Young and unemployed Nigerians ''No Vote or Election''

Profiling Nigeria — It’s been more than four years since Nigeria's uprising young, educated and unemployed citizens struggles to find a job. It's no longer a hidden agenda. The govenment does not care about the young upcoming generations. The main reason why this generation needs to stop taking bribes from prospective candidates. Don't Vote! Make your voice known.

Thousands have decided to give up on their career dream to earn low income jobs like hotel workers, bus driver or start-up their own business. See picture above.

“We didn’t even care about politics ... We just wanted more options. Now, it’s all over.”

Most young and unemployed Nigerians who recently graduated university are told that they are too old for the work available. 25 seems to be the cut-off mark. Graduates with first degree and those with first class are inclusive. But there was once a time when young Nigerians had hope for something better. A time when they felt like anything was possible, and everyone in the streets knew what they stood for. Finish university and get your dream job. That era is outdated and the new candidates and incumbent government is not helping at all.


“The government fooled us,” replied 27 year old Chinedu who graduated first class from Lagos State University told osaseye.

“We’re still poor, even more poor, and there are no opportunities.”

“If I was able to get a degree and then a proper engineering job, things would at least be manageable,” says Osasu, a 31-year-old Nigerian from Edo State.

“With education but without a job ... our lives are stalled like a car.”

Earlier this year, as part of a reporting fellowship on youth unemployment hosted by The GroundTruth Project, colleague Chika Oduah and I focused on the country’s similarly disenfranchised youth.

Most Nigerians we spoke with said this chronic lack of opportunities, amid a culture of government corruption and growing economic disparity, looms larger in their day-to-day lives than the perils of the Boko Haram insurgency.

For many, Nigeria’s staggering unemployment rate and inescapable cycle of poverty has meant a life of crime and violence. For others like 24-year-old entrepreneur Tayo Olufuwa, necessity is the mother of invention, and entrepreneurs are working to fill in the gaping holes the state has long ignored.

“I just realized I could do something with my life,” Olufuwa said. “I could create solutions.”

In the coming weeks, GroundTruth will publish more of our work on young Nigerians like Olufuwa who have lost faith in in the Nigerian government, and have often taken matters into their own hands.

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Nigerian Politics: Reuben Abati bought at a Price?

The question remains on how much the Special Adviser to the Nigerian President on Media and Publicity, Dr Reuben Abati was paid to keep silent, retract his own critics as he became part of the GEJ administration.

Recently in a full depth interview, Abati was faced with the same virus again: Nigerian saying he has changed from being critical of the government before his appointment to being bought at a price.

''This is an old question. I have responded to this question so many times. I don’t owe anybody an apology. It was my decision to take, to work for government, and in particular to work for President Goodluck Jonathan because I believe in him and I admire him. And having taken that decision, I am not going to spend my time apologising to people because as an individual, I have the right to make a choice.''

''It was my choice to work for President Jonathan and to accept the position of his spokesperson and media adviser and I have absolutely no apology and I have seen that for me, it is a positive move because today, I consider myself much better informed, because I have been on both sides. I have lived the life of the outsider looking at government, governance and society from one observatory and I have also been inside and I can see how government functions.''

''I don’t think any form of apprenticeship in terms of exposure to public life can be higher than working with the president of a democratic country, working at the highest level of authority. It puts you in a vantage position to learn so much. If this was a course of study in which a certificate is awarded, I think I should be getting close to getting one, having taken so many course units and learning so much.''

''I am talking about apprenticeship in a serious sense, and the opportunity also to serve one’s country. I don’t think anybody can put that down by saying “you were once a social critic, you shouldn’t be here.” No. In fact, I will encourage so many other journalists and persons in other capacities to come into government and work for government.''

'' Why is it an issue that when a journalist works for government, people complain? There are doctors in government. There are engineers working for government, their colleagues have not carried placards. We all have a duty to play a role in the making of our country.''

''But of course, since I came here, I have seen many of those who criticised me ferociously - our own colleagues - hanging around and hustling for appointments and many of them have taken this or that position in government, much excitedly too. And when they land on this side, I say to them: ‘Ha, I thought you wrote an article the other day and published articles criticising Reuben Abati. You are on this side now too.’ I welcome them and I congratulate them. So, you see, I have no apologies whatsoever. I have no regrets also.''

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Goodluck Jonathan Nigeria's weakest President

Nigerians blasted President Goodluck Jonathan as the weakest president of Nigeria Friday, following the recent bombings in Lagos, Abuja and the North. The President’s speech defending his inactive approach at the 200 kidnapped school girls.

“He is a very, very weak president,” Nigerians twitted after the Friday interview with Journalists.


He said
“We all bear some pains, from the highest to the least because as a President, I may not go to everywhere I would have loved to go, these are some of the challenges I have to face”

As President Jonathan had in May, 2014 called off a visit to Chibok, the town where the 200 schoolgirls were abducted by Boko Haram.

“It is quite regrettable and extremely painful that when some Nigerians are struggling, thinking about how to contribute to the nation’s development, they are working very hard to take care of their families, train their children, others are busy planning to kill people, intimidate people, destroy peoples’ property. It is regrettable.

“It is one of the darkest phases in the history of our nation, but surely we will get over it. Some other countries have passed through such cloud before and they were able to overcome it and sail through.

“We share the pains of the people who have been directly affected, the pains of their families, but we will surely pass through this ugly phase of our history. The perpetrators of this, those who are directly involved and those who sponsor them will surely be brought to book. “I will use this opportunity to continue to plead with our citizens that under such situation, security operatives will come up with different options that sometimes will create some inconvenience for us, instead of condemning them, let us bear.

“Even for our citizens, under such condition, we have reached some level of restrictions and some pains, instead of shouting and insulting security operatives, let us give them maximum cooperation, give them relevant information.

“All countries that face terror suffer the same thing, citizens give maximum cooperation to the security operatives and help to contain and control, surely we will get over this.

“We are all mourning. I remember that very day we had a football match to play and all Nigerians were celebrating the Eagles hoping they were going to win, then this act came up, I was airborne then, it was when I got down in Malabo that I got the information. Surely, we will get through this.”

Nigerian citizens have given their maximum but I cannot say the same for you as President and Commander-In-Chief of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

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Nigeria's #BringBackOurGirls rise ends

Thousands of people in Nigeria and across the globe participated in the #BringBackOurGirls protest and demonstration late April and early May. That trend has risen to its biggest fall and death in a little less than two weeks.

The worldwide spread of the missing  Nigerian schoolgirls # BringBackOurGirls is reminiscent of many predictable trends and protest over the years. The kidnapped Nigerian schoolgirls are not returned yet, the Nigerian government has let us die not down and the world goes quietly about an important issue: Education for all

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First Lady's Fashion: Nigeria's Patience Jonathan worst looks

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (2nd L) and his wife Cheng Hong (1st L) pose for a photo with Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan (2nd R) and his wife during the welcoming ceremony in Abuja, Nigeria, May 7, 2014.

The picture above has become the second most talked about topics behind the Chibok missing girls.First lady fashion hell. Patience Jonathan does not act or look like a first lady. Her sense of fashion is zero. Is it harsh on the first lady. Let's take a look at the picture again(see below): She wears an African print with a mama old granny style and the color combo is repulsive.  Patience Jonathan has been named Worst Dressed woman and first lady in Nigeria. This photo doesn't do much help either.

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Osas Ighodaro takes over Wow magazine

Osas Ighodaro is on new "WOW" cover. The rise and rise of the actress turn Foundation owner is well documented on the magazine. Osas was born and bred in Bronx, New York but hails from Nigeria.

The Magazine is back with the pretty actress on the cover. So beautiful and calm on the cover of the US magazine.

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Gossy Ukanwoke, Founder of Nigeria's first private online university

This month's profiling Nigerian episode takes me to Gossy Ukanwoke. The then 21 year old entrepreneur founded of Beni American University(BAU), Nigeria's first private online university. Launched in late 2012, the school allows students to access their classes at any time of the day with any internet-enabled device. A 12 week online course at BAU can cost $100-$300, while the average age of students is 26.

"We are providing executive programs for graduates who are looking for employment and want to build up their resumes, or managers who want to climb up the hierarchy of their companies," says Ukanwoke, now 25 years old.

"We also have courses targeted at people who want to start their own business."

"When I created Students Circle in 2010," explains Ukanwoke, "I found out that ... many were looking for certificates, hoping that they could get something they could use to maybe find employment or get a promotion in the workplace.

"There was a need for a new institution to be created in Nigeria," adds Ukanwoke, who was once described by Forbes as "Nigeria's Mark Zuckerberg."

18 months into his new business endeavor, Ukanwoke has hired 10 instructors and has about 200 students, with an average age of 26.

A son of two teachers, Ukanwoke says he is driven by his passion to use technology to solve social problems.

"I grew up within the framework where education was put at a very high level of importance, and entrepreneurship is something that I always wanted to do," he says.

"Without education I don't think we can do any progress," he adds. "It's not just about getting a certificate -- education is about teaching people how to make a living and teaching people how to live; how to interact with others, how to lead their lives and make something out of themselves," continues Ukanwoke.

"With education comes discipline and we need a lot of discipline in Nigeria as well, so education is really important."

Culled from CNN

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Are Pastors Part of the Nigerian shadow government

Nigerian pastors are known for their part in shadow government. They tend to form a formidable force or form of agreement in the dark with the politicians and then preach the message on the altar. "The righteous is a guide to his neighbor; But the way of the wicked cause them to err." Proverbs 12:26 Rightly put, that some of these pastors are responsible in part to the corruption of our great country.

Most popular Nigerian pastors have been associated with current and past leaders of the country. They are helpers during election times: a guide to reach out to the congregation. To convince the public to get the votes out.Some of them are no different from the real politician. They are bribed, blackmailed and appear clueless when approached with such subject matter.

Noted speaker W Clement Stone warned that 'Be careful the environment you choose for it will shape you; be careful the friends you choose for you will become like them.'

It is sad that you hardly see or hear any of these pastors condemn a bad leader. They know some of the leaders are corrupt. In fact, they are friends in the dark. They form part of the shadow government to run the affairs of the country. 

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Nairaland Founder Oluwaseun Osewa gets Richer

Nairaland Nigerian Forum Founder Oluwaseun Osewa is the latest hero for January's Profiling Nigerians. Osewa is the proud owner of Africa's largest online forum. He founded the site on March 10, 2005 as a general purpose discussion forum with issues of interest to Nigerians.

His main goal was to be the Mark Zuckerberg of Nigeria. Hence the site was launched 14 months after Facebook. The site took off after a slow start and Nairaland now has over 1 million registered users and is the most popular Nigerian website today.

Forbes Magazine took note of Osewa's initiative and recognized the young brilliant Nigerian mind in 2013 as best African entrepreneurs under 30.

"I decided to start Nairaland when I noticed two odd things about MobileNigeria:

(1) Despite its narrow focus, it was the only Nigerian community that gave a voice to Nigerians at home. Most other Nigerian sites were owned and dominated by Nigerians in the US or UK. They covered only issues of interests to Nigerians abroad.

(2) The off topic section of the forum, covering topics outside telecoms, like romance and jokes, was becoming more vibrant than the Mobile Nigeria Forum itself, suggesting the need for a more general-purpose Nigerian forum.

This gave me the confidence to take forums like Naijaryders and Talknaija head on by starting a general purpose discussion forum with a strong bias towards issues of interest to Nigerians at home. I felt that such a site could attract enough traffic to make enough money from Google adverts. That’s why I started the Nairaland Forum" said Oluwaseun Osewa

Nairaland has done well. It is the seventh most visited sites in Nigeria after Google, Facebook, Yahoo, YouTube and Blogspot.

Osewa shared his vision for the next five years on Nairaland against his mentor site Facebook. "If I got 5 naira every time a developer offered to help me make Nairaland like Facebook, I would be rich enough to buy the moon!

But here’s the thing. You can’t beat Facebook. even if your website is perfect. Social networks benefit from ‘network effects’, which means the bigger they are, the better the experience. Facebook has grown so big that the only thing other social networks can do is die. MySpace, Hi5, and even Google’s social network (Orkut), and Microsoft’s Live Spaces have been beaten and are still losing members every day. If Google and Microsoft can’t beat them, I don’t think I should waste my time.

There’s an element of Facebook I’d like to incorporate, though. The ‘social graph’. It’s the reason why Facebook can have 500m users on the same site and yet, unlike most big forums, doesn’t feel over-crowded. The social graph approach scales so well."

So good things do come from Nigeria and No headlines or news media overseas will stream Oluwaseun Osewa's story except osaseye. People tend to add to the Growing negative perception about Nigeria in the world 

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How Goodluck Jonathan Became President: His Testimony! His Own Words

President Goodluck Jonathan is often called the Opportunist. I found his story one of the most intriguing and inspiring tale of Presidents. His Testimony! His Story! His Own Words is one from the smallest unknown communities to First Nigerian President from the State.

President Goodluck Jonathan (Before and After)

“Any child of Nigeria can be where I am. I come from the smallest state in this country; even within the state, one of the smallest communities in Bayelsa State. Even within the community, I am from one of the smallest families. But I am here today (as President) by the grace of God.

“But I totally agree with our man of God that it was not by chance; it was ordained by God. If God didn’t want it at that point, the North and South would not have come together. The details of the North and South coming together make Nigeria a great country. I use to say that Nigeria is great not because of oil. We have countries that produce more oil than Nigeria, but nobody talks about them.

“We have countries that have multi-million dollars in reserve because of their wealth. Yet, nobody talks about them. But the biggest to the smallest country talks about Nigeria. Why? It’s because of the diversity from the North to the South, the human and natural resources, the potentials and the population that we have.

“So, Nigeria is a country that has a special blessing from God. It is left for us to appreciate God and continue to pray for God’s intervention. This country will continue to be great.

“I promise our children that we are totally committed to make sure that they meet a different Nigeria. We will collectively work hard to overcome these barriers, these feelings of ‘Oh, I am Christian, or I am a Muslim; I am Hausa or I am Ijaw. Immediately we cross that barrier and we begin to believe that we are all Nigerians and we are committed to the development of this country, our children will surely meet a better Nigeria.”

“That is the type of Nigeria we want to create – a Nigeria where you can get what you want, if you work hard. It is not because you know somebody who knows somebody that will talk to somebody. We want a Nigeria where our children, if they work hard, will get whatever they want, just like in other free societies like America and so on. We will work with you to help you to get to wherever you want to go.”

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Nigerian Inspiring story: Jeweler Chris Aire's

Nigerian born designer Chris Aire is known as "the King of Bling,"in Hollywood. The jeweler from Edo State has risen above all odds with dazzling creations worn by the likes of Angelina Jolie, 50 Cent and Shaquille O'Neal.

"I had my little coach bag," remembers Aire when asked on how it all started? "I had everything in it 'cause seriously I didn't know any of these guys. So walking up to them you really have just a minute -- if even that -- to say 'yo, this is what I've got,'" he adds. "I had instances where people thought I was selling hot items -- 'this dude out here man, he's got some stolen stuff.'"

But after a year of hustling and persistence, Aire's big break finally came following an L.A.-based encounter with Gary Payton, the NBA star playing for the Seattle Supersonics at the time.

"I was just hanging out at a hotel waiting for him because I knew he was going to be there," remembers Aire. "And when he came down, the press rush that he had, he would have been justified in saying, 'hey man get out of my way."

Instead, Payton invited Aire to go later that year to a charity event in Miami and show him his creations. There was only one problem: Aire had no money.

Undeterred, Aire decided to max out his credit card and buy an airline ticket to Miami, even though he couldn't afford a return flight to L.A. But when he got to Florida, Payton was so impressed with his designs that he immediately placed a $50,000 order, buying a platinum basketball pendant for himself and other jewelry for his friends.

"That sale transformed my life," says Aire. "Not only did I pay for the flight ticket, I had enough to start building and doing a bunch of my own collection."


The son of a successful Nigerian businessman, Aire grew up in the West African country's Ivue Uromi region. His father wanted him to go into the family oil business, but instead Aire left Nigeria aged 18 to go to college in the United States.

But while working on getting his education, Aire had also to find a way of supporting himself. His first job was flipping burgers in a fast-food restaurant overnight.


"I would work from 10 pm to 6 am in the morning and then I'll go home, get a couple of hours nap and then go to school at nine," recalls Aire. "I was at school from 9 until about 4 pm -- and then I went home, got ready and repeated that again, five days a week."

After graduating from college, Aire tried his luck briefly as an actor and singer, before making his foray into jewelry with the help of a friend whose father was a jeweler.

After six years of apprenticing under his friend's father, Aire had managed to save $5,000. He then decided it was time to strike out on his own and form his own company.

"It was a leap of faith and I took that leap of faith," says Aire. "I was very confident in my faith because I believe whatever it is that puts the inspiration in your mind has within it its own fulfillment."

Since then, Aire has managed to build a thriving company whose A-list clientele is a roll call of cinema and music superstars. In 2004, Aire made fashion history when he became the first jeweler to stage a runway show at New York Fashion Week.

His sparkling creations include a diamond encrusted cuff -- priced at $1.7 million -- and a $500,000 diamond-coated guitar for hip-hop artist Wyclef Jean.

But even though he mixes with the rich and famous, Aire has not forgotten where he came from. He frequently visits Nigeria and is optimistic about the future of both his country and his continent.

"I think there is going to be a time when Africa, starting with Nigeria, becomes the envy of luxury market," he says. "There's massive wealth here but the Western impression of Africa has always been a country of people in need of charity, in need of aid, but Africa really is the last frontier."

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ASUU 150 days (5 Months) Strike

ASUU nationwide strike has “inflicted unnecessary damage” to Nigeria and its students: needless to say it has damaged education’s credibility around the world.

Efforts to reopen universities to students under the 5 months strike has been fruitless. Deliberations upon deliberations, finger-pointing and blame game between ASUU vs its members, Government vs ASUU and Students vs ASUU plus Government has taken the toil to 150 days.

The Nigerian people are completely fed up with ASUU and the Federal government of Nigeria. In a time like this when our economy is strong, we have allowed education to suffer so badly due to yet another self-inflicted crisis that set our country back.

Osas eye wrote last month on ASUU Strike, FOUR MONTHS AFTER: Where does it go from here? but today, this article is about a five month strike out of a 12 month calender year: Unbelievable leadership, Shameful for a country with so much wealth at its disposal. Our students deserved better! Nigeria deserves more than this chronic ongoing ASUU strike.

How it all started?

July 1, 2013: ASUU began a nationwide strike over alleged Federal Government’s refusal to implement the agreement between it and the union over unpaid entitlements.

August 6: The Federal Government team led by Benue State Governor, Dr. Gabriel Suswam had a failed meeting with ASUU officials at the office of the SGF as the teachers insisted on the implementation of the 2009 ASUU/FGN agreement.

August 18: Meeting between striking university lecturers and the Federal Government ended without a resolution of the crisis.

August 20: Jonathan met with the Federal Government’s officials engaged in the negotiation with ASUU at the Presidential Villa, decided to lead another negotiation with the leadership of the union.

August 20: FG approves N400 billion for infrastructural development in Nigerian universities.

Aug 20: ASUU threatened to pull out from the Presidential Committee on the Implementation of the Committee of Needs Assessment of Nigeria public Universities, CNANU.

August 23: The Federal Government reached agreement with ASUU to deploy N100 billion for the provision of infrastructure on campuses of 61 universities covered in the needs assessment .

August 28: National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) issued a one-week ultimatum to the Federal Government and the union’s leadership to resolve their differences or face serious consequences.

October 24: Senate mandated its leadership to wade into ASUU strike by meeting the Federal Government and the ASUU executives

November 4: Senate President, Senator David Mark met with the leadership of ASUU, but no resolution to end strike.

November 5: President Goodluck Jonathan in 13-hour marathon meeting with the leadership of ASUU in conjunction with representatives of the NLC and TUC.

November 12: Prof. Festus Iyayi, former ASUU President died on his way for ASUU meeting in Kano.

November 23: ASUU NEC members agreed that before calling off its strike government should pay the four-month salary arrears being owed varsity lecturers.

November 26: Management of Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki resolved to reopen the school after ASUU fails to call off strike.

November 26: Committee of Pro-Chancellors of Federal Universities called for the immediate re-opening of all shut down universities across the country.

November 28: Federal Government gives ASUU ultimatum to call off strike in one week or face expulsion.

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The Rise of APC movement in Nigeria: a Challenge to rulling PDP

In this definitive period ahead of the gubernatorial election in Nigeria analysis of the APC Party movement is RAPIDLY gaining strength. Osas eye examines the APC Party phenomenon.

Tinubu emphasized earlier this year that a new party would emerge from the existing three leading opposition political parties. Tinubu said: ''The merger thing is coming on fine. In every political environment you have hills and valleys. There are sincere people, our commitment to merger is not for us, it is for the country. It is not for today only, it is for tomorrow and the future of our youth, the liberty and freedom of the journalism profession.''

''We have to change Nigeria for better. And the only way we could that is come together under one platform.''
“We are in the SouthWest, our political opponents would want us hemmed in, they want us restricted to South West.''

On the eve of that statement, the APC movement was formed. Since the launch of the ALL Progressive Congress party, the ruling party has struggled within. The word crisis has been used multiple times, but a new opposition is here for Nigeria.

Fast forward to November, months after the merger, the Punch magazine, the newly installed winner of newspaper of the year recently reported in an article titled PDP’s loss, APC’s gain. 

In September, President Jonathan fired nine cabinet ministers from his ruling party amid serious divisions in the governing party.  

Five aggrieved governors of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party defected to the All Progressives Congress on the PDP’s fortunes as the nation braces for the 2015 elections.

In August this year, ex-presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, broke with the ruling PDP party to join the movement in a bid for re-election in the 2015 presidential polls. 

The new party has become a main opposition.

The APC now controls 17 states with 33 million registered voters, compared to the PDP’s run of 15 states with only 26 million voters.

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Sir Victor Uwaifo: Musician, Artist and Inventor

Victor Uwaifo is a renowned Nigerian musician, writer, sculptor, professor and musical instrument inventor, born in Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria in 1941. He is famous for his Joromi, "Guitar Boy and Mami water" song.

November's Profiling Nigerians takes osas eye to Sir Victor Uwaifo: an Iconic rare gem. He studied Fine and Applied Arts in University of Benin, specialising in Sculpture and also Graphic Arts at Yaba College of Technology. "I made distinctions, I made first class honours" he said. 

                                                     

 In early 2,000,  Sir Victor Uwaifo became the Commissioner for Arts, Culture and Tourism in Edo state.

He grew up in Benin and as a child, delved into so many activities; sports, story-telling, shooting catapults, making cages and even making toys like airplanes and cars 

"I was always a protagonist, I always led while others followed. That leadership quality was always there. Not only that, my contemporaries looked up to me to show them the way because I also came from a family of the upper-middle class. My father used to have one of the first cars in Benin City then. It was called Stood Baker, an American Ford."

How it all started

"I made the first guitar for myself before I was 12 years old. The skills I aqcuired from making cages and other artworks helped me in making the guitar from plywood. I used bicycle spokes for the frets and trap ropes for strings. Few months after I made it, I ran into some of these palm wine bar guitarists. I had to offer them a jug of palm wine before they allowed me to play their guitar."

"I acquired my own guitar at about 12 years of age. It was a Spanish box guitar. I took a few lessons. They thought me this or that, and I took it up from there. My brothers also thought me the rudiment or music, particularly the late chief magistrate. He was a church organist, so he could read music. He bought me a few books on the rudiment of music. From there, I started reading and teaching myself and taking courses by correspondence."

"Then we found what we called the Uwaifo quartet in which I was a guitarist. My sister was there, my late brother was there and my brother who is serving in the Supreme ourt, Justice Uwaifo was also one of us. Mr. Emmanuel Fadaka used to come from Ibadan to come and record us because that was the only radio station in the whole of Western Region by then. So our voices were heard on radio at Ibadan. But I made my first album around 1960. I was already in Lagos then."

Music career of Victor Uwaifo
"When I was in secondary school, I played with some bands like that of Victor Ola Iya, and finally, I anchored with E. C. Arinze for about five years. It was there I really acquired the knowledge of orchestration and the knowledge of music management. We were stationed in Kakado, a very popular night club in Lagos by then. There was so much discipline in the band."

"While still in the band, I started recording my own songs, and I called the group The Pick Ups, because we picked them up from different places and we went to the studio to record. Then when I disengaged from E. C. Arinze, the same year, I formed a band with the late Stephen Osadebe and Freddy Coker. We called ourselves the Central Moderneers and we had a band in Central Hotel, not far from Kakado. We lasted only for a year before I went solo and by then I was working for NTS, now NTA. That was in 1963. It was in 1965 that I made a hit. By 1966, I resigned and went professional, and by 1967, there was a follow up of another great hit, and others followed."


Is it really true that your encounter with a mermaid at the Lagos beach is reason that no one has been able to match your skill at the guitar?

No, mammy water will not give you the skill, it will only probably inspire you to do more. That encounter with the mermaid at the Lagos barbeach gave birth to the song Guitar Boy, “If you see mammy water oh, never, never you run away,” that is the shortest lyric ever in the music industry, and it has remained evergreen till today.

Still on the encounter with the mermaid, considering your age at the time, how did you feel that night?

Well, I was looking for inspiration, so I used to go to the beach to cool off at the bar beach after close of work at NTA. At that time, television work was a night business, not in the day as we have it today. By the time we finished, to go back to the Mainland through the Carter Bridge, the only bridge available then, was not easy. So I used to go to the Barbeach which was just a stone’s throw away from the NTA. That was how the idea came into me to go for inspiration a the beach.

But that particular night, I stayed late into the night, I was alone, and I noticed that the waves were advancing beyond the normal point to my direction. I was forced to move my camp bed backward. I did that about two times, not knowing that an unexpected esoteric visitor was going to visit me. From a distance, I saw a glittering object advancing towards me. I looked, but I didn’t quite comprehend what I saw until it came very close to me. That was when I tried to run away, and then the voice came: “Guitar boy” and I screamed, “Eh!” That gave birth to the pull of string on my guitar. Nobody has ever pulled guitar string like that before that time. So I decided I must interpret that screaming on the guitar strings. So when you hear those rattles of my guitar, it is my response to the call. It was like a call and an answer, and it is still fresh in my mind, I still feel the nostalgia of that encounter.

Can you tell us what the mermaid told you?

That was: “If you see mammy water, never, never you run away, Victor Uwaifo.” and it disappeared.

Will you say you have attained fulfillment in your life?

You can see it. It is radiating all over me. I said it before that I am a fulfilled man. You might have money but not fulfilled. You can also be a popular musician but not fulfilled.

I have gone round the periphery of life, from music to academic, to art, to sculpture, to painting, to creating a museum that is different from all other museums. I am also an architect and an engineer. I made that car that you see outside there and drove it to Abuja about 20 years ago. So there is that fulfillment.

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Zuriel Oduwole: A Rising Star and a Name to Look Out For

Zuriels feature in the "Personality of the Month" segment in WOW Magazine's October 2013 edition and makes it into osaseye profiling Nigerians section for the month of October. Zuriel Oduwole is a fast rising star and a name to look out for.

Zuriel is becoming the fresh face of African youth, power, influence, edginess, focus, leadership, talent, and vigor. She just turned 11. In the last many months, she has met with leaders of 9 African countries including Kenya, Nigeria, Liberia, Ghana and Tanzania. She has also met with and interviewed the worlds renowned civil rights leader Reverend Jesse Jackson, the wealthiest businessman in Africa - Aliko Dangote, Tennis power sisters Venus & Serena Williams, leadership of the Danish Delegation to the United Nations, appointed honorary Ambassador by the First Lady of Tanzania in October this year, featured in Forbes Africa Magazine August 2013 edition as the youngest person ever, and last week in was celebrated in Todays Woman [TW] magazine.

As an award winning documentary film maker, circuit speaker, and a writer, she is truly, an inspiration to the African Girl Child, and an aspiring Nigerian Brand Ambassador. Her Dream Up, Speak Up, Stand Up program in partnership with the US Embassy has been launched in [3] African countries already [Nigeria, Malawi & Tanzania], and she is set to be the face of one of Africa's most successful airlines with global reach, in the coming days. What a rising star and yes good things comes from Nigeria

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Chimamanda Adichie (Author of Half of a Yellow Sun) talks about the Novel, 'umu Igbo' and the movie

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is a Nigerian writer and author of the bestseller Half of a Yellow Sun. At 36, she is one of the best Nigerian writer, if not in Africa. Her novel Half of a Yellow Sun premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival, the biggest in North America, in September. The Nigerian premiere is scheduled for early 2014. She has done so well for herself, the 'umu Igbos' and Nigeria as a whole. She is now featured on Osas eye blog's October issue of Profiling Nigerians.

Her second novel, "Half of a Yellow Sun", was awarded the prestigious British Orange Prize in 2007. The novel tells the story the Biafran war, which claimed nearly a million lives during the secession of the province of South East between 1967 and 1970.

Sold 800,000 copies not only in English and translated into 35 other languages.

"I chose not to get involved in the film, for my own sanity. This is a book which I am very proud of but, from an emotional point of view..."she says.

After seeing the movie, she said it was "beautiful" and "pretty faithful to the book" even though many parts of the book were not covered.

Chimamanda Adichie's grew up in Nsukka, South-East Nigeria, where her father was a professor at the university.

She was born seven years after the end of the Biafran war but the memory of the war has always been present in her family.

"My mother always said what happened before the war and my father constantly spoke of his own father, my grandfather, whom I never knew because he died in 1969 in a refugee camp" , she recalls.

"The war was still there. But I do not know the details of what had happened until I started reading about it."

"I think this is true for many people of my generation, especially the Igbos from families of former Biafra."

After the publication of the novel Adichie said she received testimonies of many people for whom the novel was "a gateway to their own historical point."

 "After reading the book, they went to ask their father, where were you in 1967?"

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Interview With Nigerian Governor

Nigerian Governor answers questions from Osa's eye in a behind the scene one on one interview about Politics, governance and changes in Nigeria. This is the second exclusive Interview and one of a kind for this month Profiling Nigerians. The Governor of the state spoke on conditions of anonymity. Following is a transcript of the interview with current Nigerian Governor conducted by Osa. The interview was conducted at the Governors office in a State, on August 2, 2013.   

                                 

Thanks for inviting me Governor. I am honored to be here. It's been two years since your administration was elected into office. And as your speech sort of laid out plans to rehabilitate your state during the election campaign, you still have a situation where growth remains slow, roads and schools are worse than before, and unemployment sky high. A lot of Nigerians are worried although this is nothing abnormal to what they are used to. They believed in you as a good person and that's why they voted for you. What has changed since?

Thank you for your time. First, I must commend you on what you are doing on your blog.

Thank you

 Now to the matter at hand. If you look over the last seven months, I have been struggling to deliver on the promises I made. I wanted the people of Nigeria to have an idea of what's going on behind closed doors. When we first met over the U.S, we talked about ways to effect a change in Nigeria. I told you then that it will take more than fifty years if not one hundred years before Nigeria will become a better place like America. It is hard to deliver on the promises. You see in America, the governors have their own police and the state have their own police too. We need to have something like that here. Each state have to be independent with a central focus. We need to have an agenda where every state has to perform to an optimal condition. If you are not performing according to standard, the senate should vote and impeach such person including the President.


What has been happening in the past two years is not reflective of my values and goals for my state. We see roads to the Airport, Downtown, Tourist area and stadium all brand new and in good conditions. Go a mile over East/West and you will see untarred roads. We are very deceptive. As soon as the money or budget allocation comes in, everybody comes in and takes their cut including. They stuck in their piles and the money left over is thrown at the Chinese companies to rehabilitate our roads.  I believe that is one of the main reasons we are not developing as a nation. Those educated are not trained and can't even get a job. We outsource our jobs to foreigners and allow them enslave our citizens. Too bad.

How can we effect a change in Nigeria? The governance and administration seems to be overly corrupt and inherited from one to another. Nigerians are waiting for Nigerians in the diaspora to come back home and effect a change. Where do they start from and how is this going to work?

Unless there is a radical youth evolution like the one that happened in Ghana, Nigeria is not going to change.The youth and the tax payers will have to stand up for themselves and say enough is enough. If you are not going to work for the people of Nigeria, get out of office and allow an strong educated person do the job. If it means paying them to sit out, that's fine, but we need people who are willing and ready to fix Nigeria.

Please elaboration on what you mean by radical revolution.
Today, if you are a good Politician and you are doing your best to fix roads, education, generate jobs for the unemployed and do something that will benefit the people of Nigeria, you will be taken out. Wiped out completely. You instantly become an enemy of the state and also enemy of the Political party that placed you in office. The youth and the upcoming generation has to fight because this is their country. They must say if you are not going to do anything in office, don't run. They must be very thorough with their statement like ASUU is going about their business now. The circle of events has to stop. Nigeria is better than this and if the leaders are saying it is too big to be governed, let's look at America. America is bigger than Nigeria and they are doing good.

Nigeria will continue to be hurting until the youth and the younger generation is restored back in place. There are somethings that should be non negotiable. Some things that ought not to be so. These things impact on the governance of the state. They impact on the governance of this great country. We compromise the goodness of the state and that of fellow Nigerians for money. I came to do one thing but the people behind my back and even some below me are all after money.  You can negotiate somethings but others should be non negotiable. We should never negotiate with corruption. This country is better than that. It has never worked and is not working.

Thank you, Mr. Governor.

Thanks, Osa. Appreciate you.

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Nigerian woman launches EbonyLife TV network

A new cable channel hit the television landscape in Nigeria. EbonyLife TV Network premiered to million homes on Sunday night. Nigerian woman Mosunmola "Mo" Abudu launched EbonyLife TV to inspire Africans and the rest of the world, and change how viewers perceive the continent.

Mosunmola 'Mo' Abudu

 Abudu, the 48 year old British born Nigerian has been considered Africa's Oprah Winfrey. The TV channel can be found on DSTV 165. The Editor-in-Chief of Forbes magazine as well as president and chief executive officer of its publisher, Forbes, Inc. was received with excitement by Mo Abudu and other members of the EbonyLife TV crew at the Eko Hotel on Sunday for the launch.

Steve Forbes with Mo and crew

"Not every African woman has a pile of wood on her head and a baby strapped to her back.We watch Hollywood as if all of America is Hollywood,” she said. “In that same vein we need to start selling the good bits of Africa. Everything you think you know about Africa is about to change,’” Abudu said.

Months of work to provide original content includes the flagship program “Sistaz!” about two Greek-Nigerian sisters and a British-born Nigerian friend who check into the Eko Hotel for a holiday reunion and rediscover the passion of sisterhood and the vibrant city of Lagos.

“It helps show that you can go to Africa for a holiday, you can go to Nigeria on holiday, you can go to Lagos” and enjoy a vacation, Abudu said of the much-maligned Nigerian financial capital that is much improved since the country transitioned from military dictatorship to civilian rule in 1999.

Abudu, a former executive with the oil giant Exxon-Mobil, abandoned a 20-year career in human resources in 2006 to become a self-taught television talk show host. “Moments with Mo” became the first syndicated daily talk show on African regional TV and also is aired in Britain on a Sky TV channel.

She has interviewed celebrities from Hillary Rodham Clinton, former African presidents F. W. de Klerk of South Africa and John Kufuor of Ghana, former England soccer skipper Rio Ferdinand, musician R. Kelly and American fashion icon Diane Von Furstenberg.

One program is hosted by rhythm and blues artist Banky W and singer-songwriter Tiwa Savage. Their first program discusses why more and more Nigerian women are bleaching their skins and whether men prefer lighter-skinned black women.

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Linda Ikeji: Success Story of a Blogger

This Month's Profiling Nigerians takes me to my friend and blog partner Linda Ikeji. A look at her success story as a blogger and how she made it to the Top 10 bloggers in Nigeria
                                       
Entrepenueur Linda Ikeji, was born in 1980 in Imo State, Nigeria. She began to show interest in writing as early as 10 years old. She pursued her passion through the university to study Mass Communication. She began working at the age of 17 as a waitress and model to support her early university expenses Linda recalls, “I’d leave lectures, go to a hotel and sell beer from 1pm till 10pm. I did this for a few months. It wasn’t easy but I had to survive”.

After completing her degree at the university she launched her media company, Blackdove Communications, a modelling agency and events management outfit. She also started what she describes in her first ever blog post as her “true passion”, her magazine called, FM & B. The first issue was released in 2006 and after discovering how capital-intensive and time-consuming magazine publishing was, only two more editions made it to print.

Through blogging innovation, passion driven strategy, and controversial gossipy stuff she became Africa's most popular blogger. Using the free blogger platform lindaikeji.blogspot.com has become a household name in Nigeria and the diaspora. In the process she became one of the richest blogger in Africa. When asked on her road to success 7 years later, Linda said “You have to love blogging. You can’t say I want to blog because I want to make money. It takes a stepping stone to get there. There are over a thousand blogs, but what will make people enjoy visiting your blog depends on the efforts you put into it. So, be passionate about it, be consistent, don’t blog once or twice in a week, blog everyday if you can, enjoy it, and love it.”
                               

Linda Ikeji

The blogger turned Author gave an insight about her first book It Takes You, Linda said “I hope more than anything else that everyone who reads this book learns something from it. I hope it changes their perception of some things and more than anything else I hope it inspires them to go out there and make something of themselves”.

Linda has become a motivational speaker, role model and fund raiser to many under privileged.

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Nigeria's big-government problem

Polls have repeatedly shown Nigeria's big-government problem to be wasteful spending. Almost all Nigerians will agree that government's spending on some ministry's are way too much. The addition of more ministry's to what we already have is alarming. Nigerians don't really need all those Ministry. Especially those ones for word purpose. It is a way to steal money. I won't call out names for now. But next time, I will.

The real problem with Nigerian government is that it is not as democratic as it should be. Government officials have too much power in our political system compared to the Judiciary. They seem to make, enact and implement the law. What are the roles of Judges, Magistrates and Supreme Courts Justices?

There are things wrong with the Nigerian government – things that need to be fixed.  Please, stop the idea that Africa is cursed or bewitched. Yes, we got our independence in the 60's, so what. We are the cause of our own problem. The issue of having a Personal Assistant to Assistant Secretary of John Doe is ridiculous.   The earlier the Judicial reforms and creation of new courts systems the better for us.

We are spending more than we can afford. Our economy is the fastest growing in the world, yet we are still in a dilemma. Out unemployment rate stands above 80%. Poverty rate is outrageous. The last I checked, no jobs. The government is not creating jobs, yet we spend more than any country in the world. Nigerians are frustrated and disappointed. We need a revolution against our political system. Not prayers. We have been praying since Genesis and no revelation. We need to stand up. This problem is getting worse.

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