Appreciation and Gratitude

Appreciation, as it has been said goes along with humility and value. It creates pathways for opportunities and blissful advancement because little things count. Appreciation opens doors. It is a good therapy for the New Year. View

Cyberwarfare: Israel and Iran

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, speaking at the opening of a new initiative to train young Israelis in cyberwarfare, said that Israel’s defense systems are under attack from Iran and vowed to create an ‘Iron Dome’ for the country’s networks. “Israel’s vital systems are under attack from Iran and other elements. This will only increase as we enter the digital age,” he said in a Tuesday speech at Ashkelon Academic College.

The cyberwarfare training program is three years long and aimed at outstanding pupils between the ages of 16 and 18. The Iron Dome is an Israeli missile defense system that helped defend the country from Hamas rocket fire during the Gaza-Israel conflict in November.

News: Clashes in West Bank

Eight men were reportedly wounded by live fire during Tuesday clashes in the West Bank town of Tamoun, after Israeli troops entering the town were approached by men hurling rocks. The clashes followed the arrest of a man allegedly belonging to militant group Islamic Jihad, a Palestinian source told AP. Israeli soldiers dressed as vegetable vendors arrested the man on Tuesday morning, the source said, adding that the clashes were started by the locals to prevent further arrests.

Gun and Bread

Humans everywhere are fighting two wars in two fronts. Fighting against the gun and fighting for bread. The United States has concealed this reality for long but now she cannot any longer. Click Here

The War Drum: Iran, the US and Israel

The imbroglio between Iran and the United States continues to assume a kind of muscular dimension on a daily basis. Obama instituted a law to stem the growing influence of Iran in Latin America in which the Iranian regime responded with vitriolic attacks. Now, Iran is flexing her muscle in the Strait of Hormuz in a bid to make the US and Israel know that she is not Iraq or Afghanistan. Click Here

Opinion: Who is killing the Internet?

Governments have been blamed everywhere of curtailing information and communication; from wiretapping in the United States and Russia to internet users' identification in China as well as North Korea and Iran's proclamation of national web. Apart from the government, there is a whole new world of internet killers; the trolls. Click Here

News

Luanda — The number of deaths following the tragic incident recorded on Monday at 07:30 pm at the gates of Cidadela Sports stadium, in Luanda, rose from nine to ten, said Tuesday the spokesperson of National Fire-fighters Department, Faustino Sebastião. Click here

News

 

Demonstrators lead protest against African migrants on December 31, 2012

Israelis in Tel Aviv demonstrated on Monday against African migrants after a young Eritrean man was arrested for the alleged rape of an 83-year-old woman. The rape reportedly took place over several hours in the backyard of the woman's building. According to police, the man was identified by DNA at the scene that matched DNA from a prior arrest.

News

Picture showing Venezuela's Vice President, Elias Jaua and Iranian President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad {Reuters} Iran has blasted US President Barack Obama for enacting a law aimed at countering Tehran's alleged influence in Latin America, saying it was an overt intervention in the region. "It is an overt intervention in Latin American affairs... that shows they are not familiar with new world relations," Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast told reporters on Tuesday. The United States, he said, "still lives in the Cold War era and considers Latin America as its back yard". "We recommend that they respect the nations' right in today's world... world public opinion does not accept such an interventionist move." Mehmanparast said Tehran's relation with all nations, in particular with Latin American countries, was "friendly" based on "mutual respect and interest". On Friday, Obama enacted the law which through a new diplomatic and political strategy to be designed by the State Department is aimed to counter Iran's alleged influence in Latin America. The Countering Iran in the Western Hemisphere Act, passed by legislators earlier in 2012, calls for the department to develop a strategy within 180 days to "address Iran's growing hostile presence and activity" in the region. The text also calls on the Department of Homeland Security to bolster surveillance at US borders with Canada and Mexico to "prevent operatives from Iran, the IRGC (Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps), its Quds Force, Hezbollah or any other terrorist organisation from entering the Untied States". However, senior State Department and intelligence officials have indicated there is no apparent indication of illicit activities by Iran. Iran, placed under a series of international sanctions because of its suspect nuclear programme, has opened six new embassies in the region since 2005 - bringing the total to 11 - and 17 cultural centres.

News

Security officials in Egypt say they have detained an Israeli army officer on the Sinai peninsula after he crossed the border illegally.

News

About 60 dead, 200 injured in stadium stampede late on Monday in Ivory Coast's Abidjan - Emergency official, radio

News: Religious Barracks

 

A nation at war with itself. Exactly how did we get here? This is meant to be the first question on the lips of every responsible statesman. It is an ironical irony that those who are meant to ask the question which is a prerequisite for solving the quagmire, debacle, menace and attack inferno are covertly happy with the status quo because it allows them stay longer in power and loot. For how long will tanks line the 'Holy Homes?' Divide and rule.

News

Indian police have said they expect to formally charge five of six suspects with murder in the death of 23-year-old woman who was raped on a moving bus in New Delhi last month.
The sixth suspect in the case that has outraged the country is under 18-years old. Under Indian law, juveniles cannot be prosecuted for murder.

Police ordered a bone test for the sixth accused to confirm his age, according to a police officer who spoke to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity as he was not authorised to talk to reporters.
Rajan Bhagat, New Delhi police spokesman, said on Tuesday that a charge-sheet in the case will be filed in court on Thursday.

Police also said they expected to receive the victim's postmortem report on Tuesday.
The suspects face the death penalty if convicted. The physiotherapy student died last week in a Singapore hospital where she had been sent for emergency treatment after the crime in India's capital on December 16.

News

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas pronounced 2013 to be the year of “statehood and independence” for Palestine. In an address celebrating the 48th anniversary of the Fatah Movement, Abbas expressed hope that prisoners will be freed and refugees returned to their homeland in 2013. In November, the UN overwhelmingly voted to grant Palestine non-member observer status. Israel strongly opposes Palestinian statehood, despite the notion’s widespread international support.

Counter-Terrorism: Abuse of Intelligence

ABUSE OF INTELLIGENCE

Redefining Counter-Terrorism Strategy

Nothing, it has been said, is new under the sun but the only thing humans have successfully done is to keep off of the learning game despite the whole projection in education. Terrorism is not new in human history but what continues to be new is the increase brutality of conventional military in response. The world has seen the US embassy bombings in Tanzania and Kenya in 1998 as well as the Bali bombing in 2002 and several other attacks in India with the foremost being the Mumbai twin bombings. Russia has several from Chenchya and in the North Caucusus. That on Israel needs no mention. With all these, the world learns not. What is the marriage between conventional military and terrorism? Clearly limited except to tell the people 'Might is Right.'

If the military is the best panacea for terrorism, Israel today will be the safest place in the world. The US today would have gone to bed with all eyes closed after taking on al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan and Pakistan but instead these countries are becoming increasingly insecure. One does not need a sorcerer or a soothsayer to reveal that conventional military has no strategic and long term cure for terrorism. The only advantage of conventional military is on the tactical side. The tactical side must be backed up by the strategic long-term policies which, based on historical counter-insurgency measures must encompass both intelligence and socio-economic revamp. The most crucial fuel of terrorism is social and economic ostracism. When a people feel they are not really valued, alienated and trampled upon, they result to subversion. Perceived oppression begets terrorism.

In case of the current world terrorist activities, terrorism has largely been associated with religion. It now looks as if Islam is Terrorism. Action and reaction are equal but opposite. Going by global events, it is only a locked heart that will fail to see that Islam has been touched with painful hands by powers of the world. Power lies West, culture lies East. Power and culture are at war. Power has shown the world that might is right, culture wants to prove that all wars are war, either by powerful military force or by selective killings. To win the war on selective killings known as terrorism, intelligence must marry root-causes not conventional military. BUT, the first is for power to check itself. Power needs real and deep introspection. Power must not blatantly oppress culture; either its religion or manner of governance. Ironically, conventional military is the best fuel for terrorism because it makes the terrorists defiant and turns people's hearts to them. It is a case of choosing the known devil than the coming angel.

The strategy of terrorism is a semblance of simultaneous attacks from several directions (SWARM). A good question is: How can conventional military fight these acts in all directions? Almost impossible. They have no uniforms, they are readily among the populace. Some of them are capable of even watching an after-blast, in fact, even sample people's comments. Fighting terrorism means the army or conventional military must create the swarm units to swarm the terrorists. This has cogently been elusive in modern military strategy on counter-terrorism. Terrorism cannot be fought with large mass of troops. Terrorists cannot be defeated with powerful and massive military firepower. Civilian casualties is what this brings. The only thing this can and will do is to alienate the population the more thereby creating more and more fertile grounds for the terrorists. Tactical success no matter how blossoming can be locked by strategic failure. Japan today would have been an indirect enemy of the United States after the American occupation if her economy and leaders are corrupt like Afghanistan and Karzai.. Swarms of attacks would have wearied out the US in Tokyo a long time ago.

The only way to counter terrorism is to combine intelligence and long-term strategy of winning the hearts of the people through the destruction of all insurgents gasoline (reasons for insurgency). The ember of annoyance and ill-feelings must be logically extinguished. Every terrorist cell has reasons for actions, both remote and immediate. Intelligence brings out these causes while strategy gradually eliminates them one after the other. Religion-influenced terrorism is on the highest scale today. Terrorists easily relapse to religious dogmatism to gain converts and spread tentacles. Identification of the rationale for the attack(s) must be the first mission. Rather than wage war on the people or show a strong antagonism of their religious belief and doctrine, a consciously sustained campaign of what the religion really stands for and truly preaches should be sought from well-meaning clerics and must be publicly revealed as well as generally debated. First strategy. This will be the foundation of intelligence gathering.

In state-sponsored terrorism, the first strategy should also be rationale identification. After this, the government of the attacked state must be ready to launch swarms of secret missions on the brains behind the cell(s) within the attacking state circles. A perfect illustration is the death of nuclear scientists in Iran. Be that as it may, government over the years have not learn anything worthwhile owing to the numerous superfluous firepower usually employed. The US failed in Vietnam, USSR failed in Afghanistan. The US is again failing in Iraq and Afghanistan. Russia is failing in the North Caucusus and Nigeria is failing in Borno and the Northeastern States. Kenya cannot close her eyes because of al Shabab. ECOWAS could also be preparing to fail in Mali if it employs massive firepower and makes the rebels turn to swarm tactics using cells.

BRIEF LESSON FROM HISTORY

From 1948, Britain was combated with the Malaya Revolutionary Liberation Army (MRLA) insurgents mainly composed of 99% Chinese and few Malays as well as Indians. The insurgents had drawn a map of a three-stage Marxist revolution. The first attack came in June, 1948. Britain wasted no time in reacting. It was swift, ferocious, good co-ordination and excellent perseverance. Major I A Nass says ' Britain remained an outstanding model of success of regular armed forces fighting low-intensity internal insurgency.' Major Daniel S. Challis, writing in the United State of America Command and General Staff College (USCGSC) journal said that 'no better example demonstrates how properly trained forces, committed to a clear strategic objective, can engage seasoned guerrillas on their own turf and win'. British and Malay troops numbered about 60,000 police and later 40,000 Home Guards. To decisively swarm the guerrillas, another private army of Payan Kampong Guards reaching over 20,000 joined the fight.

The approach of Britain was a combination of economic, social, political, psychological and military means. All these were merged into civil action programmes and combat action activities which were resource intensive, requiring long time planning and co-ordination. Real patience. There was no quick-fix approach which Nigeria is employing in the case of Boko Haram. Military operations were brought under police and civilian (political) control at all levels. There was tough curfew enforcement, amnesty was granted to communist insurgents who freely surrendered and there was a nation-wide registration system. All these made the work of the rebels difficult. Registration in particular made it cumbersome for the insurgents to mix freely with the population. Realising the root causes of the insurgency from assessment of the situation, the British embarked on programmes aimed at addressing the fundamental social, economic, psychological and political issues. All these contributed to the demise of the insurgents as they became brutal in response and alienated the people from themselves.

NO LESSON LEARNED

Numerous wars have been fought after that of Britain in Malaya against guerrillas and terrorists with no lessons learned. The most catastrophic are the ongoing ones in Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Yemen not excluding Somalia. Nigeria has double to deal with, Boko Haram in the North and Tuareg rebels of Mali in the Sahel. Nigeria's counter-terrorist measures though not sophisticated tend to mirror and tilt towards that of the US. In fact, US is her role model in all ways but good governance and value of citizens' lives as well as sound economy. Even Sri Lanka was able to decisively ward off the Tamil Sea Tigers rebels when the Sri Lankan Navy shifted to light fleet and swift vessels attacking the Sea Tigers from all angles (given the war back to them the way it was coming). More so, the government was also perfecting its political arsenal as well. It was sharpening its governance polemics to win the people's hearts especially after being accused of human rights violations. The US fought al Shabab in Somalia and the Taliban in Afghanistan without good knowledge of the terrain and with no strategy of winning the hearts of the people. Such blunder she committed too in Iraq. Exactly what Nigeria is committing now in Borno and the Northeastern part and ECOWAS might likely commit in Mali.

The only lesson we have learned from history is that we have not learned anything. Not until when nations learn to study the background rationales for terrorism and come up with broad long-term plans and counter-terrorism strategy based on more police actions and intelligence gathering will terrorism subside. The whole affair now is that with all the mammoth military force being employed and deployed, terrorism is on the rise because the people are terrorised in mostly two fronts (militia-terrorism and military-terrorism). The likely result of this is for the people to accept the 'un-uniformed' ones who are likely to eat and sleep with and around them. They will continue to choose the devil than the deep blue sea unless the sea presents a smiling face and reduce aggression to the barest minimum. Until they realise and know the sea will not swallow and drown them before they can decide to swim in it.

Lost Empire: Conclusion

 Lost Empire

Lacerating Knowledge and Action

'Action without knowledge is futile,

knowledge without action is waste.'

-Confucius

Rather than challenge the system out-rightly, lecturers embark on industrial actions for more funding centred on recurrent expenditure not capital. The students too see no real reason in making the custodians know that their future is in real jeopardy due to their lackadaisical attitude and dispassionate zeal towards researches, mentoring and innovation. Students of University of Lagos trooped out en masse to protest the change of

nomenclature (from University of Lagos to Moshood Abiola University) by the Federal Government, can they ever stage such against the university authority? Can they ever stage such against those who continue to sell and circumvent their future for their personal benefits? Capital NO. Misplaced mission. Teachers are cheaters.

Just like their political mentors, lecturers drive and change exotic cars at will in Nigeria. They complain of lack of funds yet they ride expensive cars creating a cycle of ostentatious competition. Same note of the 80s is given to students in 2012. No change in even the smallest alphabet. Education or Retardation? Lecturers are gods. Challenging them even when they glaringly teach inconsistently is going against one's grade for the job search after school. What a shame! Students want nothing other than money. Well, that is the worship centre of the society. Thinking otherwise is so debilitating and detrimental. Such an individual will become ostracised in a way in the family and among peers. A fact I can attest to personally.

In the other round of the game, if one goes the way of innovation or try to incite the revolutionary spirit for effervescent changes, one will die of paucity of funds and hunger. No one is ready to support the revolutionary or board the train of change. Futuristic plans and projections are anathema to many youths. The syndrome is 'make the cash now.' The system is so bad that the lecturers like the politicians are innately joyous because it brings more financial benefits than an accountable scheme where more will have to be spent on advancement and development and less for the pockets. As at 1986, Nigeria produced an African giant and Nobel Laureate in Literature, Professor Wole Soyinka with worldwide recognition. Long before then, Africa made the world view her force with Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart. Ngugi wa Thiongo, Peter Abrahams, Leopold Sendar Senghor, David Birago Diop among others gave Africa strength and vigour.

China just got the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2000 with the emergence of Gao Xingjian. Despite this, can Africa states combined raise eyebrow where China is? What went wrong? Avarice. Why has the Nobel Prize in Physics, Medicine, Science and even Economics eluded Africa? Why has Africa not fix names in these fields? Colonial Education. The type of education meant only for slaves is ubiquitous in the continent. Education for clerks and government scribes. Africans have become Doctors and Professors in speaking and writing but toddlers and pupils in innovation and technology. Almost zero in science. Finland revolutionize her educational system and beats the United States at it. Government in Finland has no stand when the US talks but education in Finland now can shut up the US. Singapore saw the need to build the future and it does nothing than massively invest in educating the youths.

Student Unionism back is those glorious eras was to influence policies for the FUTURE. The abrogation of defence pact with Britain in 1962 by the Nigerian Government was due largely to students' objection. How about challenging the military? Students then were simply awesome. Now, students wait to share crumbs. They beg for marks and worship those who continue to make them intellectually handicapped. Those who make them job-search vultures. In Africa today, Kenya is the country with awe-inspiring prospects of fielding names in the nearest future in technology and innovation. Despite being a foremost representation of African Democracy – Politics of the Tribes – she is gradually building a future around technology and innovation. The coming of the 'Silicon Valley' to Nairobi is the gateway. Accra is coming up too.

Students in 2005 made Jacque Chirac abrogate the controversial working policy proposed by the French Prime Minister of employing fresh graduates on contract for two years by companies and they can be laid off thereafter. Cars were burnt and many destruction occurred. Even as a staunch advocate of no destruction in protests, I cannot totally say it will not occur in diehard situations. The only caveat is that all incendiary actions must be on the perverse leaders and thieves. Recently in India, students protested the killing of a teacher who is against government policies that are anti-people. All these show that they are thoughtful of the future. They are strong and determined at heart. North African revolutions as well as the Arab Spring without the youths could have been nothing but bloody lost for the people but the zeal for a better future gingered the youths.

I wonder if Professors in Agriculture Institutes know that robots now work on farms. Well, they can go to Denmark for the latest innovation in robot-driven tractors and planters. Different seed improvement techniques, pest control mechanisms as well as genetic mutation of crops not excluding scientific cross-breeding exist yet none seems to be in reflection in the society with Agriculture Institutes. When all these are mentioned, these professors should have it in mind that they are not mechanisms and methods of the 60s and 70s that are referred to because textbooks on their shelves are dusty and brownish. A signal that they are outdated and out of usage. Graduates in agriculture after years of studying still see the same field as not meant for them. Dirty occupation. Not classy. It is not the oil industry and finance corporations where monies fly around with no records. What an education!

If indeed in Nigeria, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) can consistently, continuously and constantly send students home for them to retire at age 70 and get more raw cash, I do not see reason(s) why students cannot close all gates nationwide and demand government stop their pay till they are committed to sound education. Hold them hostage today because they are holding tomorrow hostage too. They should be committed to giving the future the best and show signs of this before they can have the best too. Law of reciprocity. It is a gargantuan pity that students cannot and will not demand this. At least, they receive the patronage of these ones sometimes as well as the government.

Many of the student representatives go on bulky embezzlement spree. They sometimes do so in connivance with university authorities. Solace in personal deceit is the order. Self deceiving self. Many say they wait till they get around government circles to effect the changes. Laughable. The naked truth is that they wait impatiently to purloin funds meant for the populace. Student activists only wait for government’s employment locomotive to loot. Educated thugs. Becoming executives and representatives of students is the surest way to be in wealth and be patronised in no distant time. All the killers of education, from government to lecturers down to students who are benefiting from the rot are joyous because a decayed system ensures that some microscopic viruses continue to be enriched with unalloyed impunity. Irony is that many wait endlessly because the pen-robbers are replacing themselves with their children and loyal cronies. Foggy future.

This is the major and main reason why they are ready to deploy any and every medium to shut the caves of those genuinely interested in revolutionizing the sacred groove of learning. Nothing can secure the future than the dynamic education of the youths. These destructive elements have tenaciously held on to the instruments of violence and oppression with their corrupt wealth. Any dissenting voice or act will easily be silenced. Only collective actions with the elimination of fear can oust them. African youths wait for old men in their 50s, 60s and 70s to speak for them and their future. They wait for the frail ones whom they are meant to care for to announce protests and declare industrial actions against bad policies jettisoning their own future. Here is a continent where the youths subconsciously do not see themselves as the trustees of posterity.

I know of many a student whose calling is not to read and read, all they know are practicals and they are best at it but the only thing the system allows is theoretical digestion. Tears of pity. The practical inclination gave birth to the Bill Gate of Microsoft and the Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook. South Korea closed her borders for ten years and the educational authorities taught the students an important slogan to make up and boost their morale for the temporary inconveniences: 'What we do not have, we do not need it. What we do not need, we must not have it. What we need, we must have it.' This was an anthem. Africa is the poorest yet the headquarters of worst ostentatious lifestyles. Here, youths have been fully indoctrinated in extravagance and profligacy. The victory of the 'terminators' of education are the derailed youths who now constitute the majority. All consciousness now is to swim in money. Get rich at all cost. No humanity. Where is the future? A rotten system has no accountability. Parents pay fees through their noses yet see no reasons to charge the system for efficient and durable deliveries. The submission.

Lost Empire

Lost Empire

Lacerating Knowledge and Action

'Action without knowledge is futile,

knowledge without action is waste.'

-Confucius

There is just about one thing education must teach: question anything and everything. Education like the resource curse has done almost nothing impressive to improve the African standards and exertions. The last time I checked, education is meant to simulate the creativity in students, it is meant to arouse the passion in learners which already is domiciled in their minds. Education sharpens intuition and create thought cycles that fuel polemics. The construction of the brain like a car has different components most centred on the creativity and passion of the mind. Just as it is called 'Automobile' in car manufacturing, it is called 'Education' in brain development.

For every innovation, there is a background knowledge. No one has ever given what he does not have or possess. African education ab initio was designed to produce clerks and colonial scribes. Has Africa moved beyond the prepared agenda? Largely, the answer to this will be unanimous among well-meaning Africans. Africa is averse to changes and dynamism. Policies are for men but in Africa, it is role reversal; men for policies. Stagnation. Viewing the world critically; education, if we question anything and everything should be able to inform us that our brains are designed so that the Supreme Being can be fair. That is why airplanes and submarines can be built, operating in remotest places. The only reason why there exist some events that befuddled man is for the constant and consistent realisation that there is a Supreme Designer. Metaphysics.

Back in the days of folklore and folktales, children and learners were made to answer puzzling questions. The answers supplied, the consistency and accuracy coupled with the acumen employed showcased the knowledge and wisdom of every child. Hence, from the word go, leaders were known. Community heads were closely watched from the outset especially from various royal and blue-blooded families. This is perfectly inherent in American democratic system. Talk of the Kennedy's, the Bush's, the Clinton's among others. Fathers were role models. Children were taken to various traditional icons to learn from though these were exceptions as children more often than not mirrored their parents. Emerging leaders were given special trainings and attention. It was not uncommon to trace adults' childhood days when they were suggested for positions. What is learned today?

Just as it is discussed today in the parlance of development, neocolonialism replaced colonialism and modern slavery replaced the heinous slave trade, brain drain replaced the colonial education of production of clerks and scribes. No war is so efficient and effective as the mental war. Once won, it stays forever or so it seems. For a counter-war on mental slavery, every aspect of the society must be on reset. Africans have believed nothing good can come out their educational systems. Can they be blamed? Appreciation in respect of this goes to the leaders, military and civilian who marvel in the enrichment of their pockets and in the luxury of sending their children overseas to study and still come back to take the places already prepared for them at the expense of the youths in the homeland.

When urine is combined, the foam formed forthwith could be as thick as phlegm. This is no exaggeration as the custodians of education have successfully aligned with those who have axed education and continue to chop it off to make it a brittle broom in the society. What does Professors profess? The educational system just like the society has tormentors in lieu of mentors. These ones internally kill the passion to learn. Failure glorifies them as their acts suggest. Almost all pages of newspapers have them castigating leaders day in, day out yet a cursory look at their own 'country', shows they are worst than the political leaders. Publicly blatantly, they corrupt female students. Sadly, they present the 'money-bag' proposal to male students. Certificates not knowledge.

Theories of the 19^th and 20^th centuries are taught and presented as if there are no advance researches. These lecturers and professors gag memories. Nothing kills curiosity like dead theories. It is just as if they only want to make sure the graduates and products dust their certificates at the end of their academic adventure and beg to be drivers. That they go down their kneels for those who in saner climes will rain accolades on them for making the society enlightened. It seems we hear of people like Bill Gates, John D. Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie from them. If Bill Gate was to be trained in a school meant for clerks from childhood and live in a society where everything encompassing his brain is survival and nothing but survival because of hunger and extreme societal decadence, I wonder what will simulate the innovative spirit in him. Same goes for others aforementioned.

The education of these ones ensures that even at elementary schools, visions already

exist to trail and missions to accomplish. These are the compasses and maps. Without the university degree, they can exert the inner dynamism and draw from the spring prioritized by the sanity of the society to create an ocean of expertise, innovation, investment, invention, creativity, business, development, uncommon and groundbreaking discoveries. Many of these do not get bored by the compulsory study of civics to teach morality when children learn more by what they see. Teaching morality while embezzling billions. Insanity at its worst. In saner climes, children eat and drink technology from the most tender of ages if such is their passion not outdated theoretical physics, chemistry, civics and economics of the 70s and 80s.

African educational system with particular reference to Nigeria is modeled on bombardment of subjects, mostly highly irrelevant. Little wonder while Africans in Africa are never part of world inventors, innovators or discoverers. It is almost in this part of the world that Institutes of Technology have more students studying Accounting and Business Administration than in Science, Technology and Engineering. Where is the connexion in nomenclature and mission? We compound subjects and courses with disjointed and disconnected results. Learning Institutes not Pressure Cookers. Taking a leaf from the research competition organised by Siemens which brought the duo, Katie Barufka and Neil Davey to limelight, one would realise that our educational system is nothing but an avenue to be maintenance and repair experts not inventors and innovators.

The students contested in areas relevant not only to what they learn in school but also the trend in the society. In other words, education and society must marry. The students proved their mettle in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM). Bringing same competition to Nigeria for example, English Language will be included, in fact, Chinese language also with the growing trend. Engineering and Technology will definitely find their way out. Theories of old are the exclusive preserve of our education. Then we ask, what goal is our education really geared towards? It is just one; to create graduates seeking jobs and teeming employment beggars. If during research fairs in institutions, professors cannot come out with anything innovative over the long years, what future lies in African education then?

What is the basis of a professor retiring at age 70? So preposterous. Greed. Lack of innovation and foresight. Lost belief in self. Absence of managerial and futuristic plans. The foremost are cowardice, complacency and complicity. The Senate President of Nigeria spoke in support and shame engulfed me. Birds of a feather. They have become so lazy that nothing else can they do than to sit and wait for the cool cash even though many do not go to classes. Lords, alpha and omega they are in their institutions. No one dares challenge them. Extremely powerful. All these to the detriment of academic propulsion. To become a Professor is to be versed in politics and political craftiness. Exemptions exist though minute.

As if this is not enough, students have been silenced with failure threats. Really disturbing. Future leaders become so scared to challenge injustice and the unfolding death of their future. All about good grades anyway. Education for jobs. Innovation, no vacancy. Graduates in Agriculture working in banks. Do they plant crops in ATM machines? Only three sectors remain the dream of most African students and youths if given the privilege of choice; banking, oil and politics. Are the Asian Tigers not of earth? They invested in innovative education. Brasil was at par with Nigeria and many African countries in the last decade. Today, Nigeria and African countries buy airplanes and other manufactured goods from her. What went wrong in Africa? Vision-less leaders, depraved lecturers/professors and above all extremely docile, pliant and complacent students/youths. Conformity is the jailer of freedom; Chinua Achebe is right after-all.

The only transformational event since the era of fresh air is that corruption has been refreshed. Corruption has taken on a gigantic turn. It has succeeded in becoming more powerful than the Nigerian state. Corruption as nefariously smart as it is, has negatively plausibly created two toothless, clueless and clawless attack hyenas and cheetahs; EFCC and ICPC. Goodluck Nigeria.

From Africa to the World: The Game: Phase one

From Africa to the World: The Game: Phase one: A lot has been said, written and known about the inhuman slave trade and obnoxious colonialism, though the discourse can never ever be elimi...

In 1979, the world recorded the change of a formidable US ally; the Shah of Iran. It was the year of the Velayat; the Iranian revolution. The Ayatollahs came to the scene and ever since had controlled events in Tehran. America is a country where all wounds are new. She hasn't forgiven the Ayatollahs not to talk of forgetting the outlining events in the American Embassy Hostage and the botched rescue mission. Iran has always been in the red book of terrorism after these events. The American spy; Israel follows the step of his special sponsor, tagging Iran as her number one enemy in the Middle East; at least, Saddam is dead.

During the Iran-Iraq war (1980-1988), America gave heavy weapons and artilleries to Saddam Hussein of Iraq; weapons the latter only used a fraction and kept the most sophisticated. Part of these weapons were used to bomb Israel during the Iraq-Kuwait war. Rather than retaliation, the US paid billions of dollars to Israel to calm the tension so a decisive blow can be done to Saddam and his arsenal. It paid off. Saddam was defeated and a UN inspection team was sent to check his arsenal. He cooperated a little and later sent the team packing. Old wounds are new; George Bush finally dismantled the arsenal America assisted Saddam to assemble in the infamous Coalition of the Willing attack in 2003.

Iran refused to learn. Saddam was not directly immediately attacked. It started from sanctions to make the economy crumble, then gradually there was a gateway for a military assault. Ahmadinejad and Khamenei know full well that they exist in the midst of enemies whose battleships and warheads lie across the Strait of Hormuz. Why trading fisticuffs when your economy is right in front of their warheads? Though Iran has complete access to a nuclear technology and by extension a nuclear weapon, the irresponsibilty of the Ayatollahs and the Iranian leaders over the years blurr all prospects of support.

One good thing about Iranians is that they are good thinkers. Very thoughtful Persians who love the Beautiful Persian Cat and will not want its death and demise, hence they are conscious of any Libyan-like or Syrian-like revolt. Just as US and NATO lied over the No-fly zone in Libya and Gaddafi's death is giving Assad's Syria a chance to breath, Iraq's lies and Saddam's death is giving Ahmadinejad's Iran the dim prospect of an eventual attack. The world waits.