₦airaland Forum

Kkconsults:
oya use google, type his name on google and check latest update. Dey play, you think anywhere money is going out from and not coming in won’t finish right?

There's no such update. Someone that played in the Chinese league as recently as two years ago?

If you insist, post the update.

descarado:
Pull him down syndrome.
Insecurity. Our greatest competitor.

It's so annoying. This guy has played and left the scene years ago. Are we supposed to still be discussing his age or just wishing him well and remembering him for the bit he did to make us happy as Nigerians?

Kai.

KingAzubuike:
Don't mind them. He even looks younger than 41. He looks like a guy in his very late 30s.

Exactly! He looks just like a 38 - 43 year old.

Kingozymandias:
He looks 51. That is the problem with Nigerians football = age falsification

51 how?? Even without seeing his picture you would have made the same comment because your mind was programmed to make this comment even before you opened this thread.

You guys need to rest with this behavior. Unfaillingly once a Nigerian pro celebrates their birthday you people must make the same boring comments about their ages. Are you their parents? What is it??

Bliss52:
Maybe for transport and logistics but not air attack

.

It is essential for air attacks more than anything else.

The aviation corps was developed out of experience. When troops are engaging the enemy and need support, every second is valuable. It is necessary to be able to mobillise air support at a single order rather than having to coordinate with another service entirely.

Every modern military operates this way.

Bliss52:



I knew it was a gravely mistake allowing burutai buy fighter jets and helicopter


His claim was that, most times when ground troops need air support from Nigerian Air force, they take time to respond


Normal process is to give intelligence to Defense Headquarters, while Air force goes on Surveillance, before NSA approves air raid

Nigerian Police Force are also planning on Upgrading to attack helicopters


.

Mistakes happen. As unfortunate as it is. However it is imperative that the army has its own aviation capabiltiy.

Fujiyama:
^^^
You're probably right. But with all the problems Nigerians have to face everyday in this country, we have to add 'reading between the lines of airforce press statements' to the list?

In January 2017, the NAF carried out a 'kinetic strike' on an IDP camp in Rann, Borno State, leading to hundreds of civilian casualties. There were no consequences for those involved. In January 2023, the NAF conducted yet another kinetic strike on an IDP camp in Shiroro, Niger state - again leading to scores of civilian casualties. Again, there were no consequences for the military personnel involved.

There were other NAF bombing runs (Sakotutu village in Damboa, Borno...Kurebe village in Shiroro, Niger...Kunkuna village in Safana, Katsina etc) between 2020 and 2022 with scores of civilian casualties. Again, nobody was ever brought to book.

Some of these casualties were little kids (Kurebe incident) - and this is not to say any life is worth less than another. It just highlights the operational failures of Nigeria's military in bold relief.

We are waiting for an update on exactly what happened in Kaduna...but it will not make for easy listening.

Well yes, I see your point. The media should do more to follow up on issues like this.

The next car I buy will be Innoson.

Fujiyama:
^^^


If it wasn't the airforce then who was it? Hisbah?

Someone should correct me if I'm wrong but up till now, Nigerians have not been told how and why the NAF helicopter M171 crashed at Chukuba village over 3 months ago. There were casualties in that crash and there were also reports (never officially confirmed) that boko haram terrorists brought down the aircraft.

Not long after, videos appeared online supporting those reports. The military authorities promised a prompt investigation and a briefing on the cause of the crash. Again, someone should correct me if I am wrong but not a word has been heard from government since then. And now this? The Nigerian Airforce simply says it doesn't have a monopoly on the use of UAVs in Nigerian airspace - and the discussion is supposed to end right there

The Nigerian Army also operates drones and aircraft. That's most likely what they meant to say without saying.

EKONGKING:
So who are the others operating armed combat drones in ur airspace.

Is it Boko ,bandits or America operating armed drone in Nigeria air space.

A country airforce is saying there are others who are operating armed combat drones and they are not the ones who bombed the village.

Anyway Nigeria joins very unique club of countries who donot control their airspace the likes of Somalia,Syria and Afghanistan.

Afterall we are giants in everything negative .

Kudos to NAF for reassuring 5citizens of Nigeria

Nigerian Army Aviation Corps. You asked a question..next time wait for the answer before ranting.

NaughtyBrainiac:
I have said it all in one post but you are not an open-minded person. That's why you are still trying to argue.

This Guy does not have a special track record for him to deserve a Waiver. Or you want the people to seat and believe the lies he wants to tell them ?

Since he doesn't have any special track record like Dr. Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, he should learn the language or get the F**k

Then you dont get my point. My post has nothing to do with this man in particular. I was making a general point.

sterlingD:
l was going to ask is it not the work of EFCC ( correct me if l am wrong)

Definitely this is the domain of the efcc. They have the tools to actually investigate and charge appropriately. Any such arrest made by the police is a waste of time and a violation of the Constitution.

This is definitely not the work of the police. He is way out of line...so what will they be charged with in line with the laws of the land?

NzogbuNzogbu:
you are just talking off

We don't doubt his value o, but he doesn't understand the local necessities of the people

Its even worst the gov is the imposing him not that he really desired governance

He is out of touch with the people, so the value already has disconnect to what edo value

I'm actually not defending this particular guy. I don't know him and assume he is just another politician.

It's the general idea that if you cant speak your local language you lose the right to represent your people that I have an issue with. As as a full grown man I have to start learning my language from ABC?

Racoon:
Lame damage control. So why did he agree to go there and with a large retinue of delegates for that matter? After all the druggie once said that climate change is not Nigeria's wahala? Always failing with explanation being made by stooges.

The source later told TheCable that the meeting never took place so the president left for his hotel room and returned at night to sign an agreement with Olaf Scholz, Chancellor of Germany, aimed at expanding Nigeria’s grid capacity and boosting electricity supply in the country.

Like him or hate him, BAT seems to be big on FDI.

tesppidd:
Coincidentally he is always meeting only APC politicians.

Do other party politicians run when they sight him or what?

Hasn't APC been the ruling government for the past 9 years? As CJ, it's only natural your closest relationships will be with whoever is in the executive and by extension, their party members.

However, the optics of this particular photo are not great... not necessarily because of who he is meeting but because of the event. A CJ has no business at a fundraiser.

sweetgala:
Identity can be very important in real leadership where the important element previously missing is servitude to the people their desires and needs.

There has been a disconnect between governance and the people at the local most basic levels.
This kind of governor would be ignorant of the realities, history and peculiarities of the people, he is doomed to fail before he even starts

What if he makes an effort to reconnect but falls short at the language barrier, will that still be viewed as not being enough? This issue is particularly touching for me as a person who cannot speak his mother tongue simply because I was not raised in that way nor exposed to that culture by the decisions of my parents. Does that mean I have no value to my people whom I cherish??

Procashtips:
Was he born and bred abroad?

Another twisting I just mentioned.

We are talking about principles here. But even at that, I've read he was raised in Ibadan so yes, he was not exposed to his indigenous land. The question is will you reject the value a person has to offer simply because they don't speak the language?

It's actually a yes or no question.

If someone comes to build a hospital for you as one of your sons based in another place, will you say no, you can't speak the language so you are not worthy?

Yes or no?

Fujiyama:
^^^
And that is why he will fail.

The majority of Nigerians are not blind and deaf. They can see and hear what's going on and they can see the hypocrisy in the "do as I say but not as I do" philosophy of the BAT government...a blatant hypocrisy that will be its undoing. In the end, the only question that matters to most Nigerians is this: are you better off under BAT than you were under previous governments?

I leave you to answer that question.



^^^


I engaged you because of the solid logic in your earlier posts where you questioned the premise of another poster's argument, although I disagree with your premise as well. You made your point in those posts with a clarity that simply isn't very common here. Which...of course makes your view above all the more painful to read.

I have said this so many times I have lost count: Peter Obi isn't the president...but Bola Tinubu is. It is Bola Tinubu who has a contract with Nigeria - not Peter Obi. We don't have time for this!! Those who have BAT's ear should tell him the truth: his administration is doing a very poor job - and constantly bringing Peter Obi into the mix is an annoying distraction. Bola Tinubu has spent half of one year on the job. This is exactly the same way Buhari thought he had an eternity to deliver - and in his retirement today he has been reduced to vacuous excuses for why he failed. Bola Tinubu is heading in the same direction.





Voters don't elect a politician to high office so that he can have the time of his life. They elect him to solve problems. BAT obviously didn't get that memo. But he will.

In due course.



^^^
I haven't sought to constantly undermine BAT's government and I don't know anyone who has...maybe because the man and his team are doing a fine job of that all by themselves. Your second sentence is clear proof that this government is its own worst enemy - it has been blinded by greed and powerlust to the point where it is harming its own long term interests. A party chieftain in this country once boasted that his party would rule for 60 years. Where are he and his party today?



^^^
We are so far behind that getting to point 'B' isn't going to be nearly enough. This country needs to get to point 'M' today and it needs to do it fast. If BAT can't take us there then he needs to move out of the way for someone who can.

You've misinterpreted some portion of my post - You previously referred to me as a government defender and I thought it important to clarify my position, so I brought in other politicians like Obi simply to make the point that defending the government on specific actions like removing fuel subsidies or even defending Tinubu on specific issues like the question of certificate forgery doesn't mean one is a pro-government activist as you alluded to in your previous post. We can take fluid positions for and against specific issues without being defined by either side. It was really more of an aside and it wasn't meant to be a comparison of PO and BAT. It's actually the least relevant part of my post so no need to bother with it too much.

We can agree that the government is not doing well at the moment, however, I think the question of whether we are better off today than under Buhari and by default others before him, is premature. This government has done some things I think were right. Removing subsidies is one of them - but the bigger test is not in removing subsidies but in what comes after. I.e will the savings be spent responsibly?

So far, we can agree that the immediate aftermath has been a self-indulgent fattening of the political class. So for me it is 50 marks for good policy, and minus 50 marks for fiscal irresponsibility. That takes us back to square one.

But having said that, for me there are a few critical KPIs that will determine whether this government has failed:

1. Whether or not all the promised refineries are up and running by end of 2024 - this includes both the public and private sector refineries
2. Whether we are able to attract genuine FDI
3. Whether we make genuine progress in the area of insecurity - which for me will be marked by the ability of farmers to return to the farms

I'm not expecting to see progress on these within 6 months but at least by end of December if at least one refinery is working then that would be another 50 marks for the old man.

NzogbuNzogbu:
but it is very important in our system of govt

That's how obaseki couldn't speak bini was forced by oshomole from Lagos and we saw the mass disconnect in his govt

He was talking abt muo instead of knowing the problem of roads and unmemployment

Bro the ones that speak fluently, have they improved the lives of the people?

Procashtips:
No one is saying language is a test of leadership,but when it comes to representing anyone, you must understand and align with those you represent.

I wonder why you lot love to twist things.

This is how some of you vote for chairmen that do not live nor understand what's going on in your LG to run your LG

So if a true son of your place, born and bred abroad comes back home to deliver his expertise, you will say no, go back because you don't understand the local language?

Who is really twisting things?

Ttipsy:
We need govt refinery

No, we don't. Govt' has no business running refineries. At the same time, what we need are local private investors not foreign investors for a critical sector like this where most of the funds will be repatriated.

Obakoolex:

Don't lie to yourself bro, in Africa it is...no one will vote for you or believe in your leadership if you can't address them in the lauguage they understand....na why deaf and dump no dey rule

That is the way things are. I am saying it is time we change those ways of thinking.

NaughtyBrainiac:
I totally disagree with you.

I don't know why most of you people are not deep and thorough in your analysis. This is the same reason people see signals that look like red flags before marriage but they are not wise enough to spot them.

For him not to be able to speak his local language speaks volume about him. Unfortunately, many of you cannot read between the lines.

People don't pick political ambition overnight, do they? What stopped him from taking one or two years to live and interact with his people to learn the language?

You said language is not a true test of Leadership. You are wrong in this case sir/ma. Learning that language is the beginning of true Leadership and having genuine interest of the people at heart.

On a final note, who is he to be given such waiver of Language?
What special things has he achieved?

Only individuals with very formidable track record of performance maybe considered for such waiver privilege.

Don't you know you just proved my point?? Instead of asking whether he can speak your language, ask, rather:

Who are you?
What have you done?
What can you do?
Why do you want to lead us?

The ones that speak your language so fluently how far?

You also suggesting that someone at that level should leave all he is doing to go and live somewhere to learn a language at 40 something. Is that the deep analysis you were talking about? lol. Go and sit down abeg.

Procashtips:
This one don fail already.

You can't speak the language of your people, yet you want to represent them.

Language is not a true test of leadership. We must not major in the minor always!

I don't know if this kind of thread really has any value on the front page unless Nairaland actually benefits from the tribal warfare. And if you must promote this kind of thing at least add the original message Reno was replying to so that readers have some context.

Fujiyama:
^^^


So...its now a question of relative magnitude of fuel subsidy...versus "one off expenses"?

Interesting that in this back and forth over subsidies - whenever waste in government is exposed and/or challenged, the response by the pro-government team is that "the waste is miniscule relative to fuel subsidies"...or "it is a one-off expense compared to fuel subsidies". Well...if we add up all these "one-off" expenses (federal contingent to COP 28, federal delegation to UNGA, presidential yachts, renovation of the presidential and vice presidential palaces, official vehicles for the First Lady's office, official vehicles for lawmakers etc.) that pervade public expenditure in Nigeria...these one "one-offs" don't look so miniscule anymore.

Since we are going empirical, I would suggest you do the numbers on "one-offs" for this year and the last...so that we know exactly how much this country has lost to these "one-off expenses". Good luck with that, sir. There's a reason why the numbers (N560 billion monthly) on fuel subsidy are readily available...and the numbers on wasteful federal government spending are not.

The point that needs to be made here is that Nigerians are being taken for a ride - and some of us know it. Something isn't adding up when Mr. Wazobia can't afford to buy fuel for his motorcycle...and he hears that the president's son flew in an official aircraft (using free fuel!) to Kano to watch a polo tournament. Something isn't making sense when Miss Egokudiowo can't afford to buy food...and she hears that the federal government sponsored hundreds of delegates to a climate change conference in the UAE.

Some of us predicted these blunders and missteps because we knew. We knew that BAT belongs to the "rules for thee but not for me" school. The failure of his administration is inevitable.

I don't disagree on some of your core points. Of course, there is a "one rule for you and another for me" mentality that is apparent. BAT has never been the kind of altruistic politician to do otherwise but that has never been a genuine contention. Why? Because the same is true for all the other major candidates. So to me, this is a moot point. Peter Obi is often touted as the "good" guy but I think that is just his PR approach to politics,

Being a fringe politician in terms of national politics in his run-up to the presidency would have known that he could not afford to be as brazen about his corruption as the others so he was more careful and covered his tracks but ultimately, as with most misdeeds, he's eventually been exposed. I'm sure you know of the accusations of money laundering, foreign accounts and all that so no need to get into here.

With this as a premise, the only question for me is, can this person who is simultaneously having the time of their life also work and make things better for Nigerians? Of BAT and Obi we could have answered in the affirmative to varying degrees. Atiku on paper had better policies but is actually a deceptive character.

So all along I have said I am for Sowore but I don't mind if any of the three get into office. Now that BAT has made it there is no point constantly seeking to undermine his government. This can be easily mistaken for being a pro-government stance. Nope! It is a pro-Nigeria stance, and occasionally, anti-Obidient (not Obi particularly), and so I have no problem agreeing with you that indeed this government is alarmingly fiscally irresponsible at a time when the common man is being asked to tighten his belt.

Does that mean they will eventually fail to at least move Nigeria from point A to B in some ways? I wouldn't agree with that assessment.

IGBOSON1:
Not surprised this thread didn't get past page one and has just a handful of comments, as it doesn't say what anti-Igbo bigots want to read! Those who would have driven this thread to ten pages with inane arguments and back-and-forth are presently camped on the anti-Igbo Reno threads arguing which ethnicity put on pant first during the colonial era; a more topical issue!

You have not added any value to this thread, rather complaining that no one is here to fight with you. What is your own take?

MadamExcellency:
Check the links, these are different occasions

Nigeria security forces 'killed 150 peaceful pro-Biafra protesters'

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-38087836

Nigerian security forces kill more than 100 in crackdown, says Amnesty International

https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/international/africa/1628163334-over-one-hundred-killed-by-nigerian-security-forces-in-crackdown-says-amnesty-international

This does not tell us whether it was the police or the army or the airforce or the navy or the NSCDC that is being referred to. But even in the BBC link you shared it is obviously only the army that is explicitly directly accused of shooting protesters.

I guess you don't get my point here. I am replying a poster who justified the killings of policemen because security forces fired on protesters. And I am saying why retaliate on the police who never fired are protesters?

wirinet:
Since you understand the subsidy regime better than me and most Nigerians, can you explain how it worked? What happened to the crude oil swap regime that had been in place for decades before this government stopped it when it came to power?


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alqv_4RVBhs?si=UJcILk9qXxoEoRD0

How was it that the NNPC was paying for petrol, paying N160 billion monthly for subsidies and at the same time in a crude oil swap agreement with refineries abroad, whereby NNPC gives them crude and they give us refined petroleum products in return and keep the condensates and other byproducts as payment.

What does any of this have to do with what i posted?

wirinet:
Nigeria cannot afford it, but Nigeria can afford to pay our legislators the highest salaries and emoluments in the world. Nigeria cannot afford it, but can afford to buy a car worth N160 million for each legislature, Nigeria cannot afford it, but can afford to afford to renovate the presidential and vice presidential Lodge for N7 billion. Nigeria cannot afford it, but it can continue to expend over 70% of our budget (mostly borrowed) on a few civil servants and politicians, while the remaining 30% that was to be spent on the rest of us is still stolen.
Maybe you are one of the very few elite gaining from the corrupt system.

My comment is best understood in the context of what I was replying to. I never argued that it was right or wrong - I merely challenged a core premise of that person's argument. That does not necessarily mean the conclusion is wrong, but he has to adjust his workings first.

It is important to comprehend before you argue though I know most nairalanders just love to argue as a form of self-expression.

In any case, even if one were to address your arguments, however off point, the government says they were spending 560 billion monthly on subsidies. Add up all those things you listed there most of which are one-off expenses and they won't reach half of this amount - which is even monthly. We were spending trillions on subsidies annually.

Finally, it is possible for it to be simultaneously true that Nigeria cannot afford subsidies and that the little we have is still mismanaged.

EleventhWeirdo:
I understand that subsidy regimes are massive corruption structures that scare away free market investors, and that removing them is like freeing self of a bottleneck. But the problem is that, I don't think any underdeveloped country can develop by playing the good boy of the economics textbook of IMF and other Breton woods. I suppose we need a combination of positive, ironclad, interventional and massive government machinery and a merit based, development -hinged private enterprise to achieve true development. Even the American govt, the leader of the developed world, is still subsidizing some of it's industries and nurturing them for international competition/national self sufficiency. Why would we discard the much needed public -private partnership model on the basis that we cannot defeat and remove the abuses that come with it?

Very reasonable comment but you got one thing wrong in your last sentence: the basis of the removal according to the current regime is that Nigeria cannot afford it. That changes the dynamic of what you've addressed in your post considerably.