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Showing posts from 2013

Who Really Wants A Great Nigeria? : Beyond Those "Facts"

It would be prosaic to start listing all the woes Nigeria and Nigerians face. It is common knowledge that our condition today as a Nation is not much different from what it used to be under Military Rule and I am not trying to water down the benefits of having adopted democracy... at least, with their rights to freedom of speech, Nigerians can now "talk" and "write" about their predicaments unlike before. Be rather particular about the words "talk" and "write" because that is all we do...loads of free verbal and written words with absolutely no action. Most painfully, these verbal and written words have only repeated what we already know but in varying extents without offering solutions. In her poorly state, Nigeria has become an object of ridicule and cheap self-publicity as citizens and foreigners alike narrate to all who care to listen how bad the country has become and often with "facts" that border on the ridiculous. For inst

Fix It or Let It Break: A Country Named NIGERIA

An article by Chikezie Nwaoha from Bangkok (chikezie.n@student.chula.ac.th) Alone with my thoughts about my country, I became poised to put down a few lines and issues bothering over 160 million people with diversity in culture, religion etc, but enveloped under same struggle and challenges. I don’t know where to actually start, but a word begins a sentence, and a sentence begins a paragraph. Let me start from here: My humble question to most of those people abusing ASUU for extending their executive meeting,  please 'if Prof. Iyayi was your father and bread winner of your family', what do you suggest should happen?. Secondly, we should learn to tackle issues using 'root cause analysis'. As a reference, if you have headache please don’t just take paracetamol alone, but go and find out what actually caused the headache and treat it accordingly. It’s time for the students to rise against this insanity and impunity from our so called governors, elected officers

The Oracle Uncovers Hidden Aspects of The Nigerian Constitution: The Child Marriage Imbroglio

In the Nigerian Constitution, Chapter 3 is about citizenship. This chapter contains Sections 25 through 32 but the Oracle is interested in section 29 and particularly sub-section  4(b). To ensure that I drive my point home, here is the entire Section 29 of the Nigerian Constitution: (29) Any citizen of Nigeria of full age who wishes to renounce his Nigerian citizenship shall make a declaration in the prescribed manner for the renunciation. The President shall cause the declaration made under subsection (1) of this section to be registered and upon such registration, the person who made the declaration shall cease to be a citizen of Nigeria. The President may withhold the registration of any declaration made under subsection (1) of this section if: a.   the declaration is made during any war in which Nigeria is physically involved; or b.       In his opinion, it is otherwise contrary to public policy.          4.   For the purposes of subsection (1) of this section:

Insecurity and Unemployment: The Nigerian Experience

An article by  Chidiebere Nwachukwu  (A Human Rights Activist and Legal Practitioner based in Abuja) The man whose house is on fire does not go chasing after rats. Many people will say that the recent security incidents have exposed the rate of insecurity in Nigeria: the Niger delta militants, the kidnappings in the South-east and South-south, the Boko haram issue, the Jos crises, armed robbery attacks and other social unrest has not , for me, exposed the lapses in our security but has shown an  in-depth  revelation on the part of the government of the Federation’s inability to provide employment for the citizenry. Recent statistics(National Bureau of Statistics) has shown that more 40 million Nigerians are unemployed, and more than 4 million Nigerians under employed and the most shocking part of this report is that 90 percent of these figures are youths. Nigeria’s population is over 150 million, with about 65 million of this population being the youth population. It will b

Nigeria At 53: The Foolish Vs The Patriotic

Our leaders have explicitly failed the nation...this I know YOU! Yes YOU have failed the nation implicitly and/or explicitly...I know that too The result? What we have now as Nigerians. We are all part of the rot in one way or another... But the question is...what is next? The foolish take the easy route and hate the Nation. They see Nigeria as a failed project; Blame the rot on every other person but themselves; Talk incessantly about how bad things have become; Shout about how our Senators and Representatives waste our money Yet secretly nurse the intent of being members of the National Assembly... ...Not to change things, but to take their share of the "National cake"... Their ideology is simple: Nigeria is dead, let's bury her.... And today... They would be the ones with litanies of Nigeria's woes And not a word of encouragement or prayer. The Patriotic take the more difficult route. They acknowledge that things have gone wrong; They acknowledge that Nigeria is l

As Nigeria Clocks 53 Tomorrow: Why You Should Celebrate

As Nigeria clocks 53 tomorrow... Some might ask: "what is there to celebrate about Nigeria?" And my answer would always be: "A LOT!" Tomorrow is not about the filthy, corrupt and greedy Nigerians in governance It is not about the filthy, corrupt and greedy Nigerians in both the private and public sectors... It is not about the fact that millions of Naira would be spent in celebration by these corrupt people and their cronies as they "mark our independence"...  It is not about Boko Haram as is existent in the North... It is not about the Kidnappers as we have in the South-east and west... It is not about the Terrorists as we have in the South-south... It is not about the Nigerian Clergy who have become a scourge on their own... It is not about the various systems, structures and infrastructure in Nigeria which only exist and not function... It is not even about the good Nigerians who, if really existent, might change the country for the better.

The Oracle on the Alleged Deportation of "Anambrarians" By the Lagos State Government: A Calm Voice After The Noise

On the 24th of July 2012, people said to number between 60 and 72 were dumped at the Upper-Iweka Bridge in Onitsha, Anambra State. These people were said to have been deported/evicted by the Lagos State Government. This act caused uproar, with exchange of words, threats and counter-threats between people of the Ibo and Yoruba tribes. Notable amongst these were the write-ups of a man I see as almost-sane, Fani-kayode, who went to a great extent to slander the Ibos on this issue by claiming they were like refugees who should count themselves lucky to be welcomed by the Yorubas, especially the Lagosians. When challenged and called anti-Ibo; Fani-Kayode, on trying to prove he wasn't an Ibo-hater, alleged he had once had an intimate relationship with Ambassador Bianca Ojukwu. Through to form as an almost-sane man, he is presently trying to withdraw that statement after he was once again challenged as to its validity by Mrs Ojukwu and her lawyers. So, owing to his rather 'unstable&