Nigerian Blogs Aggregator

Chxta's World

May 11, 2008
23:09
Back from Naija
» ‎ Read entry @ Chxta's World

Seen things for myself, in four different cities no less, and while there are a lot of improvements, there is one thing that needs to be worked on: NEPA, or else everything else means nothing.

Would write more on my observations whenever (if ever) I get less depressed.
22:25
Epiphany
» ‎ Read entry @ Chxta's World

How can love exist if you give it your all for years and reap nothing in return? I feel betrayed by God.
May 04, 2008
0:19
127.0.0.1
» ‎ Read entry @ Chxta's World

The KLM flight from Amsterdam landed at precisely 1902 hours. There was applause as it touched down. From the air and in comparison to the cities of Europe, Lagos was dark. Nkem described it only too well here. One of the Nigerians on the flight attempted to rush ahead of the rest of us and out of the plane. We promptly put him in his place.

I was impressed that we could actually queue at the immigrations. By the way, the Immigration counter needs a paint job. We waited for a while before our luggage which came out after a while. Then it was on to the Arrivals hall. One of the usual anything for the boys brigade members was on hand to ask. From this Igbo man, he got nothing. Had to do some serious expenditure there and then though as I had to roam my phone to call the person who had come to pick me up from the airport. We established where the person was, and I walked away from the hall to the UBA sign board where myself and U shared a quick embrace.

It feels good to be back home.
May 01, 2008
8:41
I just got terribly embarrassed
» ‎ Read entry @ Chxta's World

Okay so I've been working out of Reading since Tuesday, and the project we are working on looks like it's going to go overtime because it has been pissing rain since then.

This morning myself and one of my colleagues were standing just outside the place we are working in when one of the sales girls walked towards us. She was wearing a shirt that was part unbuttoned and revealed a very nice portion of her breasts, which are very well formed. In short, those are probably the most perfectly formed breasts I've ever seen, and they were pointing towards little old me. Suddenly the world stopped rotating.

I don't know for how long I stood there looking like a fool, what I remember happening next was my colleague nudging me a little, then I was suddenly aware of the girl staring at a particular region of my trousers with a look of amusement on her face. If I were Caucasian I would definitely have grown beetroot red. Then she walked away. My colleague then passed me his hanky. That was when I realised that a pool of saliva had formed on the floor just before me...
April 30, 2008
1:40
Oil be damned!
» ‎ Read entry @ Chxta's World

Two things happened last week that made me unhappy. First my payslip was handed to me, and I noticed that there had been a slight increase in the tax that is taken from me. Note, if it were left to me I wouldn't pay, especially given that the top politicians in this country don't feel obliged to pay the bloody taxes themselves. However, one fundamental difference between here and back home is that despite the fact that their politicians are a lot more corrupt than those we have back home, they are also a lot more inclusive, so the 'common man' doesn't feel the effects of their theft in his day to day life. I had earlier discussed the effects, or non-effects of corruption on an economy, and more happens each day that convinces me of the validity of my observations...

The second thing which made me unhappy was a discussion I had on Thursday with one of the marketers that works for my employer. He told me that two potentially major clients, for whom we had completed studies, and had gotten verbal MOUs, had pulled out of the deal in the case of one, and left the deal on ice in the case of the other. The reason given for the change of heart was quite simple, and logical, given the current economic climate, and their reasons consisted of two words: credit crunch. You see, the business of both firms is financial in nature, and to be honest, it was only a matter of time before the whole subprime shabazz began to kick in. According to him one of those firms has even began to lay off some of its staff, the cute British word for laying off people is redundancy. Anyway, marketer fellow is scared. He's hoping that this credit crunch thing won't last much longer because there would be a knock off effect in other sectors especially in one like ours which depends almost directly on financial institutions. In any event, all sectors of the global (not just UK) economy would be hit by the credit crunch in one way or the other, some would take a bigger hit than others. However, there is one sector that for the moment seems immune, and that is the oil sector.

Yesterday British firms BP and Shell declared better than expected profits which totalled £7 billion for 3 months, or a little over £80 million per day! It is difficult to reconcile such obscene profits with the fact that the costs of fuel (and as a result everything else) is rising, but the truth is that is the way it is. This oil thing is getting absolutely mental. Last week oil rose to $120 a barrel for the first time ever, this is almost 90% up from a year ago. The spike was attributed to the strike at the UK's Grangemouth refinery, as well as the fact that those idiots in the Niger Delta went on the rampage again. But I think that is just simplistic analysis. True, these issues would add a few dollars to the price of the barrel of crude, but can they keep the prices high, and rising? I think not.

The issues that have been pushing fuel costs upwards relentlessly are fundamental, and unfortunately cannot be addressed. Back in the day world oil prices depended almost exclusively on two things, the Middle East, and American demand. That has changed, and there are new kids on the block who are demanding more and more oil, China and India. Other newly industrialised countries are also demanding more and more oil to drive their own growth, and as these countries get richer, and the wealth begins to percolate downwards in their societies, their people would be able to afford more, and demand more. More people would buy cars (already the consumer of more than half the world's oil production), and oil supplies are dwindling. Effect is that greater demand on increasingly scarcer resources would push the prices up, and the the oil majors would continue smiling to the banks for decades to come.

Personally I am of the belief that exploring alternative means of power, not for any altruistic reasons such as protecting the environment, but for the practical reasons of maintaining the standards of living that the 'developed world' has gotten used to, and the 'developing world' aspires to, is imperative. But then where does Nigeria fit into all of this?

Nigeria is currently classified as a next eleven country, which means that in the coming years a lot of our oil production should begin to go inward, and we might even begin to import to sustain our (hoped for) economic growth. But what happens when other markets begin to demand for our oil? We would then be faced with the question of whether to let our budding industries die and feed the rest of the world's thirst, or whether to give the rest of the world a large middle finger and develop ourselves. Given the current set of players we have in the arena in Nigerian politics, that isn't at all a tough call, but then again we aren't yet faced with that question, and probably won't be faced with it for another 30 years. The question then becomes, in 30 years, when people like my (not so humble) self are hopefully in charge of affairs in Naija, what would that question entail, and would we be willing (and more importantly) ready to face the backlash that would occur?

You see, the irony is that at the moment, there is just too much profit being made from the sale of crude, so there won't be any really serious research into alternative forms of energy even though GWB in his last State of the Union address talked about protecting the energy security of the United States. Any research done in that direction would most likely be locked 'safely' away somewhere, or shredded altogether. If in another generation alternative means are not ready to fill in the gap that would be left by dwindling oil supplies and greater demand, there would be wars over those little oil supplies, and given our strategic position in the oil supply chain, Naija would be one of the battlefields.

On property allocations

About two years ago in the suburb of Lagos known as Magodo, the resident's association learned that a plot of land which was designated as a green area had been reallocated to someone by someone else for the purpose of putting up more concrete. They pre-empted this action by fencing that plot and putting up a tennis court in it. This plot (close to the Magodo police station) was saved that way. I was recently told that in that same Magodo, that people are building houses in the gullies at the end of the Emmanuel Keshi Street, a drainage channel! A few years down the line these same people would wonder why their houses are getting flooded.

Also in Lagos, there has been a recent craze for plots of reclaimed land by the sea. These plots are bloody expensive, but sell like hot cakes because no one gives a thought as to when the sea would come back in to reclaim what is its own. People who build houses in reclaimed areas are faced with the problem of metal fixtures in their houses rusting pretty quickly, yet no one has thought that something (high salt content) which rusts metal at a much faster rate than normal, would harm humans just as easily, and even worse in the longer term. It is all about the status symbol of owning a house in Goshen Estate!

We have a terrible knack of getting our priorities so hopelessly wrong, and this is what some would have happen in Abuja simply because they want to have a house in Maitama, they wouldn't mind destroying the serenity of the green in the area to do it.

Yer Mama has an interesting article on the apparent witch hunting that is happening in Abuja at the moment. Written with the frankness of someone who knows some of the actors personally, her article brings up the big question: if people who did an otherwise good job during their tenures in Nigeria are lined up to face character assassination by the jackals who are in it for self and self alone, what hope do we really have?

It is only logical that if no one is 'allowed' to prosecute his brief to the best of his abilities for fear of inadvertently pressing the self destruct button and waiting for the sequence of events to begin after he no longer enjoys 'government protection', then the overriding attitude would become one of if you can't beat them, then join them. And that can only be terrible for our nation.

As someone who lived in Abuja during the heat of Uncle Nasir's demolition spree, I can only say that he did a good thing. Back in those days, myself and U used to hang out in various parks and live the good life basically. The kind of relaxation that green areas for example provide is infinitely better than what is provided by the beer parlours that litter the likes of Lagos and Port Harcourt. I'd hate to see Abuja become anything like Lagos, which is what these people would rather have in their quest to own land in the FCT.

Juve watch

I haven't done this bit in quite a while, not because of a lack of news, but because I haven't watched a Juve game in a while now. Quick summary anyway: la vecchia Signora is back in the Champions League. We have secured at least third position in Serie A, which books a ticket to next season's fiesta. That can only be a good thing. Forza Juve!!!
1:05
More on the BA thing...
» ‎ Read entry @ Chxta's World

The boycott is meant to go 'live' from tomorrow. I skimmed the following off of Jeremy's...

...seems not to be getting much press attention in the UK (except for here, here and even the very venerable Robert Fisk here - big up the Indy for picking up on the story), however its big news over here. Many Nigerians are fed up with what they perceive to be BA's poor attitude to what is one of their most lucrative markets/routes. Deciding to eject everyone from economy on the flight in question (apart from the deportee himself) does seem an extreme measure. From the Indy articles above, it looks like institutional racism at work.

As an example of the kind of outrage that has been voiced, I've pasted below an email I received last week from Chinua Asuzu, from the Assizes Law Firm (written both by Chinua and Pelumi Osundahunsi):

"Globalization has been embraced in all spheres of human endeavour, in theory if not always in practice. From cross-border professional practice to inter-racial marriages, from exchange programmes between business and academic institutions to nearly-free movement of goods and services, the Global Village is the 21st century's keynote. This has given rise to increased tolerance among peoples, cultures, and races across continents.

Antitrust laws and enhanced competition, coupled with the growing emphasis on corporate governance and corporate social responsibility, have combined to constrain business organisations of all sizes to improve their client, human and public relations.

In the United Kingdom, Margaret Thatcher the Milk Snatcher snatched the milk from giant monopolies like British Rail, British Gas, British Telecoms, and British Airways when that great Prime Minister commercialised, liberalised and privatised virtually everything, leading to the great prosperity which the UK continues to enjoy today. Speed and efficiency in the rendering of services and the supply of public utilities gradually became the order of the day. Bureaucratic red tape sagged. Competition at first sauntered, and then matched into the various business and service arenas. Quality in the production of goods and supply of services improved.

British Airways did not like the trend set in by Thatcherism. And when Rebel Billionaire Richard Branson set up Virgin Airways, BA openly and shamelessly prayed for his planes to 'drop out of the sky'. BA never gave Virgin a chance. Virgin came with new ideas and new ways of doing things, friendlier staff, prettier girls, lower fares, Equal Opportunity Employment policies. BA fought Virgin with all the evil weapons in its arsenal.

Virgin, young as it is relative to BA which has been operating the Nigerian route for decades, already employs more Nigerians than BA. Without just cause or excuse, BA hates Nigerians.

It is against this briefly outlined background that we at Assizes, as human rights and immigration lawyers, view the recent maltreatment of Nigerians aboard a BA flight. The facts, briefly, are as follows:-
1. A Nigerian deportee was handcuffed unnecessarily and unlawfully aboard a BA plane late last month.
2. Compatriot Ayo Omotade complained.
3. BA crew threw the concerned Nigerian citizen, who was merely and admirably being his brother's keeper, off the plane and banned him from using their services.
4. Other Nigerian passengers on the same plane voiced their discomfiture at the mistreatment of their fellow citizens.
5. They were all shabbily removed from the plane, which then proceeded to fly the deportee home.

When confronted with the outcry of numerous Nigerians including the Federal Government, BA invoked the defence of statutory authority. They asserted that they had conducted themselves in accordance with the UK Immigration Act of 1971. This excuse is completely misleading and does not avail BA. Perhaps they assumed that Nigerians are not familiar with that statute. Well, at Assizes we have studied the legislation in detail and can find no provision in it that could justify or excuse the conduct of BA crew.

· BA's handcuffing of the deportee is insupportable by statute.
· BA's jettisoning of Ayo Omotade is insupportable by statute.
· BA's disembarking of the other Nigerian passengers is insupportable by statue.

The egregious and extravagantly aggressive and violent conduct of that BA crew was not in compliance with the UK Immigration Act of 1971, nor indeed with any provision in any UK Immigration Act or Rules, nor compatible with any law for the time being in force in any part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. BA showed off that crew of scallywags as a bunch of ineducable racists and savages.

Unfortunately for BA, the March 27 incident is not an isolated one, but merely another turn in the long history of racially-actuated ill-treatment of Nigerians in particular and Africans in general by BA, an organisation stuck in the colonial mould of its founders.

The Day of Judgment against BA in Nigeria has come!

The Assizes Law firm joins other Nigerians in calling for a total boycott of British Airways by Nigerian passengers, even when this would entail travelling by indirect routes. Nigerians can afford to be selective of the airlines we patronize if the airlines can be selective of the nationalities of the passengers deserving their respectful service and treatment.

Assizes in addition demands that the Federal Government should suspend the landing rights of British Airways at Nigerian airports until BA fully and publicly accepts responsibility for its mistreatment of Nigerians, tenders an unreserved apology and pays reasonable compensation to the deportee, to Ayo Omotade the patriotic sympathiser, and to the other Nigerian passengers initially aboard that flight, all of whom were insulted in their personal dignity, racial identity, national pride, and common humanity.

Compensation of the adversely affected Nigerian passengers would accord with Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of Europe of 11 February 2004, which established common rules on compensation and assistance to passengers in the event of denied boarding and of cancellation or long delay of flights. In legal effect, Ayo Omotade and the rest of the Nigerian passengers suffered at least a constructive denial of boarding and cancellation of their flights.

The despicable treatment of those Nigerian passengers also violated their human rights and passenger rights. It amounted to a blanket, prejudiced assault on their rights as stipulated under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Involving as it did a major airline of an allegedly "friendly" nation (UK) and passengers from her partner (Nigeria), the attack also entailed diplomatic implications. It would require a gesture from the British Government towards the Nigerian Government and people. For example, it has created an opportunity for the former colonial mistress to review her harsh and negative visa policy towards Nigerians and her negative immigration attitude to our people generally.

Nigerians in their private capacities contribute billions of pounds to the UK economy, and our government is a major trade partner in a grossly unequal partnership. This diplomatic incident, for it amounts to that, should give the Nigerian state pause regarding her relationship with the UK. Is it not time for us to deal less with the Brits and more with other people who show us some respect?"
April 28, 2008
8:23
More tales from work
» ‎ Read entry @ Chxta's World

Now because of the line of work we are in (IT Security), our own office has an access control system that is activated by the said member of staff's fingerprints, so Chxta for example would scan in his fingerprints at reception to get into the building, then again at Technical to get into the Technical Area. Chxta's fingerprints won't be accepted at the MD's office for example...

What I didn't know was that there are other security mechanisms. Thus it was that this morning I arrived at the office a little early (45 minutes), so I turned out to be the earliest person in. I scanned my fingerprints and the doors opened to let me in. Then the alarms began screeching. Then olopa dem show very sharply, and I had to explain myself. Thank God for the company branded tee shirt I was wearing, but more importantly that one of the people at reception came in shortly after. Maybe yours truly would have been in nga by now...

Forward a few hours and I'm sitting (as I type) in the board room of a major client. There is a board meeting, and I was invited. Not to the meeting, but to resync the blackberries of the six guys in their board since it would be a while before all of them are in the same place at the same time again. Problem is, I arrived before the appointed hour, and was told to wait. They left the door open during their discussions, and for the first few minutes I was dazed at the amounts being mentioned. Then I drifted off. Then a word floated to my ear that made it stand: AVRAM GRANT, and I began to pay attention to the 'minutes' of this board meeting. Guess what they've been talking about the last hour, football!
April 26, 2008
20:43
Tech support
» ‎ Read entry @ Chxta's World
April 25, 2008
10:06
Hardy review
» ‎ Read entry @ Chxta's World

This is going to be very short.

The wireless card on my laptop (Presario C700) is a Broadcom wireless bcm34xx. Truth be told, even on a fresh install of Windows, any version of Windows that is, that particular card is a pain to install. However, a Windows user would find it less of a hassle simply because Broadcom provide a CD for Windows users of this particular card. For Linux (surprise surprise!!!) they don't. And the installation instructions found here will not at all appeal to a new Linux convert.

So while an old hand like me didn't mind getting my hands dirty in the terminal, I can guarantee that a newbie wouldn't be that willing, and would simply pack his bags and run back to Redmond. Now that is something that Canonical need to work as Intrepid prepares to hit us in six months time...
April 24, 2008
10:51
The new Ubuntu
» ‎ Read entry @ Chxta's World

Hardy Heron has been released today. Expect some stress testing from Chxta this evening, and a detailed report as soon as that is done...

...I can't help but wonder when next I'll sleep!

← Chronicles of my life CITIZEN JOURNALISTS ASSOCIATION OF NI... →

Feeds

Chxta's World