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Showing posts from July 3, 2016

The Potential In Agriculture

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Agriculture has the potentials of been a major revenue earner in Nigeria, if only farmers had not been neglected for several years and deprived of needed incentives. Indeed, farmers in rural areas have never been encouraged to remain within their localities to propel increased farm production, while production at the local government level has made the availability of schools,Primary health Care Delivery, functional electricity and potable water a mirage. The caretaker committees at the grassroots have only succeeded in impoverishing the rural populace. At present, agricultural equipment and machinery are sourced from advanced countries, this alone, is an impediment to self sufficiency in food production. Indeed, sub-standard farm equipment and machinery to a large extent affected output in most farms in the country, just as access to finance is a major challenge for farmers. Bank interest rates are not friendly, if at all the banks are ready to give out loans to ...

Towards A New Dawn

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The present administration in Nigeria intends to anchor its policies on transparency, integrity and honesty. For several years successive administrations in the country have failed to incorporate the aforementioned in national the life. Rather, activities and actions have been channeled towards stagnancy, retardation and underdevelopment. At the inauguration boards and parastatals in Oyo state, on 24 June, 1999, the then Governor of Oyo state, Alhaji Lam Adesina, of blessed memory, stated : ”We took our time in ensuring that men and women of integrity and probity are chosen among innumerably qualified men and women. We don’t like to be proved wrong and this is why we implore you to rise up to the challenge and improve the lot in your work place. ”We are very serious when we promised our people that probity and public accountability will be our watch word, most of the areas, you have been posted to, are afflicted and already grounded by financial impropriety and sq...

Looting : An Impediment to Development

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The Kaduna state chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria(CAN), through its secretary, Rev. Sunday Ibrahim, had in August, 2015, called on the state Government to ensure  the prosecution of any public or civil servant found wanting ; in its quest to rid the state civil and public service of corrupt practices. According to Rev. Ibrahim, prosecuting corrupt officials is necessary to rid the state of those who enriched themselves at the expense of the government and people of Kaduna state. ”I believe that there are people that may not be working in this state and are still collecting money from the government coffers. Just like we have been hearing that one person is collecting the salaries of 10, 15 or 20 and above. People that are not working with the government but they are collecting salaries from the Kaduna state government, or people that are ghost workers but they collect money. We have heard cases whereby somebody died for a long time and then someon...

Between The Court Rooms And The People

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The percentage of Judges and Magisterates in Nigeria,who have the tendency to sacrifice their integrity and career on the altar of filthy lucre are increasing by the day. Most Nigerians, have a tale or the other to tell of their experiences in the courtrooms, good or bad, with the latter case occupying the majority position. Interim injunctions, rulings and delivered judgements from the court rooms in the country have always attracted comments,questions and debates among the people, who still view the Judiciary,as the last resort and only hope of the common man. However,the common man still finds it difficult to come to terms with the fact that the financial position of an individual determines what he comes out with from the court room. In 2004, Justice Stanley Nnaji of the Enugu state Judiciary was suspended from office by the National Judicial Council(NJC), for ordering the then  Inspector General of Police, Tafa Balogun, to remove the then Anambra state Go...

Unemployment and The Crises of Governance : The Nigerian Story

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Even though a sizable number of ”pressmen” as government officials always say, are on the payroll of the ruling party in Nigeria today, that does not distract professionally resolute Journalists from outlining the chamelionic nature of governance. Failure is a recurrent feature, when the people’s voices are ignored and the imposition of the desires of a few occupys the front page. Politicians have over the years groomed army of youths to promote their interests. Majority of these youths do not necessarily possess the basic qualification-Senior Secondary School Certificate(SSCE) to make any meaningful impact in life. To fill the vacuum, politicians console these category of youths with limitless supply of outlawed substances and alcohol, so long as the youths do their bidding. The unemployment rate in Nigeria is at an all time high, with unemployable graduates constituting  a significant number of the unemployed. Of worry is the fact that most Primary, Seco...

In Nigeria The People Still Expect the Desired Change

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The socio-economic fortunes of Nigeria continues the downward slide, despite the present administration’s repeated assurances that it would take steps to plug all visible and invisible leakages. Truly, the bail out initiative of the Federal Government has gone a long way in enabling state governments to clear the backlog of salary arrears owed workers, however, governance has become epileptic in most states, as the states grapple with paucity of funds. In the private sector, companies are having a field day exploiting helpless workers, who have no alternative, but to cope with their employers’ slave labour tendencies. Some states have abolished free education, as infrastructure in schools deteriorate daily, with children increasingly developing dislike for education. Interestingly, concerned Nigerians are already promoting devaluation of the Naira, as a way to accommodate the economic reality of the present times. The Nigeria Labour Congress(NLC) has ceaseless...