Listing Details
| ID: | 924 |
| Title: | Nigerian Curiosity |
| URL: | http://www.nigeriancuriosity.com/ |
| Category: | Regional: Africa |
| Description: | Blog from a Nigerian concerned about his people both at home and abroad. |
| PROMISE&PERIL IN NIGERIA (VIDEO) - Wed, 11 Apr 2012 05:52:00 PDT |
In light of the growing terror and death created by Boko Haram's (alleged and claimed) attacks, Carson stressed that the insurgent group not only "capitalizes on popular frustrations with the nation’s leaders," but also“seeks to humiliate and undermine the government and to exploitreligious differences in order to create chaos and to make Nigeriaungovernable.” What do you think?  |
| NIGERIA DOES BADLY ON THE PROSPERITY INDEX - Wed, 18 Jan 2012 21:00:00 PST |
 Source:Prosperity.com A SAD, STRUGGLING LOT According to Legatum International, a London-based group,Nigeria is the 104th least prosperous countryout of 110 profiled for the Prosperity Index. Sharing dour company with Nigeria on the list are 29 other countries including India, Cambodia, Iran and Guatemala. However, a large number of the least prosperous countries on the list are also African, such as Cameroon, Ethiopia, Zimbabwe, Sudan, Central African Republic and Uganda. WHAT WAS CONSIDERED IN THE RANKINGS Though I tend to question many of these frequently occurring rankings, and particularly those that present Nigeria as one of the worst in the world for everything (save for corruption), I must admit that in this case, Legatum International may be correct in its assessment of the Nigerian situation. Consider the following specific indices that contributed to the 104th ranking. Average satisfaction of individuals is measured at 4.2 out of 10, which given the current protests against the more than100 percent increase in fuel, Boko Haram insecurity, corruption and failure of government to meet people's needs, is probably even too generous. Health expectancy is pegged at a measly 42 percent, and that is worse than it was at the time of Nigeria's independence in 1960. According to the data, only 13 percent of Nigerians trust their fellow country men and women, a fact that almost any Nigerian will quickly agree to. OTHER EXTREMELY DIRE INDICES In what will only be a shock to Nigerian officials,the Nigerian government slithered in as the second to worst government of those ranked. Specifically, "[t]he Nigerian government is inefficient and undemocratic, inspiring low confidence in its institutions" a conclusion that is apt. Furthermore, the report went on to call the government "one of the most ineffectively run in the world."Additionally, the country was the fourth worst in health and education; the sixth worst in business opportunities; and the fifth worst in security.The country's economy, for all the hype around it, was ranked the tenth worst, which makes sense given the poverty it contains. For a country that wants to be a top economy by 2020, which is only 8 years away, Nigeria needs a miracle. This is even if these rankings are inaccurate, because tackling the perception of these problems may be even more insurmountable than remedying the issues themselves. BUT STILL A SILVER LINING Despite the sober indicators, Nigeria was ranked higher in other things. Nigerians were recognized for being helpful to someone else, with 30 percent donating to charity. This is in line with a 2010 poll that showed Nigeria as the34th most giving countryin the world. A reported 40 percent of citizens also gave of their time through volunteering. These are positive factors that must be fostered and even used to benefit the country as a whole. For that to happen, however,the Nigerian government and Nigerians themselves must look beyond personal advancement and sectarian division to focus on improving the lot of all Nigerians. When there is a true commitment to this pursuit, all Nigerians and their children will live in a country that is more prosperous in wealth, social economy and the other ways that matter in the long term.  |
| NIGERIA'S FUEL SUBSIDY DILLEMA - Tue, 10 Jan 2012 21:00:00 PST |
SUBSIDY REMOVALS ARE NOW A WAY OF LIFE I must confess that though painful in effect, I understand the logic behind the subsidy removal. Most governments around the world have been forced to do away with social programs that benefit the less fortunate majority. This is because tough economic times have meant a reduction of money to spend on important programs. Nigeria is therefore, not the only country where subsidy removal has become a necessity In 2010, for instance, the United Kingdom suffereddebilitating riotswhen subsidies on education were removed for university students.  WAS THE REMOVAL NECESSARY? But unlike the United Kingdom, Nigeria has additional options to put its proverbial financial house in order before taking away one of the only social programs that its people actually benefit from.The government could have cut cost by letting go of the many appointees and personal assistants that got jobs with the current administration. Even more significant would have been a cut in the salaries and other allowances of high ranking officials.Nigeria's 'Honorable' and 'Distinguished' legislators have receivedpay hikesanywhere between over 100 percent and 800 percent (depending on who you ask) in recent years, making themundeserving millionaires. Add to this the fact thatNigeria would save trillions to address basic necessities if it truly tackled corruption, something it has failed to do over the years. And in fact, the corruption by the political elite is so obvious, it is an insult to the average person who sees no future for their children or themselves. Nigeria is now a country where the educational system is in shambles, adequate healthcare for even the wealthy is questionable (talk less of for the poor), andunemploymentremains at a terrifying high. With all that being the reality for Nigerias, the price of petrol has now doubled, and even tripled in some parts of the country as a result of the poorly implemented fuel subsidy revocation. IT WAS AN EASIER ALTERNATIVE TO REAL SOLUTIONS It is possible that the failure to address these problematic issues - education, health, unemployment, security e.t.c. - forced the country's finance minister, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, to push through the fuel subsidy removal. After all, she comes from the World Bank, andin her view, a subsidy removal is more practical than waiting for legislators to lower their salary, something they haveneverdone.Plus, any alternative measures that would save money would also require tedious bureaucratic procedure, which in Nigeria is never an expedient option. Okonjo-Iweala has now become one of the targets of the people's ire despite herpleas on BBC, where she argued that in order for Nigeria to address its overwhelmingly bad indicators (such as maternal death), the subsidy removal was an absolute necessity. WHAT'S NEXT? No matter what happens, Goodluck Jonathan will be the biggest loser at the end of the day. Although he managed to get59 percentof the votes in the April 2011 presidential election, his popularity amongst many of his core supporters - southerners - is dwindling. This is as a result of the growing insecurity wrought by the Islamic fundamentalist group, Boko Haram. That, increasing economic struggles, and Jonathan's disappointing reaction to them, has shown him to be weak and uncaring. A fatal combination in Nigerian politics. And as citizens take to the streets in the #occupyNigeria protests against the fuel subsidy removal, the anger and hatred towards the president and the political elite mounts. Unfortunately for Jonathan, if he backs down to protests by reinstating some measure of a fuelsubsidy, the perception of his political weakness will only grow. And ifhe chooses to stand his ground, the hatred against him and his peerswill only harden. A SLIVER OF A SILVER LINING With all the troubles Nigeria faces, I am thankful that the current political meltdown is occurring under a southern Christian president. If the current president was a northern Muslim, the Boko Haram attacks against Christians and the failure of the government to improve security would create the impression that a northern leader sanctioned the behavior of insurgents because they are his 'brethren'. That would compound the country's problems. This sliver of a silver lining, if one can consider it such, does not change the fact that the insecurity caused by Boko Haram and the discontent of the #occupyNigeria protesters has created what just may be the Nigerian revolution I called for several years ago. Whatever the case may be, Nigerians are taking their lives into their own hands and not waiting for anyone for a remedy. I only hope that momentum will not be lost and that the people will fight for the improvement of the collective and not the few. It is time for the police and armed forces to put down their weapons and allow the people to exercise their democratic right. No more bloodshed need be spilled, but change must indeed come to Nigeria. From The Archives: -I Think Nigeria Needs A Revolution -Putting A Nigerian Revolution in Context -The Nigerian Psyche -Persistent Psychological Paralysis -The Significance of Persistent Psychological Paralysis -23MN of Nigeria's Youth Are Unemployable  |