₦airaland Forum

The Fulani are currently the most hated group in Nigeria. But they're not marginalized because even though they're hated, they're the most powerful group in Nigeria.

Why are they hated? Because herdsmen encroach on people's farmlands, and bandits who are mostly Fulani attack communities, and so on and so forth.

The Fulani herdsman is a very vulnerable. Unlike most people, he carries his wealth along with him everywhere he goes. The wealth is very movable and quite glaring to see. Unscrupulous elements looking for a quick buck can just kill the herdsman and carry the cattle worth multiple millions away.

To prevent this, the Fulani herdsman arms himself to the teeth.

What then happens when someone has a gun and his neighbors don't is that unscrupulous elements would use those guns to oppress and steal from others. Which is how the Fulani bandit came to be.

Now, it is difficult to tackle the banditry issue because the bandits use the Fulani and their cows as a human shield.

Recently, there was a report of bandits attacking a Hausa community and the community retaliated, but the people they killed in return were Fulani herdsmen and they had to apologise for mistaken identity. Of course, the Fulani who are killed would be angry and would just turn to fullblown banditry for either vengeance or adopt the bad name that we've decided to label him.

What is the solution to this?

I'm of the opinion that the Ruga settlements should be brought back. But this time, instead of establishing them all over the country, they should be established only in the North West. The reason why they should be established only in the North West is because that is the traditional home of the Fulani in Nigeria.

The Buhari government's implementation of the Ruga settlement tried to establish it all over the country, and that had people rise up in opposition to it. Because apparently it would be land grabbing of other people's land to give to another ethnicity.

If it's restricted to the North West, then there would be no uproar as the North West is traditional Fulani land.

The land to be allocated to them should be virgin land in the forests, not pre-existing farmlands. Those lands can then be developed to be made conducive for ranching.

After the honest Fulani herdsman is removed from the forests, the only people left in the forests would be bandits. We can just send the military to kill everyone that is hiding in the forests as they can be reasonably presumed to be bandits.

Unfortunately, this isn't something the Tinubu government can do because there is the risk of angering his voting base in the North West. There might be people resistant to this because of tradition and some other nonsense.

It's possible to win elections in Nigeria without buy-in from the core North if you have the rest of the country with you, as Obasanjo demonstrated.

But this option is not available to Tinubu because there is nothing he would do that would make the igbos vote for him.

This is what happens when we vote for tribalists. It's on days like this that I miss Obasanjo. He would have tackled this issue head on.

May God save us.

dangermouse:
I smoking nothing.

Making the statement devoid of any bias.

Goodluck Jonathan remains the best president Nigeria has ever had. Yaradua comes second,even though death did not allow him finish his good works. Obasanjo comes third and maybe Shehu Shagari came fourth. Him too was not allowed to finish his good works by coupists who ran the country down.

Lol. You're high. Obasanjo remains the GOAT. Bar none.

dangermouse:
Happy birthday to the best president Nigeria ever had.

Long live and prosperity in the mighty name God.

Best we ever had? What are you smoking?

SmartPolician:
Nobody actually loves this country. Everyone is looking for means to steal from this country. What's so special about keeping a country nobody loves? Nobody has been able to answer this question.

Because dividing it would leave us with a worse off situation. See all the massacres happening in Benue, Kwara, and other places of the middle belt? Can you imagine how much worse it would be if they were in an Arewa Republic controlled entirely by the Hausa-Fulani?

It's people from the big 3 who dream of having an ethnostate to themselves that always chant for division.

LagosOrigin:
This means Nigerians will pay more for fuel ⛽

For imported fuel...

Lanruze:
He is noted to have been the most academically brilliant in his set at the Nigerians Defence Academy - NDA. He came tops in his class clinching the revered prize.

He was injured twice in the theater of War and had to be evacuated showing his gallantry as a battle tested Soldier that has faced death and the enemy.

He looks very Physically Alert and with his sound academic and battle tested background in Counter-Terrorism he is a proper fit.

God be with him. That is the most strategic Military Appointment as any attempted Coup will never succeed withouth the buy-in of the COAS.

Well deserved.

What if he's the one to lead the coup?

inoki247:
Lol Alot of ways....


Just get a Bybittt Virtual card and convert some coin....


Even if you want du up to 50k USD a day you're good to go....

Had no idea Bybit had a virtual card.

YesDaddyTill203:
It does work because I do change money while I'm already in Nigeria. But I'm not sure if you can reister with a Nigerian number, accounts, and debit cards.

Exactly. Like, I have a dollar card and the only option available is to change it through the bank's online platform. Their rates can be funny at times.

YesDaddyTill203:
I don't, my need is always changing dollars to naira for personal use. But those apps also provide for buying dollars with Naira.
I'm not sure about which rate is better, but I have seen that function on Lemfi and other apps.
After comparing the rates on Lagos streets with some Apps, I concluded that it's not worth it to bring cash to change to dollars unless you're doing a very large sum. That also comes with risk. Online is safe and hassle-free..

Does lemfi work in Nigeria? Last i tried, it only worked for people abroad...

I used to use flutterwave send to change USD to naira but it stopped working at a point because of some stupid regulation or so.

YesDaddyTill203:
Most people are no longer using these BDCs.
I don't even bring in cash anymore when coming to Nigeria. Everything is online.
They will have to go out of business or find other ways to do business.

Thanks to Tinubu, the black market rate and official rate are now closer than ever.

How do you buy USD online?

seunmsg:
We are already a developing country. Read the IMF projections again my dear.

Nigeria is underdeveloped. Poverty capital of the world. Lowest life expectancy, bandits running amok, No electricity, and so on and so forth.

That is underdeveloped.

Developing is Indonesia, Bandladesh, India, etc.

Willy2025:
The President has the right to hire and fire. Apart from the coup rumour, the level of insecurity is getting worse every day with the terrorists and kidnappers getting bolder. It appears the military has lost the focus following the death of Gen Lagbaja. Bandits now celebrating openly, many troops and equipment lost to ISWAP attacks, bandits taken over Kogi and Kwara etc. The removal of the service chiefs is timely. I don't know why Egbetokun is still in office.

Meanwhile, Tinubu promoted the Chief of Army Staff responsible for all the failings to Chief of Defence Staff because of tribalism.

seunmsg:
When you are sick and have lost weight considerably, the first task of doctors is to stabilize your condition. After stability is achieved, the recovery process begins. After full recovery, we then start talking about growth.

The IMF and lots of other international organizations that are projecting Nigeria for growth know far more than you. They’ve seen all the indices and they are very confident in projecting a GDP growth rate of 4.2 for the country in 2026.

You're not ashamed. 4% growth rate for an underdeveloped country. When you're supposed to grow at a minimum of 6%.

TheNobleProphet:
This new defence chief he appointed is "inefficient" because under him as army chief, so many losses have occurred!

The Oluyede of a guy na more like "quota system" appointment!

In all, I sincerely wish them success in their mission!

He was promoted to irrelevance. Chief of Defence Staff doesn't control any troops.

Toruibestate:
Why Military Coup Is Hard in Nigeria


I once asked a recently retired Major General in the Nigerian Army why coups no longer happen easily in Nigeria. He explained that things changed drastically after the attempted coup that nearly claimed the life of former military ruler, Ibrahim Babangida.


According to him, the military intelligence system was completely overhauled after that incident. It became so advanced, sophisticated, and deeply embedded across all security units that planning or executing a coup today is almost impossible without being detected early.


That’s why, since that time, Nigeria hasn’t witnessed a single successful coup.




He said Babangida called Abacha to save him that it was Abacha that saved him from the shame and what later happened was agreement between him and Abacha.


Say Babangida was under one underground road at Dodan Barracks Lagos that the Military already took over and Abacha sent thousands of troops from outside to come in when he sent save our soul to Abacha


After the coup, Babangida immediately took FCT to North where he feels safer .
Tinubu can run it to Lagos where he feels safer too.



@Ditari of Ijaw.

You just wrote a lot of things witthout saying anything.

bigpicture001:
So ,OP, I re-affirm...We can far far better than we currently do

Definitely.

brain54:
You guys keep mentioning oil like that is the only natural resource...

The US economy isn't dependent on her oil reserves.

Tell me what natural resources or commodity explored in the US that drives her economy!

You're shifting goal post. I said that that total value of all the natural resources in the US, not only oil, dwarves that of Nigeria.

They don't drive the US economy because it's much bigger. But the US is richer than Nigeria in natural resources. Vastly richer. Nigeria isn't even among the top 10 when it comes to natural resources.

brain54:
Richer in terms of natural resources. How...?


I wasn't talking about money generated through financial institutions, taxes or by investments.


I was talking about pure God given raw and undeveloped natural resources bro.

They are richer in natural resources and they can't stay away from Africa since the era of trans Atlantic slave trading.

Just so you know most of those Western countries are still dependent on the resources of Nigeria and Africa till tomorrow!

Yes. In God given natural resources. Even oil, the US has much more than we do. The total value of the US' natural resources is about $45 trillion. For Nigeria, it's just about $4 trillion at best.

brain54:
Oil isn't the only natural resource bro...


Nigeria is one of the richest countries in the world in terms of resources. Maybe 90% is untapped or unexplored.

My argument is because the US or Norway does it doesn't mean it is the best or that it's guaranteed to work in our own situation.

Taxation favors them because it was adapted to their system. I'm not saying taxation should be abolished completely in Nigeria. But we shouldn't be so highly dependent on taxing because we have more resources as compared to those countries.

Personally, I believe taxation should be some sort of last resort not the first option for a country like Nigeria!

The US is richer in natural resources than Nigeria. By far.

lawani:
Not necessarily. US and Norway produce more oil per Capita than Nigeria.
If you want a working country, the sacrifice you need to pay is high taxes

To be fair, taxation means that government revenue is tied to the productivity of its people.

But I trust Nigeria to be an exception. Tinubu would squander taxes. Use everything to build street light.

brain54:
Countries with no natural resources should depend on taxation...

Nigeria normally ought not to go that route. Taxation should be for countries like the UK.


It's only lazy Nigerian leaders... leaders too lazy to think that would go that route.


Nigeria is too blessed abundantly to have an economy dependent on heavy taxation!

We're not. Whatever resources you think we have, remember that it has to be split with 200 million people.

okpouman:
Who ever said government should pay for electricity, school fees, fuel etc?

Why are government refineries not working? Answer that.
Weres ajaokuta steel? Answer that

Why are government officials children not in government schools?
Why do they go abroad for treatment?
Why is the 16 billion invested in electricity sector under Obasanjo not accounted for?

Pls answer these questions.

Obasanjo's investment in the power sector doubled our generation capacity.

Yes. Nigeria is a very poor country. A lot of Nigerians are under the illusion that we're rich and prosperous. The government should pay for my light, electricity, school fees, fuel, etc. They have the money, but they're looting it.

Sorry to burst your bubble. But Nigeria is actually a very poor country, even if we account for the looting and all other nonsense.

To calculate someone's wealth, you use their income and expenses.

I had a look at Nigeria's budget, which is basically how much we spend. And it's so freaking low. Especially if you divide it by our population.

You can check the list of countries by budget expenditure per capita. Nigeria is right next to shithole broke countries like Pakistan, Bangladesh and co. When you think of those countries, do you think of rich countries?

Most Nigerians think that we're rich like Saudi Arabia. But we're not. We're poverty stricken.

I recently discovered just right now that Iraq earned $90 billion from oil in 2024. How much did Nigeria earn? $30 billion. Meanwhile, Iraq has to share $90 billion amongst 50 million people while Nigeria has to share for 200 million.

And I literally saw someone online lamenting about Iraq being a shithole third world country.

By the way, check out the budget for our African peers like Egypt and South Africa. Egypt's budget is 3x higher than ours.

Of course, you could say that we are rich in natural resources bla bla bla. I doubt we are as rich in resources as most Nigerians think. But even if we were, it doesn't mean shit. Potential income is not the same as income. I mean... I could as well say that if you work hard and start a business, you could be a billionaire. But you're not. You're most likely poor. Potential to be rich is not the same as being rich.

Once you understand that Nigeria is actually a poor country, many Nigerians would know where the problem starts from and stop saying asinine shit like government should pay for my light, electricity, fuel, school fees, food, and even my wedding.

fergie001:
Why does Tinubu not frequent suits?

He looks dapper here.

He's an ugly old man. Nothing he wears would make him look dapper.

oluwaseyi0:
Unfortunately there is no opposition, no thanks to selfish Atiku

God bless you for this. What a useless politician.

ROYALMAXCLEANER:
Well am not suprised with cameroounians ..... They are not Serious in any elections watch out MR PAUL BIYA WILL STILL WIN

I don't understand. You think the elections actually count?

CreativeOrbit:
You make a fair point, but tribalism and nationalism in Nigeria function more as instruments of power than as coherent ideologies.

That's how ideologies work everywhere in the world.

CreativeOrbit:
An ideology, properly speaking, offers a structured worldview, policy direction, and moral or economic philosophy—none of which tribal politics provides.

According to who?

And besides, who says tribal/national politics don't provide that. The Yoruba ronus definitely have enough policy suggestions/direction. Even a moral/economic philosophy too.

I still think you look down on it because it is uniquely Nigerian and not foreign.

And who is that one person always liking your posts sef.

CreativeOrbit:
You’re missing the crux of my argument. I’m not defending the APC—or Tinubu for that matter—nor am I attempting to fit Nigeria neatly into a Western ideological box. My point was that political behavior, even in hybrid democracies like Nigeria’s, can still be analyzed through ideological frameworks. That’s not “picking and choosing Western ideals”; it’s applying universal analytical tools to understand our political dysfunction.

You’re absolutely right that APC is tribalistic and PDP is directionless—but that only reinforces my argument. Both lack ideological grounding, operating instead on patronage, ethnicity, and personal ambition. That vacuum is precisely why ideological classification becomes difficult—it’s not because the framework is irrelevant, but because our political actors have no coherent ideology to measure against it.

So let’s be clear: I have no allegiance to APC, PDP, or Tinubu. My concern is Nigeria’s political decay and the intellectual laziness that prevents us from diagnosing it with the same analytical rigor we apply to other democracies.

That's the thing. You think that since none of the major parties espouse Western left-right ideology, then they lack ideologies.

Meanwhile, they espouse ideologies (tribalism/nationalism), but because those ideologies don't fit into a Western box, you don't recognize them as ideologies.

Validated:
I am an ardent critic of Tinubu's presidency. But you see this appointment, I give Tinubu thumbs 👆

Why?

CreativeOrbit:
Your argument misses the entire point. Nobody claimed Nigeria fits perfectly into Western ideological labels; the reference to 'left' and 'right' was analytical, not cultural. Political science uses these frameworks to classify ideological behavior, not to impose Western identity. So dismissing them as 'absurd' only exposes a shallow understanding of comparative political analysis.

What’s truly absurd is pretending Nigeria’s political chaos defies ideological discussion, when the same politicians freely borrow Western-style constitutions, democratic institutions, and economic models. You can’t enjoy Western governance structures and then cry 'Western construct' when ideology is discussed. That’s intellectual inconsistency at best and lazy deflection at worst.

The point stands: APC and PDP are ideologically hollow shells driven by opportunism, not principle. And if you can’t distinguish them, it’s not because 'left and right' are Western ideas—it’s because both parties have no spine, no coherence, and no ideological compass to begin with.

Oh. But you can pick and choose from among western ideals. There are no rules.

I mean... If Left and Right works for the Nigerian context, then you'll be able to easily categorise the existing parties along those lines. But you can't.

Meanwhile, the APC is clearly an association of tribalist. The PDP, on the other hand, is rudderless and doesn't know what it is doing. But you can't accuse them of being as tribalistic as the APC.

CreativeOrbit:
In theory, there should be an ideological difference between the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the People's Democratic Party (PDP), as is typical of parties in a healthy democratic system. However, in practice, the ideological distinctions between the two major Nigerian parties are often blurred.

Both parties have adopted similar positions on key economic and political issues over the years, and their platforms tend to emphasize general themes like national unity, development, and anti-corruption—without a consistent, distinct ideological framework. Additionally, frequent cross-carpeting of politicians between the two parties has further eroded any clear ideological identity, making party loyalty more about political expediency than about principle or policy.

That said, there are rhetorical differences: the PDP often presents itself as a center-left party with a focus on social welfare and infrastructure investment, while the APC has positioned itself, at least nominally, as a center-right party advocating anti-corruption and fiscal responsibility. However, these distinctions are rarely reflected in consistent governance philosophies or policy implementation.

In summary, while there may be theoretical or rhetorical ideological leanings, the practical difference between APC and PDP has largely been one of personalities, political alignments, and power dynamics, rather than of clearly defined and consistently upheld ideological principles.

Left and right is a Western construct. Trying to pidgeonhole Nigeria into that is just absurd. Which is why using that paradigm means you can't distinguish between both parties.