Understanding The 2024 Situation In Nigeria

February 18, 2024February 18, 2024 / Adeola / Leave a comment

By Adeola Aderounmu

In 2024, some states in Nigeria do not produce a pin or a broom.

Understanding The 2024 Situation In Nigeria

In recent days (this February 2024), the criticisms against the Tinubu Jaguda government have toned up. There are reports of people dying of hunger. A woman fainted and her children are starving. A bag of cement is 9000 naira. A lot of things are displayed online with prices hitting the roof and bursting off.

But, how many of these problems in Nigeria are handiwork of Tinubu’s jaguda government and how many of it are due to the (stupid) expectations from about 200 million people? My explanations are long and perhaps repetitive.

Things are expensive globally

The rise in cost of living in recent years, especially since the inception of the Russia-Ukraine war, is on a global scale. In Sweden, I know of an interest rate on housing that flew from USD 700 per month to USD 1300 per month. How does a civil servant anywhere in the world prepare to cough out so much difference every month on mortgage? What about the cost of food, transport, health care and other stuffs? In our stores and supermarkets in Sweden, prices have hit the roof and a lot of families are struggling. But this essay is not about the situation in Sweden.

In a country like Nigeria, where the minimum wage is N 30 000 (< 20 USD), the hopes after the emergence of the Tinubu Emilokan jaguda government was that there would be a positive change. The man, Tinubu, made so many promises some people thought he would be their messiah. It’s turning out to be another episode of a long series of broken promises in Nigeria’s horror-filled politics.

Nigeria is running a useless system of government

Some of us have mentioned this several times but majority still troop to the ballot boxes every 4 years to keep the useless and senseless system of government working. As long as you are voting in Nigeria’s political elections, you are part of the reason Nigeria is what it is today. As long as you belong to a political party in this senseless system, you are part of the problem with yourself. How does this sound to your hearing: Make money in River State, send the money to Tinubu, Tinubu shares the money to Sokoto, Kaduna and the rest of the state including River State? How much of the amount River State sent to Tinubu do you think comes back to River State? Do the same math for Lagos and all the other states in the country where some economic activities are still going on. Do you think money made in Alaska would be send to Biden so Biden can send the money to Texas and other American states?

In Nigeria today, all the monies from the regions are sent to Tinubu in Abuja. Before Tinubu, it was to Buhari, Jonathan, Obasanjo, Babangida, Shagari, Murtala and Gowon. This senseless thing started after the coups of 1966. How can you send money to one person and expect accountability? How can you send all the monies in an economy to an individual and you expect that individual to be sane? Even you, you will go crazy and surely become very corrupt!

Make money in Rivers State, send the money to Tinubu in Abuja. Tinubu shares the money to Sokot, Kaduna, Imo and the remaining states in Nigeria. How much of the amount comes back to Rivers State? Does that even make any sense to you if you have some brain cells to think? But that is what you vote for every 4 years? You are the problem with yourself!

Nigerian Politicians are corrupt. They are documented criminals.

Some may argue that if Nigerian politicians are not corrupt, the unitary system would work. But that is the exact illusion that is created by the system and the (s)elections that come with it. That is what the criminal politicians what you to believe. That is why more than 3 generations of Nigerians have wasted away. That belief and hope in the system is the reason why this generation would die in extreme penury and poverty.

Globally, politicians are corrupt to varying degrees. But Nigerian politicians are documented criminals. Some were criminals before they entered government houses, others became criminals after emerging in government houses. There is no way a sane person will not become insane after emerging in Nigerian politics. It’s designed for you to steal or loot.

To be clear, the list of criminal-politicians living openly in Nigeria after looting in politics is endless. There is no justice under a unitary system of government and one of the reasons is the concentration of power in one person, at the center. Buhari, Jonathan, Obasanjo, Babangida, name them. All the former and serving governors. All the ministers, past and present. Everyone in Emilokan Jaguda government. They are all thieves. Nigeria is running a useless system of government supervised by thieves and you are crying that thing are expensive. You are not ready to save yourselves and your children.

Nigeria is a consumption-based economy

One of the consequences of sharing monies to different states in Nigeria was that several states became unproductive. Before the useless unitary system was introduced to Nigeria, all the different regions were very productive. Agriculture and industrialization were in full speed. The regions competed with one another. Their respective economies were vibrant, and the common currency was very strong. Infrastructures were built and maintained. Everything made in Nigeria and by Nigerians were of the highest standard. Our health care and schools attracted people from all over the world. That was the golden period of the regional system of government in Nigeria.

Fast forward post unitary system of government. In 2024, some states in Nigeria do not produce a pin or a broom. The politicians cross their legs, sit their asses at the government houses and wait for federal allocations that have been mopped up from a few productive states. When the money gets to them, they steal most of it, at the state and local government levels. The same at the ministries; ministers loot monies and they get away with their loots. There are almost no consequences for being a criminal politician in Nigeria.

Even in some states where minerals are mined, a few criminals in the states have cornered all the mineral resources with the help of unregistered foreign companies/persons. So, it would appear that the money shared to the states are looted by politicians. Then the income from the mineral resources that are supposed to be used for the state end up in the pockets of the same politicians and a few of their friends. These are the people you see buying houses and land for trillions of naira all over the country and abroad. Several politicians starting from the presidency down to the local government level just dip their hands into the country’s account and take money to buy houses in UK, Dubai and America. Then you are there crying that things are expensive, you are not serious yet. Our freedom will never come on a platter of gold.

A rotten head

What people are facing in Nigeria today are not only due to the pressure of global crises. Internationally, we are all feeling the impacts of a global economy meltdown. Interests on our mortgages are up in the sky, depression is high and homelessness (even in the absence of war) is noticeable. But what makes Nigeria unique is that the head is super rotten. The head is represented by politics and policies. It is represented by law and order. By accountability and patriotism. But they are all decayed!

It does not matter who is elected or selected as Nigeria’s president. You can be Atikufied or Obidiots or Agbadoists, it does not matter. Where did Anambra money go when Obi was governor? What did Atiku do with all he stole for years 1999 – 2007 as VP? The unitary system of government does not give accounts. It loots and assist to loot because that was the purpose of the system. In recent years, a man called Buhari, a classical dullard and a man of low mentality was pushed down the throats of Nigerians as president. In private conversation, we know that no one of us will employ Buhari as a gatekeeper or servant. He was that incompetent and incoherent. But some cabals made him a president. Unforgivable. Today, a certain Tinubu whose identity cannot be verified is leading. Everything about Tinubu is unclear. What is clear is that he, like Obi and Atiku, is one of the criminal politicians in Nigeria. But he is president.

The heads in Nigeria have always been rotten. The implication is that the rottenness spreads into the entire network and systems in Nigeria. There is nothing in Nigeria today that does not smell. That is the most viable explanation to how some people with no known source of extra income, can survive on USD 20 a month. Even a bag of rice approached USD 70 but we move, abi? Nigerians say they hustle to make ends meet. You don’t want to know what hustle means to some people. Let’s leave it there. Try to get something that is your right in Nigeria, like a passport. Try to open a bank account. Try to park your car in a public place in Lagos Island. Everything is hard and frustrating. We rip one another. The head is bad, rotten and smelly. You can feel it in everything in Nigeria.

Where do we go from here?

In some articles in the past, I have written very provocatively. I still do, sometimes. In one controversial article published in the Nigerian Village Square, I asked if we should lease Nigeria to the former colonial masters, to see if they can turn things around in 10 years. On more than one occasion, I wrote articles titled: No rage, no change. They are here on my blog. Today, I cannot stand by and allow a rogue called a colonial master to rule my life; that article on leasing Nigeria was borne out of frustration in the days of ignorance. Still the idea was to provoke to positive actions. More than a decade later, Nigeria is down the hole.

But I stand by “No rage, No change”. Sometimes, we say revolution. Sadly, Nigeria does not need a revolution that change people or replace people in a unitary system. Nigeria needs a revolution that would reshape the geographical space very dramatically. If Nigeria continue to exist in its modus operandi, I cannot see the light. Even the tunnel does not exist. As long as a unitary system of government remains, Nigeria and Nigerians are hopeless. 10 years from now, some will debate this provocation!

The big question is: what can you give to make your geographical space a better place for your children? If my generation or the one after ends thinking we can save Nigeria, then we would end up chasing shadows. Our lives may add no real values to humanity. Our parents died believing in a certain imaginary one Nigeria. See where it left us.

Our concern should be on our common heritage, our common culture, our common values, our common language. We must return to where the bubble bursts in 1966. Everybody need to know where we were before the 2 useless 1966 coups in order to understand what we are up against. It would not come easy because the politicians, the elites and the rogue colonial masters are also ready to keep Nigeria as a giant slave camp. But with a massive population of over 60 million representing, the Yoruba for example must be able to govern their Western Region where Agriculture was king. Nobody was eager to leave Yoruba Western Region for a low standard London or Paris, at that time. My mother stayed back in Abeokuta of the 1950s. She told me the story. What a glorious choice she made. In 2002, I could not make the same decision as my mother when the call came. What applied to a 1960 glorious Western Yoruba Land applied also to the other regions at that time. It is the regions that we must take back in order to pursue own peace, happiness and economic prosperity.

One of the greatest fallacies and chant of slaveries in Nigeria today is “We will take Nigeria back”. From who? Was Nigeria ever made for you? What is Nigeria? We have lived our lives on false identity. Sadly, we will die this way, with the identity that our ancestors did not bequeath to us. But we can save our children and the unborn generations by giving them their rightful identities. You can never claim back what was never yours. Nigeria was created as a slave camp. What belongs to you is Western Region-Yoruba, Eastern Region-Igbo (Biafra), Northern Region-Arewa, Middle-Belt and the South-South (The Delta). In this new age, perhaps more regions should emerge. Why not? Some of the most prosperous countries in the world do not even have a million inhabitants.

Finally, there will be no quick fix to all the problems that have accumulated in Nigeria since the erroneous coups of 1966 and the prevalence of mad, corrupt people in government houses since 1966 to date. If we correct the most fundamental error today (that is operating at the regional levels), our children and children’s children would have something to smile about in the next 20, 30, 40 or 50 years and forever.

We have to stop crying or lamenting on the social media and in real life. We need to stop praying from Maiduguri to Jerusalem and Mecca. Let us stop wasting time. Stop sharing nonsense. Share the history and stories that will change for our lives for better, forever. Spread the news that awaken our critical thinking. Let us disagree to agree that we need a proper plan for the rest of our lives. Our progress starts the day we start building our respective nations again. Everything starts on the day of our real freedom from a slave camp called Nigeria.

aderounmu@gmail.com

Yorubaland: Going…Going…?

December 30, 2019December 30, 2019 / Adeola / Leave a comment

Young Yorubas are totally distracted. They are busy singing and dancing, mostly to useless songs, here and there. They are on the social media, mostly not making sense. The politicians are selling Yorubaland in the name of nonsensical 2023 political ambitions.

Who are these bastard politicians of Yorubaland?

Yorubaland: Going, Going, ?

By Adeola Aderounmu

It appears that Yorubaland, the land of our ancestors is up for grab. Let me explain.

I felt so insulted when the Fulani herdsmen started to terrorize the citizens of Ogun State and l must admit l had not followed the development to know what is going on now. Ogun state, my ancestral home, is of great concern to me. So, l’ll surely do more to find out what is going on.

If you are a concerned Yoruba citizen, you should be worried like l am now and we should be asking questions. What is going on, on our ancestral soil? What is going on in Western Nigeria? This is a region that our ancestors fought so hard to protect so that we may have a home.

We are struggling to keep cosmopolitan Lagos as many theorists are coming up with their stupid ideas of who owns Lagos. We face a lot of insults from every dick, tom, harry and lagoswannabe about our ancestral home and land.

The biggest insult has been inflicted on us in Ekiti State. The Fulani herdsmen, a terrorist group, hoisted their flags in Ekiti State. None of my Ekiti friends have written to me to express concerns. No one in the chat groups is talking about this.

Young Yorubas are out partying and dancing to all sorts of nonsense. Those who are not dancing useless dances are praying about everything. What a waste of life? The people who want to conquer you don’t just pray to their imported Arabian god, they also do something about it. They march to your land, they kill your fathers, they rape your mothers and daughters and instill fear in your minds.

You are doing nothing to protect your land, your ancestral home. It may not matter so much to you now, but you are doing a great disservice to the generations unborn. They would be subdued, and they would live as slaves (like you are) and even worse they’ll become second class citizens on their ancestral land.

This is what the Fulanis have done over the years. Historically, they are an ethnic group fond of conquest especially when left unchallenged and on a free rampage.

The Yoruba politicians have totally become bastards in their persons and attitudes. They are the culprits responsible for the bastardization of our land. They are moles in our midst and they will never be the source of the Yoruba rejuvenation.

Tinubu, Baba Kekere, Fayemi and Amosun all have their eyes on the 2023 presidency or vice-presidency. The last thing on their minds right now is the protection of the Yoruba race or the defense of the Yoruba Empire.

On a daily basis, these bastards are seen in or around Aso Rock licking the balls of the Fulanis. These are the cowards of Yorubaland. They will not defend their people because of their selfish political ambitions. When not in Aso rock, they are on the trails of the Fulanis in London and elsewhere partying and merrying while those blood thirsty people send their herdsmen on the physical conquest of Yorubaland.

The Yoruba race have never had it so bad. We are now represented by pure leeches and relentlessly foolish people who call themselves politicians. The Yorubas have never had it so damning. Unprotected. Denied. Lost in identity. Confused. Divided. Lost in purpose. Left to rot at the hands, blades, daggers and bullets of the enemy. This is an abomination!

The Fulani herdsmen should never have their flag flying for 1 minute on our ancestral home. Those who did should never have lasted 6 hours on our soil. They should have been packaged in trailers and sent up north to their terrorist zone.

It was really an eye sore to see Fayemi, the so-called coward governor of Ekiti State romancing Buhari at the time that terrorist herdsmen hoist their flags on the land where he is the chief security officer. Does Mr. Fayemi know what would happen to Yoruba citizens who dare to fly Oodua’s flag anywhere in Northern Nigeria. They would be sent back to the west in body bags!

Fayemi is not going to protect the people of Ekiti State or any part of Yoruba land because he wants to become the president of Nigeria in 2023. Is he sure there would be a Nigeria in 2023? The Yoruba people are not telling their politicians the truths that they need to hear. What is wrong with us?

In a recent article, l stated that my essays are now for the future generation because the present generation of Nigerians especially those from western Nigerian willfully living as slaves on their motherland have chosen not to see or understand how their lives can be changed for the better by aggressively and collectively in one voice pursuing the agenda that would change the course of history. Yorubas, we need to act now so that our children and grandchildren can live prosperously.

The unitary system of government has not worked since 1966. It is pure madness and stupidity to think it will ever work. We need the Nigeria that existed before the two useless coups of 1966. The alternative is the outright disintegration of the expired British colony. It is just common sense that would set the people of Nigeria free. Common sense has proven to be scarce since 1966, sadly.

I hope this article would be shared far and wide because somebody needs to wake up to defend Yorubaland. We need to secure Yoruba land before any form of dialogue or diplomacy can be applied. Our land back first, then dialogue later! There is no time to waste and we need to stop talking and start acting.

The custodians of our tradition, our culture, our heritage and our survival ought to get out of their shells and secure the entire perimeter and geometrical area of Yorubaland. We don’t need prayer warriors, we need field marshals of wars and we need the artillery to defend our territory. Stop beating about the bush or bushes.

Those who don’t see problems with the gradual occupation of our land won’t be here 100 or 200 years from now when the invasion and occupation would be total if we don’t stop all these systematic and aggressive takeovers. Every piece of land that has been taken must be retrieved.

It is time for the Yorubas that have balls to tell terrorist Buhari to his face that this ain’t right and it ain’t gonna continue. We need men with balls to tell Buhari that he is a terrorist and his terrorist or fulanisation agenda cannot go unabated. This is what it is. Why are we afraid to unite and fight the evil once and for all? What is wrong with us?

Young Yorubas cannot and should never rely on the likes of Tinubu or Fayemi, or Amosun. They are unwise because of ordinary bread.

Even as l call on the custodians of our race, l am aware of the damage that politics and people like Tinubu have done to the traditional institutions. Our Obas and Chiefs are now paying homage to touts especially in Lagos. This is so sad, so disheartening.

Who is out there that can save the Yoruba race? Young Yorubas need to lend themselves and one another senses. As you sing and dance to all the manners of useless songs this yuletide, your ancestral home is diminishing. You may feel less concerned, but the generations unborn are slipping into everlasting slavery. They will mess up your graves and curse the days of their lives too.

A stitch in time saves nine. In all states where the politicians are ball suckers, our people in Yoruba land need to know that they are their own protectors. You cannot laugh at another man’s misfortune now because it may be your turn tomorrow. It is better to start organizing ourselves now before it is too late. In unity we will find strength to defend ourselves and defeat the enemy encroaching on our ancestral land

We must be prepared. No other tribes or ethnic groups should be flying their useless, rotten, terrorist-infected flags on Yorubaland. We must unite by all means and fight this evil out of our land. It is now or never.

aderounmu@gmail.com

The Man Who Is Responsible For Nothing

December 14, 2019December 14, 2019 / Adeola / Leave a comment

Don’t ask me how we think in Nigeria. I am struggling with the answer too. We may have to resurrect John Dewey-the author of the book “How We Think”.

But think about this:

A professor was asked to assist a criminal to rule Nigeria. On the night of the televised debate, Osinbajo-the professor, kept screaming “he (Buhari) doesn’t know, he doesn’t know”. Buhari does not even know the meaning of animal husbandry, amongst many other simple things. Is Nigeria not a scam? Why is everybody quiet?

The Man Who Is Responsible For Nothing

By Adeola Aderounmu

Since 2015, Nigeria has been led by the APC-Buhari mandate, probably the most useless and clueless government ever. The useless PDP reign between 1999 and 2015 now looks messianic. The present ruler of Nigeria, Buhari, is a man who is responsible for nothing!

General Buhari was helped and rigged into power largely by the help of Bola Tinubu and Olusegun Obasanjo. When Buhari had tried previously with his might, he failed woefully on at least 3 or 4 occasions. His alliance with the South-West eventually brought him back to power in 2015. His first illegal stint was through treasonable act-as a cruel, thoughtless and extreme dictator in 1983.

The 2015 arrangement and ascension to power is a very laughable one as a professor of law, one Yemi Osinbajo was made his deputy. Buhari has no standard, formal education and he forged his certificates on at least 2 occasions. Those offences made Buhari not only guilty of treasonable felony (as a coup plotter) but other criminal offences punishable by imprisonment. Invariably, a criminal is ruling Nigeria (again) since 2015.

A professor was asked to assist a criminal to rule Nigeria!!!

Don’t ask me how we think in Nigeria. I am struggling with that too. For as long as he would live, Buhari will never develop intellectual cognitivism to rule a clan, let alone a village. But he is the ruler of Nigeria. The implications are telling and would be useful for students of history and for the future of Nigeria, if she would ever emerge from this modern slavery.

It is now time to continue to write all we know about Buhari. This is important so that history is not distorted and since Nigerians have very short memories and are eager to move on no matter the problems, it is imperative that we document some issues before they are left unattended.

There is no way Buhari could have escaped this bashing because we are in the era of open network and the print media is beyond the newspapers or television stations that would be closed down if they dare to write freely.

Since 1999 when Nigeria returned to this pseudo-democracy, some of us have been here to express our views. There is no government in the world that can stop the freedom of the open press. It won’t happen now, not ever. Buhari and his handlers should just brace up because this press will be here when they are long gone (and be dust), doing what it does best.

At best, Buhari has become a complete nuisance to himself, his handlers and the country called Nigeria. In this essay, l want to describe Buhari as a man who is responsible for nothing. The examples are many, but l will pick a few.

Mrs. Salome Abuh was gruesomely murdered at her residence in Kogi State on November 16. This is a political assassination and it is logical to insinuate that political opponents masterminded the assassination. Even the robbers paraded for the crime have denied involvement. Has anyone heard a speech from Buhari on this assassination under his watch? Any word from the Kogi State governor? APC, just like the PDP is a murderous political party. No sympathy for human life and no acknowledgement of a state or nation in sorrow, no matter the evil perpetrated.

For all that has happened to Omoyele Sowore and the inconveniences his family is put through about the ugly situations, Buhari has pushed the blame to the DSS. It is as if there is a republic of the DSS operating within Nigeria the same way the Boko Haram republic is having a flow in Northern Nigeria.

Buhari is not responsible for the plight of Sowore. He is not responsible for the republic of Boko Haram in northern Nigeria. What is Buhari responsible for? What is Buhari good for? I am sorry for that Femi Adesina, the messenger of the evil regime. I have no time for him. We await his useless book after this nonsense life he is living.

Buhari’s government is not obeying court orders. Whose fault is that?

The Supreme court judges and their judgement on the electoral dispute between Atiku and Buhari is one reason I believe the law profession is fast becoming a useless one in Nigeria. I am not only bewildered by the colonial wigs those old fools have on their heads, l am also never going to recover from the shock of how judgements are bought and paid for in Nigeria.

Shall we not hold Buhari accountable for the sham and shame the judiciary has evolved to since 2015? Has anyone spoken to the Chief Justice of Nigeria in recent days. The chief Justice to be best of my knowledge as a citizen of Oduduwa land is an illiterate. That man, Tanko is dumb and does not know what he is doing. Just like Buhari, he cannot express himself or make himself comprehensible.

The invasion of the court of law by Buhari’s attack dogs’ aka DSS was the final burial of judiciary in Nigeria. Good luck to all present and future lawyers. I am wondering what the f*** purpose they serve when their profession is being rendered useless and worthless, in Nigeria.

Buhari blamed and continues to blame the PDP for all that is wrong with the Nigerian economy since 2015. My positions in 2015 when this crazy government came to power were:

Don’t get things worse than the PDP left it. Worst case scenario, if Nigeria does not get better, don’t let it get worse under your watch
If you have no solutions, you don’t need to contest or promise to fix the problems
If you have no solutions, f*** off, resign and hand over to someone with ideas or knowledge. That is how things work in the developed world.

From the look of things, Buhari came to power to serve his selfish interests and to advance the course of the people of northern Nigeria and their brothers from sub-Saharan Africa. He wants to bring every dick, tom and harry to Nigeria from 2020.

Really? Is Buhari normal? My answer is NO! He is not!

I am not going to proliferate my essay with all the abundant evidence to his deadly agenda. You need to get your lazy ass up and follow the changes that have taken place since Buhari became a ruler in 2015.

Buhari is not accepting the responsibility for the economic woes in Nigeria. He has no solutions, but he is holding tight to power. This is the mentality that makes Africa, the most of it anyway, a continent of interest. You see empty brains conquering their people, enslaving them and bringing them to economic ruins and mass poverty. The most amazing part is that the people sit tight and struggle.

Since many African countries were lumped together by the colonialists, the people lack the common front and effrontery to speak in unity and act for a common reason. There is no reason under the sun why a dullard, a man who is responsible for nothing to be ruling or leading the most populous Black country on earth. Buhari is still standing because of the fear of the north, and he moved all the military powers up north both physically and structurally.

Buhari would not have become anything in Oduduwa land because he has limited sense and limited mental capabilities. But in a unitary system of government which Nigeria adopted after the two useless coups of 1966 and since the end of the civil war in 1970, even a stupid person who has no sense can become your chief justice.

So, this is where Nigeria is. People are afraid to rise up because they may be arrested like Sowore, and incarcerated. Buhari has locked up people both openly and in secrets. We are back to the dark days. We never left anyway. We fell to APC and Buhari in 2015, a real con party with a tyrant at the helm.

Invariably in the end, the people get the type of rulers they deserve. There are no true leaders in Nigeria. The elderly and even the young achievers in time constitute themselves to some sort of sycophants and rulers that should be worshipped, obeyed or listened-to.

The problems of Nigeria did not start and will not end at the feet of Buhari. That much l have written about even since the days of Yar’ Adua.

It is of course evident that the unitary system of government is stupid. We are ridiculous in Nigeria because we are running a system of government that doesn’t work since 1966 and we kept at it. I have never seen anything more challenging (mentally) in my entire life. How can you be doing something wrong since 1966 and keep it going. I will never get it!

The other ridiculous thing is that the government is failing not only at the federal level, but also at the state and local levels. It is logical to conclude that these are symptoms of the unitary system. It may also be worth looking closer at this interplay. I don’t know it all.

What l know is that when you have a man who is responsible for nothing leading a useless and stupid system of government, then it is not surprising that the eureka in 2015 was the greatest scam in post-independence Nigeria. Nigeria will never make it under a unitary system of government, APC or PDP. Nigeria will never make if under a block-head who is responsible for nothing.

We can keep praying, our parents did. It seems we have handed over this line of slavery to our children too.

aderounmu@gmail.com

Happy 30th reunion to my mates at Festac Grammar School, Klass 89.

The Most Tragic Untold Story Of Our Time After The Civil War

December 31, 2018December 31, 2018 / Adeola / 1 Comment

A totally failed political system and the criminal-politicians in APC and PDP are currently responsible for the poverty and hopelessness in the country and they must be stopped in 2019 by allowing for fresh ideas and fresh minds in our political spaces. Otherwise we, or some other people, will be back in 2023 writing a similar sad story.

The Most Tragic (Untold) Story Of Our Time After The Civil War

By Adeola Aderounmu

”Today, in my personal opinion, the dilemma that face Nigeria and the consequences of absolute misrule (before and) after the civil war are together probably the most tragic untold story of our time.

Over the years, closer to 2 decades, l have written about Nigeria and the ills in the society. More pertinently, as each year wraps up, in the last decade, l continue to emphasise how Nigerians unabatedly waste the opportunities that each year provides or presents.

The biggest opportunity in 2019 is the february presidential election. Historically, since 1966, Nigeria suffered a major setback in the world order. There were 2 senseless coups in 1966 that truncated an emerging democracy. The functional regional system of government that promoted developments across the different geo-political zones in Nigeria was discarded in favour of a useless and senseless unitary system.

The hopes that came with the re-emergence of civilian rule in 1999 has faded into thin air as criminal-politicians in the major political parties especially APC and PDP have hijacked the country and continue to loot her resources, depleting wealth rather than creating and multiplying it.

From 1999 to 2015, the period that l had earlier described as the ”worst years of our lives” as Nigerians, it was the PDP that held sway. A former military dictator, one Olusegun Obasanjo converted the 1999 to 2007 years to his personal rags to riches fable.

He left the position of the president after he was forced out by a combined efforts of politicians and concerned citizens who were against his bid for a life-presidency. He had since denied the allegations despite the several billions of naira that evidently flew around in the National Assembly, where the lawmakers continue to milk the country dry to this day.

It is an integral part of this tragedy that the people of Nigeria, both the enlightened and the unelightened, the educated and the uneducated at this moment cannot see beyond APC and PDP. It is one of the deepest cuts in the soul of humanity today.

When Obasanjo left in 2007, he forced the way of his candidate to electoral victory. In what appeared like goodwill to a friend he had in the military, Obasanjo imposed Umaru Yar’Adua, the younger brother of Musa Yar Adua-his late friend in the army, on Nigerians. Umaru Yar Adua died due to a potracted illness allowing his deputy, Goodluck Jonathan to take over the mandate of power.

Goodluck Jonathan later won the presidential election in 2011 and reigned over Nigeria until 2015. He served 6 years at the helm of affairs. Jonathan is a known drunkard and a very corrupt man from Bayelsa State. On several occasions, his wife had been found wanting on charges of corruption and money laundering. She never went to prison!

Nigerians suffered under a deplorable economic situation even with Mrs. Iweala as the minister of finance. Mrs. Iweala later wrote a book condemning the powers that be in Nigeria who strangulated her efforts and so on. As a social critic l see the presence of Mrs. Iweala in Obasanjo and Jonathan’s cabinet as an endorsement of corruption and ineptitude.

Mrs.Iweala did not blow any whistle and she did not resign to highlight the problems in the Nigerian government. During Obasanjo’s reign, she and her boss could not account for the returned Abacha’s loots. Mrs. Iweala in my humble opinion is one of the problems with Nigeria. If you cannot tell us the problems with Nigeria and the solutions while you serve and you cannot even call the police and the law on criminals serving with you, why bother when you are out of power and out of favour?

Between 2014 and 2015 there was a mass cross-carpeting amongst Nigerian politicians. The senseless phenomenon was repeated in 2018. In 2014/15, many of the criminal-politicians in PDP joined and teamed up with other criminals in other political parties and established the APC. It was at this point that it became more obvious that Nigerian politicians have no ideologies and they are swift in repositioning themselves for the next, and every chapter of looting of the Nigerian treasury.

Buhari is probably the first person in history (or just among the very few that may exist) that spoke evil of his country and downcast her citizens while claiming to be the ruler of the country. It was highly moronic!

A notorious political godfather, one Bola Tinubu, championed the projection of a tyrant who had tried and unsuccessfully attemped the Nigerian presidency on 4 earlier occasions. Tinubu and another notorious politician called Rotimi Ameachi opened up the loots thay had accumulated from Lagos and Rivers state and ensured that the social media was well manipulated. It was the same way an ex-convict named Ibori was used by Olusegun Obasanjo to sponsor the election of Umaru Yar’Adua. The money meant for the development of the Niger Delta always wasted in many ways.

True, Jonathan is a crook. True, Nigerians were suffering and Jonathan had no clue over the affairs of Nigeria. One woman, a very silly and corrupt person called Diezani Alison-Madueke, literarily took away Nigeria’s crude oil earnings and kept them as personal belongings. She was flying in jets with her children and family members and they were buying houses and merchandise around the world. Jonathan was either very weak or just a woman wrapper. It was a tragic regime.

Sadly, the change slogan that APC sold to Nigerians in 2014 and which brought Muhammadu Buhari to power in 2015 had turn out to be the biggest fraud of the decade in Nigeria. The Buhari government is at par with the regime of Jonathan, if not worse. One of the most obvious corruption charges under the nose of Muhammadu Buhari-the grasscutter scandal-was never visited or sent for prosecution. Till today, the police have not made any arrest and the judiciary is working like zombies.

So invariably, we got ourselves (what we thought was) a new government with old attitudes. When l wrote about the status quo after the emergence of the APC in 2015, many thought l was in a hurry. But l knew that the morning shows the day. Buhari is a puppet too in so many ways, serving the interests of Nigeria’s slave masters (popularly called cabal) and self.

The old orders continue to reign. Almost all the criminals who have looted Nigeria since 1999 are free men and women. Murders and assassinations, latest of Alex Badeh, still have the approval of the presidency as they pretended nothing big happened. Mr. Buhari, contrary to the belief of gullible Nigerians, has no integrity. He should be arrested and tried for crimes dating back to the years before the Nigerian civil war.

In Nigeria, the more things change, the more they stay the same. Those who reigned with Obasanjo and Obasanjo himself are enjoying their loots. Those who reigned with Yar adua are enjoying their loots. Jonathan and those who reigned with him are mostly enjoying their loots. One criminal called Dasuki who mismanaged funds with the approval of Goodluck Jonathan is not so lucky. He has been in prison since Buhari emerged and he had not been left out on bail even with court injunctions in his favour on the matter.

In many cases and on many fronts, Buhari (whose identity is under probe by the IPOB) remains defiant and military-styled. In comparison to the other governments since 1999, this Buhari government is the most clueless. It is out of touch and the man (Buhari?) does not have the mental capacity to rule Nigeria. He is dull, lifeless (in the words of Trump) and lacks the intellectual abilities to lead a tribe, how much more a country.

He remains a stooge, a clog in the wheel of progress of Nigeria since 1977 when he started looting oil revenues. Buhari cannot be absolve of the Abacha loots either as they were the crude oil revenues whilst he was the chairman of the PTF. Buhari is probably the first person in history (or just among the very few that may exist) that spoke evil of his country and downcast her citizens while claiming to be the ruler of the country. It was highly moronic!

As the 2019 presdiential election approaches, both the APC and PDP are doing minimally in campaigns and reaching the people. They know that elections don’t matter as long as they can manipulate the electoral commission. That is where the real fight would take place as usual.

The summary of the situation in Nigeria that l presented above is in my very own personal opinion probably one of the most tragic stories of the 21st century. After almost 60 years of bad governments, spread of poverty, spread of illiteracy (with 13 million children out of school) and a political arrangement that pitch one religion against another and one ethnic tribe against the rest, Nigerians have arguably lost their senses of political identity and several millions have no idea about the state of global affairs and where Nigeria is on the scale. A country without a stable electricity for example is probably 400 years behind the others.

Nigerians are supposed to be living as royals. They deserve to be alright in all aspects of life. But sadly, and regrettably, only a handful of Nigerians are alright economically. But it is hard to even state that there is a Nigerian who is not living in poverty regardless of their wealth. Nigeria as a country is a depiction of poverty and penury. It oozes of hopelessness.

To be sure, Nigerians are amongst the poorest people in the world despite the fact that the country is spread upon the richest combinations of mineral resources in the world. This is because a few greedy people are mismanaging the wealth of the country and they have refused to allow the wealth to grow. We are practising a senseless and useless unitary system of government since the 2 useless coups of 1966. We are allowing one person to steal 12 billion dollars and still be in public light contesting for political office or sponsoring candidates.

One stupid question that l always have to try to address everytime l write an essay is: what then is the solution? I am tired of the question but still try to mention one or two hints. The shortest cut to recovery will be something very close to a (bloody) revolution where all the criminals holding the country to ransom can be arrested, surrounded and brought to very quick judicial judgements. This will change the course of history in Nigeria forever.

However in the absence of the courage to unite because Nigerians have been divided in so many ways and along so many lines, choosing another path (other than the criminally-inclined APC and PDP) is presently the best option for Nigeria and Nigerians. It is an integral part of this tragedy that the people of Nigeria, both the enlightened and the unelightened, the educated and the uneducated at this moment cannot see beyond APC and PDP. It is one of the deepest cut in the soul of humanity today.

The tragedy is far-fetched. In the face of the evidence provided, mostly by switching of political parties, that both APC and PDP politicians are part of a common criminal organisation, our people-Nigerians are still members of APC and PDP. I am in shock that people still attend APC/PDP rallies. It reminds me of why and how slavery in the hands of the Europeans and Arabs lasted more than 500 years.

How can we be free if we (all) belong to criminal organisations like APC and PDP? How can slavery ever end in Nigeria if the majority are still inclined to the old ways or the ways of the APC and PDP?

It is also a great shock to me as a writer that the memberships in APC and PDP are still massive. With the ways and manners that these parties have failed Nigeria, one would think that they should have faced dwindning membership and that the judiciary should be lining up criminal charges against all the key members and actors of these criminal organisations called APC and PDP. By now Nigerians ought to have pulled out and down the National Assembly which is also notorious for sharing the wealth of the country amongst its members.

APC came with the change slogan and amongst the changes we expected were the implementation of the restucturing agenda on her manifesto and the drastic reduction in the salaries and allowances of politicians from the local to the state and national levels. None of that was done. We will never know what APC meant by restructuring which was the first point on its agenda. Buhari does not even want to hear the word restructure. He is that dull and insolent.

In 4 years of the APC, we did not see the re-emergence of the public schools, we did not see committments to public health as the politicians continue to travel overseas for treatment. We can go on to analyse what could have been done in 4 years but the APC keep blaming the PDP for its non-performance whilst still allowing criminals to parade the national landscape.

Nigerians should not make the mistake of committing the next 4 years (2019-2023) of the country’s fate into the hands of either the APC or the PDP. There are options. There are newer political parties that will perform better than APC and PDP. But the truth is that the problems facing Nigeria have gone beyond mere political parties. Still a new phase must emerge.

The political system is wrong and senseless. Before the 2 useless coups of 1966, there was a structure that promoted healthy competitions among the major regions in Nigeria. It is something very similar to that structure that would be fundamental to the resuscitation of the economic survival of Nigeria. The current unitary system of government is baseless, useless and should only be promoted by people of low mentalities and nonetities-and that is where the APC and PDP politicians are. They are criminals and so they adopt and promote this useless system of government.

Under the political structure similar to the what Nigeria had before the 2 useless coups of 1966, there would be no federal character and there will be no Abuja politics. We will all be busy promoting our regions educationally, healthwise, technologically and infrastruturally. This is what we must preach. We cannot go on with a failed system and expect development, unless we have no brains!

Apparently, the essay is inexhaustible because there is no way l will be able to address the solutions in a single essay. The essay grew by the day since the summer of 2018 just the same way my anger grew as you can see from the tone/language of the essay. It is very intentional and meant to provoke. This is why l run this blog and for over a decade l have been shouting and still on it. I also run an instagram blog that updates daily. Check out @thygloryonigeria on instagram for my daily reactions to our problems.

The most significant change that must happen soon is the taking over of government from APC and PDP politicians and making sure that they are prosecuted for all their crimes since 1999. Some politicians and military men have been around since the 60s or 70s. They should be taken care of by the laws of the land. They must face the music.

Our problems are many. However, we must take the bulls by the horns. We will not develop even in the regions if we don’t elevate the rule of law above the rule of men.

Apart from the Boko Haram war in the north east of Nigeria, there is yet no official declaration of war in Nigeria. This is why l consider the life we live in Nigeria as probably the worst hidden tragedy in the world today. Against the backdrop of the potentials in the regions and to see more than 100 million people living from hand to mouth, unsure of the next meal: l see no greater tragedy today in the world outside a war zone.

A totally failed political system and the criminal-politicians in APC and PDP are currently responsible for the poverty and hopelessness in the country and they must be stopped in 2019 by allowing for fresh ideas and fresh minds in our political spaces. Otherwise we, or some other people, will be back in 2023 writing a similar sad story.

aderounmu@gmail.com

instagram: @thygloryonigeria

twitter: @aderounmu

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The African Woman On Social Media: Where Is Your Dignity?

December 2, 2018December 2, 2018 / Adeola / 1 Comment

In a recent article, l wrote about how the Nigerian women in Nollywood have misrepresented the African woman. This article is a follow up to it.

The African Woman On Social Media, Where Is Your Dignity?

By Adeola Aderounmu

Adeola Aderounmu

In a recent article, l wrote about how the Nigerian women in Nollywood have misrepresented the African woman. (https://adeola.blog/2018/02/24/nollywood-is-failing-africa-in-the-appearances-of-african-women/.This) article is a follow up to it.

It is now generally accepted that for the African woman to be accepted as pretty or beautiful, she needs to be wearing a foreign hair popularly called wigs. The wigs come in various colours, sizes, forms and dimensions. As I previously pointed out, the industry provides jobs for several women and is a multibillion-dollar industry in Africa and globally.

The target is simple. It is the African woman who has lost her pride and sense of dignity. The present generation of African women dominating the social media, film industry and other social platforms have lost it completely. They are rich, they are famous and they are celebrities. But they lack one thing: self-dignity.

Again, l will go back memory lane. I am 46 years old and I remember growing up in Lagos, South-West Nigeria. My mother never liked the idea of my sisters putting chemicals on their hair and she frowned at it. Her take was that my sisters must always braid their hair the African way. It was the same for many families. Our parents did all they could to persuade our sisters and even some of us guys from using chemicals on our hair. The barber shop it was for us.

But just a couple of years down the lane. The dignity of the African woman has been completely eroded. She takes no pride in the colour of her skin. She takes no pride in the texture of her hair. She takes no pride in her curly, tangled hair. The African woman wants straight hair. It is so bad that so many African girls and ladies would not appear in public without the foreign hair.

Omotola Talade-Ekeinde (@realomosexy)

It is going to be one of those huge tasks that we have ahead of us in Africa to reverse and revert the trend. But it is a cause some of us must continue to remind ourselves of. The celebrities and stars on Nigerian and African screens have failed Nigeria and Africa. They are big stars and they are the biggest hope of a trend reverse.

Funke Akindele Bello (@funkejenifaakindele)

A few of our stars are featured here. There are several more. But we just need all of them to take up the cause and help us reverse the trend. They may also need help themselves because they will not be able to do something about it if they don’t realise that they too have lost their sense of dignity and African-ness. But with several million followers on Instagram and twitter, the best way to bring back the pride of the African woman is through these social celebrities and actresses.

Some may argue that they use the wigs for acting and work, but that argument does not hold water. What is wrong with acting and working with the African hair? Why must we act, work, live and go around with foreign hair? Why are we not proud of who we are and what nature endowed us with?

Toyin Abraham (@toyin_abraham)

We need Africans to promote Africa. We need ourselves to sustain and maintain our values, culture and way of life. We have lost our languages. We have lost our mode of dressings. We cannot afford to lose our heads and our brains with the hairs. Something urgent need to be done.

In our schools, from the primary to the university, awareness need to be created about the pride of the African woman. One day l wrote to @iamlizzyjay about her natural hair and l implored her to keep it African. But l see how hard it is to remain pure and natural in the industry because she wore wigs a few times and went back to natural a few times.

Linda Ikeji (@officiallindaikeji)

@calabarchic does not even know where to stay. She is also back and forth. She’s trying to keep her natural hair but the industry and the “norm” for what a woman in Nigeria should look like is creating a lot of confusion. It is like if you are not wearing wig or a foreign hair, you are local. That is how terrible the image and dignity of the African woman had been battered.

@iamlizzyjay

You have to feel sorry for the African woman especially from the entertainment industry point of view. They need help. We need help because their takes have destroyed our values and expectations of the women that nature gave us. We need a return to the basics.