'Is this the change we promised Nigerians? - Ben Murray-Bruce writes

Read his piece below...

Two weeks ago, the Chairman of the Senate Committee of the Federal Capital Territory, Senator Dino Melaye, made a startling revelation that shook me and many right thinking Nigerians to our foundation.

At a time Nigeria is going through a daunting economic recession, it was revealed that we plan on spending the sum of N250 million to build a gatehouse for the Vice President of Nigeria.

Whenever I think of the budgetary provision of N10 Million to build a gatehouse for the vice president, I am moved by the inequities and inequalities of Nigeria.
There is no urgency or importance in building a new gatehouse for the vice president’s already over priced house, but if even we need to build such a house can we not build it with less than 10% of the cost? At the black market rate (which is the most commonly used rate in Nigeria) N250 million is equivalent to $500,000. At the official rate, it is worth almost a million dollars. With that type of cash you can buy a mansion in Washington DC and a well developed property in London. Isn’t it a pity that all it can buy the Nigerian government is a gatehouse?

Now we want to borrow $30 billion from other nations and foreign financial institutions. But why should any other nations or foreign financial institutions lend us money when we have not shown prudence in managing the little that we have?
I can assure you that I did my research and not one of the ten richest nations in the world is spending the equivalent of 250 million for something as inconsequential to the well being of a nation as a vice president’s gatehouse.

Why should America, Britain or China lend Nigeria any money when the gate man of our Vice President is living in a house that only a millionaire in their own country can afford?
Should they lend us $30 billion so we can build more luxurious and befitting gatehouses for our other public officials?

Is this the change we promised Nigerians?
With a minimum wage of N18,000 the N250 million to be spent on the Vice President’s gatehouse can pay the salaries of 13,888 Nigerians!
How many staff are being owed salary by the federal government? How many staff are being owed salary by state governments? How many pensioners are dying while waiting to collect pension that never comes?

How many internally displaced persons are dying of hunger while we budget N250 million for a gatehouse? N250 million can feed one million people for a day and 200,000 people for a week.

Recently, I was driving on a federal road in the South-east and a portion of that road was so damaged that it was a death trap. I wonder how many people have been killed on that road. Certainly, from my estimation as an entrepreneur who has built several malls and other real estate projects across Nigeria, N250 million will be sufficient to repair that portion of the road, but no! We have to build a gatehouse for a VIP!
Nigeria has some of the worst maternal and infant maternity rates in the whole world. 10% of all the women who die in childbirth are Nigerian women according to the UN. Meanwhile Nigeria only has 2% of the world's population.

The main challenge we have in reducing maternal mortality is funding and we are approaching international aid organisations to help us raise funds to help reduce death amongst our pregnant women. Can you imagine how unserious we look to them when they read that we are spending N250 million on a gatehouse while begging them for money?

We really must make better use of our scarce resources at this time. We cannot expect others to lend to us from their own hard earned resources when we have demonstrated a propensity to squander the little we have.
What we have demonstrated in Nigeria, especially within the last two years, is a strong propensity to major on the minor and minor on the major.
With the way we in government treat Nigerians, sometimes suspect that our people will prefer to go to hell if our leaders are found in heaven!

And another thing, for a nation that wants to come out of recession, Nigeria is not spending enough on education.
The proposed allocation for education is N50 billion, which is only a third of the proposed allocation for defence.
There is a reason why LEARN and EARN rhyme. If a nation wants to earn more she must first learn more. This budget proposal does not take that into account.

We are still working with an obsolete Industrial Age thought process that operates under the wrong notion that nations become rich because of what they have under their soil.
I have got news for the executive: today’s nations can only grow rich by what is between the ears of its citizens! We are living in the knowledge worker era.

Apple, Google, facebook and yahoo are now more valuable than Exxon-Mobil, Shell BP, Chevron and AGIP. The world is changing and we must change with it. I have been studying Anambra State for a while. This used to be one of the most educationally disadvantaged States in the South. But since the era of former Governor Peter Obi till today, the state made education its priority and allocated the bulk of its budget to education and the more Anambra budgeted for education the more their economy flourished.

They do not borrow. They did not participate in the federal government’s bailout to states. They have one of, if not the best subnational economies in Nigeria. Nigeria as a whole is importing food, Anambra as a whole is exporting food.

And their secret is education. They have consistently featured as number one in WAEC and NECO results.
If we want Nigeria to earn more money, that cannot be achieved by selling more oil. It can only be achieved by learning more to earn more.

As a nation, we are spending N49 billion maintaining about a 100 embassies and consulates. What do we get in return?
That expense is a drain and not an investment.
We can spend only a fraction of that amount. Do we need a consular in every nation to issue visas? Several nations that are richer than Nigeria are doing away with consular in preference for entry point visas.

Turkey has a policy where you pay $40 and you get your visa online. It is reducing their recurrent expenditure because now they maintain only a skeletal staff in their embassies and it is increasing their revenue because without the bottleneck and hassle of getting visas through the traditional means, people are flocking to countries like Turkey, like the UAE and other countries that have online visa policies.

Instead of N49 billion, we can spend only 10% of that and use the balance N45 billion to build infrastructure and educate our people. In fact, we can be like the UAE and Turkey that can afford to use the millions they get from online visas to run their embassies.
Two months ago, the presidency released a statement announcing that they have recently weeded out 50,000 ghost workers from the pay roll of the federal government.
If that is true, then why isn’t that being reflected in the budget for recurrent expenditure? If you have weeded 50,000 ghost workers from the system then there must be a massive drop in our recurrent expenditure. Something is not adding up.

Recurrent expenditure in the 2017 budget is N2.98 trillion.

Let us just call it N3 trillion. Recurrent expenditure in the 2016 budget was N2.6 trillion.
Are we sure that the executive did not make a mistake and instead of weeding 50,000 ghost workers from the system it actually added 50,000 ghost workers because the recurrent expenditure has increased.
Has minimum wage increased? No? There are too many ambiguities that need to be cleared up.
And on housing, certainly we can do much more than what the 2017 budget proposes to do.

The American psychologist, Abraham Maslow, theorized that our most basic human need is for shelter. Let us relate this to Nigeria.

Nigeria has a 17 million housing deficit. If Abraham Maslow is correct, it stands to reason that lack of shelter, among others, is one of the single largest drivers of corruption in Nigeria today.
Civil servants and politicians steal largely because they have no hope of ever owning a home and they do not want to be destitute after their retirement. This is why the EFCC seizes a lot of houses from corrupt people.
If home ownership represents man’s basic need, then no government has succeeded in meeting this need. After all, what is the essence coming to power if the most basic need of the electorate cannot be addressed?

Nigeria needs to solve this challenge because if we do, we will go a long way to improving the human development index of Nigeria and reducing the misery level as well igniting the type of economic activity that will ease our current recession while also fighting corruption.
There is no way government can build 17 million houses.
At best, the budget of the ministry of housing can build a couple hundred thousand houses annually. If we are to plug this deficit, we have to rely on the private sector just like developed nations.

We have over N6 trillion of our pension funds sitting in financial institutions. Let us deploy these funds into productive sectors of our economy.
The naira gets devalued and the return from investing pension assets in government treasury bills and bank deposits is less than the rate of inflation. Real estate is one of the few investments that outstrips inflation. The safest investment anywhere in the world is real estate.
Why don’t we use these funds to fund our real estate development and end our housing deficit?
We can and we should use the pension funds to stimulate the housing market while the government subsidizes the mortgage rate for low income earners so that they can borrow at single digit interest rates.

Promoting home ownership will lower corruption and what else could be a safer investment for our pension funds?
After all, no one can run away with a house. They can run away with a car or with cash, or with shares, but a house is immovable and best of all it largely continues to appreciate in value. It only makes Commonsense to use pension funds in this way.
And I do not even see why government has to sell land to property developers and private housing estate builders in the first place. In my opinion, if you want to build houses for the masses, government should give you land free of charge!
Of what use is the land when it has no property or fax non it? At least if you allow people build on it government can charge them property taxes.

Our president and governors live in houses paid for by tax payers. It is time we return the favour to the taxpayers and the masses. It is time we begin running Nigeria in a businesslike manner and provide our people the dividends of democracy. It is time we deliver on the promised change.
• Ben Murray-Bruce is the Founder of Silverwood Entertainment Group and the Senator representing Bayelsa East in the National Assembly.

The Purpose of Love

 If you glance for a moment at the leaders of the Trump administration — Bannon, Conway, Miller, and of course, the Cheeto himself — something will become apparent to you, and it’s not that somehow sad lonely angry bloggers took over the USA.

 It is that they are not happy. They are everything but happy, aren’t they? Angry, bigger, vengeful, gloating, guilty, resentful. But not happy. Let’s think about that for a moment.

We say that we “live our truth”. It’s not quite true. We all live the same truth. And that truth is the simplest of all: either we are happy, or we are angry, afraid, ashamed, resentful, bitter. We cannot be both at once, right? Every moment that we are angry, therefore, is one that we are not happy. That great truth is as true as it for you as it is for me as it is for Sith Lord Bannon.

Why is it true? Because there is something even truer?

You and I have one life. Just one. It’s an eyeblink. Not a season, just a glittering afternoon. It is over, gone, before you know it. Take it from me. I spent years supposing I was going to die. And those years came before I thought I’d even had a chance to live.

The question is simple. How are we going to spend the brief afternoon of a life that we have? It is the only thing that we really do have. Death laughs at the rest, doesn’t he? He sees your pride and possessions and vanity, smiling. His scythe glimmers.

The only thing that stops death, even for a moment, is happiness. Those instants the blade of death holds no power over you. Because the ocean of life is in you. A blade can cut down a garden. But what can it do to an ocean?

You know that feeling, don’t you? You feel calm, silent, invincible, whole, true. That is happiness. Not giggling at the latest Real Housewives, or hating off at an internet forum. We’ll get to that. First…

Where then does happiness come from? Pop psych says, proclaims, shouts, a hundred times a day: all you have to do is choose happiness!! Choose it!! If you’re not choosing happiness, it must be your fault!! After all, what fool wouldn’t choose happiness?

But it’s not that simple, is it? You can try and try to choose it, like it was a flavor of toothpaste on the shelves at Walmart…and somehow, not at all like a commodity, possession, product, it’s just not there. The shelves of your soul seem to be empty of it. Why can’t you just “choose happiness” like it was a product at a supermarket? Where does it go?

Happiness is the simplest thing of all in this little life. And it is also the most dangerous. Would you like to know why? There’s only one secret to happiness.

Be a person.

Go ahead, roll your eyes, get it out of your system. Feel better? Good. Now let’s talk about it. Being a person isn’t as simple as you think it is. Just because you were born a human does not mean that you discovered or embraced or realized your humanity.

A person is a being that is essentially and mostly good. Do you doubt me? Do you think people are bad? If you are a person, and you see someone, anyone, another being, suffering, then you will instantly feel. Compassion, empathy, pity. If you do not act to relieve that suffering, then you will feel guilt and shame. If you don’t feel any of that, then there is something missing in you, isn’t there? So being a person is very simple.

It is our denial of who we are that makes this life hard, and happiness harder.

 To be a person is to accept the inescapability, the destiny, the power of one’s inner goodness. Goodness, in all its names: mercy, rebellion, defiance, grace, imagination, purity, gentleness, humility. Goodness, in it’s one true name: love.

Happiness is the gift of being a person, the reward of accepting one’s goodness. When we accept the goodness in us, then we can only but love. Why? If one has accepted that one’s nature is good, then so must the nature of all. You are not any different from me, are you? If you are, who made you different? We may “like” different things — but deep down, in our souls, we are precisely the same. Just like you, me, and Bannon: the same in an existential sense — we can either be happy or angry, but not both. Therefore, if we are all the same, then our greatest obligation in this life, is, as Camus said, to love. How else is happiness to come into being?

 I have said a set of things that has probably made you angry. I’d bet that you are already rebelling at this set of thoughts. I know you, because I’ve been you. You are already thinking: “it’s not that simple! Happiness isn’t all that…it’s not any of that!”. Why are you thinking this? Because what I’ve just discussed goes against everything that you’ve been taught to believe, especially if you’re American.

The origin myth of this age is the myth of the terrible person. We’re conditioned to believe exactly the opposite. That we can be terrible people, and still be happy. Or worse, that we can be terrible people, and only then be happy. But is to true? Do the terrible people seem happy to you? They don’t to me. How could it be true? When we are terrible people, we must numb ourselves to grief, pain, suffering. But the price of that numbness is that we are also unable to be happy. Mostly, we are doing the work of burying our guilt and fear and shame, and externalizing our anger and rage. And, as we’ve already proven, you cannot be happy and angry at the same time.

 If you’re a terrible person, you can have moments of pleasure, sure. You can gloat, win a moment of relief, satisfy your greed and jealousy and vanity. Guess what? That isn’t happiness. Happiness is a different, and higher, experience altogether. It isn’t the satisfaction of our lowest appetites. It is freedom from them. It is the realization of our possibility. Happiness is what you feel when you love. Not when you are applauded for being a terrible person by people who believe being that way will lead them to happiness, when it won’t.

So we have a broken philosophy of happiness. Our epistemology of it is all wrong. We don’t even seem to know what happiness is. Those few moments that many of us feel it, I’d bet that we work very hard bury it. Because we feel guilty and ashamed of our own happiness. They’ve told us to be terrible people, haven't they? Therefore, happiness itself is dangerous.

But it always has been. There’s nothing more dangerous in this world, this broken place of angry and vengeful people, than a genuinely happy person. Because only a happy person is one who proves the truth of the greatest truth of them all, which is love.

Be that way. Your life is already ending. Every breath you take is shallower than the last. You can’t choose happiness. But you can be who you truly are. A person, in this world, this life, on this little ball of mud, spinning beneath the stars, wondering at the beauty and impossibility of the purpose of love. Us.

Oh no! South African rapper AKA announces on Twitter that he has split from Bonang Matheba

AKA and Bonang Matheba who were described as one of the most favorite celebrity couples in South Africa have ended their relationship.

The rapper confirmed on his Twitter page this afternoon, tweeting; 'Sad to announce that myself & @bonang_m have broken up. We tried guys,' he wrote on Twitter

Minutes before the shocking announcement he gave a clue to the fact that something was seriously not right with his relationship to the TV personality. 'At my fucking Limit for bullshit.' He tweeted 

 Over the past few months, the pair were all loved-up, traveling out of the country and featuring in a music video

How to lose belly fat easily - With good food under N5,000

Everyone has belly fat but too much Belly fat can be a bit unattractive for both men and women and it is better to find a way to get rid of unwanted bellyfat.

Vigorous exercise trims all your fat. Get at least 30 minutes of moderate exercise at least 5 days a week.

Walking counts, as long as it's brisk enough that you work up a sweat and breathe harder, with your heart rate faster than usual. Good sleep and stress reduction will also help, but here are 5 delicious ways to lose that belly fat with good food.

Tea

Tea especially green tea is rich in anti-oxidants that have been proven to speed metabolism. New research, included in the book zero belly diet byDavid Zinczenkoreveals that tea can reset your internal thermometer to increase fat burn by up to 10 percent without exercising.

Eat Cereals Rich In Fibre

The right kinds of carbs are actually good for you. Choose whole grains — their fiber keeps you from getting hungry.Sometimes bread labeled "wheat" has been stripped of all of its fiber and nutrients. Look for "whole grain" or "100 percent whole wheat."

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Avocados

In addition to containing lots of heart-healthy monounsaturated fats, avocados are a terrific source of filling fiber (11 to 17 grams per avocado!), making them a great food for staving off hunger, says Bowden. Half a cup daily is recommended.
 Eat Enough Protein

Proteins are a very effective way to lose weight. Some studies suggest that protein is particularly effective against belly fat accumulation. Sources of protein are eggs, fish, seafood, meats, poultry and dairy products.

Sign Up For FREE shipping from U.S stores on GoodsExpress to buy Healthy Protein Supplements Under N4,000

Oatmeal

Your morning snack attack is caused by a dip in blood sugar levels. Fiber-rich oatmeal stays in your stomach for hours, staving off a doughnut run.Steer clear of the sugary flavored varieties. Choose the plain stuff, and sweeten it with berries.

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Oops Hot Bridesmaid

Photos of Oluwakemi and her beautiful bridesmaids

 Mrs. Oluwakemi Fadina and her husband Yemi Fadina had their white wedding recently and while she was stunning at her wedding, her bridesmaids managed to steal the show.

They wore baseball caps (with the couple's name: #thefadinas) with their dresses and had a bad-babe vibe with them through out.

The bridesmaids helped make the wedding go viral and Oluwakemi showed her appreciation for them on her Instagram.

 

 

She said: "Have to give a massive shout out to my mum and bridal train. I'm sure I gave you all a headache at one point in time. But I hail each and everyone of you for being amazing and travelling out with me. Love and more blessings!"

3 bible verses people commonly misunderstand

For many Christians, the bible is a Holy book and the final law on many things they do not understand about life. The same way the Muslims have the Quran.

However their are some bible verses which many commonly misunderstand, and this is usually because they have been taught the wrong thing about them.

Here are some examples:

1. Why were Adam and Eve sent out of Eden?

Many think Adam and Eve were expelled because they ate the forbidden fruit or had intercourse, but what the Bible says is actually different.

However, this is the real reason. Genesis 3:22-23: "And he said: Behold Adam is become as one of us, knowing good and evil: now, therefore, lest perhaps he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever. 

2,Blind samson

Many think Delilah cut Samson's hair, however while she found out his secret, someone else did the actually cutting of his hair.

Judges 16:9: "After putting him to sleep on her lap, she called for someone to shave off the seven braids of his hair, and so began to subdue him. And his strength left him."

 3. Three Wise men

Many people think three wise men visited Jesus in the manger. However this is wrong. The bible did not give a number and Jesus was a child in a house, when they visited.

Matthew 2:1 says: " When Jesus therefore was born in Bethlehem of Juda, in the days of king Herod, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem."

Matthew 2:11 also says: "And entering into the house, they found the child with Mary his mother, and falling down they adored him; and opening their treasures, they offered him gifts; gold, frankincense, and myrrh."

After thrashing Barcelona 4 – 0, PSG set to sign Lionel Messi

The management of French giants Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) has stated that the club could make a move for Barcelona star man Lionel messi

Former Dutch international and director of the club Patrick Kluivert revealed that the French champions would love to have the five time Balon d’Or player as their man.

There had been several reports that the big spending club could go for the Argentine, but Kluivert’s comments have now indicated the desperation of the club after they missed out on Neymar.

 "Am I going to try to sign him? I never said that. He is like Neymar, Messi is a player every team in the world would like to acquire."

 Messi has been reluctant to sign a new contract with the Catalan giants as the club confirmed they are struggling to meet his demands and Kluivert believes that PSG would snap the player if he leaves Barcelona.

Chief executive of the Barcelona FC Oscar Grau earlier disclosed that Barca must exercise common sense in the area of revenue sourcing from sponsorship deals and player sales.

 We want the best players but perhaps we have to prioritise," Grau said.

There are budgetary limits in Spain for each club at the start of every season and teams are not allowed to spend more than 70% of their budget on wages.

According to Grau, the 29-year-old Messi currently earns about £19m but admitted that the amount needs to be 'increased sensibly'

"We have to make the numbers add up," he added. "One option is to increase our revenues, as our economic strategy forecasts.

"The club wants the best player in the world to stay at Barca. I would like to ease the concerns of club members and supporters but we have to use common sense."

 Meanwhile, Messi and his team mates suffered a huge Champions League round of 16 first leg loss to PSG in Paris on Tuesday, February 14.

Luis Enrique’s men face a herculean task in a fortnight as they hope to upturn the four goal deficit at the Camp Nou.

'My one and only Mrs Adebiyi!' Young Nigerian man celebrates his elderly American wife on her birthday

  A young Nigerian guy, who goes by the name Adebiyi Muizz took to Facebook to celebrate his much older white wife as she turned a year older today. The woman, Susan Smith, is American and lives in Portland, Washington. She looks like she's in her 60s. She is retired, according to her Facebook bio. She married to Adebiyi in February, 2015. He shared photos of Mrs Adebiyi and wrote:

"My love and respect grows for you with each passing year. I am truly blessed to have you as my life partner. The various ups and downs that we have faced together in the life have further strengthened our bonding, love and respect for each other. May you be blessed with the choicest blessings from dear God? There never be any sad moment in your life. You always remain happy and cheerful, this year and in years to come. Love you from the bottom of my heart. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MY ONE AND ONLY MRS ADEBIYI, I LOVE YOU Susan Smith.

Champions League: Arsenal face tough test at Bayern Munich, Real Madrid welcome Serie A giants

Champions League: Arsenal face tough Bayern test

The Champions league round of 16 continues as Arsenal travel to Germany to face Bayern Munich while Real Madrid welcome Serie A side Napoli on Wednesday.

We preview the Champions League matches that will be played tonight; Bayern Munich vs Arsenal Bayern knocked out Arsenal in round of 16 in 2005, 2013 and 2014 and the German club have won last 15 UEFA Champions League home matches (a record).

Arsenal have lost in last 16 in each of last six seasons while Bayern have reached the quarter-finals five years running The second leg will be played in London on 7 March.

Possible line-ups
Bayern: Neuer; Lahm, Martínez, Hummels, Alaba; Alonso, Thiago, Vidal; Costa, Robben; Lewandowski. Out: Boateng (shoulder), Ribéry (hamstring) Doubtful: Alonso (knee)

Arsenal: Ospina; Bellerín, Koscielny, Mustafi, Monreal; Elneny, Coquelin; Oxlade-Chamberlain, Özil, Sánchez; Welbeck.
Out: Ramsey (calf), Cazorla (Achilles)

Real Madrid vs Napoli
Holders Madrid are aiming for seventh straight quarter-final. Napoli in last 16 for second time in their history and the Italian side have lost only one of last seven European away games.

Free-scoring Napoli are unbeaten in 18 matches in all competitions.
The second leg will be played in Italy on 7 March. Possible line-ups Real Madrid: Navas; Carvajal, Ramos, Varane, Marcelo; Kroos, Casemiro, Modrić; Vázquez, Benzema, Ronaldo.  Out: Bale (match fitness)

Napoli: Reina; Hysaj, Koulibaly, Albiol, Ghoulam; Zieliński, Diawara, Hamšík; Callejón, Mertens, Insigne. Misses next match if booked: Koulibaly

Interested in studying in The University of Warwick, UK this September 2017?

Are you ready for a fresh new perspective? At The University of Warwick, Nwoye gained an international perspective and the confidence that he could create ideas that will have a global impact.

As an Entrepreneur, Nwoye's consultancy provides SMEs across Nigeria with technical systems to support their growth. His goal is to inspire a new generation on Nigerian entrepreneurs through education, mentoring and networking. Take the first step towards achieving your own goals and a wider perspective by exploring how Warwick can prepare you for a new and exciting future.

Meet with Ms Caroline Rushingwa and Ms Sophie Fenner, delegates from The University of Warwick UK this February to discuss your study plan, your future aspiration and possible scholarship and discounts opportunities for September 2017

Abuja Edition
Date – Monday 13th February 2017
Time – 12:00 -14:30
Event Title: Individual Student Appointments
Venue – Dave Abion Consulting, Suite 206 (Second Floor), JINIFA Plaza, (Opposite Securities & Exchange Commission Office) Muhammadu Buhari Way, Central Business District FCT-Abuja, Nigeria.

Date – Wednesday 15th February 2017
Time – 10:00 -16:30
Event Title: Study UK: Discover You Exhibition 2017
Venue – British Council Exhibition at Sheraton Hotel, 1
LadiKwali Way, Wuse Abuja

Lagos Edition
Date –Friday 17th February 2017
Time –10:00 -16:30
Event Title- Study UK: Discover You Exhibition 2017
Venue – Eko Hotel and Suites, Plot 1415

AdetokunboAdemola Street, Victoria Island, Lagos
Date – Saturday 18th February 2017
Time – 10:00 -16:30
Event Title- Study UK: Discover You Exhibition 2017
Venue – Classique Events Place, 7a Kudirat Abiola Way,
Ikeja, Nigeria

Kindly confirm your attendance for a chance to meet with Ms Caroline and Ms Sophie from The University of University UK by sending an email to c.rushingwa@warwick.ac.uk or call our representative Dave Abion Consulting in Nigeria08062700622,  07055177000, 08187222632, 07087757986 or 07087757986 Join us this September 2017, push the limits of your own energy, imagination and potential.

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FABULOUS! SEE what this Covenant University graduate invented to make life easy for Nigerians (photos)

Meet Covenant University graduate who invented Nigeria's first 'NEPAless' gas- powered iron

Ayokunle Adeniran, a US-based Nigerian mechanical engineer, invented an iron that works without electricity or coal.
The ‘Iron Rhino’ as it is formally called is Nigerians first 'NEPAless' gas-powered iron which does not need electricity to work. It makes use of little gas canisters.

Adeniran, a graduate of Covenant University said it was disappointment that inspired him to invent the iron.
He said: "My inspiration came from disappointment. One day, I needed to meet up with my dad at the airport, and the clothing I wanted to wear was rumpled, I was unhappy and had to wear something else. This disappointment brought about the spark of creativity in my head so I decided to proceed with the idea of having an alternative source of powering clothes iron.

"The Iron Rhino is a product I designed in response to the inability of people to iron their clothes due to electrical power outages. It is a butane gas powered pressing iron, meaning it does not require electricity to function. It looks very similar to and functions like existing electric irons. The butane comes in canisters that retail for about N120 and can last for 1 week usage at 20 minutes daily ironing."

Though gas is not a renewable source of energy, it is healthier and cleaner than oil or burning coal. When gas is burned, it only releases carbon dioxide and water vapor (which are the exact same gases that we breathe out when we exhale)
The Iron Rhino is very reliable as it functions at most habitable environmental conditions. It is also said to be user friendly.
This makes it easy for Nigerians to press their clothes without having to wait for NEPA, PHCN or DISCO.

Port Harcourt residents fear for their lives as air and sky turn black

Port Harcourt residents alarm at black soot falling from the sky (photo)

- Residents of Port Harcourt, Rivers state, cried out over black particles which has taken over the air
- The soot is as a result of carbon emission from company yet to be identified
- Inhaling the soot according to a medical practitioner can cause illness such as Asthma, Pneumonia, Bronchitis and other dangerous respiratory tract infections For couple of months now, Port Harcourt has been engulfed with black soot polluting the air and putting the residents’ health in danger.
Black soot includes black particles composed by carbon produced by incomplete combustion of coals. Soot can consist of acid, chemicals, or soil and dust and the particles are extremely tiny powder form.
The recent appearance of black soot in the city of Port Harcourt, Rivers state, has become a great concern for the residents who wake up every morning to black sky and dusty air.

Dr Nkiru Onukha, an educationist also said: "Our environment has been polluted and for the fact that out environment has been polluted, your home has been
polluted."
Parents with toddlers and little children have also raised alarm over how their babies’ nostrils are blackened by the black air and they wondered what danger the kids are exposed to by inhaling the polluted
air.
A medical practitioner, Dr John Danagogo, said the inhalation of this polluted air can lead to upper respiratory tract infections such as several medical condition including cough, catarrh, asthma, bronchitis and pneumonia.

The general manager Port Harcourt refinery company blame the soot on illegal oil activities by bunkers and vandals.
When questioned about the soot in an interview by Channels TV, Rivers state commissioner of Information said: “Port Harcourt is industrializing very fast, so there is a tendency for this kind of pollution. It’s got to do with laws as well, the extractive economy is supported by federal laws, we have a state control over such an environmental issue but ultimately, how you enforce environmental impact work is up to federal law.

“The petroleum act of 1969 is still the organizing law that regulates the industry. It is (the law) 45 years old, you would have expected that the petroleum industry bill that has been in debate would have been passed into law. You know, a more contemporary understanding of how to tackle environmental issues.

“At the state level, we have a very committed response to environmental issues, we have been rethinking our own law to see how we can better enforce environmental regulations.”

The rivers state house of assembly recently mandated a committee on environment to check the activities of company operating in the city.
Meanwhile, Rivers state governor, Nyesom Wike has explained why he has not visited the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja in the last four months. Governor Wike said he stopped visiting the nation's capital due to the ‘excessive prevalence of lies’ in Abuja.

The governor made the comment while flagging-off the second phase of the reconstruction of Port Harcourt township roads recently.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9zlkrfT8yTw&feature=youtube_gdata_player

'2face was never afraid to raise his voice for honesty' - Comedian, Ay writes

As written by comedian, AY
'I have spent all day reading over 7,000 comments concerning the mixed feelings of Nigerians on the cancellation of the February 6 protest against the Federal Government by Innocent Idibia. As a friend, let me feed Nigerians with a simple fact that 2baba was never afraid  to raise his voice for honesty, truth and compassion for the common man in the phase of the present economic situation in Nigeria.

You all can say whatever you want to say about him, but you must note that it is impossible for him alone to change things by fighting an existing reality that did not start from the present government.
For Change to occur, we must collectively come up with a strategy that will make any existing model that is not working obsolete. What most of you do not know or understand is that disobedience to the rule of law has its own implication, even when you believe in your 'freedom of speech or action'. Those who went to Delta State university would tell you that i did not spend 9 years in the University because i was the dumbest student. They are moves and steps that you take in life that comes with some sort of implication. i need someone to tell me this minute... would you be celebrating Tubaba, if we all came out tomorrow and people of the other world hijacks the proposed protest to detriment of the lives of Innocent people who are not Idibia?

'Bottom line is, if by law Tubaba does not have a written permission to launch a protest anywhere in the country, if any thing goes wrong he will definitely pay the price by the same law. Having said all of that for those of you who are wise enough to get the message, i want you to join me in celebrating a man whom has always been an advocate of peaceful governance, a man who was never consumed by the sin of silence and became a coward, a patriot who was bold enough to ask for the change we were promised, whether you like it or not, our voices has been heard by those in authority. lets all remain as one big family with a collective sense of respect, kindness and an intention to conduct a peaceful resolution'.