₦airaland Forum

ILIDEFI:
Can't you reply someone without using abusive words? Don't you have manners at all? Did you even have proper home training?

I only made my point in reference to what is presently on ground. If you guys are rejoicing that your language is very important in UK and are boasting that majority of blacks in London are Yorubas, yet you can't produce men and women who are capable of representing your numerous people in the parliament, then something is wrong. You have the largest population of Nigerians living in the UK, yet out of 4 Nigerian parliamentarians, none is from your tribe. Then there is little need to boast any further.

Don't tell me about the past cos it doesn't matter now. It's just like saying Yorubas are the most educated in Nigeria, since western education was first introduced in the West, yet your people's performance pale when compared to those of their counterparts from the south East and south south in JAMB, WAEC, NECO, Unity schools exams, and so forth.

Don't even mention Obj, cos he's a disgrace even to his family. If you want to talk about men of honour in the International scene, talk about men like Fmr Commonwealth Secretary General, Chief Emeka Anyaoku. Incase you don't know, he's also an Igbo man.

I am sorry but did you read where I said there were two Yorubas in the house of lords....Obj no matter what you think about him has surpassed any Nigerian dead or alive and he is ruling over world leaders as their chairman presently...no past here...About the education thing,evebody including yourself know that Yoruba are the most educated,they have the highest number of Universities, Profs,Lawyers,doctors etc...disregard the lead attainment lie cooked up by Jonathan...it is a blatant lie against reality just like the poverty lie which United nation body,UNDP disproved by saying it the way it is...most poverty stricken...NORTH followed by SOUTH EAST,SOUTH SOUTH and the least..SOUTH WEST...it is on NL.
.ciao...

ILIDEFI:
When they can't yet rule ordinary UK parliament. Out of the 4 Nigerians currently in the parliament, how many are Yorubas?

slowpoke,there were two Yoruba in the house of lords but your ppl are in the house of commons...Yoruba have ruled the world through Prof Bola Ajibola when he was made a temporary leader of the UNO and Yoruba is still ruling the world through your beautiful BABA...The Great Chief Obasanjo...Google it, waily...

Macelliot:
Yoruba refers to the Igbos as, Awon Omo Igbo while Igbos calls them, Ndi Ofe Mmanu.

No, Yorubas call Ibos OMO AJEYAN...

Please do not mind these Yoruba snakes. They are on every thread regarding Biafra. They are really scared about the prospect of losing oil from Niger delta. They will starve if that happens.

Con artists.

Just like they starved when there was no Oyel.,.by lending your progenitors who had been slaving under the Hausa/Fulani through the first slave/figurehead of Nigeria...NNAMDI AZIKIWE,money two times without blinking an eye...evidence that Yorubas can survive without OYEL...Do you have evidence that you can survive without OYEL?For your info,Ondo and Lagos have Oyel...

winniz:
Yoruba Idiott, it seems most of are simply brainless, quit whining over Biafra cos its a matter of time before the Zoo crumbles so you Slaves can go serve your Gambari masters.

Another deluded biafrown...planning to make the real successful Igbos as wretched as they are...

AnambraDota:
But Osun State is not in Biafra yet they need aid to survive.

But Osun is not poverty stricken like your Anambra so says UNDP...not paying salaries was a political gimmick...

SonOfEl:
mouth mouth mouth.......like an inflated balloon

Thought I was chatting with a discernible...an inflated balloon with mouths...you must be a disneyland character.FACE THE FACTS OF BEING WHAT YOU ARE,FOR THAT IS WHAT CHANGES WHAT YOU ARE...

SonOfEl:
since you have no point, you have resorted to rants and abuses.......we are to stay and excel, deal with it, rat shit.

No,I have not.I am only stating the obvious...you lot rant and beat your chests too much...and you have not gotten up to the achievements of the Yorubas if we start counting them on our fingers both physical and spiritual achievements...Yorubas are not known to be arrogant with their achievements but in recent times because of your ilk...they are joining the fray...most of your achievements are tied mostly to the South West here than anywhere else in the world...Have you ever wondered why even America needs people other than their citizens to develop and grow their economy with them?We need one another and we Yorubas know the importance of non-indigenes and we cherish them but when they try to poke their fingers into our mouths with their actions and utterances then the centre would not hold and things might fall apart...Stay and continue to excel as we continue to excel too...

SonOfEl:
...go to Lagos state website? o boy you are a real learner....many schools, houses for rent, hospitals, banks,importing/shipping port businesses, industries and nollywood/entertainment, as well as small and medium scale enterprises are owned and run by Igbos.... so your theory of 2*2 shop is sheer nonsense.

Delusional people...always claiming what they are not...result of poverty...dream on...no sin in dreaming but facts and realities take precedence...

SonOfEl:
really? tell that to a pig.....Igbo's run more commerce and trade here in Lagos than any other group, that is why your oba and the frog-eyed politician have sleepless nights because of us.....sorry o no kill yourself of envy abeg

Would a slavemaster envy his slave? Yoruba still controls your lives and shall continue to do that until you know that owning 2*2 shops is not the real commerce that gives Lagos that IGR that you always think you contribute so immensely to...go to the Lagos state website.... all the buying and selling by the Yoruba,Ibo,Hausa and others only amounts to 16% of Lagos IGR....

Segadem:
Mr man these statistics were compiled by united nation's multi dimensional poverty index, it is only in nairaland that Anambra can edge any south west states not in infrastructure, exposure, GDP etc.

southwest...always leading positively...

scholes0:
This is how the production of consumer goods in Nigeria looks like at the moment.
30% Lagos/Ogun produced (in Massive sprawling industrial estates spanning both states)
55% Imported
15% = Rest of Nigeria.....

You are wasting my precious time.. Dumbo.

Don't mind the illiterate...

wiseoneking:
Sorry for loosing out sir. I hope old age will allow you to get it next time. This white men sef.

It is still a great honour out of all the Poets of the world for Prof Soyinka to have gotten 90 nominations as against Armitage's 50.IT IS AN ATTESTATION OF BEING ONE OF THE GREATEST WRITERS IN THE WORLD...

letsbet:
And Mr, how does that change the fact that he was among the founding fathers of "cultism in nigeria institution". i never knew a damn thing dat cults do if not causing disasters and lost of lives.

Who introduced democracy for it to have k-leg in Nigeria?ALL HAD TO DO WITH INTENTION...

OREMUSSANCTUS:
I said it
D guy is not good
D only book he wrote is " d lion and d jewel"
And he's still bragging like one great scholar
Yellowbars shld learn from Achebe'z legacy

I am sorry to say this...but Achebe was a failure compared to Soyinka and he and some of his discernible and intelligjent kinsmen knew this...to get the NOBEL HONOUR is the eternal dream of every writer in the world...

ajbabs:
Mr Wole Soyinka (a retired University Professor) is only popular more in Nigeria only. Mr Soyinka books are overrated.

Illiterate...like father like son.So Nobel Prize that some people are crying to get is from your village...Soyinka continues to be the leader of all writers in Africa by virtue of scoring a vital lone goal-THE NOBEL PRIZE-The highest honour in the world.SOYINKA IS 81 AND DOES NOT NEED THIS iNFERIOR HONOUR BUT HE WAS NOMINATED AND BECAUSE THAT HONOUR IS ACTIVITY ORIENTED,A YOUNGER MAN WAS GIVEN THOUGH SOYINKA WAS NOMINATED BY 9O COMPARED TO ARMITAGE'S 50...

opiaoku:
That's why I will love to see all of them die in hunger

Aregbesola lesser evil? for starving those sentimental fools?


i guess you're from Ogun State that's why you choose Charm boy as moniker.

Hopless ritualistic tribe that deals on human parts yet most backward hunger infested tribe in Nigeria


cc

Barcanista

Wonders shall never end-amazingly amazing when Cannibals like you point accusing fingers at human beings even if they indulge in anything stupid...YOU AS CANNIBALS should continue to cry because those that you and your progenitors have eaten are waiting for you at the gates of hell...

Five years ago, when I was in my mid-30s, I opened my first adult savings account. I was attending a friend’s wedding in India and wanted to make sure I had enough money to go.

What I didn’t consider but later realized was that, at that time, I had $6,500 of credit card debt and $18,500 of student loan debt. Looking back, I can see that a more practical person would have said that going to India for three weeks might not be a prudent idea.

By the time I got back that August, the credit card balance had grown to $7,500. Panic gripped me. I had been in this situation before, in my 20s. The only difference was that, then, I had an okay excuse to fall into credit card debt: I was making very little money, and doing so irregularly. But this time around, I had a good, steady job, making decent money. I had nothing to blame but my own stupidity.

That September I took a workshop that, for the first time in my life, got me a budget. That step put me on the road to knocking out the credit card and student loan debt, saving up enough money to freelance, and then quitting and now earning more than I ever did in any full-time job — all in the span of four-and-a-half years.

If your bills give you anxiety and your debts are getting in the way of other dreams, it may be time for you to follow the path that I did. I’ve laid out a strategy based in both personal experience and my work as a personal finance journalist that will hopefully get you on the path to being debt-free.
(Simon Cunningham/Flickr)

(Simon Cunningham/Flickr)
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Don’t let a rotten economy spoil your goals. Use the career and money advice in The Millennial Game Plan to get and stay ahead for good.

1. Commit to getting out of debt.

This may seem like a throwaway tip, but it is one of the most important. Getting out of debt is hard. It takes maintaining discipline over a long period of time. It demands lifestyle changes. It also sometimes requires bucking peer pressure.

While you shouldn’t build a plan so austere that it would be impossible to stick to, you will have to make some tough choices. If you’re used to treating yourself to spa days or shopping sprees or wild nights out, you’re going to have to give up some of these tangible and expensive pleasures in order to obtain what right now seems like the abstract state of being debt-free. If you and your partner are collectively in debt, they’ll need to be on board as well. It’s not possible to do this on your own if your other half is still spending up a storm.

Before you embark on this journey that will last months, if not years, think about how sweet it will be to be debt-free and be able to pursue other dreams you have, whether it’s buying a house, taking big vacations every year, sending your children to college, or something else. If those goals are more important to you than nights out and wearing the latest styles, then you have the mindset to get out of debt.

For motivation, create a visual reminder of what you’re working toward, such as a photo of the kind of house you’d like to buy, or the destination you plan on hitting when you can afford it. Put the image in your wallet, on your computer — wherever you spend money — to remind yourself of what you’d really like to do with it.

2. In a spreadsheet, list all your debts, balances, interest rates and minimum payments — and find out the total of what you owe.

Both times I fell into debt, I didn’t know the total amount until I was pretty far along. Knowing the total will give you a rough sense of how long this might take. If you’re shocked by the number you see, just remind yourself that this is the highest the number will be. Within the next month, it will start to get smaller.

Knowing your minimum payments will help you budget, and having your interest rates will help you decide on your debt repayment strategy.

List your debts in order of highest-interest rate to lowest. Tally up your minimum payments so you know the minimum amount you need to put toward your credit cards every month.

Keep the list easily accessible and editable so you can refer back to it in the coming months.
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3. Try to make 0% balance transfers, get your APR lowered or refinance.

Now that you’re committed to paying down your debt, it would really help if it weren’t simultaneously increasing bit by bit. If you’re eligible for 0% balance transfers (you can search for credit cards on sites like Bankrate, Creditcards.com, Credit Karma, NerdWallet and others), see if it makes sense to transfer your credit card debt.

But beware the fine print. If the 0% offer only lasts six months, be sure you can pay that debt off within that timeframe. If not, you could end up paying higher interest than you were before — and it could even apply to the initial six-month period (look for the term “accrued interest” to see if this might happen). Also, calculate what the balance transfer fee is and make sure that even with the fee, you’ll still save money on the transfer.

If you’re not eligible for a 0% balance transfer or decide it doesn’t make sense for you, call your credit card company to see if you can negotiate the APR down. If your main debt is a mortgage, look into refinancing. And if it’s student loan debt, refinancing might make sense for you. If you have federal loans, be aware that they offer a lot of flexibility — you don’t want to later regret losing that. If you refinance a federal loan, you should be confident you have the financial capacity to pay it off. Also, if your desire to refinance your student loan debt comes from not being able to make your payments at all, refinancing won’t help you — your focus should be on not defaulting. (Work out a plan with your student loan provider.) If you decide refinancing might make sense for you, check out some of the new online lenders, such as CommonBond, Earnest, SoFi and Upstart, that have cropped up to help burdened graduates. Plus, also see if any credit unions available to you have appealing refi rates.

4. Start tracking your spending.

In order to pay down your debt, you’ll need to find ways to free up the money you already have. Knowing where your money goes will help you spot where you can cut expenses. A number of online resources such as LearnVest (disclosure: a former employer of mine) and Mint will pull the transactions from your financial accounts so you can start categorizing and seeing where to trim the fat.

Look for big expenses that don’t align with your priorities. If you’re surprised to see you spend $200 a month at Panera or Chipotle for work lunches, start packing PBJs. Also keep an eye out for expenses that you’re not utilizing — goodbye, gym membership! And note anything that was more expensive than it should have been, and get used to searching for coupon codes for online purchases and only shopping at in-store sales.

5. Do a first-pass at your budget.

Figure out your annual take-home pay — what hits your bank account after taxes and 401(k) retirement contributions. (If you receive a paycheck every other week, multiply the amount by 26, then divide by 12 to get the exact monthly figure.) Tally up your necessary expenses: housing, transportation (hold off on including discretionary cabs and ride shares for now), utilities and groceries. Try to come up with a reasonable amount for your monthly groceries that you can stick to and that isn’t so rich you’ll be filling your cart with fancy cheeses every week.

If the sum of your necessary expenses is greater than 50% of your take-home pay, it might be hard for you to pay off your debts in an expedient fashion. (If you have other necessary expenses like childcare, which allows you to work, then it’s fine to go over the 50% threshold.) Otherwise, if you’re exceeding the 50% mark, see if you can cut back on any of these necessary expenses in any way. Maybe your cell phone plan provides you with many more minutes than you need every month? If you are single, you may want to get a roommate to save on housing costs.

6. Work your debt and discretionary expenses into your budget.

Now, calculate what percentage of your take-home pay your minimum debt payments are. If your necessary expenses are 50% or less, aim to put 20% of your take-home income toward your debt. If your minimum payments are less than 20% (say they tally $300 but 20% of your take-home is $600), you’ll be able to put more than the minimum toward your debt each month.

Finally, see how much you have left to live on each month. From your monthly take-home, subtract your necessary expenses and your projected 20% debt payment. Divide the leftover by 4.33 to see how much you can spend each week. Is this enough to live on each week for your dining out, shopping, gym, entertainment, travel, gifts, cable, health and other costs?

If not, get the numbers to a ballpark range that feels doable, even if it means not hitting that 20% debt repayment goal. Expect that you’ll have to go through a period of trial and error before you find the exact plan for you. But make a decision, and head into the next step knowing what you’ll be paying toward your debt every month.

7. Start your debt-repayment plan.

Now that you have a monthly debt repayment target, go back to your debt spreadsheet. Pay the minimums on every debt except the highest-interest rate debt. Put the rest of your debt repayment money toward that debt every month until it’s gone. Afterward, cross it off the list and do the same for what is currently the second-highest interest rate debt. Continue like this down the list.

This method of repayment will ensure you pay the least interest. If that top debt has a huge balance and you’re worried your motivation will flag, then you can try the “snowball” method, in which you start with the smallest balance and then use the momentum from paying that off to continue on to the rest.

If you can, set up all the payments on auto-pay so you don’t have to worry about missing any of them one month.

8. Stick to your weekly allowance.

The only way you’ll be able to pay off your debt is if you don’t keep adding to it. This means being vigilant about living within your means.

Depending on your income and the cost of living in your city, this can be difficult unless you keep an eye on it. If you know you need to make a shift in your spending habits, try using cash. Take out your weekly allowance in cash each week and only let yourself spend that amount until it runs out. If your allowance week goes from Saturday to Friday, and you run out on Wednesday, then get creative for Thursday and Friday.

If you’d like to still use credit, beware the studies show that paying with plastic makes people more inclined to overspend. What I did was to keep using my credit card but log my expenses on a spreadsheet that noted my weekly allowance and automatically subtracted the amount I had leftover after I entered each expense. The surpluses could carry from week to week, and if I went over one week, then I would enter the next week knowing how much less I had to spend. I also liked that it allowed me to “plan” my spending. If I had a friend’s birthday dinner planned for three weeks ahead, I could enter an estimate for the cost of the dinner in advance and then start the week knowing I had that much less to spend that week.

You could also make sure you’re staying within your allowance with a budgeting app like LearnVest, Level Money, Mint or You Need a Budget. Be sure to enter cash transactions manually so you’re not inadvertently overspending. If you’d like some help in finding ways to put more money toward your debt, use Digit, which will, in the background, find ways to siphon some money out of your checking into a Digit savings account. You could then put the accumulation toward your debt payment every month.

9. Adapt to your new lifestyle.

Now that you’ve started on your plan, you need to learn what behaviors will support it. If you feel comfortable doing so, tell friends and family about your debt repayment goal so they understand why you’re suggesting more potlucks and Netflix nights. If a friend suggest an activity that will be difficult on your budget, look for good free or inexpensive alternatives.

Even for non-social activities like personal hobbies, look for ways to cut costs: If you dropped the gym, can you run outside, play tennis with a friend or join the city pools? In lieu of your yoga center membership, try one of the yoga websites that allow you to stream yoga classes online for a small fee each month. Instead of buying all the latest books, dust off your library card. If you’re paying a hefty fee for tons of cable channels you don’t watch, see if you can use cheaper online providers such as Hulu, Netflix and iTunes or buy an AppleTV to slake your thirst for TV.

As you continue to track your spending in your online tool, look for more ways to cut expenses. You might have forgotten about the annual fee on that credit card you barely use, or realize you can use Google Voice and Skype more often to cut back on your mobile phone plan. Or, maybe you realize that with advance planning, you can more cheaply stock up on household items by buying in bulk at Costco. To freshen up your wardrobe, browse good local thrift shops or hold clothing swaps with friends.

10. Earn more money, and put gifts and windfalls toward your debt.

Finally, one of the best ways to get out of debt — and what ended up being the crucial factor for me — is to earn more money. While cutting costs might free up a few hundred every month, a solid side gig could give you an extra $1,000 or more to put toward your debt. (In my case, I probably averaged an extra $2,000, which allowed me to reach my goals fairly quickly.) If you’re in a strong position at work, see if you can negotiate a raise. Don’t mention that the request stems from wanting to pay off your debt — make your argument based on your performance at work. (Learn here the ten mistakes not to make when requesting a raise.) But again, if this gives you another $500 to work with every month, you’ll be able to pay off that debt more quickly.

If, as you’ve been reading the cost-cutting suggestions, you have a sinking feeling you have no fat to cut from your budget, then earning more will be your ticket out of debt. If a raise isn’t on the table for you, let everyone in your network — from friends to family to former coworkers — know that you’re looking for freelance gigs. (Check out these 44 ideas for making more money.)

Put your gifts and windfalls to work as well. If you receive a large sum, put the vast majority, if not all of it, toward your debt. If your monthly debt payments are $600, and you receive a gift of $5,000, putting $4,800 of it toward your debt will get you to your goal a full eight months earlier.

Finally, every time you reach a debt repayment milestone, celebrate! Doing so will give you more motivation to keep going and help your progress feel tangible. Don’t be afraid to splurge, as long as it is on an expense that you’ll really savor and that won’t take you too far off your goals.

Good luck, and congratulations to getting on the road to being debt-free.

Will somebody tell me what chop knuckles mean..

Amidst claims by Nigerian security agencies that they are being underfunded, PREMIUM TIMES can authoritatively report today that a total N4.62trillion has been allocated to the federal security sector in the past five years.

How this huge sum was spent however remains unclear as there is no reliable performance report by the security agencies.

Year after year, the security sector continues to gulp the highest chunk of the country’s expenditures.

In the 2015 budget for instance, N934billion was allocated for the security sector, the highest for the year.

The figures for 2011 and 2012 were N920billion and N924billion respectively while N923billion each was thrown at the sector in 2013 and 2014.

Yet, Nigeria continues to face attacks from the extremist Boko Haram group, whose activities have claimed over 11,000 lives in last five years.

Kidnappings, crude oil theft, armed robbery and other sundry crimes are also widespread across the country.

The heads of the country’s security agencies have repeatedly claimed allocations to the sector were insufficient to equip the armed forces and make them operationally efficient to deliver on their mandates.

Within the period under review (2011- 2015), the Office of the National Security Adviser got a capital allocation of N240billion while the Defence Ministry got N206billion making the capital allocations to the Office of the National Security Adviser higher than that allocated to the entire Defence Ministry, which includes the Army, Navy and Airforce.

In recent years, the Ministry of Defence has refused to make its spending public, making it difficult to track the nation’s investment on the military and allied agencies.

Anti-corruption activists believe the practice of concealing security spending is antithetical to probity and accountability.

“The absence of disclosure, backed by law and practice effectively makes the security sector the most prone to contract inflation and ineffective service delivery,” said Seember Nyager, executive director of Public and Private Development Centre.

“The high risk and probability of contract inflation in itself fuels the (Boko Haram) insurgency because no amount of resources would ever be sufficient to contain a system with unchecked leaks.”

The Lead Partner at BudgIT, a transparency advocacy group, Oluseun Onigbinde, added, “It is very important to request accountability into these funds as Nigeria will need to ensure that process of arms acquisition which is grossly hidden does not lead to opportunity by public officials to acquire illicit wealth.”

The infographics below presents a detailed overview of Nigeria’s budgetary allocation to the security sector in the past five years.

.http://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/headlines/185285-nigeria-spends-n4-62-trillion-on-national-security-in-5-years-yet-widespread-insecurity-remains.html

zenith4biz:
Chop knuckle

What does that mean?