The Nation Newspaper

Tag: breaks

  • Buhari breaks Eagle Square jinx 

    For seven years the Eagle Square venue for October 1st Independence Day Anniversary celebration was a no-go-area for the last two administrations.

    Since October 1, 2010, the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan and the current administration moved the Independence Day parade to the forecourt of the Presidential Villa.

    In the forecourt of the State House, only limited aspects of the independence parade were carried out during the period.

    The aspects of showcasing the military might of the nation in the form of equipment parade and air shows were completely avoided during the seven years.

    The shift in the venue by the Jonathan’s administration was informed by the bomb blasts that rocked the Square and  its environs during the celebration in 2010.

    The celebrations that year, which were also to mark 50 years independence of Nigeria from Britain, turned out to be everything the Jonathan’s administration never expected.

    People residing or present in the city during the blasts were shaken to their marrows by the attacks.

    The once peaceful Eagle Square arena turned rowdy and unsafe as guests and other Nigerians at the venue and its environs scampered for safety.

    In the blasts, at least 12 people were feared dead while many others were injured.

    Some eyewitness accounts that day claimed that the blasts were caused by car bombs.

    The two first blasts appeared to have been timed to achieve the highest damage to those who responded to the first blast, as they went off about five minutes apart.

    It was also reported that a smaller third explosion went off within the parade ground, believed to have occurred from a gun that accidentally went off.

    Interestingly, before that day, the militant group, Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) had threatened to target the Independence Day festivities.

    The attacks by MEND, which had been pushing for a fairer distribution of the country’s oil revenues, were the first time the group was targeting the capital city.

    Prior to the attacks, most of MEND’s attacks were targeted at pipelines and supply terminals in the Niger Delta region.

    The group believed that there was “nothing worth celebrating after 50 years of failure”.

    Jonathan, who was then inspecting a guard of honour at the time, described the attack as  a “wicked act of desperation by criminals and murderers.”

    While the fear of the 2010 attacks kept the Eagle Square deserted for seven years on Nigeria’s national day, a former militant leader, Charles Okah, in March this year was found guilty of plotting the 2010 Independence Day bombing.

    From the ruling, he is to spend the rest of his life behind bars.

    To return Nigeria’s independence day anniversary celebration to what it used to be, President Muhammadu Buhari last week Monday, October 1, 2018, broke the jinx.

    He observed the 58th Independence Day parade in high key at the Eagle Square, Abuja.

    Contrary to some sceptics, who believed that the event scheduled for Eagle Square that Monday will be cancelled at the last minute, Buhari arrived at the Eagles Square for the anniversary  parade around 9.30am.

    He stayed at the venue with other top government officials and dignitaries for the two hours duration of the parade.

    Buhari kickstarted the parade with inspection of guards, which was followed by march past in slow and quick time.

    There was also a march past by para-military organisations, agencies and Nigeria Police Force (NPF) mounted troops.

    Also on display were military equipment march past on low loaders

    Apart from police dogs displaying the trainings they had acquired and thrilling the guests, outriders also took the stage by displaying their skills.

    The Nigerian Air Force mishap during training three days earlier also could not stop them from participating colorfully in the aerial show at the Eagle Square.

    To bring the ceremony to a close, the military personnel also took part in firing of volleys and 21 gun salute.

    Before departing the venue, President Buhari signed the 58th Independence anniversary register.

    There were however some dramas at the venue shortly after Buhari and the dignitaries left the venue.

    Some APC youths wearing black T-shirt took over the arena and in a procession with the APC flag, started moving around, singing songs in support of President Buhari’s reelection bid in 2019.

    Trouble however started when somebody, who infiltrated the group, stole the telephone set of one of the youths.

    Rather than submit the telephone set when he was caught, he drew out a dagger to scare away those who tried to get the telephone set from him.

    With the thief’s supporters at the venue backing him, it almost turned to a free for all fight.

    They ran, pushed and pursued one another around the venue for over 15 minutes.

    It got bloody when some of the thief’s gang started throwing stones, which made the youths to run helter-skelter around the venue for safety.

    One young boy of about 15 years was not too lucky as one of the stones landed on his head.

    The boy, who was bleeding profusely, was given first aid treatment by some members of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps at the venue.

    With the 58th Independence Day Anniversary celebration over, it is hoped that the 59th anniversary next year and subsequent ones will not experience bloodshed of any kind.

     

  • Bayode breaks Guinness record in ‘Longest Marathon Reading Aloud’

    Bayode breaks Guinness record in ‘Longest Marathon Reading Aloud’

    A Nigerian, Olawunmi Bayode, has set a new Guinness Record in the “Longest Marathon Reading Aloud” Category.

    Bayode, father of three kids, logged 120 hours at 15.30 yesterday at the YouRead Library Yaba in Lagos, beating the previous record set by Nepali Deepak Sharma Bajagain.

    The latter had 113 hours 15 minutes in 2008.

    Another Nepalese, Tudikhel Ground tied the record.

    Bajagain’s book reading began on September 19 and ended on September 24, 2008.

    He recited 17 different books from 13 authors during his record attempt.

    Bayode began reading at 1:30 pm on Monday, February 26, 2018 and ended it 15.30 yesterday.

    He announced the record on his Facebook page, saying:

    “Hello everybody, something just happened right now! My name is Bayode Treasures Olubunmi (Olawunmi) – I have just finished reading aloud for 120 hours non-stop!

    Bayode studied at Osun State Polytechnic, Iree and Comprehensive High School, Ketu in Lagos.

    “I have always loved to read good materials right from when I was in secondary school. I am doing this for the youths,” he wrote on twitter, before he began the record setting reading marathon.

  • NPA breaks monopoly in oil and gas cargo 

    NPA breaks monopoly in oil and gas cargo 

    With the arrival of the Egina $3.3 billion Floating Production Storage Offloading (FPSO) vessel in Lagos, the Federal Government has broken the monopoly in that line of business, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) Managing Director Ms. Hadiza Bala Usman has said.

    Only one firm handles oil and gas vessel cargo at Onne, Warri and Calabar terminals.

    The giant oil and gas vessel arrived in Lagos, after 90 days voyage from Samsung Shipyard, Goeje in the Republic of South Korea.

    Speaking after the vessel berthed at the LADOL Integrated Free Logistics Zone in Lagos, Ms. Usman said it was a feat achieved by the government, NPA, other terminal operators and importers of oil and gas equipment.

    She said the choice of Lagos for the project, was a confirmation of the reason behind the government’s policy to liberalise oil and gas logistics operations to ensure competitiveness, efficiency and boost revenue.

    The Federal Government, she said, had fulfilled part of the subsisting contract it signed with the terminal operators through NPA and the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE).

    The FPSO Egina, she said, had a length over aii ( LIA) OF 330 METERS, width of 63 METERS and a Gross Tonagd ( GT) of 219,800 tonnes and it is the first time the NPA and the country would be handling vessel of the size.

    The berthing of the giant vessel by the NPA, she said, was an attestation to the infrastructural and operational preparation of the NPA.

    NPA, she said, has put to rest the protest by some terminal operators over the purported designation of a terminal operator as the exclusive handler of oil and gas cargoes, which, she said, was against the port reforms carried out by the Federal Government in 2006.

    “The successful berthing of this huge vessel testifies to our capacity to provide improved services to the oil and gas industry.

    “We recognise that the magnitude of this project presented the NPA with the opportunity to, once again, showcase our unrelenting efforts at building capacity to meet the needs of customers across board, we are grateful for this unique partnership and look forward  to more of such.

    “This project put a demand on the NPA to facilitate the berthing of the FPSO Egina for the completion of its construction at Lagos Harbour. It also further the Federal Government’s local content policy with multiple effects evident in employment opportunities, capacity building, technological transfer, cost saving, reduction in capital flight as well as the attraction of oil and gas hub to Nigeria for the sub-region,” Ms.Usman said

    She said, the Federal Government,  will continue to ensure that all ports operations are modeled in line with global best practices which recognise only three classes – bulk, container and multipurpose cargo, saying this is the practice globally.

    Ms. Usman gave kudos to President Muhammadu Buhari and the Federal Government for initiating an impressive policy that empowered the authority to return to the three classes as it is done across the globe.

    She assured prospective local and foreign investors, operators, importers, shipping companies, clearing agents and other port users that the misnomer in the oil and gas designation which has been corrected by the Federal Government through the NPA to enthrone competitiveness and end the unwarranted monopoly would not be allowed to resurface again  in the country.

    “Our plan is to ensure a regulatory environment that promotes the maritime industry. We are looking at ensuring that there is competition; we know the problems confronting most of the terminals at the various ports, we feel the need for the government to ensure that local content for example is adhered to.

    “Businesses are coming into the country, we are doing our best to encourage them to ensure that the utilisations of their operations are domiciled in Nigeria, we also encourage operators to ensure that they have Nigerians within their ranks, employment for Nigerians is very important. We also believe that wherever enabling environment is required we will provide.

    “We believe in stakeholder’s consultation, we will continue to bring everyone to the table for us to seat down and ensure that there is need for us to work together. As an authority, we are going to lead and ensure that local content is provided. We will step beyond the things that we historically used to do so that whatever is required for the operators to work together for Nigeria to have the maximum benefit that it can attract for itself within this environment.

    “We are looking at making Nigeria the hub for West Africa; working to ensure that there is operational efficiencies and make effort to improve the ease of doing business and the competitiveness of our port operations; we will work with the operators and look at areas where there is overlapping among the operators and agencies within the Ministry of Transportation and ensure that we work together to ensure that there is synergy,” she said.

    Importers said the dominance of the nation’s oil and gas logistics business at the ports has ended with the arrival of the FPSO vessel in Lagos.

    One of the importers, Mr Kenneth Anderson, gave kudos o the Federal Government and the NPA for guaranteeing the right of importers to choose terminals or ports of their choice for the discharge of their cargo.

  • Rests, breaks, relaxations and vacations

    Rests, breaks, relaxations and vacations

    Rests, breaks, relaxations, and vacations play an important role in our individual health and wellbeing and can help determine what good or evil we contribute towards peace, harmony, and progress of our families in particular and the world in general.  Earlier, we discussed rests and breaks. We now look at relaxations and vacations.

    Relaxation can be described as a temporary state of bodily, mental, and spiritual freedom.  Different degrees of relaxation are desirable for different situations, conditions, and places in life. If relaxation is freedom, we want to examine freedom from what?

    Life is full of potential stressors.  Your work can stress you up.  The sight of your rich neighbor’s car can stress you up. The presence of a rival throws you into competitive mode. In these days of heightened materialism (good, bad, or indifferent), many of us are stressed up by anxiety to acquire and own things.  The Yorubas say “makanjuola”  don’t be hasty for wealth.  We do live in a culture of haste that may keep precipitating stress in our lives.

    The individual regularly contends between positives and negatives, love and hate, good and evil, knowledge and ignorance, freedom and bondage, hope and despair, etc. and sometimes we are simply stressed up because we feel disconnected from what might be our origin and what might be our end, the stress of uncertainty.

    Some common tension builders include problems, lack, rivalry, enmities, anxiety, and ignorance. It is absolutely important that we learn how to relax and apply relaxation skills timely every now and then.

    Some relaxation techniques are simply distractions from stressors and others give a more lasting reward in overcoming the effects of stress and making us better prepared against future stressors. Distractions from stressors include pleasures, fun, laughter, music, dancing, hobbies, and interests.  Stress overcomers include prayer and meditation, exercises and body and mind techniques such as zen yoga, love and relationships, problem solving skills, time and money management skills, and virtues including contentment and gratitude.

    ”There is no single relaxation technique that is best for everyone. When choosing a relaxation technique, consider your specific needs, preferences, fitness level, and the way you tend to react to stress. The right relaxation technique is the one that resonates with you, fits your lifestyle, and is able to focus your mind and interrupt your everyday thoughts in order to elicit the relaxation response. In many cases, you may find that alternating or combining different techniques will keep you motivated and provide you with the best results” ( http://www.helpguide.org/articles/stress/relaxation-techniques-for-stress-relief.htm).

    We will look at different ways of relaxing but before that, let us consider this biblical advice: “don’t let the sun go down on your anger”.  We need to avoid harboring a state of stress (tiredness, envy, hatred, vengeance, greed, anxiety, panic, etc.) for too long.  This perhaps is the best prophylaxis.  Your neighbor that you quarreled with today should be surprised to see you bounce back as friendly as ever the next morning.A society whose members are healthy in body, mind, and spirit will be seen as a society of peace and freedom as opposed to a society or strife and bondage.

    Dr. ‘Bola John is a biomedical scientist based in Nigeria and in the USA.   For any comments or questions on this column, please email bolajohnwritings@yahoo.com or call 08160944635

  • Bifouma breaks Equatorial Guinea hearts

    Bifouma breaks Equatorial Guinea hearts

    The opening match of the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations ended 1-1 between hosts Equatorial Guinea and Congo in Bata yesterday.

    Nzalang Nacional went ahead in the first half through Emilio Nsue, but the Red Devils fought back to claim a share of the spoils in this Group A clash thanks to a late equaliser from Thievy Bifouma.

    Equatorial Guinea started the game strongly, with Kike Boula, Javier Balboa, Iban Edu and Emilio Nsue putting on a display of skill and speed in the final third.

    Kike’s superb footwork down the right flank created the opening goal in the 16th minute, with the winger skipping past a defender before playing a perfectly weighted through ball that allowed Nsue to fire a low shot past goalkeeper Chris Mafoumbi.

    Congo created chances of their own, most notably when Thievy Bafouma had a low shot from a tight angle that forced a good save from Felipe Ovono, while the hosts’ goalkeeper also missed a floated cross from a free kick but was lucky to see Marvin Baudry head into the side netting.

    The Red Devils enjoyed plenty of ball possession as the first half wore on, but they lacked the pace and penetration to really trouble Nzalang Nacional’s defence, which was marshalled by the excellent Rui da Garcia.

    Congo substitute Ladislas Douniama almost brought his side level with a curling shot from the edge of the box midway through the second half, but Ovono produced an excellent finger-tip save to turn the ball around the post for a corner.

    Equatorial Guinea thought they had wrapped up the game when Balboa’s ball over the defence allowed Nsue to lob the on-rushing goalkeeper and find the back of the net, but the attacker was incorrectly flagged offside by the referee’s assistant.

    They were nearly punished in the 83rd minute when Francis N’Gonga’s free kick came back off the upright, and on 87 minutes Congo’s relentless pressure was finally rewarded when Bifouma finished off a through ball from substitute Dominique Malonga to make it 1-1.

    Equatorial Guinea next face Burkina Faso, while Congo will take on Gabon. The second round matches will be played in Bata on January 21.

  • Season of jail breaks

    •In this period of widespread insecurity, there must be zero tolerance for jail breaks

    The startling progression of insecurity in the country is unfurling another routine pattern of criminality: the relentless and disconcerting level of jail breaks.

    The most recent is the troubling news that not less than 270 of the 323 inmates of the Minna Medium Prison, Niger State, escaped after an attack by six gunmen.

    Before this horrific incident was a similar attack on the Federal Prison, Afao-Ekiti Road in Ado- Ekiti, during which another 320 of the 446 inmates escaped.

    Not far from memory is also the report in early November that gunmen, armed with grenades and heavy fire arms, attacked the Nigeria Federal Prison in Koton-Karfe, Kogi State, freeing over 140 inmates in the process.

    Sadly too, yet another prison attack, in Bauchi State, remains a conundrum that still defies noticeable solution till date.

    The Minna incident introduced an especially frightening dimension, with the revelation that the freeing of two notorious robbers- Ayo (a.k.a Eze ego), a dismissed Mobile Police (MOPOL) officer, and Osama, convicted in Kebbi and Edo states, and respectively serving jail terms in the prison, were the motive behind the condemnable attack.

    Apart from a prison official that was seriously wounded by the rampaging gunmen, they also reportedly carted away arms and bullet proof vests meant for prison warders. The sad occurrence will not be mitigated by subsequent purported re-arrest of about 20 of the escapees barely two hours after the operation.

    We ask: What makes the nation’s prisons so vulnerable to attacks?

    Dr Peter Ezinwa Ekpendo, Comptroller-General (CG) of prisons, reportedly recommended the reprimand of the comptroller of the prison and at least 58 wardens in the Minna prisons. But beyond this, there is the need to find out how attackers in Ado-Ekiti and elsewhere succeeded in using dynamites to break prison entrance; and why, for some time, successive attacks on prisons usually happened on Sunday nights.

    Is this a coincidence or sheer failure of intelligence? Why are our prisons so vulnerable to attacks without any immediate solution?  Why are modern surveillance appliances not the forte of Nigerian antiquated prisons at this contemporary technological period?

    The prisons across the federation are witnessing unbelievable security laxity that needs to be urgently addressed. We know that prison officials are badly paid; and the near-relic infrastructure are in near-collapsed shape; thereby putting prison officials under tremendous strain; and undue pressure to bow to temptations of inducement from rich and powerful inmates, capitalizing on these stark inadequacies.

    Though this sad reality should not serve as excuse to tolerate possible collusion by prison officials in jail breaks, it just shows the disturbing reality that Nigerian prisons to have become a mirror of the tumbling disarticulation of the Nigerian system, which is a sad commentary on its own.

    The nation cannot afford to sit with hands akimbo and allow convicted felons,  yet to serve out their sentences, take over the streets at this period of monumental insecurity, especially in the north eastern part of the country; and not in any part of the country.

    The government must do all within its power to apprehend criminal inmates still at large; and who could still cause serious trouble for an already troubled society.

    We call for collective efforts of all security agencies to bring back to justice all absconding inmates wherever they might be hiding in the country.

    Also, the issue of possible internal complicity should be looked into to unravel the brains behind this dangerous criminal pattern of setting inmates free, as such practice is detrimental to the nation’s national security.

    Still, does a government regrettably yet to see the need for long overdue prison reforms have the capacity to achieve this desirable goal?

    This is a question that should be quickly addressed because the incessant jail breaks must stop, if this administration wants the people to take it serious.

     

  • Use of rests, breaks, relaxations, and vacations for wellbeing

    Rest is not just a desirable aspect of life but it is physically, mentally, and spiritually mandatory.  The body reacts and collapses when it is refused rest.  The mind goes crazy when it is refused rest.  From time immemorial, rest was prescribed through Mosaic religion and biblical story described God resting one day after six days of creation.  Perhaps other various religions indicate a need for rest.  Regular rest is biologically imposed on life and the elements of creation and their cycles of day and night and seasons are in concert with biology bringing us to times and stages of rest.  Through this circadian rhythm or system of biologic clocks we are able to stay healthy, feel well, and function optimally.  A healthy psychology should positively look forward to rests, whether the temporary ones all along life or the rest at the end of life in this world.  Even though we are bound to rest regularly, we enjoy rest best when we deserve it.  The body can always benefit from inactivity and sleep but psychological and spiritual gratification in rest occurs when we have spent ourselves well and are fulfilled.  Thus the actual experience of rest is more a consequence than a goal.

    A rest is a state of retreat from effort and labor that enables us to regain energy and momentum for our normal functions in life. Thus being in a prison cell or in any sort of real or virtual prison can never psychologically or spiritually give us true rest. We need to rest daily and our bodies have a system of hormones and sensitivity that rhymes with sunlight and other physical elements of the day to bring us to rest at night.  Nocturnal workers, through their activity, force their body regulatory functions to go against this natural system and reset it.

    We should take care of our daily rest whether it falls within the natural night time or, as in the case of nocturnal workers, it falls at another time.  Sleep is our major daily rest.  During sleep, the body, including the brain, is being serviced through involuntary and vital biological functions.  During sleep, most systems in our bodies are in a heightened anabolic (building/repairing) state.  The growth and rejuvenation of the immune, nervous, skeletal, and muscular systems are taking place. Sleep deprivation can make us feel sleepy at odd times and in odd places during the day.  A sleep-deprived person can function as poorly as a drunkard.

    One of the important effects of inadequate sleep is diminished brain function expressed in inability to pay attention, remember new information, react to signals, make decisions, and perform attention sustained tasks safely.  Another effect is on the mood expressed in lack of motivation, irritability, and inability to cope with common daily pressures.  Sleep difficulties are associated with some psychiatric disorders.  About 90% of adults with depression have sleep difficulties.  Many relationship problems within the family, in the workplace, and in society may ensue from such diminished mental functions.  Chronic sleep deprivation leads to less servicing of the body, cardiovascular problems, reduced immunity, increased susceptibility to infectious diseases, compensatory overeating, weight gain, and type II diabetes.

    We have a lot to lose by not sleeping well and a lot to gain by sleeping well.  Therefore, if we are ambitious to live life to the fullest, to be as fruitful as we ought to be with our lives, and to have continuous well being, one of the factors in our lives that we should take good care of is our sleep.

     

    Dr. ‘Bola John is a biomedical scientist based in Nigeria and in the USA.   For any comments or questions on this column, please email bolajohnwritings@yahoo.com or call 08160944635

  • About lives without rests, breaks, relaxations and vacations

    Life is different for human beings in different parts of the world.  I remember when I first arrived in Chicago in 1998 and started working in a lab and told my immediate supervisor that I was struggling to do something.  He looked at me as if I was strange and said: “Why struggle?” I was coming from Nigeria where we struggled for everything and the word ‘struggle’ was fixed and prominent in my vocabulary.  I was in a car with some friends and on reaching their gate, nice me quickly tried to get down from the car to open the gate and was asked not to bother as I saw the gate roll open silently before my eyes.  For more than ten years, I was steeped in a world of constant electricity, remote controls, and programmed functions and services and I came to realize that “struggle” is not necessarily a way of normal life in this 21C.  When I returned to Nigeria in 2008, I began to see and experience “struggle” again, in every sphere, in every way. Yes, indeed, in developed countries, people do have their own stresses and struggles but really there are some problems that do not belong to the 21C and developing countries should try harder to tackle.  I keep on marveling, for example,when I go to a conference and put my hand under taps that you do not need to touch and remember people drawing water from wells. The fewer stressors we have, especially mental stressors, the freer our minds can be for progressive, innovative, and creative thinking which Africa and other developing areas of the world surely need.

    If you find life seems to be full of endless problems, you must think of how you userests, breaks, relaxations, and vacations.  Whenever I ask a Nigerian how was his holiday or leave from work and he says “O, I slept a lot and watched TV”, I wonder if other things could be included.  The thing about rests, breaks, relaxations, and vacations is that they can be used to greatly improve our quality of life, no matter how bad things have been.

    •They save us from self- destruction: in the busyness of our lives, we may often fail to reflect well, sleep well, eat well, have fun, pray well, bond well with people who we tend to see as capital and means to our ends, etc.

    •They save us from destroying relationships: in the busyness of our lives, we may often fail to bond well within our families, to care well, to attend to unpaid natural duties, etc.

    •They allow us revive our strength and positive energies: in the busyness of our lives, we may often burn ourselves up, wear our bodies out, expose ourselves to dangers and hazards in the workplace and in the rush-hour traffic, lose our minds, etc. •They give us an opportunity to see our deviations and how far we went off tangent: in the busyness of our lives, we often sink into corrupt practices, engage in worthless matters, or do things wrongfully, etc.

    •They allow us to regain focus if we had lost it: in the business of our lives, we may end up chasing shadows and all that glitter and miss things of substance.

    •They give us a chance to arrest the thieves of life: in the busyness of our lives, we do not recognize the things that are harmful, the stressors, the traps, the predators, the enemies, etc., or we know them but are too busy to deal with them.

    •They allow us to enter personal peace and security: in the busyness of our lives, we are unable to know ourselves well, to recognize the good, the bad, the rights, and the wrong in us and the potentials and possibilities of our lives.

    •They allow us a fresh taste of freedom: in the busyness of our lives,we tend to be slaves of something and we are necessarily tied to timetables, schedules, deadlines, and conditions that are often far from our personal dispositions, bents, will, or pleasure.

    •They give us space for personal decisions and redirection: in the busyness of our lives, we are following the flow and decisions of other people and often bound by fears and threats.

    •They give us opportunity for creativity and diversification of our capabilities: in the busyness of our lives, we often need to play to the tunes of those who pay us and put aside those aspects of our being that are of no use to our masters.

    •They allow us to explore new horizons: in the busyness of our lives, we tend to stay in one spot – shut off from other worlds, fixed in a routine, and conditioned.

    •They give us space to develop or improve relationships and friendships: in the busyness of our lives, we become dependent on fixed groups of people and what they offer us and miss out on all the others we ignore.

    •They allow us to enjoy the brighter side of life (physical and spiritual) and become our better selves: in the busyness of our lives, we do not have time for the fun and pleasures that are necessary components of happiness and the ability to appreciate life, existence, and wellbeing.

    •They give us space to harmonize ourselves with creation and the Creator, and thus, realities of life and existence that we had no room for: in the busyness of our lives, we live in a small world – too small, too unreal, too apart from our destiny as human beings.

    The result is that when we have been unable to take breaks and sort out our lives, life may become messy and we become somewhat crazy. Next we try to sanitize and improve life through rests, breaks, relaxations, and vacations.

     

    Dr. ‘Bola John is a biomedical scientist based in Nigeria and in the USA.   For any comments or questions on this column, please email bolajohnwritings@yahoo.com or call 08160944635

  • Rests, breaks, relaxations, vacations and health

    The world of today seems to stage wars more than ever before or maybe because of effective media coverage we get to know more about the wars and conflicts all over the world. With our increased knowledge of science and technology, wars are more sophisticated and difficult to stop.  As humans, we know that living in war is not our best life.  It is certainly not for children and innocents caught in wars.  Yet, every human being in some manner may taste war from near or from afar during his or her lifetime and for some, over and over again.

    People seem to expect war and look forward to future wars.   Some people believe that in a time of peace you should prepare for war.  Perhaps such ideologies actually help to usher in wars. For warfare, much money, time, resources, and human lives are invested and sacrificed. Much research, technology, and science is pumped into warfare.  Ironically, wars need to be created and sustained to recover investments in warfare or to profit from warfare. Wars are definitely vicious cycles of human madness.

    If wars are evil, undesirable, and difficult to stop, we need to make them difficult to start.  If all humans were living their best lives, nobody would think of war or want war.  We cannot make everybody live their best lives but everybody can, in freedom, try to live his or her own best life as much as possible.

    The mind is a beautiful and powerful aspect of humans and a good mind is an essential component of our best life.  In our everyday lives, many forces strain to capture and drive our minds.  These driving forces could be professional, cultural, religious, ideological, familial, political, financial, social, or relational.  Oftentimes, we are not really ourselves but are a product of some driving forces.  This is why too many people may never get to know or live their best lives and may never get to contribute their true worth to the world.

    As the world advances with its complexities, the wars and rumors of wars may continue, the problems of mankind and human nature may continue, science and technology may advance for good and for evil, diseases and catastrophes may surprise us, but through all these and in spite of all these we must learn to live our best lives.

    Rests, breaks, relaxations, and vacations, are very important for our mental health and can help determine what good or evil we contribute to the world.  You can try a simple experiment with yourself by writing a small paragraph on any topic within two minutes.  Leave it and come back the next day and rewrite the same paragraph on the same topic in two minutes.  You will most likely realize that you have made some significant change and your revised paragraph may be improved along the same direction or changed in an opposite direction from the first paragraph.  Yet in our world and in our lives, we continue with work, functions, activities, duties, and relationships and we embark on goals, interests, curiosities, ambitions, causes, ventures, missions, without the necessary breaks (functional brakes) that are checks and balances in our tipping towards good or evil.

    In our next articles we will look at rests, breaks, relaxations, and vacations and their role in our individual health and wellbeing for the peace and harmony of our world.

    Dr. ‘Bola John is a biomedical scientist based in Nigeria and in the USA.   For any comments or questions on this column, please email bolajohnwritings@yahoo.com or call 0816094463.

  • As Jonathan breaks Second Niger Bridge jinx

    SIR: The jinx that has bedeviled the Second Niger Bridge is finally broken.  On Monday, March 10, President Goodluck Jonathan performed the historic ground-breaking ceremony for the second bridge across the Niger to link the eastern flank of the country with the West.

    The event is significant in many ways and it can better be appreciated on the premise that previous administrations made similar promises on the second Niger Bridge without fulfilling them. Former Presidents – from Ibrahim Babangida to Olusegun Obasanjo and his successor, the late President Umaru Yar ‘Adua, the project had always been touted as national priority with little done in concrete terms to actualize it. Obasanjo even went a step further in the last days of his administration to perform the foundation stone-laying ceremony in May 2007, but it was a ceremony that was full of symbolism but lacking in substance.

    Twelve months ago, Works Minister, Mike Onolememen, fired up expectation when he announced that the work would start before the third quarter of 2014 and would be completed during Jonathan’s administration.  As the President explained, the delay in starting off the project was simply to ensure that all financial and other logistics arrangements were in place before the ground-breaking ceremony to avoid abandonment.  Already, construction giant, Julius Berger Nigeria Ltd has since begun work on the six-kilometre road between the bridge head and Oko-Amakom community where the company plans to use as its base for the bridge project.

    The Jonathan administration has taken practical steps to demonstrate its commitment by producing the drawing, completing the bidding process won by Julius Berger PLC and awarding the contract.  The N117 billion project, which will span Oko in Delta State up to Ozubulu and Ogbaru areas of Anambra State will involve 12.4 kilometres of approach road while the bridge alone will span a length of 1.8 kilometres.

    The economic importance is better imagined and the fact of its political expediency is obvious.  It is a project whose relevance and national importance will continue to unfold in the years and decades to come.

     

    • Sylvester Okoro,

    Awka, Anambra State