As the year 2011 draws to an end in the next couple of hours, I woke up this morning with a very strong sense of gratitude to God almighty. The year has rolled by very quickly and I can say one reason for this was because I was busy all year through. My present Job keeps one on his toes both literally and physically, for most part of the year I had one event or a major task to look forward to.  I am excited when I have something to look forward to,be it on or off the job. It comes naturally to me I just love have something in front of me that I can plan towards, and actually see it happen. The year 2011 provided me with ample opportunities to experience this kind of excitement once again.In retrospect I can say 2011 has been a year of laying some personal foundations that will hopefully project me into better things in the coming years not just 2012 alone. It’s not been the easiest task to handle, but thankfully to God some very good foundation have been layed and others will ce

Nigerian's as a people have a way with the English Language, despite inventing our own brand called the Pidgin English, devoid of all the usual convention and restrictions of the Queen’s English language. I must confess that we still do quite well speaking the English Language which to us really is foreign. What never ceases to amaze me over the years growing up, is that with each challenge or situation in Nigeria a word or certain phrases just comes into use and then gets into over use after a while. For example, when Nigerian returned to civilian rule in 1999, a common word in the public domain that was used to describe its democracy was “our nascent democracy” it got so used and then it was abounded. It’s now 2011 and honestly our democracy is still nascent or should break it down and say embryonic/emerging/hopeful, but surprisingly you almost never hear the word NASCENT again. Reason why? It’s been wrongly overused.  On top of  It ! Currently playing it self out are a numb

Time: 3.00pm Date:5 /09/2011 Destination:  Port Harcourt International Airport  Purpose: Catch a Flight back to Lagos.   Now hear my story if you will. I had estimated that the time from my house to the Airport takes 20 to 30minutes tops simply because I have done it many times before, so I reckon I can get to the airport well before check in closes If I leave my house by 3pm for a 4:10pm flight. How wrong was I to make these calculations on this particular day forgetting I leave in Nigeria where anything is possible.  Under normal circumstances nothing was wrong with my calculations because I have used this time frames before,however not with encountering the Nigerian police along the way,but with encountering the police every thing that's right can be made wrong and every thing that is wrong can be made right but in a bad way. I got a taxi cab to take me to the airport and less then 10 minutes into the journey  we hit a police check point, the police man(with no nam

I believe the recent fatal bomb blasts in Abuja -Nigeria and the level of violence seen in some Northern states of Nigeria, all of it  is not  really  born out of religious or ethnic intolerance,or  happening cause of  the much talked about  disconnect between the governed and the ruling class. Arguably all of these things mentioned are challenges faced today in Nigeria, however the bombing and recent violent actions of an extremist sect by the name Boko Haram who keeps claiming responsibilities for these attacks,is a different ball game.  A somewhat valid theory being put forth in the public domain  especially via online sites and socila media is that : What Nigeria is facing today,"let's call it terrorist acts" are home grown acts of violence engineered from behind the scene by a few of the high and might persons within the so called ruling class(politicians). These ones  currently feel deprived of power "Political Power"  and are simply reacting.   Make n

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Why empower and set up a financial crime commission in a nation already riddled with corruption, only to make such an institution a toothless bull dog. The fact that Nigerian judicial system seems to lack the structure to dispense justice quickly and the fact also that defence lawyers on the side of people accused of financial crimes have perfected the act of stalling cases, all tends to make high profile corruption cases a sort of ridicule on the sensitivity of the average Nigerian. I for one believe most people would rather not want to hear every other day that so much million and billion of naira gets stolen, and yet the accused walks away freely on bail and the case drags on endlessly or turn cold case or is a closed case without justice done to anyone, the accused or the accuser. Virtually every adult Nigerian without criminal, investigative or even financial forensic knowledge; know a thing or two about high profile Nigerians with a strong case to answer for public office corru

                                                 ( Aero, getting set for departure ) Thursday 14 th July 2011, here I was rushing off to Port Harcourt on the 7.15am flight from MM2 airport Lagos to Port Harcourt  Omagwa Airport to prepare and conclude somearrangements for a scheduled event the following week in Port Harcourt.  First problem, Aero Contractors Airline deducted money from my card while paying for my ticket online and I didn’t get a booking reference number displayed on the screen to show I have actually been booked on that flight,however I got an SMS alert showing the payment has be deducted from my bank account.  So for a 7am flight I had to make sure I get to the Airport at least one and half  that  (5.30AM) to get my ticket issue sorted out with Aero Airline and leave enough time to check in if I must still fly that morning. Shamefully enough I did send an email to Aero customer services after the money was deducted from my account without any ticket book

I apologize for being black All I am plus all I lack Please sir, please m’am Give me some slack ‘Cause I apologize I apologize for being poor For being sick and tired and sore Since I ain’t slick Don’t know the score I do apologize I apologize because I bear Resemblance most black people share Thick lips, flat nose, and nappy hair Yes I apologize I apologize for how I look For all of the lows and blows I took On those Lord knows I’d close the book As I apologize I apologize for all I gave For letting you make me yo’ slave And going to my early grave Yes I apologize I apologize for being caught For being sold, for being bought For being told I count for naught Yeah I apologize I apologize for all I’ve done For all my toil out in the sun Don’t want to spoil your righteous fun So I apologize I apologize and curse my kind For being fooled, for being blind For being ruled, and in your bind Yes I apologize I apologize and curse my feet For being slow, for being late Because I know it’s me yo

By Mfonobong Nsehe    May 6th 2011 A friend of mine met a really cute Nigerian girl at a nightclub in Lagos recently. He’s got a certain je ne sais quoi with the ladies. So he approached her, chatted her up for about an hour or so, and was lucky enough to walk away with her phone number and her house address. She asked him to visit her sometime. He promised he would, but he never did. The reason is this: The lady lives in Banana Island, Nigeria’s most expensive residential area. There are only a few privileged men who can afford to date a girl who lives in Banana Island. My friend is not yet a part of the privileged few. If you never heard about the Island, now you know. Banana Island is Nigeria’s most extravagant and expensive neighborhood – on par with the Seventh Arrondissement in Paris, La Jolla in San Diego, California and Tokyo’s Shibuya or Roppongi neighborhoods. The exclusive playground of Nigeria’s obscenely wealthy, Banana Island is an artificial island bui

Mother in agony and the her deceased son, Seun on national service I seat and just imagine what a terrible a way to die it was for the Young Nigerians serving Nigeria in the North of the country under the National Youth Service (NYSC). After living a regimented life for 3 weeks in the orientation camp, with no electricity in the camp, the mosquitoes and insects bites , the endless hours of travelling from the South to the far North of Nigeria through the dangers of Nigerian road, and the struggle to get a place for primary assignments. Only to get killed by the very same community and people they had to go all through these hardships to serve. It just stirs up so much twisted emotions in me thinking about it Now I believe it’s an honour to server ones country under a scheme like the NYSC, however I honestly believe that the idea that NYSC help national integration is nonsensical. You know the success of anything by measuring its impact,

This report (Nigeria's Almajiri children learning a life of poverty and violence) http://articles.cnn.com/2010-01-07/world/nigeria.children.radicalization_1_religious-violence-religious-clashes-kano?_s=PM:WORLD By CNN Christian Purefoy over a year ago without a doubt explains the sad, shameful and pitiful situation you find across Northern states in Nigeria. Almajiri are now almost becoming a steady pool for recruiting foot soldiers by a few evil and so called religious leaders and politicians to perpetuate evil at anything or anyone they see as an opposition. It’s amazing that in a place like Nigeria many people from the south hardly understand or even know of the existence of Almajiri. It took me living for one year in Kebbi state to really observe the hellish and idle life these young kids go through. Little wonder why it won’t be so easy to mould them into weapons of religious terror, or as we saw in the post 2011 April presidential election violence, weapons of mass political

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Flying Lagos, Port Harcourt and Abuja is gradually becoming a routine and for someone who really use to love travelling by road. I must confess I now find it quite hard to go by road, even the barely three hours Port Harcourt to Warri ride is now a grind for me. But that’s one road I still must travel. However as for the Lagos, Ore to Benin road it will really take a while before I take a ride along that road again. It’s bad shape and crime ridden spots make it a really risky voyage for any living thing not just humans. If I had my way, the money and patience for a court battle, I would sue the Government or the relevant agency for total neglect of that road for God knows how long now. You always see construction work going on along various sections of that road year on year but nothing seems to change at the end of the day. It’s gotten so bad I now hear that there’s a very bad spot on the road somewhere between Okada and Benin that is called “Aso Rock” it’s a well known spot where ar

The growing number of Nigerians seeking quality education and international learning experience signifies a real good fortune for Nigeria. Global higher education providers like the University of Huddersfield in the UK are eager to support and complement efforts of students seeking high quality education overseas. Due to the growing unavailability and yet keenly contested places in most local institutions of learning, demand currently out stripes supply,international education providers recruiting Nigeria students who can cover the cost of overseas studies in top notch destinations offers a win-win situation in the Nigerian student market. The University of Huddersfield is a growing destinations for Nigeria and African students, it offers top notch research, training,human capital development,learning and  a cultural experience second to none. The skills,knowledge and educational fulfillment Nigerian studying here receive certainly adds tremendous value to the overall manpower dev