Saturday, 24 June 2017





NIGERIA APPEARS TO HAVE COME UNHINGED:
By Fr. Hassan Kukah
As usual, Nigerians are doing what they do best: making themselves the laughing stock of the rest of the world, behaving like spoilt brats of a rich but irresponsible father, or like players in a game with no rules and no referee, a game in a field of moral free fall. Perhaps by way of a metaphor, that is really a summary of our condition. Those who have held the nation to ransom, non-state actors constituting themselves into a calumnious conspiratorial tag team of sorcerers’ apprentices believe that what they cannot have, no one can have. They are prepared to drag the nation down with them even if they do not know where they are going. We are forced to ask ourselves the timeless question, how did we get here and indeed, where are we?
The froth has come to the top: Nigeria’s broth of deceit and opportunism masquerading as politics has triggered a diarrhea with dire consequences for the public space. Except we concede that we are a cursed nation, it is difficult to fathom how we could have ended up where we are now, a nation in a permanent stupor and always unable to celebrate its victories not to talk of avoiding its sorrows. How did we leave so many doors open that a small coterie of nondescript individuals with neither known addresses nor antecedents suddenly took centre stage?
A first time visitor to our country in the last few weeks would think they have crashed into a party organised by drunken criminals who, in their bouts of raucous inebriation have resorted to a serious brawl with self injuries while overturning tables and food, destroying both glasses and plates. Given the huge opportunities and resources, is this where we should be? My people, what has God not done for us?
Suddenly, the nation seems to have come unhinged. Across the country, sounds of very irresponsible and provocative utterances fill the air. The media lapped it all up and by giving these adult urchins publicity, created the impression that the end of our nation had arrived. And yet, the late Chinua Achebe warned his Igbo people in general and Nigeria in particular of the consequences of the men with ideas leaving the stage to the money-miss-road ragamuffins, men and women with no records of service or achievement, men and women who elsewhere should be in jail taking up the stage and doing what they know best, creating a maelstrom, ratcheting up the volume of vitriol and creating a discordant orchestra of artistic chaos. My people, what has God not done for us?
But while all this was going on, look at the other side, the abode of reason, rationality and integrity. Look at what has happened to us in England. In one fell swoop, seven of our sons and daughters were elected into the British Parliament, an unprecedented feat in the history of Democracy anywhere in the world. The following week, England won the Under 21 World Cup with the assistance of three young men of Nigerian descent. In the same England, just a few months back, our son created history by winning the World Heavy Weight Boxing title. Talk about the colony striking back! My people, what has God not done for us?
Within the same kingdom, across the sea to Ireland, one of our favourite sons was also making history. After about a hundred years, the Vatican announced the appointment of the first African as the Apostolic Nuncio, Archbishop Jude Okolo to Ireland, the land of our missionary ancestors. After a hundred years, Rome announced the appointment of a Nigerian-born Most Rev. Dr. Eusebius Chinekezi Manugwu, as pioneer Bishop of Port-Gentil, in Gabon. After almost a hundred years one of our daughters is now Editor of the Harvard Law Review. Almost on a monthly basis, Nigeria has continued to receive news of the spectacular achievements of our children who are breaking academic records in America and Europe, feats that few people from any developing country have achieved. They are daily breaking the glass ceilings and scaling walls that racism and colonialism had erected for the black man. In almost every corner of the world, wherever black achievement is mentioned, if there are two names, both or one must be a Nigerian. My people, what has God not done for us?
We parade the best writers with the greatest world recognition for any one country in the developing world. Our sons and daughters have won some of the most prestigious international awards there are in various fields of Art, Science, Sports and almost everything. Our Medical personnel, Lawyers, Engineers, Professors, Scientists are in the most prestigious laboratories all over the world. It will be difficult to find any good University or institution of research and learning anywhere in the world that does not have Nigerians as their brightest and best teachers or students. So, what is going on? Are we under a tragic spell? My people, what has God not done for us?
When I look at our country, I feel a sense of both shame and pity not for myself but for our teeming millions who simply want to be left to do what ordinary human beings have come to take for granted elsewhere: get married, raise a family, live in peace and prepare the next generation. Is this too much the ordinary citizens of Nigeria to ask? We have become the butt of jokes around the continent and the world. Those who brought education to us are in awe of our intellectual capacity and they hide their jealousy by accusing us of being loud and arrogant. Our cousins on the continent, most of whom we have sent technical assistance to and tried to share our wealth with, look on us as a threat. Whenever the opportunity presents itself, as in the world of international diplomacy on the global stage, they never fail to collude with others to subvert our global ambitions and leadership claims. Where did we go wrong? My people, what has God not done for us?
Today, we stand on the crossroads of shame and seeming despair. An energetic and brilliant generation of young Nigeria, roaring to take their place in the public stage are held back by a political class which prefers to feed its gargantuan appetite. Governance has become a massive fraud and a heinous crime scene. The easy question is to ask, how do we get out of this self-inflicted mess where we continue to feed our children yesterday’s barf?
This is the world to which the young priests being ordained today are going into. This is the world that the next generation of our young people growing up are coming into. How should today’s priest be prepared to respond to the social questions of the time?
While all this is going on at a national political scene, we in the Catholic Church also have our own sad drama that has been playing out in Ahiara for the last five years. In Ahiara, the devil has had his day. Now it is the turn of God to have His way. This is not the time for judgment of condemnation. It is a time for those who have ears to adjust them so that they can listen to the voice of from the gentle breeze as Elijah did (1 Kgs 19:12). I am glad that a prayer for Ahiara is circulating among Catholics. Please recite the prayer. The devil cannot be more powerful than the prayers of faithful Catholics around the country and the world. We commit Ahiara Diocese and its entire people to our Blessed Mother. May she, the patron of Priests intercede for our brothers and sisters.
It is clear that we as a Church are not free from the cobwebs of confusion that adorn our society. Whether we call the events under question ethnicity or faithlessness or greed, the fact is that our society is in deep trouble. And here is the challenge of the Catholic priesthood. This is where I want to challenge all of us who are Priests especially to sit up and confront the rut in our society by really and truly being signs of contradiction, signs of hope amidst this despair. We can only do this if we free ourselves from the temptations of material power. I want to focus my thoughts on the Priests because even if our people are broken and injured as individuals or families, we are called to be their healers. But to play our roles, we must disengage from the blind material pursuit that has rendered our mission ineffective. For, as Chaucer said: If gold rusts, what will iron do?
* * * * * * * * * * *
It is worthy of note that today’s ordination is taking place on the 40th anniversary of the foundation of this Seminary, the National Missionary Seminary of St. Paul and her supporting agency, the Missionary Society of St. Paul (MSP), by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria under the leadership of Dominic Cardinal Ekandem of blessed memory. By Divine Providence, this month marks also the centenary of his birth. Thus, about a week from today, June 23rd, the Archdiocese of Abuja which was also his brainchild, invites all of us to the party marking the one hundred years of his birth!
In a society that is being pulled apart by atavistic cleavages and divisions, we priests must become instruments of peace and unity, just like Cardinal Dominic Ekandem strove to be in his own days. Yes! He was an instrument of peace and harmony. He was a bridge-builder where polarizing forces and selfish interests were hard at work. Being the visionary leader that he was, he founded this Seminary as an instrument of unity and service to humanity. So, you new priests of today, like this great Father of our Faith and your Founder, Dominic Cardinal Ekandem, must do all within your power to rise above the atavistic forces that are attempting to pull this country apart. Like the great patriot that he was, the Cardinal worked for the unity and progress of this blessed land. You too must, and in fact all who call this land our home, must speak and work for peace and justice in our Church and Society. We must become champions of united positive actions. This constitutes a great part of our vocation as Christians but even more for us who have been called to the priestly ministry.
* * * * * * * * * * *
Today, as we ordain these five young men priests, we must reflect on the meaning and ministry of priests. Here we return to the words of the French Priest Fr Henri Lacordaire whose timeless words transcend any other definition of the Catholic priesthood. He said to be a priest is to:
To live in the midst of the world without wishing its pleasures;
To be a member of each family, yet belonging to none;
To share all suffering; to penetrate all secrets; To heal all wounds;
to go from men to God and offer Him their prayers; To return from God to men to bring pardon and hope;
These are difficult times, they are times that try our patience. But they are times of hope and courage. The priesthood will continue to be challenged because there are many versions of the priest as there are parishioners. Thankfully, we are called to serve and not to seek popular approval or applause. Again, the timeless words of one of our priests remain when said:
The priest exists for the community and only for the community. But not everyone in the community thinks the same.
Some bless him, others pity him, and so many others ignore him.
If the priest is young, they say he is inexperienced.
If he is old, they say he is outmoded, ill fashioned and conservative.
He should retire!
If he dresses well, he is a middle-class snob. If he dresses poorly, he is an agitator.
If he is happy and enjoys life and believes in love, he is wordily and not a churchman.
If he lives an ascetic life, the say: he is a “monk” and not a committed priest of the 21st century.
If he is jovial and makes people laugh, he is a joker and a clown. If he doesn’t laugh with people, he is distant, proud and full of himself.
If he visits his parishioners, he is never at home…he is a walkabout. If he does not, he is proud and lacks pastoral prudence.
The poor are angry if he associates with the rich and they call him a capitalist. The rich are insulted if he devotes himself to the poor and they call him an economist.
If he is generous and helps the poor, he is a populist. If he is moderate and judicious in spending, he is called a stingy man.
If he decorates the church, he is spending too much. If he does not, he is allowing things to deteriorate.
If he asks for funds, he likes money a lot. If the parish fund is low, he is a “bad business man.”
if he talks of moral decadence, he is putting up a holier than-thou attitude. If he doesn’t, he is morally lax and condones evil.
If he is out-spoken and criticizes the social order, he is a radical prophet, if he is gentle and prudent in criticism, he is a cunning diplomat.
If he is agile; he is hyperactive. If he is sick and weak; he does not care about his health.
If he dies, Oh! There will never be a Priest like him again!
We are not called to solve all the problems of our time. However, today’s priest must wake up to the reality of the return to the twin forces of neo-paganism, sorcery, witchcraft, shamanism among our faithful for whom Christianity is merely superficial. This skin-deep faith cannot survive the challenges of hostile forces of secularism that threaten to engulf our public life. The solution is not the superfluous expressions of dubious religiousity which have turned the churchman into a rival shaman extracting favours from a reluctant god who responds to incantations and is seduced by false sacrifices. Do you recall Paul’s shock at Ephesus when he asked the brethren there is they had received the Holy Spirit? Their answer was: We have never heard of anything like the Holy Spirit (Acts 19:2). It would seem clear that we Christians must address the issues of whether we have indeed heard and accepted such a thing as the Holy Spirit. Because if we have, then its fruits of love, charity, prudence should be the glue to hold our society together.
Finally, our people must embrace community life and be ready to hold on to the shared values that held us together. It was not wealth that held us together. It was largely the sense of solidarity that we had, a gift that was always considered part and parcel of our DNA as Africans. I leave you with the words of one of the greatest writers, our own Chinua Achebe who said: A man who calls his kinsmen to a feast does not do so to redeem them from starving. They all have food in their own houses. When we gather together in the village ground at moonlight, it is not because of the moon. Every man can see it in his compound. We come together because it is better for kinsmen to do so. Therefore let us continue with the team spirit and enjoy the power of togetherness. Let us smile not because we do not have problems but let us smile because we are stronger than our problems.
Fr Kukah delivered this speech at the ordination of deacons at the National Missionary Seminary, Abuja.

Source:     Facebook





*Japan ~ some interesting facts* ..
* Hiroshima returned to what it was economically before the Atomic Bomb was dropped.
* Japan prevents the use of Mobile Phones in trains, restaurants and indoors.
* For First to Sixth Primary Year Japanese students must learn ethics in dealing with people.
* Even though one of the richest people in the World, the Japanese do 
not have servants. The parents are responsible for the house and children.

* There is no examination from the First to the Third Primary Level because the goal of education is to instill Concepts and Character building.
* If you go to a buffet restaurant in Japan you will notice people only eat as much as they need without any waste because food must not be wasted.
* The rate of delayed trains in Japan is about 7 seconds per year!! 
The Japanese appreciate the value of Time and are very punctual to Minutes and Seconds.

* Children in schools brush their teeth (sterile) and clean their teeth after a meal at School, teaching them to maintain their health from an early age.
* Japanese students take half an hour to finish their meals to ensure proper digestion because these Students are the Future of Japan .
The Japanese focus on maintaining their Culture.
Therefore,
* No Political Leader or a Prime Minister from an Islamic Nation has visited Japan not the Ayatollah of Iran, the King of Saudi Arabia or even a Saudi Prince!
* Japan is a Country keeping Islam at bay by putting strict restrictions on ISLAM and ALL MUSLIMS.
1) Japan is the only Nation that does not give citizenship to Muslims. 
2) In Japan Permanent Residency is not given to Muslims. 
3) There is a strong ban on the propagation of Islam in Japan. 
4) In the University of Japan, Arabic or any Islamic Language is not taught. 
5) One cannot import a ''Koran'' published in the Arabic Language. 
6) According to data published by the Japanese Government, it has given temporary residency to only 2 Lakhs. Muslims, who must follow the Japanese Law of the Land. These Muslims should speak Japanese and carry out their Religious Rituals in their homes. 
7) Japan is the only Country in the World that has a negligible number of Embassies in Islamic Countries. 
8) Muslims residing in Japan are the employees of Foreign Companies. 
9) Even today, Visas are not granted to Muslim Doctors, Engineers or Managers sent by Foreign Companies. 
10) In the majority of Companies it is stated in their Regulations that NO Muslims should apply for a job. 
11) The Japanese Government is of the opinion that Muslims are Fundamentalist, and even in the era of Globalization they are not willing to change their Muslim Laws. 
12) Muslims cannot even rent a house in Japan . 
13) If anyone comes to know that his neighbor is a Muslim then the whole neighborhood stays alert. 
14) No one can start an Islamic Cell or Arabic ''Madrasa'' in Japan . 
15) There is no Sharia Law in Japan . 
16) If a Japanese woman marries a Muslim, she is considered an OUTCAST forever. 
17) According to Mr. Kumiko Yagi, Professor of Arab/Islamic Studies at Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, *"There is a mind frame in Japan that Islam is a very Narrow Minded Religion and one should stay away from it."*

The Japanese might have lost the War, but they are in charge of their own Country.
There are no bombs going off in crowded Business Centers, "Honor Killings", nor Killing of Innocent Children or Anyone Else.
*Something to think about. 

#Copied

Sunday, 18 June 2017






In December 2009, I was at Aburi, while holidaying in Ghana. We Nigerians call it A-b-u-r-i, but the Ghanaians pronounce it as E-b-r-i. For those who have read widely about the civil war that we fought between 1967 and 1970, Aburi is a significant place. This was what I wrote about Aburi, after returning from that journey:

“Aburi. Beautiful, serene Aburi, set daintily atop a hill. It is home to a botanical garden that is 119 years old. But for us in Nigeria, Aburi goes beyond just nature and its preservation. It is the town where General Yakubu Gowon and Odumegwu Ojukwu met, to try and avert the Nigerian Civil War that lasted between 1967 and 1970. They came out with Aburi Accord, which later broke down. And a shooting war started. You could see the Presidential Lodge on a hill, where the Nigerian leaders had parleyed at the behest of Ghanaian leaders. It all ended in futility.”

As one of the key parties to the Aburi Accord, Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, returns to mother earth today, it is also apposite to return to Aburi, and look at the letter and the spirit of the accord once again, an agreement that was violated by the Federal side, and which made a bloody internecine war inevitable.

For most part of 1966, the northern part of Nigeria, particularly, had been turned to killing fields. Non-natives, especially Igbos, were killed in thousands. Many fled, many others were displaced. There was complete anarchy in the land. The average Igbo looked up to Lt. Col Odumegwu Ojukwu, military governor of the Eastern Region, to provide leadership and direction. He did not fail. He picked the gauntlet and championed the cause of his people.

By January 1967, the drums of war were loud and clear, reverberating across the length and breadth of Nigeria. But there was a last ditch effort to prevent what was imminent. There was a peace meeting hosted at Aburi, in Ghana, by the then Ghanaian head of state, Gen J. A. Ankrah. At the meeting were Gowon, Ojukwu, all the military governors of the regions, and some top civil servants, both from the Federal side and the Eastern region. The meeting held on January 4 and 5, 1967, and came out with what is popularly known today as the Aburi Accord.

The agenda of the meeting consisted of three crucial issues: (i) Reorganization of the Armed Forces (ii) Constitutional agreement (iii) Issues of displaced persons within Nigeria.

The two-day meeting reached consensus that were acceptable to both sides. Among others, it was resolved that legislative and executive authority of the Federal Military Government was to remain in the Supreme Military Council (SMC), to which any decision affecting the whole country shall be referred for determination provided it is possible for a meeting to be held, and the matter requiring determination must be referred to military governors for their comment and concurrence. What does this mean in simple language? The SMC would run the affairs of the country, but not without consulting the regions as represented by the military governors. This was something akin to federalism, even under a military government.

Other terms of the agreement include that appointments to senior ranks in the police, diplomatic and consular services as well as appointment to superscale posts in the federal civil service and the equivalent posts in the statutory corporations must be approved by the SMC. What does this mean again in simple language? Equity, fairness, true federalism.

Other matters like the holding of an ad hoc constitutional conference, fate of soldiers involved in the January 15, 1966 coup, rehabilitation of displaced persons, etc, were also amicably resolved, and the conferees returned happily to Nigeria. Only for the Federal side to deliver a blow to the solar plexus: the Aburi Accord, Gowon said, was unworkable, and he reneged on all the agreements.

Using the Eastern Nigerian Broadcasting Service, Ojukwu played the tape recording of the proceedings at Aburi repeatedly, to educate the populace on who was playing Judas. Later, he made a broadcast in which he said: “we in the East are anxious to see that our differences are resolved by peaceful means and that Nigeria is preserved as a unit, but it is doubtful, and the world must judge whether Lt. Col Gowon’s attitudes and other exhibitions of his insincerity are something which can lead to a return of normalcy and confidence in the country.

“I must warn all Easterners once again to remain vigilant. The East will never be intimidated, nor will she acquiesce to any form of dictation. It is not our intention to play the aggressor. Nonetheless, it is not our intention to be slaughtered in our beds. We are ready to defend our homeland.”

In a piece I did last December, shortly after Ojukwu passed away, I said he was virtually pushed into war by the infidelity of the Federal side to the Aburi Accord. I still stand by that position. Ojukwu was called ‘warlord’ for many decades, but he was by no means a warmonger. He only did what he needed to do for his people–and for the country.

As his earthly remains are interred today, it is tragic that Nigeria is still submerged in the morass that Ojukwu already identified about 45 years ago. Today, bombs go off like firecrackers in the country. There is agitation for the review of the revenue allocation formula. There are strident calls for the convocation of a sovereign national conference. Even some component parts are threatening to pull out of the federation if anything happened to their ‘son’ who is now in power. Didn’t Ojukwu warn of these landmines ahead? Were all these issues not already settled at Aburi? Foremost journalist and media administrator, Akogun Tola Adeniyi, in a recent media interview, explained the Aburi Accord this way: “Let every region be semi-autonomous and develop at its own level.” Yes, that was the spirit and letter of Aburi, but which sadly became a road not taken. And is that not why we are still suffering today, living in a rickety and decrepit country that can burst at the seams any moment? I tell you, Ojukwu was a prophet, and like most prophets, he had no honour in his own country. Pity. But whether we like it or not, there’s no way we won’t return to Aburi. Willy-nilly. I only hope it will be sooner than later, before Nigeria goes to grief. On Aburi I stand.

Federal Government was perfidious and duplicitous on Aburi. It is still the same way today. That is why as Nigerians, we are most times disillusioned, dismayed, dispirited, dejected and depressed. When will change come to this land? Our hearts are getting weary.

Last December, I wrote that Ojukwu should be buried like a hero. I’m glad at the rites of passage so far, culminating in the interment today. Yes, bury him like a true hero. An icon, an avatar, deserves no less. This generation will surely not see another like Ojukwu. He fought not only for his own people, but for a true federation founded on justice, fair play, equity and rectitude. Unfortunately, he did not see the Nigeria of his dreams. Will we? Adieu the Ikemba, the Eze Igbo Gburugburu. May your soul rest in peace. Ka nkpur’obi gi zue ike n’adukwa.

By Femi Adesina

Friday March 02, 2012

Tuesday, 13 June 2017





LET'S SET RECORDS STRAIGHT
Out of the total of 360 House of Reps members, the entire South has 169, while the North has 191.

Here is the breakdown:

South East

Imo 10 Reps
Abia 8 Reps
Ebonyi 6 Reps
Anambra 11 Reps
Enugu 8 Reps 
Total= 43.

South South

Akwa Ibom 10 Reps
Bayelsa 5 Reps
Cross River 8 Reps
Delta 10 Reps
Edo 9 Reps
Rivers 13 Reps 
Total= 55 Reps.

SOUTHEAST & SOUTHSOUTH GRAND TOTAL =98 only.
South West

Ekiti 6 Reps
Lagos 24 Reps
Ogun 9 Reps
Ondo 9 Reps
Oyo 14 Reps
Osun 9 Reps 
Total = 71 Reps.

North West

Kano 24 Reps
Kaduna 16 Reps
Jigawa 11 Reps
Katsina 15 reps
Kebbi 8 Reps
Sokoto 11 Reps
Zamfara 7 Reps 
Total = 92 Reps.

North East

Adamawa 8 Reps
Bauchi 12 Reps
Borno 10 reps
Gombe 6 Reps
Taraba 6 Reps
Yobe 6 Reps 
Total = 48 Reps.

North Central

Benue 11 Reps
Kogi 9 Reps
Kwara 6 Reps
Nassarawa 5 Reps
Plateau 8 Reps
Niger 10 Reps 
Total = 49 Reps.

FCT 2 Reps.
GRAND TOTAL OF THE NORTH =191

The question is, how dare you upstage this people in a vote?

Even if Southeast, South-south and Southwest joined together cannot upstage the North.

More facts coming...
INJUSTICE OF OIL ALLOCATION IN NIGERIA (1)
North Central receives 20%;
CONTRIBUTES 0.00%.

North East receives 16%;
CONTRIBUTES 0.00%.

North West receives 21%;
CONTRIBUTES 0.00%.

Every month, the 19 Northern states receives a minimum of 57% of 100% of oil revenue to which they CONTRIBUTE 0.00%.

South West receives 16%; 
CONTRIBUTES 3.97%.

South East receives 11.00%;
CONTRIBUTES 25.07%.

South South receives 15.00%;
CONTRIBUTES 70.64%.

More facts...

LGAs in NIGERIA:

Nigeria has 774 LGAs.

The North has 19 states, and the 19 states have 419 LGAs.

The South has 17 states, and the 17 states have 357 LGAs.
Working with the data from the office of the Accountant General as published by the Ministry of Finance (2013 April), 
The 357 LGAs of the 17 southern states receive 45.1% of what they contribute is 100%.
The 419 LGAs of the 19 Northern states receive 54.9% of what they contribute is 0.00%.
Base on this, Ann-Kio Briggs writes:

No grammar will take away the fact that l am talking of equity and justice. 
The South of Nigeria particularly the Niger Delta has over loved the North, and they don't appreciate it. 

We must now love ourselves, our children and their future and region 200%. 

Some Niger Delta people may think it is politically correct to continue to give to a system and people that will never give to us, and even consider us fools for giving. I refuse to be politically correct, if it means sacrificing Niger Delta. 

How dare someone who brings nothing and takes more than me who brings 100% ask me what l am doing with the little that he did not steal.

THE INJUSTICE OF REVENUE ALLOCATION IN NIGERIA (2)
By Ann-kio Briggs.

I am ready to take on anyone, be they politicians or individuals on the facts. The freedom of information bill compels the FG to give Nigerians the monthly expenditure of oil and gas revenue.

How much does Federal Government owe the NDDC? 
How much does the Federal Government owe the Ministry of Niger Delta? 
How much is the Federal Government owing the Amnesty program? 
How much does the Federal Government owe the oil and gas producing states? 

I call on the oil and gas producing states, and the communities to educate themselves on the FACTS AND LIES ON THE CLAIMS THAT EXPLORATION OF OIL AND GAS IN THE NIGER DELTA WAS CARRIED OUT BY USING NORTHERN RESOURCES.

This claim is divisive and a lie, and will continue to fuel the anger that will continue to hold up our needs to agitate for 101% ownership and control of our God given resources. 

As long as people from the North continue to feed these lies to themselves and the rest of Nigeria we in the Niger Delta will not step down from our agitation for ownership and control of our resources. 

These claims are lies, they insult and assault us as a people and region, that has made sacrifices the beneficiaries of our natural resources will never make. 

If some foolish and ignorant Niger Delta people are willing to sell their birth rights the majority of us are not. 

If the greedy amongst us are willing to be beggars for what is our own, the majority that have been denied and impoverished for over 50 years, are no longer willing to accept these assaults.

FACTS OF FACTS ABOUT THE FUNDING OF OIL AND GAS EXPLORATION IN THE NIGER DELTA:

The first and unsuccessful exploration for oil was in 1908 by Nigeria Bitumen Coy. & British Colonial Petroleum around Okitipupa. (Before Amalgamation ).

In 1938 Shell D'Arcy was granted exploration licence to explore for oil.

In 1955, Mobil Oil Corporation started oil exploration in the Niger Delta. 

In 1956 Shell BP (formerly Shell D'Arcy) at that time the only concessionaire finally STRUCK oil at Oloibiri in COMMERCIAL quantity, after over 50 yrs of exploration.

There are figures sourced from *Carland 1985, (colonial office and Nigeria (1898-1914) and annual report of the colonies.

*Northern Nigeria 1904 and annual report of the colonies 
Northern Nigeria 1906 -1907 to support my claims and l will only respond to people who have cross checked or have superior facts to counter mine. 

I don't deal with propaganda or lies. These are my facts bring yours. 

Nigeria of Southern and Northern protectorate were amalgamated for the simple economic reason that the colonial British government was running the North on deficit as the expenditure in the North was more than its revenue.

While the revenue in the South was more than its expenditure. 
(And these facts are not about people who are bankers or good with figures it is about facts).

Therefore unless the North of Nigeria were oil prospecting partners with the Nigeria Bitumen Coy. & British Colonial Petroleum in 1908, 
Shell D'Arcy in 1938

Mobil Oil Corporation in 1955 and Shell BP in 1956 it never used it's groundnut money in our Niger Delta 

If the people of the North or the government of Northern Nigeria were not partners or shareholders in these private investment companies how on earth did money from groundnut and hides and skins used to explore for oil and gas?

The attempts to change the economic history of Nigeria to justify the injustice of looting the resources from NigerDelta to share amongst a few is not acceptable. 

The greed of a few to use the Nigeria state to continue to benefit maximally from the Niger Delta wealth while denying the rightful owners even the 50% they enjoyed in the days of groundnut and cocoa is no longer acceptable to the people of the Niger Delta. 

No amount of twisting, turning, threats, blackmail, and lies will stop our calls for equity and justice. 

It was in 1973, 3 years after the civil war, the genocidal war against the Igbos, that the First Participation Agreement (FPA) saw the Federal Government's acquisition of 35% shares in the oil companies. In 1974 the Second Participation Agreement (SPA) the FG equity was increased to 55%. 

MY QUESTION. ON BEHALF OF MY PEOPLE AND REGION TO THE PEOPLE OF THE NORTH TO TELL US THE OWNERS AND IMPOVERISHED PEOPLE OF NIGER DELTA HOW THEIR GROUNDNUT PROCEEDS WAS USED TO FUND OIL PROSPECTING AND OPERATIONS IN MY NIGER DELTA. 

We maintain that it is possible for Nigeria to remain a Country, but we must first sit down and agree on a fresh agreement that we will all submit our demands and conditions to if we agree then we agree, if we disagree then we disagree. 

But we are no longer prepared to give away the future of our grand children and their children. Surely this is the least that even the North will ask for or demand, if the oil and gas was on and in their land.

THE NORTH DID NOT AND HAVE NEVER USED THEIR GROUNDNUT OIL MONEY IN THE NIGER DELTA TO PROSPECT FOR OIL AND GAS OR ANY OTHER NATURAL RESOURCE PROSPECTING. 

-Ann-Kio Briggs
Daughter and Servant.
Lower Niger Congress

Friday, 9 June 2017






PRESS STATEMENT BY THE CHAIRMAN OF THE SOUTH EAST GOVERNORS FORUM, HIS EXCELLENCY, ENGR. DAVID NWEZE UMAHI, IN RESPECT OF THE THREAT TO NDI IGBO BY AREWA YOUTHS

1. The attention of the South East Governors Forum has been drawn to the widely publicised ultimatum, credited to a coalition of 16 northern youth associations or groups, demanding that Nd’Igbo resident in Northern Nigeria should vacate the region within 90 days or before the 1st day of October, 2017; and equally urging northerners resident in Igboland to return to the North within the same time spectrum.

2. Typical of our preferred modus operandi, we have carefully considered the contents of the highly provocative statement and reflected on its implications for Nd’Igbo specifically, and for the status of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as a viable and sovereign nation generally.

3. This public statement is intended to accomplish a couple of objectives, one of which is the expression of our deep appreciation to all Nigerians, including the Presidency; the reputable socio-cultural group, Afenifere; the President of the Senate, His Excellency, Dr Bukola Saraki; His Excellency, Alh. Atiku Abubakar; our brother Governors particularly His Excellency, Alh. Kashim Shetimma (the Chairman of Northern Governors Forum); Rtd. Gen. Abdulrahman Dambazau (the Honourable Minister of Interior); His Excellency, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai; the leadership of Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF); the security agencies and many others who have declaimed the dangerous threat by the misguided northern youth, and thus underscored the unity and oneness of this nation.

4. The South East Governors Forum has repeatedly reiterated its commitment to and preference for the existence of a virile, united, prosperous and progressive Federal Republic of Nigeria where justice, fairness, equity, mutual respect and equality of opportunity to all citizens regardless of creed, ethnicity or gender will reign supreme under the inflexible rule of law. We have had occasion recently to take this position publicly in response to the agitative but peaceful actions of some Igbo youth. We will continue to take a similar stance in response to any action that might threaten the cohesiveness of this nation or designed to cause its rupture.

5. The lives and property of law-abiding citizens of Igbo extraction are as precious as the lives and property of all Nigerians, irrespective of the region of their abode within this Republic. These must be guaranteed and defended against all forms of threat and aggression, both domestic and external, by the security forces/agencies of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. We the Governors of the South East are collaborating effectively with the security agencies to ensure that no harm of any description is visited upon any law-abiding Nigerian citizen resident in the South East of Nigeria, including those from the North of Nigeria.

6. We must call on all serious minded patriots, particularly the religious leadership in Northern Nigeria; the leadership of other socio-cultural groups in Northern Nigeria apart from the aforementioned; the Nigerian Governors Forum; and all the service branches to rise up with voices of peace and wisdom to counteract the mischievousness and exuberant excesses of the northern youth. The ugly lessons of history are too grim to be stoked with carelessness. As leaders, we must exert the full measure of our powers and influence to forestall a repetition.

7. We call on all our Igbo sons and daughters resident in Northern Nigeria to go about their lawful daily engagements without fear of intimidation, hindrance or molestation.

8. The rumours being peddled on conventional and social media platforms that we, the Governors of the South East, have met and agreed to mobilize vehicles and cash for the repatriation of Nd’Igbo resident in northern Nigeria must be disregarded, as they are nothing but tissues of lies. No amount of provocation would lead us to such a precipitate and irresponsible action at this time. Those exploiting such vacuous tittle-tattle as a basis for divisive rhetoric in public spaces are simply playing juvenile politics and we urge them to cease and desist.

9. Long live Ndi Igbo! Long live the Federal Republic of Nigeria!
Signed:



Engr. David Nweze Umahi
Governor of Ebonyi State and
Chairman of South East Governors Forum

Wednesday, 7 June 2017






Information reaching us has it that men who are bald at the centre of their heads are now the targets of kidnappers for the purpose of ritual murders

It is the belief of the perpetrators that such heads bring in GOLD which is quite expensive in the Country of Mozambique.

The Police in Central Zambezi has asked all bald men to as a matter of urgency start wearing hats to bide their bald heads

It is on record that 7 bald men have lost their lives in the past one week because of this action


Bad things have a way of spreading fast, so all bald men in Nigeria should start taking precautions


As Fulani Herdsmen keep terrorizing the Nation, Cows take over a Primary School in Benin Edo State Nigeria

What shall we say about this?





Sunday, 4 June 2017







How To Calculate Post UTME Admission Screening Scores For All Institutions


SEE NEW POST UTME SCREENING SYSTEM:

O Level Result:- 40%

Breakdown
A1-8%
B2-7%
B3-6%
C4-5%
C5-4%
C6-3%

Five A1-40%
Five B2-35%
Five B3-30%
Five C4-25%
Five C5-20%
Five C6-15%

UTME SCORES -60%

180-189 = 10%
190-199 = 20%
200-209 = 30%
210-219 = 40%
220-229 = 50%
230 & Above = 60%

For Example, John wrote WAEC and these are 5 subject scores he will use;
Mathematics = B2
English = A1
Physics = C4
Chemistry = B3
Biology = C5

This meas that his scores are:
Mathematics = 7%
English = 8%
Physics = 5%
Chemistry = 6%
Biology = 4%
Total = 30%

Lets say in his JAMB, he scored 217.

217 falls under 40%.

His POST UTME Score will therefore, be;

His total WAEC Score percentage plus His JAMB Score percentage. Given:
30% + 40% = 70%

Source:     Get Admission


Contact Form

Name

Email *

Message *

Total Pageviews

Powered by Blogger.

Sample Text

Blog Archive

 

Shop Now

Share

Share

Shop Now

Text Widget