THE POSITIVES AND NEGATIVES OF SOCIAL NETWORKS

It has transformed the way we meet people, the way we interact with each other, our relationships and it have even effected changes in how business are run these days. An attempt by Wikipedia(An Online encyclopedia) to define the social networking service reads thus: "A social networking service is a platform to build social networks or social relations among people who, for example, share interests, activities, backgrounds, or real-life connections." 

The social networking service did not start today or with Facebook like many people think. It dates back to the early 90's with sites like TheGlobe.com(1995), Geocities(1994), Tripod.com(1995) amongst others. These were followed by Friendster, Myspace, LinkedIn and Facebook in the early 2000's down to the numerous Social networks that are obtainable in our world today.

Social Networking have undoubtedly revolutionalised human interactions over the years and its effect have been felt both positively and negatively. For example, the Arab spring of 2012 which lead to the protests that saw about three countries remove their unwanted rulers was reported to be possible through the use of Social networks. The Microblogging site - Twitter was instrumental to the #OccupyNigeria protests of January 2012 which made the Federal Government rescind its decision to remove fuel subsidy. I lost contact with some of my childhood friends for over 10years but all thanks to cascading system of facebook, I have been able to reconnect with a good number of them as meeting one would lead to meeting another and it continues. In recent times, most business success could be attributed to the extensive and effective use of Social Networks.
Scholarly researches have been conducted through the use of demographics on social networks. For instance, students have been asked to look at the impact of social networks on youth culture, privacy, social capital, education, etc. The aid of social networks in investigations by the police is another advantage of the tool which have seen criminals apprehended and have helped Law courts prosecute them. 

But sometimes, the use of Social networks comes with a price which could be sometimes devastating as there have been extreme cases of death. In Europe and America, there have been cases of Social network bullying among high school and even grade school students that had sadly ended with the bullied students committing suicide. A friend told me how an ordinary facebook 'like' of his Ex-girlfriend's picture on Facebook ended his relationship and that is just one example of its effect on relationships. It has ended several as well as initiated some. Many have also argued that it is gradually taking the place of physical human interaction. Also, some unsuspecting people have been swindled on social networks by fraudsters posing as friends, relatives, potential partners, celebrities, men of God, etc. We all woke up to the news of the murder of a young, hard-working woman by name Cynthia Osokogwu around July last year and her killers were said to have met her on a social networking site. 

Social networks have come to stay, even when some people worry about or are concerned about it numerous effects, newer versions of the existing ones are being introduced while new ones spring up every now and then. As long as Technology keeps advancing, social networks would still be pretty much around.

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Twitter: @Victorikeji

BOOSTING PATRONAGE AS A YOUNG BUSINESS OR START-UP

The primary reason why people go into businesses is to make profit and that is apart from impacting in the society, touching lives and contributing to the economy and national development like some already made entrepreneurs and 'big' business owners would tell you. That patronage which would yield profit is what start-ups and young businesses need to succeed.

I went on a 'dig and discover' mission to get some of the factors that have been proven over the years to be instrumental in boosting patronage to your business or start-up as a young entrepreneur and some of them are what I shared below.   

LEVERAGING SOCIAL MEDIA: Most start-ups success in recent times have been attributed to the extensive and efficient use of social media. Platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn etc These platforms has been exploited by several businesses with massive success recorded. With Facebook's over 1billion subscribers and Twitter's over 500million users, where else would be the best place for marketing or advertising your products, services and ideas online. As a start-up, all you have to do is learn the basics or the rudiments of these social networks (ie if you are not currently on or using them properly), create an online following and viola! Your business is out there. Many business have taken surveys asking about where their clients got to learn about them and Social networks account for a greater percentage of their(client) answers.

STRATEGIC MARKETING: If this is in place, prospective clients would see every reason to transact with your business venture owing to their knowledge of it. Strategic marketing here involves but are not limited to internet advertising (e.g Web ads), fliers, posters, word-of-mouth (where necessary) and even use of social media platforms. You as a start-up or young business could also take advantage of events like Symposiums, conferences, seminars, business events, fares etc depending on the type of business you are into, not only to create awareness of your product or service but also to market them.

BRANDING: Giving your business a name, identity or even a logo is not just a great idea but would help both your current and prospective clients identify with your business or start-up. Most people would rather go for a product that has this beautiful logo or even well designed letter-headed papers than one that is just there, with little or no aesthetics.
Special care must be taken while branding because most young businesses make the mistake of investing heavily into branding thereby wasting resources that could have been channeled elsewhere to generate returns and sometimes even running into debts in the process.

ESTABLISHING PARTNERSHIPS OR NETWORKS: I am yet to see that business or start-up which succeeded on its own without help from others or external sources. There could be cases when funds would be sought or where certain hands would be needed to grow the business. Partnership here could be in the form of Venture Capitalists, business angels, friends and even family members etc.
Also, building a healthy network is also considered a  positive step towards propelling your venture into that desired position. Meet, greet and acquaint yourself with other business owners.

RISK TAKING: Your ability to take risks(calculated) would propel your venture into unprecedented heights. Experts advise that sometimes, it is advisable to take a leap of faith and stand behind your product or service. Playing it safe by sounding, acting or even looking like every other business would not only lead to stagnation but could also be risky for your venture. Be bold and take risks, but ensure they are calculated ones.

The aforementioned points and others that could be found on several business materials or resources are just what you need to take your venture up the ladder and probably get a Forbes listing someday.

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Twitter: @victorikeji

THAT GAP BETWEEN THE RICH AND THE POOR

'As long as monetary value and political power are based on capitalistic economics that require exploitation to create the fiction known as profit, there will always be a disparity or gap, between the exploited and the exploiting.'  ~Johnathon Lipscomb

I came across this statement in one of my several online sojourns in search of information and 'new knowledge', precisely in a discussion on ted.com and the first thing that crossed my mind was our dear own Nigeria, its pseudo-capitalistic economy and the disparity between the rich(exploiting) and the poor(exploited). Only 1% of the population could be classified as rich or say 1.5% for the purpose of argument and this minute percentage is made of up solely the political elite and maybe the Dangote's, Adenuga's or Otedola's and some other masters of industries. A friend of mine would argue that there is nothing like the middle class population in Nigeria because of a gap that is so wide and obvious. He would say 'In Nigeria, you are either rich or poor, there is nothing like you belong to the middle class.' According to a 2012 World Bank report, Nigeria's poverty rate was put at 62.6% in a population estimated at 160million. When you take a look at government and private institutions and even some individual businesses, there seems to be a very big gap between the highest paid individuals and the lowest paid employee. Most government institutions, firms and even private businesses operates using the (9,1) Management Grid Theory in which there is maximum concern for production, output, targets etc and minimum concern for employee welfare and this is usually evident in the peanuts most employees take home as salary. I am not saying that there shouldn't be a gap in the first place but there should be equalisation of income levels as seen in China and several other industrialised nations that are trying everything possible to reduce this disparity between the rich and poor.

Some people have argued that a proper democratic system of government would atleast reduce this problem but we have had several democratic governments come and go and yet the gap still lingers. What these governments do is seize power disguised as a democratic election, amass wealth that would last up to their 5th generation and also for their family members, relatives and even in-laws. They employ the same Management Theory as stated above and then leave office or instill their protege for continuity and the cycle continues, the rich gets richer and the poor remain poorer. Democracy is not a solution to this problem especially in a country where money can buy political power, as it does in Nigeria. This gap could be attributed to the continuous rise in crime and other social vices in the society as most apprehended culprits would always attribute their involvement to poverty or the need to feed. (Well, these ones are different from those who point accusing fingers on the Devil).

The solution to this wealth gap lies in the proper distribution of all resources in the society and this can be done through formulation and implementation of workable policies. When this is done, the disproportionately richer people would feel happier and even safer, the disproportionately poorer people on the other hand would stop complaining or even contemplating crime because they have enough of their own and the country on its own would record little or no social vices and undesirable features of life as every single one of its population is happy.

Life indeed feels better when people are happy.

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Twitter: @victorikeji

OF PARTISAN POLITICS, GRANDFATHERS IN POWER AND EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP

 By Ikeji, Victor C.

It was Simon Kolawole -The journalist- who said "The Old PDP and The New PDP are just a committee of friends probably fighting over who took the large chunk of meat from the table while they were eating.". He went further to state that "we shouldn't take sides when these people are fighting because they are all the same, fighting for their own share of the National cake and not concerned about me and you". 

This brought to my mind the issue of partisan politics here in Nigeria whereby everyone is concerned about winning primaries for their parties and going on to win the election against other parties after which they start siphoning off funds to pay of debts incurred during election campaigns or settling their political 'Godfathers' who fought tooth and nail to place them in that position. It doesn't just stop there as they would now go on to fill their own pockets and that of family members, relatives and even in-laws leaving the problem that is supposed to be solved unattended to. Surprisingly, after appointing and putting their cohorts into different positions and implementing policies that would make it seem like they are actually trying to solve the problem, they continue ripping the country of its resources and funds. As if that is not enough, they come back for a second term with the same 'nutella coated' promises they used during the elections in their first term or sometimes slightly modifying it so as to have us (who does nothing but take sides during their battles with other parties) to vote for them.

We seem to be carried away with the style of politics being carried out by these 'over-experienced', self-glorifying, 'recycled' buffoons which is why you have young and intelligent minds carrying the tag 'Political analyst' on TV discussing or sometimes even taking sides with these parties who have done nothing but loot the Nation's treasury and stripped it of its resources. The sometimes biased media had even turned these 'old thieves' into celebrities as it is uncommon to always find 'the XYZ led faction or ABC led faction' on the cover of Dailies and News headlines on Television. The younger generation now enjoys discussing politics and holding debates about 'their' parties. A young man once said while we were discussing governance 'Take a look at my party and the strategies they've put in place plus the Candidates they would be bringing forth come 2015 and you'd see that there is hope for this country.' This individual is only concerned about selling the Idea that 'his' party is the best and should be voted in come 2015 probably because of what he stands to gain afterwards.

We are a Nation under siege by these Grandfathers who have nothing to offer but employ some of their old and outdated tricks to stay in power. It is said that you can't use the same technique which have not solved a problem over and over and expect a positive result. This is applicable to the Nigerian situation whereby some people have been in power for so long, yet nothing seem to have changed and they are still being recycled with every election. The former Vice president of World bank -Oby Ezekwesili while speaking at an event was asked by a young adult 'Ma, if given a chance to go back into power, what would you change?' Her reply was 'After serving for 5years, I think I have had enough service of the Country, we need the younger ones like you in power' I was thrilled by her response and the next thing that came to mind was the politicians who are still clamouring for political offices after serving for about half of the country's age or even more.

Instead of taking sides or voting for 'our' parties during elections, I think we should concentrate on doing away with these aged fellows who had done nothing but worsen our problem and breed a new crop of young leaders who are passionate for change and would champion the course of good governance and effective leadership which would bring about the desired change and development that we as a Country had been deprived of over the years.

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Twitter: @victorikeji

WHY BREAK-UP WHEN THERE IS A SOLUTION.

By Victor Ikeji

CASE ONE

You get to meet someone from out of the blue, you both get along well, become friends and then you give out your heart (or pretend to like some). They seem perfect, it is all fun and you are comfortable. Time flies and things change. They stopped being the same person and you stop having butterflies in your tummy and then the stardust in your pocket turn into stones. Also those heavenly hallelujah your heart sings each time you see this person turns into funeral requiems. You start to get tired of the whole thing (or drama as some people call it) but you keep tolerating and hoping that things would get better. After a while, you just can't take it any longer. Sometimes there are outbursts, other times it is just you trying to talk with them calmly. It gets worse and you start to feel that your patience have been tried enough. Then comes the break-up (or someone gets jilted or dumped). You take months or years to heal (or even jump into another relationship right away) and then a break-up and then another relationship and it continues until you start to feel old (or pressurized) and have to settle with one person in that union called marriage, it doesn't just end there as another break-up comes up again only that this time it have a different name- Divorce.

CASE TWO

You meet them probably online or in person (or one of the other places or scenarios in which people meet), you become friends and then move from that to becoming close friends before the intimate relationship resumes( in some cases, it starts on it's own before you'd even notice it). They seem perfect, it is all fun and you are comfortable. Time flies and things change. He/She starts looking like someone else as they seem to have lost that sunshine they brought into the relationship in the first place. You notice the fact that there are changes, you sit them down, you talk over issues and sometimes there are changes and other times, it seems a lesson or two is learnt. You tolerate their excesses and even sacrifice your Ego because you love them, they mean the world to you, you can't imagine a life without them (or one of those other things people in love say to each other). It continues and they seem to come back to their senses (because we humans loose them at times) and then every one of what you have done for them is being reciprocated and then the happiness you felt when you first met them is resurrected. The relationship is tried severally (because those trials would come whether you want them or not) and then you acknowledge them and not let them break you or your partner. Days turns into weeks and weeks into years, then you start dyeing their hair and tending to the Grandchildren when they come visiting till death comes knocking.

The two instances given above is what every one of us face or would face in our relationships. A lot of people are passing through or have passed through the first case only because they couldn't handle the inevitable trials and obstacles that comes with relationships.  The partners in CASE TWO understood that these obstacles are certain and must come, so they devise means to go about them.

Your relationship(s) could be that 'perfect' one which you desire only if  you acknowledge the fact that those problems must be present (if not worse), then look for ways to tackle or how to take care of them.

Cheers!

Follow me on Twitter: @victorikeji

OF ESE WALTER, PASTOR FATOYINBO & OUR SENTIMENTALITY

                      

Scandals in the church is now almost an everyday thing. The media gets hold of the stories and is supposed to bring it to the knowledge of the populace but it is not uncommon for some of these stories to be twisted or blown out of proportion not until proper evidence is shown or brought forth. These scandals in the church had taken different forms from child abuse on the part of Catholic priests, staged miracles in some pentecostal churches, the use of diabolical means to carry out 'God's work' and also supposed Men of God sleeping with members of the church.

The most recent of these scandals is the revelation/accusation/publicity stunt as many have called it by Ese Walters about her abuse/sexcapade/relationship (whichever you choose to believe) with Pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo of Common Wealth Of Zion Assembly (COZA) Abuja Chapter. You can read the story HERE. I still maintain that this issue shouldn't be judged sentimentally. It could be true or fabricated, we wouldn't know. One thing we shouldn't treat with a wave of hand is that a lot of things go on in some churches which some of the members know of but won't talk or speak about because they have been caged by 'Touch not God's anointed' even when some of the people involved are 'devil's anointed' and also because some of these Pastors/Priests/Men of God are revered and treated as gods. From that story which she shared on her Blog, she seemed bold and sounded like someone that is really hurt and willing to face whatever the outcome of her action is but you would agree with me that some people would do more than that for a handsome pay.(I mean this is Nigeria where people gang-up with friends to facilitate their own kidnapping so as to get ransom from their families). Some people even argued that this might be a case of a rosy relationship gone wrong and one party trying to rubbish the other's name.

Just as people are still debating about the genuineness of Ese's story, One Franca E. also spoke up, not just endorsing Ese's claims but stated how the same Pastor also attempted to commit the act with her. Franca went to the extent of daring the Pastor to refute her claims and see 'American wonder' as she claims to have both photo and recorded evidences. Meanwhile the Sunday after the week which this story sprung was a normal one at COZA, Abuja as Pastor Biodun oversaw the service. Reports from the media was that he commented about the incident saying that he asked God about it and was told not to respond. He further added that a robust reply should be expected in due time. I followed this story and was amazed at people's comment. While some people are commending her(Ese) for speaking-up, others are accusing her of slander and even calling her unprintable names. The pastor is not left out as he is getting some bashing too from some people.

An analysis of that her story and Franca's could be done by anyone and judgement passed but the truth still remains that you can't judge such a case from the statement made by just one party. While we wait for the Pastor to tell his own side of the story(that is if he would) and also for evidences to be provided (because she stated that she have some), I urge us to remove every form of sentimentality and look at this issue objectively.

Victor is a freelance writer, blogger, currently a Biochemistry student and a lover of 'sofia'. He Tweets from @Victorikeji

SOARING HIGHER

By Victor Ikeji

I thought about giving some tips which I felt would be helpful when applied and 'Soaring higher' was conceived. Four principles; Several applications.

TAKE A RISK: Life is all about risks but some people fail to understand this fact. Some of the influential people in the world today knew the importance of risk taking and that is why they are where they are today. What would you say about one dropping out of school just to have enough time to start-up something OR someone investing a whole fortune into something he only perceived to be successful. The above-mentioned illustrations are talking about the Facebook Guy- Mark Zuckerberg and the owner of Honda automobile company- Soichiro Honda. See where this two are today owing to the risks they took. There are a lot of other examples.

TAKE A CHANCE: Opportunities they say comes but once. When it comes knocking, go for it. Many a times people fail to recognize opportunities because they have eyes on the bigger goal. A story was told of an admission seeker who was offered a job as a casual worker in a multinational company, when he was about to be made a staff of the company, he was offered admission. His parents talked to him about the importance of education but he wanted the money. He aspired to be a manager [even without a certificate]. After some years, the company was hit by recession, workers were to be laid and they started with those without credentials. He didn't just loose the job but also the ability to get an education because by then he has a wife (unemployed) and kids. This is just one of several instances.

MAKE A CHANGE: Many run from it, some are afraid of it and others don't want to hear about it but it is still the only constant thing in life. A change of clothes, a change of plans, a change of season, etc most people remain stagnant today because they refuse to embrace change. Doing things a little differently had over the years proven to yield overwhelming results. A story was told about a woman who runs a store dealing in baby products, this lady complains of little sales which are not even enough to pay her staffs and settle her bills. She had been using the traditional sales method for years until someone introduced her to Google Adword which she tried and her sales rose by over 500%. That's the effect of change, if she had settled for those traditional method, who knows she might go out of business after sometime. When you use the same method and notice no results, try doing things a little differently.

BREAKAWAY: In this regard, breaking away entails breaking from the norm i.e. not doing the usual but attempting the extraordinary. It entails distinguishing oneself from the crowd, not succumbing to the ‘Herd mentality’ or maintaining the Status quo. Just because everyone in your family is into buying and selling doesn't mean you must be a businessman or woman. Your managerial skills could be harnessed by getting a University Degree in Management or a related field. That it-has-never-been-done-and-can’t-be-done attitude should be swept off the back door. The problem with some people is that instead of setting goals, they set limits. That extra study time could change a D grade to an A grade, that extra time you spend at the lab when others have left could lead to a groundbreaking discovery, learning that new language or skill that others see as irrelevant could give you that dream job.

So just like a famous songwriter said: Take a risk. Take a chance. Make a change and Breakaway.

Follow me on twitter: @Victorikeji

THE PROBLEM WITH ONLINE SHOPPING IN NIGERIA

"They are all fraudulent. Online shopping in Nigeria is the fastest way to loose your money."

"Ordered for a wristwatch from an online store on Valentine's day. Called them that morning to confirm my order. They confirmed it. Waited all day for the watch, no delivery.
They called me two days later to come downstairs and pick up my order. I asked the delivery man to go to hell"

"Rule number 1 in Nigeria is never pay for what you haven't seen. Take this advice to the grave with you."

The aforementioned statements are among several made by some Nigerians when asked about their Online shopping experience. These problems I believe are not just peculiar to Online stores in Nigeria as some of them in other countries which we perceive as 'developed' also have had or is still having similar problems.

Online shopping is exciting/fun as you look through products you want, add them to your virtual cart, make payments with your MasterCard or ATM cards and have the items delivered to your doorstep. Its stress and hassle free save for the problems associated with them atimes. In Nigeria, there are several Online stores including the well known Jumia and Konga, but their services can't be compared with that of Amazon, eBay and their likes because these ones have been around for a while. The major problem with online shopping in Nigeria is delivery and trust. The problem of delivery is as a result of some of these stores dealing on several category of products. Mind you, some of these stores rely on sub retail physical stores and when the demand is too much for a particular product, there is the issue of late delivery.

Also, the 'yahoo boys' and 'scammers' have made online transaction a no go area for Nigerians as most people have a problem with revealing their account details or ATM card PINs online owing to their past bitter experiences. This lack of trust on the part of Nigerians is still why most people would prefer to stick with the traditional means of shopping rather than shop online.

The problem of delivery I think would be a thing of the past soon because of the huge investments being made on some of these Online stores which I think would make service delivery more efficient and reliable but the trust issue would linger for a while not until the activities of the so called 'yahoo boys' are reduced to the barest minimum by our Graft agencies with the help of the Government.

PS: What are the other problems you think are associated with online shopping in Nigeria? The comment box is there for your usage.

Twitter: @victorikeji

4 REASONS WHY SOME STUDENTS REMAIN BROKE

A friend of mine came to me asking for 200naira and some Garri. Being the Good Nigerian that I had always been known for, I gladly gave him the money telling him that I'd get it back in two days li...ke he promised. After he left, it struck me that this same boy went on a picnic just the week before with some friends to Obudu Cattle Ranch in Calabar. A trip which saw him spending about 20000naira. Now looking at this boy who is the typical personification of the saying that goes 'Penny wise, pound foolish'. I thought about the reason why students go or remain broke, asked a few questions like I always do and below are some of the reasons I came up with.

KEEPING THAT 'OVERMATERIAL' GIRLFRIEND: Some ladies reading this would be like 'This guy and attacking girls though' but I don't intend to twist or hide the truth because it had to be said. This remains the number one reason why a lot of young male students remain broke just because they intend to date or keep that hot chick on Campus. A good chunk of the little allowance they get from their parents goes into making the supposed girlfriend look 'uberbeautiful' and classy and this is manifested in the Peruvian, Brazilian, Indian hair which she rocks, the channel bags, Mary-Kays and those designer wears all at the expense of this boy who has nothing left after making all these expenses. The more she gets from requesting, the more she requests(Trust girls na) and the more broke you remain.

LIVING ABOVE THE MEANS: Just to be perceived as a 'Bigz boy' or a 'bigz galz', some students prefers to live in areas usually inhabited by those who earn a salary. These students would end up spending money that was meant for their upkeep on transport, water, light bills and other miscellaneous'. There is also this issue of appearing 'Flashy'. Most girls are guilty of this one as they spend every penny on clothes,'Braz', Louboutins just to seem classy. A good number of male students appear 'on point' yet they have virtually nothing in their pockets as every penny is spent on that wear that is in vogue.

THE FRAT or KUSH THING: Some would argue that this has got nothing to do with this topic but having observed and gotten to know some things about these 'Brotherhoods' leaves me in a position to state that it is one of the reasons why some students remain broke. This might not be applicable to all of them but a few Frat or Kush as some people call it have those 'codes' which entails that the members spend some certain amount of monies on some occasions where the 'eves' come by and there is booze and stuffs. There is also this donation issue that could be weekly or monthly as the case may be. The dress code thing makes a lot of members spend the little they have on clothes, shoes and fashion accessories. Believe me, once you are a member, you must not 'Fall hand', so you must represent atleast for the gals, hype and packaging like a friend would say.

FRIENDS & LAVISH LIFESTYLE: My friend has this so I must buy it, my friend does this so I must do it, my friend goes here so I must go here. This particular one I attribute to either 'social madness', low self esteem or yearning for acceptance. A lot of students compare themselves with their friends not minding how much this friend of theirs gets as allowance. Just to look 'fresh', smell good and appear sophisticated like their friends, they sacrifice the little amount they get and go knocking from room to room at 1am in the morning in search of Garri to drink or kerosene to borrow. LOL. One story was told about a boy who travels to neighbouring states for parties, sprays cash on 'Night models' and does that 'drinks on me' thing just to impress his friends and feel among but would borrow everything he needs to stay alive the moment he gets back to school.

Why spend your parent's hard-earned money on things that are not worth it just to get attention and then suffer the consequences. Cut your coat according to your size, keep calm until you graduate. *winks*

Twitter: @victorikeji

STRUGGLING & SHINNING

I had this very bad dream and woke up suddenly with 'blood of jesus' on my lips. I entered the toilet, had a pee then checked my watch, it was 3:30am. The thought of going back to sleep and continuing that bad dream fr...om where I stopped scared me. I thought of what to do to stay awake and my muse suggested -'Struggling and Shinning'.

My writings had always been from observations, questions, imaginations etc and so if I struck where it affects you, just have in mind that I have no intention of doing that, I was just writing 'as was lead by the spirit'.

Often times I look at the faces of fellow classmates, friends and acquaintances. The happiness or joy he/she exudes amidst 'academic adversity' would make someone who knows nothing about this particular person think that they are either among the Top 5 in their class or would be delivering the valedictory speech during convocation. This student in question is either battling to stay above a 1.5 GPA or have a litany of F's which s/he needs to 'cancel' in other to 'leave with his/her set'. This particular student would discuss football, fashion or even history with ease, could be at the forefront of affairs in the department or could even be that person who talks to his classmates about how to pass exams or the benefits of a dedicated study time. He is optimistic about life and is gathering every information and life lessons he needs to be a politician.

A good number of boys have either a girlfriend or two whom they take very good care of more than they do themselves. He buys her lunch in major eateries around school for about 4 days in a week while the smart girl saves her money for handbags, wedge and 'peep toes'. The same boy goes back to his hostel or house to continue drinking his garri with or without milk and groundnut. He is the go-to guy when the girl need to make her hair and would gladly ask 'How much would that cost?' while he doesn't take the same route back to his hostel so the Barber whom he owes 200naira would not see and ask him for the money. He provides the girl with everything she needs amidst struggling to pay his bills only to get inside her pants and in some cases he succeeds.

If you are asked to point out one of the richest chick in your class, this particular girl comes to your mind. She dresses in any attire that is in vogue, uses the best phones and gadgets and could be identified with every designer from Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Tiffany amber to Louboutin, Channel and Zara. All these she is able to achieve from working hard during weekends and sometimes weekdays whereby she had to lie on her back and have older, matured and elderly men dance azonto, etigi and alingo on top of her. Refer to my previous write-up 'The University Runz gal' HERE. She had to do it to 'stay' in school because she is from a family of say 5 and the parents are starving to see that she stays in school. She has STD's, Abortions etc to battle with just to make sure she gets a university degree.

The above mentioned cases and individuals have something in common: Though they have personal problems which others cannot or may not see, they have something they want to achieve at the end of the day. This might be a wrong way of going about a motivational but the idea is this: I present you with ugly situations cum happenings and hope that you learn from them. So whatever situation you find yourself or put yourself in today is dependent on the choices you made. Whatever choice(s) you have made, have a goal and work towards achieving it.

Twitter: @victorikeji

THE REASON I AM DIFFERENT FROM YOU

So, you really want to know why I am different from you. My reasons actually are not far-fetched but they are things you could relate with and I hope you learn a lesson or two from this. We are differen...t because:

You spend 5000naira to get a VIP treatment in a faculty dinner night and then go home struggling with a plate of garri without milk, I spent the same amount on transporting some of my wares to another state. I sat at the corner for regulars in that same dinner night.

You buy and wear animal prints, same colour belts and shoes to match and is concerned about the kinds and number of designer shirts and shoes in your closet. I buy stocks and shares, wear a single pair of shoes that is becoming lonely because it sits alone on my shoe rack. I am concerned about investments and returns.

You live in a 120k apartment, fitted with state of the art appliances just so the 'eves' could be entertained when they come around and then you are perceived as a 'big boy'. Your school apartment probably looks more sophisticated than your father's parlour. I lead an almost solitary life, manage a little room which most people jokingly refer to as a cubicle, have a book shelf with books that some of my friends see as too much and which I probably see as too little.

You spend time thinking about which club rocks the most, which neighbouring school to go 'chick hunting' and on arguments about who've had dated and 'blown' the hottest chicks in school. I spend time worrying about what new line of biz to venture into, which neighbouring school would need my wares and I argue about how and why some students remain broke.

I browse the internet for resources and stuffs such as 'virgin' businesses to tap into. I see social networks as the ultimate marketing tool which is why I want to be on every one of them. You browse the internet just for the fun of it, sometimes stumbling on some of my pages and getting me paid. You log into social networks just to find the girl with the single status, then spend time on long unimportant chats that add nothing to your life.

As a student, the number of times you find me in the bank, I am making deposits with little withdrawals at intervals. I am what some refer to as a silent achiever, nobody knows my worth because I don't talk much. You on the other hand makes withdrawals on 92% visit to the banks and hardly makes a deposit even as a student. You look flashy and sophisticated, people think you've got plenty money but you and I know you've got nothing.

Now what makes me different from you? I see opportunities lying everywhere, believes in doubling every cash that comes into my hand though some see me as stingy but if that would mean not living a lavish life, I am Ok with it. At the end of the day, I've accumulated enough wealth as a young man and would keep showing my '32' as I grow older.
You on the other hand have replaced saving with spending on your dictionary, waste lots of money just to impress friends who would run away when your pocket dries. At the end of the day, you remain broke because the only savings you'd have is the deposits which you made in the accounts of girls whom doesn't even care if you exist any longer.

PS: This write-up is more like an advise to every young man out there. The message is simple: UNDERSTAND YOUR MOTIVES AND REASSESS YOUR AIMS.

Twitter: @victorikeji

MR RIGHT & MR RIGHT-NOW

This might look like a play on words but am telling you, its one reality many ignore or fail to understand. Some ladies go to the extent of mistaking Mr Right-now for Mr right which leads to premature termination o...f the relationship. Now the question remains: How do we distinguish between Mr Right and Mr Right-now?

Mr Right
-He is committed to and invests into the relationship. Investment here covers incessant love and care, kind and hearty words, gifts etc
-He places priority on the relationship, makes it his business and tries to make it better at every given time.
- He is not afraid of meeting your parents, siblings or friends because he believes he is in the relationship for good.
-He keeps/hides nothing away from his woman as long as it is that which she is supposed to know.
-You could date him for months without him bothered about the colour of your undies.[But this has to be watched properly because some guys have the 'sex friend' while you bear the name -main girl]
-His behaviour/ attitude towards you remains the same whether you are present or absent.
-He is comfortable with watching wedding pictures and clips with you and wouldn't shy away from discussions about long-lasting relationships.
-His speech, actions and everything about you spells -I WANT TO SPEND THE REST OF MY LIFE WITH YOU.

Mr Right-Now
-He complains of virtually everything you do and would pretend to like a few. (Probably that guy is just passing time)
-You don't even know any of his friends let alone his family members and each time you get the opportunity to, he comes up with one excuse or the other.
-One week into the relationship and he is asking for a 'prove' of love. You know what am talking about.
OR After the first date, he is talking about cuddling.
-His phone is a No-go area, he appears to be secretive and you must not show up at his place without being invited. Babe, una fit reach 5 wey him get.
-You can never get him to watch those And-they-lived-happily-ever-after kind of movies with you OR even scan through wedding pictures together.
-He is setting p with every girl he meets on BBM, twitter or facebook and if confronted, he would tell you that they are just friends.

I could go on and on but let me save the others for your observation(s) because better seen and witnessed is better than being told. This doesn't mean that you should become a detective because if he notices, he would assume the role of the 'Smooth operator'.

Twitter: @viktorikeji

8 REASONS WHY MEN CHEAT [According to women]

After getting a lot of 'nothing really' and 'I just felt like' from a good number of men on the question -why do men cheat? I decided to find out from the female folks why they think most men cheat. Some of their reasons might seem untrue or out of place but the following are the reasons why men cheat as told by women.

1)The Feminine forgiving spirit: A lot of women think that their ability to accept a cheating man back after listening to his 'I-am-sorry-sermon' is the main reason why men would continue to cheat on them. According to Marilyn: "A man knows that he can get away with it (cheating) as long as he knows that he would be forgiven if he begs afterwards".


2) Guys likes varieties: A lot of women agreed that men would always cheat because they prefer many to one. What this implies is that men just want to have many women around them and end up.. You know what I mean. A lady says: "They want one who could cook very well, another just because she is beautiful and the go-to girl when there is an occasion and a third to warm his bed". Varieties?! hmmm...

3)Just for fun: Women believe that some men cheat just because they want to or because it is fun to them. They have a girlfriend/wife yet they just want some little adventure atleast to boost their ego amongst their friends. A lady narrated how she ended up on a man's bed after a party only to find out that a bet was placed on her head.

4) They believe women sees it as their lifestyle: Some women argued that the reason a man would cheat on his girlfriend/wife is because the female folks sees it as their mode of life, some would say' it's their nature, men would always cheat.' A good number of the female folks think it's something that had become a part of them and can only be stopped by spiritual intervention.

5) Greed: According to the 'Eves', men just want to have the next woman they meet in the bar, that supposed sexy friend of his girlfriend/wife, the lady he buys recharge cards from, his boss' daughter to themselves.

6) When they are not getting what they need from the relationship: Some ladies opines that when a man is not shown enough love and care in the relationship, he seeks it somewhere else and the other woman's bedroom in this case is not far. They spoke further that if a man prefers a 'Wild cat' during the act and all he gets is this 'gentle dove', he is forced to go in search of his preference.

7) Influence from friends: "Show me his friends and I'd tell you who your man is" Ada said when talking about how some men are influenced by their friends. She went further to state that "A man who has 2 to 3 cheating close friends who'd always explain how good it feels 'tapping' simultaneously from two unsuspecting females is forced to try it out someday"

8)Heartbreak(s) from previous relationships: During the survey, this constituted over 45% of the replies I got as a good number of women believes that a man who has suffered heartbreak(s) from his past relationship sees no other reason to be faithful. Feeling hurt and rejected, he would prefer to keep many not minding whether history repeat itself or not.

Twitter: @victorikeji

A LETTER TO THAT BROTHER WHO DOESNT KNOW HOW TO LEAVE THAT RELATIONSHIP

Dear Friend,

I was working in my ‘mind’s lab’, thinking seriously of how to get you out of that relationship that had caused you stress for so long. In your words: “SHE DOESN’T REALLY LOVE OR CARE ABOUT ME, SHE IS JUST PRETENDING. I AM TIRED OF THIS WHOLE RELATIONSHIP.” A lot of men out there share your plight. I am not a relationship expert like I always say but I am human and I make observations and ask a whole lot of questions. I spoke with Nicole, a good friend and my confidante about a similar issue and she offered some advice. I just hope that what I am about to tell you would be very helpful.

It is hard to break up, but truly I look back and see every point where I SHOULD have broken up, but did not. Often because despite of how I felt I was being stressed and upset, despite constantly trying to deal with them, I always felt that they'd change, be different, and I was holding on to small bits of 'good' - and sometimes just didn't want to seem to be the one giving up. It is difficult to have an image of someone when you first start dating them, then they start to act messed up, and you are running around constantly putting out the fires, managing the conflicts, and it just makes you stressed. It becomes a habit. I found out that some people take advantage of those who are always trying to make things right, always questioning themselves about what they did wrong, what they can do right. If she cares enough, she will manage herself without you having to put out energy to do so. Later on, you will realize that you gave too much energy to someone who wasn’t worth the effort. Most annoying is years later when you can look back and see how you got so upset and stressed over someone who ultimately became nothing to you.

Some people know that no matter what they do, you will run trying to please them, fix the problems they cause, apologize for what you did wrong - but they don't run after you, don't fix problems they cause, don't even consider helping you, and expect your behavior to remain the same. With your girlfriend, consider if she'd tolerate from you what you tolerate from her. If what bothers you with regard to her were what you directed to her, would she respond as you did? It is difficult to see things in a whole new light especially when you have so many feelings, but you often know when something is troubling you about a situation. Sometimes people take advantage of your inability to take action to take care of yourself. That said, women have their ways. They will act offensive, do things to you, then weep and expect a man to forgive them, excuse them, then they walk away smiling feeling they have just fooled you. Some young women are convinced they are wonderful and all the men will beg them. And men often do. They can act like spoiled children, and men think 'this is how women are' and men are often very easily convinced that they aren't 'doing enough' to please her. But why must you struggle to please someone like that?

Another part of your letter that struck me was where you said: “THE WHOLE RELATIONSHIP IS STRESSFUL TO ME, I FEEL STRESSED THINKING WHERE I HAVE GONE WRONG.” You also know that when someone is causing you stress, they are not caring for you, and are probably just using you until they 'get' someone else. They may be also dating someone else. I believe that you know you'd be better if you ended it. But men don't like conflict. It is hard to be the one to end a relationship if you've been the one tolerating a lot trying to keep it going. You worry about hurting their feelings, about how they'll suddenly get 'concerned' when you break up - and often that behavior is just because they don't want you to stop tending them, not that they regret not caring for you. If you are constantly rubbing someone's feet, they will watch you exhaust yourself doing it and they'll never tell you to stop because they enjoy it. You die rubbing their feet, and they'll walk right past you to the next person to rub their feet.

Many women are just assholes and barely notice that you care or even care. They'll be that way to whoever will let them be that way. They don't love you because you tolerate them, they don't love you at all -they just enjoy you tolerating them. They won't always give you a definite reason, won't answer your questions like 'Do you want to be with me or not?' honestly. You won't get an answer from them - you have to free yourself.  Some women are manipulative, they will find a nice guy and know that he will take good care of them while they wait for a man they feel they must treat well. Women know what they are doing, and if they don't, then why are you dating someone who can't manage her own behavior? Why be with a woman who can't figure out how to properly treat you? And why deal with a woman who doesn't think she has to treat you properly to keep you around? Why isn't she worried that her behavior will hurt you, or that her bad behavior will make you leave her?

 When you worry about your future, worry about the time and effort you are giving for someone who you seem to know doesn't care about you that way. That should be a big worry for you because the ability to protect yourself from such people is a defining factor in your life. Don't end up like one of those men tied to a woman as a wife and mother of their children and they are on a leash that she holds. They give her money, social status, can't find happiness elsewhere - or else they are cheating and running around, and she doesn't care because she is cheating, but they still must give all to her.

Another part of your letter I would like to address is where you wrote: “REALLY DONT WANT HER TO FEEL HURT ABOUT THE BREAK UP BUT I JUST HAVE TO OR WHAT DO YOU SUGGEST?” What do you think you should worry about - hurting someone by breaking up with them because they don't care if they hurt you, or should you worry about not letting yourself be hurt. If someone is causing you upset and hurt, they should expect you to go away from them. Mainly, if she doesn't care about upsetting you in a relationship with you, don't expect her tears at your break up to last long. Frankly, if she is upsetting you she doesn't value you, isn't worried that you may get tired of it and leave her, and may well be treating you that way because she is seeing or wants to date someone else.  Just consider that you are so concerned about hurting her that you don't even want to break up with her for hurting you. But is she concerned about her treatment of you? Is she worried about keeping you? You seem very nice. If I can notice that, she has to see it and disregard it. Don't worry about whether you are doing enough for her - as men often think - if I had more money, more social status, a better job, could give her nicer things, had a car to drive her around, and so on - but none of that is what matters. You don't deserve to be stressed just because you are trying to be in love with someone and care for them.

Life is too hard, too much. You will one day face things you must struggle to manage, must worry about dealing with, SHE is not one of them. You can break up politely. You can take time to see her behavior. Instead of driving yourself crazy, speak up and tell her that her behavior towards you is wrong, and ask how she'll fix it. When she disregards you, this will give you more comfort that breaking up is best. Take your time, look clearly at your interaction with her, and if you find you are not treated well, leave her. She'll live. If she believes she couldn't live without you, she'd treat you MUCH better to keep you.

You may miss the 'female' company - but you are male. There are women all over.

CHEERS,

Your friend.

Follow me on Twitter: @victorikeji

10 Relationship Deal-breakers

Everyone desires a healthy and lasting relationship which is possible only if we know those things that should be avoided in our relationships. I might not be a relationship expert but I have made several observations, learnt from the experiences of others over the years plus some personal experiences. The following had ended, is ending and would still end some relationships if they are not checked and avoided.

1) Continuous complaint and never complementing: Complaints are usually a turn-off in every relationship. When the man or woman complains of everything the other party does, like how they lack a good dress sense, how a part of their body seem out of place, etc. Instead of complaining incessantly, do it wisely and make it something you both could laugh about. Also, everyone wants to be appreciated and that is why some crave compliments. When this is lacking in a relationship, the affected party would in some cases sought for it somewhere else so it would be wise to always make it a habit to compliment your partner at all times. It could be their hair, dressing, speech, anything just to make them feel good about themselves.

2)Lack of good sense of humour cum a boring personality: As insignificant as this seems, it has wreaked a good number of relationships. We all love that person that gets us laughing as it tends to make us feel relaxed. When humour is lacking in a relationship, it gives either of the party a reason to complain of boredom and this leads to the partners spending less time together as some would prefer hanging out with that their friend(s) they presume to be funny and lively. Come to think of it, why do you think even the most ugly comedian still have beautiful women flocking around them? One word- Humour.

3) Absence of shared interests: When both parties have nothing in common, I wonder what they would be discussing while sitting or spending time together. As two separate beings, its OK to have several interests, goals, ambitions that don't match but there still have to be a few which should bring the two of you together or give you something new to talk about always. Most relationship experts would always advise that you go into a relationship with someone whom you share the same interests with. Pretending to like what the other person likes would only keep the relationship for a while after which one party gets bored or tired of living someone else' life. This had been known to be one of the commonest relationship deal breaker.

4)Jealousy and trust issues: When you don't trust your partner I wonder why you are in the relationship at the first place. These two (jealousy and lack of trust) had crushed several relationships than the combined action of a household mortar and blender on tomatoes. Both of them work hand-in-hand by acting simultaneously or one after the other. Jealously leads to one or either of the party trying to place restrictions and in doing so, the other party feels caged and would want to regain their 'freedom' at the expense of the relationship. Lack of trust on the other hand turns one or the two party involved into 'detectives' or 'investigators' and when the other gets 'busted' probably with just a casual friend or a harmless text, the relationship has been compromised. Even if that incident doesn't end it, time will.

5) Lack of communication: When this is lacking in a relationship, I wonder why it is called a relationship in the first place. The aforementioned points and several others leads to this one. When the complaints becomes continuous, the affected party sees no reason to talk as he/she doesn't know if it would lead to more complaints. Everyone would prefer to hang out with that lively person than waste time talking with that boring person. Thirdly, when there are no shared interests, I wonder what is there to communicate about. Also, when one party feels they are being suspected, they have no other option but to stay on their own. When communication is no longer enjoyed between the couple, it leads to them drifting apart and after a while, the next conversation might begin with 'I want out'.

6)Lies, Lies and more lies: Some of these lies are told before dating commences or while in the relationship for example: The lady has a kid which she referred to as her little nephew or niece, The man works in a bank and claims to be COO of a multi-national company etc. It could even be those referred to as 'small lies' like: My father owns this or that, I have never had sex before etc. The truth is humans differ and so is their ability to tolerate lies and when these lies come to light, that could be it. A good number of people believes that since he/she lied at first, they would continue to lie and so there is no need to continue the relationship.

7) When the 'Fire' is not felt like before: The first 3months or so of a relationship brings with it lots of enjoyment, fun and interesting stuffs as the man treats the lady with utmost care, open doors for her, cooks for her, gives her those romantic piggy-back rides, gets creative with love notes upon love notes. The lady on the other hand tries to make her man feel at home, serves him breakfast in bed, helps him with his tie in the morning etc. Later on, about a Year or 2 into the relationship, 6 months for some, one party or both starts dropping some of these things as they get busy with life and this makes the other feel less loved because he/she isn't getting those treats anymore. The grudge accumulates and then there could be series of quarrels and complaints that could lead to termination of the relationship.

8) Third party influence: This is what I refer to as the 'extra hand in the relationship'. Your man or woman gets you angry, you ask the third party how best to deal with him/her. You talk to the third party about every single occurrence in the relationship- what your man does or doesn't , what turns your girl on and what doesn't, how he/she is perceived at home or office, the extent of his wealth or materialism etc. Most people involve the third party just to get advice as some would say or to show how blissful the relationship is. These reasons might be okay but could wreck relationships as well and this is dependent on the person you are talking to. The third party could want your man for herself after knowing how rich he is, they could provide you with tonnes of advice which when implemented could end the relationship, they could also want to see for themselves how 'skillful' your partner is. When the 'extra hand' has gotten every single information about your relationship, it becomes vulnerable as they have the power of continuity and termination of that relationship.

9)Greed and selfishness: When the man/woman starts to think that they've seen a too much of this channel and wants to see what the line-up of programmes is like on another channel, when the lady begins to have new needs which she feels must be met irrespective of whether the man's pocket can carry or not. When the door of the relationship is opened to greed, it comes in without even acknowledging the occupants, stimulates unnecessary quarrels, slight irritation, negative perceptions which climaxes to the relationship being laid to rest.

10) The Ex influence: The last relationship is over but not done with, there is still some reserved feelings for or by the Ex, you are always comparing the present with the past, etc. Some Ex's exercise strong influence in the relationship as they could be one of the partner's boss at work and this could introduce 'stress' which could end the relationship. Also the Ex could decide that they want to 'eat their cake and have it' and if there are some reserved feelings, the relationship is as good as terminated. This influence puts the relationship in jeopardy, stresses it, quench the fire and then gradually leads to the relationship's death.

Follow me on Twitter: @victorikeji

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND MY HIGHER EDUCATION EXPERIENCE

 The world as they say is a global village. With a push of a button, you could reach Europe from Africa, buy goods as a Nigerian from far away China and even get to know what is happening around the world from your livi...ng room. Letter writing, Post Offices are gradually phasing out in this age which some refer to as the 'Information age' as everything seem to have gone online that is why it is now common to hear words like E-mails, E-commerce, E-networking, E-conferencing, E-marketing etc.
Information technology(IT) being an integral part of life today have applications in Medicine, Engineering, Agriculture, Communication, Marketing etc which is why its importance in Education cannot be overemphasized. As a student in a Tertiary institution, a large percentage of my graduate work would not be accomplished without IT. My school fees for example from first year down to final year was paid online, hostel allocation was done online while I went to the Student Affairs department with the printout which was scrutinised and confirmed before I could check into the hostel. My course registration was done online as every student has their own page on the Students' portal. I was able to do research for my seminars and carry out some assignment right from the comfort of my hostel room due to Google-powered Wifi which the school's administration made available to every student in a bid to enhance learning. My seminars were presented with the aid of a Projector and Power-point slides in order to drive home some of the points made. When I was Editor-In-chief of my departmental magazine, I was able to conduct an interview session with ease via the internet with one of the lecturer who was away in far away United Kingdom owing to Information Technology. Also, I was able to start my blog where I talk about some issues in the Nigerian society and which helped in boosting my writing skills.
Apart from the very positive impacts of Information Technology, there are some other negative impacts. I could remember going to the toilet on a particular night, upon getting to the Tee end (a word which students of UNN use for the toilet end), I met a fellow classmate confidently browsing and downloading porn. When I spoke to a friend about that, his reply was 'It is normal, that guy's nickname is Porn Hub and he is a major supplier of any type of porn'. Also, some of us spends more time 'wasting' on social networks, downloading and watching movies leaving little time for our assignments as it is common to find some students still in chapter two of a four chapter assignment on the fortnight of submission. Due to the advent of Information Technology, there seem to be limited usage of the library by students as 'Copy and Paste' becomes the order of the day leaving little room for research.
I am indeed happy to be a part of this 'privileged generation' as some of our lecturers would call us because as they would say, they had to travel long distances just to get internet access which I get from the comfort of my hostel room. They had to browse through thousands of catalogues in the library, sometimes travelling to other states in search of some materials but the combination of various search engines and scientific databases gave me the same materials in a matter of minutes.
Although there are some negative impacts, Information Technology made my higher education experience enjoyable and a little less stressful.

Follow me on Twitter @victorikeji

ZERO MAINTENANCE CULTURE IN NIGERIA

The other day, sixteen(16) abandoned planes were marked for destruction cum sent to a steel company for recycling. That got me thinking 'what if the Eiffel Tower was in Nigeria, probably it would have be...en dismantled and sent to a steel company for recycling by now'. Over the years, our lack of maintenance culture had led to us loosing Billions of Naira and yet we still have that proverbial 'Do away with the old wife as soon as you get a new wife' attitude. The state of our refineries is nothing to write home about as importation of refined petroleum products is now the norm in a country that is one of the major exporters of oil in the world. The problem? -Lack of maintenance culture. In his book 'The Rules of Life', Richard Templar opines "Sometimes we need an old-fashioned approach of time and attention and finding out. Like our grandparents, who didn't throw things away[or abandon them] and get a new one when something had stopped working -they patiently sat down and tried to sort out what it is that had gone wrong and if there was a way to put it right again".
Our General Hospitals could be likened to a hospital ran by a Doctor who just saved some little money working with the Government and decided to go into private practice. They are understaffed, lack functional pharmacies and proper lighting and this is supposed to be a government controlled institution. I saw pictures and read about the Police College at Ikeja, Lagos state and I felt really sorry for the country and that is still due the Government's lackadaisical attitude. How would one expect an excellent output or effort from a policeman who was trained in such an unkempt, dilapidated, smelly, rat-infested place called a police college. The numerous potholes we complain of on our roads have also found their way to our runways. A visit to any of the local airport in the country would prove this fact yet we have a functional Government. Growing up, I used to hear about NITEL, NRC, NIGERWAX and other Government owned or controlled companies but now the adjective -'Defunct' is what you would find before them each time they are mentioned or appear on the Dailies owing to embezzlement of funds meant to foster the growth of these industries or institutions. Privatisation is now the order of the day because most of our corrupt officials see that as an avenue to get richer and this is because most of these privately owned companies are owned by them and are being run by their agents yet we are complaining of not progressing. How would we progress when the country's wealth rests in the hands of few people.
Around the country, you could tell if an institution is government controlled or owned by the shape in which it is in or the nature of its maintenance. I wonder what would have become of countries like the USA, Britain, France, South Africa, Germany, China etc if their government's attitude towards maintenance is like that of Nigeria. Can you compare a public school in the US with one here in the country? Or a General Hospital here in the Country with one in South Africa? These questions are left for you -the readers to answer.
Our neighbouring country -Ghana is a testimony of how a proper maintenance culture could turn a country around for better. Malaysia collected oil palm seeds from Nigeria sometime ago, today they remain one of the major exporters of Oil palm but where is Nigeria? yet we have a working Agricultural sector.
Until the Government of Nigeria sees the need to ensure a proper maintenance culture in its institutions, industries, ministries etc, the country would remain stagnant and the only notable progress we would be recording would be those that are mentioned when the president makes a nationwide broadcast.

Follow me on twitter: @victorikeji

PAPER INTELLIGENCE VS PRACTICAL INTELLIGENCE

In Nigeria today, your guarantee to a speedy employment is based on number of degrees, class of degrees or the school attended and not what you know or can be able to do thus giving paper intelligence more importance when compared to practical intelligence. Over the years, the craze for a first class degree or a school whose name is recognized has led to the production of half-baked graduates who learned nothing else throughout their stay in school but their course of study. A friend of mine would jokingly say “A Nigerian microbiologist’s knowledge is limited to just the theoretical culture plate, place him in a Lab and see if he’d recognize a culture plate when he sees one”. The world seem to be moving at a fast pace technologically but instead of following this trend, the average Nigerian student is either moving from one lecturer’s office to the other trying to sort for grades or in more serious cases spreading their legs as most female students would do just to pass examinations. I don’t blame the student for this but the system that has given priority to paper intelligence over practical intelligence. For this same reason, we would have a Masters holder in Engineering who cannot fix his generator when it develops a little fault or even fix his car when it breaks down but would sought for the services of a roadside mechanic whom if not found would lead to this M.Eng. holder, parking his car and using a taxi to go about his business. Nowadays employers of labour doesn’t even care about your abilities or that special skill you possess aas they would even start the screening according to class of degrees from the vacancy notice and this leads to some ‘less fortunate’ intelligent ones being left out owing to paper intelligence. I wonder if any employer must have listened to Prof. Wole Soyinka as a young graduate when there are other ‘First Class materials’ out there but look at the level where practical intelligence has gotten him today. This is just one out of several cases. A good number of people making waves around the world today never graduated summa or magma cum laude but their intelligence speaks for them. Talking about not judging according to class of degrees or paper intelligence, I am not standing in favour of those lazy students who have decided not to read or develop themselves and expect to pass examinations but for those who are intelligent and brainy but for one reason or the other, this is not manifested in their certificates as both could be differentiated through employer-employee tests and interaction. A person’s ability or level of intelligence should not be judged by paper intelligence or what a certificate bears because in Nigeria today, some of our politicians have shown that this type of intelligence can either be forged or bought.

Over the years, our Universities had graduated thousands of ‘First Class’ students but still there have been no significant improvement in the country and this is because we are focused on the wrong type of intelligence –the paper intelligence instead of real tangible intelligence. Don’t misunderstand this for me having a dislike for ‘First Class’ students because I am also struggling to achieve that feat. In his work ‘7 Mistakes Our Generation Must Avoid If We Must Change Nigeria’, prolific author –Okechukwu Ofili writes “When William Kamkwamba designed a windmill in his village in Malawi, he did it without a high-school diploma but yet his impact was much more than thousands with PhD’s. Not to say that we don’t have Nigerians making that type of difference, but with our degrees and potential we should be doing way more.” He went further to state that “ We need to avoid this deadly mistake of paper intelligence and focus on practical intelligence that can help our nation.”

Follow me on Twitter: @victorikeji

Corpus Christi: The body of Christ

I might not be a theologian but I read my bible enough to know that St paul referred to christians as " The body of Christ". By this, he meant if I am not mistaken that Christ who isn't on earth needs a b...ody and that is where we as christians (the church) come into play. When a sick person needs cure, a physician does that. When bones need to be put together, an osteopath comes in. When our money have to be managed, an accountant is called upon e.t.c. In the church, we need each other because no man is a repository of knowledge. The professor might seem to know a lot but when his shoes requires fixing, he sought for a cobbler. A teacher disseminates knowledge but would still require the expertise of a Doctor when he falls ill. So even with our abundance of knowledge, we still need each other. The importance of unity cannot be overemphasized and this is shown in this story told by a priest sometime ago. "A farmer's head, legs, stomach and hands decided to have a meeting. They each highlighted their importance and blamed the stomach for being lazy. The hands spoke about tiling the soil and carrying some of the produce to the market. The legs spoke about doing majority of the work ie moving the farmer to and fro the farm and even to the market. The head boasted of housing the eyes, the nose which are important and also that it carries some of produce to the market too. All blamed the stomach for being lazy, only to be fed at the end of the day. They decided not to feed the stomach again. After a couple of days, the head complained of dizziness followed by the hands who complained of weakness then the legs complained of not being able to carry the farmer again. The stomach sat making noises which led to them having a rethink. They fed the stomach and each began to feel well again, that was when they discovered that even as insignificant as the stomach seem, it plays a role." This goes a long way to show that as a church, we need to be unified. There seem to be a segregation and some form of discrimination amongst denominations within Christ's body. A songwriter once said "They smile at me yet they beef undercover". The same could be applied to Christiandom today. People of a certain denomination appears to be happy with their counterparts from other denominations only to go back to their 'church structures' and start criticising them for their dogma and beliefs. We as christians seem to lack respect for each other, even going to the extent of speaking ill of a different denomination. Gone are the days when preachers pass negative messages about their counterparts in other churches indirectly as they even call names nowadays. The Catholic pope spoke about resigning the other day and a good number of non-catholics made some derogatory statements which would be unwise to state here. We all are in this heavenly race together whether Catholic, Anglican, Presbyterian, Jehova's witness, Pentecostal etc and so we should be unified instead of speaking ill against each other because God doesn't really care about the church you attend but your relationship with him. So, instead on concentrating our strengths on tearing the body of christ apart, we should channel them into fostering our relationship with each other to create a model for generations to come.

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The Religion Industry In Nigeria

A lecturer friend once said and I quote: "The fastest growing industry in Nigeria today is the Religion industry." I laughed about this statement for a while then I gave it serious thought and discovered that it contained some amount of truth. I can only talk about the Christian religion which I happen to be a member of because little or nothing is known about the other Nigerian religions. Using Lagos state as a case study, you cannot count five buildings without having a church in one of them, every street and major road could boast of three or more churches. Renting of shops as churches is gradually phasing out as people even run the 'business' from the comfort of their homes as their faithful are seen gracing their homes for prayers. Nowadays, anybody who could quote a sizeable portion of the bible qualifies as pastor and is optimistic of owning a ministry and growing it into a church. I know that some people reading this would be brewing with anger because I referred to owning churches as 'business' but come to think of it, how do you explain paying huge sums of money for prayer and deliverance or the placement of price tags on prayers. A story was told of a man who went to see a prophet for prayers and was given a list of prayers and their prices which ranges from N20,000 - N100,000. Now my question to the angered people I mentioned earlier is: Does this qualify as business or not?. It is no longer a question of if one has the anointing or not but rather it is how to get members because, the more the 'customers', the more income is generated. Strategies are been put in place to increase 'Internally generated revenue' as the services of professional fundraisers are been employed on a bi-weekly basis (every two sundays). I have watched closely as the theme of most sermons graduated from Salvation to Prosperity simply because a good number of church goers would come back each sunday to listen to the Our-God-is-not-a-poor-God, His-children-must-prosper sermon rather than the boring Accept-Christ-and-be-saved-or-refuse-him-and-perish sermon. The pastors being observant of this fact would not hesitate to ask their members to give an intimidating offering that would provoke God, i.e. after delivering such sermons. In a country where there is high rate of unemployment and the average citizen living on or below $2 a day, it is not uncommon to see anointed men of God cruising private jets which costs between N2.3bn to N9bn. The Aviation sector is in a poor state, I know but I think some of these 'religious wealth' should be channelled into Nation building and by this, I don't mean building universities which the citizens can't afford. Am using this medium to plead with the active participants in this 'Industry' to alleviate the sufferings of the masses not just with prayers and wonderful sermons. Jesus knew how important this is that he had to multiply the bread and fishes to feed the 5000. I don't even want to imagine what would have happened if he had asked them to give their pennies for his ministerial work in that their hungry state. The nation is hungry and in dire need of food but the irony is that poor Christians still give from their lean pocket. The take home question to our religious leaders is this: If Jesus is really our model, shouldn't He be imitated in every aspect?.

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A Letter to my unborn child about the state of the country

Dear Child,

I was worried sick about you coming to this world precisely to my Motherland –Nigeria at this time. I went to bed thinking about the State of affairs in Nigeria and wishing that you take some time before leaving your mother’s womb. I woke up just after midnight to write you just because I care so much about you. My plans was to fly your mum out of the country to the UK just before she enters labour at least to get you that British citizenship but those plans have been thwarted because the British Government discovered that pregnant Nigerian women are been flown there just for the same reason. I kept thinking about the hospital where you would be born here in Nigeria as a good number of them lack adequate medical facilities and qualified personnel. I want the best for you that is why I desire that you have a quality education but there is nothing like that here in the country and the few good schools can only be assessed by the nouveaux riche. Billions are allocated to Education every year on paper but what get to schools at the end of the day is peanuts owing to corrupt middlemen in the system. Throughout my four years study as a Biochemist, I never saw a DNA molecule, worse still; the only enzyme I purified was a previously purified one whose purification steps I got from the Internet as the supposed wet science (Biochemistry) was studied theoretically. This should show you the level of the educational decadence here. Due to my love for animals, I spoke to your mum about visiting some Zoo’s around the country when you arrive but the problem is that some of these Zoo’s are empty, filled without just monkeys and birds yet Billions are allocated to Tourism yearly. Your mother developed phobia for airplanes due to the now traditional plane crashes. Formally, our complaint was about the deplorable state of Nigerian roads now our concerns have moved to our Airspace which is now unsafe as most of the planes are way older than me and lack proper maintenance.

My child, another issue of great concern is where you would work after schooling. Over 70% of University graduates in Nigeria are unemployed; the other 30 or so percent are either self-employed or underemployed as it is a very common phenomenon to find Engineers working as Bankers and a Microbiologist working as a public relations officer in an IT firm. The country is ridden with dishonest politicians, hypocritical preachers, ailing institutions, religious bigots and a faulty political system.

Dear child, I advise that you leave your mother’s womb only and only if you are sure to bring the expected change this country requires i.e. If you would be that student that would uphold morality and not cheat during examinations, if you would be that corrupt-free and honest politician, if you would make sure that funds gets to their rightful place as a middleman, if you would invest in lives and not jets as a Man of God, if you would carry out your job effectively and not accept bribe as a civil servant and finally, if you would be that selfless, patriotic and hardworking Nigerian. If you would not be any of those, I suggest you cling to your mother’s placenta and continue swimming in her amniotic fluid until the Economy is stable and things are as they should be.

                                                                                                                                       Yours Truly,
                                                                                                                                       Potential Dad.
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