Comments on naijablog: Jide Adeniyi-Jones' thoughts on Nigeria

That’s looks so nice your posting. Everything look...

2009-12-28T20:47:26.792+01:00

That’s looks so nice your posting.
Everything looks good in your posting.
That will be necessary for all. Thanks for your posting.
Bathmate

I read your blog,but am wondering what has happene...

2008-04-07T07:28:00.000+01:00

I read your blog,but am wondering what has happened to you,no new post for a long time now.

This week Iceland hosts a Play The Game conference...

2007-10-29T15:13:00.000+01:00

This week Iceland hosts a Play The Game conference about sport and society - mega events such as football in Nigeria and Ethiopia will be debated. Help us create debate and dialogue on www.thepulse2007.org

the main issue about nigeria is simple, we just ne...

2007-10-27T03:53:00.000+01:00

the main issue about nigeria is simple, we just need to remember that we are not here in the present to 'finish the futre'. if the likes of Azikiwe, Awolowo and Balewa had this present day mentally of 'make i chop my own comot', nigeria would have been sold out to foreigners by now. these men had a dream for nigeria, but i guess there dreams died when they died.

Hey Jeremy. Did the Mosquitoes finally get you? Wh...

2006-07-12T11:28:00.000+01:00

Hey Jeremy. Did the Mosquitoes finally get you?
Where you at man? Does anyone know if the this guy can still fog up a mirror?

Where are you? I keep checking back for updates b...

2006-07-11T05:08:00.000+01:00

Where are you? I keep checking back for updates but don't see any. Hope all is well!

koboko floggings said... Anon,I take your point, b...

2006-07-10T22:18:00.000+01:00

koboko floggings said...
Anon,

I take your point, but there is no need to put the guy down.
You clearly have a problem reading and understanding. Nobody put the guy down, we merely gave an opinion on his article. There was nothing personal there.

You might want to familiarise yourself with the concepts of free speech & constructive criticism

If you dont like it or if you are unable to grasp it, or see the corehency in it, then please do not poison the minds of others.
This is another stupid conclusion.
Offering people an alternative point of view is not "Poisoning their mind". Perhaps you should give the readers of the blog an opportunity to see what others have to say about the article.

Unless of course you believe they are idiots who cannot understand these things without your guidance!

Nobody needs a mythical "koboko" to tell them what to think. Who made you the decision-maker on what is good and what isn't?

A blog is a place for free comment. It is meant to stir up discussion. It is not a praise sheet.

Hey Jeremy, where are you? You hardly ever disapp...

2006-07-10T19:40:00.000+01:00

Hey Jeremy, where are you? You hardly ever disappeared for this long in the past! Guess you just decided to have a well-deserved break without informing your audience in advance ...

Very long-winded but an interesting read.....We wi...

2006-07-09T20:50:00.000+01:00

Very long-winded but an interesting read.....We will always have different opinions or else we would all be muppets with the same way of thinking lol...no I think everyone has been able to support their views well..

Jeremy n others,
P.S. Check out the forum I currently have going on my blog for a week. xxx

Anon,I take your point, but there is no need to pu...

2006-07-08T15:44:00.000+01:00

Anon,

I take your point, but there is no need to put the guy down. If you dont like it or if you are unable to grasp it, or see the corehency in it, then please do not poison the minds of others. Please respect my name.

Koboko, the hallmark of civilised discourse is the...

2006-07-08T12:02:00.000+01:00

Koboko, the hallmark of civilised discourse is the right to differ with others without resorting to invective. If anything, as I commented, it is the author that was unduly pessimistic in their analysis. I’m not surprised that the article wasn’t published. No editor worth their salt would touch this and not because it’s controversial. It’s an incoherent polemic! As for being jobless, I’m not sure how you’ve reached that conclusion. But even if that were to be the case – which it isn’t - are you saying that the jobless shouldn’t express a point of view?

Thanks Kemi. Dele's speech I thought conveyed an elegant and eloquent analysis of the challenges facing Nigeria today. However, I feel slightly frustrated that most of the debates and discussions never advance beyond analyses of why Nigeria is failing to achieve its potential. I suppose it’s much harder to come up with critiques than to proffer grounded and tangible policy prescriptions for change rooted in a long-term vision for the country based on social justice, egalitarianism, and equality and opportunity for all.

I feel much of the contemporary analysis is becoming dated and ignores the shifts, changes and opportunities taking place globally e.g globalisation, pace of technological change and a weakening of Western capitalist hegemony.

These global factors and recent statistical evidence over the last fiver year indicate that the direction of travel is positive and I am generally more sanguine about the prognosis for Nigeria. Inflation is down, GDP has grown, infant mortality has fallen slightly and inward investment has risen. The recent debt-write off also represents a golden opportunity for investments and programmes targeted at poor.

However, I fully concur that there is a long way to go. Levels of inequality are shameful, relative poverty as measured by per capita income is one of the highest in the world, poor governance and corruption is still endemic and youth unemployment is leading to high crime waves etc. I could go on. The point I am trying to make however is that we need to be more balanced in our diagnoses and be bolder and more visionary about the way forward.

If I were in Government one of the first things I would do would be to redress the structural imbalance in the economy brought about by years of over-reliance on oil as a source of revenue. Sadly, this is an area successive governments have persistently neglected. So long as we fail to nurture and promote alternative economic activities, particularly those within which Nigeria can develop a sustainable competitive edge I fear most of the above challenges will persist. We also need an honest national debate on the way forward for a more equitable redistribution of oil revenues. The situation in the Niger Delta is a disgrace almost on par with apartheid and cannot be allowed to continue.

My other prescription is socio-political. The pace and breadth of change will largely depend on Nigerian public. They have a shared responsibility to become better informed citizens, more socially enlightened, less apathetic, to hold their public institutions to account and to stop being so malleable to the sectional manipulations of the ruling elite. They need to stop selling their votes, use their votes more wisely and to police the democratic and election processes so that elections become truly free and fair. The question is how can we make this shift in power come about?

Excellent! There is hope in the land.

2006-07-06T08:48:00.000+01:00

Excellent! There is hope in the land.

There is a worrying strain of nationalism that con...

2006-07-04T18:40:00.000+01:00

There is a worrying strain of nationalism that contends that geography is the most significant aspect of existence. As an historian, I cannot doubt the significance of geography in human devalopment, but it has been over emphasized by those who wish to excuse the actions of their government by saying " America is not Sweden" or "Nigeria is not Iceland."

Perhaps this is only becouse we chose not to make it this way.

How is Nigeria worse off than Iceland? Certainly it has more natural resources, not just than Iceland, but than almost anywhere.

The British were corupt as rulers and foolish when the handed over power, the Nigerian élites, and the élites all over Africa and Asia and Latin América must learn to govern well, as one would hope that their educations in the U.S. and in Britain would help them to do.

Iceland is not Nigeria becouse Iceland is run for the good of the people in a manner which Nigeria is not. Not yet, anyway.

There's no need to imsult Kemi and anon. for expre...

2006-07-04T09:29:00.000+01:00

There's no need to imsult Kemi and anon. for expressing their opinion.

I find the article to be very good, and I agree with it 100%. Maybe it was a little long winded, but most Nigerian writers I know will always use 10 words when one will do.

Kemi and anonymous, you are both pessimists and co...

2006-07-03T19:32:00.000+01:00

Kemi and anonymous, you are both pessimists and confusionists. No wonder you are both jobless. You are also possibly sadists

Glad I'm not the only one who thought so.His thoug...

2006-07-03T11:54:00.000+01:00

Glad I'm not the only one who thought so.

His thoughts were neither here nor there and did not say anything I hadn't read a hundred times before.

Technically they were poorly delivered.

If you want to read a good speech/essay, the one by Dele Olojede which Jeremy posted here is heaps better and is actually coherent.

http://naijablog.blogspot.com/2005/10/dele-olojedes-speech.html

Not to be too negative but i found the piece a bit...

2006-07-02T20:38:00.000+01:00

Not to be too negative but i found the piece a bit too long-winded, a bit too negative and somewhat unfocused. What was the central theme of the piece?

'less is more' is one dictum a lot of Nigerian commentators would do well to take heed of otherwise they risk preaching only to the converted.

thank you for sharing the letter ... unlike americ...

2006-06-30T17:44:00.000+01:00

thank you for sharing the letter ... unlike america, perhaps, at least acknowledgement of all that is wrong belongs to "this is nigeria"; the layer of denial and lack of acceptance of responsibility in america still exists.

i surmise that with the common man seeing what is so wrong, and at least accepting that 'this is nigeria', nigeria is ahead of america in its healing and restoration.

thanks again.
peace & harmony,
elaine
'freedom must be exercised to stay in shape!'

Another dimension, check out: http://www.andnetwor...

2006-06-30T15:43:00.000+01:00

Another dimension, check out: http://www.andnetwork.com/index?service=direct/0/Africa/$StorySummary$3.fullStory&sp=l42090

Beautiful essay by Mr. Adeniyi-jones

2006-06-29T16:37:00.000+01:00

Beautiful essay by Mr. Adeniyi-jones

The Nigerian & African leaders have visited every ...

2006-06-29T09:47:00.000+01:00

The Nigerian & African leaders have visited every progressive country on earth, yet after decades of Phds and MBAs, these people go back home to only love their own group. They have forgotten their "racist" experiences in the countries visited. Inaction and ineptitude coupled with the sickness of Tribalism have meant zero progress. Special prayers have become their mantra, they have forgotten, "love all and serve all".

Life's education is incomplete without Chinua Achebe's "ANOTHER AFRICA" (excerpt here http://www.salon.com/wlust/pass/1998/11/cov_15pass.html) but Jide Adeniyi-Jones's thought on Nigeria will be remembered for showing us a true picture of home.

Nice post. I'm now an avid reader of your blog. ...

2006-06-28T18:50:00.000+01:00

Nice post. I'm now an avid reader of your blog. Very well articulated.

Beautiful, Jez. Simply beautiful.One day even Baba...

2006-06-28T07:09:00.000+01:00

Beautiful, Jez. Simply beautiful.

One day even Baba will realise that the 3rd term debate was one of the turning points of Nigeria's political journey, despite the bloody nose it inflicted on him.

Very soon also I pray Atiku discovers that a vote against 3rd term was not a vote for him.

Simply evidence of Nigeria's resurgent self-confidence.

Anon.

That was a write-up with no obvious bias points. T...

2006-06-27T20:39:00.000+01:00

That was a write-up with no obvious bias points. Thanks for posting it Jeremy.

Thanks for this post Jeremy. I would also like to ...

2006-06-27T19:52:00.000+01:00

Thanks for this post Jeremy. I would also like to thank the author. Very focused and interesting point.

ps: As an aside, I now have the cover of ayetoro's new album on my blog, perhaps you may have seen it in naija papers.