Sunday 18 April 2010
SAVE NIGERIAN RALLY.United we stand.
I believe the time for Change has come,until we stand up to our oppressors,we will remain oppressed. Nigerians and friends of Nigeria in the United Kingdom, joined in the global protests march organised by the Save Nigeria Group Nigeria, to demand the National Assembly make,Deputy Vice President,Jonathan Goodluck acting president, in the absence of President Yar Adua who has not been seen in public since November last year when he left the country on a medical trip to Saudi Arabia without notifying the house nor fully updating them since.
Following this successful protests march,around the globe,in January 2010,we now have vice president Jonathan Goodluck acting as president and heading the nation. He has since dissolved and appointed new members to his ministerial cabinet,to help shape his vision and deliver his mission for Nigeria whilst in this capacity.
He has since visited at the invite of President Barack Obama the White house and also granted CNN,chief reporter,Christiane Amanpour an interview on the programme "The power of the interview", where he emphasised that electoral reform and corruption were the two main objective for his interim administration to tackle.
This all goes to show what the power of unity can do, Nigerians, the more we unite and face our common enemy the more triumphant we will become. The struggle for a functioning Nigeria goes on.
The Role of the Nigerian Youth In Nation building
We cannot always build the future for our youth, but we can build our youth for the future.” FRANKLIN D ROOSEVELT.
The Nigerian youth have largely been marginalised by all spheres of government the country have had.
There is a Ministry of Youth and Sports Development,but it does not tackle the day to day aspect of the development of the Nigerian youth,nor,have any long-term plans for them compared to their counterparts around the globe.
It is not uncommon to see Nigerian youths roaming the streets,and their education disrupted due to the permanent fixture of striking teachers,and lecturers in the academia world.
They become idle and many become tools “in the hands of the devil.”
They are the vulnerable group preyed upon during election campaigns by political aspirants to act as thugs,hired assassins,miscreants,mobs,etc to derail a free fair campaign and ultimately the national election. Most of the aspirants have their own children receiving very expensive private education abroad. It is the under privileged youths who lose their lives.
Their minds are not stimulated nor stretched in a systemic way towards adequate capacity in the 21st century;There are no funded schemes to develop and encourage their creative/inventive minds,nor updated library/facilities eg advanced technology to enable them access E-gateway knowledge and skills development. Yet access is what separates the Nigerian youth from their foreign counterparts in developed countries.Giving the same opportunity,the Nigerian youth have the tendency to surpass their counterparts.
Nigerian youths have no jobs to go to when they complete their education(if they do complete it), yet the Nigerian youth is industrious, self driven, tenacious, creative, determined and hopeful; this is eminently paraded in the music,fashion,I.T and communications industry. They embrace and take their own destinies into their hands,determined to make the most of life,regardless of what it takes than to be labelled "a failure". They have become hustlers
The Nigerian youth have been forced to learn that it is only by force and violence that their voices can be heard and are quickly labelled when they conduct this induced action. Because you see,it is not the norm to seek the opinion or the counsel of the young on any issue,let alone on nation building.The norm is: they are to be seen and not heard.The attitude is "they are yooung,they know nothing".
These are our future leaders!!!!Able bodied,vibrant,young boys and girls,men and women!!!
The future is now.If things continue in the endemic state Nigeria is in, there will be no Nigeria for us all by 2015,this is no gainsay or wishing us ill luck.
Nigeria is in crisis,the calamities befalling us now is a sign of a nation gone berserk,it doesn't take more than this!These are dire times.
To the older generation,I pose these questions?
Is this the best you can offer?
What legacy are you leaving behind?
What will history say about you in the role you played or didn't play?
Are you a national hero a national villain?
Where you once a child, and did you as a young person have dreams,are you living your dreams?
To the Nigerian youth I say, buckle your shoes,this is not the time to be cowards, this is not the time to remain silent,this is the time to work in unity, to work as a team, to demand a better future and in order to fight your cause well, you 1st need to deliberate around the following issues and establish an identity.
What is the civil right of a Nigerian youth?
What is the civil responsibility of the Nigerian youth?
How can Nigerian youths exert their civil duties in an ungovernable situation?
Is there still hope for the Nigerian youth in Nigeria?
What is the role of the Nigerian youth in governance?
What is the role of the Nigerian youth as an agent of change?
What do the future leaders of Nigeria look like?
The Role of the Nigerian Youth in Nation building Seminar,coming soon.
The Nigerian youth have largely been marginalised by all spheres of government the country have had.
There is a Ministry of Youth and Sports Development,but it does not tackle the day to day aspect of the development of the Nigerian youth,nor,have any long-term plans for them compared to their counterparts around the globe.
It is not uncommon to see Nigerian youths roaming the streets,and their education disrupted due to the permanent fixture of striking teachers,and lecturers in the academia world.
They become idle and many become tools “in the hands of the devil.”
They are the vulnerable group preyed upon during election campaigns by political aspirants to act as thugs,hired assassins,miscreants,mobs,etc to derail a free fair campaign and ultimately the national election. Most of the aspirants have their own children receiving very expensive private education abroad. It is the under privileged youths who lose their lives.
Their minds are not stimulated nor stretched in a systemic way towards adequate capacity in the 21st century;There are no funded schemes to develop and encourage their creative/inventive minds,nor updated library/facilities eg advanced technology to enable them access E-gateway knowledge and skills development. Yet access is what separates the Nigerian youth from their foreign counterparts in developed countries.Giving the same opportunity,the Nigerian youth have the tendency to surpass their counterparts.
Nigerian youths have no jobs to go to when they complete their education(if they do complete it), yet the Nigerian youth is industrious, self driven, tenacious, creative, determined and hopeful; this is eminently paraded in the music,fashion,I.T and communications industry. They embrace and take their own destinies into their hands,determined to make the most of life,regardless of what it takes than to be labelled "a failure". They have become hustlers
The Nigerian youth have been forced to learn that it is only by force and violence that their voices can be heard and are quickly labelled when they conduct this induced action. Because you see,it is not the norm to seek the opinion or the counsel of the young on any issue,let alone on nation building.The norm is: they are to be seen and not heard.The attitude is "they are yooung,they know nothing".
These are our future leaders!!!!Able bodied,vibrant,young boys and girls,men and women!!!
The future is now.If things continue in the endemic state Nigeria is in, there will be no Nigeria for us all by 2015,this is no gainsay or wishing us ill luck.
Nigeria is in crisis,the calamities befalling us now is a sign of a nation gone berserk,it doesn't take more than this!These are dire times.
To the older generation,I pose these questions?
Is this the best you can offer?
What legacy are you leaving behind?
What will history say about you in the role you played or didn't play?
Are you a national hero a national villain?
Where you once a child, and did you as a young person have dreams,are you living your dreams?
To the Nigerian youth I say, buckle your shoes,this is not the time to be cowards, this is not the time to remain silent,this is the time to work in unity, to work as a team, to demand a better future and in order to fight your cause well, you 1st need to deliberate around the following issues and establish an identity.
What is the civil right of a Nigerian youth?
What is the civil responsibility of the Nigerian youth?
How can Nigerian youths exert their civil duties in an ungovernable situation?
Is there still hope for the Nigerian youth in Nigeria?
What is the role of the Nigerian youth in governance?
What is the role of the Nigerian youth as an agent of change?
What do the future leaders of Nigeria look like?
The Role of the Nigerian Youth in Nation building Seminar,coming soon.
ARISE AFRICA conference Berlin Germany.
"Africa the paradise of the future" is the position of Africa today,equally shared and envisioned by experts,diplomats and scholars at the ongoing "ARISE AFRICA" conference,targeted at young african leaders,by the Institute of Cutural Diplomacy in Berlin,Germany.
In attendance are,young nationals of many african countries like the Sudan,Nigeria,Morrocco,the Republic of Congo,South Africa,Kenya,Ethiopia, Rwanda,Chad republic,Lesotho and also some young nationals of the European union, eg Germany,Denmark,Netherlands,Poland, the United Kingdom and the United States of America to mention a few.
Range of issues discussed so far include:
African countries building stronger ties with their fellow african countries and its benefits.
Fostering mutual understanding.
The culture of cultural diplomacy and its influence on the way people think and act.
Leadership Initiatives
TYPES OF POWER: Soft,hard and smart power and its benefits,appropriateness, interpretation and usage in governance and diplomacy.
Good governance
Democracy and human rights.
Identifying Africas identity and the identity of each African country.
To be continued............................
HOW TO MOVE NIGERIA FORWARD
Dear people peace be unto us as we try to find a common ground on how to deal with this pressing issue. It shows our passion for our country regardless of how we perceive the opinion of the other. Muttallab committing an act so condemning, was just a trigger point in what was already "a big country in a big problem ", that Nigeria is in a volatile or eruptive state and that something was bound to happen sooner or later was no news to many, especially if you have been following the trend of things lately. Please hear me out, please put sentiments aside, please listen, because that is what we hardly do as Nigerians.
For so long, Nigeria did not take a stand on anything. What is our stand on education, health, housing, poverty, and the other basic infrastructures, citizens of any country need to survive.
What is the Nigerian culture, or stand on crime, safe guarding of lives and properties, on genocide, on tribalism. What is our stand or policies as the case maybe on foreign investors/multilateral allied relationships. What is our stand on corruption, what is our stand on electoral processes, what is our stand on human rights, What is our stand on money laundering, What is our stand on transparency, what is our stand on law and order, what is our stand on the rule of law, the judiciary etc. Our constitution does not carry much weight, these are our real problems.
Nigeria has never been easy to decipher, everyone including nigerians, have been left to come up with their individual meaning of what we are about, what is right and what is wrong.
The international community have been dumping on us for so long because we permitted it,created it with them, we condoned it, that is why Nigeria was or is still a dumping ground for expired goods of all sorts, putting many lives to potential danger.
In the name of oil refinery, they dominated our oil sector and with oil also comes wealth,but there are n no regulation s in place nor followed to tackle spillages, damaged and polluted lands, rivers, and loss of community of our people in the Niger Delta.
What about our aviation sector, our private sector, who have we given the licenses, who are the big players, who dominates it, who calls the shot? That is why only international airlines ripping us off through their unregulated ticket pricing of African routes are in our airspaces, that is why our nations stolen monies are in Swiss banks.
Yes we may say “but the west are also condoning it,” they the crusader of standards” but hello, it takes two, someone is violating us, our rights and we say keep abusing us,it does not matter , we did not take a stand for too long a time, we know they are used us,are using us,fooled us, fooling us and we choose to play stupid because of why? We are corruptible, we have no national working strategy,either short term or long term in place,but individualistic goals, and perputated greed.
This current issue did not start on Dec 25th 2009 when the whole world woke up to the news of another terrorist attempt, and the perpetuator happened to be a nigerian, no, it started as far back as post colonial era.
The west have been looking for a way to excommunicate Nigeria, they have been wanting to isolate us, because of our systems and how we treat our own people,how it is getting more ridiculous and turning into a circus of some sort. I suspect they turned a blind eye and deaf ears to the cries of Senior Muttallab, so that this pathetic lost nigerian will creat the needed platform for their smooth operation as usual (America is not as nonchalant, careless as they want us to believe in this case, my guess is this was a bait) and guess what? he did! And with the whole world having a common enemy in terrorism and Al-Qaeda, they will agree with America that we deserve to be blacklisted. Not even other commonwealth nations will save us from this one.
We have been blacklisted and so what? We have always been on a list or the other, how about TRANSPERENCY International’s ranking of Nigeria on their most corrupt nations list?
Read carefully though,the other things being said, written about the on- going issues in Nigeria, they have strongly condemned the absence of our president, the non abiding and lack of respect for our constitution, that power be handed over to the vice president in his absence, more so when he is on indefinite sick leave! Who and what should really come 1st, where else in the world is this done? You tell me!
My dear people, Nigeria is a great country, full of brilliant minds, eloquent, educated, able bodied citizens that can make Nigeria work, governable and relevant as it should be. Many nigerians form the think tanks of thriving governance/economies of developed countries, an average nigerian, possess leadership qualities, it is innate, we need little or no motivation to be upwardly mobile and desiring a better life, If not we will not be speaking our minds and analysing as we are all doing.
Yes try we must to let the world know that we are not all terrorists, that we are better than they think ,that we know their game, but you and I know it will fall on deaf ears, they do not care. Besides, our actions, not our words should speak loudest, so let us form a synergy, focus our attention, channel our energy, our irritation, our anger, frustrations,our disappointments, on our internal problems, our leaders, our government, ourselves, our economy, the state of our nation, it is at its lowest kerb, let us put our house in order, let us say it as it is, let us put our pride aside, our egos, and look at our own failings and seat with it, roll up our sleeves, to count the cost, the sacrifices we have to make, the instant gratification we have to deny ourselves, till we find solutions that will liberate us as a people, enable and empower us, that then spells it out loud and clear to the international community that Nigeria has taken control of its own destiny and it is no longer business as usual, sending out a message that United we will stand and fall and woe unto to those that will try to divide us.
But for now, we are the wounded, the remaining nigerians smeared in this controversy, dealt this backlash.The perpetuators of the mockery? Our leaders and Farouk Muttallab.
They exposed us to the abuse and the name calling heaped on by others especially THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
For so long, Nigeria did not take a stand on anything. What is our stand on education, health, housing, poverty, and the other basic infrastructures, citizens of any country need to survive.
What is the Nigerian culture, or stand on crime, safe guarding of lives and properties, on genocide, on tribalism. What is our stand or policies as the case maybe on foreign investors/multilateral allied relationships. What is our stand on corruption, what is our stand on electoral processes, what is our stand on human rights, What is our stand on money laundering, What is our stand on transparency, what is our stand on law and order, what is our stand on the rule of law, the judiciary etc. Our constitution does not carry much weight, these are our real problems.
Nigeria has never been easy to decipher, everyone including nigerians, have been left to come up with their individual meaning of what we are about, what is right and what is wrong.
The international community have been dumping on us for so long because we permitted it,created it with them, we condoned it, that is why Nigeria was or is still a dumping ground for expired goods of all sorts, putting many lives to potential danger.
In the name of oil refinery, they dominated our oil sector and with oil also comes wealth,but there are n no regulation s in place nor followed to tackle spillages, damaged and polluted lands, rivers, and loss of community of our people in the Niger Delta.
What about our aviation sector, our private sector, who have we given the licenses, who are the big players, who dominates it, who calls the shot? That is why only international airlines ripping us off through their unregulated ticket pricing of African routes are in our airspaces, that is why our nations stolen monies are in Swiss banks.
Yes we may say “but the west are also condoning it,” they the crusader of standards” but hello, it takes two, someone is violating us, our rights and we say keep abusing us,it does not matter , we did not take a stand for too long a time, we know they are used us,are using us,fooled us, fooling us and we choose to play stupid because of why? We are corruptible, we have no national working strategy,either short term or long term in place,but individualistic goals, and perputated greed.
This current issue did not start on Dec 25th 2009 when the whole world woke up to the news of another terrorist attempt, and the perpetuator happened to be a nigerian, no, it started as far back as post colonial era.
The west have been looking for a way to excommunicate Nigeria, they have been wanting to isolate us, because of our systems and how we treat our own people,how it is getting more ridiculous and turning into a circus of some sort. I suspect they turned a blind eye and deaf ears to the cries of Senior Muttallab, so that this pathetic lost nigerian will creat the needed platform for their smooth operation as usual (America is not as nonchalant, careless as they want us to believe in this case, my guess is this was a bait) and guess what? he did! And with the whole world having a common enemy in terrorism and Al-Qaeda, they will agree with America that we deserve to be blacklisted. Not even other commonwealth nations will save us from this one.
We have been blacklisted and so what? We have always been on a list or the other, how about TRANSPERENCY International’s ranking of Nigeria on their most corrupt nations list?
Read carefully though,the other things being said, written about the on- going issues in Nigeria, they have strongly condemned the absence of our president, the non abiding and lack of respect for our constitution, that power be handed over to the vice president in his absence, more so when he is on indefinite sick leave! Who and what should really come 1st, where else in the world is this done? You tell me!
My dear people, Nigeria is a great country, full of brilliant minds, eloquent, educated, able bodied citizens that can make Nigeria work, governable and relevant as it should be. Many nigerians form the think tanks of thriving governance/economies of developed countries, an average nigerian, possess leadership qualities, it is innate, we need little or no motivation to be upwardly mobile and desiring a better life, If not we will not be speaking our minds and analysing as we are all doing.
Yes try we must to let the world know that we are not all terrorists, that we are better than they think ,that we know their game, but you and I know it will fall on deaf ears, they do not care. Besides, our actions, not our words should speak loudest, so let us form a synergy, focus our attention, channel our energy, our irritation, our anger, frustrations,our disappointments, on our internal problems, our leaders, our government, ourselves, our economy, the state of our nation, it is at its lowest kerb, let us put our house in order, let us say it as it is, let us put our pride aside, our egos, and look at our own failings and seat with it, roll up our sleeves, to count the cost, the sacrifices we have to make, the instant gratification we have to deny ourselves, till we find solutions that will liberate us as a people, enable and empower us, that then spells it out loud and clear to the international community that Nigeria has taken control of its own destiny and it is no longer business as usual, sending out a message that United we will stand and fall and woe unto to those that will try to divide us.
But for now, we are the wounded, the remaining nigerians smeared in this controversy, dealt this backlash.The perpetuators of the mockery? Our leaders and Farouk Muttallab.
They exposed us to the abuse and the name calling heaped on by others especially THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
DEMOCRACY IS NOT A SPECTACULAR SPORT.ALL HANDS MUST BE ON DECK.
I am a Nigerian living in the diaspora who's benefited from the systems of a developed country.The United Kingdom to be precise.
Theirs is a systemic environment that amounts to economic and national productivity.They utilise to the maximum all of their resources both human and technical. There exist structured parastatal and provision of infrastructures and policies in place for the provision of basic amenities of life for its citizenry. Basic needs,such as constant power supply,good road networks,a functioning health care system,guaranteed basic education and affordability of food,housing though recently became a scarce commodity, could still be said to be provided for. There is security,law and order to a great extent even though these can still improve.
You have the facilities to aid and develop your potentials at any stage of life you are at.Eg that you have a criminal record, or an ex offender doesn't stop you from rebuilding your life.
As an entrepreneur, the banks are no respecter of persons,nor colour,but money generating ideas, as far as you have a viable business plan and a healthy credit history and can meet their other criteria,you can apply for loan facilities to stat up your business.
You can also search for funding from private or charitable organisations who are into humanitarian support,again they have guidelines and rules you may have to adhere to. Better still you can apply for some government grants available somewhere.
Before the global economic recession,you can almost be guaranteed of a job,though not every one could get a white collar job,it was still better than being idle. And if you had foresight,you as an individual have the absolute responsibility to plan and develop your strategy to reach the heights you so desire,God helping you, provided you are dedicated,focused,willing to pay the price and true to yourself.
All I have mentioned so far,is still a luxury to the ordinary people of my country Nigeria.
The government does not think it owes any of these, as its duty to the people. It is in fact the people that serve the government. This has been the trend of governance both under the military and the yearned democratic government Nigeria has had in its emerging 49years of independence .
Things have reached an endemic stage, Kidnapping is the new trend of making money, please it isn't a funny matter. Our youths have become hardened and are no longer innocent and unassuming,they are rather open eyed and daring. Talking about the latest issue of our young girls going nude all in the name of entertainment in strip clubs across Nigeria.
Education is now an expensive commodity, if you can purchase any of the high brand private universities admission,then you will get a prompt university education,If not you are sentenced to the never ending strikes of the state universities.Where the students,staff and all, undergo dehumanizing standard of living just to keep going.
Feeding is not about 3 square meals, nor a daily need,it has become "eat when you can find food affair", that could mean, days without food.
When it comes to health care,People tell me it is simply a case of "you dare not fall sick or otherwise!!! Self diagnosis and medication is rife.
The other side to this,is that it is on Nigeria epileptic roads that you will find the most expensive cars in the world, you name it.Choice homes in Nigeria,compete favourably with choice homes in counterpart places like Dubai and Hollywood to name a few.Obscenity is the order of the day in that country.The culture has become every man for himself.
I can go on and on about the problems facing us as a nation, but every single Nigerian knows what the problems are,and we also have the solutions. Just look around eg social network sites,such as face book parades many campaign groups,springing up,which is a good thing and a welcome phenomenon.But we mustn't just talk the talk alone. We must also be strategic and delivering.
The catalysts/agents/warriors of change are still not enough. Nigerians willing to sacrifice for the change are limited.
we cannot continue to leave things to chance any more. We cannot say it is the next man's responsibility and not ours individually.Or that we are not politicians,but we are Nigerians who aren't happy with the state of our nation,that is enough reason.
I am tired of saying, "e go better". "God will do it". I believe God has done it long time ago, look at the natural resources, the man power we are blessed with!
Every nation prides itself in its people,the people of America fought to see the change they have today.Have you heard that duet by Alicia keys and Jayz, "Empire state of mind" Americans are damn proud of their country to any extent.
Men ,women, both young and old, make up the face of the struggle for equality, freedom and unity of that nation.
They did not say "let us leave it to the politicians".
They demanded change from the politicians".
It should be the same in Nigeria.
Ladies and gentlemen, especially the young, we are the future generation,
Let us start demanding for the change we want. Let us not seat back any more,myself included.
Stand up to be counted.
Are you a Nigerian,a woman, a youth,are you passionate about the change for/of Nigeria? Then stand up,let your voice be heard. A change maker is a person with vision, drive, zeal,COMMITTED TO SEE THEIR NATION progress. It is not for the men alone,women too have something to contribute largely, we are stakeholders,we are nurturers, home makers, prayer warriors, do not let your desire for a better Nigeria be maimed by the saying
"Politics in Nigeria is dirty", Life is a risk, life is about nothing ventured nothing gained"
Stand up to be counted let us come together young Nigeria women and begin to use our maternal instincts and gifting to direct our nation in the right way it should go our nation needs us.
This is one of the many messages as a Nigerian in the diaspora that I took to the mega summit movement press interactive forum in Abuja,Nigeria recently."We are not folding our arms any longer, we will be actively involved from the diaspora in the nation building of our beloved country NIGERIA.
If you want to know more please send me an email at thinkingbee@gmail.com.
