Nigeria@ 51: Nigeria, A Dream Deferred

BY UDUMA KALU, VANGUARD

Our founding fathers did not negotiate that at 51, Nigeria would become the 14th failed state in the world. Neither did they agree that it would be among the nations with the least human development index, nor that it would still be crawling five decades after independence. Our founding fathers did not dream that their great grand children would be treated with contempt as a result of mismanagement of its abundant resources.

Indeed, they dreamt dreams and had visions for the country at independence. For example, modern Nigeria’s founding father and first president, Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, had envisioned Nigeria to be Africa’s super power and hope of the black race. But today, that dream seems to be in the wind. This is what is agitating the minds of Nigerians as they mark the country’s 51st independence anniversary today.

In its unique manner, Saturday Vanguard assembled its team of journalists to examine, through interviews and features stories, the fate and state of the nation at 51.

From the reports gathered from all corners of the country, the verdict, though somewhat mixed, is the same: Nigeria at 51 is still a country, not a nation. This is the view of Chief Richard Akinjide, the former NPN chairman, Evangelist Elliot Ukoh of the Igbo Youth Movement, social critic Abubarkar Umar, Attahiru Bafarawa who was former governor of Sokoto, among others. While some want a radical approach to tackle the infrastructural decay in the country, others want a restructuring of the polity entirely.

But Chief Ayo Adebanjo, the veteran politician, put it more succinctly, “I want a system whereby Jonathan would have been there as of rights. If he leaves that place without ensuring that the constitution of the country is reviewed in a way that we will be living together, he will divide Nigeria.”

Things must have gone too bad for Adebanjo to say this. In fact, more frightening statements came from other eminent Nigerians such as Abubakar Umar and Prof. Oyebode, the two of who believe that colonialism would have been better than the independence we have now.

Saturday Vanguard also looked at the state of our infrastructure since 1898 when the railway system and the electrical plants were established. What we found out is a nation at 51 that cannot manage its development. From a bankrupt railway to epileptic electricity, from dead steel mills to ineffective textile and automobile companies, we discovered a nation whose promise at independence of a super power and hope for the black race has been mortgaged by selfish, greedy and cruel power blocs which staying power is to impoverish and wreak bloodshed on the citizenry. In fact, all the variants of making Nigeria great, which it had more in abundance than Malaysia and Brazil but which have overtaken it, have not been allowed to flourish. This saddens those who dreamt the dream of a great nation, including concerned patriots.

Ironically, Nigeria began well at independence. Its civil service was among the best in the Commonwealth. Agriculture was its main economy. The different regions were doing very well. In fact, the Eastern Nigeria was reported as the fastest growing economy. Graduates had easy access to employment. The industries were working. Then, it was a thing of pride to say you were a Nigerian. No nation could refute, deride, or treat Nigerians with contempt at its borders. Then the military struck, due to political mismanagement, and there was a civil war which tore the soul of the nation apart.

Today, the dreams and visions of that ‘Promised Great Nation’ flutters in the wind like a rag. Industries have collapsed. Some of them have fled to Ghana and other neighbouring countries. Our youths have no jobs and no hope of a simple decent life in Nigeria. Some seek greener pastures abroad in droves. The dignity of Nigerians all over the world is spilled in the mud. We are like pests to all nations of the world.

Oil, which was meant to comfort us, is now our albatross, our curse. Even in our plenty, we are among the world’s poorest. The UNDP report says we are among the least developed nations with high rate of illiteracy, mortality rate, life expectancy rate, among other ugly decorations that dot our independence celebration today. UNEP says the oil spills in Ogoni are the worst in human history and will require billions of dollars to clean.

Nigeria today is at its most intolerant period. Religious bigotry has taken over the land. Value for human life is lost, exemplified by the insurgence of militia groups and religious extremists, killing the weak and the innocent. Our educational system is in a shambles, with mass failure results posted every year.

Yet, this is a country that produced the Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka, Father of Modern Literature Chinua Achebe, Father of Africa’s 20th Century Poetry Christopher Okigbo, Fela Anikulapo, JP Clark, Ben Okri, Chimamanda Adichie, Dick Tiger, Power Mike, Nwankwo Kanu, Philip Emeagwali. Yet, there is still hope that Nigeria can still make it as the IMF and the World Bank tell us but only if it listens to the words of the wise and does the right thing.

Nigeria@ 51: Sambo Prays For God's Favor For Nigeria

BY VINCENT IKUOMOLA, THE NATION ONLINE

The Vice-President, Arc Mohammed Namadi Sambo, yesterday prayed for God’s intervention in Nigeria’s affairs.

He prayed to Almighty Allah to bestow His favour on Nigeria for peace and progress to continue to reign.

The vice-president for the country yesterday at the National Mosque, Abuja after the Jumma’at Prayer to commemorate Nigeria ’s 51st independence anniversary today.

Arc Sambo said: “We extend our sincere happiness to Almighty Allah that has made it possible for us to see this important day and to pray that He continues to grant favour to our country, Nigeria, for peace and progress.”

He further said: “We thank Almighty Allah for what He has granted us and we pray that we continue to be given the good health and the wisdom for the development and progress of Nigeria.”

Highlight of the Jumma’at service was the offering of a special prayer for the country by the Chief Imam of the mosque, Ustaz Musa Muhammad.

Those who participated in the prayers included former President Shehu Aliyu Shagari, Acting Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Kawu Baraje, members of the federal executive council, security chiefs, top government functionaries, captains of industry and members of the diplomatic corps, among others.

Nigeria @ 51: This Is Not Nigeria Of Our Dream - Labor

BY SOJI-EZE FAGBEMI, GBOLA SUBAIR LEON USIGBE, ABUJA
NIGERIAN TRIBUNE, SATURDAY, OCTOBER 01, 2011

As Nigeria celebrates its 51 years of independence today, labour leaders have expressed regret at the stunted growth of the country, declaring that, “this is not Nigeria of our dream.”

At independence in 1960, they said the expectations were very high because of Nigeria’s enormous human, materials and natural resources, but regretted that the inept political class has destroyed those dreams and made the country one of the poorest nations in the world.

However, President Goodluck Jonathan is confident that the nation will overcome the numerous challenges it is facing currently, calling Nigerians to work together to create a country where the rule of law is sacrosanct in order to banish corruption and attendant vices.

In his address to the nation on the occasion of the 51st Independence Anniversary, he observed that Nigerians were resilient, as their spirit could not be broken and were determined to chart a course through the turbulent waters of nation building.

“Together, we shall work for a Nigeria in which democracy and the rule of law are sacrosanct, a country where corruption and its attendant vices, are banished. A country where human life is sacred and respected, and where the rights of the individuals are protected,” he said.

The President noted that the journey to nationhood has always had its own challenges, saying that “Nigeria has had her own share. Our growing pains as a nation have included the civil war, the June 12 election crisis and restlessness in the Niger Delta. But Nigeria has always overcome each of these challenges. We overcame before. We will overcome yet again.”

But labour declared that there was nothing definite to celebrate, as the Nigerian workers and the people generally had been subjected to untoward hardship.

“The pervasive harsh economic Nigerians are being punished with cannot suggest any celebration,” Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) Deputy President, Comrade Promise Adewusi, told Saturday Tribune.

He said the last 51 years had been a period of deficit and ineffective political leadership, adding that for workers and the Nigerian people, living had become a sin induced by poverty occasioned by inept political leadership.

The NLC deputy president described the N18, 000 national minimum wage as a mere starvation wage, which had become an albatross to fraudulent political leadership who siphoned away the nation’s wealth.

Comrade Adewusi said; “This definitely is not the Nigeria of our dream. Poverty has become a way of life in Nigeria and poverty of governance has become Nigeria’s contribution to World Order. For the working people and the everyday people, living has become a sin induced by poverty occasioned by inept political leadership in the midst of abundant resources.”

Also, the Secretary General of the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC), Comrade John Kolawole, said workers had not seen any changes in their fortunes even as Nigeria celebrated 51 years as a free nation.

“Nigerian workers have not seen any physical change despite the efforts made by government through the minimum wage at the Federal level and in some states. The reasons for this are two. On the human side, there are a lot of dependants that a worker has to care for, children that have no jobs, relations that are very poor and so many problems they have to face domestically and socially,” Comrade Kolawole said.

In the meantime, the NLC has called on the ruling elite to have a re-think and lead the country on the path of progress and development, saying Nigerians will never give up.

The congress also regretted that it was a sad reflection “on our national life and history that on the 51st anniversary of our flag independence, the official celebration has to be low key given the state of insecurity in the country.”

In a statement to mark the 51st Independence Day, and signed by the NLC President, Comrade Abdulwaheed Ibrahim Omar, the NLC described Nigerians as courageous and selfless people that could overcome any form of challenges, either by bombers of public places or bombers of our economy and collective wealth.

In the statement entitled: “Nigerians are a courageous and selfless people;” Comrade Omar said: “It is a sad reflection on our national life and history that on the 51st anniversary of our independence, the official celebration has to be low key, given the state of insecurity in the country.

Also, the TUC decried the alarming rate of unemployment in the country, especially among youths and called for a pro-active measure before it generated into yet another state of anarchy.

The TUC, in its independence celebration statement, decried the growing insecurity in the land which had become a nightmare, saying that the numerous bombings and wastages of lives and property going on in the northern states of Nigeria by the Boko Haram sect are unacceptable.

The union, therefore, demanded the reactivation of job creation centers in all the states of the federation and Abuja plus all the local government areas.

Nigeria @ 51: Nigeria is a Pathetic Story - Uko

BY CLIFFORD NDUJIHE, VANGUARD

AS Nigeria marks 51 years of independence and the National Assembly begins another round of constitution amendment, President of the Igbo Youth Movement (IYM), Evangelist Elliot Uko, has called for restructuring of the polity into a true federal state to address the myriad of socio-economic, political and development problems plaguing the country, saying government must begin the urgent processes to rebuild the country after 51 years of missed opportunities. Excerpts:

AT 51, how would you assess Nigeria’s history so far?

Our story as a country struggling to become a nation is a very pathetic story. The story of missed opportunities and maladministration. A story of disaffection, anger and ethnic militias; insecurity, unemployment, poverty, hunger and decayed infrastructure. The younger generation are disappointed and the nation is left with no other choice than to begin the processes of building a modern state and regaining our rightful position among the comity of nations. The time to start is now. The current administration inherited multifaceted problems that threaten our future especially corruption and an unworkable unitary structure. Something must be done now to correct these grave anomalies in order to move on to the next level. Nigeria is sick and only Nigerians will save Nigeria. South Africa and Ghana are teaching us lessons that ought to make us sit up, we pray that the hope Nigerians have placed on this young government will not be dashed.

Can the current government be trusted to begin the processes that would rebuild Nigeria?

Yes, this is the first time Nigerians genuinely voted in a president of their choice. Expectations are high and we pray that we don’t get disappointed at the end of the day. We are praying for a new nation to emerge, where things will actually work, where no man is oppressed. There is so much injustice in Nigeria, a case of “monkey dey work baboon dey chop”.

Secured future

Things must change for the better. Malaysia, Brazil, etc were at par with Nigeria in 1960. Today, there are light years ahead. The military destroyed this country. We should all be praying for a secured future. This government must not fail.

What is your assessment of President Goodluck Jonathan’s first 100 days in office?

I can’t assess his first100 days in office but I can tell you that we wish him well, we are solidly behind him. Nobody should harass him. We voted Jonathan on his personal steam, if he had left the PDP and joined another party, Ndigbo would still have followed him en mass. The reason is simple, we believe in him, we still do. Nigeria deliberately humiliated Ndigbo for 40 years, denying us all our dues just to punish us for losing the war.

We suffered untold denials, frustrated from this scorched earth policy and war of attrition visited on Ndigbo over the years, we began to pray for deliverance. When President Jonathan emerged, the Igbo masses rose up stoutly behind him, the elite and Igbo politicians cleverly joined the train and as usual pretending they mobilized Ndigbo for Jonathan. Nobody mobilized Ndigbo for Jonathan, it was the 40 years of humiliation that informed our people’s decision to try another route. Ndigbo reasoned that President Jonathan will never let them down.

He is an upright and God fearing man. He knows what they need: massive infrastructure development, international airport in Enugu, sea port in Onitsha, power station in Igbo land, etc. We want Jonathan to succeed, to repair Nigeria and rebuild our battered image. I cannot assess him now, I can only tell him the truth which is that Nigerians believe in him.

We want him to fight corruption and enthrone equity and good governance. We want him to be fair to the Kanuri, fair to the Ibibio, fair to the Fulani, fair to the Yoruba. He has a huge opportunity to begin the processes of building a modern state where no man is oppressed. The truth is also that Ndigbo want infrastructure development that has been denied us over the years more than anything else. President Jonathan has no reason to fail.

At your 12th anniversary celebration held in Enugu recently, the police reportedly arrested MASSOB members and later their leader, Chief Ralph Uwazuruike, what really happened?

The MASSOB members accompanied their leader to IYM 12th anniversary and the police took them away on account of the Biafran Flag on their buses but they have been released. There are no militant or violent groups in Igboland. The police intimidation was uncalled for.

It is a pity Nigeria has refused to give Ndigbo justice for 44 years. We are caged into five states out of 36 states but we represent about one-third of Nigeria’s population. Our roads are the worst in the country. Ndigbo are stocked with only 95 local governments almost at-par with Kano and Jigawa states. No sea port, no international air port, no reliable source of energy. Our youth migrate to other zones. We are denied our dues. Nigeria cannot continue this way. This country must be re-structured. This country is sick, let’s start to rebuild it now.

What do you mean by re-structure?

In May 1966 and the months following May 1966, over 100,000 Ndigbo, mostly women and children were slaughtered in cold blood by people who were protesting Decree 34 or Unification Decree. They said they preferred that every region should develop at its own pace. General Ironsi was killed and Nigeria went to war, General Gowon asked for emergency powers to prosecute the war and that unitary system was maintained through out the war.

At the end of the war, it became convenient for the victorious army to continue running the country in a unitary fashion. The people who protested against this unitary format and killed thousands of their country men, were now in power, so this unitary system suddenly became okay. Nigeria has been Federal only in name ever since. This nation cannot endure nor survive unless we revert to true federalism and regional autonomy with out delay.

Is that the panacea to the myriad of problems plaguing this country?

Yes, every problem including corruption is tied to this unwieldy and unworkable structure which encourages corruption and nepotism. Everybody knows Nigeria will fare better under a truly Federal system, government will become more responsible and responsive to the people and the six regions would explode economically and corruption and discontent would evaporate.

The truth is that those benefitting from this present unitary structure are just afraid of change. A re-structured Nigeria will not experience Boko-Haram or Niger-Delta militancy nor any ethnic army for that matter.

LAS CURVAS DE DANNA PAOLA

Esta niña si que me deja sorprendido apenas cumplio los 16 años y ya tiene un cuerpazo,alejada de los dias de aquella cursi y pesima novela de televisa llamada atrevete a soñar,danna ha dado el estiron y vaya de que forma.
Ya puede mirar tranquilamente por encima del hombro a mujeres que se la creen la gran cosa como denise de belanova ,maite perroni o la insufrible de belinda,solo aprecien esas hermosas piernas,ese culo que dara que hablar en el futuro y ni hablar de esa carita super sexy con mirada de pecado disfrutenla.

Meet Ngeria's Budding Mark Zuckerberg

BY MFONOBONG NSEHE, FORBES

Gossy Ukanwoke, a 23-year old Nigerian Internet entrepreneur, has embarked on creating a different type of social network. His tech startup, Students Circle, fuses a social feature with a rich database of over 10,000 academic resources- notes, essays, past assignments and tutorials.

Students Circle is something like Facebook, but for scholars and more serious-minded folks. The site launched in December 2010 and so far it has 2,407 registered members and over 20,371 non registered members from over 120 countries. Not too shabby for a startup that’s yet to receive a dollar in venture funding.

According to its website, “Students Circle Network allows students to interact and communicate over educational resources, making education and e-learning social and human by giving resources, study groups, social connections, scholarships offers and university placements.”

I chatted with him briefly today. We talked about his company, his comparative advantage, and the future.

Why would someone want to join Students Circle?

Students Circle Network – the academic social network — is uniquely bringing together the worlds of social connection, media and education to a single platform thereby allowing students, teachers and institutions connect without bounds. We are currently making over 10,000 resources available for free. Our focus on Africa is high. We believe that with the right content and audience, we can transform education in Africa.

What’s your comparative advantage? What makes Students Circle any better than Edmodo or any other educational social network?

We are bringing the best of all worlds: Social + Education. On the social aspect, students/teachers get to learn from each other based on personal knowledge and research. On the educational aspect, teachers and students can connect and use high quality content from top 200 OCW member universities. Study groups are used to schedule learning sessions and interactive forums to drive learning. We are launching API’s that will allow the use of Students Circle in classrooms.

Student Circle’s interface is very similar to Facebook’s. Why? Aren’t you afraid of being tagged as yet another Facebook copycat?

Yes, we moved towards getting a bit of the structure of Facebook because most our users are already using Facebook and it’s only natural for them to look for things the way they do on Facebook. It’s best for user experience. However, I am not worried about being tagged another Facebook clone because we are highly different and our focus is defined to education.

You have a database of thousands of high school and college courses. Where do you source them from, and how can users be certain of the quality of the content they are deriving from your site?

Students Circle Network is a member of the OpenCourseware Consortium. OCW Consortium has member universities globally with the most contributing member being MIT; others include Open University, UK and University of California at Irvine. This is to name a few. The point is that our content is from these universities. These are some of the most reputable universities worldwide.

Give me an overview of your business model. What ideas do you have about monetizing your site?

Currently students is a freemium business. We provide high quality services and content for free. We are running ads on the network which are generating some revenue. We are also gaining commissions from service partners who provide services for our users. Our monetization strategy includes developing a package for specific services. This is currently in the works.

Have you shared your vision with any angel investors or venture capitalists? Do you even believe in those guys?

Yes I have shared these ideas with venture capitalists and angels when this was at its infant stage and at the point they felt it was early. The VCs were not focused on early stage startups at the time. Do I believe them? [laughs] I hope to, I really do. Africa needs more VCs and angels.

What’s your current staff strength?

We currently have 3 team members and a fourth consultant. Chika Uwazie is the VP in charge of Business and Connections. Amblessed Uche is the product development manager and user experience lead. I handle development, strategy, technology, business and everything else. Anibe Agamah of Encipher Group consults for us on development.

Give me a glimpse into the future. How do you see Students Circle evolving over the next five years?

Students Circle should start awarding certificates and subsequently after all processes are fulfilled – diplomas. We are looking at partnering with Girne American University [in Northern Cyprus] for this purpose. We are also looking at being the number one social network and educational resource in every classroom in Africa and across the globe. We are working heavily on mobile delivery and this will be the major front for Students Circle in times to come.

ANGELINA IGUAL QUE EL VINO

Angelina jolie es como los buenos vinos se pone mejor con el tiempo ,la actriz de 36 años de edad unida al actor brad pitt hace 6 años ya no le dedica demasiado tiempo a la actuacion por la crianza de sus hijos tanto los biologicos como los adoptados.
Pero me he puesto a recordar con algo de nostalgia eso años en donde angelina andaba soltera y solia abusar del consumo de ciertas drogas y en el cual tambien acostumbraba a salir lo mas sexy posible en cuanta revista se lo ofreciera.

MUJERON CON RAQUETA

Nuevamente una tenista adoran la portada de este humilde blog ,y este es el caso de la hermosa caroline wozniacky esta danesa de 21 años es la actual numero 1 del mundo en la wta,muy criticada porque aun no ha ganado un torneo de grand slam pero en fin no es de tennis que les quiero hablar hoy sino de las tremendas piernas que se maneja caroline ,verdaderamente un placer para la vista masculina,y seguro que muchos de sus fans hombres ahora ven tennis solo para apreciar los atributos de caroline.

Megan Fox Pictures, Hot Images and Wallpapers Gallery

TALENTO PARA EL BIKINI

Vanessa hudgens no sera una buena actriz ni cantante ,eso casi todos lo sabemos pero que deliciosa se ve en traje de baño,la mayoria de las sesiones de fotos que ha hecho han sido en bikini porque los fotografos saben que es ahi donde vanessa explota toda su sensualidad y donde podemos apreciar esas hermosas piernas de las mejores que hay hoy por hoy en holywood y en fin el resto de su cuerpo no se queda atras y ya sabemos que mientras vanessa siga mostrando ese cuerpazo e bikini nunca pasara de moda.a continuacion les dejo las mejores fotos de vanessa en traje de baño.

LA SUPER SEXY AMBER HEARD

Seguramente no habran visto mucho en el cine a esta chica quien normalmente se dedica a servir de relleno en peliculas de bajo presupuesto y que no tiene ningun incoveniente en sacarase la ropa.
El año pasado estuvo en uno de los estelares de una pelicula con nicolas cage donde los autos volaban en pedazos y en donde podiamos apreciar esa exhuberantes piernas que se maneja amber.en esta galeria les dejo una cuantas imagenes del porque amber heard se merece estar en este humilde blog.

Eva Green Wallpapers, Photos, Pictures and Images