₦airaland Forum

If the APC was about merit, it would be Fashola/Okorocha or Fashola/Oshiomhole.

But it does not seem like this party is about merit. What Northern politician is worthy of being president of Nigeria. If you look at their states, there is not much industry or development.

Something is seriously wrong if all the credible candidates within APC are forced to be potential VP nominees.

Let us be honest with ourselves, why should a politician from the North be president? What level of development have they brought to that region? Has any Northern politician have any laudable achievements that most of us do not know of?

I tend to judge Nigerian politicians by the level of development that is occurring in their states. Lagos, Edo, Enugu, Imo, Akwa Ibom state come to mind when I think of states that are developing at a fast pace. So a presidential nominee should come from these states.

Forget the religion, region or tribe that the person comes from. They should be JUDGED by their level of achievement.

In my opinion Fashola should be the presidential nominee of APC. If not him, I can definitely not think of any Northern politician who can fit into those shoes.

Why is Buhari's name continue to circulate that he will be the Presidential nominee? Is it not time for a new generation of leaders to rise up? Buhari should simply retire and give other people a chance.

Fashola represents the next generation of leaders along with Oshiomhole and Okorocha.

In my opinion, Fashola is the only leader within APC who is capable of being a successful Presidential nominee.

Fashola is clearly the best presidential candidate within APC. Having him as a VP is very disrespectful. The man has clearly shown that he can become president of Nigeria. He is governor of one of the most important state within Nigeria for goodness sake.

All this talk of having him as a VP is a non-starter.

This would simply be an insult to Governor Fashola and Oshiomhole if this is indeed true. Name one politician from the North that has done more than these two politicians in their own respective states? Even Governor Okorocha has done more than most Northern politicians even during his short tenure so far as governor of Imo State.

I really do not understand why someone would join a cult.

You are going to a university to learn, not join a gang. You would think they are intelligent enough to know that these cults act like the street gangs that you find in the United States. And people who join those street gangs are mostly uneducated and poor.

But what is the excuse of these students joining these cults? They are not uneducated and many of them come from good families.

Governor Fashola is definitely right about that. Lagos has tremendous potential.

Lagos strength is in its diversity, industry, and population.

Eko o ni baje o, o baje ti!

The OP is a futurist after my own heart.

Let us hope that all of humanity can progress to that stage in the distant future.

That is why it is best to stay abroad if you get a degree in that country. The United States is very welcoming to those who majored in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineer, and Mathematics) field. Americans know how to appreciate those who major in critical fields. While nepotism is rife in Nigeria and many Nigerians who possess degrees from quality universities abroad come to realize that when they try to move back. It doesn't matter how much intelligence you have, the only thing that matters is the connections that you have.

I believe the traders as well as the local government is at fault for the filth that is found in Ladipo Market. The traders should take better responsibility for the cleanliness of their business, even though I understand that the spare parts business is a dirty business. And the local government is at fault for not providing cleaning services for the market. It is not the responsibility of individual traders to clean up the whole premises, that is the responsibility of the local government to take care of the basic problems like garbage disposal. All the traders should worry about the cleanliness of their stalls. And what about the owner of the land? Shouldn't the landlord be blamed for allowing his property to become an eyesore?

I think it is very selfish of a politician to want to hold onto power even when their health is failing. Governor Chime main concern should be his health first and foremost. If he cannot govern his state due to poor health, he should step down and allow his deputy to take over the reigns of government. This peculiar problem of politicians refusing to relinquish power even when they are terminally ill seems to impact many African politicians. Just look at Robert Mugabe who seems like he would rather die in office than give up the presidency. However, godspeed to Governor Chime as he battles his ailment.

Maybe I am just a bleeding heart liberal in the American sense, but a nation will always be judged by how it treats its most vulnerable citizens.

babapupa: The people of Lagos state elected the the governor to do a job and his doing that job. The problem with Nigerians and what they are used to is lawlessness and jungle living, you want a society where you can do anything you want and be left alone with no consequences. Lagos is the only place in Nigeria where every interest groups holds the state hostage with all kinds of demands of preferential treatment and exemptions from laws, rules and regulations.

You will not see me disagreeing with all the assertions that you have made. I am in full support of progress and Nigeria as a whole needs to be modernized at all cost. However, I think where we disagree is how this modernization can be achieved. The slums that are throughout Lagos need to be removed. But we must not forget the human element. Governor Fashola is trying to move Lagos in the right direction, but I wish he handled this situation better. The people who inhabit these slums will not go back to their villages and towns, they will stay in Lagos. Where will they go? They will most likely find themselves in other slums in Lagos. Therefore, this is simply spreading the problem and not making it better. But what is done is done, but the fact that Nigerians have been rendered homeless, because of Governor Fashola's actions does not make me feel good about the situation.

babapupa: There are tons of illegal slums in Lagos state with hundreds of thousands of people if not millions so where is the compensation money for illegal settlement evacuees going to come from and do we have to keep setting money aside to settle the thousands trooping into Lagos endlessly to take their place?


You are not only compounding the the problem when you reward illegality, you are also making sure the problem stays...

You bring up an interesting point. There is logic behind your statement I must say. However, I still believe we should show empathy to those who are at the lowest rung of society. They are often marginalized and forgotten. The improvements that Governor Fashola is bringing to Lagos should be commended, but these improvements are coming at a price. They mostly benefit the haves and not the have-nots.

"Eko o ni baje o, o baje ti" can only happen if the people are progressing as well. If these slums need to be destroyed to make Lagos a better place, that is all fine and good, but the government must realize that the people who reside there should be compensated as well, so they will not be rendered homeless. There needs to be more compassion for those who do not have a voice within government. A country is judged by how it treats its "lowest" citizen.

Nigeria's strength is within its diversity. If only the Nigerian populace and politicians could simply realize that.

ROSSIKE,

No need to get upset, we are just having a spirited debate. There is no need to insult my reasoning. We simply have different conclusions. And with some of the books you have mentioned, I have read as well and I do not agree with their conclusions. Even though I believe it is highly plausible that Africans did arrive in the Americas prior to Columbus, I do not believe they had much of an impact on the native cultures that you are trying to stress. If they did, shouldn't we have found DNA markers within many indigenous communities that points towards Africa and not the recently enslaved Africans who were brought to the Americas?

And your discussion on the pyramids is simply just one hypothesis that I heard. My very own hypothesis that is shared by many historians from across the world is that indigenous cultures throughout the world created their own pyramids on their own. This was done without the help of anyone. You believe that the presence of pyramids in the Americas is proof that there was an African presence in the Americas and I say that it doesn't seem likely. You even have scholars who believe that people across the globe were taught by visitors from another planet the secret to build pyramids. And I say to all of you that the most logical hypothesis is that these indigenous groups built the pyramids on their own. You can disagree with me, because that is within your right, but all we are doing is asserting our own hypothesis.

ROSSIKE: If black Africans say from Ancient Egypt or Nubia arrived the Americas 3000 years ago, they would likely have been the impetus behind the pyramid building that occurred there shortly thereafter.. And such mighty construction coincided with the arrival of the first Olmecs, so there's precious little basis for your "'doubting''.

The Olmecs developed their own pyramids, just like the pyramids found off the coast of Japan and in China were influenced by the groups that lived there. These were indigenous inventions and I think it would be arrogant of you to say that Africans influenced them, just like it is arrogant of Europeans to say they influenced other cultures when they did not.

ROSSIKE: I dispute this ''they may have been blown off course and landed in America'' line. It is based on prejudice. How do we know they didn't have access to maps or some sort of navigational aid or plans? Just because they were Africans doesn't mean they didn't know what they were doing. You do realise the African Sahel was a renowned center of education as early as the 10th century?

You can dispute it, but it doesn't make it not plausible that a ship from the Ghana or Mali Empire was blown off its path. The fact remains that we simply do not know if there was an African presence in the Americas, because we were not there. There could have been an African presence prior to the Columbus era or it may not have been. No one can say for certain and neither can you.

Even though it is highly plausible that some Africans did arrive in South America prior to Columbus discovering America, I doubt they had much of an impact on the Pre-Colombian societies such as the Aztecs, Incas and Mayans. And I highly doubt that had impact on the ancient Olmecs of present day Mexico. The Olmec statues probably depicted members of their society, albeit highly exaggerated features. We can even see these highly exergerated features in the artwork of many African societies.

However, I wont discount the fact that seafaring African vessels may have been blown off path and landed in Central or South America. If Europeans can say that there was a European presence (Vikings) in North America before Columbus discovered America, why can't it be an African presence as well?

I understand that some people consider this progress, but remember we are still talking about our fellow human beings. Many of the people who have been pushed out of their homes are now homeless. What recourse do they get? Are they even compensated? Nigerians need to learn to show compassion to their fellow human beings. If you can't show compassion to your own people, how do you expect other countries to show compassion to Nigerians?

This could be a blessing in disguise for Nigeria.

Nigeria's reliance on oil has been a curse more so than a blessing. If Nigeria wishes to compete with the various nations of the world, the country needs to diversify its economy. Heavy reliance on oil leaves Nigeria susceptible to market swings.

If only Nigeria could focus on its manufacturing sector instead of resource extraction. Manufacturing will be the key to unlocking Nigeria's true potential.

Interesting pictures that I am seeing on this thread.

It is quite easy to become pessimistic about Nigeria, but these pictures definitely have put a smile on my face. More needs to be done in Nigeria, but this is a good start. It just goes to show that there is always a silver lining even in a country like Nigeria.

Nigeria could one day become a manufacturing giant if the right leaders guide the country on the correct path. There is so much raw talent that is waiting to be tapped.