₦airaland Forum

Very possible.. Only problem is why he is still using the old nams one a current document (the obituary poster). I dont understand that though its possible thats tge name he is known with in the village

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Please rebroadcast.

whatever you do, always remember that a bird in hand, IS THE ONLY BIRD. My two cents

Take her to TB Joshua

Very wrong move. Would make sense only if the money was given specifically as scholarship to Anambra indigenes who study in those schools.

Senator Ted Cruz of United States recently joked about Nigerian scammers being in charge of the Obamacare website. Typically, there was a huge outcry from Nigerian’s, and the Senator had to apologize.

Shortly afterwards, a Minister in the city of Goa, in far away India compared Nigerian’s with cancer. After the usual outcry, he apologized.

We live in a funny world today where you wake up checking your phones for mails, chats, and all sort of updates. I was in this dilemma recently when I saw a sequel to Senator Ted’s insult by Ann Coulter.

Nigeria has consistently received such negative reports. This is rather unfortunate because the Nigerian situation is not different from many countries in the world battling with vices that are arguably more dangerous than internet fraud.

According to Huffington Post, the site of one of the world’s most prestigious film festival, Cannes, has recorded three major jewelry heist in 2013 alone. $1.4M was stolen from a Swiss jeweler in May, followed by Diamond theft valued at $2.6M a week later. BBC reported gems worth $53M stolen from Carlton Hotel in July. Similar thefts have been reported in Brussels, and there were two major cases consecutively this year.

If Nigerians are scammers, then the French and Belgians are thieves.

Societie Generale uncovered a fraud of about $5B by a rogue trader in 2008, and in 2012, four Deutsche Bank staff were jailed in a European carbon trading fraud investigation. A UBS rogue trader was charged with $2.3B fraud in a London court in 2011, and we cannot forget Bernard Madoff; former Non-Executive Chairman of NASDAQ Stock Market who was convicted of a Ponzi scheme estimated at about $18B and sentenced to 150 years in prison.

If Nigerians are scammers, then European and American Bankers are rogues.

South Africa has a reputation for muggings, robberies and rape; especially rapes of minors based on the erroneous believe that sex with a virgin cures Aids.

If Nigerians are scammers, then South Africans are pedophiles and rapists.

History has consistently shown that crime is not synonymous with Nigeria, and every Ann Coulter out there must publicly apologize to Nigeria.

I have however come to the conclusion Nigeria’ problem is a lot more than the few that gives us a bad name. Our global perception is terrible, and considering the recent unprovoked global attacks, it has become imperative for us to have a rethink as a nation.

Just like motivational speakers quote Albert Einstein’s description of insanity as doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result, we will be deceiving ourselves if we maintain our peculiarities and expect to be viewed differently.

There are certain behaviors that you see anywhere in the world, and you just know that the character involved is Nigerian.

A young preacher gave a graphic account of a pathetic encounter he had in London recently. The preacher noticed someone throwing dirt out of a car while driving. The preachers’ friend jokingly said that must be a Nigerian.

Unfortunately, there were plain clothes policemen around in unmarked vehicles that also saw what happened. Police siren activated, the culprit was ordered to pull over. The Pastor and his friend drove quietly watching events from as safe distance. Immediately the culprit got down from the car, you could almost tell his Nigerian State based on the way his guinea brocade was starched!

I love Nigerian entertainers. Many of them have brought glory to Nigeria through their craft. Great musicians like 2face and Omawunmi; their counterparts in Nollywood like Mercy Johnson; and comedians like Emeka Smith and Julius Agwu, have done quite well for themselves and the country.

One trend that is common among our celebrities is travelling to the US and UK for the birth of their children and celebrating on social media.

It would have been a different story if we are talking about critical medical intervention, and I really don’t have any problem with anyone having their kids on the moon if they so decide. After all, Richard Branson is currently working on the Virgin Galactic; a civilian space shuttle that will give civilians the space experience, and the likes of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have already registered for the flight. I have no doubt that Nigeria will be represented, and I’m looking forward to seeing the million Naira suit man, Dbanj, represent Nigeria on the maiden civilian space trip.

So, I don’t give a damn about where anyone decides to birth their kids. But I worry about the insensitivity on display when our celebrities celebrate childbirth in America on social media at a time when 15.4% of Americans, about forty eight million as at 2012, have no health insurance!

I worry about the image we project to the multitude of Americans without health insurance, half of whom are eagerly waiting to be covered by Obamacare, and the rest of the world; with pictures of Mercy Johnson on Facebook celebrating the birth of Purity on a hospital bed in Atlanta; pictures of Anie Iddibia and her mum on Instagram on their way to Houston to have their American baby; and those of Emeka Smith celebrating the birth of his baby in Dublin on Twitter. Even Paul’s (PSquare) baby mama, Anita, was not left out of this crazy fad in London!

Systems that are created to make life more comfortable for citizens are constantly abused and exploited by Nigerians. In 2011, a Nigerian woman, Mrs Ayelabola, gave birth to quintuplets in the UK and incurred two hundred thousand pounds debt, after travelling on the pretext of visiting her sisters. Ofcourse, this was followed with stringent rules by the UK government.

Continuous system abuse, coupled with the madness by our celebrities and their baby mamas on social media today is a dangerous trend. I won’t be surprised if the government in those countries responds with policies that negatively affects genuine travel for critical medical procedures in the future.

Flights from Nigeria are specifically targeted in South Africa, and many have been robbed and killed. The hatred for Nigerian’s was brought to the fore recently when the two men on trial for the murder of Lucky Dube claimed that they did not recognize the musician and thought he was Nigerian! The situation in South Africa is similar to what is currently going on in India.

While everyone must condemn xenophobia in any form, it has become important that we critically review our ways. I agree it’s not our fault that South African girls prefer Nigerian men. Unfortunately, Nigerians are perceived to be noisy in most foreign countries, and we have accepted this as fact.

We refuse to obey simple laws and we are the first to beat traffic lights. In many cases, friendship overrides principle in our dealings, and the whole world sees these unacceptable behaviors, yet we expect to be respected even when we do not respect ourselves.

We attract undue attention to ourselves in pubs and bars spending and drinking like it’s going out of fashion. The few among us with shady characters live like royals, yet we expect our host countries to treat us with respect, and we complain when the world tells us as it is.

We always look for loopholes and ways to exploit every system. We actually get away with such antics at home. Unfortunately, these behaviors are not accepted globally.

Beating traffic lights and other misdemeanor are not peculiar to Nigerians’. But when more than half the people that break simple rules in civilized societies are from a particular region, then we cannot blame the world for having a certain opinion about us, however right or wrong. In any case, a combination of these attributes gives us a particular label.

Not too long ago, two Nigerian girls slept in churches in Canada for several months in order to avoid deportation. They were accused of working outside the University, which was against the terms of their visa. I find it hard to believe that they did not understand the terms of their permit to study in Canada. Sounds like they did not understand the gravity of their action, thinking they were still in Nigeria where they can get away with murder. Unfortunately the rest of the world does not operate that way.

We consistently display gross stupidity trying to outsmart systems, and we have had to pay dearly in some cases. One can only marvel at the foolishness and stupidity of our countrymen who have been deported from Europe on board a train, simply for failing to buy tickets that cost just a few Euros! The twin Nigerian girls in Canada recently relocated to Nigeria voluntarily, with the hope that the government will consider their appeal. I wish them goodluck.

Unfortunately, many more amongst us are still looking for rules to break, and loopholes to exploit.

I will deliberately avoid talking about government. This is because the action and inaction of one hundred and seventy million Nigerian’s goes a long way in affecting the perception of our country.

However, I will admonish government that beyond spending millions of dollars on publicity firms and image makers to boost our country image, the whole world watches government action, and forms opinions about our nation.

We can get a diplomatic apology from Senator Cruz or the Goa Minister, but that will not stop the senseless killings of Nigerians in India, South Africa and other parts of the world, except there is a positive change in our country perception globally.

Finally, fellow Nigerian’s, the next time you are breaking that rule, or exploiting those loopholes, please ask yourself how your action affects Nigeria’s image.

Truth be told, there are millions of Nigerians that are law abiding citizens in different parts of the world, contributing to the economy of the countries in which they live, and it is a fact that Nigerian’s are the most educated group in the US.

We can no longer ignore the activities of those that give us a bad name either criminally, or those who just refuse to obey simple laws, resulting in unfair categorization, and terrible country image.



God bless Nigeria.

Soji Adeola.

Ur no is not going tru. Pls provide a rerachable contatc if u get dis. Need some urgetly.

the keyboardist is lazier than the pianist

I DO NOT BELIEVE IN THE (SOVEREIGN) NATIONAL CONFERENCE

October 1 2013, President Jonathan in the annual Independence Day speech announced the formation of the National Dialogue Planning Committee to establish the modalities for a National Dialogue or Conference.

This has been a long standing request of many Nigerians, and numerous important personalities had made similar calls in the past. I am rather surprised that a number of prominent Nigerians have criticized this move for a number of reasons. In any case, that is not my interest in this write-up.

I believe we have been sold a dummy that a National Conference, Dialogue or whatever name we choose to call it, is the magic bullet that will solve our problems. I strongly disagree.

The litmus test for me is the Petroleum Industry Bill. If I am correct, we have been unsuccessfully trying to sign this bill into law in the last four years. And here we are taking on a more complex issue!

While Americans and Britons are signing critical agreements within a month to three months, the Japanese and Chinese are signing the same agreement in weeks and days respectively. In Nigeria, the same agreement could take up to three years or more; or forgotten at the National Assembly! As a result, we have lost businesses due to our ineptitude and inability to take decision briskly, on the altar of personal benefits rather than collective gain.

Most recent, global oil giants, Chevron and ConocoPhillips pulled out of the Olokola (OK) and Brass LNG Projects respectively. Why? Our lack of will in taking a serious project serious, coupled with failure to meet expected obligations.

By the way, my different view on the National Conference is not based on the complexity of our issues. It’s the fact that a dialogue or conference really doesn’t prevent a corrupt leader from stealing, and failing to develop critical infrastructure. My view that a

Conference is not the solution to our problems is strengthened daily considering the fact that we simply get away with murder; irrespective of the position of the constitution on any issue. Before now, it used to be the economic and political elites that rape the country. Today, even criminals who are bold enough are taking a sumptuous meal from the national cake.

If we are unable to agree on a simple bill that would determine how we administer our oil industry, I wonder what we intend to do differently with the National Dialogue?
For the records, my view is that there can never be a perfect bill or a perfect agreement on how we will co-exist as a nation. With reference to our constitution, constitutions anywhere in the world only act as a “guide”, and in legal lexicon, there will always be a lacuna. The golden question then would be how to deal with constitutional or “consensus” gaps when they come up, even when if we finally reach an agreement through a National Conference. Classic case in point, we adopted a fire brigade approach to the constitution with Yaradua’s sickness and eventual death. Unfortunately, this has not solved the problem in Taraba State!

Let’s assume that we are able to reach an agreement on how to co-exist. Will this stop Nigerian’s with a mindset that the national treasury must be shared? We never knew that unused funds were shared at the end of every financial year, until late President Yaradua gave a directive that unused allocation must be returned to the treasury before the new accounting year.

Will a Sovereign National Conference solve the problem of contract inflation or outright sharing of developmental funds?

Will a Sovereign National Conference prevent incessant killings of Christians and Muslims alike in the North? Or solve kidnap and high level robbery in the Eastern part of the country? Will it solve credit card fraud and internet scam in the West?

Will a Sovereign National Conference solve the problem of moribund and poorly run government agencies or revive critical sectors of the economy? I just do not get it.

A National Conference will definitely do something. It will force us to agree on resource allocation to Oil Producing States. Amongst many other benefits, it will compel us to agree on sensitive national issues such as rotational presidency, true federalism and bi-camera legislative system of government.

But do we honestly think a National Conference is what we need to address these issues?
Will the National Conference prevent the likes of James Ibori from stealing his state blind with assets scattered across different countries around the globe? Will it enforce prosecution of corrupt officials, or ship the dirty jobs to London Courts?

Will a Conference prevent us from seeing politics as a means to buy today for ourselves, and tomorrow for our children’s children, rather than developing our country to effectively compete with the most advanced countries in the twenty first century?

The other argument is that if we are unable to agree on how we can co-exist as a nation, then we should go our separate ways. But I have lived long enough in Nigeria and I have come to one conclusion; and that is the fact that the average Nigerian simply wants things to work!

We rejoiced and shared drinks together when Nigeria won the football completion at the Olympics with Kanu Nwakwo and his brilliant team. We had fun together when Stephen Keshi rekindled our hope of winning the nations cup again, as one nation. Whether its Chinua Achebe or Wole Shoyinka, we celebrate our icons without reference to tribe or religion. We are not bothered whether Dbanj is an Ijebu boy, or MI is from Jos. We care less whether Don Jazzy is Igbo, 2Face is from Benue, or Ali Nuhu is a Hausa film actor. Our entertainment industry has conquered places as far flung as the Caribbean’s and so long as the music or movie is cool, we are one Nigeria!

Collectively, we are beginning to conquer Africa. Our banks now dominate Africa and some of our home grown companies like Dangote, and Guarantee Trust are beginning to extend their brands before the shores of Nigeria. When we are happy, our tribe or religion does not count. But few politicians among us create division using religion and tribes for political gains. They have consistently succeeded chiefly because we allow it.

When we rejoice, no one is interested whether the President is from Calabari, Borgu or Ondo. But when those that divide us unleash tension and terror on the country, we scream disintegration as if that is the solution. It’s a pity we now erroneous believe that a Conference will solve our problems, or we disintegrate as a nation.

Since I was young, and now I am still young, I have only heard the cry of Sovereign National Conference or disintegration during difficult times. Let things begin to work in this country and we will hear less of this cry. Let us start treating our fellow men with dignity and respect, and we’ll see a change. Let politicians and the looting elites have a change of heart and influence the society positively, and Nigeria will become the country of our dreams. We do not need a Conference or Dialogue to make this happen!

As a Nation, what we need is a lot more than a Conference. We need a National Re-Orientation. A National Re-Orientation that tells the seventy year old man who has been in government since his twenties, and probably doesn’t know how to use an ipad today, that it is time to go into retirement and genuinely be a statesman.

A National Re-Orientation that tells the young man, that in our world today wherein six year olds are developing multimillion dollar apps; that politics is about service and not about lacing our pockets with millions like Nigerian Legislators.

A National Re-Orientation that propels every Nigerian to value human life, and makes us realize that one avoidable death anywhere in the country, either through terrorism or lack of good medicare, is unacceptable and must be condemned by all irrespective of tribe or religion.

A National Re-Orientation that prevents a sitting President, Governor, Senator or anyone in power from concentrating development in his or her village, rather than having a developmental plan for the entire country.

Whether we are Kanuri; Tiv; Igbo; Yoruba; Fulani; or Hausa; a National Re-Orientation that makes us see ourselves first as Nigerians, with a responsibility to make this country work in our respective spheres of influence.

For us to move forward as a country, we urgently require this Re-orientation, and it is the collective responsibility of everyone starting from the homes, to schools, religious gatherings and every facet of our society.

Not a Conference.

God bless Nigeria.

Soji Adeola

ASUU’s Demand Is Unreasonable

Having been privileged to attend a highly rated Graduate School after my First Degree from a Federal University, I understand the importance of quality education. I am in support of increased funding to the Nigerian Educational Sector, and I have written strongly in support of ASUU before now.

However, ASUU’s demand requires further scrutiny in view of recent revelation by President Jonathan, and ASUU’s response.

According to the National President of ASUU, Dr Nasir Fagge, ASUU demands that N800B must be invested in Universities yearly, over the next four years, while the FG is offering N130B as a startup amount to be increased yearly.

Every Nigerian now knows that the global recommendation for education is 26% of the budget. Using this as the basic assumption, let’s take a look at the figures and undertake a critical review of ASUU’s demand.

It is important that we break down the figures for an appreciation of the demand by ASUU, and the FG offering.

A breakdown of the 2013 budget of roughly N5Trillion shows that Education (N426B); Defense (N349B) and the Police (N320); received the highest share, making a total of N1Trillion to these three critical sectors.

For the records, this is the first time in Nigeria’s history that the Education Sector has received this amount of funds, and in October 2012, stakeholders in the Education Sector lauded President Jonathan for giving the sector the highest budgetary allocation in the 2013 Appropriation Bill.

The additional provision of N130B implies that education now has a statutory allocation of N576B!

Unfortunately, we cannot assume that the entire amount will go to the Universities considering the fact that there are other educational institutions such as Polytechnics, Colleges of Education, Technical Colleges, in addition to Secondary and Primary Schools!

For the sake of argument, let us assume that the FG “can afford” the N800B request by ASUU. This is about 16% of the budget. ASUU should please tell us how much should go to the other educational institutions listed earlier, and other units of government.

I want to believe ASUU should at least be interested in what happens at the Primary and Secondary school level, as this will significantly affect the quality of inputs into the Universities, and ultimately determine the end products.

While it is imperative that we revamp our Universities, must we shut down the Government in doing so?

Also, we must not fail to ask ASUU one vital question. Of the N800B request, how much is Internally Generated Revenue by ASUU and the respective Governing Councils of each University? This is of paramount importance because a major request of ASUU has always been autonomy for Universities. How do you want autonomy on one hand, and on the other hand, expect the FG to fund Universities 100%! This does not happen anywhere in the world, and Nigeria cannot be an exception.

Let me talk briefly about Internally Generated Revenue by Universities.

The late Professor Jelili Omotola of blessed memory, former VC of the University of Lagos, showed us a template of how Universities can generate funds internally. Omotola it was who built different multipurpose halls for events and started making money from “owambe” Lagosians. He was also the first to start the production of Table Water, and confectionary by a University body, amongst several other laudable programmes. Today, I observed that one of the Private Universities, specifically Babcock University, is replicating this model.

In achieving these lofty goals, Prof. Omotola introduced the Student Work Programme similar to what we have in Europe and America, and undergraduate students were able to make some decent income while schooling (I am not sure the Student Work programme is still going on in Unilag).

Although Omotola got into trouble with the authorities in respect of the Distant Learning Programme, our academicians need to study the life of this great man, and I’m positive we can learn a lot from him in terms of University Administration. Omotola as a legal luminary specialized in land matters, successfully established and realized a real estate project for Unilag Staff, many of whom found it difficult to own their own homes about two decades ago. The estate called Unilag Mogodo or Magodo Phase 3 is a beautiful and serene area that is now occupied by many Non-University staff due to the ambience, peace and security this piece of real estate offers its inhabitants. All this is courtesy of the late Professor. I am yet to see any University Administrator that did so much for his University.

By the way, all these are mundane things that can be done in raising funds internally rather than waiting on the Federal Government to “share the national cake” or “oyel” money with ASUU members. What about collaboration with industry in providing solutions that the universities can generate funds from? What about endowment from alumni, corporate bodies, and respectable/responsible members of the society?

It is sad to note that ASUU members, who are intellectuals and are meant to be the pulse of the nation, are already beginning to act like criminal politicians who are not ready to do anything, but expect allocation to be shared by the FG at the end of every month. By the way, I did not attend Unilag, but I have lived in Lagos for sometime now, and I am quite conversant with happenings in the University.

Dr Fagge also asked, “Is it political to ask government to be responsible enough to implement an agreement she willingly entered into”. This is the argument many who still support the ongoing strike put forward. It is rather unfortunate because most unions as we know them in Nigeria after a prolonged strike agree with the Government in power to call off a strike after an agreement is reached. In most cases, the union ends up arm twisting the Government. Government agrees and signs a document just for the strike to be called off especially when election is approaching and Government cannot afford any negative publicity.

Having written so much on this strike, I will propose a solution on the way forward.

ASUU should immediately renegotiate with the FG, and call off this strike. This time around, the terms of the agreement must be SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time Bound), and it must detail how much ASUU must generate on its own internally as IGR (please don’t tell me it’s not ASUU’s responsibility to generate funds. It’s not the FG’s responsibility to fund universities 100% either!).

The agreement must state by how much FG must increase funding to education yearly from the current level of 8% from now till at least 2020. It must also specify how the fund provided for education will be shared to Polytechnics, Colleges of Education, Technical Colleges and Pre-Tertiary Institutions. Our intellectuals must work together with the Ministry of Education and fashion out a marshall plan that will get us out of the doldrums “in a realistic manner”.

This is the only way ASUU can prove that they are responsible intellectuals who are really interested in the growth and development of this country. The job of repositioning our education is the responsibility of everyone (ASSU inclusive) and not the exclusive preserve of the FG.

God bless Nigeria.

Soji Adeola

The fact that you are having cold feet shows you're not ready. DON'T KILL YOURSELF SIMPLY BECAUSE OF PEER PRESSURE.

Right of Reply: NO! PASTOR ADEBOYE, YOUR APPROACH IS WRONG SIR….

Last week was the 61st Convention of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG). Though I do not worship at RCCG, I had planned to attend the Holy Ghost Service on Friday, but changed my mind at the last minute. I assumed that the place would be jammed due to the holiday and I checked online to know the status of things at the RCCG Camp. Immediately, I realized that my premonition was right based on the online report that there was traffic right inside the RCCG Camp! So I decided against going for the Service.

By Sunday evening, I heard about the ambitious project of building a new 3Km by 3Km auditorium, by Pastor Adeboye, and shortly afterwards, there was a barrage of criticism of the project and the man of God on several social media.

A particular article written by one Peniel Plus is worth reading. Amongst several issues raised, a comparison was made between building a worship auditorium and investing in research to conquer problems such as AIDs, Malaria etc which are major issues in Africa.

First off, while we accept that the church has a responsibility to its congregation and the entire nation at large; the church cannot, and must not be blamed or held responsible for the irresponsibility of government.

I am a firm believer in constructive criticism. However, when we criticize, we must never forget to look at a situation holistically, rather than through a single perspective. The Danger of A Single Story by Chimamanda Ngozi Adochie is an apt description of this scenario, because many times the criticism is only one part of the entire story.

Many have argued that the amount being raised (N20Billion) would be more beneficial if it was committed to other developmental projects, rather than building a church auditorium. While this argument appears logical, it is only one part of the story. I will attempt to look at other associated issues related to what the RCCG and Pastor Adeboye have done so far, and the upcoming project that is generating so much controversy.

A little over twenty years ago, RCCG under a rather unknown man at the time by the name Enoch Adeboye, purchased a massive piece of uninhabited forest land located on the outskirts of Lagos; a haven of highway/armed robbers and kidnappers with a great company of pythons and wild animals. Adeboye moved his family to this "wilderness" christened the Redemption Camp; constructed a large auditorium and began to hold the Holy Ghost Services there (http://eaadeboye.com/).

Anyone who lives, or has lived in Lagos will agree with me that the entire area from Arepo (Journalist Estate), Magboro, Mowe, Ibafo, RCCG Camp and other villages now inhabited and fast developing, was nothing more than thick forest two decades ago. This was the time when this man, Daddy GO, as he is fondly called, based on divine instruction from God moved his family to this “igbo irunmole” , at the mercy of wild animals and armed robbers.

Today, based on his obedience to divine instruction, the entire area has not only developed tremendously, it has become home and resting place to many young and old families simply because of the massive construction and development of the RCCG camp. The corollary is to imagine that there is no RCCG Camp today. I admit that we would still have the likes of estates that have sprung up in places like Arepo and Mowe. I am however positive that the development these areas have experienced which has offered succor to many would be nowhere near what it is today.

Today, there are banks within RCCG Camp employing Nigerians, providing services and engaging several contractors. There are schools (pre-school, primary and secondary) around the entire area providing education to Nigerian children; a means of livelihood to owners; while at the same time offering employment opportunities to staff of different categories. There are construction companies doing legitimate business, employing Nigerians and paying tax to the national coffers. These are just some of the associated benefits of the RCCG Camp among many. Humm, all because of the obedience of one man.

It is also important to state that RCCG has opened many roads making this area more comfortable for the residents. A major road was opened from the Camp that leads straight to Ikorodu. I remember government has been talking about building the Fourth Mainland Bridge to connect Ikorodu. While this project (4th mainland bridge) is still a mirage, a church has successfully opened a major road connecting the people of Ikorodu to Lagos – Ibadan Expressway.

Can we really quantify the massive impact of the RCCG Camp to the development that has occurred on this axis? Can we really quantify the impact that the road connecting Ikorodu with the Ibadan Expressway (built by RCCG), has on the conventional Ikorodu Road, and the residents of Ikorodu who now have an alternative route connecting their homes with other parts of Lagos?
I thought somebody should be celebrated here!
RCCG now wants to build another camp. I would like to use this medium to appeal to anyone who knows the location of the proposed camp to kindly let me know where it is. I honestly would love to buy some acres now because I am sure of atleast 500% increase within a period of five years minimum.

Speaking seriously, building another camp will only mean one thing – and that is more development. This implies more construction. And we must not forget that construction companies will be involved; cement producing companies will be able to keep their factories running employing Nigerians; homes and other associated employment generating activities will be rejuvenated; which would have an overall positive impact on the economy.

It has also been argued that churches build Universities that most of their members cannot afford for their children. This is also true, but again the danger of a single story comes into play because the fee charged by the schools is only one part of the story.
Looking at the entire story, there is nowhere in the world where good qualitative education comes cheap. Has anyone asked why ASUU is constantly on strike as they are currently on now?

A while back, the Head of the Nigerian Universities Commission (NUC) made a shocking revelation that the amount of money Nigerians spend on University Education in Ghana yearly is much more than what the Federal Government allocates to education. This is food for thought considering the fact that we are not even talking about how much Nigerians spend in the UK, US, Canada and other Western and surprisingly, Asian countries. The reality is that the problem is a lot deeper than that, and we may not be doing justice if we simply accuse Christian Schools of charging exorbitant fees.

Renowned legal luminary, Afe Babalola offered an insight into what it takes to run a university in a report in 2011. As Pro-Chancellor of Unilag, a research was done and it was discovered that about N4.5million would be required to train a university undergraduate properly even in a government funded school. Today, Afe Babalola University, as an example, runs on seven generators, each with a capacity of 500KVA providing 24hour power supply. Please imagine how much Private Universities in Nigeria spend on power alone, not to talk about attracting world class scholars (http://www.vanguardngr.com/2011/02/you-will-need-not-less-than-n4-5m-to-train-any-student-in-varsity-—-afe-babalola/).

Little wonder most developed economies have student loans for tertiary education, and majority of postgraduate programmes are sponsored partly or in full. It is an open secret that Nigerian elites fund many schools in the UK paying cash for their kids to study abroad. This explains why many UK Schools now advertise aggressively in Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt. You can even get an on the spot admission to a school in the UK right from an office in Victoria Island, Lekki or Ikeja if you have the cash. Christ! The reality is that majority of citizens in developed economies take student loans for university education, and the recipients pay back years after graduation simply because a significant number of parents cannot individually afford university education for their children.

Unfortunately, our financial institutions are not structured enough for such facilities. Yet we expect education to be cheap, and accuse Churches. In my view, this problem is much deeper than we admit, and we all need to think of creative and innovative ways to reduce the cost of quality education in our country, because we MUST as a matter of urgency as a nation provide quality and affordable education, by creating an environment that will make education affordable through easy access to education facilities and grants. This is a prerequisite for us to effectively compete with the rest of the world.

At this risk of turning this write up into an epistle, I will stop here. But I will be doing an injustice to Pastor Adeboye if I fail to talk about the unique qualities and achievement of this great man.
Pastor Adeboye has received honorary citizenship and keys to three cities in the US including Cambridge Massachusetts, Dallas Texas and Baltimore Maryland. Pastor Adeboye led the Pre-Summit Prayers at the 64th General Assembly of the United Nations, Headquarters, New York. Pastor Adeboye was named one of 'The World's Fifty Most Powerful People' by Newsweek Magazine (USA) in 2009. Amongst several unannounced philanthropic endeavors, Pastor Adeboye actively supports the development of sports in Nigeria, and he sponsors the yearly E.A Adeboye Table Tennis championship culminating in a National Sports Honour and Award in 2010, as the Spiritual Pillar of Nigerian Sports. All this is in addition to being the spiritual adviser and guide to many Heads of Governments across the world.

Singlehandedly, Daddy GO has succeeded and offered hope to many where government failed even when appraised on the physical front. Yet rather than being celebrated, this revered man of God is vilified. I am however happy, that even though many in Nigeria do not honour this Prophet of God, the whole world acknowledges that Daddy GO is a man whose God is Jehovah Almighty.

Peace.

Soji Adeola
August 13, 2013

Right of Reply: NO! PASTOR ADEBOYE, YOUR APPROACH IS WRONG SIR….

Last week was the 61st Convention of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG). Though I do not worship at RCCG, I had planned to attend the Holy Ghost Service on Friday, but changed my mind at the last minute. I assumed that the place would be jammed due to the holiday and I checked online to know the status of things at the RCCG Camp. Immediately, I realized that my premonition was right based on the online report that there was traffic right inside the RCCG Camp! So I decided against going for the Service.

By Sunday evening, I heard about the ambitious project of building a new 3Km by 3Km auditorium, by Pastor Adeboye, and shortly afterwards, there was a barrage of criticism of the project and the man of God on several social media.

A particular article written by one Peniel Plus is worth reading. Amongst several issues raised, a comparison was made between building a worship auditorium and investing in research to conquer problems such as AIDs, Malaria etc which are major issues in Africa.

First off, while we accept that the church has a responsibility to its congregation and the entire nation at large; the church cannot, and must not be blamed or held responsible for the irresponsibility of government.

I am a firm believer in constructive criticism. However, when we criticize, we must never forget to look at a situation holistically, rather than through a single perspective. The Danger of A Single Story by Chimamanda Ngozi Adochie is an apt description of this scenario, because many times the criticism is only one part of the entire story.

Many have argued that the amount being raised (N20Billion) would be more beneficial if it was committed to other developmental projects, rather than building a church auditorium. While this argument appears logical, it is only one part of the story. I will attempt to look at other associated issues related to what the RCCG and Pastor Adeboye have done so far, and the upcoming project that is generating so much controversy.

A little over twenty years ago, RCCG under a rather unknown man at the time by the name Enoch Adeboye, purchased a massive piece of uninhabited forest land located on the outskirts of Lagos; a haven of highway/armed robbers and kidnappers with a great company of pythons and wild animals. Adeboye moved his family to this "wilderness" christened the Redemption Camp; constructed a large auditorium and began to hold the Holy Ghost Services there (http://eaadeboye.com/).

Anyone who lives, or has lived in Lagos will agree with me that the entire area from Arepo (Journalist Estate), Magboro, Mowe, Ibafo, RCCG Camp and other villages now inhabited and fast developing, was nothing more than thick forest two decades ago. This was the time when this man, Daddy GO, as he is fondly called, based on divine instruction from God moved his family to this “igbo irunmole” , at the mercy of wild animals and armed robbers.

Today, based on his obedience to divine instruction, the entire area has not only developed tremendously, it has become home and resting place to many young and old families simply because of the massive construction and development of the RCCG camp. The corollary is to imagine that there is no RCCG Camp today. I admit that we would still have the likes of estates that have sprung up in places like Arepo and Mowe. I am however positive that the development these areas have experienced which has offered succor to many would be nowhere near what it is today.

Today, there are banks within RCCG Camp employing Nigerians, providing services and engaging several contractors. There are schools (pre-school, primary and secondary) around the entire area providing education to Nigerian children; a means of livelihood to owners; while at the same time offering employment opportunities to staff of different categories. There are construction companies doing legitimate business, employing Nigerians and paying tax to the national coffers. These are just some of the associated benefits of the RCCG Camp among many. Humm, all because of the obedience of one man.

It is also important to state that RCCG has opened many roads making this area more comfortable for the residents. A major road was opened from the Camp that leads straight to Ikorodu. I remember government has been talking about building the Fourth Mainland Bridge to connect Ikorodu. While this project (4th mainland bridge) is still a mirage, a church has successfully opened a major road connecting the people of Ikorodu to Lagos – Ibadan Expressway.

Can we really quantify the massive impact of the RCCG Camp to the development that has occurred on this axis? Can we really quantify the impact that the road connecting Ikorodu with the Ibadan Expressway (built by RCCG), has on the conventional Ikorodu Road, and the residents of Ikorodu who now have an alternative route connecting their homes with other parts of Lagos?
I thought somebody should be celebrated here!
RCCG now wants to build another camp. I would like to use this medium to appeal to anyone who knows the location of the proposed camp to kindly let me know where it is. I honestly would love to buy some acres now because I am sure of atleast 500% increase within a period of five years minimum.

Speaking seriously, building another camp will only mean one thing – and that is more development. This implies more construction. And we must not forget that construction companies will be involved; cement producing companies will be able to keep their factories running employing Nigerians; homes and other associated employment generating activities will be rejuvenated; which would have an overall positive impact on the economy.

It has also been argued that churches build Universities that most of their members cannot afford for their children. This is also true, but again the danger of a single story comes into play because the fee charged by the schools is only one part of the story.
Looking at the entire story, there is nowhere in the world where good qualitative education comes cheap. Has anyone asked why ASUU is constantly on strike as they are currently on now?

A while back, the Head of the Nigerian Universities Commission (NUC) made a shocking revelation that the amount of money Nigerians spend on University Education in Ghana yearly is much more than what the Federal Government allocates to education. This is food for thought considering the fact that we are not even talking about how much Nigerians spend in the UK, US, Canada and other Western and surprisingly, Asian countries. The reality is that the problem is a lot deeper than that, and we may not be doing justice if we simply accuse Christian Schools of charging exorbitant fees.

Renowned legal luminary, Afe Babalola offered an insight into what it takes to run a university in a report in 2011. As Pro-Chancellor of Unilag, a research was done and it was discovered that about N4.5million would be required to train a university undergraduate properly even in a government funded school. Today, Afe Babalola University, as an example, runs on seven generators, each with a capacity of 500KVA providing 24hour power supply. Please imagine how much Private Universities in Nigeria spend on power alone, not to talk about attracting world class scholars (http://www.vanguardngr.com/2011/02/you-will-need-not-less-than-n4-5m-to-train-any-student-in-varsity-—-afe-babalola/).

Little wonder most developed economies have student loans for tertiary education, and majority of postgraduate programmes are sponsored partly or in full. It is an open secret that Nigerian elites fund many schools in the UK paying cash for their kids to study abroad. This explains why many UK Schools now advertise aggressively in Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt. You can even get an on the spot admission to a school in the UK right from an office in Victoria Island, Lekki or Ikeja if you have the cash. Christ! The reality is that majority of citizens in developed economies take student loans for university education, and the recipients pay back years after graduation simply because a significant number of parents cannot individually afford university education for their children.

Unfortunately, our financial institutions are not structured enough for such facilities. Yet we expect education to be cheap, and accuse Churches. In my view, this problem is much deeper than we admit, and we all need to think of creative and innovative ways to reduce the cost of quality education in our country, because we MUST as a matter of urgency as a nation provide quality and affordable education, by creating an environment that will make education affordable through easy access to education facilities and grants. This is a prerequisite for us to effectively compete with the rest of the world.

At this risk of turning this write up into an epistle, I will stop here. But I will be doing an injustice to Pastor Adeboye if I fail to talk about the unique qualities and achievement of this great man.
Pastor Adeboye has received honorary citizenship and keys to three cities in the US including Cambridge Massachusetts, Dallas Texas and Baltimore Maryland. Pastor Adeboye led the Pre-Summit Prayers at the 64th General Assembly of the United Nations, Headquarters, New York. Pastor Adeboye was named one of 'The World's Fifty Most Powerful People' by Newsweek Magazine (USA) in 2009. Amongst several unannounced philanthropic endeavors, Pastor Adeboye actively supports the development of sports in Nigeria, and he sponsors the yearly E.A Adeboye Table Tennis championship culminating in a National Sports Honour and Award in 2010, as the Spiritual Pillar of Nigerian Sports. All this is in addition to being the spiritual adviser and guide to many Heads of Governments across the world.

Singlehandedly, Daddy GO has succeeded and offered hope to many where government failed even when appraised on the physical front. Yet rather than being celebrated, this revered man of God is vilified. I am however happy, that even though many in Nigeria do not honour this Prophet of God, the whole world acknowledges that Daddy GO is a man whose God is Jehovah Almighty.

Peace.

Soji Adeola
August 13, 2013

check the children development center in surulere. http://cdcafrica.org/cms/

All the best.

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Have the fun of your life during this holiday


Enjoy a trip to TakwaBay

Get to your office in style.

Enjoy a boat ride from Ajah to VI.

Starting January 10, 2011.


Thank you.

@ dammytosh
Murtala Mohammed's car in which he was killed, was not a bullet proof car (still at the museum in Lagos, beside city mall). With development today, the President has access to the best technology available in the world - bullet proof car inclusive at whatever cost. What happened yesterday was nothing more than irresponsibility of our leaders and GEJ seems to be no better than the others. What on earth happened to being moved using a chopper, or moving at non-peak periods in a metropolis like lagos. There is absolutely no excuse for this irresponsible behaviour. Leaders are meant to serve the people, not for leaders to make life more miserable for the people as we see around here.
I'm out.

Hello all. Got this from a friend in Canada (Nairaland member).
What do you think?


___________________
THIS IS A RANT.

I just need to get this off my chest becase I am just fuming right now!.

Why for crying out loud, can we never seem to do the right thing.

Why can't we queue, wait for our turn, follow simple laws and regulations of wherever we find ourselves.
Why can't we be not soo desperate as to turn our eyes and do evil all in the name of getting ahead.

I'm sick of it, soo sick of it.

Don't get me wrong, I am not talking about Nigerians living in Nigeria, I'm talking about Nigerians living abroad.

Most of us are full of crap (forgive my french) we proclaim to be believers and we can't follow simply rules as paying our taxes. Just paying taxes is a problem, but we dont have a problem with paying tihtes, I just don't get it.

We want to employ people under the table, we want to buy furniture, electronics under the table. We complain about mama charlies tax rate, then what are we doing here, why don't we pack and go home where we can evade taxes.

TAXES, TAXES thats what pays for the infrastructure we enjoy here. People do contract jobs so that they can claim expenses not according to the book and can CHEAT the canadian tax payers.

In Canada, I know soooo many, many, many, many I say,. cheaters of the Canada immigration system. It's annoying, we are messing up the system that people here sacrificed and laboured to build.

We don't know how to build things, other than to destroy and make them worse. A lot of folks in my church are pure hypocrites and I'm pissed, very pissed. The canadian immigration law says you have to live 3 years out of 5 in Canada before you can qualify for citizenship.

I see many people with only half the family in Canada, some live in the US and come back to claim citizenship fraudulently. Its fraud and if caught and prosecuted, can land you in JAIL. JAIl I say, but people still do it, Tongue blasting, bible thumping believers. Chei, I shake my head.

People run to Canada and US to deliever their babies , rack up medical bills and refuse to pay the bills, then they run back home. I have seen people's childrens passport with different last name.WHO DOES THAT Please tell me who does that, other than a desperate, insecure person that believes his identity is tied to a US passport other than GOD.

No one dares to shout this at the roof top that we are hypocrites, we are liars and we are destroying what other people suffered to build. We are cowards, we ran away from our country to come here, but we still want to be fighting for our right when we are raping the system. We want to eat our cake and have it and we do not want to scarifice. Sacrifice is not in our genes, GOD help us.

Why don't we have an ounce of shame, dignity or even national or personal pride. Why do we keep giving ourselves a bad name.

To even take kids from childrens church na wahala, we fight, we never tow the line, we jump the queue and we expect our children to respect authority, to be prayer warriors and upstanding citizens. It's a futile expectation, you reap what you sow.

We complain about our leaders while forgetting that we are the change that we seek. CHANGE starts with US. Definition of US: ME and YOU and not someone else.

Most of us going to church are hypocrites, we are dishonest, we don't do the right thing an average Oyinbo does. If we did, our communities anywhere we are will not be the way it is.

Please, let us think about how we personally can change, and effect change one by one with those that we interact with or else, our prayers will be wasted and be in vain.

I know that it takes a lot more to do the right thing in Nigeria, that's one of my obstacles to returning home, BUT here doing the right thing is as easy as PIE. So no excuse other than our greed and shortsightedness.

The truth is always buitter, I rest my case.