₦airaland Forum

OONI of ife is alive.


Details soon.


There is another twist into the the yet-to-
be-officially confirmed death of the Ooni of
Ife, Oba Okunade Sijuwade. The traditional
chiefs in Ife have denied that the Ooni is
dead. Meanwhile, c rowd is gathering so
fast around the palace of late Ooni of Ile-
Ife, Oba Okunade Sijuwade, as they
await to hear the announcement of his
death from the horse’s mouth


Addressing journalists at the palace of
Ooni, the secretary of Ife royal court, High
chief Adetoye Adewole and the president of
Ife Development Board, Prof Muheeb
Opeloye denied that the Ooni is dead...


Source: Radio Nigeria

saxywale:
what's the purpose of all this rant? Did you carry out a research that was meant to tarnish the image of the ooni of ife and was expecting an A grade
Most of your research was done at Ogunsua's palace. What did you expect them to say
I have Ife and Modakeke blood in me, studied at OAU around the time of the war and know how everything went down. And the that location is akarabata not akarabate, and you are wondering why you scored D.

For saying this, Nothing will be impossible for YOU again and your Generations to come.

The man, who prosecuted Nigeria Civil War, General Yakubu Gowon (rtd), has said that Igbo people made Nigeria a better country.

The Nigeria’s former military head of state also said, “Nigerians are better off with the Igbo.”

Gowon made the statement at the weekend in his eulogy for the late Chief Chinyere Asika, wife of the former Sole Administrator of East Central State; just as governor of Anambra State, Chief Willie Obiano, described the late First Lady as “a woman who exemplified the virtue of patience, charity and humility.” The former Head of State and Governor Obiano, spoke at the All Saints Anglican Cathedral, Onitsha, Anambra State.

Gowon said that he made the declaration because of his deep appreciation of the commitment and sacrifice of the late Ajie Ukpabi Asika and his wife to the survival of Nigeria as one entity.

He recalled that when he proposed the post of Sole Administrator of East Central State, “Asika told me: I prefer to do this for the good of Igbo people.”

He added: “I was struggling to get an administrator for the newly created East Central State when the name of the late Ukpabi Asika came up. He was then a lecturer at Ibadan. When we met, I do not know which one of us was younger.

“But he exuded strength of character and understanding, and wanted to start work immediately. “Though I cautioned him to think about it, I told him, you must consult your brothers, and your wife who was there to know if you would accept, I came away convinced that this is the man I needed.

“I did not know how to place his wife, Chinyere, but when she arrived from Kenya, she plunged head-on to the idea. She was a courageous woman, caring and humble.  I remember her efforts in “Otu Olu Obodo”- a public service initiative which she used as a tool of empowerment for her Igbo kinsmen and women.”

Also, Anambra State Governor, Chief Willie Obiano, described the late First Lady as a woman who exemplified the virtue of patience charity and humility.”

Obiano told the children and Asika family to imbibe the virtues of patience, charity and humility from the late Mrs. Asika, whilst urging the congregation and Anambra people to remember “her good deeds and pray for the repose of her soul.”

In his sermon, the Bishop on the Niger, Anglican Communion, Rev. Owens Nwokolo, dwelt on the need for people to live a life of service. He lauded the life of service led by the late Mrs. Asika and her noble contributions to humanity.

The bishop said that the quest for accumulation of wealth as a serious malaise in Nigeria. As he put it, “Desire to get rich by all means leads man into temptation. ?

“What does it take to satisfy a man? Just a little more,” stressing that money itself is not the problem, but the love of money. Money can’t buy happiness; we brought nothing, we go with nothing.”

The service was attended by many prominent personalities including former Minister of Defence, Gen T.Y. Danjuma, who represented President Muhammadu Buhari, former Governors of Anambra State, Chief Peter Obi, and Chief Chukwuemeka Ezeife; former Governor of Imo State, Chief Achike Udenwa; and members of the National Assembly, among others.





http://dailyindependentnig.com/2015/07/ndigbo-made-nigeria-better-country-says-gowon/





Odeyele Ayodeji

The man, who prosecuted Nigeria Civil War, General Yakubu Gowon (rtd), has said that Igbo people made Nigeria a better country.

The Nigeria’s former military head of state also said, “Nigerians are better off with the Igbo.”

Gowon made the statement at the weekend in his eulogy for the late Chief Chinyere Asika, wife of the former Sole Administrator of East Central State; just as governor of Anambra State, Chief Willie Obiano, described the late First Lady as “a woman who exemplified the virtue of patience, charity and humility.” The former Head of State and Governor Obiano, spoke at the All Saints Anglican Cathedral, Onitsha, Anambra State.

Gowon said that he made the declaration because of his deep appreciation of the commitment and sacrifice of the late Ajie Ukpabi Asika and his wife to the survival of Nigeria as one entity.

He recalled that when he proposed the post of Sole Administrator of East Central State, “Asika told me: I prefer to do this for the good of Igbo people.”

He added: “I was struggling to get an administrator for the newly created East Central State when the name of the late Ukpabi Asika came up. He was then a lecturer at Ibadan. When we met, I do not know which one of us was younger.

“But he exuded strength of character and understanding, and wanted to start work immediately. “Though I cautioned him to think about it, I told him, you must consult your brothers, and your wife who was there to know if you would accept, I came away convinced that this is the man I needed.

“I did not know how to place his wife, Chinyere, but when she arrived from Kenya, she plunged head-on to the idea. She was a courageous woman, caring and humble.  I remember her efforts in “Otu Olu Obodo”- a public service initiative which she used as a tool of empowerment for her Igbo kinsmen and women.”

Also, Anambra State Governor, Chief Willie Obiano, described the late First Lady as a woman who exemplified the virtue of patience charity and humility.”

Obiano told the children and Asika family to imbibe the virtues of patience, charity and humility from the late Mrs. Asika, whilst urging the congregation and Anambra people to remember “her good deeds and pray for the repose of her soul.”

In his sermon, the Bishop on the Niger, Anglican Communion, Rev. Owens Nwokolo, dwelt on the need for people to live a life of service. He lauded the life of service led by the late Mrs. Asika and her noble contributions to humanity.

The bishop said that the quest for accumulation of wealth as a serious malaise in Nigeria. As he put it, “Desire to get rich by all means leads man into temptation. ?

“What does it take to satisfy a man? Just a little more,” stressing that money itself is not the problem, but the love of money. Money can’t buy happiness; we brought nothing, we go with nothing.”

The service was attended by many prominent personalities including former Minister of Defence, Gen T.Y. Danjuma, who represented President Muhammadu Buhari, former Governors of Anambra State, Chief Peter Obi, and Chief Chukwuemeka Ezeife; former Governor of Imo State, Chief Achike Udenwa; and members of the National Assembly, among others.





http://dailyindependentnig.com/2015/07/ndigbo-made-nigeria-better-country-says-gowon/





Odeyele Ayodeji

Kindly Post job Vacancies Abuja HERE.

If you are ask to suggest a BILL to NASS, which Bill will you suggest?

1985: Position of a Bank Branch Manager Minimum of OND Certificate. No experience needed. Adequate Training will be provided. 1995: Personal Assistant to the Manager Minimum of OND Certificate. 2 years experience in a relevant field. A Bachelor’s degree will be an advantage. 2005: Position of a Clerical Officer Minimum of B.Sc in Office and Secretariat Studies or any other relevant field. 5 years post NYSC experience. M.A and other qualifications are necessary but not required. Female applicant preferred. 2015: Position of a Lorry Driver Applicant must have Ph.D in Logistics and International Transportation. Minimum of 15 years experience in a reputable multinational company. Preference will be given to dressing and good comportment. Theses and books on Transportation will be an advantage. NIM, ACCA, ICAN, SPSS, ISMN certificates required. Not more than 25 years as at June 2015. 2025: Position of a Messenger Professorship in International Trade and Diplomacy is paramount. 25 years experience in Errand running or other relevant fields. NIM, ACCA, Oracle, SPSS, ISMN, MCSE, JAVA, CISCO and NIIT certificates required. Applicant must be single and not more than 35 years in the last three years. Just tell us you don’t want to give us jobs again.

1. The coup d'etat against General Buhari
was masterminded by Dasuki and
Babangida.
2. Ever since overthrowing Buhari, Dasuki
has done every single move to prevent
Buhari to return to power.
3. The postponement of the presidential
election from February 14, 2015 was at his
behest, trying one more time to derail
President Buhari from being elected.
4. If the British and Americans hadn't
stepped in with a stern warning, Dasuki
would have succeeded in detailing Buhari
yet again.
5. Billions of dollars earmarked for the army
in it's campaign against Boko Haram has
not been properly documented and
accounted for, and it poses a great security
risk to president and his administration.
Huge money should be left in the hands of a
dubious operative like Dasuki?
6. There are unsubstantiated rumors that his
hands are all over the failed assassination
attempt against Buhari during the election
campaign in Kaduna or so.
7. Finally, the president's success against
Boko Haram depends on him monitoring
past officers of Jonathan, their incestuous
relationship with Boko Haram scumbags is
fully documented and very revealing.
•
I hope I've given you enough to think about.
Scumbags in Jonathan's administration are
not only restricted to Diezani and Ngozi, the
favorite punch bags of bloggers. Dasuki and
others did far worst things. They are all
scoundrels!" ~


Ebuka Ikeoyibo

christtar:
B - Establishment of certain Federal Executive
Bodies
153. (1) There shall be established for the
Federation the following bodies, namely:

(a) Code of Conduct Bureau;
(b) Council of State;
(c) Federal Character Commission;
(d) Federal Civil Service Commission;
(e) Federal Judicial Service Commission;
(f) Independent National Electoral
Commission;
(g) National Defence Council;
(h) National Economic Council;
(i) National Judicial Council;
(j) National Population Commission;
(k) National Security Council;
(l) Nigeria Police Council;
(m) Police Service Commission; and
(n) Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and
Fiscal Commission.
copied from 1999 constitution.

Thanks for this.
@Seun do the needful.Nigerians Need this info asap

Please can someone help with the names of Federal Executive Bodies listed in the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

This will help me know the Ministries not affected by the dissolution of the Governing Boards of Federal Parastatals, Agencies and Institutions with effect from, July 16, 2015.

President Muhammadu Buhari has appointed new service chiefs and a new National Security Adviser.

They are:
1. Major-General Abayomi Gabriel Olonishakin – Chief of Defence Staff;
2. Major-General T.Y. Buratai – Chief of Army Staff
3. Rear Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas – Chief of Naval Staff
4. Air Vice Marshal Sadique Abubakar – Chief of Air Staff
5. Air Vice Marshal Monday Riku Morgan – Chief of Defence Intelligence
6. Major-General Babagana Monguno (rtd.) – National Security Adviser.




http://thewillnigeria.com/news/buhari-appoints-new-service-chiefs-nsa/

See what Aregbesola as turned Osun workers to

It may sound naïve, especially for a person who
is obviously a partisan, but my concern and
alarm have little to do with who won or lost in
the National Assembly leadership elections
palaver. Easy as this can be lost on the
gladiators, we could be collectively sabotaging
the poor ordinary people of Nigeria desperate for
change. Could this elite which has consistently
failed to find its mission and do for its people
what their old classmates in schools in the
United States and the United Kingdom and
elsewhere in the West, have done for their people
in Asia and Latin America, unwittingly miss this
window built on a change mantra, and betray
another generation? It was with this spirit of
wondering how easily we chase power,
unmindful of purpose that I exclaimed on seeing
the political bloodletting in the National Assembly
leadership selection. My reaction was, Oh my
God, not again! With the process and outcome
clearly signalling disunity, lack of discipline and
weak goal-setting, and severe goal displacement,
the least impact would be challenged
implementation of what the people voted for.
Oh no! It’s not happening again. Not again in my
life time! But it was happening. The sense of déjà
vu was not just troubling, and evidently palpable,
it had a puzzling force that left you feeling and
wondering how this is possible; the way you feel
when a 747 or an A380 is tossed around by mere
wind in clear air turbulence. The vote for change
had run into turbulence at the inauguration of the
National Assembly. It was not about who won or
who the battle was against. It was about a public
brawl and the change agenda.
It was about the ordinary people who had
persevered so much in the face of
underperforming and uncaring governments
beholden to special interests and so seemingly
unable, or unwilling, to go where less endowed
rivals in other parts of the world have gone, and
dramatically improved the lot of the people. To
drive a change agenda for which the people
voted in April, legislative common purpose was a
clear imperative. To go to legislative inauguration
without party discipline and with a fractious
mode and the old ways, of, money and
personality politics in top flight, was to betray the
voters of this country, and that is what June 9
means to me. Hope has again been annulled and
for the third time in my life a costly battle for
change has again been hijacked. As 1993 and
1999, so seems to have gone 2015, if the people
do not fight back.
I was lamenting these things when someone
called my attention to an advertised full page
opinion by some concerned APC members in the
Daily Trust Newspaper of June 9. That advert
was so reminiscent of the kinds of
advertisements published in 1993/94 by the
Concerned Professionals that I did exactly the
same thing I did in 1993.
In that year, many of us had canvassed a
change agenda. The Social Democratic Party and
its torch- bearer, Chief M.K.O. Abiola, had come
to symbolise that change. Two days after that
historic vote, I journeyed to the US to attend a
convention. It was at that convention that a
Ugandan delegate came up to me, very angry,
saying: “You Nigerians, you Nigerians, whenever
Africa is set for progress, you drag us back.” I
was not sure what he was talking about, but that
was how I learnt of the annulment of the June 12
election. I immediately packed my stuff and went
up to my room and began writing an OPED piece
that would appear under the title, “We Must Say
Never Again.” That piece resulted in the founding
of the Concerned Professionals. That body
acquitted itself well in the struggle against
military rule. It was a principle-based struggle.
They may have sent policemen to beat us up as
we protested and sent assassins after a few like
myself but the principle was not lost on them.
When Sani Abacha passed and they withdrew
under pressure, we erred in thinking our work
was done. The politics of the last 16 years that
followed left Nigerians so exasperated that they
jumped on the Change mantra. So uplifted were
they with the outcome that they assumed their
world would change dramatically come May 29.
Such was the expectations that analysts worried
the expectations were unrealistic and bordered
on expecting miracles.
Then comes June 9. For days before the votes
for the National Assembly leaders, I kept saying
that for me, it was not about a particular
candidate but about a process that shows party
discipline and national consensus around an
agenda for change. If the process gets fractured,
I had warned what will happen will include a
return to the old ways of vote buying in which
goals of the common good are traded off in the
old goal displacement ways, for money and self-
interest. Then there is the loss of speed on
consensus critical for change legislation. My
song was clearly a borrowed verse from the US
President, Lyndon Baines Johnson, and
Malaysia’s Mahathir Mohammed: It is better for
all to be inside the house pissing out, than for
some to be outside the house pissing in.
It is easy to see it as a simple political game if
you miss the cost of these simple games for why
Nigeria is poor and our society is marked by
much disharmony. You may then analyse the
New PDP vs other groups in the All Progressives
Congress, or checking certain power blocs. Even
many of the actors who presume to be acting in
self-interest have embraced a narcissism that
has blinded them to their own long term self-
interest, as they embrace short term personal
gain. Because of this the “only business in town”,
politics, manages to do continuous damage to
the real sector businesses which give life to a
majority of the people. But to the short sighted, it
does not matter, this is politics. So, my view was,
sort these things out, whether in smoke filled
rooms, or in a sanctuary of truth and love for the
suffering poor of this endowed society. The
signalling from a public brawl that will bruise
egos and carve cleavages into the polity and
etch animosities into the relationships even in
intra-party affairs may create momentary
victories but they have a sad way of amounting
to pyrrhic victories and delaying the reclaiming of
the promise of Nigeria.
With mountain high challenges in the economy,
trailed by an unemployment time bomb, security
problems that go beyond the Boko Haram and
kidnappings, and electricity and petroleum
sectors, in much need for reforms, even as
corruption, failing education and health care
make us a tribe of refugees around the planet,
now was not the time for politics as usual.
I have tired of worrying about raw political
power, quest for possessions and quick
inclination to predation (The 3Ps) muzzling
Purpose, to prevent progress, in Nigeria. June 9
brought it home again. There could be merit in
the pocket wars and persons that were the target
of breaching the consensus for change on that
day, but the consequence will no doubt be
progress deferred. The big losers, the people, the
small mechanic who needs electric power for a
job to earn the next meal, the farmer who
remains in subsistence because poor
infrastructure locks him out while public officials
live like Lords off a wobbly state, to the truth and
prescription the citizen typically go away forlorn
for they swallow the lies of politics as usual. The
only solution for me is people power. The people
must say to a political class riding roughshod on
their well-being: Enough is enough. People power
must come to save the people recovering from
the euphoria of a promise of change that seems
deferred again.
What was the purpose of the vote for change?
The purpose is an elite that for one generation
failed a people and denied them the progress
they deserve and desire, should change their way
and bring progress to the greatest number of
people. The patience had worn thin. Now, it is
the people who must now take back their
country anyway they see fit. They cannot watch
as Singapore escapes Third World status, South
Korea becomes one of the most knowledge-
driven high income societies on earth and Brazil
goes from potential to a top 10 economy in the
world. These countries found a patriotic elite at
some point that sacrificed for progress. Since
Nigeria has been repeatedly denied such by its
elite, the people may have no choice but to rise
up and save themselves. There were enough
blame for June 9 to go around, from the APC
hierarchy whose complicit role was put forward
in the advert I referred to in the Daily Trust by
some concerned APC members, to the PDP
leadership whose business, no doubt, is to make
the party in government uncomfortable but
which must know that in decent societies a
government must be allowed to settle in and not
for legislators to collaborate with those across
the Isle in ways that can be disruptive.
Fortunately, it’s never too late to begin again.
Professor Patrick Utomi is a political economist
and professor of Entrepreneurship at the Pan
African University. He is founder of the Centre for
Values in Leadership.



http://huhuonline.com/index.php/opinions/5698-prof-pat-utomi-they-have-hijacked-change-again

The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) is set
to launch a national campaign on value re-
orientation and societal rejuvenation
reminiscent of the War Against Indiscipline
(WAI) of 1984.
One of the most enduring legacies of the Buhari
government has been the War Against
Indiscipline (WAI).
The programme, aimed at promoting core
values and patriotism among citizens, would be
jointly anchored by the NYSC, the National
Orientation Agency (NOA) and supported by
other collaborating partners.
The Director-General, NYSC, Brig.-Gen. Johnson
Olawumi, disclosed this when his NOA
counterpart, Mr Mike Omeri, visited him at the
Headquarters of the NYSC in Abuja on
Tuesday.
Olawumi said the campaign would be geared
towards supporting the Buhari administration’s
change agenda which would be anchored on
discipline and order in all facets of societal
endeavour.
He said the NYSC and NOA would leverage on
its national spread and network within and
outside Nigeria to carry the message of `doing
the right thing’ to all parts of the country.
“This campaign is aimed at re-enacting the key
agenda that the Buhari regime was identified
with in 1984.
“All the things that administration did using
soldiers would now be executed using corps
members and NOA officers across the country.
“I have no doubt in my mind that this campaign
will be a success given the spread of the NYSC
and NOA, we feel we are in the best position to
carry out this campaign,’’ he said.
Olawumi said the organisers would employ
robust public sensitisation drive and an
attractive reward system to actualise the new
government’s agenda through the campaign.
He said the government would not be required
to use its funds to support the campaign as
key private sector players would be encouraged
to fund the campaign.
He said the campaign would soon be given the
right nomenclature but that the areas of
interest would include good public and private
conduct as well as patriotism, among other
values.
Earlier, Omeri said the planned national
campaign would help restore Nigeria’s values
and the fast fading sense of patriotism among
Nigerians.
He said the planned national campaign might
not be the exact replica of the War Against
Indiscipline of 1984.
Omeri explained the campaign would focus on
promoting the study of civic education in
schools using corps members and NOA
community brigades, among other targets.
While commending the NYSC for its support for
the successful conduct of the 2015 general
elections, Omeri urged the scheme to exhibit
the same vigour in the planned value
reorientation campaign.
He solicited the support of all Nigerians in
helping to revive the culture of order, discipline
and patriotism among Nigerians.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that
a committee was set up to harmonise the
submissions by the NYSC and NOA on the
proposed campaign. (NAN)
http://www.corpr.com.ng/nysc-noa-to-launch-campaign-similar-to-wai/

obinna2nv:
Don't mind him, I was a little disappointed and not entirely surprised when he chose to ignore the Igbo boys and never said anything about them, 15 of them, that's too hard to overlook!! And he was singing the praises of the Hausa boys, its that Muslim-Muslim, Southwest - Northern alliance! Its exactly the way the last Presidential election went, along that fault lines. Its so ironical because the OP was praising the NYSC to high heavens while unconsciously showing us all that we are still where we were. NYSC or not, nothing has changed.

stop been bias and don't relate my article based on ethnicity Atall, I grew up with Igbo, I schooled with them and nothing new to me about them,what of those in from the North Central who were in the room too and I actually pinpointed that there was only one person from the core north in dat room, all the people I mentioned were not in dat room.
if you look carefully at that article,i highlighted that " My experiences during the orientation camp were numerous but these are the few that are dear to me"
Please I won't appreciate unprofessional and bias criticism.

Sweetguy25:
Honestly, if I was president of this useless country, one of the decisions I'll take would be to remodify or scrap this useless scheme.

NYSC should be not be mandatory. Graduates should have an option of enlisting to the NYSC service or go straight to the job market.

Forty years after this useless scheme was instituted, the same reasons that prompted the enactment of the scheme is still lingering, even stronger than ever.

What caused the civil war was injustice and injustice still prevails(constitutionally) till today.

You only talked about the hausa people you met on camp. What happened to your fifteen Igbo roommates? You kill dem?

Lolz,nawa for u!!! I made friends with them too,but those experiences highlighted in the article were dear to me,was never scared or surprise to live with the igbos cos I grew up with many so there is no point in talking about that.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/john-fashanu-quizzed-cops-after-5799615



Speaking exclusively to the Daily Mirror,
Fashanu, 52, said: “I was not arrested - I went
to the police station voluntarily.
“I’ll go back tomorrow morning to the police
station. I expect to pay a fine.
“It was an old fashioned firearm. I don’t
actually know what model it is - it’s like a stub
gun.”
Fashanu, who is preparing to fight a bitter
divorce case against his estranged wife Abigail
at Nigeria’s High Court, claimed she called in
cops in revenge for him ending their marriage.
Back in the day: John Fashanu with Paul
Gascoigne as he celebrates his transfer to
Lazio in 1991
He added: “She is trying to do anything to get
back at me. They raided my house after she
filed a petition with the police. She needs to
move on.
“The gun should have been licensed. I made a
mistake and I hold my hands up to that.
“I have the five passports because they belong
to young footballers from my academy. It’s no
problem.”
Police agreed to release Fashanu after
detaining his 2014 edition black land cruiser
jeep as surety.
It is understood police raided Fashanu's home
after his estranged wife Abigail filed a
statement accusing him of having an illegal
firearm and a number of young footballers
from his academy also filed complaints
accusing him of stealing their money.

benedima1990:
If u jus wan buy navy dss pin now, maybe u wan use d pin hold ur cloth oooooo because d navy dss wey me know don close since may 28.

http://www.joinnigeriannavy.com/

check your facts right

Please can someone help me on how to go buy purchasing the reg Pin for the nigeria 2015 navy recruitment.

Let take this time out to appreciate and make shout out to people who we have meet tru out our service year as we take bow out next Month.

let's roll.
I start.
I will like to tank my Parents and family
members who has contributed to my life from
day one till now,to my wife thanks for been more than
a wife,i appreciate.
to those we camped togeda at Kubwa
abuja,between July/Aug 2014 I thank you for the
love we shared I rep Platoon 3.
To my friends and the staff of National
Universities commission,i appreciate ur good
gesture.
Thanks and God bless, let roll guys.

1). Never raise your voice for any reason to your
husband. Its a sign of disrespect.
2). Don't expose your husband's weaknesses to
your family and friends. You are each other's
keeper.
3). Never use attitudes and moods to
communicate to your husband, you never know
how your husband will interpret them.
4). Never compare your husband to other men,
you've no idea what their life is all about.
5). Never ill treat your husband's friends because
you don't like them, the person who's supposed
to get rid of them is your husband.
6). Never forget that your husband married you,
not your maid or anyone else.
7). Never assign anyone to give attention to your
husband, people may do everything else but your
husband is your own responsibility.
. Never blame your husband if he comes back
home empty handed. Rather encourage him.
9). Never be a wasting wife, your husband's
sweat is too precious to be wasted.
10). Never pretend to be sick for the purpose of
denying your husband sex
11). Never compare your husband to your one
time sex mate in bedroom.
12). Never answer for your husband in public
opinion polls, let him handle what is directed to
him although he may answer for you in public
opinion polls.
13). Never shout or challenge your husband in
front of children
14). Don't forget to check the smartness of your
husband before he checks out.
15). Never allow your friends to be too close to
your husband.
16). Never be in a hurry in the bathroom and on
the dressing table. Out there your husband is
always surrounded by women who took their time
on their looks.
17). Your parents or family or friends do not have
the final say in your marriage. Don't waste your
time looking up to them for a final word.
18). Never base your love on monetary things.
Will you still submit to him even if you earn more
money than him?
19). Don't forget that husbands want attention
and good listeners, never be too busy for him.
20). If your idea worked better than his, never
compare yourself to him. Its always teamwork.
21). Don't be too judgemental to your husband.
22). A lazy wife is a careless wife. She doesn't
even know that her body needs a bath.
23). Does your husband like less cooked food?,
try to change your cooking.
24). Never be too demanding to your husband,
enjoy every moment, resource as it comes.
25). Make a glass of water the very first welcome
to your husband and everyone entering your
home. Sweetness of attitude is true beauty.
26). Don't associate with women who have a
wrong mental attitude about marriage.
27). Your marriage is as valuable to you as the
value that you give it. Recklessness is
unacceptable.
28). Fruit of the womb is a blessing from the
Lord, love your children and teach them well.
29). You are never too old to influence your
home. Never reduce your care for your family for
any reason.
30). A prayerful wife is a better equipped wife,
pray always for your husband and family.
31). Kindly SHARE this to educate other women.

IT is all going to happen within four days. Four
days to the great national revival and renewal.
Four days to the rejuvenation and restoration of
the Nigerian economy. Four days to the great
“changi” we have all been waiting for. Four days
to the arrival of the Nigerian messiah,
Muhammadu Buhari. I am sure we all can hardly
wait.
In four days time, there will be an end to the
problems of Nigeria. Corruption will be killed.
NEPA will be reborn. Youth unemployment will
be a thing of the past. The international oil
market will stabilise. The naira will find its level.
Petrol will sell for 40 naira per litre.
The Boko Haram will lay down their arms. Fulani
herdsmen will stop their killings. Our cotton mills
will roar back to life. The groundnut pyramids
will reappear. Our cocoa farmers will laugh all
the way to the bank. Our hospitals will stop
being consulting clinics. Our universities will
once again become ivory towers of learning.
Hallelujah
We will achieve all this “changi” because
Muhammadu Buhari will make a transition from
president-elect to president of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria. May 29th will no longer be
known as Democracy Day. It will henceforth be
Buhari Day. On Friday, we will finally bid goodbye
to the PDP, and usher in the APC who will rule
Nigeria for the next 60 years! I can hear vice-
president-elect Osinbajo saying: “Let everybody
shout hallelujah!”
However, the hallelujahs have been dying down
lately. The “Amen and Amen” are getting few and
far between. Believers are becoming uncertain.
Cynics and skeptics are beginning to come out of
the woodwork. The Buhari brigades are fast
losing their mojo. Indeed, if the election were to
be re-held today, many would not even bother to
vote for their Daura favourite-son. Not much is
heard anymore of “Sai Buhari; sai Baba!” The
wedding is on Friday, but we are not even sure
anymore whether the bridegroom will show up.
Buhari’s supporters are no longer as bullish as
they used to be. They are no longer sure if there
will be “changi” after all. Some now hasten to
insist they did not vote for Buhari; they voted
against Jonathan. They are now likely to point
out that Buhari is not a magician. They would
have us know that Rome was not built in a day.
But nobody bothered about these truths during
the election campaign. Then, Buhari was
presented as the answer to every question. He
was sold as the solution to every problem.

APC Joint Leadership Meeting: From left, National
Publicity Secretary of APC Alh. Mohammed Lai,
National Chairman John Oyegun, National Auditor
Chief Morgan, Senatorial Candidate of APC, Hon
Dino Melayi and APC Presidential Campaign
Organization and River State Governor Rotimi
Amechi discussing during APC Joint Leadership
Meeting held in Abuja. Photo by Gbemiga
Olamikan.
By Femi Aribisala
IT is all going to happen within four days. Four
days to the great national revival and renewal.
Four days to the rejuvenation and restoration of
the Nigerian economy. Four days to the great
“changi” we have all been waiting for. Four days
to the arrival of the Nigerian messiah,
Muhammadu Buhari. I am sure we all can hardly
wait.
In four days time, there will be an end to the
problems of Nigeria. Corruption will be killed.
NEPA will be reborn. Youth unemployment will
be a thing of the past. The international oil
market will stabilise. The naira will find its level.
Petrol will sell for 40 naira per litre.
The Boko Haram will lay down their arms. Fulani
herdsmen will stop their killings. Our cotton mills
will roar back to life. The groundnut pyramids
will reappear. Our cocoa farmers will laugh all
the way to the bank. Our hospitals will stop
being consulting clinics. Our universities will
once again become ivory towers of learning.
Hallelujah
We will achieve all this “changi” because
Muhammadu Buhari will make a transition from
president-elect to president of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria. May 29th will no longer be
known as Democracy Day. It will henceforth be
Buhari Day. On Friday, we will finally bid goodbye
to the PDP, and usher in the APC who will rule
Nigeria for the next 60 years! I can hear vice-
president-elect Osinbajo saying: “Let everybody
shout hallelujah!”
However, the hallelujahs have been dying down
lately. The “Amen and Amen” are getting few and
far between. Believers are becoming uncertain.
Cynics and skeptics are beginning to come out of
the woodwork. The Buhari brigades are fast
losing their mojo. Indeed, if the election were to
be re-held today, many would not even bother to
vote for their Daura favourite-son. Not much is
heard anymore of “Sai Buhari; sai Baba!” The
wedding is on Friday, but we are not even sure
anymore whether the bridegroom will show up.
Buhari’s supporters are no longer as bullish as
they used to be. They are no longer sure if there
will be “changi” after all. Some now hasten to
insist they did not vote for Buhari; they voted
against Jonathan. They are now likely to point
out that Buhari is not a magician. They would
have us know that Rome was not built in a day.
But nobody bothered about these truths during
the election campaign. Then, Buhari was
presented as the answer to every question. He
was sold as the solution to every problem.
Illusory change
I am a Nigerian who lives in Nigeria. It is in my
interest for Buhari to succeed. I am the potential
beneficiary of every Buhari success. But I don’t
see him succeeding because APC told too many
lies in order to get him elected. They built up
expectations to unrealistically high levels. They
are not going to be able to tamp down those
expectations now. They are simply going to be
left to drown in them.
There is an expiration date for the current
penchant to blame the PDP for everything. That
date is May 29, 2015. The blame-game has
served its purpose. It has secured APC the
certificate of occupancy to Aso Rock. What
Nigerians need to know now is what the APC has
to offer. Alas, in that department, Buhari and his
cohorts do not seem to have a clue. They are
now just holding conferences at this late hour in
order to put together a road map. By all
indications, that road map leads to nowhere.
“Power must return to the North. Power must
return to the North.” We have heard this chant
for the better part of six years. Congratulations
are now in order: power has returned to the
North. Now what is the North going to do with
this power? Will this power be used to revamp
the Nigerian economy? Or is it merely fulfilling
the imperatives of “Turn-by-turn Nigeria Limited?”
Will the power now light up our home and
industries? Will it be used to overwhelm the Boko
Haram?
Not likely! Those who wanted power to return to
the North are now calling for amnesty for the
cold-blooded Boko Haram killers. Could it be that
their insurgency has fulfilled its purpose? Those
who insisted power must return to the North
certainly did not make this demand in order to
make Nigeria great. They made the demand
because they are hungry. They want a Northern
lion share of the national cake. Anti-corruption is
anathema to their agenda. In the anti-corruption
campaign, Buhari is on his own. He is a lone-
ranger. He cannot even secure the unflinching
support of members of his own APC party.
Corruption incorporated
One of the myths of the last presidential election
is that it was won and lost on the platform of
anti-corruption. Nothing could be further from
the truth. The APC and the PDP are yin and
yang. Neither party is anti-corruption. As a
people, Nigerians are definitely not anti-
corruption. From the mechanic to the plumber to
the dentist to the policeman to the Senator;
Nigerians are corrupt. In Nigeria, we live and
breathe corruption.
The new class of 2015 in the National Assembly
is not anti-corruption. One of our Senators-elect
is already wanted for drug-smuggling in the
United States. These people cannot be expected
to fight corruption. What is likely to happen is
that they will fight Buhari’s pretensions to anti-
corruption to a standstill.
In my youth, there was the story of Ali Monguno,
a federal minister from the North-East, who was
hated by his people. Their angst against him was
that he was not corrupt. His people found it
unacceptable that while other ministers were
corrupt; their own representative was foolish
enough to be upright. They wanted to be fully
represented in the corruption at the national
level. They wanted a representative thief for
Borno in Lagos.
Buhari does not understand this propensity. As
long as we continue within the current federal
framework where the centre controls far more
resources than all the states combined, the issue
of corruption will remain with us. As long as
Buhari sits in Abuja with 55% of national
resources to which he and most Nigerians are
abstracted, so long will there be corruption in
Nigeria. As long as the whole point of
government is the allocation of resources deemed
to belong to nobody and to everybody, even so
will the emphasis be on dividing the cake rather
than on baking it.
If you steal the money of cocoa farmers, you will
have to answer to cocoa farmers. But if you steal
Nigeria’s oil wealth, you are the man. To deal
with corruption structurally, you have to deal with
Nigeria’s lopsided federal structure. But the issue
of fiscal federalism does not feature at all in
Buhari’s anti-corruption road map.
Political dynamite
In any case, any attempt by the in-coming Buhari
administration to address the allegations of
corruption under Goodluck Jonathan is bound to
be problematic. Out of 55 years of Nigeria’s
existence, the South-South has only been in
power for five years. You cannot prosecute
corruption in the five years of South-South rule
without being accused of ignoring corruption in
the 50 years of North-West and South-West rule.
In many respects, South-South corruption while in
government is justifiable in view of North-West
and South-West corruption while in government.
Since the oil is from the South-South, the geo-
political zone is entitled to its own oil billionaires
as those of the North and the South-West. Why
should Theophilus Danjuma and Folorunso
Alakija be oil billionaires when the sons and the
daughters of the Niger Delta are not? These
questions will continue to haunt any and every
attempt at addressing past corruption in Nigeria.
Anti-corruption is good public relations, but it is
no substitute for a viable programme for
economic growth. In the final analysis, it is all
sound and fury signifying nothing. Making a
difference means ending the petrol shortage. It
means increasing electricity generation and
distribution. It means providing jobs for
unemployed youths. It means providing social
security for the teeming poor. In these practical
decibels of government, the APC is at sea. It
simply has no idea what to do.
Running against time
Buhari has just 100 days to make a difference.
After that, all bets are off. With the same
measure the APC used, it will be measured back
to it. APC used social media masterfully to defeat
PDP. They will now come to understand what it
means to govern in the age of social media. They
called Jonathan “clueless.” They must know that
new names are in the offing for Buhari. Some are
already going viral. But I leave it to others to
conduct the naming-ceremony.
Complaints about how bad things are will just not
cut it. Buhari cannot expect to get any sympathy
from Nigerians. He showed no sympathy for the
plight of Goodluck Jonathan. He deserves none
in return. If the economy is in bad shape as a
result of the drastic drop in oil prices, that fact
was known before the election. Nevertheless, he
asked for the job. No point in telling us now
what is wrong with the job or how difficult it is.
You were elected to overcome the difficulties.
In my youth, I used to sing a popular Yoruba
song. It says: “Omo n’wase, o ri’se. Ise to wa lo
ri.” It means: “the chap looking for a job, got a
job. You got the job you were looking for.”
Buhari wanted to be president. He ran for
president four times. He is finally the president-
elect. But one week to his inauguration, he runs
away to London. He is already tired, even before
the job begins.
Is he sick? Does he need regular medical
attention? The General talks a lot about the need
for transparency in government. However, he
does not seem to understand that this must also
apply to his personal life as a public official.
In order to achieve anything meaningful as
president within the first 100 days, General Buhari
is going to need all the good luck he can get.
However, Goodluck will be leaving Aso Rock
unfailingly on 29th May, 2015.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/05/goodluck-president-elect-buhari/

Answer
Tithing itself is not a difficult concept. Christians
should live their lives open-handed—
acknowledging that they are merely stewards of
God's possessions. They should always be willing
to give 100% of that which they steward at any
time required by the Lord (Matthew 19:21).
Indeed, they should even be willing to offer their
very "...bodies as living sacrifices, holy and
pleasing to God...." (Romans 12:1).
While some argue that tithing is an Old Testament
principle, Jesus never taught against it, pointing
out that in Matthew 5:17 Jesus said He came to
fulfill the law, not abolish it. Jesus actually
affirms the practice of tithing in Matthew 23:23
while warning not to neglect the practice of
"justice, mercy and faithfulness." The New
Testament teaches and encourages generous
giving. 1 Corinthians 16:2 sets out four principles
for giving—it should be regular, personal,
proportional and voluntary.
But tithing has raised some difficult questions.
And, since tithing involves money, it’s a prime
candidate for conflict between a husband and
wife. The question “do I tithe even if my spouse
objects” isn’t an unusual situation, especially in
light of our unpredictable economy. A recent
study by researcher George Barna found that
only 3 percent of Christians tithe—a decrease
from 8 percent in 2001. The principle of tithing, it
seems, is not widely practiced as it once was and
certainly is not widely understood as a critical
form of worship.
First, the issue is how to “honor” your mate and
the Lord. In terms of honoring your husband, if
he strongly objects to tithing, we believe you need
to respect those objections and place it “on the
back burner” until you are able to discuss the
issue together. Ignoring his objections and tithing
anyway would be extremely dishonoring. Since
tithing is a matter of the heart, God will honor
your desire to tithe even if you are not able to
give. The Lord is not concerned about money, or
how much or how little you give. He is much
more focused on the attitude of your heart. If you
have made commitments to tithe and your
husband objects to giving, God will see the desire
of your heart to tithe and He will honor that
commitment. God will bless you because of your
attitude, not because of giving. The Scriptures
make this very clear: “Each man should give what
he has decided in his own heart to give, not
reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a
cheerful giver" (2 Corinthians 9:7). Thus, there
are no set amounts or percentages of income
dictated, rather, "...if the willingness is there, the
gift is acceptable according to what one has, not
according to what he does not have" (2
Corinthians 8:12).
We’d also encourage you to understand the “real”
issue. Don’t get caught in the trap of making the
issue about “tithing”—to tithe or not to tithe. That
discussion is a total waste of time. At this point,
arguing about who’s right or wrong, or what the
Bible says about tithing is a waste of time
because it’s not the real issue. Get to the real
issue, but use “curiosity” instead of judgment. If
your husband doesn’t want to tithe, approach the
issue with curiosity. If you say things like, “We
are commanded to tithe,” or “You’re not being a
very good Christian,” it will come across as
judgmental. We’re quite positive that judgment
shuts the communication process down. He’ll
want to defend himself, remind you of what
you’re doing wrong, or whatever. The bottom line
is that judgment wouldn’t get you where you want
to be.
The alternative to judgment is curiosity. Be
curious about what the real issue is. Curiosity is
honoring. Judgment is dishonoring. For your
husband, the real issue might be his concerns
about your financial security in an unstable
economy. The real issue might be that your debt
levels are so high and he feels you can’t afford to
tithe right now. Maybe he does not like the
church you are currently attending and his lack of
giving is more about supporting a church he
doesn’t believe in than it is about tithing? The
point is to discover the real issue. And then just
listen—seeking to understand. Resist the urge to
debate or argue his concerns or objections. That
will shut down the conversation fast. When you
discover the real issue, it has an amazing ability
to bring empathy and understanding when there
was little or none before.
Crown Financial Ministries (www.crown.org)
suggests a wonderful idea. You might want to
ask your husband to let you give an amount
smaller than the tithe for at least a year. If, at the
end of the year, the family is worse off financially
as a result of giving, you will agree to stop giving.
If the family is better off, the husband may agree
to give more. In Malachi 3:10, the Lord says to
test Him in this thing (tithing). Often this is just
the opportunity for God to prove Himself real to a
doubting spouse.

http://liferelationships.com/resources/qa/viewAnswer.asp?articleid=198&categoryid=27

Gasout:
I doubt if those points can keep me

then add yours buddy.

A wife has the unique ability to help her husband feel the freedom to reach his fullest potential as the man God has created him to be.
An inspired husband feels the freedom to reach the fullest potential of the man God has created him to be. He’s not merely encouraged. He’s a man who’s empowered; a conqueror. If you want to give your man some “wind beneath his wings”… start here.‎

1. Send him an e-mail. Example: “Praying for you today. Thanks for being so courageous in ___.”

2. Give him one night on a regular basis to do something he loves.

3. Consistently mention ways you see him growing to be more like Christ.

4. Initiate great sex.

5. Ask him about his “bucket list”—the top list of things he’d like to do in his lifetime.
‎6. Give him a book or audio CD to learn about something he loves doing.

7. Ask him about some dreams he has—and pray about them together, evaluating them. Then ask how you can help him go after them.

8. Text him on a stressful day. Example: “REMINDER: I BELIEVE IN U.”

9. Make sure he feels respected by you.

10. Suggest that he take some time to go pursue a hobby.
‎11. Leave sticky notes in his lunch, on his steering wheel, in his briefcase, etc. “So proud of all you’ve been doing with ___”. “You are so great with our kids.” “You are my dream come true.” “You are an incredible lover.”

12. Leave a message on his voicemail: “Thanks for going to work every day to take care of our family. You are so good at what you do.”
‎13. Ask him how you can pray for him at work. Later on in the week, get an update from him on what you’ve prayed for.

14. Be proactive about doing something together that he really enjoys. Make a date, get him excited, and share his enthusiasm!

15. Tell him areas he’s gifted in. Don’t stretch the truth: Be honest so he can trust you.

16. Pray for him.

17. Initiate great sex.


‎18. Start and keep a “Dreams” binder with him. Include some travel brochures or whatever gets you both energized. In the back, make sure you have a “Dreams turned reality!” file.

19. Talk with your husband about setting aside a small part of the budget to pursue the unique ways God has designed him (including his gifts, abilities, and passions)—through education or through sheer enjoyment.

‎20. Post on his Facebook wall: “I love being your wife! See me tonight regarding this.”

21. Gently communicate with him about what you like in bed, and respond encouragingly to his attempts.

22. Remember a dream that he had a long time ago. Talk with him about whether it’s still a dream—and still a possibility.

‎23. Ask God to open your eyes to the ways He has made your husband unique, and to give you wisdom about how to maximize that workmanship.

24. Have your children write him notes or letters about what they love about him as a dad.

25. Initiate great sex.

26. Ban yourself from nagging, which is the Great Life-Sucker.

‎27. Ask, “If I could do one thing that would really empower you and inspire you, what would it be?” Then listen, resist being defensive (the hard part), and follow through.

28. Buy him something small to stoke the fires: A journal for a writer, some carpentry pencils for a woodworker, some grilling tools for the master chef. Add a sweet note: “Just because I love the way you’re made.”
‎29. Remind him of specific times when he’s made an impact on other people’s lives. “Hey, I was thinking the other day about all the time you invested in that Cub Scout troop. Wonder what those boys are doing now. It was so cool to watch them grow with you as their leader.” “Our son has grown so much in encouraging people lately. He gets that from you; you are such a good example for him in that.”


30. Do something fun and unexpected together. A few ideas to try: paintball; laser tag; on a spring day, have a picnic, blow bubbles, and bring the books you’re reading; swing; play a pick-up game of a sport together; go to a drive-in movie, bring popcorn, and instigate a make-out session.
31. Think about a way you’ve been hurting him or annoying him. Or there may be ways you’re not “seeing” him—not stepping into his world to understand what it’s like to be him, with all of the things he cares about. Apologize, and work hard at showing true change.

32. Initiate great sex.

33. Go to a home improvement store to plan a small, doable project that energizes both of you, even if it’s just painting a room or fixing up some landscaping. (Hint: Be positive that it’s something by which he won’t feel burdened.)

34. With quality, complete something from his to-do list for him—something that he’d rather have you do anyway.


35. Find a mutually enjoyable activity you like doing together on a regular basis, even if it’s as simple as playing the Wii together after the kids are in bed.

36. Create a cheerful atmosphere when he comes home.

37. Design a date night that will help him to de-stress and have fun.

38. Discover his “love language,” and become fluent in it.


39. Pray about and pursue at least one dream of your own, talking with him about it. An inspired wife breeds inspiration.

40. What’s difficult about his life right now? Pray for his endurance, and encourage him specifically. Galatians 6:9 is a great start for both. Think, What can I do to ease the load he’s carrying?

41. Organize or clean something in your home that you know he finds messy.


42. Send a snail-mail love note to him at the office, affirming him in his work.

43. Initiate great sex.

44. Be a student of your husband. Does he feel inspired if he has all his ducks in a row? If he has a creative space to think? If he feels verbally affirmed?

45. If your man is into dressing nice, go with him to shop for clothes in which he feels confident.

46. Think of something on his honey-do list at home that he finds overwhelming or for which he doesn’t have much time. Talk with him (respectfully and gently) about the possibility of hiring someone to do it. Communicate clearly that it’s not because you find him incompetent, but that you want to free him up from a burden.

I WRITE this as someone who does not know
President Jonathan personally. I have never met
the man. Neither have I ever spoken to him
electronically. All I know about him is what I read
in the papers, or what I have seen of him on
television. Nevertheless, he has been my
president for the last five years.
When you write positively about the president, his
opponents insist you must either be a card-
carrying member of the PDP or be looking for a
job. They act as if it is impossible to like him
without having an ulterior motive. I have ignored
this cheap blackmail designed to discourage
people from expressing freely their liking for the
president. But it has already outlived its
usefulness. In a matter of days, the president will
leave office. From now on, those ostensibly
looking for a job are the praise-singers of
president-elect Buhari.
For over 20 years, I refused to write anything that
was not religious. I took no interest in politics,
and did not participate in political debates the
way I used to. When that proscription was lifted
two years ago, I became interested in President
Jonathan because some people were so adamant
that he must not succeed. Indeed, they did their
level best to sabotage his administration. Boko
Haram was one of their many weapons. The
press and the social media also became their
tools of persecution where the president was
maliciously labelled “clueless.”
I was affronted by this. I insist that President
Jonathan has an inalienable right to be president
of Nigeria, as does any minority citizen. Moreover,
close scrutiny of his presidency indicates he was
better in many respects than his predecessors.
The president himself observed that Nigerians
would appreciate him better after he leaves office.
I discovered, for instance, such anomalies as the
fact that while his administration is labelled as the
most corrupt in Nigerian history, the most
significant advancements in dealing with
corruption actually took place under him.
It is not my intention to go into those details
precisely here, having written copiously about
them in the heat of the election campaign. I have
been and will continue to be an ardent supporter
of Goodluck Jonathan, in or out of office. Within
the context of the current triumphalism of APC
supporters, I have found it necessary to point out
that president-elect Buhari was only awarded 52%
of the votes cast. That is hardly an index of
overwhelming support for him. Neither is it
evidence of overwhelming rejection of President
Jonathan.
Failure is an orphan, ensuring that the president,
by his own admission, has lost a lot of his fair-
weather friends since losing the election.
However, instead of losing me, the president has
now become my hero. I don’t want the defining
moment where my liking for him underwent this
sea-change to be lost in history. Therefore, I think
it is appropriate to put it down in writing
especially because I am convinced I might not be
alone in this assessment.
Clincher
On Election Day on 11th April, 2015, President
Jonathan and his wife went to their polling booth
in his hometown of Otuoke to cast their vote;
only to discover that their cards were not
recognised by the card-reader. At this point, the
2015 presidential election became farcical. If the
card-reader would not recognise the number-one
citizen in the country, then it was operationally
useless. As far as I was concerned, that faux pas
marked the failure of INEC in the election.
I regard this as a prime example of the
democratisation of Nigerian incompetence. In
even the most backward of countries, there are
usually exclusion zones for failure. There may be
no water in the capital-city, but you would not go
to the toilet in the presidential palace only to
discover there is also no water there. No way, no
how! There will be water in the presidency, even if
it is non-existent everywhere else. But not in
Nigeria! If there are power-cuts in the Abuja, Aso
Rock would not be exempted.
INEC’s malfunctioning card-reader seemed to
have sinister undercurrents. Although the card-
reader did not recognise the president in Otuoke,
it recognised General Buhari, the APC presidential
candidate, in Daura. I watched this embarrassing
moment for the president from the safety of my
bedroom. I knew if it was me in his position, all
hell would have broken lose. I would have put it
on record right there and then that the situation
was completely unacceptable.
I can imagine myself ranting off something to this
effect: “Clearly, INEC has bungled this election. If
I, as president of the republic, cannot be
recognised by the card-reader, who then would be
recognised? If the card-reader fails in the South-
South which is my stronghold, sending back
home a number of my supporters who may not
bother to return; but works perfectly well in the
stronghold of my main opponent, then it cannot
be said that we are operating on a level-playing
field in this election.”
Human-being
The president himself also revealed that the
governor of one of the South-East states had
phoned him to complain about ostensible INEC
conspiracy in the South-East. I recall his precise
words. He said the governor was “boiling.”
However, he did his best to calm him down. He
himself did not seem too bothered by it all.
Instead, he pleaded that contrary to what it might
seem; INEC was doing its best.
He said: “I encourage Nigerians to be patient with
INEC. Everybody will vote, even if the card readers
have issues. It is new and anything new you must
have challenges. INEC will have a way to handle
delayed accreditation and I believe they will follow
the guidelines to ensure that all Nigerians willing
to vote will vote”.
Someone then asked him how he fancied his
chances in the election. It was his reply to this
question that did it for me. “I am hopeful,” replied
President Jonathan.
I looked at the man again on my television
screen. He was so relaxed and unflappable. I even
got the impression that he had a sweet in his
mouth. I said to myself: “I don’t think Nigerians
fully get this man.” There and then, I gave him
the greatest compliment I give to anybody. I said:
“This man, Goodluck Jonathan, is a human-
being.”
Jonathan wears his heart on his sleeve. He is a
simple man who does not put on any airs. He is
the president, but he has not allowed this to get
into his head. This man clearly does not see the
presidency as a do-or-die affair. He is a man of
destiny who seems to take everything with a
diffident equanimity. From that day forward, I saw
President Jonathan in completely new light. From
that day forward, he became my hero.
New departure
It does not matter that he then went on to lose
the election. Indeed, it helps to understand his
attitude to his loss. Before the last results were
announced, the president conceded defeat and
phoned to congratulate Buhari. Many have
extolled this as a new departure in the annals of
Nigerian politics. Moreover, the president’s
gesture saved lives by averting bitter disputes
and riots over the flawed election results. While I
definitely share the view that the president’s
actions established him as an exemplary
statesman, I still maintain that the icing on the
cake for me was hearing him say “I am hopeful”
on Election Day.
Nigerian presidents are not “hopeful.” They create
their own hope. Nigerian presidents don’t lose
elections. But Goodluck Jonathan lost. If
President Jonathan was determined to win the
2015 election, he would have won by hook or
crook. He lost because although he wanted to
win, he was not determined to win at all costs.
Winning was not the only option for him.
I have read all sorts of conclusions about the
election. Some of these only emphasise APC
talking-points, as if these make any difference in
Nigerian elections. Some who recognise that
elections are never free and fair in Nigeria would
have us believe this one was different because
the card-reader made it rig-proof. But the truth of
the matter is that, card-reader or not, Obasanjo
would not have lost this election had he been in
Jonathan’s shoes.
People seem to forget that the president’s party
lost many elections before 2015, and there was
no card-reader involved. PDP lost in Ondo. It lost
in Edo. It lost in Anmabra. It lost in Osun. In the
previous five elections before 2015, the PDP only
won in Ekiti. The president kept telling Nigerians
that one of the legacies he would like to leave
behind is that of being the man that revamped
the democratic system in the country. We heard
him repeat this again and again, but somehow,
did not take him seriously. We thought he was
just another politician sounding off.
Equanimity
However, Jonathan sat back, and watched
himself being defeated at the polls. My friend,
Benzak Uzuegbu, says this is conclusive proof
that Jonathan is, indeed, the most clueless man
that ever ruled Nigeria. “How could he have lost
the election? How can an incumbent president
lose an election in Nigeria, with all the powers
and resources at his disposal?”
I reach a different conclusion. Jonathan lost the
election because he belongs to a different class
of Nigerian politician. He lost because he did not
regard the president as something to be grasped.
He lost the election because, unlike most
politicians, Jonathan is a human-being. He is a
simple, decent, unassuming human-being, and
that makes him God-sent to Nigeria.
Before the election, Jonathan’s traducers tried to
compare him to Gbagbo of Cote d’Ivoire; a
President who refused to leave even after he lost
the election. How wrong they proved to be.
President Jonathan not only lost, his loss became
his victory. When the history of the 2015 election
is finally written, the emphasis will not only be
that General Buhari won, but more significantly,
that President Jonathan lost. To put it more
precisely, the President agreed to lose. What kind
of a man does that in a country like Nigeria.
http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/05/the-day-goodluck-jonathan-became-my-hero/
For over 20 years, I refused to write anything that
was not religious. I took no interest in politics,
and did not participate in political debates the
way I used to. When that proscription was lifted
two years ago, I became interested in President
Jonathan because some people were so adamant
that he must not succeed. Indeed, they did their
level best to sabotage his administration. Boko
Haram was one of their many weapons. The
press and the social media also became their
tools of persecution where the president was
maliciously labelled “clueless.”
I was affronted by this. I insist that President
Jonathan has an inalienable right to be president
of Nigeria, as does any minority citizen. Moreover,
close scrutiny of his presidency indicates he was
better in many respects than his predecessors.
The president himself observed that Nigerians
would appreciate him better after he leaves office.
I discovered, for instance, such anomalies as the
fact that while his administration is labelled as the
most corrupt in Nigerian history, the most
significant advancements in dealing with
corruption actually took place under him.
It is not my intention to go into those details
precisely here, having written copiously about
them in the heat of the election campaign. I have
been and will continue to be an ardent supporter
of Goodluck Jonathan, in or out of office. Within
the context of the current triumphalism of APC
supporters, I have found it necessary to point out
that president-elect Buhari was only awarded 52%
of the votes cast. That is hardly an index of
overwhelming support for him. Neither is it
evidence of overwhelming rejection of President
Jonathan.
Failure is an orphan, ensuring that the president,
by his own admission, has lost a lot of his fair-
weather friends since losing the election.
However, instead of losing me, the president has
now become my hero. I don’t want the defining
moment where my liking for him underwent this
sea-change to be lost in history. Therefore, I think
it is appropriate to put it down in writing
especially because I am convinced I might not be
alone in this assessment.
Clincher
On Election Day on 11th April, 2015, President
Jonathan and his wife went to their polling booth
in his hometown of Otuoke to cast their vote;
only to discover that their cards were not
recognised by the card-reader. At this point, the
2015 presidential election became farcical. If the
card-reader would not recognise the number-one
citizen in the country, then it was operationally
useless. As far as I was concerned, that faux pas
marked the failure of INEC in the election.
I regard this as a prime example of the
democratisation of Nigerian incompetence. In
even the most backward of countries, there are
usually exclusion zones for failure. There may be
no water in the capital-city, but you would not go
to the toilet in the presidential palace only to
discover there is also no water there. No way, no
how! There will be water in the presidency, even if
it is non-existent everywhere else. But not in
Nigeria! If there are power-cuts in the Abuja, Aso
Rock would not be exempted.
INEC’s malfunctioning card-reader seemed to
have sinister undercurrents. Although the card-
reader did not recognise the president in Otuoke,
it recognised General Buhari, the APC presidential
candidate, in Daura. I watched this embarrassing
moment for the president from the safety of my
bedroom. I knew if it was me in his position, all
hell would have broken lose. I would have put it
on record right there and then that the situation
was completely unacceptable.
I can imagine myself ranting off something to this
effect: “Clearly, INEC has bungled this election. If
I, as president of the republic, cannot be
recognised by the card-reader, who then would be
recognised? If the card-reader fails in the South-
South which is my stronghold, sending back
home a number of my supporters who may not
bother to return; but works perfectly well in the
stronghold of my main opponent, then it cannot
be said that we are operating on a level-playing
field in this election.”
Human-being
The president himself also revealed that the
governor of one of the South-East states had
phoned him to complain about ostensible INEC
conspiracy in the South-East. I recall his precise
words. He said the governor was “boiling.”
However, he did his best to calm him down. He
himself did not seem too bothered by it all.
Instead, he pleaded that contrary to what it might
seem; INEC was doing its best.
He said: “I encourage Nigerians to be patient with
INEC. Everybody will vote, even if the card readers
have issues. It is new and anything new you must
have challenges. INEC will have a way to handle
delayed accreditation and I believe they will follow
the guidelines to ensure that all Nigerians willing
to vote will vote”.
Someone then asked him how he fancied his
chances in the election. It was his reply to this
question that did it for me. “I am hopeful,” replied
President Jonathan.
I looked at the man again on my television
screen. He was so relaxed and unflappable. I even
got the impression that he had a sweet in his
mouth. I said to myself: “I don’t think Nigerians
fully get this man.” There and then, I gave him
the greatest compliment I give to anybody. I said:
“This man, Goodluck Jonathan, is a human-
being.”
Jonathan wears his heart on his sleeve. He is a
simple man who does not put on any airs. He is
the president, but he has not allowed this to get
into his head. This man clearly does not see the
presidency as a do-or-die affair. He is a man of
destiny who seems to take everything with a
diffident equanimity. From that day forward, I saw
President Jonathan in completely new light. From
that day forward, he became my hero.
New departure
It does not matter that he then went on to lose
the election. Indeed, it helps to understand his
attitude to his loss. Before the last results were
announced, the president conceded defeat and
phoned to congratulate Buhari. Many have
extolled this as a new departure in the annals of
Nigerian politics. Moreover, the president’s
gesture saved lives by averting bitter disputes
and riots over the flawed election results. While I
definitely share the view that the president’s
actions established him as an exemplary
statesman, I still maintain that the icing on the
cake for me was hearing him say “I am hopeful”
on Election Day.
Nigerian presidents are not “hopeful.” They create
their own hope. Nigerian presidents don’t lose
elections. But Goodluck Jonathan lost. If
President Jonathan was determined to win the
2015 election, he would have won by hook or
crook. He lost because although he wanted to
win, he was not determined to win at all costs.
Winning was not the only option for him.
I have read all sorts of conclusions about the
election. Some of these only emphasise APC
talking-points, as if these make any difference in
Nigerian elections. Some who recognise that
elections are never free and fair in Nigeria would
have us believe this one was different because
the card-reader made it rig-proof. But the truth of
the matter is that, card-reader or not, Obasanjo
would not have lost this election had he been in
Jonathan’s shoes.
People seem to forget that the president’s party
lost many elections before 2015, and there was
no card-reader involved. PDP lost in Ondo. It lost
in Edo. It lost in Anmabra. It lost in Osun. In the
previous five elections before 2015, the PDP only
won in Ekiti. The president kept telling Nigerians
that one of the legacies he would like to leave
behind is that of being the man that revamped
the democratic system in the country. We heard
him repeat this again and again, but somehow,
did not take him seriously. We thought he was
just another politician sounding off.
Equanimity
However, Jonathan sat back, and watched
himself being defeated at the polls. My friend,
Benzak Uzuegbu, says this is conclusive proof
that Jonathan is, indeed, the most clueless man
that ever ruled Nigeria. “How could he have lost
the election? How can an incumbent president
lose an election in Nigeria, with all the powers
and resources at his disposal?”
I reach a different conclusion. Jonathan lost the
election because he belongs to a different class
of Nigerian politician. He lost because he did not
regard the president as something to be grasped.
He lost the election because, unlike most
politicians, Jonathan is a human-being. He is a
simple, decent, unassuming human-being, and
that makes him God-sent to Nigeria.
Before the election, Jonathan’s traducers tried to
compare him to Gbagbo of Cote d’Ivoire; a
President who refused to leave even after he lost
the election. How wrong they proved to be.
President Jonathan not only lost, his loss became
his victory. When the history of the 2015 election
is finally written, the emphasis will not only be
that General Buhari won, but more significantly,
that President Jonathan lost. To put it more
precisely, the President agreed to lose. What kind
of a man does that in a country like Nigeria.
http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/05/the-day-goodluck-jonathan-became-my-hero/

Lagusta:
A very lovely article....

I'll be going for my youth service next year with mixed feelings...

While some can't wait to serve their fatherland, others think its a waste of time, money and energy that could be used for better things....

I'm largely in-between tho, willing to serve but wary of the dangers that lie ahead....

God bless Nysc, GOD BLESS NIGERIA!!!!

There is no danger anywhere,NYSC is just a very simple task to those who trust in God ,just be careful of what you wished yourself.

Lagusta:
Hmmmmmmm

explain?

NATIONAL YOUTH SERVICE CORPS: A SCHEME TO ELIMINATE IGNORANCE IN NIGERIA.

In the memorable words of Martin Luther king, Jr ‘Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity’.
After the civil war, Nigeria suffered greatly from this ailment called ignorance. It manifested in various ways, from fear to distrust and suspicion of one ethnic group by another. The atmosphere was not one where mutual respect and meaningful development could thrive and this was why, National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) scheme was created in a bid to reconstruct, reconcile and rebuild the country after the Nigerian Civil war. The unfortunate antecedents in our national history gave impetus to the establishment of the National Youth Service Corps by decree No.24 of 22nd May 1973 which stated that the “NYSC is established with a view to the proper encouragement and development of common ties among the youths of Nigeria and the promotion of national unity". Without doubt the psychological aims and objective of the National Youth Service Corps is to make it possible for Nigerian youths to understand their country better and realise that the country can only be fruitful when youths across the country see themselves as brothers and sisters. Without second thought, the scheme to a great extent has removed socio-cultural and political prejudices thereby creating a healthy atmosphere for national growth.
One may wish to ask what the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) is. According to Eberly, the NYSC is an organized activity in which young people serve others and the environment in ways that contribute positively to the society. Put simply, the National Youth Service Corps is a scheme modeled for young people which is constructive in its very essence and with the potentiality to investment meaningfully in the future of the active participants and the country at large.
National Youth Service Corps is a dream of every youth in Nigeria. For me graduating as one of the best in Osun state university is a dream come true and of course my happiest moment in life was getting married even before going on the compulsory NYSC one year programme. With that, the story of my NYSC experience will both be shared by my wife and I which would then be related to our children and grandchildren by the both of us.
As the day to receive call up letters approached, thanks to the National Youth Service Corps website I had already gotten the things I needed for camp, such as; Milk, Chocolate beverage, biscuits and clothing & accessories although one will be given uniforms and materials in camp but this was just a preparatory measure just in case the ones given in the camp don't fit i.e. Extra tennis shoe, white socks, white shorts, white round necked shirts, I didn't forget to get a small food flask and cup.
I was posted to Abuja, though that was not where I prayed and hoped for but who am I to determine what God has predetermined and perfected? It was my friend, Olagbemi Bolaji who texted me my posting state. I was dazed and couldn’t believe him as I had to leave for Osogbo to confirm it, I couldn’t believe my friend was serious, Abuja ke? I wondered. I collected my letter and still felt I would have been happier if my posting was to a nearby state. This was because for more than 25 years of my life, I have lived in Osun State which is my state of origin and study. New journey and plans sets in for me, how will I survive Abuja? Was the question I kept asking myself.
On the day I was to travel to the orientation camp, I woke up as early as possible, was I anxious? No. but I had to talk sense to myself as a newly-wedded man and my conclusion was simple; my marriage would be given the necessary consideration during the period of my service year. While making due preparations, my mum came in to pray for me and my brother who was also posted to Kaduna State which is about three hours drive from Abuja.
I was also worried because my brother and I had never been to Abuja or Kaduna before but with the information we both gathered, Kaduna as we learnt is not far from Abuja.
To most people in the Southern part of Nigeria during this period Kaduna is not safe even Abuja to some extent.
We left Ile-Ife for Abuja and not until we got to lokoja did we stop on the road. I kept asking the driver the hours left to reach Abuja, but from lokoja to Abuja it is 3hours drive basically and this means one should just be at rest when he or she is at lokoja. We slept in my father’s friend’s place and departed for orientation camp the next day, KUBWA is the place where I was to be for three weeks while my brother who by this time was sick and weak insisted he will make it to the camp in Kaduna.
While my father’s friend, Mr Thompson Awofisayo was taking me to Kubwa I couldn't help but let the flow of mixed feelings come through. At first I was dazed, and then slowly the reality of my situation began to creep in. I could feel my heart shredding into several pieces with every beat and this was due to the negative stories and pictures I had heard and seen in the media about bombing and kidnappings in the North Central and North East of Nigeria. Despite the happenings in the North Central of Nigeria, hopes of changing my state of deployment flew out the window; my fate had been sealed.
I was dropped at the entrance of the orientation camp while my brother was driven to Kaduna car park. I and other Corpers were screened thoroughly especially our credentials. None of my belongings was seen as contraband because I had gone online and got sufficient information from my sister-in-law. After hours of registration I was finally allowed into the main camp. After I was shown my hostel, I quickly made friends with a young-looking guy who spoke Yoruba with someone on phone, since I didn’t speak any other local language, I felt it was wise to relate firstly with those who were from the South West.
It is normal to feel excited at the thought of having fun in camp, but most people get there on the first day only to experience some inconveniences. The registrations for that first day stopped late in the night, so I couldn't finish the registrations due to what was involved like photocopy, filing of forms, joining one long queue to another for registrations and most importantly the kind of segregations by the soldiers and Man O War personnel who were in camp to maintain orderliness. They made use of their uniforms and post to favor those who had parents who serve in the army and those who have one or two things to do with them directly or indirectly. I could not eat dinner because I was so tired and couldn’t even raise a spoon to my mouth. The worst of it all was that I was not able to get a meal ticket and NYSC kits that day, Therefore; I was disappointed in the NYSC Scheme at first. Moreover, that evening while many were still struggling to do registration the captain who is the head of soldiers in camp, came out to address us, he was frank and bold, told us all we needed to know and of course he made us realize we were in camp for serious business and told us the dos and don’ts especially removing hair dress when it was 6pm and to always be in white top, white short with white socks and white snickers. His approaches made me love and respect him. His name is Captain Ijakpa.

I was allocated Room B, platoon 3. My number one happiness set in when I discovered that the person who was my new friend was not even a Yoruba person per say but only spoke and understood Yoruba and that the room I was given was to be shared with 23 other otondos as we were referred to by the soldiers and man O war. I was the only one from the South West, 15 persons were from the South East, 1 person from the North East and the others from North Central.
This picture represents Nigeria as a Country, thanks to NYSC.
Our swearing in ceremony was on the 23rd of August, 2014. All of us in my room woke up early and we were well-dressed (7/7) and that was when I started to value the khaki (uniform). Actually, I really cherished the respect given to the uniform. Many eminent personals came to welcome us, including the FCT minister, though he was represented.

THE SCHEME ELIMINATION IGNORANCE
The National Youth Service Corps scheme has promoted national consciousness of both the Corps member and their associates. When a Corps member departs for service, he leaves with the goodwill of his parents, relations and well wishers. He/she will now be open to the real Nigerian society and of course must learn very fast.
The number one role played by the scheme in shaping my ignorance is that of opening my eyes to the States and localities different from my State. Apart from the recitation of the Nigerian States and capital, many youths like me are not familiar with other States. In the course of my journey from Osun State to the Federal Capital Of Territory, I saw the real ups and downs of the nation, different rural settlements and not until one gets to Abuja would one see the urban side of Nigeria. Also, I was able to see the Lokoja Bridge which I had only seen on National Television Stations and also I saw the different ways in which Nigerians dress and build their houses.
At first as a Yoruba person posted to a place like Abuja where the wearing of hijab by the womenfolk is common, my level of ignorance was minimised because prior to the time I was posted to Abuja to serve, I was used to the habit of addressing any lady in hijab as ‘Alhaja’, but to my surprise I saw some of this category of women laugh without giving me the answers I wanted. They were baffled to hear me address them that way. One day, while I was on duty as the head of the kitchen service, I wanted to address a lady in hijab and I called her Alhaja, she calmly said she is not an Alhaja. I was dazed with her response but she did not hesitate to state why she said she was not an Alhaja. She calmly explained that ‘Alhaja’ is a title to address a muslim lady who has travelled for hajj or the Muslim holy pilgrimage in Mecca; and that the males are referred to as ‘Alhaji’. she told me that the next time I see someone in hijab I should simply address the person as ‘hajia’.



It is important also to note that three meals were served at different times of the day. I enjoyed the meals at the beginning but when corpers took over from the staff a week later, my interest in the kitchen meals waned because most of the time, the meals served either had little or no salt/pepper in them or were undercooked which made it tasteless. I wasn't bothered about food so much due to the other side attractions but the day my platoon was expected to cook, I was selected as the kitchen Head of Department and that day I got to know the level by which corruption had eaten deep into the nation.
The staffs displayed a high level of greed that was beyond comprehension. In an environment where corpers were expected to feed well so as to meet up with the demands of continuous physical training, it was a shame that the sharing of food was seized by some staff who took double portions of foods and still amassed some to send to their respective homes. This left many corp members to sleep without food and with this, many felt the government failed with respect to the provision of food on camp. To many Nigerians, the government is not living up to expectations but they are, in actual sense, unaware that true corruption resides in the people at the grassroots.
To any Nigerian from the Southern part, Northerners are seen as the most dirty and most wicked, but I was actually not moved by this notion because while in camp, I made friends with everybody, it was not late for me to make some from the Northern part of the country. Among these my friends was Salihu Rufa’i Alkali, a young charming young northerner, his identification reads that he hails from Gombe state , but schooled in Maiduguri in Bornu State. Alkali was just the opposite of what I had previously learnt about Northerners. He was simple in explanation, frank to the core and in most cases very plain, he told me Northerners are not really educated like the people in the south west and this is a major setback for the north, he eulogised that if not for the NYSC the country would have been divided into pieces. To him, many southerners relocate to the north due to the NYSC and many northerner relocate to the south due to the help of the scheme and without doubt Alkali was right. On many occasions of which I remember two times, Alkali freely gave out money and told those he gave the money not to write his name. My experience with Alkali, made me fully support what Pastor Femi Aribisala said and I quote:
‘True northerners are the most upright, most accommodating and most humane of Nigerians’.

Was Salihu Rufa’i Alkali the only one I met on camp that changed my view and percepection about the north? No, I met and made friends with Aminu Sanusi , Musa Ilu Ahmad, Abubakar, Kabeeru Bafe, Zubairu and Ali. All these people had one thing in common like Rufai, they are plain and don’t even care about my religion and most importantly they contributed financially on camp to religious societies without murmuring.


Simplicity dwell deep in the attribute associated with Northerners, as those people I met who were from the North showed me that, but it was Aminu Sanusi, who made me understand that simplicity is a backbone of humility and until I left camp I didn’t know he was one of the sons of the newly installed Emir of Kano.
My experiences during the orientation camp were numerous but these are the few that are dear to me. All activities during the orientation camp were fun and also discipline and love was instilled in us all.
My last day in camp, was the worst one ever. At about 1:30 am, soldiers and Man O' Wars stormed all the hostels and we were asked to go down in other to submit our mattresses and I had to join a very long queue in order to submit my mattress. We did the final sanitation and dressed in our khaki for the final ceremony. Corpers performed match pass and other activities but all I was just doing was praying and asking God for favour. I collected my Posting Letter at about 2:50 pm and was surprised when I saw INDEPENDENT ELECTORAL COMMISSION HEADQUARTERS. I don’t know the criterion that was used but I know God was at work.
Without second thought I left for the commission from the camp, submitted the letter and after 7days went back to know my fate. I was rejected although I tried all I could to be accepted but wasn’t accepted. As God would finally have it, I was accepted by the NATIONAL UNIVERSITIES COMMISSION after one month.
Serving my Country has opened my eyes to different things and I’m a better person for it. For this I will ever be grateful to God for where I was posted, the friends I made and the experiences I was able to garner.

Dedicated to My parent Elder and Deaconess S.O ODEYELE, my family members and My Wife, Mary Titilayo Odeyele for been more than a wife.