' it is more lucrative now. That is the simple logic preached by economists when they asked the CBN/FG to float the currency; it entices people to send down even more than they can afford, I have friends who have recently taken massive loans from banks to send back to Nigeria. When more people like myself send larger sums home, it means a much larger inflow of forex into the country and that is exactly what we need in the country presently to plug the scarcity and revive the economy/Naira.

CliffordOrji:
No slot for Imo state whereas a state like Lagos has three. Some state in the North also have two. This is so unfair, this marginalisation against we Igbos is getting out of hand. we Igbos are really suffering. We have been rendered irrelevant in the Nigerian polity. We Igbos are now 10th class citizen in Nigeria.

Wailing for a living, focusing your whole attention and intellects on irrelevance isn't good for your health and development. Appointing one or 2 persons from Imo, how does that benefit you or improve the lot of a typical Imo state man on the streets?.... All the people appointed by GEJ for instance, how did it translate to any form of tangible development in the SS or SE?... Likewise all the years of Hausa domination in Nigeria's leadership, how did that translate to a better life for the typical northerner?...

Until we begin to reason like this and ask such relevant questions as the above, we would continue to wallow in the mental slavery we have been subjected to by politicians in Africa.

FYI by the way, Imo had 2 ambassadors in the previous list submitted in June even when some states had none.

pacespot:
You're still very selfish like the other guy say, so the exchange rate of N310/$1 isn't enough for you to send money home to your people, you want to sell dollar at the parallel market rate even when you're not living in Nigeria, facing hardship with the people whose scarcity of dollar has doubled (or even tripled) the prices of goods and services from what they used to pay just under a year ago. You don't feel the pain of dollar scarcity but want to reap the benefits.

For god's sake this is a currency that exchanged N150/$1 for just over two years ago. People keep saying CBN should float exchange rate when nearly 80 percent of Nigeria's consumption is coming from abroad. Tell me how this will stop dollar demand. Even if CBN pegged the official rate simultaneously with the parallel market rate, it's just a matter of time before the dollar scarcity sets in and we start asking for another floating exchange rate again.

The only way out of this is to revamp our local production to cut our demands for foreign goods. If Nigeria can produce just 50 percent of her consumption, I can tell you the dollar will fall like a scrap of paper. You can't fix the exchange rate without firstly addressing the demand side.

Okay we agree you are patriotic and totally not selfish, a simple question for you to answer honestly:

You have £100 in your pocket, the abokki at the junction is happy to buy it from you at N550/£ but the BDC beside him is offering to buy it from you at N450, who will you sell your £100 to?

Your answer would be much appreciated.


Have you ever asked yourself why several economists kept urging the CBN/FG to devalue the Naira back when it was still pegged at N197 to $1?... It is because when adjusted to the more realistic value, it would encourage foreign investors (and people with forex generally) to channel their forex into Nigeria since they would be enticed by the higher value. The idea is simple Economics 101, when many more people are encouraged to bring in their forex into Nigeria, it creates a higher SUPPLY of forex, thereby driving down the price; that is the proper and sustainable way to bring down the price, not the artificial decrees of the CBN forcing people to sell at lower prices in the name of patriotism/non-selfishness.

pacespot:
You're still very selfish like the other guy say, so the exchange rate of N310/$1 isn't enough for you to send money home to your people, you want to sell dollar at the parallel market rate even when you're not living in Nigeria, facing hardship with the people whose scarcity of dollar has doubled (or even tripled) the prices of goods and services from what they used to pay just under a year ago. You don't feel the pain of dollar scarcity but want to reap the benefits.

For god's sake this is a currency that exchanged N150/$1 for just over two years ago. People keep saying CBN should float exchange rate when nearly 80 percent of Nigeria's consumption is coming from abroad. Tell me how this will stop dollar demand. Even if CBN pegged the official rate simultaneously with the parallel market rate, it's just a matter of time before the dollar scarcity sets in and we start asking for another floating exchange rate again.

The only way out of this is to revamp our local production to cut our demands for foreign goods. If Nigeria can produce just 50 percent of her consumption, I can tell you the dollar will fall like a scrap of paper. You can't fix the exchange rate without firstly addressing the demand side.

Obviously you do not get the point.

The pound sells for N550, you have a £10 note in your pocket and the CBN tells you you must exchange it for N450 (in order to give a false impression that the Naira has appreciated), does that make any single sense to you?

The pound is worth N550 but you are forced to sell it for N100 less than its value at an artificial false rate of N450 even though the commodity is still scarce, you really think that is the best way to help Nigeria for a person who isnt selfish as you claim?.... You really think that would encourage people to release the stockpile of scarce forex they have in their vaults?... Have you ever heard of demand and supply theory?

Today a bag of rice sells for N18,000 to N22,000, then a rice seller is asked to sell it for N7000 by force, is that a sensible way to bring down the price of rice?

Suleh620:
you ingrate being, it's not crude mentality, they are saying she does wat is really forbidden in our religion. Every religion has its rules , so does Islam. Happy and proud to be a Muslim

Ingrate?... What has ingratitude got to do with this?

Are you guys the only Muslims in the world?... Are you guys the only ones who know how to read and understand the Quran?... Are you more Muslim than Buhari who has allowed his wife to do that?... Learn to stop imposing you personal religious beliefs on others. If you think what she has done is wrong by your own rules, teach your own wife/wives and your children to adhere by your own rules and understanding and kindly let others to interpret the religion the way they understand it; that is the beginning of tolerance.

MissingBudget:
And this is despite the years they have been in power. I don't know how they individuals in the north have been bettered by the many years they've had power. Such illiteracy and hypocrisy! The same people kill and indulge in phaedophila... I guess that's Islamic!

As evidenced by the backwardness of the north despite the sheer number of decades Nigeria has been ruled by northerners, and as evidenced by the total lack of development/govt presence in the SS and SE despite the years GEJ ruled, it is safe to say it doesn't matter where the ruler comes from.

Nigeria and Africa as a whole can only move forward when we realise how useless and inconsequential the ethnicity/tribe/region of a leader is.

kings09:
Bolu stic, istand withbuhar, madrid guy, kya se, oba ilala...pls come n show ur zombie faces n tackle dis wailer in ur party.

I support buhari and I'm 'sympathetic' to APC (over PDP), but that doesn't necessarily mean I'm a member of APC. My concern is Nigeria's progress, the internal wranglings within APC or PDP by career politicians isn't my business or concern. You will hardly see me in such threads. Thanks!

Avalon316:
Na people like you dey kill naija. So you want the rate to be 1 pound to 600 naira to encourage you to send money home. Selfish Nigerians...

Not at all, this has nothing to do with selfishness... Rather it is silly and counterproductive for the CBN to artificially peg the official value of the Naira at a much reduced figure when everyone knows the actual value (blackmarket) is far far higher.

This was the exact reason the Naira was floated in June; to bridge the gap between the official and parallel/blackmarket rates, to encourage foreign investors and diasporan Nigerians to bring more forex into the country and to prevent our numerous dubious businessmen from round-tripping by collecting official rate from banks/cbn and selling it back at the blackmarket with instant N150 to N200 profit per $/£.

The CBN says Nigerians in diaspora remitted $21bn into the country last year; this whooping figure isn't because diasporans now have more money, rather it is because it is now more lucrative to send money home so diasporans now work harder and squeeze themselves to send down every little they make. In return, this increased remittances helps the economy but these silly CBn policies of forcing money transfer organisations (like Westi etc) to exchange at lower rates (even when we know the real value on the streets), such moves only discourages a lot of diasporans from sending money down as they would have wished and I'm yet to fathom how this helps Nigeria.

Lilimax:
But you talked about 'needless paranoia over nothing'?
People often tend to be paranoid over some situations based on happenings and events.

People tend to harbour IRRATIONAL fears and needless paranoia when they lack deep knowledge or understanding of how a thing works. I am guessing you have no idea about the details of the loan deal, hence your fears. You can prove me wrong by explaining what you believe is wrong with the govt of a desperate country like Nigeria securing a low interest loan from an Islamic bank?

There are some who believe that since it is called 'ISLAMIC' bank, that someone would in the near future, come down south wielding a big gun and forcing Christians to pray towards the east, a.k.a Islamisation. As amusing as this may sound, there are actually many who hold on to this fear. I'm interested in knowing what your own reservations are though.

Lilimax:
I hear sir; you as if we don't read and listen to news.
I refuse to be deceived

What exactly did you hear in the news and what exactly has it got to do with this?

Lilimax:
Not treading that part cos it is very dangerous

There's nothing dangerous about anything here, people must learn to educate themselves instead of always succumbing to needless paranoia over nothing.

Anything to survive this period is welcome...

Good development... time for the NASS to pass a bill for all govt ministries and parastatals to use ONLY Nigerian made vehicles. At a point in our history, all govt vehicles were Peugeot, I wonder where that policy went to, but today we cry of forex flight.