₦airaland Forum

RosaConsidine:
Pray tell, what's wrong with blogging or being a blogger?

RosaConsidine:
6) BIAFRA IS MAINLY JUST AN ESCAPIST FANTASY FOR DISILLUSIONED IGBO NIGERIANS: I shared a story on this Nairaland thread about my experience in a danfo bus in Lagos. the driver was an Igbo man and he got into an argument with a passenger, a Yoruba man. After the passenger alighted, I heard the driver muse that he was only taking "this nonsense" because he's still in Nigeria and that once a Biafra is actualised, he wouldn't even be anywhere near Lagos. I was quite frankly amused. What makes him think he would be any better than a bus driver in Biafra? Does he think that he would magically become a senator or an industry captain in Biafra, just because he's an Igbo man? And it became obvious to me that a fair number of those calling for Biafra are disillusioned with the current state of Nigeria and fantasize about instead being citizens of a country that actually works and the most realistic chance of that happening for most is Biafra. They forget that there is no assurance that Biafra would be a better country than Nigeria. Isn't it funny that most Igbos who have become citizens of other countries aren't/have stopped clamouring for Biafra? It's largely because their personal fantasy of not being citizens of an underdeveloped, corruption-ridden country has been realised - thus no more need for Biafra. If they were so personally invested in the Biafra project, don't you think they would be here, fighting the cause instead of taking up foreign nationalities and going silent?

This is just the first part. I would outline them all out but I really need to get some sleep. I'm not saying that the call for a Biafra is invalid, so those that think I'm just opposing their views or plans should not get me wrong. I am just saying that with the way things are right now and with the fact that we haven't really considered the implications of a sudden split, a Biafra would just not work right now.

https://anigerianrealist./2017/04/21/why-i-think-a-biafra-may-not-work-at-least-not-right-now/

kmariko:
Am afraid sir, am still confused..."a failed Biafra" I thought that Biafra is still a concept yet you allude failure to it!!!. At the same time you have failed to tell us the mentality of successful nation's or countries that lead to their success...

The very basic assumption from your treatise is that since my parents are thieves it follows that I will never be anything but a thief as am incapable from learning from the smart kid down the block.

Secondly you seemly created a group-think that is uniquely Nigerian, that was keyed in by everyone,..If that's the case why then have multitude of divisions within the "failed Nigerian state".

Third, you have failed to let us your readers know what a successful nation is, examples there of, what made them successful and why " failed biafra" is incapable of learning from them.

kettykings:
if Biafra is an escapist fantasy of disillusioned igbo biafrans then i beg you what is Nigeria, to describe nigeria as a huge tragedy

this is the only country in the whole wide world that gave away its only oil rich peninsular to a smaller neighbour leaving the indigenes of the peninsular as abandoned refugees in an IDP.

Cursed is anybody who will advocate for the palestinian state, advocate for the south sahara state ,push for the emergence of scotland , supported and signed away Bakassi peninsular ,but fight against Biafra and support the killing of unarmed protesters. May God in his wisdom restrict such a person to the deepest part of hell fire , may the person die a thousand times for chronic disllusionment

kmariko:
Am afraid sir, am still confused..."a failed Biafra" I thought that Biafra is still a concept yet you allude failure to it!!!. At the same time you have failed to tell us the mentality of successful nation's or countries that lead to their success...

The very basic assumption from your treatise is that since my parents are thieves it follows that I will never be anything but a thief as am incapable from learning from the smart kid down the block.

Secondly you seemly created a group-think that is uniquely Nigerian, that was keyed in by everyone,..If that's the case why then have multitude of divisions within the "failed Nigerian state".

Third, you have failed to let us your readers know what a successful nation is, examples there of, what made them successful and why " failed biafra" is incapable of learning from them.

kettykings:
if Biafra is an escapist fantasy of disillusioned igbo biafrans then i beg you what is Nigeria, to describe nigeria as a huge tragedy

this is the only country in the whole wide world that gave away its only oil rich peninsular to a smaller neighbour leaving the indigenes of the peninsular as abandoned refugees in an IDP.

Cursed is anybody who will advocate for the palestinian state, advocate for the south sahara state ,push for the emergence of scotland , supported and signed away Bakassi peninsular ,but fight against Biafra and support the killing of unarmed protesters. May God in his wisdom restrict such a person to the deepest part of hell fire , may the person die a thousand times for chronic disllusionment

RosaConsidine:
As for what makes a successful nation, on one hand, it's not what this article is about and on the other, it is so,ething that is evident to anyone that bothers to observe. A successful nation is one where the people consistently strive to rise above their differences to achieve a common goal. As I've mentioned before, no nation of people is completely homogeneous. There will always be dividing factors. You want to split Nigeria along cultural lines? Even within the divisions, there are further subdivisions you can find - like religion, political ideology, language and dialect, even food and personal and individual tastes. In a successful country, these differences are played down and instead what we share are accentuated - common values that are aimed at creating a society that's beneficial to all citizens. What do we have in common in Nigeria? We all, regardless of tribe, religion and political affiliation, want a country that everything works, that social amenities are provided by the government, that cost of living is low and standard of living high. Being in a country where we just share language and culture won't give us that.

inkon:
Nothing wrong, nothing at all, just that it also requires some streaks of professionalism to get it right which one can barely find in your article

kmariko:
I apologise for repeating this quote...
If you don't mind going through this particular paragraph​ of your writing you will notice
1. Your are mixing up values systems with mere physical yearnings
2. You on one hand defined successful nation's or countries as having common goals and on the other hand insisting that Common language, culture cannot give that. Where then are common value systems derived if not from culture.
3. You inferred that what Nigerians want are merely, the provision of social amenities, where everything works, and not common , goals and values,....Is it not a bit confusing...So Nigerians, dont need to play down on the religious bit, subsume themselves in a yet to be created culture and discard their inherent millennia culturally tested values..

Now you see why it is necessary to give us an example or two of a successful nation which will serve as a base of reference on your assertions on Nigeria and it's derivatives

RosaConsidine:
Yhhhh, first off blogging doesn't require professionalism. A blog is just like a diary where you write and share your personal thoughts or whatever else you wish to write. Sure, people have turned blogging into a moneymaking venture in recent times - fair f*cks to them. I'm not claiming to be a journalist, which requires professionalism. As a blogger, I can be partisan, biased or anything else because it's basically MY thoughts, not a documentation of universal truths. So if you're looking for professionals, read The Guardian or Vanguard or The Sun because they are supposed to be journalists.

inkon:
If your own purpose of blogging is this, fine. But you will agree with me that that moment when money got involved in blogging did blogging hop away from the arena of anything-can-go. And remember I said "some streaks of professionalism" - let that ring a bell. It's so because anything worth doing is worth doing well. And if it is not about the money, I'll question the essence of the link attached to your write up. It is up to you to be biased or not, I've no problem with that, personally. But does it occur to you that certain furtive utterances against the legitimized aspiration of a people can be considered offensive, especially when such utterance came with a not-well-hidden malicious intent?

inkon:
Can you explain what you mean by needing population to kick start your technology?

shadeyinka:
Whatever technology we develop now will be crude compared with imported versions.

You need a large internal market to allow profit for indigenous industries while they develop and perfect their productions.

It is easier to set up a local tire factory in Nigeria and make profit than doing the same in Togo or Gabon simply because of market size.(I assume our tires are not as good as imported options)

RosaConsidine:
Right now, I am not in support of Biafra because we the Igbo people have not done the required minimum to show we are willing to create a country that will work. Using an analogy, one quite familiar to Ndiigbo, before an apprentice can be put in charge of his master's shop, he has to show that he can manage it well while tge master is around. As "apprentices", we have failed to show ourselves worthy in managing the resources we have available to us in our own corner of the Nigerian "shop". If anything, we are equally complicit in the failure of the Nigerian project. You think it's just people on the other side of the Niger that are corrupt? Have we looked at our own regional leaders? What have they done to create a land of equal opportunities for Igbo men and women? How have they (and we) managed the resources at our disposal. I ma mmadu permeates Igboland just like it does the whole country. Why do we think that would suddenly change with Biafra?

Before we can call for Biafra, we have to show ourselves as essentially distinct from other Nigerians because right now, all that differentiates us from the others is our language. We engage in corrupt practices like the rest of them, we don't hold our leaders accountable like the rest of them. Everyday we prove ourselves to be as Nigerian as the Hausa or Yoruba man. First we need a change of mindset, a change of approach to governance, government and society, we need a unifying ideology of what it would mean to be Biafran - not the various contradictory ideologies being floated by different pro-Biafra groups. We need to plan for the country we want to have because failure to plan first is basically just putting the cart before the horse.

RosaConsidine:
2) "BIAFRANS" ARE STILL, ESSENTIALLY, NIGERIANS: At times I hear people talk about Nigeria and Biafra like we across the Niger act differently from those on the other side. Igbo people act just like every other Nigerian. We celebrate riches even if the rich person is extremely mediocre at the expense of true skill and achievement. We are corrupt just like every other Nigerian. We like to cut corners same as our fellow Nigerians. We do not actively engage our government to keep it accountable - just like all Nigerians. Why do we suddenly think that with a Biafra, all these traits would disappear and we would be patriotic, united Biafrans. The fact is that whatever problems Nigeria is facing would definitely creep into Biafra because we Igbo people still have this essentially "Nigerian" mindset. If we have shown ourselves to be entirely uniquely different from other Nigerians, then I would say we legitimately have a case for our own country - but that's not the case. We are the same as everyone else. Being Igbo does not make us magically better than the Hausas, Yorubas, Fulanis and other tribes that make up this entity called Nigeria. We have Igbos who have made a name for themselves in their various fields and are trailblazers. You know what? There are also Yorubas and Hausas and people from all the other tribes that are equally distinguished in their field so those making the argument that we Igbos are better than the other tribes need to come up with a better argument. And that brings me to my next point:


3: WE HAVE BASICALLY NOT DONE BETTER IN OUR REGION: For the Christians; remember the parable of the talents - where the master said "because you have been prudent with little, I will set you over much more"? Well, Ndigbo, let's present our report card: what have we done with what we have been given? It is funny how some people are insistent on blaming "marginalisation" for the current state of Igboland. Is it people from other tribes that have been our leaders since the return to civilian rule? Isn't it our fellow Igbo men and women who have occupied offices in our state and local governments and represented us at the state and national assemblies? What have they done for us? What have we done for ourselves? We would have a solid argument for our country if we had transformed it into a hub of innovation, creativity and productivity. But instead, we choose to blame the federal government year in, year out for marginalising us when it is our very own regional leaders that are looting us dry. You see a state government road in an utter state of disrepair and the governor would be crying for federal intervention. For what again? What have our state governors and state houses of assembly done to provide affordable health care, clean water, affordable and quality education, affordable housing, a good intra-state transport system and all the other amenities that are their primary responsibilities? Nothing! But ask them why and the next thing you hear is marginalisation. Who is marginalising who? As far as I know, the South Eastern states aren't being denied Federal allocations. Neither are we denied representation at the houses of assembly. Nor are we denied leaders from amongst themselves to lead us at state and local levels. These three alone should be enough for any people that are committed to building a productive and rewarding society for themselves. But we haven't done anything with them. What makes us think we would fare better on our own when in our small way, we can't take care of our responsibilities. Come on!

https://anigerianrealist./2017/04/21/why-i-think-a-biafra-may-not-work-at-least-not-right-now/

agaba77:
stop saying "we" you are not igbo, have to courage to be yourself.

RosaConsidine:
I'll give you two; the USA and Switzerland. Basically, the US is a melting pot of various cultures, nationalities, religions and ideas. You know what has made the US work so far? It's the people (at least by an large) rising above their backgrounds and differences to "be American" and work towards the American dream. America is beginning to face it's current challenges because people are beginning to accentuate and play up differences. Funnily enough, Canada has recognized that it was America's united diversity that has made it so great and Canada is beginning to copy the American model. Switzerland is made up of four major regions and has four official languages - German, Italian, French and Romanish. In spite of these difference in language and culture, they all share a common ideology and values. Switzerland is proof that people with different cultures and languages can work together to create one successful country - a lesson we seem to find impossible to learn in Nigeria.

kmariko:
Good let's take America as in USA as an example..
Based on your previous ingredients of what makes a nation....common values, culture and goal ( unity of purpose)..
America is factually not a multicultural society ...Depending on ones definition...
Here's why I think not
In the 40s when America was most dominant with over 40 percent of world products, and production with a population of 132 million of which 89.8% were white Anglo...Culture.. WASP... Religion over 90 % christianity..Unity of purpose...Dominant power with Monroe doctrine firmly in place...
In other words USA was never like Nigeria. Where major ethnic groups with diverse culture, religion, goals and aspirations are at each other's neck..

American and americans purpose till date has been well defined for even would be immigrants on the cultural ethnics of the white dominant Christian populace period... Today white population is still dominant at 77%. More than 89% Christian.. Ultimately the culture is still white dominated Christian Culture.

Third every cultural group irrespective where they are found is all about the survival of their specie ..Think Darwin..It is this survival that derives progress...not absence of corruption, or fathom political will... Trump rise is an expression of this phenomenon where the dominant ethnic group is questioning there own survival..

This is the very reason that gave rise to this Biafra phenom...The igbos in particular are questioning their own ability to survive in the presently structured Nigerian....They feared being subsumed in an alien culture of Islam that they believe (whether real or not) is genocidal for their well being.

That brings us to Switzerland...The major ethnic groups their share essentially the said culture, religion, food, but the major difference is in the language​ which each jealously guard...As a loss of language is seen as a loss of their existence..Now they evolved a system that protects and alleviate these fears, where it does not depend on the phantom political or social wills but the actual fears and survival or each of their ethnic groups.

Thanks

RosaConsidine:
I'll give you two; the USA and Switzerland. Basically, the US is a melting pot of various cultures, nationalities, religions and ideas. You know what has made the US work so far? It's the people (at least by an large) rising above their backgrounds and differences to "be American" and work towards the American dream. America is beginning to face it's current challenges because people are beginning to accentuate and play up differences. Funnily enough, Canada has recognized that it was America's united diversity that has made it so great and Canada is beginning to copy the American model. Switzerland is made up of four major regions and has four official languages - German, Italian, French and Romanish. In spite of these difference in language and culture, they all share a common ideology and values. Switzerland is proof that people with different cultures and languages can work together to create one successful country - a lesson we seem to find impossible to learn in Nigeria.

RosaConsidine:
Exactly. Now an offshoot of my argument is that we can create such a society where we are diverse and yet united. It's not an impossibility. Now my article addressed Biafra but I still have an article in the works that addresses all the tribes within Nigeria, our failings and what values we need to adopt to make this country work. America may be predominantly white, but even amongst the white population it is rare to find pure bloodlines. Most of the white people in America are of mixed English, Irish, Italian, German, Polish, Dutch, Spanish and even Russian descent. And it's not like they are ignorant of their roots - they know. But they don't identify as Irish-American or Scottish-American, or Italian-American. They identify primarily as American. Their ancestry is just a side bonus.

kmariko:
Exactly What?...My point is that no modern society was ever created through a diverse ethnic group as Nigeria..America I premised is not a diverse society..The different white groups came into an already defined dominant Anglo group with similar cultural values, religion..They subsumed themselves into this group as white as against other different racial group as classified in their society....Irish, German, poles, etc, see themselves as white and strive to imbibe the cultural values already set by the anglos to make themselves less ethnic and culturally uniform.

So in all we cannot compare Nigeria to USA as we have natively ethnic cultural norms that is increasing entrenched and protected by each group..

Nigeria as per your definition would not become successful as it does not have the values that make a nation successful.

kmariko:
Exactly What?...My point is that no modern society was ever created through a diverse ethnic group as Nigeria..America I premised is not a diverse society..The different white groups came into an already defined dominant Anglo group with similar cultural values, religion..They subsumed themselves into this group as white as against other different racial group as classified in their society....Irish, German, poles, etc, see themselves as white and strive to imbibe the cultural values already set by the anglos to make themselves less ethnic and culturally uniform.

So in all we cannot compare Nigeria to USA as we have natively ethnic cultural norms that is increasing entrenched and protected by each group..

Nigeria as per your definition would not become successful as it does not have the values that make a nation successful.

MrMaestro:
What does that have to do with the success of nigeria? You do know that Nigeria is the most economically successful country in africa? If ethnic differences is the main hindrance to that, south sudan would be the richest place and most successful place in the world. Switzerland wouldn't be as successful as they are, and Nigeria wouldn't be were it is today. In comparing Nigeria, ghana, kenya, and other african countries that have multiple tribes, to countries that have a singular major tribe, it is quite clear that countries that have multiple ethnic groups are the ones that are performing the best.

RosaConsidine:
Thank you! I don't know where this assertion that once there are different tribs living in one country, the country will suffer comes from. It's just the blame game the leaders sell to the people and the people buy it whole-heartedly.

RosaConsidine:
Having and retaining these cultural norms and working together to build a successful, developed nation are not mutually exclusive. These cultural norms are not what develops a nation, else Igboland would be a paradise right now since according to fellow Igbos, our culture and tradition just naturally makes us better than other tribes. But in real life, we can see that is not the case because Igboland is as lacking in infrastructure and basic social amenities as the rest of Nigeria. A different poster asked why Lagos has to be developed and not, say Enugu or Owerri. Well, each region has their own developed points while the rest suffer underdevelopment. Abuja is for North, Lagos for the South West and Port Harcourt for the South East/South South. Outside these places, most other places in the respective geopolitical zones are far behind as far as development and infrastructure are concerned. In essence, we are not as different mentally from the rest of the country when it comes to nation building. All these "other regions are holding us back" stories is basically us just passing the buck and refusing to take blame for our own individual failures.

Do the South Eastern and South Southern states get allocations? What have the governors and local government chairmen done with them? What kind of representation are we getting from our senator and representatives and how much different is it from what people in other regions are getting?

kmariko:
There seems to be a bit of dissonance in your current post...At first you seem to agree that cultural norms and values is what gives for a successful nation , now you are against it..Which is it.

Coming to igbos or other ethnic group in Nigeria for that matter their norms, values and practices cannot be divorced from the confining and restrictive nature of the space..In this case Nigeria where they find themselves..isnt it the restive nature of the state that the whole wahala is all about..

Differing ethnic groups can not function within a confining space and contribute to it's development where there is mutual suspicion and perceived persecution...This is real life and human nature not mere Utopia..It's not about elites or no elites it is simply the nature of "man" ( woman included).

On the political side, if in your contention that Nigeria is "failed" how come we are talking about representatives as if they are not part of the failure of the structure that failed...A "failed" stated , produces a failed product, a failed representative through a failed process..Votes..
Are the so called governor's, senators, etc elected through the rigours of an election or merely "appointed " by the "failed Nigerian state"

RosaConsidine:
4) BUT IGBOS ARE SECOND CLASS CITIZENS! NO - ALL COMMON NIGERIANS ARE SECOND CLASS CITIZENS: I have heard this line by so many people clamouring for Biafra: "Igbos are treated as second-class citizens in our own country. We aren't respected or given positions of authority or management just because of our tribe. Why should we stay in a country where we are not equal to every other person?". This is patently not true. You know what determines how you are treated in this country? How rich you are, your connections and how well you can ingratiate yourself with whoever you are dealing with. An Igbo man with connections has as much opportunities as any other Nigerian citizen with connections - same as an ordinary Yoruba or Hausa man would be denied those opportunities if they don't have the right connections like an ordinary Igbo man. They say it like the elite in this country think "Oh, he has connections but he is Igbo. Let's deny him opportunities." Hah! If you have the right connect in this country, you can get anywhere and do anything regardless of your religion or tribe. The funny fact is that most of the people being treated as second-class citizens in Nigeria would still be treated as second class citizens in Biafra.

"So how come Igbos aren't appointed or elected into positions of power or influence?". Well that's my next point:
correction guy
are their governors ministerial nominees senators commissioners PAs SAs reps assembly men councillors and lga chairmen cheer and kings ,contractors northerners or westerners?
5) WE STILL DON'T SPEAK WITH ONE VOICE: It might interest you to know that while the IPOB is the current trending Biafra secession advocacy group right now, MASSOB still very much exists. Remember MASSOB, that was led by Ralph Uwazuruike who had his own fair share of run-ins with the Nigerian Government? That group still exists - and if you consider what both groups are clamouring for, you would find that getting a Biafra may be their only common ground. Asides that, they differ on ideology, method, approach and every other thing that would have made them more formidable as a united group. Wasn't there even a splinter IPOB group not too long ago with it's own leaders and agendas? The South Eastern part of Nigeria suffers "marginalisation" because we are so fragmented. The fact is that at the Nigerian table, there is only one slot for each region. Multiple slots would not be created for diverse groups from the same region. Even our politics tells this story of unhappy disunity. Before the formation of the APC, the South West was predominantly ACN led by Chief Bola Tinubu while the North was largely CPC under the leadership of current president Muhammadu Buhari. Both leaders realised that they had a better chance of unseating the PDP led previous government by merging and even expanding their reach in their respective regions - which is what they did and the rest is history. The South East? Till now, we are not even sure what party speaks for the South East: PDP? It's not like Igbos exactly got the juiciest of government appointments in the party. APGA? A party that has been on a downward spiral for quite some time now and is only clinging to life in Anambra state. The South East is the only region in Nigeria that has three different parties shared amongst the state governments - the other regions are either PDP or APC. This is indicative of a fractious region that struggles to speak with one voice so that it can be heard.

kingzizzy:
The is another misguided 'one Nigeria' apologist. It is funny how these people keep running in circles trying to justify why Lugard made them Nigerians.


if you are not Nigerians you will be something else
Only free or independent people make plans. You dont make plans while you are in bondage unless you know when you will be free. The only plan for Biafra at this time is freedom, there will be enough time to draw up a comprehensive blue print for Biafra later. for your mind
OK so you agitating for som'n for 56 years yet no plan and you want us to risk unnecessary bloodshed based on logistics



Biafrans are not Nigerians. Biafra means the rejection of Nigeria and what it stands for. The Nigerian way of reasoning and acting are some of the many negatives that Biafrans want to jettison which is why they agitate for a separate state. Biafrans are not Nigerians, if they were, they would not agitate for Biafra
which passport are you using
do you throw foolish parties same as all other triceratops not
do you steal like other tribes or not
is there poverty and zero infrastructure like others or not
don't kid yourself
you are as Nigerian as they come


You dont have to do basically better in your region to decide if you want to part of Nigeria or not. Scotland that is agitating to leave Britain has not done better than England. Baltic countries like Lithuania and Estonia were not doing better than Russia when they left the USSR. Nobody needs to be doing better to seek their freedom.

agreed but you need to do convince your slave drivers

Biafra is not just about Igbos. Igbo is just one tribe amongst many in Biafra. Most of these minorities will tell anyone who cares to listen that their Oil wealth has been stolen while they are marginalised. Marginalisation is as a result of Nigeria not been run equitably
in will be too funny to watch you and south south squabble over oil, marginalisation and power struggle if you ever secede (e no even fit happen as long as oyel is relevant




I have never seen any family, let alone people, who speak with one voice.

Biafra is not about speaking with one voice, it is about what the majority wants.

fact check
you are the minority. so too bad


As said before, Biafra is not an Igbo only thing, it never was. The last President of Biafra, General Philip Effiong, was not even an Igbo man. Biafra is no escapist illusion, it is a dream. A dream of forging a new existence away from the disasterously failed British colonial experiment called Nigeria. How can it be escapist for one to seek their God given right to self deternination, freedom and self rule? self determination no, that biafra will be better than Nigeria, no. How can it be escapist for one to seek to control their destiny? they are in control of their destiny, they just want oyel like everyone else Biafra is a dream you can say that again (pipe dream) [/b]and God willing,[b] (mowu de look am) it will become reality, again.