INTERACTIVE MAP
An interactive map of the world with some interesting socio economic and political data overlay. It is pretty neat and fun to play with, do give it a test drive.
Showing posts with label Politics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Politics. Show all posts
2008-02-19
2007-10-08
Viva La Revolucion by Adeola Aderounmu...
Once again let take trip to Adeola Aderounmu's journal. The tough talking Adeolu stays true his theme, by asking if a revolution is all we need. I agree with the broad idea albeit the bat swinging parts. In addition to Adeola's POV, I would like to ask if a change to the structure of Governance would produce similar results as an all out revolution. I believe we have left the countries in Africa run on the good will of its leaders. This should not be, leaders should have no choice than to make the right (or at least a postion they can defend) choices. The choices available to African leaders should be jail time or good governance. Then we would be in business.
In Nigeria, we will continue to deceive ourselves if we allow the status quo to persist. The Politicians are untrustworthy and they have no conscience. Non-participatory mentality of the people must change. The people must find a way to participate in governance instead of been forced to accept what a cabal dictated. The people must find a way to end for all time the corruption mentality that has not only destroyed our economy but also made a few greedy people wealthy at the expense of the majority. The good people and the teeming masses must stand up and request for a say in the running of Nigeria. All of these approaches to ending the reign of evil can be achieved through discussions or dialogues. There must be a way to bring the ordinary people into the mainstream of our politics so that they can decide what they want and how they want it. This country belongs to all of us and it is our right to participate in the matters that shape our lives. The last probable option will be to do it by force. The people must utilize the best option that is open to them so that prosperity can be a bestowment to the generations unborn from this land flowing with milk and honey.
Hat tip to .
2007-09-22
Governors Without God-fathers...
Obinwanne takes a crack at the issue of Godfather ism (if there is a word like that). This less talked about issue creates a layer of complexity when addressing the issue of proper governance in Nigeria. Office holders without God-fathers are a rarity in Nigeria.
In Nigerian politics godfather ism is a hallmark of a successful politician. Etteh has her own godfather in Olusegun Obasanjo, the former president who is also David Mark's godfather. The Senate President would not have ascended to that high position that provoked much controversy if not for Obasanjo's intervention. Ibrahim Babangida holed up in Minna Hill-top mansion commands the godfathership of many retired general-militricians, some as senators and others governors.
Obinwanne explains further:
Past governors are not left out as they single-handedly installed their favourite successors; we have Rivers' Peter Odili, Delta's James Ibori, Goodluck Jonathan's Bayelsa and Orji Uzor Kalu's Abia. These ex-governors more than any other altruistic purpose did this for self-preservation; they sought out people who would cover their corrupt tracks as they leave office.
How can this scourge be addressed? Please leave comments on .
In Nigerian politics godfather ism is a hallmark of a successful politician. Etteh has her own godfather in Olusegun Obasanjo, the former president who is also David Mark's godfather. The Senate President would not have ascended to that high position that provoked much controversy if not for Obasanjo's intervention. Ibrahim Babangida holed up in Minna Hill-top mansion commands the godfathership of many retired general-militricians, some as senators and others governors.
Obinwanne explains further:
Past governors are not left out as they single-handedly installed their favourite successors; we have Rivers' Peter Odili, Delta's James Ibori, Goodluck Jonathan's Bayelsa and Orji Uzor Kalu's Abia. These ex-governors more than any other altruistic purpose did this for self-preservation; they sought out people who would cover their corrupt tracks as they leave office.
How can this scourge be addressed? Please leave comments on .
2007-01-22
Where Does Our 'Nationalism' Go To Die?
Charlie, I know him very, he is like blood, young energetic Nigerian economist. He took the Africanism movement a bit too seriously, he remained a teacher at the University of Ibadan even though all his colleagues sought greener pastures. He was strong, he stood stoutly by his beliefs. He lived and breathed Nigeria, from the retro looks of his afro, to his short sleeved tie and die shirt with matching brown pants. He was a symbol, an attestation to the resilience and the undying believe of the average Nigerian in his home country.
He was hard headed, he lost his job as the project manager of a World Bank sponsored project due to his unwillingness to approve of a Small Scale Business Development center for a village with no source of electricity. I remember vividly has he turned to me that night asking, "If only this foreigners will ask the people in the village what they needed, there would be no use for a 200 page feasibility study". I smile every time I replay his words in my head, he would say, "anybody that is serious about getting the job done in Nigeria, need not come wearing a suit". He was also quick to declare, "all of them (his colleagues then working with the IMF and World Bank) are intellectual prostitutes.
Fast forward 7 years later, Rome Italy, Charlie is rocking a pin striped suit, with silk Oscar De La Renta tie to match. He looked much younger, with a sparkle in his eyes. Life had treated him good, I must say. As we settled for a ride in his late model Mercedes Benz, I asked him the million dollar question. What happened to the philosophy? What happened to the "Nigeria must look inward" theme? Why are you wearing the white man's attire? How come you now work for the UN(FAO)? How come you fit in so well with the so called intellectual prostitutes? Really tell me, why have you sold out?
He looked at me and sighed, and he said, "Son, a wise man chooses his battles carefully, not all causes are worth dying for, and definitely Nigeria is not worth dying for.
He was hard headed, he lost his job as the project manager of a World Bank sponsored project due to his unwillingness to approve of a Small Scale Business Development center for a village with no source of electricity. I remember vividly has he turned to me that night asking, "If only this foreigners will ask the people in the village what they needed, there would be no use for a 200 page feasibility study". I smile every time I replay his words in my head, he would say, "anybody that is serious about getting the job done in Nigeria, need not come wearing a suit". He was also quick to declare, "all of them (his colleagues then working with the IMF and World Bank) are intellectual prostitutes.
Fast forward 7 years later, Rome Italy, Charlie is rocking a pin striped suit, with silk Oscar De La Renta tie to match. He looked much younger, with a sparkle in his eyes. Life had treated him good, I must say. As we settled for a ride in his late model Mercedes Benz, I asked him the million dollar question. What happened to the philosophy? What happened to the "Nigeria must look inward" theme? Why are you wearing the white man's attire? How come you now work for the UN(FAO)? How come you fit in so well with the so called intellectual prostitutes? Really tell me, why have you sold out?
He looked at me and sighed, and he said, "Son, a wise man chooses his battles carefully, not all causes are worth dying for, and definitely Nigeria is not worth dying for.
2007-01-19
Another way to look at the Nigerian experience...
As an academic excercise (put your aside) lets draw a parallel between Colombia and Nigeria here, the last paragraph is of interest to me here. Thoumi put it in far better language than I could ever have. The complete journal article is
...illegal drugs are only one branch of the Colombian criminal industry sector. Besides being a principle drug producer, Colombia is also the world's largest manufacturer of counterfeit U.S. dollars; it is the main producer and user of assassins for hire (sicarios); it is the first or second Latin American exporter of prostitutes; it produces very high quality counterfeit documents, particularly passports; and it is a large producer of pirated software and CDs. Colombia is the only country of which this author knows where owners of urban lots and vacant houses place large "not for sale" signs to prevent fraudulent sales. Colombia is a country where the state has been a bounty, and where white-collar crime has grown dramatically judging by frequent newspaper reports. In Colombia, soldiers find a hidden guerrilla treasure accumulated through drug trafficking, extortion, and kidnappings and consider it normal to keep such treasures as a "prize" for serving in the armed forces. It is a country where police officials negotiate the transfer of captured cocaine with drug traffickers and where the terms "millionaire stroll" and "throw away person" were coined as euphemisms for a quick kidnapping of a person taken to A.T.M. machines to empty his or her bank account and for social cleansing. All these facts show that Colombia has developed a competitive advantage in economic activities that require law breaking or illegal skills. They also highlight the predatory nature of Colombian capitalism and the illegitimacy and weakness of property rights in the country.
...illegal drugs are only one branch of the Colombian criminal industry sector. Besides being a principle drug producer, Colombia is also the world's largest manufacturer of counterfeit U.S. dollars; it is the main producer and user of assassins for hire (sicarios); it is the first or second Latin American exporter of prostitutes; it produces very high quality counterfeit documents, particularly passports; and it is a large producer of pirated software and CDs. Colombia is the only country of which this author knows where owners of urban lots and vacant houses place large "not for sale" signs to prevent fraudulent sales. Colombia is a country where the state has been a bounty, and where white-collar crime has grown dramatically judging by frequent newspaper reports. In Colombia, soldiers find a hidden guerrilla treasure accumulated through drug trafficking, extortion, and kidnappings and consider it normal to keep such treasures as a "prize" for serving in the armed forces. It is a country where police officials negotiate the transfer of captured cocaine with drug traffickers and where the terms "millionaire stroll" and "throw away person" were coined as euphemisms for a quick kidnapping of a person taken to A.T.M. machines to empty his or her bank account and for social cleansing. All these facts show that Colombia has developed a competitive advantage in economic activities that require law breaking or illegal skills. They also highlight the predatory nature of Colombian capitalism and the illegitimacy and weakness of property rights in the country.
All these facts highlight the need to understand why some behaviors that, although found in other countries, are more common in Colombia. During the last several years, Colombian scholars have begun to explore why Colombian society imposes few, if any, controls on individual behavior...Indeed, every Colombian has a high degree of freedom to establish his or her own norms. Because of this freedom, Colombians show great individual creativity and various degrees of social discipline. The lack of social controls produces individuals with remarkable behaviors: anybody who respects the law and the rights of others does so because of individual convictions, as do those who break the laws. Success in Colombia is individual, not social or collective. Loyalty normally extends only to people close to oneself because without their help it is impossible to survive in the midst of a hostile environment. "The net result is an abundance of anti-social behaviors: individual rationality predominates over collective rationality"...
My take on these..
We are rational beings and also products of the system that surrounds us, we seek to make decision that bring forth the maximum benefit to us. Nigeria is in its present state because of the system, not the people, Did I hear you say the system is made up of the people, okay the point is that there is a difference between, people as indidcuduals and people as a collective. To make matters worse, it is not in the interest of the individual Nigerian to make a change. Any meaningful change will arise from the collective, will power of the people. That brings me to the question of the day. Do we, as a collective, still believe in Nigeria to make things work?
Other peoples views. from...
The article spun off some interesting discussions; some of the comments I have pasted below.
one quibble with a factum. In Nigeria, it is also commmon to put up "This building is NOT for Sale" signs, particularly in Lagos. Not that it makes things any better that Colombia is not the only place.
Another dude comments...
Most of this is really bad, but, would we call the Napoleonic era British Navy corrupt because it divvied up captured prizes among its crews? We should distinguish between what's anti-social or destructive and what's simply a different cultural norm.
2007-01-11
Head Count...the debate continues
My point is this; if Nigerian bloggers can not come to a consensus about, the male- female ration in Nigeria; feels there are more males, feels the reverse is the case while is sure there are more females. Isn't it inherently difficult to talk about the demography of a country just by relying on our day to day perceptions. Since the NPC carried out the exercise and they have come up with their result, I believe we should all hush, and accept this result. What will we base any disagreement on? This point extends to the Lagos vs. Kano thing too. I hope we all realize that its Lagos 'State' and Kano 'State' in question and not the city. Hello absolute population figures are in question here not population density. Things are not always what they seem.
wrote;
Like Zee, I'm not really sure what's happening... But I think it's interesting that there are supposedly more males than females in Nigeria...(I mean with all those men that have more than 1 wife, plus all the mistresses on the side). I'm not really sure what to make of the results.
wrote;
If there's anything ludicrous I've heard this new year, it's the by National Population Commission that there are more people in Kano than in Lagos. Haba! As , it seems as if they counted cows & goats join human beings.What made me finally deduce that everything is a shamble and a pack of lies is the statement that 'there are more men in Nigerian than women'. What do these people take us for, bonfools? Has any of them come to the streets of Lagos to see how girls flock every nook & cranny? Go to a party & you'll discover that. The rate at which girls dey fight overs guys sef is a serious statistics.That's the greatest joke I've heard this year. No way! Chicken no dey cry for night.
wrote;
How did we end up with more males than females?
2007-01-10
Can Nigerians Count?
Seriously ? can we count without delving into tribalistic issues? Are 3 yoruba men harder to count than 3 Hausa men? From all indications Nigerians can not count. We all ought to cover our faces in shame. Do the babariga and buba wearing policy makers realize that a national census goes way beyond 'a funky quota system' , there are policy issues in healthcare and educations that are more important than how much money a state governors gets to play with. Most of the funds disbursed by the FG end up in foreign accounts anyway.
For a few days now we have been greeted with news headlines of meetings, reactions and counter reactions, on the results of the National Census, Oh Kano is more populous than Lagos, oh this can not be so, oh the Census was rigged. Only in Nigeria, where did the Lagos State government get the 15 million figure from. If they had it all figured out what was the point of the excercise in the first place. Since when did we need a seal of approval from the citizenry for the result of a head count. Public officials need to be held more accountable in Nigeria, some of their utterances are highly divisive. Lets face it, this bruhaha is not about the election figures, but another indicator of how divided we are as a country.
The Lagos State Government said it would take its time to study the released document before making any pronouncement on the figuresPrior to the conduct of the census in 2006, the state government had stressed that the population of the state could not be less than 15 million people.The state Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Dele Alake, told newsmen before the conduct of the census that any figure less than 15 million population would not be acceptable to the generality of Lagos residents.
Events like these make me wonder if Nigeria as we know it today, is better of as separate innibitsy countries. Okay I'd settle for a federal system of government.
My spell checker isn't working please bare with me.
2006-12-18
Good-luck Yar'Adua
Yar'Adua and Good-luck recieved the the nod from the big boss, I spoke with a few Nigerians about these and surprisingly they seem to be upbeat about these two. Notwithstanding the fact that Jonathan's wife is being investigated for money laundering. One would assume that an allegation of money laundering will be enough reason to disqualify any candidate from participating in the primaries, but I guess I am wrong though, all it takes is the nod from big boss OBJ and all wrongs are automatically made right. God help us.
I also sense that Nigerians have learnt to settle for anything that isn't the worst case scenario. It's as if we never expect to have the best so anything short of the worst is welcomed with open arms. Nigerians have been quick to point out the fact that Yar'Adua is no Atiku or IBB. My thought on this is quite simple, 'but Yar'Adua is no Duke either'. Okay I was one of the few that had hopes for Duke or Utomi.
Only God can help us now.
2006-11-18
A. N. I.
Inasmuch as we all look forward to a Nigeria where justice will always prevail, I think a pix of Alaiyemasinga on the front page of the Guardian newspaper,with no shoes on, rocking a jalamiya, with caption reading "Ailing former Bayelsa governor, D.S.P. Alamieyeseigha supported by a security man during his appearance before the code of conduct Tribunal in Abuja" is sort of barbaric. What is the use of a justice system if accused persons are treated like criminals before court proceedings even begin?
North Korea and Iran offer better maternity leave programs than the US, really the US does not offer any. The maternity leave in question here is the government sectioned type that is upheld by law. Source 20/20 abcnews. The argument against maternity leave is that it hurts the bottom line. Wetin bottom line go cause in this country. Back in school my teachers, would consistently drum their opinions into, for example they'd go on about how China, and the Chinese economy was held up by an unsustainable and artificial level of productivity. Hm mm, honestly I think academic pursuits are often clouded by personal beliefs. We tend to see only what we set out to find, and for findings contrary to what we hoped for, we find readily available explanations for the shortcomings of our data or methods or both.
I like India Aries album, it required a little warming up to, now I am loving it. Fave track, India's song. I am so feeling The Fray's How To Save a Life and Over My Head. Jars of Clay too, Good Monsters.
2006-09-28
Ribadu's Expose
Okay, 30 Nigerian Governors are rogues, what's new? This has generated as many commenataries, on the web today, as any other 'corruption realated report" . So what, why do we act like we did not know all this was going on. That is kind of funny though, the EFCC found no wrongdoing in the senate and presidency, hmmm how interesting. We ought to look into this issue as soon as we are done with the 'putting the governors in jail' part.
Nigeria to oil production by 5%, hmmm.
Financial Analysts, they go again talking about, myspace may be worth 15 billion dollars in a few years.
2005-11-06
The French Riots
Abject Poverty and immense wealth can only live side by side for so long. I knew this was coming I am surprised it started in France. You can only use a 'people' for so long. A time will come when they will fight back.
The authorities have cleared away the burned-out vehicles from in front of the tower blocks in Clichy-sous-Bois, but the smouldering resentment felt by the area's young residents cannot be extinguished so quickly.
Groups of boys and young men still hang around outside the area's shops and cafes and treat strangers with deep suspicion, if not outright hostility.
Although some complain that their voices are never heard, as we tried to speak to local residents, we were told at one point to leave the area or risk being attacked.
The nights of violence over the past week have given some young men a rare sense of control - even if it is only of the streets where they live.
"There is a dangerous cocktail here," said Ahmed Belmokhtar, a taxi-driver of Algerian origin, like many of those who live in the poor, crime-ridden estates like Clichy, which ring Paris.
He listed the rampant unemployment, heavy-handed policing, discrimination, poor housing and a concentration of large numbers of immigrants from North and West Africa, along with their descendents.
Many feel that the state ignores them at best and at worst stands in the way of their attempts to escape the estates.
'Dead for nothing'
The most recent spark to ignite - all too literally - this cocktail was the death of two young Clichy boys of African origin - Bouna Traore, 15, and Zyed Benna, 17 - allegedly as they ran away from the police. 
The friends of Bouna and Zyed hope they rest in peace.
Photos of the pair with the words "Rest in peace" are being sent round mobile phones in the area.
Some of their friends are wearing black sweat-shirts emblazoned with the slogan "Dead - for nothing".
The death of a child is always extremely emotional but the undercurrent of alienation has been there for many years and has periodically spilled over into violence.
Grievances
The run-down, graffiti-ridden tower-blocks, some with broken and boarded-up windows, stretch for miles and miles.
Those who live there say that when they go for a job, as soon as they give their name as "Mamadou" and say they live in Clichy, they are immediately told that the vacancy has been taken.
When high numbers of unemployed young men live together, the outcome is often violence.
A young woman, Maratt Sabek, said that black and Arabic women do not face nearly as much discrimination in the job market as their brothers.
But what will the violence achieve?
"It's catastrophic - we're the ones who suffer," said one young woman, who was too afraid to give her name. 
Many Clichy residents see a bleak future among the tower blocks
The cars and shops which are burnt belong to those who have managed to find a job and save up despite all the obstacles they face.
One woman who is visiting friends and relations in Clichy said she was astonished to see the flames and hear the police sirens, saying it reminded her of home - Algeria, where a decade-long civil war has just about finished.
This may be an exaggeration but it is a comparison which would still shock many French people who have never seen the near-third world deprivation in their midst.
Scared residents
The owner of a smart gents outfitters in nearby Aulnay-sous-Bois - which has also seen several nights of rioting - said that his sales had crashed by some 30% in the past week.
"People are afraid - they know their car could be burnt tonight," he said.
And train-drivers and conductors have gone on strike after their colleagues were attacked, making it even more difficult for Clichy residents to travel to other parts of the Paris area where work can be found.
And yet, as always, life carries on.
One woman carrying huge bags of onions and potatoes to her flat confessed to being too afraid to go out at night over the past week or so but said she had not actually witnessed any of the violence herself.
Just three blocks away, the car-park remains littered with burnt-out rubber and shattered glass.
Ahmed, the taxi driver, says while Clichy's residents are only adding to their own suffering in the short term by their violence, it is their only way of "sounding the alarm.
"In the long term, it will force the government to do something for the area. Otherwise, the next round of violence will be even worse."
2005-10-22
One more immgrant story!
A bullet wound to his knee after a clandestine attempt to enter Europe, Abdourahamane Fadiga is back in his native Guinea after a gruelling year in the desert, but thinks of little other than trying again.
Fadiga was among 93 Guineans who arrived in the capital, Conakry, aboard a Moroccan airplane this week, deported from the North African country along with hundreds of other West Africans.
His venture began in July 2004 and ended last week at the gateway to Europe - the barrier between Africa and Spain's last enclaves on the continent in Morocco.
"I was shot in the knee on the Spain side when I refused to get down off the wall," Fadiga told IRIN.
He had tried countless times over the year. He envisions trying to scale the wall again.
"I can't stay here," the 28-year-old said. "There is no work."
Vast unemployment in Guinea is just one of the symptoms of the abject poverty that grips the country despite its mineral wealth.
Guinea has a third of the world's bauxite reserves, as well as gold, diamonds and iron ore. Ample rains mean a potential for robust agricultural production.
Still, it is among the world's 20 poorest countries, according to the UN human development index. A national study last year found that about 51 percent of the population lives under the poverty line.
A 50-kilogramme sack of rice - the staple food - costs the equivalent of about half the average monthly salary of a government employee.
"The impoverishment of the continent" is what drives Africans to try to reach Europe by any means, said former Malian president Alpha Oumar Konare at a recent meeting with European leaders in Brussels.
Among those ready to take the most extreme risks in search of a better life have been Guineans, Fode Tankara, 15, and Yaguine Koita, 14, who died in 1999 trying to escape in the undercarriage of a plane from Conakry to Brussels.
The problem of illegal immigration hit world headlines again this month when several young men were killed and injured trying to clear the wall to reach Melilla and Ceuta in Morocco.
Humanitarian organisations condemned Moroccan authorities for depositing some of the illegal migrants in the vacant sands of the Sahara Desert with no food or water.
Since then, Morocco has been filling Royal Air Maroc planes with would-be migrants and deporting them - in the past two weeks transporting more than 2,000 to the capitals of Mali, Senegal, Guinea and Cameroon.
During their furtive stay in Morocco, constantly on the lookout for a chance to change continents, men and women suffered hardship they won't soon forget - if they survived.
Fadiga said he walked hundreds of kilometres in the desert, braving hunger and harsh weather, crossing several Moroccan towns before finding haven in a forest where nearly 1,000 men and women from his home country and nine other sub-Saharan African nations were living.
"A young Nigerian woman, eight months pregnant, died," Nabil Moussa Toure, also repatriated to Guinea, said.
The latest expulsions from Morocco have been painful to watch for Mariama Konate, deputy director of Guinea's humanitarian action service (SENA).
"This breaks my heart, as a mother, to see our children deported in this way."
SENA, which is assisting deportees in getting from Conakry to their home villages, says at least two Guineans died in the desert and several are still languishing in Morocco.
For Fadiga, the economic hardship at home outweighs the adversity that awaits in the North African desert.
He adjusts the bandage on his wounded leg. "As soon as I'm healed, I plan to head back toward Europe."
2005-10-13
WHAT CAUSED KATRINA?
THIS IS INTERESTING.
This is pretty crazy. Props to reader Jenn for pointing this one out:A meteorologist in Pocatello, Idaho, claims Japanese gangsters known as the Yakuza used KGB inventions to cause Hurricane Katrina, Wireless Flash reported Thursday.Scott Stevens says after looking at NASA satellite photos of the hurricane, he’s is convinced it was caused by electromagnetic generators from ground-based microwave transmitters. “There is absolutely zero chance that this is natural, zero,” Villagevoice quoted Stevens as saying after Katrina’s landfall, pointing out suspiciously rectilinear shapes in the satellite-photoed hurricane clouds The generators emit a soundwave between three and 30 megahertz and Stevens claims the Russians invented the storm-creating technology back in 1976 and sold it to others in the late 1980s. Stevens says the clouds formed by the generators are different from normal clouds and are able to appear out of nowhere and says Katrina had many rotation points that are unusual for hurricanes. At least 10 nations and organizations possess the technology, but Stevens suspects the Japanese Yakuza created Katrina in order to make a fortune in the futures market and to get even with the U.S. for the 1945 bombing of Hiroshima.
2005-10-07
AFRICAN IMMIGRANTS LEFT IN DESERTS
NOW I NEED SOME HELP HERE, WOULD PEOPLE FROM OTHER CONTINENTS BE TREATED LIKE THIS?
African migrants 'left in desert'
Spain has expelled 70 immigrants to MoroccoAn aid agency says it has found more than 500 migrants abandoned in the Moroccan desert after being expelled from Spain's North African enclaves.
AFRICAN CHILD SOLDIERS
THE FEATURED PICTURES OF AFRICAN CHILDREN SOLDIERS IN THEIR PHOTO-EDITIORIALS TODAY, I COULD NOT HELP BUT NOTICE SOME OF THE JARRING PICTURES. ITS NICE TO BRING ALL THE ATTROCITIES COMMITED BY AFRICAN LEADERS INTO THE WORLDVIEW, BUT WHEN WILL WE GET IMAGES OF PEOPLE ON VACATION AND HAVING A NICE TIME IN AFRICA.
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