Six Years Today I Started Blogging. Thanks for the opportunity to share my thoughts, views and  perceptions  and to freely write a bit about the real  me.

Since the cold blooded killing of four students of the University of Port Harcourt, Nigeria by some members of a community called Aluu, close to the University’s campus. I want to write cause  writing  sort of help me get things off my chest, but simply I don’t know where to start or what to say,…… reading the whole turn out of events with the 1st week in  October   left me gutted. Only last Tuesday 2 nd of October, I was watching the Aljazera news and surprisingly was seeing breaking news about Nigeria.  A significant number of students at a Polytechnic in Mubi, Adamawa state were shot and killed in a Night raid by what’s still being described as “unknown gun” men. I had only just struggled to not think about how sad, unfortunate and outrightly shocking this incident was.  Only to check timelines on twitter on Friday   the 5 th of October and saw the story of four students killed very gruesomely because it’s alleged they stole phone and laptops.   Most distressing is the

Nigerian students studying at a British University,  University of Huddersfield  always take every opportunity available to showcase and project an admirable image of its cultures and home country.  The Nigerian student society for the 2 nd  year in a roll, flamboyantly celebrated on 1 st  October 2012  the Independence Day on the University’s campus, and the local print media in Huddersfield even picked up on  the story.   http://www.examiner.co.uk/news/local-west-yorkshire-news/2012/10/03/university-celebrates-nigerian-independence-day-86081-31952784/2/ Lets dig in  Green Blooded Nigerians! 9ja Boys! salute   Great 9ja food An Asian gentleman eating pounded yam, real cross culture  Cutting the Anniversary Cake  -  Standing Left to Right Moji Akande PhD researcher (Lancaster Uni ) Felicia Nwanosike PhD researcher (Uni of Huddersfield)  Dr. Olumayokun Olajide, Senior Lecturer in Pharmacology( Uni of Huddersfield) Dr. Ife Akintu

A colleague who knew the shock and pain of losing a husband while on a one week working trip abroad, said the these words to me and sincerely its was the reawakening I needed.  Thanks Julie, I pray you be  strengthened  to live with your loss. "Don't forget to tell your wife you love her every day - you can never say it too often".

Before I start my story let me explain   what the term “chopper” means in pidgin English - For most people born and raised up in Warri, Delta state, especially those who were teenagers or young adults   in the 80's and early 90's. It might be a lot easier to understand what the word chopper connotes. The word is a Pidgin English term coined in Warri and it simply means: someone has a lot of money or someone who spends a lot of money. For some reason obvious e.g. my money spending habit during my senior secondary school days a couple of my friends conferred that title on me. Thus the use of the term "chopper dey" whenever we would go out for lunch break or simply just want to buy something and they are counting on me to sort out the bill. Now, how I came about the cash that I was spending so lavishly at that time is a story not for another day (Divulging that may hurt my future political ambition, that’s if I ever have one anyway). Now back to my story, the ye

" Nigerians defy logic, people get killed today, and they look forward to English Premiership football, tomorrow .”- Omojuwa.              Nigerian football fanatics, specifically lovers of  the EPL and European footbal might not like me for my stance on the "craziness" over a game played thousands of miles away on a football field in England or somewhere else in Europe and relayed via the power of technology to millions of faithful of this sport worldwide. Many wonder or even see as unreasonable my comparison in placing side by side the cult follower ship and twitting / facebooking habit of matches while they are being played live on TV against the almost lackadaisical attitude by the bulk of these same Nigerians toward the non ending bomb and gun attacks by an Islamic extremist in the Northern states of Nigeria. Only last week while people where busying themselves hurled up in a football viewing centre in Jos, enjoying a match between Chelsea and Barce

It’s no longer news that the Central bank of Nigeria (CBN) under its current management is serious about turning Nigeria from a cash carrying society to a more cashless one. As noble as this objective is, I can’t but wonder if the CBN realises that there will be people and organisations that will be out to misinterpret this policy and use it to their advantage to profit senselessly or in plane language – “rip people off”. From the look of things thus far  the1 st set of organisations to go for the kill are the Banks. While they on the one hand are doing tremendous amount of marketing and advertising in the media on the use of other forms of payment e.g PoS, ATM, Bank transfer etc they fail to tell customers the cost associated with the use of these services or other unnecessary charges they have introduced. Just like me, the banking public must have receieved an email or SMS similar to the one below  Dear Customer, In line with the CBN policy on cash deposits and withdrawa

Following the convening of a talk shop by the National Summit Group (NSG) and the useful and sometime emotionally charged exchanges that took place.  The picture above best describe the attitude of the present Government and  rather unfortunately too the attitude of some Nigerians towards this summit. As most people would rather watch on TV the European league matches and the African cup of nations going on, whilst this summit was being broadcasted live on channels TV.

As we OccupyNigeria, people and politicians with personal grudges against President Jonathan should not be allowed to hijack these protest, but Nigerians must make it clear, these remonstration is about change that goes beyond just the reversal to the market price of unsubsidized fuel,   rather MOST IMPORTANTLY it should include a call for an end to the killings around the nation, we must demand security be restored across the country. No Christian should be killed because of his faith or ethnicity, no Muslim should be killed because of his faith or ethnicity. If we can protest and cry out because of an increase in the pump price of PMS, we certainly can show concern, empathy and should be able to even cry even louder against the senseless killing of innocent men, women and children at various places of worship, and against the treat to lives of southerners in the north and northerners in the south. All forms of cabal, corrupt officials or Nigerians with financial crime ca

I this write up I won’t go into the genesis of the fuel subsidy debate in Nigeria,the eventual abrupt removal and   the current face off between the Nigerian Government and Labour Unions/Civil society groups.  Simply because I think everybody around the globe knows what’s going on already Interestingly every Government official talking about fuel subsidy points the Nigerian public to economic hardship in some part of the EU and use countries like Greece as an example, even though Greece economic problems has nothing to do with Petrol subsidy. One form of comparison our brilliant economist won’t ever talk about is Nigeria and Malaysia. Nigeria issue goes beyond subsidy removal, that’s why I am of the opinion that anyone telling the Nigerian people that subsidy removal is really the only thing that can save this country from crashing financially is just engaging in pure official Government Blackmail and He/She is a part of the insincerity shrouding the removal of subsidy in Niger

Quite often when you read newspapers, listen to radio and watch television in the West you learn how poor Africans are and how corrupt African leaders are. But you will never watch, read or hear anything in these media outlets about the role being played by Western banking institutions, property development and estate companies, the big corporations, and the Western political and business elite in promoting corruption in Africa.  When it comes to Africa and the developing world, the Western media pretend to be doing a good job only when there is an embarrassing story or a scandal that undermines their credibility as watchdog of the state. It is not uncommon to see poverty stricken Africans in poor living conditions being shown in documentaries and movies and on television screens in the West but the same documentaries and movies are always silent on the role played by the institutions in the West. Bribery as we all know involves a giver and a taker, but it is always the taker