₦airaland Forum

BTW @ OP, did you take those pictures yourself? If you did, I want to say a huge THANK YOU!
A lot of our folks come here to talk without any picture evidence.
Can you get us more pictures of Onitsha?
The skyline behind the warehouse is what I know Onitsha for.
Thanks in advance!

Eko Ile: lol @ forklift and warehouse.

I guess it's big enough to offload yam and cassava to store inside warehouse.

SMH....

It is not forklift you cave man! It is called mobile CRANE, and it is used in ports to offload containers.
Na wa for this type of illiteracy and "bushmanism".

Odenigbo Aroli: Eze,where have you been ? We miss you. Hope you are well.
On a serious note; Andy will never become the governor of Anambra.
Soludo
Ngige
Akunyili.
One of the three names mentioned above holds the staff ! But it will be one of the most toughest gubernatorial election in the history on Nigeria. Lots of big weights!

Ezemmuo Nri, anokwa m ya o.
@Bolded, I have to agree that anything Uba in Anambra state is almost like anathema. Only a miracle opportunity will enable Andy Uba to demonstrate his true abilities and wishes for ndi Anambra. I wish him luck though.
For now, we may have to settle for men with proven integrity: Soludo, Onwa Anambra state (Ngige) and maybe Akunyili if she is the APGA candidate. I'm for any one of them.

Great! A great start. Let it be put to use immediately.
I couldn't help notice the Onitsha skyline from behind the pictures. That is the Onitsha that I know!
This port should swing into action, next we get that international airport!

dayokanu: If you experienced Alao-Akala for one day as governor you would go home and thank God for Peter Obi

When your governor bleaches his skin and uses leg chain, criss crossing all the owambe in the country you knw you have a huge problem

una no go kill me for Nairaland wallahi.

shymmex: It's annoying when people have a discourse about the history of Lagos, and exclude the Ijebu merchants, and the Egbas - and focus on the Aworis in Eko only... The Ijebus and the Egbas made Lagos of old what it was.. We brought life to Eko; we were the ones who made Lagos Island; we own the biggest festival in Lagos(Eyo); returnee slaves(mostly of Egba and Ijebu stock) brought fanti carnival to Lagos; and the Lagos elites (millionaires and billionaires) of the past were of the Egba and Ijebu stock. The Shitta Beys, Da Rochas, Bode Thomas etc. are not Aworis... Even right now, the most important parts of Lagos are not Awori land...

Talking about Lagos, and not including us - is like a slap to our face... We made Lagos what it was, and what it is today.. We're tired of people calling Lagos, Awori Land - Lagos belongs to the Ijebus, Egbas, Aworis, Eguns, and partially Tapas (Tapas are neglible though)... If the Aworis want to claim Lagos to themselves, good luck to them - they should let us join our kins, to create Ijebu state. And the Egbas can join the present day Ogun state....

That's just my two cents..

hehehe! I see that we Ndigbo will certainly have ready allies in Lagos, one way or another.
The funny thing is that the most xenophobic and purist "Lagosians" here are actually settlers in the same boat as Ndigbo and everybody else: Hausa, Edo, Ibibio, Ijaw etc. At the end of the day, apart from the aboriginals (the Awori/Egun) everybody else is a settler there. I've decided not to talk about military issues anymore because I figure it is useless.
The only way people who paid fair value for land in Lagos would be removed is through ethnic cleansing a la Yugoslavia. Key players in the Yugoslav ethnic cleansing are cooling their heels at the ICC jails at The Hague. When you buy land and build on it, you own the land. Period. I am consoled that Lagos is only about 4-7 hours determined drive from Igboland. Let's just wait till then. For now, the owner of Lagos is EVERYBODY that owns landed property in Lagos.
No ands, ifs or buts about it.

dayokanu: Did Bosnians and Croats retain their properties in Serbia after the breakup?

Did you find out otherwise?
Mind you that there are more than one way of owning the properties.
That is why nations go to war, negotiate peace and sign terms of ceasefire/peace. What do you think they are negotiating? When nations disintegrate, properties/citizenship rights are exchanged through negotiations (even after a war). You cannot tell me that there are no Serbian Croat today, or a Croatian Serb, can you?

ENEONWO: I have since come to the conclusion that NL is made up of 92%, ignoramuses cum ethnic bigots & 8% sound, independent thinkers. I should expect ONLYTRUTH to learn to ignore those incorrigible demented internet war-mongers who are dragging the society centuries behind development. People from all parts of Nigeria own lands in choice parts of the world. International laws guarantee such property rights, such that even when deported, property owners loose residency rights but remain entitled to their properties. Why do people think the case will be different with Nigeria? The International Court of Justice will settle that, if it rears up[b][/b]

Thank you for an enlightened response!
My brother sometimes I have to address and educate these ignoramuses about the ultimate truth.
I just laugh when I see people warming up to claim other people's property post disintegration.
Like I said before, in a united Nigeria where the "owners of Nigeria" are playing one side against the other, "abandoned property" is possible. It is a completely different scenario in a disintegrated Nigeria, especially in light of the fact that those properties where acquired through shared nationality as Nigerians.
Bottomline is that Lagos will become like New York (in terms of demographic mix) very soon, with nobody even able to claim any ethnic ownership. FACT.

@Topic

This is part of why I hate PDP with a passion. The party of thieves turn every good philosophy upside down just to justify theft and backwardness. So, this man believes that Nigerian states must continue to troop to Abuja for handouts, else they would be losers? I'm not shocked by Omisore's amala politics mindset. His reputation goes before him.

ekt_bear: https://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2010/03/28/opinion/28strogatz/28strogatz-custom2.jpg

lol

lol. The world does not begin and end in mathematics. Cartesian coordinates constantly bow to the rigmarole of naija politics.

Mr. Globe:
I knew Anambra state would have been a million times better than it is today if this man was allowed to become governor. How much is he going to steal? He has all the money he could need and he commissioned an airport project just 1 week into office, unfortunately the sadist peter obi canceled it for nothing. However Andy should leave 2014 for soludo. he should focus on the senate (likewise ngige) and leave the governorship or soludo. soludo is the blueprint for the state.They should not allow the bickering that cost them the seat in 2010 to repeat itself in 2014. They should settle for soludo. and soludo must ensure he sends peter obi to jail or argentina (like sylva) whn he becomes governor. that man is a cruel thief.

Well said, only that I hate PDP with a passion.
Somehow I cannot divorce our problems from PDP.

If they allow independent candidacy, then Soludo should run as an independent candidate.
Infact I advise every serious gubernatorial candidate in Anambra state to leave PDP, because that party is a den of thieves!
As for Andy, I like his ambition. Anambra needs a very ambitious governor. His main Achilles heel is his brother Chris Uba.

PhysicsQED: [b]I'm surprised you didn't know Mexico was doing better than Nigeria. [/b]I thought that would be obvious. Mexico is always listed as having one of the largest economies in the world and it has a somewhat smaller population. Anyway, Mexico has been independent since the 1820s so I don't think they're doing as well as they could be, but then again they've had a lot of civil unrest and wars and to some extent they still do have a lot of civil unrest (corrupt police, violent drug cartels, EZLN, etc.).

This is kind of off-topic, but one thing I heard from a Mexican friend of mine in high school is that Cinco de Mayo is basically insignificant in Mexico itself, but for some reason it's seen as a major Mexican national holiday in the U.S. Don't know if what he said was completely accurate, but it would be kind of funny if that were true.

I stated that I knew that Mexico's economy was bigger than Nigeria's, but THE EXTENT is what I didn't know. From what I found, there is no basis (AT ALL) for comparison between the two countries in terms of human development and economy.

I also believe there was a time Mexico was more populous than Nigeria (unless I'm wrong); I never knew that Nigeria has about 60 million people more than Mexico.
I knew that Mexico is older and has fought many wars, one of which is the Cinco de Mayo war actually called the Battle of Puebla (between Mexico and France). I also know that the date is only celebrated in a section of Mexico, not national. I knew all those, BUT they had nothing to do with the fact that Mexico budgets above 13% for health, while Nigeria budgets under 6%.
The extent of difference in development is what shocked me, and I'm sure that a lot of Nigerians are shocked by it.

CyberG: ^ How can any country allocate any extra percentage to 5.8% which is frittered away in inflated contracts and corruption? That amount is only on PAPER and the real amount is much less. Before digging deeper, how much progress does a country that encourages its leaders to do the following deserve? Answer only according to your name and conscience:

[b]How can anyone compare a country that took ~$60 B foreign reserve and virtually erase it and then add ~ $60 B worth of foreign debt in less than about 5 years compare with any other country?

How can a country that took ~$ 30 B excess crude account savings to virtually finishing it all in < 5 years be compared with any country on the planet?

How can a country whose leadership, voted in MOSTLY by the people comparing, steal ~ $ 20 B dollar in about 2 years and compare even with anything else and YET, they cheer on the thieves when the arch-thief Jolanthan has said the thieves will not be prosecuted as the probe was merely a fact finding mission.

How can someone who thinks only of breaking a country he so much despises compare it with a progressive and imperfect country that is doing everything to stay ahead of the game?

Those are better questions to ask empty before chest beating about a probability you can not guarantee. What have you done with the one within your grasp now?[/b]

In international scene, nobody cares why you are batting below par. Nobody wants to hear excuses. Countries are responsible for the extent of their individual development; therefore Nigeria must be responsible for Nigerian development. I don't want to hear excuses. If our country is not working, it should be disintegrated.
There has been at least ONE attempt at a REVOLUTION in Nigeria. That attempt was termed tribal, and millions of people died because of it.
I believe that Mexico had a revolution in the past, that is why they are where they are today. They are not making excuses that so so and so stole them blind.

And yes, I was also shocked by the gap between Mexican GDP per capita and Nigerian one: $15,000 (Mexican) to $2600 (Nigerian).
In other words, a Mexican is worth nearly 7 times a Nigerian in dollar terms. BTW both countries are third world countries, but that doesn't seem fair.
Chim ekwela.

As far as I know, Nigeria can only boast past football victories over Mexico. So, when next I argue with my Mexican friends here over soccer potentials, I will now look at them in a different light. I would choose better GDP and better health than better football team anyday!

CyberG: ^^ You are deviating from your own thread. Why not respond to points raised previously in this thread because if you can't then, you are clearly not interested in walking the talk. Plus, it seems you are only raising the points about Mexico to cast aspersions on Nigeria. If you don't want the betterment of Nigeria but rather its being embroiled in turmoil and war, would it even be better than it is now talk less of being comparable to Mexico?

@ Age issue: I don't think most Nigerians would disrespect anyone because of age but a person'[s reputation goes before them!

@ Name calling: Saw you name calling after my post. Well, just grow-up, and maybe you wouldn't be such a joke because I came at you with intelligible questions but see where you go again?. In the tribal pig sty - lower you go every day. Such a shame.

I opened this thread because I was genuinely stunned to learn how FAR BEHIND Nigeria is to Mexico in terms of human development and economy.
I knew that Mexico has a bigger GDP, but I never knew that they valued their own people more than Nigerians.
Check out the percentage of Mexican GDP allocated to healthcare- a whopping 13.8% of GDP!
Nigeria can only manage a paltry 5.8%.

So, I had to dig deeper to find out the truth. I then arrived at the fact that education is directly proportional to healthcare.
The rest fell in place.
I have always known that a disintegrated Nigeria would at least boost two of the three Nigeria's former regions into near first world status, but I never knew how far until I did this study.

free_soul: king of Yoruba animals why are you opening your Yoruba mamas puzzy in cyber space
you animals never contribute to civil discussion
your animal father escaped from mental asylum for yankee after foking his sister in typical Yoruba inbreeding
why do you animals attack civilized people?

My sister don't mind that man. He is suffering from a very rare form of schizophrenia. He basically follows me around Nairaland hallucinating over me.
I am his TRUE NIGHTMARE. hehe!
Please don't attack every Yoruba just because of CyberG(king-of-oafs).

I basically ignore him always, and only respond when I feel like.
I wanted to bump this thread, hence my response to him. Probably the last respond he would get from me on this thread.

kingoflag: Tribal beast!

You claimed one time that this is "MY COUNTRY", but yet you know nothing about Cinco De Mayo? What'd I say? I knew it, you came here as a man in his late 30's-Early 40s thats why the ways of the jungle have taken a while to sip through your tribalist pores. smh. What a loser!

MEXICO?

Dude I can see that I give you REAL nightmares!
I hope you see a mental health professional soon, else you will likely run mad.

What is wrong with you and people in their 30s, or 40s by the way? Shouldn't they have opinions too? By your own words, you are VERY HATEFUL and discriminate against people based on their age. My little cousin who is 7 years old is FAR MORE MATURE AND INTELLIGENT than you; at least she understands not to do that, and other things as simple as dual citizenship.

Fact remains that I am an ASSET to both countries of my citizenship , but sometimes I wish I can be a Biafran/American instead of a Nigerian/American, because at least it would bring about a situation whereby I am not yoked with people incapable of facing the truth due to HATE; people who would rather attack the messenger than face the truth for once. If I don't have family in Nigeria, you probably wouldn't even see me at all on Nairaland.
So, I hope for a Biafran nation that can allow peace and progress to my folks back in Nigeria.
I know that a Biafran nation would leapfrog Mexico at least in healthcare accessibility and Education -two critical human development sectors. FACT.
I don't know whether the Nigerian nation would ever beat Mexico in any human development sector, heck Nigeria even commits more murder and death of innocents than Mexico BY FAR.
Tell me one area that Nigeria betters Mexico. Mcheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeew!

So, there you go king of beasts! I hope you can take off your mouth from your mamas teaties to think for once! GRANDPA BOY! hehehe!

It is also obtuse to keep thinking that this is about Igbo only. WRONG. This is a universal truth.
The only way to get those lands back (if you can get away with it) is ethnic cleansing. You cannot force a land owner to sell, and you cannot force him to move. Your best bet is to hope he would sell and leave (I believe a lot of Igbo may do this and Yoruba would even beg them to stay), but that is another issue.
My point has nothing to do with scarcity of land; we have more land than we need in Igboland. It is an issue of jurisprudence.

Anyway, this is where I leave the thread again!

Honestly, I never expected anything less from these guys.
I wasn't trying to argue or convince them of anything. The fact that Nigeria is unresolved is messing up a lot of brains.
My position addresses a FINAL solution to the Nigerian national situation.
Abandoned property can only survive in a united Nigeria (because some people need to use it to keep people down). In a disintegrated Nigeria, all issues will be resolved one way or another. No land would be stolen from anyone.
You buy a land as a Nigerian, you own it post disintegration.

The next scenario - a disintegrated Nigeria with at least three countries - North, East and West.

The East would have at least more than 10 doctors per 1000 patients. The west may have something similar or close ratio. The North?
Hmm. . .

The East would leapfrog Mexico in health accessibility IMMEDIATELY.
The East would also likely leapfrog Mexico in education.
Suffice it to say that Mexico may not be richer in GDP per capita than the East, even if that Eastern country is only comprised of 5 SE states!

These facts are good to examine, because we need to know where Nigeria's main problems are coming from, and by how much.

I've worked with Mexicans here in the states, and believe me the ones I worked with were not better than moi.
I am one of the Nigerians that bring pride to Nigeria as a professional here, and I used to assume that the gap between Nigeria and Mexico ( in terms of human and economic development) wasn't than much; but from yesterday, I've learned to put my tail between my legs whenever I see a Mexican, thanks to my country of origin always batting wayyyyyyyyyyyy below par!

Yesterday was 5th of May, and Mexicans in the US celebrated "Cinco de Mayo". I'd never really known what it meant and never cared to find out until yesterday. I know very little about Mexico (been there once) and never bothered to know much more. In researching "Cinco de Mayo", I ended up researching Mexico.
All these years, I've often compared Nigeria to Mexico in terms of Economy and human development, but boy was I shocked out of my wits! Here are a few of my findings:

Mexican population: 114,975,406 (July 2012 estimate)
Population rank in the world: 11th
Mexican GDP (official exchange rate):$1.185 trillion (2011 est.)
Mexican GDP per capita: $15,100 (2011 est.)
Mexican Life Expectancy at birth: 76.66 years
Mexican Doctor/Patient ratio: 2.893 physicians/1,000 population (2004)
Health ranking in the world: 41
Health expenditure: 13.8% of GDP


Nigerian population: 170,123,740 (July 2012 est.)
Population rank in the world: 7th
Nigerian GDP (official exchange rate): $247.1 billion (2011 est.)
Nigerian GDP per capita: $2,600 (2011 est.)
Nigerian life expectancy at birth: 52.05 years
Nigerian doctor/patient ratio: 0.395 physicians/1,000 population (2008. )
Health ranking in the world: 117
Health expenditure: 5.8% of GDP (2009)

Source: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/index.html



Now, what caught my attention most is the doctor /patient ratio.
There are not up to half a doctor for 1000 Nigerians!

Anyway, I will follow up with the other scenario/perspective - a scenario that assumes a disintegrated Nigeria.

My position is even bolstered most by the fact that the lands where acquired as citizens of Nigeria, not as foreigners.
The people that bought the land assumed they were buying land in Nigeria, where they are entitled to live and grow old.
So, should Nigeria disintegrate, nothing short of full indigenship for those land owners would suffice or be acceptable.
Anyway, let the abandoned property waiters continue to wait. They will wait for ever! lol.

If anyone is serious about the ultimate truth, it is to acknowledge that EVERY land owner in Lagos is part of the "owners" of Lagos. Simple and short. In all honesty, the Nigerian-Biafran war skewed a lot of minds in Nigeria.
That is why there was "abandoned property" situation in some parts of Nigeria, basically to use it as a weapon of divide and rule. In a final solution situation, every land genuinely bought and owned will be reclaimed whether peacefully or violently.
But come to think of it, isn't it very obtuse for a person to expect another to abandon a fairly acquired land?
Nigeria must be one of the most stoopid places in the world, because I don't hear of abandoned property in any other country on earth.
So, to cut to the chase, Lagos is owned by the indigenes of course, PLUS EVERY LAND OWNER in Lagos, be he Igbo, Hausa, Edo, Ijaw, Fulani, Berom, Kattaf and so on. Lagos is a de facto multi-ethnic state. People should get over waiting for abandoned property in Lagos (particularly) because it will NEVER happen.

I can understand if the situation is something like indigenes 90%, settlers 10%, in which case the "settlers" may be convinced to sell their properties back to the indigenes in exchange for a peaceful departure. In a situation whereby up to 40% -50% of land is owned by "settlers", no person in his/her mind would accept anything short of full and permanent "indigenization" (read naturalization) of such settlers. That is how every international court would see it.

ak47mann: soon lagos will be only for the rich and the region that have the least povert rate in nigeria will be the ones running lagos

ONYE NA ENWEGHI EGO ONA ERI OFE OWERRI OOOHHH MBANU

LOL @ "ONYE NA ENWEGHI EGO ONA ERI OFE OWERRI OOOHHH MBANU"

alj harem: Rubbish, whether yoruba or Igbo I do not care, If anyone is a parasite to lagos then please go back to their village.

If you are a lagosian then good. We Lagosians are irrespective of tribe

Gbam! So when are you leaving mallam? Don'tell me you are not one of the worst parasites in Lagos.
Are you waiting until they complete the Lagos -kano rail project?

I almost stepped over this thread but decided to add my voice early enough here. My first thought after reading the OP was to think of certain known "otimkpus" from certain Nigerian states which I won't mention, because they all know themselves.
Since this is about Igbo leadership, it became one on which I can comment.

Pointblank, the OP is insulting the intelligence of the good people of Abia state, and even more the Igbo people. Since I came to Nairaland, I've learned A WHOLE LOT about different Igbo groups and states, and based on my personal experience through interaction with Ndigbo in the Eze Ndigbo council, Abians are BY FAR the most active, intelligent, purpose driven, tenacious, patriotic and committed to the Igbo emancipation and public service. I am not saying this to massage anyone's ego or ridicule anyone, just stating the facts!
So, having come to have a deeper acquaintance and interaction with Abians, I mourn almost daily, that a character like T.A Orji is the governor of Abia state. T.A, Orji, almost destroyed YEARS OF IGBO PATRIOTIC LEGACY grown by such GREAT Abia sons as Dr Michael Iheonukara Okpara. In Igbo national politics, apart from the Ikemba, no other Igbo is accorded more accolade and dignity than Dr M.I Okpara. FACT.
So, for someone to come here to lament the so called absence of Igbo leadership, and indirectly suggest a character -a man who set Igbo patriotism backwards by many years - as a possible candidate for that leadership, is deeply irresponsible.

OP, you rightly noted that Ohakim laid off tens of thousands of people ; do you think he never thought about laying off ONLY non-indigenes? Let me tell you, any Igbo state governor who cannot see Igbo as one first BEFORE any state executive action, is dangerous to Igbo survival, and a prototype of the type of leadership we don't need in Igboland.

IMHO, T.A Orji is damaged goods! He may end up being the "best" governor of Abia state before leaving office, but I assure you that he would never be accepted to play any Igbo leadership role for the rest of his natural life. He may perhaps be an Abia delegate or representative to such a leadership position (assuming Abians so much love him, which I doubt! ), but that is where his political life will likely end.
His will be a warning to other clanish Igbo leaders, that we Ndigbo love ourselves (as Ndigbo) far more than we love xenophobic and recidivist leaders even if they deliver heavens at the end of the day.

On this issue of Igbo taking time in choosing leaders, I believe that it is a mark of strength in our style and method of leadership, rather than a weakness. In one of the meetings I attended over the weekend, one of my friends observed that we Igbo are always in meetings! Alas he said we are always in meetings, but I had to remind him that other groups are jealous of that style of community activism in Igbo culture. No one leads us by the nose, and we are not jealous of others because our method of leadership deliver more community participation. It is a bottom- up approached rather than a top-down approached which is more vulnerable.

When our leader emerges, there is usually no question about his legitimacy or public support. I am proud of that as nwa afo Igbo!

So, take note, we are fine. Our leader will emerge one of these days. Our last leader was given an INTERNATIONAL class burial when he died: the whole world knew that THE Igbo leader died. Our next leader will equal or surpass that measure of love and followership.
That is why I am a very proud Igboman!

Here I stand!

Signed,

Onlytruth, Ndu Di N'eziokwu 1 of Igboland, Eze Ndigbo Nairaland.