The Nation Newspaper

Tag: girls

  • Our Girls; Polio, Martyrs & Billionaires; Falae; HID Awolowo;  Pupil: ‘Awo? He owns Awo Univ’

    Our Girls, kidnapped since April 14, 2014 are yet to be freed. Chief Falae was luckier. The large number of Boko Haram members surrendering or being captured should have among them those with information on some Chibok Girls. The interrogation teams must please ‘KEEP THEM APART AND SINGLE UNTIL AFTER INTERROGATION.’ It is unprofessional for suspects to be herded into one room or vehicle where they can concoct alibis or intimidate others.

    Great sympathy to our Muslim brothers and sisters for the huge Hajj losses.

    Hurray, Nigeria is polio-free. Wow, great!!! We owe the success to billions of dollars raised worldwide by Polio-Plus, a selfless-service initiative of Rotary International entering a PPP, Private Public Partnership, with the UN, governments, religious and traditional ruler levels. The battle cost Nigeria ‘8 Murdered Polio Martyrs’, health workers murdered on duty. What are their names? Has Nigeria immortalised them and cared for their families? They were murdered on the ‘Polio War Front’ saving Nigeria’s children.

    Did the Dangote, Odetola, Adenuga, Babangida, Abdusalam, Abacha remnants, Elumelu, FBN, UBA, MTN, Etisalat, Dozie, Ovia, Osagie, Dantata, Oba Otudeko, Okorocha, Alakija, and other Foundations, the ‘BLACK MONEY’ fund any of this Polio MMM -Major Medical Miracle which would not have happened without the billions in ‘WHITE MONEY’? O Nigeria! Where are your saviours? Foreign as usual? You no shame, plus all your billions?

    Nigerian billionaires have missed opportunities for impact. Bill Gates’s America is already built. Nigeria is underdeveloped and needs Nigerian billionaires’ money. Yet Nigeria’s billionaires are still in the ‘TAKE’ and not the ‘GIVE’ mode. $1b will change thousands of hospitals and schools in Nigeria. Get on your phone and ask your personal billionaire ‘What is your Legacy Project’. Having $1billion is not a legacy or even an achievement. It is a burden. Helping a billion people is an achievement. Ask me, if you have no ideas on bringing your billions to the people. How about an Aquarium in Lagos?

    Chief Olu Falae is free. The police, congrats to them, should investigate the possibility that the kidnapping Fulani Herdsmen may also have kidnapped a Commissioner in Kogi. The police must not discriminate. They must use the same manpower for every kidnap. Too many innocent Nigerians have paid huge sums for freedom or paid with their lives. Yes, the jobs of the Police IGP and his zonal AIGs, did depend on rescuing Pa Falae alive. Their jobs are still at risk if police extrajudicial killings and police corruption are not eliminated immediately and certainly by the October monthly Presidential Anti-corruption Meeting of Heads of Uniformed and Armed Services. Just today I saw two ‘yellow fever’ and one black uniform taking money. In the last week, Police have killed three or four innocent citizens. Who exempted the police from ‘Buhari Change’? Buhari must soon sack someone in the Police as an example.

    LET US ANNOUNCE TO NIGERIAN UNIFORMS THAT ‘IN THE NAME OF THEIR CHILDREN, THEY MUST GIVE UP EXTRAJUDICARY KILLINGS AND CORRUPTION’. Then, we will expose the recalcitrant bribe-takers. Problem solved, people saved and corruption eliminated. Simply by secretly using our millions of cellphones, switched on at stop-and-search points, to record proof, we can gather a million pictures and transmit them to media websites. Then the police will arrest their murderous psychopathic and wayward corrupt colleagues.

    We the citizens demand that before unleashing armed police, the government must force the police to recruit 200 psychologists to carry out psychological tests on its weapon-carrying personnel who need programmes of breathalyser testing for alcohol before weapons are issued.

    A shocking history lesson! I met a 15 year old attending College in Ibadan.. ‘I study government’, he replied my chitchat. I asked ‘What political incident took place this last weekend?’. He replied ‘I do not know’. I said ‘Mama HID Awolowo died at 100 years minus 2 months’. He showed no understanding. ‘Have you heard of Mama HID Awolowo?’ He replied ‘No.’ I asked ‘Do you know of ‘Awo’ or ‘Awolowo?’. The reply was ‘Yes. He owns the Awo University, in Ife’.

    For a Western Region youth in school in 2015 to be so ignorant of Awoism is an indictment of education at home and school. Awolowo is beyond politics. Over-centralised curricula are stunting our youth. Eliminating local history will not create unity or federalism. We must teach geography, history- local, Federal, African and world. The young mind needs the challenges of scratching the surface of the Zulu, Kiriji, Fulani, Boar wars. Teach history – international, national and local. Every school must teach some unique local historical, geographic, personality and political content.  I had the honour of giving the Obafemi Awolowo Foundation Lecture at NIIA, Lagos, when Abacha misruled. Mama HID Awolowo will indeed Rest In Perfect Peace, RIPP, but the Awolowo story must be taught in South-west schools.

    The British and Americans immortalise figures and events in history through TV, radio, music, plays, films, cartoons, documentaries and study. We Nigerians should too through Nollywood et cetera. Where is the film ‘Awolowo’ starring whom as Awo the youth?

    So FIFA and VW are exposed for corruption. The VW boss has gone and Blatter is going. Saraki will likely follow with his name expunged from being Senate President if proven to be fraudulently obtained. He should refund any salary illegally received.

    The 40km Ibadan Lagos expressway jam needs urgent patch/patch filling of potholes at Redeemed, Mowe and Ibafo, today.

    ‘For a Western Region youth in school in 2015 to be so ignorant of Awoism is an indictment of education at home and school. Awolowo is beyond politics. Over-centralised curricula are stunting our youth. Eliminating local history will not create unity or federalism. We must teach geography, history- local, Federal, African and world’

  • Our Girls; PMB: Farmland is not ‘No Man’s Land’, NLC; ‘aguntasolo.com’; Roads or ‘Nigeria Airways

    Our Girls are still missing since April 15 2014. The military coalition is making progress. If done three years ago, we would never have had 20,000+ murdered and four million unhappy and often helpless ‘Internally Displaced Persons’. We must add as a cause of IDPs, the over 20,000 killed in the 20 year+ lethal Fulani herdsmen vs farmers war. Why do the herdsmen see farm land as ‘Federal No Man’s Land’ with ‘free’ cattle fodder, with no compensation offered? Is this a thinly disguised attempt to redress past failed ‘conquest and humiliate’ strategies? President Buhari must stop this war. The recent marches in Plateau and Nassarawa states where I did my NYSC in 1975/6 in Jos and Lafia leave me cold at the crimes committed. It is so easy to kill in Nigeria and we are so easy to kill. Just call yourself a ‘militia’ and you can kill at will. When Boko Haram is curbed, the same military is required for the Fulani herdsmen/farmers war, and the soldiers must ensure ‘‘Freedom and Security for Farmers in the ‘Front Line States’ ‘’.

    Happily the Third War in Nigeria, The Anti-Corruption War, is active at federal Level. All thieves must return amounts stolen and be imprisoned in proportion. A financial crime is as deadly as a violent crime. A crime is criminal, period! The term ‘Financial Crime’ must not make the crime ‘less criminal’, than the crime of an armed robber. It is not okay to commit a ‘financial crime’. Even law enforcement agencies ‘cooperate’ by charging such criminals with ‘MONEY LAUNDERING’ which has a MAXIMUM JAIL TERM OF JUST TWO YEARS, no matter the amount involved- N100,000 or N27billion! This is a legal scam law to deceive Nigerians that justice is occurring when it is criminal unwritten ‘plea bargaining’.

    For the anti-corruption war to work, it requires to progress from federal command and control for spread Buhari-ism to all states and LGAs for ‘national spread and federal character’ of anti-corruption. The NLC-led nationwide anti-corruption war march is not politics. The NLC and Co must practicalise things to guarantee the anti-corruption war’s success. The worker and the family will benefit from ‘Zero Corruption’. Every kobo stolen is stolen from people programmes aimed at making Nigerians own Nigeria, be they workers, children or retired. The NLC should produce ‘Anti-Corruption Ways and Means Guidelines’ and strategise to confront their own internal and also external corruption. The NLC and others must harness ‘useful Anti-Corruption information’. WHISTLE BLOWING MUST BECOME A RESPECTABLE PROFESSION with a Honours List and Role Model Status in Nigeria and Annual Whistleblowers Awards.

    The migration and trafficking nightmare are a sobering lesson for Africa’s corruption-prone leaders and thieves from public coffers. Under the uninspiring engine-rooms of corruption – the regimes of Babangida, Abacha, Abdusalami and Obasanjo – many Nigerians emigrated or were forced by circumstance to flee to Europe for normal work and even prostitution or died of thirst in the Sahara or drowned in the Mediterranean. The media should ban them and stop reporting every antic and word of these Ex-Presidents – a daily insult to Nigerians living in darkness. They richly deserve the Buhari anti-corruption treatment,

    The national anti-corruption project must be disseminated and domesticated nationwide in every village and by all organisations, societies, groups, forces and services. Let every honest Nigerian contribute to this anti-corruption war from Boy Scouts to PTAs. Every Nigerian will benefit from a bribe-free society. Bribery can be stopped immediately, overnight.

    Every Nigerian has experienced the corruption of the Nigerian uniform. President Buhari has an enormous task but in reality, it is easily achieved by delegation of authority and ready recourse to ‘termination of appointment (TOA) and ‘Pre-Signed Letters of Resignation’ from his management team. He can reverse this ugly but permanent stain on Nigeria’s flag by giving each ‘Head of Uniform and Organisation’ an ultimatum- a ‘Priority 1 Internal Anti-Corruption Drive’. ‘Stop Corruption Top To Bottom Immediately Today Or Face Sack in one month’. Give them one month to bring corruption to a halt. Invite the public to report to a ‘Corruption Monitor’ database. A monthly meeting thereafter will keep everyone on their toes and create the ‘ZERO CORRUPTION MODEL’. The Customs, Police, security agencies, VIO, FRSC, LGA road officials, SON, NAFDAC, judges, magistrates, greedy tax consultants and exorbitant levy imposers, road maintenance agencies, ministry officials, professionals, electricity [non]suppliers all on the long ‘accused of corruption’ list! They all need to be ‘under surveillance’ by anti-corruption citizens. By the time Buhari has ‘accepted’ the resignation of three or four successive IGPs, SON or NAFDAC bosses in three months, the police will fall in line from Constable to Commissioner as will the others.

    President Buhari should add ‘aguntasolo.com’ to his reading list. I agree that the national carrier  idea is strictly about pride and to be avoided like a plague in Nigeria’s weak economy. The New Nigeria Airways will cost us dearly but profit only 0.1% of Nigerians. Instead, that money could build many railways, 100 bridges and 500 roads used by 100% of Nigerians. After killing corruption, Buhari must have a legacy and plan to be more than ‘Buhari- The Anti-Corruption Tsar’ but also ‘Buhari- The Great Road/Bridge Builder’. He must avoid becoming ‘Buhari – the failed New Nigerian Airways Man’.  The Ibadan Lagos road is screaming to be completed. On Sunday afternoon September 13, it took seven hours to reach Lagos.

    ‘The national anti-corruption project must be disseminated and domesticated nationwide in every village and by all organisations, societies, groups, forces and services. Let every honest Nigerian contribute to this anti-corruption war from Boy Scouts to PTAs’

  • Our Girls; Buhari: Beware of NAPTIN & ‘Energy mis-advisers’, Go Solar; SenateGate On/Off?

    Our Girls are still missing and our IDPs face conditions unsuitable for ‘Fellow Nigerians’ in the camps. Nigeria must not fail its IDPs who need financial empowerment for self-employment, improved self-worth even in the IDP camps and not handouts from uniformed NEMA strangers from around Nigeria.

    WARNING: The frightening headline on page 15 Sept 3rd in The Nation screams ‘Why Nigeria cannot use renewable energy’ in which the writer Akinola Ajibade reported the views of the Director General, National Power Training Institute of Nigeria [NAPTIN]  and the Managing Director of Ikeja Electric. The DG said that ‘Nigeria is not ripe for renewable energy’, urging ‘government and other investors to concentrate on hydro and gas powered plants for growth. It is impossible to grow the economy with renewable energy’ arguing that ‘conventional sources of energy are the best and widely acceptable means of generating electricity globally’. His colleagues in mega-misinformation, the MD said ‘solar, biomass and coal provide insignificant quantum of electricity megawatts, and as such, cannot meet the needs of the masses’. To add salt to our wounds on the same page – better called the ‘Energyless Page’, the Group MD of Aiteo Power said ‘Power will stabilise by the end of 2018’ and again ‘let us give power companies 60 months, five years, to execute their business turnaround plans.’

    These are ‘protectionist not progressive’ energy views. I find these views dangerous ’backward’ thinking and irresponsibly  out of step with ‘Buhari Change’ and shameful coming from a supposedly forward thinking training institution leader and ‘key actors and planners in the energy field’ at the time of world is talking and acting ‘renewable energy’.

    I was comforted to read a contrary view in The Africa Report N0 73 Aug-Sept 2015 sent to Educare Trust by Dr Pat Alabi. In it on page 60, Nicholas Norbrook writes under the title ‘Business: The Third Revolution’ that ‘Solar power is lighting up more off-grid villages as the price of a solar watt continues to plunge’ and ‘Renewable energy, the sharing economy and transportation innovation are reshaping economies across the world. Will Africa be able to leapfrog in its development to build revolutionary electricity, manufacturing and transportation networks?’ He quotes Jeremy Rifkin the author of ‘The Third Industrial Revolution’ and ‘The Zero Growth Marginal Cost Society’-essential reading for the Buhari government and universities and NAPTIN. Rifkin quoted Kofi Annam saying that ‘it could take to 2080 for Africa to be adequately powered.’ Rifkin sees the African opportunity ‘as with mobile telephones, to leapfrog legacy infrastructure in the power sector…and [get] a decentralised network of small-scale renewable energy generation.’

    In reality, there is an increasing percentage of power from renewable energy including solar even in countries with poor sunlight. In Germany renewable energy is 28% of supply. President Obama is in Alaska campaigning for renewable energy.  Can Buhari and Nigeria afford to be left out of this energy revolution? Why should President Buhari be advised any differently by NAPTIN? Nigeria needs power now, not in five years. It can harness the sun and also use emergency power supplies just as the Japanese replaced the 10,000MW nuclear plant within three months from emergency power companies. That 10,000Mw is a dream for Nigeria along the way to the 100,000Mw required, but it is a fraction of Japan’s usage. Power today is a human right from village to Villa and will change every Nigerian.

    A $2-5billion CBN SOLAR ENERGY FUND single digit loan spread over 2-3 year using the latest 2015 solar technology, high efficiency/low cost/long-lasting will immediately Solar-Revolutionise Nigeria in power and also power millions off-grid. God gave Nigeria oil. We abused it and the money from it. God also gave us the Sun. We cannot afford to abuse or we may lose it. PMB should ‘change’ the power sector, initiate a POWER EMERGENCY, CHANGE and implement serious SOLAR FRIENDLY POLICIES before God take the sun away and gives it a country which wants it. The internet has 20 reliable emergency power supply companies. Several large power generating ships berthed at ports and up the River Niger would IMMEDIATELY next month provide the 10,000 Mw needed in a short 6-12 month contract while the GENCOs/DISCOs catch up.

    The suit against the Senate leadership on ‘Forgery of Senate Standing Rules’ has not been dropped or has it? Strangely, those who were said to have dropped this ‘ball of political fire’ have been ‘praised’ by the ‘opposition’ for their ‘political maturity and sagacity’. Observers, myself included, had looked forward to the results of the police investigation as a test of the ‘new Police’ to be publicly corroborated in court. The court case verdict would have been a landmark against political corruption. It would have cleared up this murky ‘who-done-it Senategate’ case on which result the locus standi of [self-]serving officers of the Senate depend, some prancing around the UN Buildings and pontificating of migration and terrorism issues. Indeed the integrity and potential of the political process of ‘change’ depended on this court case, so let it go on.

    It can never be ‘political maturity and sagacity’ to accept a ‘wrong’ as a ‘right’. It is a sell-out. Indeed we have suffered from the compromised positions forced on the citizenry by a selfish political class, one bad decision at a time these last 50 years. We want and voted for ‘change’. True ‘Change’ does not accommodate court compromise or short-sighted selfish, backward thinking advisers.

    ‘There is an increasing percentage of power from renewable energy including solar even in countries with poor sunlight. In Germany renewable energy is 28% of supply. President Obama is in Alaska campaigning for renewable energy.  Can Buhari and Nigeria afford to be left out of this energy revolution?’

     

  •  Our Girls; Adefuye, RIP; 2007 Ignored letters to Ban Ki-Moon: UN Media plan; 2nd Niger Bridge

    Our Girls are missing since April 15, 2014. During his visit, the UN Sec Gen Ban Ki-Moon supported strident calls for their release.

    We mourn Great UI-ite, History Professor Ade Adefuye, 68, distinguished diplomat in Jamaica, UK, the Commonwealth and Nigerian Ambassador to the USA. RIP and May God comfort the family, Amen.

    On 6th May 2007, I wrote this unacknowledged letter to Ban Ki-Moon at UN Building, New York.

    Dear Ban Ki-Moon, A UN POSTER IS WORTH 1,000 WORDS but unseen by the world’s 3+ billion school youth. Why?

    1. Problem:  The UN’s wealth of preventive knowledge is not yet bridging the Ignorance Gap among the world’s people who suffer from ignorance while awaiting rare educational visits of NGOs or a UN team. Children, the Weapon of Mass Development, are in poor learning environments lacking life-skills.
    2. Solution:  Adorn Classrooms with 10 UN POSTERS each to achieve the UN POSTER EMPOWERMENT of 40-60million teachers & their 60 +million classrooms and disseminate all UN messages. – A UN- Schools Anti-Ignorance Initiative making every classroom a UN Information Room.
    3. Methodology: Preparation and worldwide distribution of UN Life-skills Posters. That knowledge will save/improve lives of school children’s families. – About 40-60million sets of posters are needed -the cost of a few UN jeeps.
    4. Funding: By UN/Public/Private AND MEDIA Partnerships at world/country level.
    5. Distribution: The UN agencies have posters that rarely get to world schools hungry for knowledge. The UN Sec Gen could get UN Country Rep to find Public/Private/Media partners to reproduce this material to reach every school.

    The UN could embark on this UN Ignorance Elimination Programme to raise a 3 billion student army of young UN Ambassadors with knowledge against social ignorance, and preventable disease to get behavioural change worldwide quickly. The UN must insist that education is more than the three Rs of Reading WRiting and ARithmetic.  [Education needs the R in PosteR.] Each poster will summarise topics for teacher empowerment.

    Yours, In the elimination of World Life-skill Ignorance through worldwide UN-led teacher/student empowerment – Dr Tony Marinho, Sec, Educare Trust. I got no reply.

    Also in 2007 I wrote to the UN Country Rep, no reply either.

    Good idea 2007 : The world’s ignorant youth in schools are an army thirsty for knowledge and Weapons for Mass Development [or Destruction if neglected], the UN should print a 50-100 page UN-ANTI IGNORANCE BOOK reprinted by Public-Private Partnership for all teachers with one page taught at assembly daily. Each page for a LIFE-SKILL THEME from Abortion, AIDS, Alcohol, Addiction, Bullying, Beating, Cheating, Child Labour and Rights, Democracy, Drugs, Dangerous Driving, Environment, Exercise, Food, Gender Issues, Hand washing, Healthy Living, Immunisation, Infant Mortality, Malaria, Maternal Mortality, Road Safety, River Safety,  Sanitation, Sex, Smoking, Sickle Cell, Toilets, Tuberculosis, Violence against Women to Zebra Crossings et cetera. This way, every child worldwide will have similar access to Life-skill knowledge to ‘empower’ the family.

    Additionally, Educare Trust Recommends UN Things To Change The World -UN 2007.

    1. Problem 1 Worldwide IGNORANCE of LIFE-SKILL MESSAGES. Solution: ADVERTISING at commercial volumes.
    2. PROBLEM 2: Private sector has billions for advertising but public -life-skill- sector has little. Solution: Partnership to eliminate ignorance. Every commercial advert- carton, container, wrapping, poster, picture, audio or visual- should carry an additional visual/audio social message [as ‘Corporate Social Responsibility-CSR’].
    3. UN Recommended widening of the UN/Private/Public frontier to involve the Advertising Media ADVERTISING GURUS like WPP’s Sir Martin Sorrell in Global Fund Meetings. This will bring billions in funds from commercial advertising and cut cost of saving lives using a new UN SOCIAL ADVERTISING STRATEGY.  The Campaign would be called ‘The UN Dual/Add-On “Commercial/Social” Message Resolution’-a UN Revolution. It would involve UN Social Message Inserts in youth music programmes/videos like Channel O, radio and on News bar/runners under cartoons [and on social media platforms].
    4. Annually select the ‘100 UN, WHO and National and Local Life-skill Messages’.
    5. UN recommended ‘The UN Media 30 Minute Resolution’: Every media house should allocate ‘Life-skill Message’ time up to 60 or so 30-60 sec messages daily.
    6. Create one Youth Inspiration Centre/5000 youth. ‘A UN Youth Inspiration Centre Resolution’.
    7. Put Ten Books in Kiosks & Shops [Ten BooKs Mini-Library Programme] creating instant mini-libraries worldwide. Make this a UN Resolution to fight illiteracy.
    8. Create role model UN Youth Ambassador Healthy Living Programmes to fight disease and obesity ‘Meet Miss or Master UN who smokes clean air, no cigarettes, does no drugs, eats fruits and vegetables, takes few sugary drinks, exercises, reads widely, says ‘yes’ to virginity and ‘no’ to sex, avoids alcohol, and…does good deeds.’
    9. The UN Youth is UNique, UNconventional, UNusual, UNder no illusions, Undeterred.

    Today let me recommend that Ban Ki-Moon initiates a 2015 Oct/Nov Annual UN Advertising Media/Private Sector LIFE-SKILL IGNORANCE ELIMINATION MEETING for corporates to view and select from the 200 UN Life-Skill Messages for inclusion in 2016 advert calendars, campaigns, commercial cartons and product packaging. The UN must involve the Advert gurus with Recognition strategies to get the life-skill message into every home. Every dining table deserves a UN life-skill message on the Bread/Cornflakes packet like ‘Real Men do not beat their wives or children-UN Message’. A UN Poster is worth a 1,000,000 words. Forward this article to Ban Ki-Moon, please.

    PS: In four years, the non-corrupt Buhari can please give Nigerians the repeatedly overinflated ‘suspended’ 2nd Niger Bridge; and in one year, the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

    ‘The UN’s wealth of preventive knowledge is not yet bridging the Ignorance Gap among the world’s people who suffer from ignorance while awaiting rare educational visits of NGOs or a UN team. Children, the Weapon of Mass Development, are in poor learning environments lacking life-skills… In four years, the non-corrupt Buhari can please give Nigerians the repeatedly overinflated ‘suspended’ 2nd Niger Bridge; and in one year, the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.’ 

  • How i cope With girls – YUNG L

    How i cope With girls – YUNG L

    Christopher Omenye, better known as Yung L in entertainment circles, is a Nigerian dancehall artiste who hails from Jos, Plateau State. In less five years, the budding artiste has been able to carve a niche for himself in the Nigerian music industry with collaborations with industry heavy weights like Wizkid, Eldee, MI, Ice Prince and lots more.
    Yung L who is currently studying Accounting at the University of Jos speaks to ADEWOYIN ADENIYI on why he left Plateau State in search of greener pastures, his relationship with members of the Choc Boiz Nation among other issues

    TELL us about yourself; who is Yung L?

    Yung L is an afro Dancehall artiste from West Africa Nigeria. I was born and bred in Jos, Plateau State. I’m the last from a family of five.

    Educational background?

    Primary Secondary and University all happened in Jos Calvary Science School, Federal Government College and University of Jos where I studied medicine before I dropped out but now I am studying Accounting in the same university, University of Jos.

    When did music start for you?

    Music started for me since I was in secondary school. My friends and I used to argue about music during our break, challenge each other to find the latest music, learn the lyrics of songs and rap them out. But professionally, I can say music started for me in 2012 when I moved to Lagos.

    What inspired you to take it to a professional level?

    The love for music drove my passion into it. Also, I always wanted to be a star so I thought, why not give it a try since I am good at it.

    How would you describe your genre of music?

    My kind of music is Afro Dancehall, a fusion of African Vibes Reggae and Dancehall.

    Why that Genre?

    I see it as a genre that explains me more and it’s the one I’m most comfortable with.

    A lot of people see reggae/dancehall artistes as smokers; what’s your take on that?

    I understand why they see it that way. It could be because of the lifestyle our predecessors lived. But I think these days, it has gone beyond that. It’s obvious that there is a new wave of reggae/dancehall around the world. Also, I don’t think smoking is the worst thing in the world as long as it is done in moderation.

    You’ve been around for a while but you seem to be underground; why is that?

    I’m definitely not underground. I might not be an A-list artiste but I’m far from underground. People underground don’t get nominated for MTV Awards and win them.

    You are close to the Choc Boiz; what is your relationship with them like?

    Choc City is my family. We all came from Jos. So yeah they are my big brothers.

    Tell us about Grip Music…

    Grip music is my family; it consists of Chopstix, Endia and Myself. It’s our small clan. Like Black eyed peas, Wu-Tang Clan, Fugees. It’s not a group just a movement of people that believe in the same goal.

    Are you the founder or just an artiste signed on the label?

    We are all founders. I’m an unsigned artist. I have never be signed. I do everything myself.

    You seem to be a fashionable person; like some of your colleagues, are you planning on floating your clothing line?

    I like fashion a lot. Just like music, it helps me express myself and clothes happen to fit me a lot. Maybe in the future, if I see the need, I can put out a clothing line but that’s not an immediate plan of mine.

    You have disposable cups called M.O.D. Tell us more about them…

    Those cups were made for me by my friend Temmie. It’s a brand promotion thing. I also have the sweat tops, T shirts and snapbacks. They are all in the advertorial stages. They will be going public soon and all my fans and lovers will have the opportunity to have them.

    How has fame been treating you?

    So far; so good. Fame has been good to me. It’s given me good friends, new family, money and Girls (laughs). But yeah, fame has been good. It has also been bad because it’s like every day I get bigger, I lose a part of myself. I can’t do normal stuff like I used to, even though I still try them against management wishes. For instance, walking down the road to buy bread or even taking a stroll, you must meet someone who wants to tax you or take a friendly picture. It’s all good but soon you just get to see you don’t belong to yourself anymore you are now a public figure.

    You’ve had some hits like Fever, SOS, Shooger and you seem to be going stronger; where do you draw your inspiration from?

    I get inspiration from every day affairs, people I see, things I watch, see or hear. Also, I’m very much influenced by girls. That is why I sing about them a lot.

    You have a new song with label mate, Endia titled Dangerous; what is the song about?

    Dangerous is a tune by myself and Endia. It’s the first single off a joint project we have been working on. It’s basically a sing along tune. It talks about life and day-to-day issues. Shout out to Chopstix for the production. It’s mostly new sounds and I’m surprised at the way it’s been spreading. It’s gone viral so fast. There’s also Kpakamwhich I just dropped. It is doing so great too. I do this for my fans and they never let me down.

    Who would you like to collaborate with in the industry?

    Tuface Idibia.

    What is your favorite song by another musician, whether in Nigeria or abroad?

    I love Oh Papa by 2face idibia. I also love Set Up Shop by Damien Marley.

    You are a ladies’ man, how do you cope with female fans?

    (Laughs) Well, I do my best with the ladies. I thread carefully so some girls’ boyfriend don’t get angry. The ladies can be wild a bit but man has been a gyalis (one who likes girls) from way back so with time you get used to it.

    Who would you hit in the industry?

    I can’t think of any right now.

    What are you plans for the rest of the year?

    My plan for the rest of the year is to make my fans happy by putting out more music, videos, and collaborations and make more money.

    How do you relax?

    I listen to music; I watch movies a lot, hang with girls and read books.

  • Our Girls; Help for IDPs; V Agha & Ogie Alakija: 80 Not Out; Reverse School failure; Tax NASS pls

    Our Girls are still missing since April 15th 2014 and we continue to pray that the ongoing assault will yield the twin results of the extermination of Boko Haram and the release of Our Girls who must unfortunately have suffered severe physical and environmental deprivations, torture, perhaps sexual harassment and psychological trauma. All these have resulted in severe Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome (PTMS) requiring an army of clinical psychologists and psychiatrists for Our Girls and the many victims and Internally Displaced Persons everywhere. The Nigerian government/ Victims Support Fund must employ 100-200 clinical psychologists and psychiatrists for the next one to two years to identify those at risk of depression, suicide or even murder to add to those psychologists recruited by the Red Cross. So apart from the physical care that UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon is coming to inspect, we must implement the needed psychological care. We must anticipate the mind problems of these vulnerable children, youth and adults.

    The ISIS factor is a dreadful addition to the Boko Haram mix. There is ‘talk of talks’ with Boko Haram. In any coming negotiation who will mediate between such vicious villains and families of innocent victims numbering about 20,000+ dead added to the agonies and deprivations of 3-4million Internally Displaced Persons? After every fight there is talk. Nigeria must win the war before the talk.

    There is catastrophic systemic failure in education, attested to by repeated abysmal examination results. Perhaps it is inadequate to only analyse WAEC results after 6 years of school. Public release on the notice board and publication in STATE SCHOOL EXAM MONITORING REPORTS of the end-of-school-year promotion examinations class by class, set by set, JS1-SS3 should be an immediate requirement of all schools in Nigeria. This information compressed into School Ranking Tables is the minimum documentation of schools and the right of Parents. The ANNUAL CLASS PROMOTION EXAM RESULTS are a neglected Monitoring And Evaluation, M&E, tool for studying education, classroom quality and teacher performance and need much more publicity by School Management. PTAs should demand such information to target intervention for improvements by the end of the following year. This M&E OF ANNUAL CLASS PROMOTION EXAM RESULTS will identify the causes and the countermeasures against the repeated mass failure in WAEC.

    Life goes on in spite of Boko Haram. It is appropriate to pay tribute to this season’s 80 year- olds including Mr Vincent Agha- Gregorian, prominent Quantity Surveyor with Qu-Ess Partnership, intellectual giant, squashaficionado and mentor to many including me. Mr Ogie Alakija is also 80, distinguished captain of business, life-long sportsman with keen leadership role as a Captain in cricket, squash and tennis culminating in a leadership role as Trustee in Ibadan Recreation Club. He also took on a major but quiet philanthropic role helping many in business and the NGO world where he was Chairman of Educare Trust and a major supporter of youth activities and funder of its building project ‘The A-Z Hall’ –The Alakija to Zard Hall, named for our major donors-Mr Ogie Alakija and Chief Raymond Zard. They joined Mr SPA Ajibade, distinguished lawyer and silent guide of the youth, Professor Ayo Banjo-Mr Education, Chief Joop Berkhout- Mr Book, in the presence of Chief Akin Delano, distinguished lawyer and a host of ‘party faithful’-. They join Mr Bode Emanuel, business giant and Educare Trust Patron who was 80 years earlier this year along with Chief FRA Marinho also an Educare Trust Distinguished Member. Congratulations Sirs. Live long, live well and live healthy.    President Buhari’s instruction that the Police Recruitment of 10,000 must not be an excuse for ‘extortion’ should also include the new ‘stop and search’ that has replaced the checkpoint but appears just as corruption-prone. The uniform, FRSC and police, and the hand up to ‘stop and park’ are everywhere but where you need them –where there is a traffic jam or accident!

    Every state is bigger than 50 countries and the leadership should act responsibly aiming to make a difference to the citizenry as suggested even by Ban Ki-Moon. Financial extortion is an occupation of an occupying force, not a democratically elected government. The population of Nigeria is nowhere near the touted 160 million, probably nearer 120 million, even though the Census figures are part of the CORRUPTION that Buhari must eliminate. The true Census figures are the basis of the elusive ‘True FEDERALISM’ of which FISCAL Federalism is a major part. Recently, Mr Tokunbo Ajasin arranged with Ambassador T A O Otunla a conference/workshop on ‘Federal Opulence and State Indigence-A case for Fiscal Federalism in Nigeria’. True federalism may still be elusive but ‘True State-ism’ is possible. Besides President Buhari in Abuja, we want ‘State Statesmen’ in every state. And President Buhari can reduce the State-Federal conflicts over inland waterways, interstate roads, railways, schools and also the double taxation imbroglio which needs urgent attention by new Federal Inland Revenue Service boss, Mr Babatunde Fowler, from Lagos State where he raised massive some say near extortionist taxes only to have a large chunk diverted to politics and political profiteering, helping the Buhari election train. Mr Fowler must practice the principle that ‘A LITTLE FROM A LOT IS BETTER THAN A LOT FROM A FEW’ and he must start by insisting that NASS members pay their full taxes with no political exemptions. NASS HAS HAD A ‘LEGALLY ILLEGAL’ TAX HOLIDAY.

    ‘The population of Nigeria is nowhere near the touted 160 million, probably nearer 120 million, even though the Census figures are part of the CORRUPTION that Buhari must eliminate. The true Census figures are the basis of the elusive ‘True FEDERALISM’ of which FISCAL Federalism is a major part… True federalism may still be elusive but ‘True State-ism’ is possible.Besides President Buhari in Abuja, we want ‘State Statesmen’ in every state.’

  • Our Girls; Buhari Award; WAEC 38.6% Pass, is Nigeria failing youth? Japan’s classrooms

    Our Girls are still missing since April 15th 2015 and the struggle goes on, with renewed Presidential vigour. We pray that the end is in sight with the multi-country approach and a three-month time-line even as Nigerians seeking a better future join the 250,000 boat migrants and 2,300 drowned and killed by boat engine fumes while crossing the Mediterranean. And please, President Buhari, reject ‘awards’ for ‘Integrity’ et cetera till you leave office. This will save Nigeria millions in EXPENSIVE PLAQUES WHICH HAVE BECOME A PLAGUE of ‘Conference Awards’ with zero value. ‘GIVE NOTHING OR A BOOK. NOT A PLAQUE’! The epidemic of ‘Wall Plaque’ Awards is a malignantly corrupt Nigerian disease – ‘Plaque-itis’.

    Children are wonderful creations of God, entrusted to our care. We fail and should go to jail!  Today many Internally Displaced Persons are children with Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome memories. Meanwhile their peers are faced with PTSD from near-war deprivations in ‘normal’ Nigerian schools. We weep for Franz Fanon’s ‘The Wretched Children of Nigeria’s Earth’ in 2015 – in 70,000 pigsty ‘schools’ containing 1,000,000 ‘empty brain’ classrooms and with ‘less than nothing’ education. For 30+ years, I have been distressed that millions of Nigerian women labour and many die in pools of blood, sometimes in front of me, only to deliver children condemned by politicians to an ‘Education Execution’ in ‘Nigeria’s Epidemic of Education Failure’. Every year nationwide, 1,000,000/class set fail promotion exams from JSS1 to SS3 -about 6,000,000 failing children/year. And no remedy, just more failed multibillion Conferences and Summits and UBEs! Why? And all the support from PTA, Old Students, NGOs, Corporate Social Responsibility-CSR, UN/UNESCO/UNICEF or foreign embassy/donor assistance is a pittance. It cannot replace the leaks or holes in the education sieve caused by thieving education schemes/scams and the unwillingness of parents to confront government and behave responsibly. No child bears the surname ‘Government’. We have a serial ‘Government rundown of education’!

    In Oyo State, the Japanese are building classrooms. Hurray??? Yes, ‘Thank you’ Japan where its people have had 10,000 MW Fukushima nuclear plant disaster–2.5 times Nigeria’s power, earthquakes, tsunamis, floods since 2011. In contrast, Nigeria’s only disaster is a corrupt ‘Politics and Civil Service System. Nigeria should be building classrooms for Japan, abi?  Why only classrooms from Japan? After or instead of the classrooms, Japan, famous for science, IT, cars, bullet trains, solar and wind power, must be asked to GIVE OYO STATE A MODERN ROBOTICS LABORATORY in the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, The Ibadan Polytechnic and even in the Federal Faculties of Technology, Engineering and College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, for robotic limb replacement post-Boko Haram. Or perhaps a NEW AGODI GARDENS JAPAN-OYO STATE SCIENCE EXHIBITION CENTRE for more science knowledge. Anyone can build classrooms. Only the brilliant build Science Exhibition Centres. Both Ajimobi and the Japanese are brilliant. Foreign aid is welcome. Is there a Japan/Oyo State Robotics Exchange Programme between LAUTECH, Polytechnic Ibadan and Okinawa Lego Robots? Please Google Robotic Teachers in Japan, Robotic Technology in Japan, IEEE-Xplore, innovate.ieee.org, International Robot Exhibition in Japan and 1000 Japanese robotic websites. Building on this Japan classroom link, the Ajimobi Government can ask Japan to support a massive science teacher upgrade packages, science development kits in schools including Government College, St Anne’s and School of Science School, Elekuro. Japan is a leader in wind and solar technology. Beyond building mundane classrooms, Nigerians await the ‘JAPAN TSUNAMI EFFECT IN SCIENCE EDUCATION AND ELECTRICITY IN OYO STATE. Governor Ajimobi can bring Oyo children into a 2015 HIGH TECH FUTURE.          

    Excuse me, in which continent is 38.6% [ 616,370/1,593,442] a pass mark? The Dark Continent? And half of those who passed were attending private schools. The real pass rate for ‘public schools’ will be 20%. So 80% of public school students are not ‘fit for purpose’ after 6 years, in spite of UBE, PTF and sundry bodies spending too much on administration and corrupt contracts.

    And who is responsible for children’s failure? Education is not ‘nuclear physics’ but brain-bathing in knowledge stew stirred by teachers with facilities. Teachers protested being sacked for failing Governor Oshiomole’s Teacher Quality Control Tests. He lost and so youth failed again. Without sacking, the solution is to USE HOLIDAYS FOR ‘INTENSIVE TEACHER RETRAINING’ including the ‘HUMAN RIGHT OF A CHILD NOT TO BE INJURED, ABUSED, ASSAULTED OR BULLIED’.

    The WAEC students for 2016 should be targeted by EDUCATION ELITE FORCE/NYSC with additional lessons in MORAL AND SOCIAL SKILLS for ‘change’.

    This WAEC failure is Nigeria’s failure. The wealth of UBEC and other agencies contrasts with the empty classrooms which lack simple keys to an educated brain – BOOKS, WALL CHARTS, SCIENCE LABORATORY EQUIPMENT, SPORTS EQUIPMENT AND LIBRARIES/LIBRARY BOXES. AND THEN WE WONDER WHY NIGERIA’S CHILDREN FAIL IN THE UNFRIENDLY LEARNING ENVIRONMENT. We all know DECREPIT SCHOOLS- UNFIT FOR ANIMALS BUT ‘OK’ FOR NIGERIA’S CHILDREN. OUR MIS-EDUCATION IS A HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSE OF NIGERIA’S CHILDREN.

    In government schools, THERE IS ONLY A 20% CHANCE OF PASSING AND AN 80% CHANCE OF FAILURE IN WAEC. Put this sign on the blackboard in every classroom as a permanent slogan for the education war.

    PS: Nigerian children do not need another Ladi Kwali Hall N1billion Education Summit. Under ‘change’, remove corruption from Education and booklists. ‘It is better.. to have a millstone around the neck.. than to harm… a child’ is a biblical quote for Education Stakeholders.

    ‘And who is responsible for children’s failure? Education is not ‘nuclear physics’ but brain-bathing in knowledge stew stirred by teachers with facilities’

     

  • Our Girls; IDPs; NPA Audit; ‘Lagos-Ibadan Stopway’;  A Buhari ‘Team Tomorrow’ today?

    Our Girls are still missing since April 15, 2014. And the deaths go on. More African migrants are forced into the holds of unseaworthy boats and die of thirst and generator fumes’ poisoning in the Mediterranean. At home, the Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs, are serviced by a Nigerians victims’ support structure represented by the well-funded but slow-to-act Victims Support Fund together with the underfunded Red Cross and Blue Crescent. These should be reinforced by able-bodied and qualified IDPs to prevent a ‘donor-beggar’ relationship. Nigerian red tape and lack of empathy must not spoil the ‘Recovery Effort’ for the IDPs. Beyond photo-ops, real people with sympathy and technical skills are needed to bring succour to IDPs with 95% of the funds spent on IDPs, not ‘administration’. The Red Cross has trained ‘20 in psychological support services’. This empowerment is an overdue service adding to the ability of the Red Cross. The Red Cross must remember that Nigeria has unemployed psychology graduates who should be empowered to offer psychological support for IDPs. To cater for the 3-4million displaced, 100-200 psychologists, many of them indigenous IDPs, need employment. All qualified Red Cross staff must get this three day course to detect Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, PTMS, depression and suicidal tendencies.

    Hurray, the Police Service is looking into creating a Finger Print Database. But is it serious, just rhetorical or for PR purposes or another crime fighting gimmick that is programmed to fail and will never catch a thief? The Police must request for the INEC Voters’ Register as the most comprehensive database available. It can be beefed up by the FRSC’s Drivers Licence, Immigration’s Passport and Prisons’ Databases.

    Along with NNPC, Customs, FIRS and FAAN, the Nigeria Ports Authority is also a huge fraud-riddled foreign exchange earner. It must also be forensically audited working backwards from firstly year 2015, then 2014, then 2013 back to 2005 to get quick actionable Annual Reports.

    Thinking Point: ‘California Is Sinking’ according to Dr Faunt in a CNN report. This is because of the extraction of ground water in response to a major draught. Will parts of Nigeria sink from the massive volumes of oil removed from the ground?  And what will happen to the millions who build upon sand-fills? Will floods eventually reclaim those reclaimed areas? There are worldwide floods. Take Kaduna and Lagos for example and dams are threatening to be opened. Where and what next?

    ‘Instead of development we  have perfected the ‘Abuja Jamboree’  of Conferences, Summits and Colloquia –of increasing extravagance and budgets in Ladi Kwali Hall in the Sheraton, The Villa and other high end hotels, accommodation, travel and per diem’

    The way the Nigerian transport authorities have tackled the monotonously repetitive 6-18 hour traffic stoppage mayhem on the ‘Lagos-Ibadan Stopway’ in the last few months and especially the days of Redemption Convention compounds the already horrible reputation of that apology of a track, let alone the name ‘road’ or ‘expressway’. I have longed to take a helicopter flight and do a documentary or feature film including shots down the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway during a peak ‘zero movement day’ or weekend to record and count the 5-6 lane gridlock on either side for 30-40 kilometres. Sadly, I have counted from the free side of the road, up to 10,000 vehicles in one traffic gridlock. Which journalist has adequately recorded the suffering of the hundreds of thousands of trapped travellers? We must remember that if Nigerians drove correctly or were forced by barriers and FRSC to stay in the two lanes, like in the UK, and did not illegally overtake on each side whenever there was a slow-down of traffic, the traffic jam would actually be 80-100 kilometres of two lane traffic bringing total gridlock to the entire Expressway and backed up into the city. The Expressway can be seen as a long bridge and is to Lagos what the Niger Bridge is to Onitsha. Blocked it is useless to everyone including the economy! Inadequate it is useless! The much-touted, over-politicised and as yet unbuilt Second Niger Bridge must be built by this government, even in a Public Private Partnership, PPP, with the business communities of Asaba and Onitsha as major stake or shareholders. The value of a new bridge is seen from the Fasola/Yar’Adua dream New Lekki Bridge in Lagos, saving millions of travel hours daily in a state/federal deal. Imagine how many ‘Lekki-like Bridges’ Nigeria needs nationwide, over 100, to enter the annals of modern transportation! Instead of development we  have perfected the ‘Abuja Jamboree’  of Conferences, Summits and Colloquia –of increasing extravagance and budgets in Ladi Kwali Hall in the Sheraton, The Villa and other high end hotels, accommodation, travel and per diem. Talking of dreams, China wants to build the tallest building in the world in 19 days. The Egyptians have just built a ‘Second Suez Canal’ actually a 35km one way canal in one year for $4b instead of three years. What have we built?  A few billionaires!

    Our own Nigerian dreams turn out somewhat differently. Here our dream of a Lagos-Ibadan Expressway is a four-year nightmare. Why do Nigerians never build quickly? There are 20 contractors capable of doing 10-20km segments of refurbishment in six months each. Because of this failure to dream big and act big, Nigeria has inadequate infrastructure. The East-West Road happily nears completion, 40 tears late but must be completed immediately. There are 200 old roads that must be repaired and new roads pointing in new directions needed while the railways need further modernisation.  Can Nigeria have a Buhari ‘Team Tomorrow’ today?

  • Our Girls; BBC/CNN; IDPs VSF; Ebola V:CSR; Film Flop: Nonsense@NASSty -75% cut?; T/ Wardens

    Our Girls are missing since April 15 2014. Daily girl-child suicide bombers create more InternaIly Displaced Persons.

    The media should stop ‘advertising’ terrorist organisations by re-broadcasting message themes and photos of leaders giving them ‘authenticity’ and ‘free publicity’ denied more deserving citizens. Terrorists get automatic coverage, more than musicians and politicians. A deliberate ‘WORLDWIDE MEDIA SILENCE ON TERRORISM POLICY’ will lead to ignominy -an anti-terrorism policy. It is not censorship but ‘Sensible Silence’, ‘Silent Witness’ – wisdom. No ‘thank you’ to CNN and BBC for disseminating terrorist propaganda and photos for free with no fee to two billion impressionable youth and thus supporting the ‘Internet Terrorism’ Campaign.

    EVERYONE WANTS TO BE ON BBC AND CNN –‘GOOD, BAD, UGLY AND TERRORIST’.

    IDPs ARE NOT BEGGARS but ‘Internally Displaced Professionals’ market women, retirees, students WHO ARE RECIPIENTS NOT BENEFICIARIES. The N5billion Victims Support Foundation (VSF) released by President Buhari must empower IDPs, not non-IDPs, with positions and funds for wholesale provisions to open ‘gainful employment’ shops and work tools. IDPs deserve more than bedding and TV time. THE FACE OF VSF SHOULD BE AN IDP PASSIONATE PROFESSIONAL. Nigerians want no VSF scam ‘discovered’ in 2016. PREVENTION OF VSF CORRUPTION IS ‘CHANGE’. Buhari’s MANAGEMENT OF THE VSF IS A LITMUS TEST for anti-corruption ‘change’ and must not fail, be slow or stopped by red tape. To ‘change’, government needs supervising Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, agents and from Day 1, monitoring VSF financial and ‘goods and services’ chain. The EFCC also requires supervision to prevent graft and intimidation. The VSF initial release of N5billion must not disappear into secret 1%/month ‘bank roll-overs’ or 10-30% civil service corruption or contractor pockets with kickbacks and envelopes for the accounting ‘feeding-chain’ or kickback from IDPS. The fund must empower IDPs with no-strings, for business, not contractor or NGO schemes and scams. Make IDPs the contractors and NGO employees who must set up IDP FUND COMMITTEES and procurement facilities. CUT OUT THE MIDDLE MAN and LIMIT Maximum FUNDING/PROJECT TO N5million to spread the funds.  If not, corruption will erode N5billion to N1billion.

    Hurray for the Ebola Vaccine and efforts governments and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and others put into medical research. A Nobel Prize is due for this and the Malaria Vaccine research team, please. What did Africa or Africans or corporations contribute to Ebola, malaria or polio research? Credit to Rotary International for massive anti-polio activities. However what did billionaire Mo Ibrahim, of the $5m Democracy Prize give? What did Babangida give or any African secret or public billionaire?  What did Dangote give? He wants to buy Arsenal FC. What did Otedola give or Adenuga, Alakija, Tinubu or any other ‘jankan-jankan’ or South Africa’s MTN bosses give or our ‘mythically profitable’ Banks like Zenith, First and Diamond banks who mysteriously profit amidst poverty. Did government give through CBN, NPA, NNPC, NLNG, to foreign or NIGERIAN MEDICAL RESEARCH? Why not? Africans misplaced priorities!

    African Corporate Social Responsibility, CSR, billions annually, could have produced malaria vaccines 20 years ago saving millions. Shame on greedy, myopic Corporate Africa preferring to sell foreign treatments for malaria than invent vaccines! Some CSR is good but most prefer cheap T-shirt and face cap CSR. Even the new ‘MTN 25 Maternity Centres’ needs to avoid ‘misplaced applause’. Imagine if MTN had used the ‘boastful’ advert money to host a CORPORATE NIGERIA CSR STRATEGY CONFERENCE with 100 other companies and NGOs to upgrade 1000 maternities in 2015. That would save thousands on THE MOST DANGEROUS DAY IN THEIR LIVES- DELIVERY DAY. In 2016 Corporate Nigeria could COLLECTIVELY choose another 1000 Maternity Centres or ‘10million School Books for All’ or ‘1000 Ward Youth Centres’. Not all N4b+/Annum CSR is properly used though there is much need. Even CSR officials in Corporate Nigeria, government and donor agencies are not saints. Some take kickbacks for approving CSR.

    Africa, suffering from leader thieves, must ‘Thank God’ for the ‘generosity and selflessness’ of the UN, WHO and Corporate Europe’s ‘white man’ and the all-good ‘NEW VACCINATION COLONIALISM’. This is set to save and hopefully keep Africans at home and away from joining the millions dreaming and desperately departing and sometimes drowning while seeking to evade security and invade Fortress Europe. They seek a ‘BETTER LIFE FOR DEPRIVED AFRICANS’ through suicidal migration across the Sahara and on lethal tiny boats through the idyllic mid-Mediterranean Lampedusa Island known for funerals of thousands of nameless drowning en route Fortress Europe. African leaders must make Africa home for all, not just their family and hangers-on.

    Anyone fortunate enough to have sleep or gone deaf and blind during the last three weeks would have thankfully missed the flop film ‘Nonsense at NASSty NASS-2015’ serialised on TV. Nigeria is worse for the events. Is National Assembly (NASS) reducing its budget by 75%? In a voice vote from Fellow Nigerians, the ‘AYES’ have it for a 75% reduction. Should Nigerians have a ‘NASS -Salaries, Allowances and Perks-SAP- Referendum or recall our NASS members?

    ‘African Corporate Social Responsibility, CSR, billions annually, could have produced malaria vaccines 20 years ago saving millions. Shame on greedy, myopic Corporate Africa preferring to sell foreign treatments for malaria than invent vaccines! Some CSR is good but most prefer cheap T-shirt and face cap CSR’

    WE THE PEOPLE DEMAND 1] Part-time sittings; 2] Cancellation of titles like ‘Honourable’, ‘Distinguished’ and ‘Excellency’ which are undeserved and; 3] ‘No’ to bowing in NASSty NASS and; 4] Standing when anyone but the President enters an event.

    Traffic Wardens at Osuntokun Junction, Bodija, Ibadan ignore Buhari’s ‘Change’ Agenda. Videoing and ‘interneting’ them will make them stop demanding bribes. Can they emulate the role model Traffic Warden at Customs Junction, 500 metres away?

     

  • Our Girls; Hurray: Malaria vaccine & No polio; INEC Voter Register as Police ID Database ?

    Our Girls are still missing since April 15th 2014. The President is talking ‘dialogue’ with Boko Haram using perhaps the Sultan, the Emir of Kano and Conflict Resolution experts like Professor Albert. It must be difficult for the President, or Nigerians to contemplate negotiation with malignant evil. Who dare sit with people who may personally have sent suicide bomber children or who may blow the negotiation table up at the opening ceremony or a celebrated ‘Peace at last Federal –Boko Haram Agreement?

    July 2015 is ‘Wow’! Our Maternal Mortality Rate is 600+/100,000. Shame on African media for neglecting the ignorant citizen’s need for ‘LIFE SKILL’ knowledge and not doing more non-commercial 15 -30sec adverts for medical and social ignorance elimination! Shame on African governments for tiny health budgets! A million ‘hurrays’ for Nigeria’s  ‘ONE YEAR WITHOUT POLIO’ thanks to Rotary International, WHO, UNICEF and local partners and the vicious murder of polio vaccine health workers. Five million ‘hurrays’ for the new GSK MALARIA VACCINE to end malaria in childhood with funds from Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and others WHILE AFRICA’S LEADERS STOLE 50% OF THE BUDGET and under-budgeted health. Africa countries, except South Africa, offered about zero ‘Medical Research Grants’ in Nigeria’s and Africa’s Budgets.

    Over the last 30 years, Nigeria has made several very expensive, multibillion naira, and corruption riddled, attempts at getting Nigerians onto database.  I personally have been forced into five or six databases. Any more? The Nigeria Police Service or Force has no access to or has not asked for or has no interest in using any or all existing databases as a template for a NIGERIA NATIONAL FINGER AND FACE PRINT DATABASE IN 2015. Yet it is over 120 years after fingerprints were identified as an essential tool for crime investigations and made famous by fictional characters such as the literary private detective invented by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle –‘Sheer Luck’ Holmes, I mean Sherlock Holmes. Since 1892 when the first case was prosecuted, our Nigerian Police ignore and disregard obvious fingerprints and foot prints at ‘the scene of crime’. The Nigeria Police does not even set up a standard Crime Scene Protocol cordon and photography as seen in every international crime film. Nigerians, from watching CIS, NCIS etcetera, know what a normal Crime Laboratory or Forensic Lab looks like in sophisticated scientific content, delivery of spectacular clues and interpretation by genius police laboratory technicians. These are neglected jobs for hundreds of graduates. No matter how far-fetched, the cases depicted in these films ‘based on real life criminality’ appear to be, the science is real and operational in other countries. Why are victims of crime denied such rights to scientific investigation in Nigeria? Finger prints and face prints, photographs, are not nuclear physics. They are the simple applications of basic science and the use of widely available cameras, even phone cameras and are the right of victims and their families to justice.

    The largest database of adult Nigerians is not in the Passport Offices or FRSC Drivers Licence Records or BVN or State ID or National ID or the cell phone database or whatever other ID that has been cooked up in order to perpetrate the fraudulent extraction of funds. The largest, most expensive, recent and probably the most authentic database is the INEC database. This can be upgraded and modified by compulsory reporting of deaths and routine crosschecking. Even double registration does not matter.

    The Presidency and/or the ‘changed’ National Assembly (NASS), if it changes, must initiate ‘ID DATABASE LAWS’ authorising and mandating the Police, EFCC and ICPC full access to state, Federal Finger/Face ID databases on routine request and corporate employees databases on a judge’s warrant authorisation. Of course there is some access by police to the massive cell phone database already. The police must not continue the apparent collaboration with crime by sabotaging or underutilising this available database. Building immediately on this requires a ‘change’ instruction to all Police formations and Police stations that ALL SUSPECTS MUST BE IDed PROPERLY WITH FINGERPRINTS, PHOTOGRAPHS, FRONT VIEW AND SIDE VIEW-THE MUG SHOT- AND ANY MARKS OR TATTOOS NOTED. Even the ear is a print. With a simple laptop computer or a photo camera, available from any big cell phone company, this information can be recorded and forwarded by internet, email or even WhatsApp or Instagram to a new Nigerian language password cyber-secure state, REGIONAL AND FEDERAL POLICE ID DATABASE run by serial teams of NYSC wiz-kids and cross-referenced with the INEC database and others as needed.

    The facilities to bring the Nigeria Police into 2015 already exist. We only need to harvest, harness and direct them to reach Nigeria’s ‘change’ policing goals.

    We can create a Police database and add a FOOT SECTION as many African thieves operate barefoot. It only requires the will of the Police itself to grow and ‘change’. There are today high enough quality phone cameras in the possession of every DPO in every single police station. Let them initiate the needed ‘change’. The Federal Government can get a database designed by patriotic Nigerians in IT in a week. In the unlikely event that it is not satisfactory, ‘for security reasons’, Nigeria can mistakenly spend good scarce foreign exchange on free Open Source or expensive Microsoft and other ‘secure’ Police packages or use any internationally acceptable existing Police format for interchanges from UK’s CID, INTERPOL, America’s FBI, the New York’s ‘Finest’ or EUROPOL.

    ‘ We can create a Police database and add a FOOT SECTION as many African thieves operate barefoot. It only requires the will of the Police itself to grow and ‘change’. There are today high enough quality phone cameras in the possession of every DPO in every single police station. Let them initiate the needed ‘change’’