Musings Of A Young Nigerian

Written by Sule Anthony

I believe in this country, Nigeria.
I believe in our people, in our culture and in our struggles.
I believe that that which binds us is greater than all which seek to tear us apart.

I believe that our collective passion for excellence far outweighs the mediocrity which dominates in our Government.

I believe that the strongholds of our Youth lie in politics, the classrooms, the fields, the factories and the incubation rooms that will birth the futures that we seek.

I believe my generation is not lazy.
I believe we are not evil.
I believe we do not just desire to carry guns or wield machetes or belong in societies and fraternities which are all alien to our true selves. We are high-energy Beings and when we find not the fields to dispense our energies, we do so on ourselves.

I believe every one of us owes a responsibility to this generation, this Youth.
First, family. Then our Churches.

I believe Churches should pay tax. Tax in cash? No; tax in responsibilities.

The tax of a good school.
The tax of a good community clinic.
The tax of good pipe-borne water,
Taxes worth just a minute percent of what they get, to better the communities where they are located.

I believe the future holds a lot for us. But I also know it holds calamity, genocide, rampage, segregation, unprecedented looting and avoidable deaths.

Will a Nation kill all of its youths?
But that's what it's doing when it devotes more to Security than to Education.

For youths today will demand excellence. They watch TVs. They have smart phones. They know what's obtainable out there and their schools don't look like it can give it to them.
They step out and try to make a way for themselves.
And then...

My heart bleeds. I am concerned.
This is a stream of consciousness; a ramble. And in the end, a tossing of a pebble in an ocean.
The ripple impact is next to none, but there will be a ripple- however small.

15 Scientifically Proven Ways To Work Smarter

Yes, so many people work hard and long, others pretend to do so too. Ultimately, what matters at the end of the day is the productivity of whatever we indulge ourselves in.

Here, John Rampton gives us a clue as to how we can improve our productivity in our businesses and places of work.

1. Track Your Time

Time tracking will boost your productivity by allowing you to see how much time you've spent on a task. The task may be invoicing or emailing, the tracking will be done the same. You will also know how much time you have wasted.
Have you counted all the times you've checked your phone when you receive a notification?

Click on the link below to read the full post...15 Ways To Work Smarter

A Wrong Perspective

"I heard that those people that registered last year have been collecting thirty thousand naira every month and they're not doing anything. That is what motivated me to also come and register..."

I overheard the above comment from a lady in a cyber cafe. She went to register for the N-power program and was discussing with the computer operator. I happened not to pay attention when I first heard it - for I was pretty busy at the time - but afterwards, the thought of that statement creeped up and I'm moved to ask Nigerian youths, "What is your motivation?"

We are fond of criticizing others but we seldom pay attention to our own attitudes. Our mentality should be geared towards productivity. We should be driven by excellence and not cheap gratifications.

The Japanese live by a principle called 'Kaizen' which connotes continual improvement. It means an average Japanese is not satisfied with his/her achievement but strives daily to improve upon it. It a principle worthy of emulation by the entire human race. You shouldn't be happy that people are rewarded for mediocrity; that is true patriotism for country, that is true love for humanity.

My boss is fond of saying; "our people pretend to be working and the government is pretending to pay the people". Could that be true?

Wherever you find yourself, give out your very best and let excellence be your drive. Money, power and fame can be thrilling, but they add no real value to your personality.

Once again I beseech the Nigerian youth, enough of the entertainment, enough of the 'flexing' and 'living life's. Our ship is sinking and all hands ought to be on deck to stabilize her. Do something positive to improve yourself, do something to save your country.

God bless Nigeria.

FUT Minna Crisis, A Sensible Or Senseless Show?

Priscilla wore a white lace gown, red head tie and red shoes on her way to attend a dinner function. Her car broke down earlier during the day and had been sent for repairs so she opted to board an 'okada' from her residence to the express where she can board a taxi to the Le Meridien where the dinner was scheduled to take place.

En-route the expressway, a Golf 3 wagon travelling in her opposite direction sunk its front tyres in a pot hole which sent the accumulated murky waters flying two metres above ground level in every direction. Pricilla's immaculate gown caught some as did the okada man who now stopped and parked his bike.

Priscilla was justifiably enraged, her outfit which had cost her seventy-five minutes of preparation was in a mess and in her rage she took out her Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge and smashed it on a nearby stone...

Stupid of her right? Yes indeed and that's exactly what some students of FUT Minna recently demonstrated during the recent crisis that occured at Bosso Campus of the Citadel of Learning when they set the institution's clinic ablaze.

According to stories, a student collapsed while playing football in the school's field and was rushed to the school's clinic and instead of the nurses there to respond proactively to the emergency situation, demanded that the clinic card of the collapsed student be presented before treatment commenced. This led to the death of the young man as his card wasn't made available on time.The justifiably enraged students went irate and started destroying some facilities including setting the clinic on fire.

My grievance with these students is simply the fact that they were unable to properly channel their grievance. The action of these students clearly show that some of us are yet to understand that government/public facilities belong to us. That school clinic that was burnt was their property to begin with. Setting fire to it is like setting fire to your own house!

But then, what better means would these bitter students have utilized in conveying their message? It's possible that if they had not done what they did, maybe we wouldn't have heard of this inhuman act perpetrated by those whose profession is ideally supposed to be the preservation of life - I don't even know how to describe the rationale of these people; paper over life! - As though if the guy were not a student he would have been left to die just like that.

Honestly speaking, the action of the nurses was barbaric, and the posthumous action of the students was out of place. FUT Minna students are brilliant, and i would have expected these students to have thought of a better way of 'making their statement', there's always a better way. I would strongly advice both parties to go back and evaluate their love for neighbour and country. 

Both acts are but a fragment of what's actually damaging our country today. If we continue to nurse a non-patriotic attitude and lack love for one another, then every dream of a better future for our nation is but a fantasy.

God Bless Nigeria.   

One Wrong Thing We Normally Consider Before Marriage

Whenever i hear men or women, boys or girls saying things like;

"She must be a Muslim", "He must be an Anglican", "She must be a virgin", "He must not drink alcohol", "She must have this or he must possess that", conditional criteria that people make when it comes to selecting a life partner makes me wonder if such people know a thing about love or if it simply doesn't matter to them.

I am not trying to say that we humans don't have our individual tastes and all that, certainly not, for God Himself has already configured us to be attracted to certain unique qualities so as to strike a balance in creation as well as to fulfill His divine purpose.

However, many people do not understand their 'build' and go about making preposterous conditions that must be satisfied by the opposite sex before giving out their hearts to the successful candidate. Well,  like the Italians would say; "they've not been hit by the thunderbolt".

What is this 'thunderbolt'?   It's actually a trice when a guy sees a lady - and probably vice-versa - and he momentarily loses all reasoning ability with his heart skipping one or many beats, and the guy feels like he's travelling through space.

This feeling is completely different from infatuation. Some term it "love at first sight", your heart connects to another even when you're yet to know his/her name, not to mention her origin and character and the likes. In my humble opinion, i think this is how love is meant to be.

And that is what it is. 

In true love, there's no reason. You simply can't tell or explain why you love him/her, for the feeling is coming from a place where you yourself have never been, and when you feel this way towards a person, you seldom notice any fault or mistake of theirs and even when you do, it's easy to forgive. Imagine a couple sharing that kind of love!

This can be likened to the kind of love that our Heavenly Father feels towards us. It doesn't make sense when one carnally tries to behold the idea that an all righteous, holy and just God can freely and lovingly provide air for an all dangerous, wicked and heartless murderer.

Worthy of note however, is the fact that this kind of love cannot be understood even by those wielding it, let alone by those surrounding them. Which is why it makes me sick to see a father or mother or uncle or aunt or brother or sister or just anybody trying to discredit another person's love! Especially when the reasons are based on racial, ethnic, traditional, religious, material or any other trivial differences aside spiritual reasons/revelations. 

This is appalling and selfish.

I mention spiritual reasons here as an exemption because even as we may not like to acknowledge that fact, there are dark forces on earth, capable of misleading an individual to having such feelings which is unreal. Such a victim is in need of deliverance and if you happen to be sensitive enough to discern this evil, informing the victim may not be useful as your prayers for his/her ear might be temporarily 'blocked'. Hence the need for us as individuals to be prayerful enough to guard against such situations.

A piece of advice to those of us still writing lists and books of criteria to be met by your 'ideal' life partner, just imagine this scenario;

Imagine a decent black guy who doesn't drink that much, maybe a habitual two bottles of beer every weekend, having a long list to be satisfied by his ideal bride. He patiently searches for say three years to find this perfect girl and eventually discovers a lady who passes all of his requirements in distinction and having on the top of her own list, "He mustn't drink at all" or somewhere in the middle, "He must be fair"...

Don't be selfish writing any list, God knows you best and he wants the best for you too. Put your trust in Him, be prayerful and love freely. All your 'requirements' for a happy home will definitely be met.

God Bless Nigeria.

 

THE BLESSINGS AND CURSES OF MMM ET AL

This year 2016 has proven to be unarguably saturated with so many forms of online and offline communities of people helping people, multi-level marketing and Ponzi schemes viz; MMM, Icharity, Helping Hands International, ZarFund, Ultimate Cycler, Bits 2 Biz, Greenworld, GNLD, Fast Track and a host of others. Some of these platforms have been in existence for quite a long time now but happen to have gotten more publicity this year. Why so?

This is the part where so many of us will not like to hear of which I’ll just have to say nonetheless; it’s corruption.

All these schemes of course are legitimate sources of income, all you have to do to benefit from them is take a little risk, do some little work and afterwards smile a big smile, but I mention corruption because corruption has turned most Nigerians to becoming greedy.

Recall that before 2016, cash flowed generously in the country and so many persons literally had to do nothing to make cool bucks but right now, it’s no longer status quo. The standard of living of these persons have grown quite high and they need to keep up appearances, hence their current disposition to maximizing whatever opportunity that comes their way, which these schemes offer.

I’m in no way insinuating that all participants of these schemes are greedy. There are some who play by the rules and are moderate in their dealings which are absolutely commendable, but there are many much more that are ‘smart’ enough to play by their own rules, whose dealings threaten the sustainability of these schemes.

For example, why would the treasurer/executives of a cooperative union invest the entire cooperative funds in their possession? Why would a participant in MMM have up to twenty seven (27) accounts? Why would an individual invest his/her entire salary in any of these schemes? Why would parents invest their children’s school fees, shopkeepers their rents, students their fees? The list goes on and I’ll tell you why they do this. It’s greed.

A platform like MMM made it clear that one should invest only spare cash i.e. money not having any use for the time being which could be translated thus; whether or not you get your money back, it does not in any way affect your standard of living. If you invested any money that makes you feel uncomfortable, you’re definitely not doing it right.

More importantly though is the effect that these schemes are having in our lives as individuals and as a nation. Some are positive, others are negative. Let’s take a look at some of the positive benefits in summary:

1   Increase in standard of living.

Of course, that’s what more money in your pocket does.

2.  Increase in minimum wage/workers welfare

When people are faced with plenty of alternatives to make easy, cool and legit money, very few would be willing to scrub floors or take orders from anyone.

3. Pursuit of true passion

Lack of money and jobs have forced many to do things they ordinarily wouldn’t have signed up for —especially our secondary school teachers —. If there’s a way they can make more in investments than their monthly take home, they’ll most likely quit.

4. Improvement of banking policies

Since many people will no longer be willing to stash their money in the banks, bankers will be forced to think outside the box in other to ensure their survival. 

5. Reduction in unemployment

With so many people quitting their jobs and opening their businesses, there will be enough jobs to go round.

6.  Reduction in violence/crisis

With so much money in my pocket, I’ll be very quick to forgive any rough driver who dents my bumper. I’m always happy and hardly notice increment in the prices of goods and services.

Enough of the potential bright sides; how about checking out some negative impacts of these schemes:

1. Increment of government taxes

The profits from these schemes are not taxable, and with many people quitting their jobs and making this money, existing tax revenues will drop and non-participants of the schemes may be required to bridge that gap.

2. Inflation

Since so much money will be going round, prices of goods and services will definitely soar, thereby stabbing our already dying currency.

3.  Loss in national GDP

Many government and private workers already buried in the scheme focus more on multiplying their earnings rather than their job roles thus slowing down our growth as a nation.

4  Reduction in the nation’s workforce

Very few people will be willing to work.

5  A lazy people

There would be a colossal loss in productivity. Students will no longer see the need to study, workers may lose their drive etc. This is true though for those who define money as the ultimate.

6.  Unpatriotic Citizens

Many will tend to live carefree lives and may not be passionate enough to struggle in smoothening the nation’s rough plains.

And so much more…

I myself have been greedy and have my greedy tendencies too, but I will like to say this to all networking participants;

Never make the acquisition of money your drive in life. Money will definitely make you happy, but it gives no joy or fulfilment. You were created for a purpose, discover that, live it out passionately and you’ll find yourself on the pathway to greatness.

God Bless Nigeria.

English and Mathematics; Pre-requisite For Entry into Higher Institutions

We are all familiar with the “five credit passes, including English and Maths” that accompany the terms & conditions of admission that must be satisfied in virtually all the tertiary institutions in the country. This has been an age long tradition whose relevance in our country today ought to be re-examined. I have a brief example to share.

I took four SS1 students private lessons on science courses and one of these students happen to be very poor in arithmetic, so poor in anything involving numbers to the extent that ‘ten’ divided by ‘two’ has proven on several occasions to be an arduous challenge for him. Let’s not discuss how he managed to even get to SS1 in the first place, but this boy is very bright in other subjects and was capable of reasoning and thinking real wide. I know that he definitely would get better in arithmetic (he already is), but what about others out there who might be facing similar challenges?

English language is merely a type of language. The fundamental essence of every language is communication. Inasmuch as one is capable of reading, writing and speaking a language, the primary objective of studying that language has been accomplished —save for those who choose to advance their knowledge in the field — and every other thing that follows is secondary.  What we study in English in our schools is quite disorienting. 

Likewise maths, research and survey have shown that several people possess an inherent ‘phobia’ for mathematics and thus find it extremely difficult to cope in an ‘arithmetic weather’. Others on the other hand are naturally endowed with the ability to effortlessly tackle mathematical problems.

For the English, since it has been adopted as our official language, I’ll say that it will do well for everyone to master its use. For mathematics however, someone who has been gifted in painting or athletics ought not to be unnecessarily punished or denied the opportunity of advancing in his/her career simply because he/she is not good in maths.

It’s high time we begin to evaluate certain norms/laws that no longer yield desired results. For one not to credit maths and English does not mean such a person has nothing to offer — I think that those who benefit from such student’s failures are the examination bodies themselves — even though these subjects are believed to be functional skills.

By now, some of our higher institutions ought to have been converted to specialized vocational schools if we truly believe that SME’s have a role to play in contributing to the nation’s GDP and help alleviate the soaring rate of unemployment.

God bless Nigeria.

WAEC & NECO, A WASTEFUL EXERCISE

Before proceeding further, let me make some clarification here for readers not to be misguided by the topic.

WAEC and NECO which happens to be the common yardstick for the issuance of O’ level certificates to secondary school graduates is a satisfactory trend, but what I sense to be wrong is the period of registration of these examinations and the time interval in which they are being written.

In our secondary schools, WAEC registration and NECO registration do take place simultaneously which I beg to question. Is there any fundamental difference in the nature of the examinations? If there is none, why then are students indirectly coerced to register for both exams at the same time?

We know quite well that WAEC is normally written before NECO, and before the WAEC results is out, you must have written NECO, thus awaiting two different results of similar magnitude! A concept I find so difficult to comprehend. It’s more like needing a car and ordering for two.

At a time when there is dire need to improve the standard of living of Nigerians, it becomes absolutely necessary to x-ray every form of wasteful attitude. WAEC and NECO registration fee no longer comes cheap…

The justification we do tell ourselves back then was this “in case you no sure of one or two paper for WAEC, you fit make am for NECO, and the one wey you no make for NECO, you fit make for WAEC…” I tell you most solemnly, this school of thought simply conditions the mind to nurture mediocrity, or better still to accepting failure. Assuming this school of thought holds water, what then happens to those who pass both exams flawlessly? Remember they’ll need only one.

What I am insinuating in essence is that these examinations should be properly spaced; i.e. if a candidate registers for WAEC, the exam should be written and the results published before the commencement of the NECO registration or vice versa. A student who after sitting for his/her mock examinations and JAMB should be adequately equipped to pass either WAEC or NECO in a sitting.

Having a result you will never make use of is a waste of financial resources.

"HOW CAN AFRICA ACHIEVE SUSTAINABLE AND AFFORDABLE ENERGY FOR ALL BY 2030"

By Onyeanuforo Charles Ikechukwu

The world is on the verge of another industrial revolution and in order for this to happen, energy has a crucial role to play.

Energy drives economic development of nations and hence is important in filling the energy gap between Africa and the rest of the world. Accounting for 16% of the total population of the world and 53% of the world's population without energy, Africa is left with a lot to do to advance with the rest of the world towards the attainment of the United Nation's declaration of 2014-2024 as the 'Decade of Sustainable Energy'.

'How can Africa achieve energy from non-exhaustible resources such that it's use presently does not jeopardize the ability of future generations to meet their needs?', is the vital question and the answer lies in the abundant energy resources native to Africa namely natural gas, hydropower and biomass.

With various Energy Outlook projecting natural gas as supplying 40% of global demand for energy, Natural gas' versatility to meet electricity for commercial and residential use and also transportation demands has seen it emerge as a viable option to toxic energy sources.

With abundant deposit in Nigeria, Mozambique, Tanzania and recently Senegal it can be utilized on scale however it remains unexplored due to the large investments required; a figure estimated by the African Development Bank to be in the region of 50-70 billion dollars.

The unexplored hydropower resources in Central Africa, especially in Congo is a massive opportunity for power generation that has remained so due to political instability and insecurity in the region making it unhealthy for investment.

Successes in Ivory Coast, Nigeria and other coastal regions have seen power generation extended to countries further inland highlighting the dominant force that Congo can be with the right conditions.
The great amount of agricultural waste in farming operations presents a viable feedstock for alternative liquid fuel production for the transport sector.

Simultaneous development of land for food crops thereby boosting biofuels feedstock present a long term research and development option with present benefits hindered by unavailability of cost-effective processing techniques.

Despite these, African countries are increasingly coming together to create the necessary political and business framework to build her energy capacity.

The political will in terms of making policies to enhance the ease of doing business is gradually improving. Africa remains highly optimistic as she sees achievable steps to ensure her energy future.

Inter-regional co-operation on security, energy generation and supply as well as partnership with development partners in and out of Africa has seen investors' interest soar as evidenced by USAID's 'Power Africa' project, forecasting a bright future for Africa's energy.

FEMINY

Transcending the steeping heights
A lush of velvet green
Covering the mountains
A narrow valley in-between
A valley with no stream but dew
A support for life; these milking mountains.

Written by Osabo Jacob