pyoo wata

Microblogging, the experiment

2012-01-18T22:21:00.000-05:00

Recently found out that while I was busy neglecting this blog, it sort of died - literally. The domain name expired and somehow I had been kicked off of blogger. So my apologies to those who were looking for the blog and could not find it.
In the meantime, I am trying out another social media platform - tumblr - with the hopes that shorter blog posts may translate to more frequent blogposts. I have not yet totally abandoned this one, but expect to find my thoughts penned at my tumblog, i.e. tumblr blog, pyoo wata, the microblog.
Thanks for your attention thus far.

First, let's start with the heart-warming

2011-05-31T17:38:00.009-04:00

I absolutely love family photos...well not necessarily that of my own. Don't get me wrong, I adore my family, but we just never "got it." The youngest one would look mildly sedated, while another brother would stare off into the distance, contrived smiles or priceless expressions such as that of this young lad.

So when the family photos of the Johnathan family came out on ThisDay Style magazine (H/T Jide Salu), I couldn't help shelf my critical eye and let out an unnecessarily drawn out "Awwwwwwww...."

Let's not be naive here, family photos can be deceiving, but it was a long weekend, the weather was lovely, and a well-taken family photo makes me exceedingly happy.

I'll save my Obama wanna-be references for another post - you know, like this one. Oops, yeah, that one slipped.

And besides, I needed something to cheer me up after reading the disgraceful account of brutal domestic violence in the household of Nigerian Ambassador to Kenya, Dr. Chijioke Nwigwe. Warning, the pictures of his wife's bloodied face are graphic. I believe he is now being recalled from his post - but to me it is all a charade. Let's not be fooled, this was not the first time he battered his wife, and will not be the last. Some have claimed to have received his side of the story, in which the wife attacked him first and then in the process, fell down the stairs. Really? Do batterers and abusive parents have some sort of worldwide convention and make a list of alternative scenarios to be distributed to their card carrying members? The fell-down-the-stairs excuse has to be the oldest in the book.

Upon seeing the pictures, the first questions that came to bear - and mind, you, these were immediate visceral reactions - what would possess a man to attack someone's grandmother to that extent and what would keep an educated woman in such a situation? Like seriously, unu abuo kwesiri kwanyere onwe unu ugwu. I choro igwa m na unu ka na-akpa agwa nzuzu n'agadi?* But, on further introspection I knew that the first question was inappropriate - because I believe that her status as grandmother, mother, saint or devil really has no bearing on his brutality. And if one were to trot down that road further, as we are wont to do in our culture, we find ourselves on the slippery slopes of justifying situations amenable to physical punishment of an adult or ranking the deserved-ness (there must be another word for that) of one's respect on the basis on how active one's womb is/has been. And simply put, I hate that.

The second question, I danced around a bit on a previous post from several years ago in which I made remarks on a study on Igbo women's attitudes towards domestic violence - which yielded results that at first glance, may seem atypical, but track well with some of my personal experiences. The couple at the center of this tragedy, the Nwigwe's, are well-heeled, educated and the wife possesses dual British-Nigerian citizenship. I have witnessed a number of married women stay in emotionally and physically abusive relationships, despite lives that on the outside, seem relatively put together - in fact, envious.

*you two need to respect yourselves...you want to tell me that you still behave foolishly in old age?

No more menthols

2011-05-26T17:17:00.004-04:00

I hate cigarettes and the tobacco industry as much as the next non-smoker - however, I am concerned about recent talks to urge the FDA to ban mentholated cigarettes exclusively. (The link is a year old, but for some reason, a number of articles have come out from American Journal of Public Health this month and last about menthols)

African Americans are most likely to consume mentholated cigarettes and a ban would affect 90% of black smokers. If I could wave a magic wand, I would like to get rid of cigarettes, but sadly, reality is not so convenient. I still wish to look more into this topic, but I made some other preliminary comments elsewhere (link also presents related articles to the ban of menthols - seriously, haven't seen lazier public health/policy papers in quite a while).

...the fact that the majority of menthol smokers, if facing a ban, will turn to regular cigarettes presents another problem. It promotes the erroneous message that non-mentholated cigarettes, consumed by non-Blacks, are inherently safer than menthols – which is not true when you look at long-term outcomes – like lung cancer and even short-term outcomes like various biomarker loads...

But more importantly, a conversation about banning menthol cigarettes without a discussion on the inadvertent consequences of such a ban on minority communities, who are disproportionately harshly penalized by America's war against illicit drugs is a reckless one. See Warehousing of African Americans in prisons due to crack cocaine (and not the more affluent powder cocaine).

Camping and Kanazawa

2011-05-25T21:19:00.004-04:00

Yes, this used to be an unpublished half-post. Decided to run with it an publish it anyway before it gets too irrelevant. Urgghh, everything's moving too fast.

Evolutionary psychologist, Santoshi Kanazawa has perhaps set himself to be the Harold Camping of Darwinism. Both men, in recent weeks, have single-handedly shamed their bases and have become the poster children of all that is wrong with "these" sorts of people.

Long after May 21st rapture deadline, we're all here, save for the unfortunate events occurring in the Midwest. Never mind his failed 1994 predictions of the end of the world, nor Christ stating, and I quote "no one knows neither the date nor the time," the fact that the proclamation was a surprise to many in Nigeria, a country which hosts perhaps some of the most zealous Christians on the planet, should have convinced everyone of where they'd be after the weekend. And another thing about that, the idea that rapture central was in some random community in Florida - or was it California - highlights the pervasiveness of the idea of 'American exceptionalism," not only in politics, but also in religion. But, I digress.

Sadly, many have used the eccentricities of this senile radio host to point out their views on fundamental flaws of religion. Somewhat of an over-reach considering that many, within Christiansdom, including myself, dismissed Camping and those of his ilk a long time ago. I would have rather, people pay attention to news such as this, which begs for a face-palm.

Yes, I let out a chuckle or two at the Savage Mind's dismissal of evolutionary psychology and Kanazawa's, Why Black Women are Ugly piece (H/T Loomnie). I can't really imagine who in science-dom would take the article seriously. Anyone who provides an argument stating someone has a "higher mutation load," deserves a serious side-eye. Really, Kanazawa - you could think of any other way to make that sound more science-y? I kid. While I am suspicious of some of the goals of evolutionary psychology, I am not in a hurry to dismiss the field, yet. It could use a bit of help with PR. Kanazawa represents its wacky extremes, who unfortunately, speak louder than its moderate majority and severely threaten the field's credibility. In the words of Sex and the City's Steve Brady, "there's some good stuff here."**

My understanding of Darwin is largely limited to a few undergraduate courses here and there (I must admit, my interest in science primarily centers on its application, i.e. not basic science), but it does not seem as if Darwin's intent was to birth a religion - that is to give meaning and a purpose to just about everything - to provide a unifying principle by which everything has its being (or perhaps, I tell myself this, in order to reconcile my faith and my science...my clinical background allows me to comfortably stay away from such debates). But some elements of evolutionary psychology have made the mistake of, as Savage Minds points out, of using basic biology to explain behavior - but, to the ignorance of other very real and tangible forces at play.

I’ve yet to come across an evolutionary psychological explanation that doesn’t have a corresponding – and often more plausible – cultural explanation; while the cultural explanation might not ultimately be right, if you’re going to build a science on the primacy of the biological over the cultural, you’re going to have to at least consider the cultural as an alternative hypothesis!

**I'd figure that to understand the above, you would have to be a dedicated follower of the TV series, of which, sadly, I am. Quote comes from some earlier episode where Steve Brady, Miranda's love interest, makes one of many pleas to save their relationship...

Four years later...

2011-05-25T20:00:00.006-04:00

...Well, not quite, but couldn't think of alternative title for this post.

I believe I am among the 95% or so of bloggers who don't blog - meaning, bloggers who haven't touched their blog in ages. I am currently running about an average of less than one post a month...or perhaps every two months. Life likes to get in the way, but then there is also the convenience of Twitter and there was the time that I used to, from time to time, update my Facebook status. Used to. Way too many "Friends" who, at best, are mere acquaintances. Never thought I would say this, since I am not terribly private with my online identity, but Facebook is getting a bit too nose-y for my liking.

I've often found myself killing a blog post idea mid-thought because there just wasn't enough "there," to warrant a post and, unfortunately, 140 character Twitter limit just wouldn't do it justice. Yes, I am aware that there are avenues by which to defy the 140 character post limit, but I fancy myself a social media purist - if Twitter says 140 characters, I'll abide by 140 characters...if Facebook says, link up with old friends - I will...no posting of birthday presents, planting of flowers, nor indulging in anonymous "Ask Me Anything" apps. I guess, in the realm of blogging, I set out to adhere to certain rules - such as the idea that a blogpost must have a beginning, and end, and most importantly, a point - but it seems like such standards are more stifling then ever. My Blogger list of posts hosts a number of unpublished thoughts that didn't make it to daylight, because the post simply didn't have much of a point (much like this one) or didn't fit with the overall "theme" of the blog.

Well, I guess all this is to say, that, hopefully, in the future, I will slowly begin to tear myself away from these rules I created and thus imposed on myself. Pyoo wata is getting on in years - This November will make it four years. I am gradually coming to terms with the fact that after four years, there is still no unifying theme to this blog and perhaps will never be.

Of mad men and birth certificates

2011-04-29T15:33:00.007-04:00

My father once told me that someone who chases after a mad man will eventually look like him as well. So for the most part, I have tried to maintain a comfortable distance from the crazies on the Right, other than a chuckle here and there at Palin family antics. I was never taken to viewing the Birthers as a distinct subculture, but rather a group of individuals plagued by delusional thinking and fits of paranoia. That was until recently, when they found a vocal figurehead in the multimillionaire, Donald Trump. My problem wasn't with Donald Trump, in the same way I do not apportion blame to the mentally ill. I only felt sorry for him - and, pity, for the sane members of the Republican party whose names are brought in disrepute on account of these people. My beef, however, remains with the onlookers in the media who for the past couple of weeks have edged on Trump and others of his ilk to continue dancing naked in public.

The back and forth antics between Trump, birthers, and the remainder of American public culminated in Obama's public release of his birth certificate earlier this week, in a failed attempt to squelch this horse and pony show played by extreme factions of the right and ratings-starved members of the media. Hardly - that is the unfortunate nature of paranoia - continued suspicion despite clear evidence to the contrary. And the dance continues.

No relief has come from the release of the birth certificate, for me, only disappointment. Several have likened the release of Obama's records to the literary tests minorities once underwent in order to vote in this country. I have often tried to keep myself in check in regards to my hypersensitivity towards race relations, but there was no doubt in my mind that race is on the minds of Birthers and those who seek to "Take our Country Back." And yes, I, too, am of the opinion that racism is pathology. Kola also comments on this Sad Day in America and I couldn't help but share this video on my blog after hearing about it from @Saratu. Both put to words my anger and sorrow towards America's descent into this pit.

Igbo film - where art thou (olee ebe ị nọ)?

2011-04-25T13:55:00.009-04:00

I know, my neglect of this blog ... or any blog in general, is almost criminal. I blame this on Twitter and my over-reliance on my Google Reader feed - so much easier to be a consumer of this new media than to produce it. Oh yeah, and life and school in general...

When chanced, stop by Saratu's post, Not Speaking Yoruba, which echos my sentiments on not speaking Igbo...well, at least the kind intelligible to others beyond myself and my forgiving parents.

Such brought up an interesting conversation on Twitter some weeks ago - see my timeline here...which later degenerated into a somewhat useless conversation about dialects and the inherent pleasantness of one over the other. Also, I wondered aloud (though not on Twitter, I don't think) as to why films are no longer produced in Igbo, but Nollywood films of other languages are thriving. I grew up happily struggling to understand the storylines of Igbo films, which despite their horrible acting, still presented some degree of authenticity basically non-existent in some modern-day English films. Somehow along the way, we went from films in entirely Igbo language films, to films in which perhaps the village scenes were in Igbo, to English films with Igbo chorus lines, to present-day overt English language films, even among all-Igbo speaking casts.

Onyeka Nwelue also laments the flight of Igbo language film here and realizes that "we don’t need a story to be told in English before we realize it is a good movie." A fairly obvious conclusion. In the comments section of the article, Niji Akanni, Yoruba screenwriter and director, sheds some light on our reticence to produce Igbo language films.

...I’d say the Igbo language film died because my Igbo brothers in the Nigerian film industry have simply forgotten (or neglected) who or what exactly their films speak to...I think my Igbo colleagues continue to work under the illusion that they can make films to appeal to ‘everybody’ – from the struggling pure water vendor on Eko Bridge, through the primary school teacher in Offiaoji to a native German professor who knows next to nothing about Nigeria as a whole or Igbo culture in particular. What comes across then are films that address everyone only by entertaining them but not speaking to anyone in particular.

...Then there is the issue of cultural authenticity. I suspect very strongly that most Igbo filmmakers are either grossly ignorant of their authentic cultural roots or simply too timid to explore those roots, knowing that their responses to such exploration will ultimately lead to questioning/interrogation of certain traditional assumptions...My prognosis is that the revival of Igbo-language film, if it ever happens, will only come from Diaspora filmmakers of Igbo origin: those who can listen with fresh (but not emptily nostalgic) ears to the authentic rhythms of the numerous Igbo dialects, who can look with untainted eyes at the various dissonances of their cultural heritage, and above all, can honestly and boldly address such dissonances, not just as an appendage to “all-about-entertainment” cinematic fares.

Yes, the Nollywood film market, is largely (perhaps entirely) driven by profit rather than art - which may explain the desire of Igbo filmmakers to capture a wider audience by producing English language films. However, I'm not terribly confident at his prediction that Diasporan filmmakers (wherever they may be), may offer a solution. From personal experience, I find that we either fall at one of two extremes (here in the States), on one hand, we seek to be more oyinbo than the original oyinbo or on the other, we tend to craft a vision of our fair homeland, that has very little basis in reality, producing a product that is unrecognizable to both Diasporan and indigene. Though, admittedly, and by some miracle, we were able to get it right in the arena of literature. But, like they say, lightening rarely strikes the same spot twice.

On Foreign-Black Privilege...

2011-01-30T13:17:00.004-05:00

Because of course, you're not like one of them...

The end result of the African foreigner privilege, usually dispensed with condescension, is that Africans are becoming buffers between white and black America. There is now a plethora of reports comparing African students to African American students. The conclusion is that if Africans fresh off the boat are doing better than African Americans who have been here for centuries, then racism can no longer be blamed. But the reports do not consider that, just maybe, at either Harvard or a community college, Africans experience race differently from African Americans. Africans experience a patronising but helpful racism, as opposed to the hostile, threatened and defensive kind that African Americans grow up with. Racism wears a smile when meeting an African; it glares with hostility when meeting an African American.

And he continues on race relations between Africans and African Americans, which I believe is spot-on...

Africans in the US can end up becoming foils to continuing African American struggles, because they buy into the stereotypes. They end up seeing African Americans through a racist lens. This is not to say that African Americans have not themselves bought into racist stereotypes of Africans, where Africans are straight out of a Tarzan movie. But to the credit of African Americans, they have actively, through organisations like Africa Action and Trans-Africa Forum, agitated on Africa's behalf.

From Mukoma Wa Ngugi's Guardian essay, African in America or African American?
H/T Loomnie

Getting in one more post...

2010-12-17T02:41:00.005-05:00

....before the end of the year. My (free) Christmas gift to you.

I'm usually not a fan of remixes, but I had to give this modern take of "Osondi, Owendi*" by Flavour et. al. a pass since it does pay homage to Chief Osita Osadebe. The beginning skit is cute...the rest of the video - yawn. But then again, this group, while skilled at creating/remixing insanely catchy songs (I find the Anambra dialect used in their songs annoyingly endearing), they are not terribly known for their creativity.

Oh, by the way, my apologies for the screwed up search feature. Something happened when changing the website address. Oh, and yes, you can now find this blog at www.pyoowata.com !!

*It pleases some, it angers others.

"White is Bright"...and other stories

2010-11-13T10:10:00.008-05:00

20-minute documentary on "shadeism" below. H/T Clutch.

Shadeism on Vimeo.

I feel like I should be more bothered by this topic, but for some reason, I'm sort off "meh" towards it, and have been so for most of my life. My first encounter with shadeism came when I was five, attending school in Massachusetts and a girl of biracial heritage told me that I could not play with her and her white friends because I was simply too dark. At the time, I could care less, because there were more than enough "dark" classmates to play with (especially this adorable Rasta child, of whom I was completely enamoured with - and of course, like any five year old girl, I displayed my affection by terrorizing him at the playground - I was a bit of a bully back then. So he was my first crush, my second was Michael Jackson...don't judge). It was only when I was older that I realized it was a pathology. But even now, when I encounter such instances of black-on-black discrimination, it hardly fazes me. Like for example, an older relative of mine expressed a desire for her children to wed men of other races in order that they may sire beautiful children (but beyond that, she also has some gripes towards Igbo men, which receives a bit of a "Kanye Shrug" from my end). On another occasion a family friend was lamenting that the others are reticent to discipline their mixed-race four-year-old because of the colour of his skin. Of course, the Nnewi man was not having it, and half-stated/half asked, "This child cannot be more beautiful than me?" Yeah...side eye....not at the instance of shadeism...but rather at the sheer ridiculousness of the question. (Oh, and I'm assuming/hoping that most of my extended family is not aware of my blogging exploits...an aunt was worried that I may get arrested for my opinions, or worse still, not find a husband, because of it. Had to reassure her that it wasn't that serious, yet).

I feel like I should be more aggrieved towards such statements in the same way that I am towards racism. I find that among the African American community, individuals are much more sensitive towards shadeism, while in other communities, such as those represented in this film, expressing a preference for lighter-coloured children has long been normalized.

But, beyond the instances I just mentioned, I feel that overt shadeism may not be as pervasive in the Nigerian community. From my limited personal experience, we tend to denigrate those with blotchy tell-tale signs of chronic skin bleaching, and we extol darker- skinned actresses like Genevieve or Clems Ohameze, who in his day, was known as "black beauty." I think there is an element of "Nigerian pride," which, perhaps in this day and age, trumps the need to adhere to Eurocentric ideal of lighter-skinned beauty. Or perhaps, which is more likely the case, I am trapped in my own, "Black is (unquestionably, regardless the shade) beautiful" bubble.

There are some other bloggers who covered in relation to this film (simply Google "shadeism") - but I have yet to see a Nigerian blogpost on the topic. Though, I have seen a number of them on the politics of hair - which at this point in my life gets a "meh" from me as well.

Eat, pray, and love...me

2010-11-04T11:45:00.004-04:00

By habit, I always pick up a new book anytime I travel to a new place - even if it is just a couple states over. It's something I started in my teens when I had some access to disposable (or borrowed - still owing some folks) income. Repeated the same thing this time I travelled to the west coast for the first time ever. I think...can't ever say ever since I got in trouble with Canadian customs last year for sneaking across the border in '86. Note, I was barely crawling that year...yeah, a relative "borrowed" my social security number - ah the life and times.

Came to the realization some weeks ago that my paltry book/music collection, save for textbooks and lecture recordings, is crying for some diversity. I have a primarily black library - spanning various corners of the African diaspora - Harlem, Enugu, Kingston, Umtali (Mutare) etc. There's a spattering of brown lit - but again, the same resistance and post-colonial themes. Largely, it's symptomatic of growing up in public high school that zealously guarded the "black is beautiful" mantra and then proceeding to a liberal arts education that offered a buffet-style selection humanities courses for those in the sciences. I grew all too comfortable in books that felt like home.

So this trip, I made the mistake of looking for book that would be representative of this elusive whiteness, you know, like how some would assign Things Fall Apart for a two-week introduction to the African experience. Needless to say, I failed horribly at this assignment.

First, it was an impulse buy at an airport bookshop. Although, I have been lucky, at times, with such on-the-fly purchases, airport shops are largely known for bright, empty magazines and self-help books. Second, I was moved primarily by my pocket and some feigned interest in the environment. You see, there was a shelf dedicated to previously read books - pre-owned novels which were 50% off. Not only was a getting a sweet deal but I was doing my part to save this text from clogging up our landfills. And third mistake - and quite cliched - I judged a book by it's cover. If I was going to read the whitest of white, why not pick up the memoir plastered with with a picture of Julia Roberts on the front?

Yes, I bought the wildly popular Elizabeth Gilbert memoir, Eat, Pray, Love - chick lit made into a chick flick a couple of years ago. Yeah, it was somewhat embarrassing, especially considering that my travel mates had their microbio textbooks in tow (don't know how I forgot mine, but was able to get a hush-hush .pdf copy hookup...whoop whoop!)

While I find Gilbert's story, thus far, refreshingly open and honest, it's a bit too stereotypically white and Western for my liking. And somehow, I empathize. It appeals to that part of my American self that I consciously work to squelch out in the open. Her story represents that part of me that tends to exoticize the other, the one that doggedly personalizes the spiritual to the neglect of the communal, the part of me that in my quiet moments, is fastidiously self-absorbed. Elizabeth Gilbert is my id.

I have yet to finish the book (may hold it off until Christmas vacation, unfortunately - got to memorize those bugs.) I'm praying for a happy ending with this book, though I have yet to put to words what that looks like. But from the reviews I briefly looked through, I doubt it.

And we interrupt our regularly scheduled program...

2010-10-18T17:07:00.006-04:00

...For yet another musical break. Big fan of Celestine Ukwu, who is my respite when I need a bit of a break from the faster-paced, "noisier," classics from the highlife era. Sharing a personal favorite, "Onwu ama eze" (Death Doesn't Recognize Royalty).

Onwu ama eze.

Other songs from Celestine Ukwu can be found here.
I know there is some unwritten code of blogging ethics which prohibits from from posting two musically related posts back to back, but suffering from persistent bouts of blogger's block. Biko, gbaghara m (please forgive me). If you care to know, I am somewhat active on Twitter.

Asa's Second Album Debuts October 25

2010-09-30T00:01:00.001-04:00

As if October couldn't get any better.

She's back! Asa (Asha) that is. I'm probably late. Excited to see her evolution from her self-titled freshman album, to her forthcoming collection, Beautiful Perfection. The album drops October 25th - but her single, "Be My Man," is up on Youtube (H/T Asa Groupies on Facebook).

Not sure how I feel about her new look (a bit cliche***)...but she still remains incredibly adorable in my book. She recently gave an interview to HiMagazine (never heard of it, personally).

On her new style:

Its fun, I think it is part of finding myself because I spent the most of my life while growing taking care of people. I have been responsible for my siblings and so I had to grow up really fast and that took a lot of attention from me because I didn’t care about myself. So going out to various places and events has influenced me. I’m beginning to really like what I see and I tell myself that I’m beautiful and need to take care of myself. Its fun really because I enjoy the growth, I don’t think I have changed I just added more colour...[I'm] letting go of a lot of unnecessary baggage, so you can feel it because I’m happy.

In short, Asa explains that over the past two years, she's been more exposed and is learning to put herself first, all of which should reflect in her latest album.

***December update - Err, yeah, I'm a swagger jacker, and so totally just went and bought the Asa glasses not too long ago. Couldn't help it. But don't we all have a bit of cliche (sorry couldn't find that accent aigu) in us somewhere?

Life Begins at Fifty...

2010-09-28T20:11:00.006-04:00

Quick! Check out the new series at NigeriansTalk.org entitled Nigeria@50. Since last Friday, Nigerian bloggers have been posting their thoughts on Nigeria as she approaches her 50th birthday. From the intro post:

As you can imagine, there are a lot of things to complain about...but we do not want to dwell on the failures. The articles will not write away the failures of the past — as if that were even possible. While acknowledging those failures, they will be forward-looking. In short, we hope to leave the series of articles feeling not only informed, but also inspired.

Check the Nigerianstalk.org website daily for fresh content from this series.

Picture taken without permission (kind of like many others on this site - trying to change my ways) from the photo exhibition, "1960: Nigeria at Independence."

I Believe in...Who?

2010-09-28T00:46:00.004-04:00

July and August has passed and I promised myself that I would post at least something during the month of September. Sorry for the pause in communication – life (and laziness) got in the way.

So apparently Nigerian elections are slated for January 2011 – yeah, goodluck with that one. And speaking of Goodluck…our former Vice President, now President and (finally) presidential aspirant 2011 has recently hit the campaign trail and from the looks of things, he seems to be targeting the youth as evidenced by his widely popular presence on Facebook. Makes sense considering that Nigeria, like it's developing world contemporaries, features youth as its most popular age-bracket. But beyond making friends on Facebook, I have the sneaking suspicion – as has been mentioned elsewhere – that GJ is taking a page or two out of Barack Obama’s playbook.

Goodluck Jonathan – the next Barack Obama. I know to the most ardent Obama supporters this may seem like blasphemy, but the mercurial rise in popularity of the once (relatively) obscure Goodluck Jonathan in many ways mirrors that of the Obama during his bid for presidency in 2008. Like his American counterpart, GJ is well-educated, articulate, and compared to his competitors, somewhat scandal-free. Let us not forget that the Jonathan presidency and potential second-term carries historical weight. The United States welcomed its first black president fifty years after the death of civil rights champion, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King. And now, fifty years post-independence, Nigeria may for the first time, elect a minority president. Jonathan’s wide support from a diverse number of groups in the south and the north confirm his (or rather PDP’s) ability to shatter ethnic barriers. No small feat. The smiling president, like Obama, is well-educated, articulate, and compared to some of his competitors, somewhat scandal-free.

Recently, I came across the Youtube (yes, loves, Youtube) campaign videos of Goodluck Jonathan (H/T NigerianCuriosity). Peep the English version, which features a litany of Nollywood actors and heavyweights (including my teen heart-throb Emeka Enyiocha…taking a moment…yessss…please don’t judge me).

Cute, though (surprise! surprise!) it bears an uncanny resemblance to will.i.am’s 2008 “Yes We Can,” Youtube sensation, a similarly star-studded gushy tribute to Barack Obama’s platform of hope and change.

All well and good – but hope, change, and lofty promises can only get you so far. Obama is learning that the hard way seeing that his support over the past few months has decreased, somewhat precipitously. Over the summer, I was surprised to find out that Goodluck Jonathan commands overwhelming support from the Nigerian populace – approval ratings of up to 75% (I know…no need). Such a figure, begs the question – why? I remain concerned about declarations that Jonathan is not only blessed with good fortune, but that somehow, GJ is divinely appointed and with him lies Nigeria’s way forward (see here, here and here). While GJ’s emphasis on the youth is commendable, any failure to deliver on campaign promises such as repairing basic infrastructure, stands to add to the increased jadedness of the youth whom he seeks to inspire.

on hiatus

2010-07-06T14:08:00.002-04:00

So June has passed without as much as a peep from me...and unfortunately, it looks like pyoo wata will also remain temporarily inactive through July and much of August. Just wanted to let you all know that I'm still around, just not on this blog for the moment. Expect to see my random comments on your blogs, an infrequent tweet here or there or a belated response to your email from now until August.

The Poor [and their] Choices

2010-05-26T13:42:00.007-04:00

This past Sunday, NYTimes columnist and self-designated poor-people-of-Africa expert extraordinaire wrote penned yet another op-ed piece that forced me to change the page shortly after the first paragraph. Here is where I changed the channel:

...if the poorest families spent as much money educating their children as they do on wine, cigarettes and prostitutes, their children’s prospects would be transformed. Much suffering is caused not only by low incomes, but also by shortsighted private spending decisions by heads of households.

As controversial as it sounds, it's not a terribly new argument. It tows the line of Bill Cosby's tirade against poor black America, who, in his opinion, would prefer to purchase the latest pair of Nike sneakers for Lil' Shaquan rather than invest in Hooked on Phonics. Time will fail me to address why his sentiments are problematic, but if interested, I recommend Michael Eric Dyson's Is Bill Cosby Right or Has the Black Middle Class Lost Its Mind.

Bill Easterly and Laura Freschi provide, what I think, is a more balanced response to the issue of the poor spending significant percentages of their income on non-essential, "recreational" items (H/T Change.org).

The larger issue is explaining the seeming irrationality of, for example, [the poor's] decision to spend his evenings in a bar while his children sleep without a mosquito net. Could it be that outsiders make simplistic assumptions about the perceived value of bed nets to [the poor]?...Perhaps it is that parents do not really believe in the efficacy of nets, drugs, or water purification tablets. Going even further than Kremer and Holla, we speculate that belief in the scientific theories underlying all these products is not so easy to achieve in a poor society. Rich people believe in scientific medicine not only based on their education, but also because they see it working for themselves and everyone around them. Scientific medicine is a harder sell in a society that has never had a well-functioning health system to demonstrate its benefits.

I think that in some instances, the degree to which a person perceives the efficacy of their actions in changing their situations, may explain seemingly irrational behaviors such as spending money on drinks rather than education. In essence, many of these individuals may possess a low internal locus of control, a phenomenon shaped by external historical and societal forces and perhaps personal decisions. Information alone, the post later stresses (such as in the form of malaria campaigns etc.), does not necessarily change behavior.

An example that readily comes to mind is the the ambivalence some may have towards the political situation in Nigeria (I know, some of you are cringing at the thought of yet another Nigeria/Africa generalization, but please bear with me). Despite clamors for active civic engagement and get out the vote awareness rallies, some may prefer the "siddon look" position rather than actively engaging in politics (through voting, participating in protests and the like). So while such activities are taking place, one may take the "irrational" route of ignoring the world, and taking a nap, instead. Sorry for the throwback pic...but I'm simply in love with it. And please, this is a very simplistic explanation for an incredibly complex phenomenon. A more concrete example of the relationship between locus of control, education, and irrational choices can be found here - I know, random, but just happened to stumble upon it sometime ago.

My name is Wally...

2010-05-25T00:15:00.004-04:00

Last month or so I attended a K'Naan-Wale concert, and simply thinking about it induces a strong desire to curl up in my bed and forever shun the past-10pm, under-21 night scene. I am still tired. Never again...I seriously think I am getting too old for such "all-ages" soirees. Had no idea that "all-ages" meant 85% 18 and under and 15% other. Throughout the 3 hour or so concert, I found myself yearning for longer interludes in order to rest my aching back in the seated section of the club and wondering why I wasn't at home curled up in a blanket with a good novel (a delightful luxury these days). And my, I haven't been around so much weed since undergrad (and note, most in the audience seemed to be imported from CT's surburbs).

The ticket was more of an impulse buy and had I known earlier, I would have gone to the NYC version of the concert (which also featured Damian Marley and my guess, would have lacked the "High School Musical"-vibe). The show opened with Togolese-American rapper, Tabi Bonney, followed by ex-Fugees rapper/producer, John Forte (love him!) and finished with Wale then K'Naan, a combination of both, then encores by K'Naan. To be honest, I paid to see K'naan, though I was somewhat curious about the hype surrounding Nigerian-American rapper Wale. Prior to this, I only knew of one Wale song, My Sweetie, a modern day remix of the Bunny Mack classic and dedicated to "...everybody who ever was forced to go to african parties wit they parents in the 80s [and] 90s...." It was cute - but I have never been much of a fan of remixes.

Prior to the concert, I thought that perhaps Wale was probably the Nigerian Diasporan's answer K'Naan...

Not...

I left Wale's performance a bit disappointed that the only mention of his Nigerian heritage came when he corrected audience members (over and over and over again) that his name was Wale, not Wally (for the love of all that is right and decent, didn't Eminem effectively end the reign of my-name-is-like lyrics - please stop). And even at that, he provided no context. By the end of the night, I felt like ditching my green-white-greens and join the Somalis in waving their blues and whites.

The circumstances that gave birth to something-American/Canadian/French artists such as Tabi Bonney, K'Naan and Asa and other Africans-in-America/France/Germany etc are very different from that of Wale. While the other three spent portions of their formative years in Africa, there is no indication that Wale spent much time outside of the Washignton D.C.-Maryland area. I think for that reason, the transition back-and-forth between their "western" and non-western selves seems more fluid; but from the little I know of Wale - his Nigerianness seems to be more of an all-or-nothing phenomenon. To me, "My Sweetie" appears to be a fleeting reference to his African heritage. His "Nigerianness" seemed to be merely packaged into a 3-minute soundbite that hardly made it into his latest album.

Despite the initial disappointment, I am sympathetic. And considering my limited exposure, I am the last to provide a balanced critique of Wale's genre of music (I guess DC Underground rap or something). Admittedly, I almost left his performance embracing the attitudes I have criticized in some of our elders who have complained endlessly of the inevitable Americanization of their progeny in exile. (Elders, who oftentimes, remain incognizant to the Americanization of their homelands and probably would not be able to find the road back to their villas owing to the rapid changes that occurred since Abacha was in office...that is the last time they stepped foot out of the US...anyway, a conversation for another date).

So, when I am not drop-dead tired from a concert, I am of the opinion that there exists a spectrum of whatever you call, "Africanness" possessed by my fellow first-generationers born to immigrant parents. I guess you have the my-name-is-wally identities on one end and the the akpokwala-m-udi-aha-ozo** identities on the other, which, to me, all represent the diversity of what it means to be a first generation Nigerian.

And I couldn't help it, but had to include this old school video of Identity by Chief Oliver de Coque in honor of our musicians for whom music is simply in their nature and represents their identity.

**Translation: (in angry Igbotic "ascent") Don't call me that sort of name again...(feel free to insert fantastic threat re: Amadioha here) ...and forgive my laziness re: dotting of o's...

And yes, Akon is glaringly absent from this conversation...and for good reason.

"Bad Aid"

2010-05-13T21:58:00.000-04:00

TIMES article on "bad aid" and the "T-shirts for Africa" controversy that busied the development/aid blogosphere for the past couple of weeks.

Bad Charity? (All I Got Was This Lousy T-Shirt!)

In Praise of (Naija) Pop

2010-05-12T10:11:00.011-04:00

Chimamanda Adichie comments on a growing sense of Nigerio-centricity that has recently infused itself into several sectors of Nigeria media. Of note, she highlights, is the home-grown hip-hop sector, which is now "mainstream cool" and reflects "...a newly energized self-image that young Nigerians have of themselves."

Looking inward for inspiration, long gone are the days of the 90s and early 2000s where some Nigerian artists merely aped the beats (and sometimes hooks and lyrics) of their American or Caribbean counterparts. Today's Nigerian pop music scene is fresh, original, and fiercely pro-Nigerian (though, at times, critical of it's current state of affairs).

Hat tip to AfricaIsACountry re the Adichie article. Though, I'm not to crazy about the Banky W reference. He's cute and all, but not a big fan of his so-called remixes, which in essence borrows the hooks of others. I gave him a pass on Ebute Metta...but his Naija version of K'Naan's Wavin' Flag...was just about one remix too much. For someone with such a commitment to the rule of law, the copying...I mean...remixing of another artist's creation should not feature as a regular career move.

Too Late for Mama...Six Years On...

2010-05-10T09:55:00.005-04:00

Over the weekend, I couldn't help but remember the flamboyant Queen of African Pop, Brenda Fassie, who six years ago from Mother's Day, lost her life to a tragic overdose. A more fitting remembrance from MIMI can be found here.

On an unrelated note...I decided against opening my private blog...which was more a notebook of sorts. I will continue to post intermittenly here at pyoo wata...couldn't let go, I guess.

Moving on...

2010-05-05T09:57:00.004-04:00

I am sure that many of you have noticed that I have been blogging rather infrequently these days. After almost three years of pyoo wata, I have decided to retire from this blog.
I'm not retiring from blogging entirely. Nigerianstalk.org is very much active (and always looking for more contributors). Also, I will soon be opening up a formerly private blog, which features more of my current interests interests in health and disease - maka ọria na ahu ike. It's a bit lifeless, but hope to inject some pyoo wata spunk to it. Originally, MONAI served as place where I occassionally posted info I thought might be helpful in the future - but I figured that someone else might find it useful. So for now, I will be posting there regularly. Remember, I can still be found on twitter as pyoowata.

I am very appreciative of those who continued visit, despite my epileptic posting schedule at pyoo wata. For those who left comments and sent emails and responded to mine, I learned so much from you all over the past few years, months. Love you all...sort of.

Are you Up to Date?

2010-04-27T21:48:00.002-04:00

I shared this on my Reader, but thought I should also highlight the opportunity on this blog as well.

GHDOnline is calling for applications to their UpToDate International Grant Subscription program, due May 3rd. The grant provides free access to the peer-reviewed, evidence-based clinical information database to clinicians and medical organizations outside of the US. The application and FAQ can be found on the GHDOnline site. Apparently there is an American version of the program, too. Sorry for the short notice, but the application doesn't look terribly involved. A demonstration of UpToDate can be found here.

The young shall grow...

2010-04-18T22:49:00.004-04:00

General Ibrahim Babaginda declares that the younger generation of Nigerians is unfit to rule the country (thanks Omo Oba for the link).

In response to the question as to why he and his err...age grade...does not step aside for the youth, he replies, "Because we have seen signs that they are not capable of leading this country...May be they are not given the proper education that is why."

But of course, IBB has totally forgotten that our elders are inherently wiser than us. And like they say, what the young man sees by climbing a tree, the elder has seen while sitting down**...well, unless, there's a fence in his way...and IBB has been living behind his for far too long...

**Nkem Owoh, "Mr. Lecturer"

Short on good luck

2010-04-05T12:01:00.006-04:00

In recent weeks, acting President Goodluck Jonathan has taken a number of radical departures from his former boss - such as the dismissal of nearly all cabinet members (particularly Yar'adua loylalists) and abandoning the failed PDP Seven-Point agenda. Impressive moves and well-timed, considering his former association Baba Go-Slow and predictions that he would largely serve as an extension of the previous administration. Such initiative on the part of Jonathan has received Akunyili-at-NAFDAC-like accolades from both print and online media (currently my only sources of gauging the national mood).

I hold my judgments for now - echi dị ime* - and only time will tell what his administration will bring forth. However, I am beginning to tow the line of a number of skeptics, who predict that Jonathan's less than one year term may prove lackadaisacal, at best. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I was under the impression that his installment as vice president was largely meant to appease the Niger Delta - what a success that was...

In the NYTimes interview "Out of Africa"**, Chinue Achebe also joins in the chorus of those expressing their doubts about the Jonathan administration stating that he "...doesn't seem to bring good luck," especially in light of his weak response to the recent crises in Jos.

Over the weekend, residents of Ajegunle protested against blatant police brutality, as enacted by the recent beating death of one of its residents, Charles Okafor, who was the target of a computer game shop raid. During the protest, police fired into the crowd, allegedly killing four protesters and injuring dozens.

In my book, Jonathan's deafening silence on human rights abuses such as this and those that occurred at Jos and continue to mar the Niger Delta, may serve mute any advances he may make over the next several months. You know, kinda like this.

* Tomorrow is pregnant...

**This had to be the worst interview I have read in quite some time. What was up with the title, "Out of Africa," when the interview was based on the 50-plus year old novel, Things Fall Apart. It's 2010, my dear - why no questions on his latest work, "Education of a British-Protected Child" It seemed like Achebe was quite pissed at how unengaging the interviewer's questions were - responding to the question "Are you still writing everyday? What are you working on?" with the court "I'm working on this interview." I'm sure he probably wanted to add something else - his patience astounds me.

Now this is how you give an ultimatum...

2010-03-10T01:21:00.004-05:00

Nigerian National Assembly, take note.

US Official Apologizes for Joke About Gadhafi

"A senior State Department official said Tuesday he's sorry for a joking remark he made about Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi that prompted Libya to threaten diplomatic retaliation unless he apologized.Chief department spokesman P.J. Crowley said he regretted any offense caused by his response to a reporter's question about Gadhafi's recent call for a holy war against Switzerland. Libya said last week it might take action against American business interests there if a formal apology was not made."

...for want of mad men...

Score! Non-communicable Diseases Gets Some Much-Needed Shine Time

2010-03-03T12:47:00.005-05:00

This was definitely worth another post this week.

Maybe by now, some of you have figured out beyond my penchant Nollywood, the mindless sputterings (made-up word, I think) of old Igbo men - such as this one and oh man, this one - I also have some interest in chronic disease management outside of the West (it's a budding interest, but an interest, no less). Even diseases traditionally thought of as acute (meaning you either get over it or die really quickly) are increasingly requiring a paradigm shift towards long-term care (namely, AIDS). Unfortunately, poor health infrastructure means that it is next to impossible to address such chronic disease care issues in the developing world (I know, I hate generalizations too, but bear with me)...I mean, seriously, check out the case of this guy...who happens to be the (former?) President of the the largest African nation, but has recently been relegated to receiving health care services at a glorified car park.

Developing nations find themselves in double jeopardy - battling acute infectious diseases while remaining horribly unprepared to face the rising threats of "first-world" health issues such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, motor vehicle accidents, mental illness, etc. Large-scale disease-centric interventions, at times serves to weaken overall health infrastructure, placing focus (and funding) on one or two diseases to the neglect of others - most oftentimes non-communicable or chronic diseases (NCDs). Consider NCDs as the latest addition to the category of Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs).

A recent study published in the the journal PLoS medicine (H/T Kaiser Daily Global Health Policy Report) found that high NCD burden served as a major barrier to achieving the UN's Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which excludes NCDs among its list of health priorities, but includes HIV, tuberculosis, infant and maternal mortality. In regards to progress towards MDGs, reduction in NCD burden by 10% was nearly the equivalent to a 40% rise in GDP (or at least five years of economic growth in developing countries). The study highlighted the fact that NCDs plays an important role in the complicated relationship between poverty and health and as a result, greater emphasis should not only be placed on addressing NCDs, but health systems as a whole.

Our findings suggest that achievement of feasible reductions in the impact of these chronic diseases on poor households could greatly enhance progress towards existing health MDGs. If not adequately addressed, high rates of NCDs in low-income countries may further impede progress towards the health MDGs.

To bring it closer to home, the World Health Organization estimates that Nigeria loses about 400 million dollars a year in national income from premature deaths from heart disease, diabetes, and stroke. I wonder, if that figure includes revenue lost from exporting the healthcare of our presidents to other countries...

Re-thinking Missions

2010-03-02T22:37:00.009-05:00

Faith-based organizations recently received some good press over the weekend with the publication of Nicholas Kristof's New York Times op-ed piece - Learning from the Sin of Sodom. In it, Kristof chastises liberal do-gooders for their "snootiness" towards Evangelicals and sings the praises Christian NGOs and churches for engaging in the thankless task of battling the "common enemies of humanity" such as poverty and exploitation. Considering the complicated past of foreign missionary work during colonial times and the recent Haitian adoption scandal by American missionaries, I am sure that religious communities everywhere are grateful for the article. Indeed, the church has been responsible for bringing about some good to the communities they serve in the developing world. When working in a long-term capacity, churches and other faith-based organizations have established schools, hospitals, and other needed infrastructure that rivals that of some secular organizations and local governments.

While I commend the efforts of Christians to live out the tenets of our faith through service, I find problematic some of the more recent trends I have personally witnessed amongst churches and individuals - primarily the interest in short-term international missions projects. One to three weeks long, such short-term projects are typically glorified (or should I say, church-ified) versions of slum tours. Merely donating to an established local entity is not enough. Rather, some feel the need to "experience first-hand" the raw poverty and pestilence that plagues the non-western world. No real training or skills are needed other than a heart for down-trodden people (or an eye for poverty p*rn). The emphasis is thus taken away from selfless Christ-like service, and is rather placed on fulfilling the short-term missionaries' desire to be needed.

In providing the lay person with this short-term experience, oftentimes, no thought is given to long-term implications of the excursion. In the case of short-term medical missions projects, which are sometimes conducted independently of local hospitals and resources, thousands of patients are attended to but little consideration is given to follow-up care. The goal is to reach the greatest number of people in an allotted time frame. More than 70% of patients with chronic, non-communicable diseases live in the developing world; and therefore long-term management of such patients is required. To say that short-term medical missions is like putting a bandage on a festering wound would be an understatement. I guess it's more like saying to a brother or sister without clothes or food, "Go, I wish you well..." without doing anything for their physical needs.

I also find that with short-term missions projects, there exists little discussion on evaluation or assessment of their interventions. In order to meet fundraising goals, emphasis is placed on the wow factor a project can evoke - "we saw x amount of patients," "we donated x number of y," etc. And because record-keeping remains virtually non-existent, no one can definitely measure the long-term impact of such excursions on target populations. Such projects are only answerable to their congregations, who may not be terribly familiar with the nuances of outcomes measurement.

Admittedly, the aforementioned also applies to secular non-profits and organizations. However, I feel as if some of these issues are particularly aggravated in the Christian community, where motive trumps means or outcome. The attempt to shuttle scores of Haitian "orphans" to the Domincan Republic by a church group, highlights such pervasive attitudes. It seems as if faith has provided us with the license to embark upon hastily organized projects and missions, because regardless the means or outcome, our intentions are sanctioned by God. While Christian organizations such as World Vision, highlighted in the Kristof's oped piece, should be commended, I do think that for a vast number of faith-based organizations and initiatives, our strategies need to be re-evaluated.

you're one of them...

2010-01-27T07:12:00.004-05:00

First, I apologize for the silence...schedule a bit crowded these days. A belated Happy New Year to all.
I tend to find it most difficult to fall asleep when I am busiest for some reason, and have taken to sneaking in a few pages of fiction as a new nighttime/early morning ritual. For the longest time I have been meaning to read Uwem Akpan's collection of short stories, "Say You're One of Them."
As a matter of personal principle, I try to stay away from reviews, particularly critical ones, until after I finish reading a novel. However, after delving into the first few pages I had to confirm my suspicion that I was in possession of 300plus pages of unadulterated poverty p*rn (sorry for the asterisk, trying to avoid the onslaught of strange comments I receive when I use such terms...such as in this post.) I was so naive....for only stories of child prostitutes and wonton African poverty would titillate the Oprah Book Club following.
While I have less patience for such genres, writer and blogger, Alligator Legs, takes a more balanced view (while confirming my initial gut reaction) and reviews his most recent contribution to the The New Yorker.

Nigeria's latest terrorist streak...

2009-12-26T18:14:00.011-05:00

...May become all the more common in the future. My initial reactions to the foiled terrorist attack on Christmas day can be found at NigeriansTalk.org.

And if you like stories...

2009-12-21T19:55:00.004-05:00

You should check out my mom's (yes, as in my own mother's) blog - Akuko Ifo (honestly, it is too late in the day for me to start searching for o's and u's with dots under them...and yeah, you're right - in the time it took me to write this, I could have spelled out "Akuko Ifo" properly.) My mom recently started a blog to share some of the folktales she told my brothers and I when we were younger. Please feel free to widely circulate this message to your children and friends with young children. Right now, all she has up is an intro post, but she hopes to have a fresh story up after the Christmas holiday.

Too many "single stories" out there

2009-12-18T08:52:00.006-05:00

I thought I was the only one who could not sit through the completion of Adichie's TED talk, "Danger of a Single Story." Honestly, I think my self-declared fast from Facebook was largely spurned by the inundation of my mailbox and Newsfeed with links to this talk.

First let me admit that I literally swallowed Half a Yellow Sun after dinner one night, and nearly felt somewhat depressed when I started inching towards the final pages of the novel because I so desired the book to go on, and on, and on. To say that Adichie is an amazing storyteller, would be quite the understatement. I have not yet had the chance to pick up her collection of short stories, The Thing Around Your Neck (Christmas gift, anyone?).

Yes, call me a hater, but I felt that at least the first few minutes that I did happen to slug through were somewhat tiresome. Literally, it was the "single story" that I have heard countless numbers of Nigerian, Ghanaian, Jamaican immigrants tell over again, but this time, more eloquently and on a more public stage...

Young person fetishizes the West...person grows up and travels to this West...person becomes increasingly jaded with the West and its apparent love affair with itself (to the ignorance of other non-Western countries)...person becomes more aware of the beauty and diversity of his/her African identity (primarily through Western outlets which were hitherto thought of as inaccessible in home country)...person shuns western dress and takes interest in rocking dashikis and African headwraps...

And true, as someone has mentioned to me in the past, Adichie's loudest critics happen to be men - see here and here - which was why I was initially hesitant to bring attention to yet another male who just doesn't get our collective love affair with Adichie. Beyond calling attention to the fact that several Nigerian stories were well-established around the time of Adichie's birth, Nnorum Azuonye also points out the apparent contradiction behind Adichie's talk...

The jaundice in The Danger of a Single Story is that Ms Adichie was in fact perpetuating stereotypes. Anyone who does not know better who watches that presentation would conclude that all Westerners refer to Africa as a country. We know this is not true. There is a lot of it going on, but it is not standard by any stretch of the imagination. Never mind that Africans, especially Nigerians are guilty of insinuating that Africa is a country. Many times in the United Kingdom, you ask a Nigerian where he comes from. Afraid of admitting to being a Nigerian and being consigned to the heap of criminals...he would say he comes from Africa. He would only admit the Nigerian connection if the person asking knows Africa is a continent and questions further, ‘what part of Africa do you come from?’ Interestingly, some would respond to this more specific question with a neither here nor there answer; ‘my Dad originally comes from Lagos, and my mother is from Benin.’ If pushed further, he will say, ‘Make it Lagos. I come from Lagos.’

Azuonye forgot to add that yes, while some Westerners find Africa as the bastion of poverty and disease, several of our compatriots have also made careers off of such saving some nebulous creature called Africa. I would suggest taking a peek at the essay yourself...and if Azuonye also sounds tiresome, by all means, change the page in search of yet another single story.

H/T Aloofar for the link

in fact, epic fail...

2009-12-01T19:41:00.004-05:00

Have been a little slow with social media updates since the holidays so forgive me if I wasn't aware of this earlier.

Texas in Africa describes the recent partnership between Twitter and (RED) to celebrate World AIDS Day as a "failure." I wholeheartedly agree. December 1, a day when the entire world promotes AIDS awareness, Twitter has decided to highlight all tweets with the word Africa in red thereby reinforcing an inextricable link between Africa and AIDS.

Seriously, why? Was not aware that today was Africa AIDS day....missed the memo.

Holding Nollywood accountable

2009-11-18T21:55:00.008-05:00

Have been feeling under the weather since the weekend, so used that opportunity to watch Nollywood films with the parents. Unfortunately, I could not get to flea market to collect movies from my usual Senegalese hook-up. Anyway, Youtube to the rescue.

I have always admired veteran Nollywood actresses and film, The Maid, starring Eucharia Anunobi, amongst others, caught my attention. It's a religious film - which is more palatable to my conservative parents (as opposed to films such as this one). Anyway, the film, produced in 2004, follows a Christian family and their maid as they come into a better financial situation and slowly lose their faith. The maid, (played by Mercy Johnson), later becomes demon possessed and enlists the help of the Eucharia's children - no older than 12 or 13, in carrying out demonic activities in school and in the family.

You can already figure out the rest of the film - maid and children run havoc in various homes and schools, powerful pastor comes in to cast out demons and "To God Be the Glory." No need for spoiler alerts here. However, in light of this year's revelations of the child witches phenomenon, I found the portrayal of the maid and children as agents of Satan to be incredibly disturbing. The scene below opens with a child in a cast who was injured during one of these violent exorcisms. Later, another young boy admits to killing his parents and preventing "locking up" the success of his uncle's business.

Such scenes are highly reminiscent of testimonies from rescued "child witches" who claim they were severely abused or abandoned because similarly minded "pastors" accused them of causing the misfortune of their parents through occultic means. Also, many are familiar with the all to familiar story of justifying abuse metted out to house helps who also may be deemed as "witches and wizards." Unfortunately, as in the case here, reality, at times, inspires some Nollywood themes. However, Nollywood, in turn, reinforces some of these realities through films such as these. Not only does to further ruin Nigeria's fragile image, it also supports the notion that yes, some children are indeed agents of evil, bearers of evil spirits which require purging. Films such as these demonstrate the need to reign in Nollywood's negative portrayal of Nigerians.

Speaking of Nollywood, check out the NollywoodForever blog, which provides detailed reviews about the latest Nigerian and Ghanaian films. Highly recommend it. Much better than my short-lived attempt (couldn't support the habit at the time).

Ojukwu's comments reflective of larger social unrest

2009-11-09T19:07:00.005-05:00

To even attempt to describe the political mess that has occurred over the past ten years in Anambra state is quite the feat. However, Chxta, at his blog has done so, and I commend him for it. Seriously, it reads like a very complicated drama - and I am surprised that Nollywood has not yet picked up on it yet - godfathers, rifts between brothers, dubious shrines - the whole nine.

Currently, the Anambra Court of Appeals is deciding whether to re-instate Andy Uba as governor once the Peter Obi's term expires in 2010. Leader of All Progressives Grand Alliance Party (APGA) and former military leader of Biafra, Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, made headlines last week when he claimed that installation of Andy Uba as governor were grounds for the start of another civil war.

“...What we are playing out [in Anambra] is not anything short of playing with the possibilities of another civil war.
I make no apologies about this; the Anambra people are looking unto me, and I am sure most of them have already decided that if we have to fight again, I will be Commander-in-Chief. So, I want to make it clear today I am before you and I am begging. Please I am begging, not drag us into another civil war.

“I make it quite clear that whatever we are playing with we must know the full consequences of it. The full consequences are that we are stepping with our eyes wide open into another bloody conflict. I will not sit around and allow Anambra State to be used as a balloon ball for children to kick around. No. We have our rights. We are a people. I will certainly, to the end, support justice for Anambra State.” (emphasis, mine)

Over the past few days, several have debated whether Ojukwu's calls for justice on behalf of Anambrarians are in essence, calls for another civil war - an invitation for chaos. More than 30 years post-1967, the unsavoury memories of the Nigerian civil war still remain ingrained in the psyche of a number of Igbo who survived the conflict and whose lives remain forever changed by memories of forced conscription, air raids, and starvation. Members of the opposing party and others have strongly condemned Ojukwu's comments and some, not necessarily associated with PDP, have even gone as far as stating that Ojukwu himself, poses a national security threat.

Critics of Ojukwu's critics maintain that Ojukwu's comments were largely taken out of context, claiming that Ojukwu merely stated that decisions taken by the court could potentially destabilise that state. And of course, across Nigerian or Igbo messages boards, requests for Ojukwu's canonisation as the Igbo patron saint have been registered.

While Ojukwu's comments were somewhat misunderstood by the mass media (see bolded portions above), I still question his motives. He did clearly state that if Anambra found itself in such a civil war, he would position himself as the people's "commander-in-chief." Reactions to Ojukwu's careless statements have surprised me a bit, for I was not aware that he still commanded such respect and loyalty from the masses (or perhaps, this is an Anambra thing?). Personally, I am of the opinion that Ojukwu has long expired his usefulness and that his latest rants thinly disguise his selfish desire for some relevance in modern Igbo politics. Also, let us remember that beyond the Biafran war, this is not Ojukwu's first time he has called for popular uprisings on the part of the Igbos. During his failed bid for presidency of Nigeria, in 2007, he ironically states that Igbos will only be fulfilled if there were allowed to live a "separate existence."

Ambitions aside, Ojukwu's recent penchant for civil wars and separate existences reflective of larger trend that has been embraced by several parties, organisations and ethinic groups within Nigeria. When dissatisfied with due process or the rule of law (both of which are have largely been corrupted), the alternative presented to Nigerians is anarchy and chaos. Nigeria's fledgling democracy and tenous stability is oftentimes the target and unfortunate victim of, at times, well-meaning parties. The crisis in the Niger Delta is case-in-point and I would even venture to say that the recent, though resolved, stalement between univerisity unions and the Nigerian government served as a destabilising force within the nation. Ojukwu, Niger Delta militants, unions - all find themselves resorting to methods which put the people they claim to serve at a disadvantage. True change will only come to Nigeria when ordinary citizens are able to effectively petition their government in the face of grave injustices.

reassessing the impact of the "brain drain"

2009-10-26T05:04:00.000-04:00

Earlier this year, Minister of Health, Babatunde Osotimehinin, in response to the decades-old "brain drain" of the continent's healthworkers, urged developed nations to invest in African medical schools and facilities. His request, is largely based on the belief that the continent's pervasive health woes are linked to the emigration of its health professionals. The draining of Africa's intellectual capital has also been witnessed in other fields as well, including business and academia. Current opinion holds that the flight professionals and academics to western shores is a destabilising force in developing nations. While developing nations invest resources into the training of its professionals, developed nations are poised to reap the benefits of such harvests.

Lately, several have begun to challenge such notions. Emeka Okafor, of Africa Unchained, asks if the brain drain might have some beneficial outcomes in the form of flow of capital through remittances, collaborations between foreign-based Africans and institution in their home countries, etc. Interestingly enough, some who aim to fight the continent's brain drain have been, at some point, primary beneficiaries of this phenomenon.

Within the arena of healthcare, the premise that brain drain of health workers equals poor health outcomes, is a a notion that also requires re-examination. Within the Nigerian context (anecdotal evidence alert!!!), I have met recent medical school grads who seek employment in more lucrative alternative fields. While noble, the pursuit of a career in medicine oftentimes fails to support its heroes. Beyond this, the success of a nation's health system depends on far much more than its healthcare workers.

Over the weekend, Foreign Policy, debunked a number of myths associated with the emigration of healthcare workers (an by extension, other professionals) to western countries. An argument I found of particular interest was that against the idea that developing nations waste resources on healthcare professionals who emigrate to western countries.

"The belief that skilled emigrants must cause public losses in the amount of their training cost is based on a series of stereotypes. First, large numbers of skilled emigrants are funded by themselves or by foreign scholarships. A survey of African-born members of the American Medical Association conducted by one of the authors found that about half of them acquired their medical training outside their country of birth. Second, many skilled emigrants serve the countries they come from for long periods before departure. The same survey found that African physicians in the United States and Canada who were trained in their country of birth spent, on average, over five years working in that country prior to emigration. This constitutes a substantial return on all investment in their training."

and you know what i call it...

2009-10-22T01:47:00.004-04:00

...BS.

In my latest NigeriansTalk.org post (yes, I'm blogging by proxy), I argue that the fact that we have a motive for the death of Grace Ushang, but no perpetrator, fosters the idea that Ushang is somehow a player in her own demise. Grace Ushang, may her soul rest in peace, died because some sick person decided to brutally violate her. Her rape and eventual death was not committed in defense of Allah or in adherence to shar'ia law. The fault of Ushang's rape and murder lies wholly on the perverted mind of the rapist and not her khaki trousers.

The fact that there is an excuse being circulated as to why Ushang was attacked so ruthlessly is a glaring indictment on our nation’s view of rape and other violent acts committed against women. We all know, (minus Senator Ekaette), that the worn-out excuse of ”her trousers (skirt, blouse, what-have-you) made me do it” is a pretty pathetic explanation for anything. However, the fact that we even try to explain away such heinous crimes is orders of magnitude more pathetic. Any explanation for rape other than the rapist is, truly, a sick bastard, directly or indirectly shifts blame to the victim. If such is not the case or intention, blaming Ushang’s khakis is some twisted means by which to rationalize the brutality of the crime. Needless to say, I don’t buy into either – blaming the victim, nor tempering the barbaric nature of the crime with some careless explanation. Let’s call a spade a spade – wonton violence is wonton violence and can only be perpetuated by the vilest of the vile.

When Director-Generals of NYSC call for corpers to be more "security-conscious," mothers ask their daughters to bear with it, or Senators set out to legislate lengths of skirts, there is a underlying blame-the-victim mentality that is being perpetuated. Sexual assault and domestic violence, again I reiterate, are reflective of the batterer, and not victim.

feeling a bit standtall-ish...

2009-10-01T16:14:00.003-04:00

Check out my first blog interview on StandTall's blog, The Activist.
And lest I forget, Happy Birthday Nigeria...49 years and many more to come. Let's hope that by 50, we'll be lit up (#lightupnigeria).

on being a first generation ghanaian american

2009-09-28T15:21:00.004-04:00

Just found out about the new PBS documentary, Bronx Princess from CLUTCH Magazine Online. You can watch the film in its entirety here.

Had to share this one, it is a short piece chronicling the coming-of-age story of 18-year-old Rocky Otoo, who finds she must negotiate between her American upbringing and Ghanaian heritage. The film follows her from the Bronx to her father's palace in Ghana. Below is the description from the website and Youtube trailer:

Rocky Otoo is the Bronx-bred teenage daughter of Ghanaian parents, and she's no pushover. She is a sassy high-achiever bound for college. With freedom in sight, Rocky rebels against her mother's rules. When their relationship reaches a breaking point, Rocky flees to her father, a chief in Ghana. What follows is captured in Bronx Princess, a tumultuous coming-of-age story set in a homeland both familiar and strange. Her precocious — and very American — ideas of a successful, independent life conflict with her father's traditional African values. Reconciling her dual legacies becomes an unexpected chapter in this unforgettable young woman's education. A co-production with the Independent Television Service (ITVS).

please...put a quick end to "iwuruwuru" now...

2009-09-28T00:36:00.007-04:00

Recently found this letter to INEC (Independent National Election Committee), written by Executive Director of Paradigm Initiative, 'Gbenga Sesan. Voices some of the frustrations I have with the commission. If there is task that Nigeria should confront immediately, as in tommorow, it would be the sacking of Professor Maurice Iwu, the illegally appointed INEC chairman. You may remember him from 2007 when he ochestrated the last err...elections that brought him to Yar'adua to the throne. He then had the audacity to suggest, following the Obama election, that America should learn from his handling of the Nigerian election.

Aspiring 2011 candidates should come together with like-minded organisations to speak on behalf of themselves and people against the continuation of Iwu's term. INEC cannot even begin to claim independence while working in concert with Iwu's scheming. Nigeria will never be able to enjoy the fruits of a free and fair election while Iwuruwuru electioneering remains alive and well.

is Akunyili taking this rebranding thing a bit too far?

2009-09-22T16:50:00.003-04:00

yesterday, i posted a blog review on the response to the District 9 film on the NigeriansTalk.org blog. I have previously expressed my disgust towards the film. Over the weekend, Minister of Information, Dora Akunyili, finally registered her own disdain towards the film. As much I stand in support of her stern condemnation of the film, I do not, however agree with her proposal (or is is already in effect?) to ban the film from showing in Nigerian movie houses.

If we continue to censor such images, how can we, as bloggers and as a nation, counter such offensive portrayals. It is largely through our ability to access such information that ordinary Nigerian citizens can assist in Akunyili’s rebranding project. The Nigerian government’s willingness to take on District 9, should also be seen as a victory to the many Nigerian bloggers who took offense to this film. One would hope that Akunyili’s mission is not one of censorship which gives birth to misinformation and impedes upon the progress Nigerians have made and continue to make in the blogosphere. Such would be counter-intuitive to the goals of promoting Good People and creating a Great Nation.

Olumide at his blog, highlights a double standard that may be in existence here. While we openly condemn negative portrayals of Nigerians in the foriegn media, some of our own filmmakers, for years, have made their living of depictions of our people in similar circumstances. Nollywood, though it is slowly changing, could have credited its foundations to rubbishing the image of its own people.*** Similarities between early Nollywood pictures and blaxploitation films in America can be found. Will think on this more in a follow-up post.

***Of course, I need to add the caveat that this is not all of Nollywood. Additionally, I must add that Nollywood features examples in which our dirty laundry needs to be aired in public, such as in the film Edikan (re the child witch phenomenon).

south africa takes a page out of Onovo's playbook

2009-09-18T18:38:00.006-04:00

Despite the enmity between South Africa and Nigeria (as evidenced by last year's riots and the reactions to the recent District 9 movie), both countries seem to have a lot in common.

One of which is their intense desire to squelch the growing tide of crime within their borders. Understandable, seeing that South Africa has one of the highest homicide rates in the world and Nigeria can just about take the blame for everything that is wrong and morally amiss in this world we live in....(sarcasm folks, sarcasm). Last month, recently minted Nigerian Inspector General of Police, Ogbonna Onovo lobbied for increased powers to be lent to his police force on the occasion of the 2011 elections. Amongst other things, Onovo requested that police officers be allowed to open fire at those brandishing weapons at polling stations and the ability to arrest those who "commit electoral offenses."

Onovo's South African counterpart, Bheki Cele, recently made a similar "shoot-to-kill" request to members of the country's parliament in anticipation of the upcoming World Cup festivities.

Sadly, in both cases, Nigerians will end up the indirect targets of both proposed moves. The fear that exists in the minds of many is that Onovo's proposal could be utilized by political parties who could initimidate opponents through local police forces. This has already been well documented in my home state during the Bakassi era. Though such has been demonstrated with vigilante groups, the potential buying and selling of local police force loyalties is not teribly far-fetched.

Also, considering the xenophobic sentiments that mar the South African landscape, the targetting of Nigerian citizens through Cele's proposal, is not at all inconceivable. Several of the riots we all witnessed last year in South African slums were largely directed towards Nigerian immigrants who are believed to be at the root of the majority of crimes committed. With such stereotypes pervasive amongst some white and black South Africans alike, it remains possible that under the guise of maintaining peace, the lives of Nigerians in South Africa may indeed by sacrificed.

become a contributor for nigerianstalk.org

2009-09-16T11:43:00.002-04:00

for those interested in reaching a broader Nigerian audience within the blogosphere, this is for you...

NigeriansTalk.org serves as a one-stop site for those interested in Nigeria through the lens of its large community of bloggers. We feature regular feeds, articles, and reviews of posts written by bloggers of Nigerian extraction, bloggers living in Nigeria, and bloggers who blog about Nigeria. NigeriansTalk.org seeks to cover the wide spectrum of perspectives on various social, political, and personal issues - issues that affect Nigerians at home and abroad. We hope that through our collective voices, we will document and bring about the future we seek for our country.

Though we openly accept submissions from anyone who writes generally about Nigerian affairs, we, at NigeriansTalk.org, are actively seeking regular contributors for the following categories:

Culture and Society
Politics
Technology
World Affairs

For more information, click here

the myth of a post-racial America is laid to rest

2009-09-15T14:58:00.005-04:00

Various media outlets have been a-buzz as of late with regards to the Maureen Dowd's New York Times Op-Ed piece published this past weekend. She dared to pen what many in the black and white community have long whispered in hushed conversations and discussed around private family dining tables. The recent backlash against the Obama administration goes beyond fears of big government and Wall Street bailouts. It is inextricably entrenched in racism.

It has been apparent since Obama first declared his interest in the presidency that fringe conservative groups have expressed their displeasure with the prospects of black presidency. However, when we all held hands that January morning, singing Kumbaaya to in honor of the the Obama inauguration, many thought race relations in the United States had turned for the better. Apparently not, for matters have only gone worse for all the world to behold.

Under the guise of rejecting health care reform (I mean, honestly folks, why are vast numbers of "working stiffs" in support of health execs in the first place....) and protecting kids from Obama's stay-in-school propaganda, reaks the stench of racism. With statements such as, "I'm taking back my country," and war cries reminiscent of our secessionist past, it is hard to imagine that so-called activists gathered at the US Capitol this weekend were indeed color-blind. Posters such as that to the right, only serves to confirms this.

The latest slate of events proves that the myth of a post-racial America can, for now, be laid to rest. Several in the media and elsewhere, have literally spent the last few months walking on egg-shells so as to avoid the accusation of pulling out the "race card." I honestly believe that the majority of Americans do not subscribe to such beliefs. However, the existence of such radicals who bear signs stating, "We came unarmed, this time," proves that marginalized groups in America must still remain on alert.

and the Scramble for Africa continues...

2009-09-09T01:11:00.004-04:00

Oil, diamonds, cocoa - na old tory....these days its all about the acreage - in farmland, that is.

The Integrated Regional Information Network of the United Nations reports that Norwegian-based company, Biofuel Africa Limited, is responsible for the forced displacement of Northern Ghanaian farmers and their families. No longer used for subsistence farming, work on the over-20,000 acres of formerly Ghanaian land has now shifted towards the harvesting of the Jatropha carcus seed. Extract of the seed is then used for the sole purpose of biofuels generation...and nothing else. While the company purports that they have offered such displaced persons better alternatives to their former lands, the majority of the farmers have yet to receive the fruits of the said negotiations. Report from local activist on discussions between community members and the Norwegian company can be found here.

The post-colonial scramble for African farmland is not a new one. Countries such as Saudi Arabia and Korea have long purchased African farmland for the purpose of feeding their growing populations: see here and here. For a continent marred by food insecurity, the idea of arable land for sale to the highest foreign bidder is quite unthinkable. Though, it has all the trappings of the conventional pre-colonial story - abundant natural resources, wuru wuru deals with supposed village heads, weak national land acquisitions policies.

the danger of the Nigerian brand

2009-08-24T18:21:00.005-04:00

interesting conversation about the recent science-fiction film, District 9, can be found at Nnedi's blog here.

Just saw the movie last night and was horrified at its depiction of Nigerians, to say the least. Yes, I am used to slandering of the Nigerian brand and usually, I try to not let it bother me. However, after the horrific events that took place in South Africa in May of last year, I could not stomach the positive reviews of District 9. Last year, South Africa declared war on its immigrants, particularly Nigerians, who were deemed as the culprit for the plight of black South Africans (apparently, apartheid can take a back seat on this one....). During the month of May we were bombarded with images of the slaughter, burning, destruction of our fellow Nigerians and other Africans caught in the mayhem. District 9, for me, only served to legitimize such violence against the savage Nigerians, since in the words of the director, the tiny fraction of Nigerians living in South Africa, are indeed responsible for the MAJORITY of crime in a country that has been touted to have one of the highest homicide rates in the world...

Unfortunately, as one commenter posted on her blog, it is relatively easy to take shots at Nigerians seeing that we would not be able to come up with a concerted rebuttal or make a dent in their pockets. Previously, I have taken the Nigerian re-branding project lightly; however, scenarios such as what I have described seem to necessitate a serious look at the dangers, the baggage inherent in the mere mention of the words Nigeria, Nigerian. Rather than waste time on useless logos and mantras of "Good People, Great Nation" (or whatever they are using these days), efforts should go towards countering such portrayals of our people at home and abroad.

on being african-american

2009-08-17T15:16:00.004-04:00

Note this is largely a "re-post" (like a re-tweet) from the latest of the MIMI Magazine blog.

the question most new, first-and-otherwise generation Africans/Caribbeans in America grapple with on several occasion. Documentary, the Neo African Americans seeks to debate the answers. Trailer and website can be found here.

Posted on this issue some time ago and the comments section generated some interesting debate.
the measure of blackness
on akata-ism
race before gender, gender before race

Beyond that, there are other Nigerian bloggers to tackle the meaning of being black and foreign in the United States. (Okay admittedly, I was only able to find one other blogger, but if you know of other similar discussion threads, let me know.

No Apologies! says Clinton...

2009-08-12T15:36:00.010-04:00

Unfortunately, time won't allow me to pay much attention to the much anticipated Hillary Clinton visit to the continent. On what is to be considered her biggest overseas mission to date, Mrs. Clinton started her seven-nation Africa trip in Kenya, which was then followed then by South Africa, Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nigeria, today, and then Liberia and Cape Verde. As for the Nigeria trip, I will try and stay in tune with the blogosphere's reaction to her visit. So far I know know of that of NigerianCuriosity, who highlighted that Clinton's failure to meet with Nigerian "non-officials" does nothing support those largely responsible for most reforms we see in the country.****

Yesterday, a few news media outlets seemed to temporarily forget the incessant Michael Jackson death probe and highlight Mrs. Clinton's almost desperate desire to distinguish herself from her larger-than-life husband. Details found here. Anyway, personally, I could care less of her inability to stifle her insecurities - even on the public stage - and continued commitments to aid and SA-authored Zimbabwean hand-holding are so tired. What really caught my attention was her response, noted at the end of the article, to a question about the West and an apology for what is considered to be one of the most bloodiest colonial histories - that of Congo (I would recommend King Leopold's Ghost as a pretty good primer or for the moving-picture inclined, I hear the documentary, White King, Red Rubber, Black Death, is another good start.)

"...another student had asked if the U.S. and the West felt a need to apologize to the people of Congo for colonialism and postcolonial interference.
That brought a pointed rebuttal as well.
"I cannot excuse the past and I will not try," [Clinton] said. "We can either think about the past and be imprisoned by it or we can decide we're going to have a better future and work to make it."

It seems like Clinton is toeing the line of her boss, Barack Obama, who in his last visit to Africa, nearly absolved the West of its hand in Africa's problems. In relegating colonialism as a non-issue, she indirectly minimises its horrors and denies its influence on present day affairs. Yes, we should focus on moving forward, but like I have mentioned time and time again, we cannot move forward without acknowledging the mistakes of the past. Clinton and Obama refuse to acknowledge such mistakes; and through their position, they encourage the world to follow suit. To ignore the West's assault on the Congolese pre-independence, to me is more than a "glaring omission" (yes, I borrowed the term from NigerianCuriosity), it's grossly insensitive on the part of the American Secretary of State. In fact, I would almost liken it to those who continue minimise the travesty of the Holocaust. True, Hillary,or anyone in the Obama administration, has nothing to do with Congo's past....but some modicum of sympathy would at least nudge the Secretary of State to acknowledge the brutality that was meted out to the nation's citizens.

****Just learned that Clinton will be holding a town-meeting with (American Embassy selected) Nigerian NGOs. Can't wait to hear what comes out of it.

people are different by kind...

2009-07-17T20:30:00.003-04:00

an entertaining end to a long week, post from theRoot. i don tire for these people, jare....
Does Gitmo Have Room for One More?

Shared via AddThis

light it up...

2009-07-16T16:30:00.006-04:00

and i am not talking about weed here. my thoughts on the #lightupnigeria trend can be found at the NigeriansTalk.org blog.

Edikan..."child witch" film premieres in Lagos

2009-07-15T11:57:00.002-04:00

As some of you may already know, I am a huge Nollywood fan and have been in the business of collecting and watching these films since time immemorial... If you don't know, any time you see the name "Isong" attached to a film, expect a well-produced film. Time and time again, I have been simply dazzled by Emem Isong films.

Just as of today, I learned of another Isong in the film industry, Uduak Isong Oguamanam, the mind behind the blog, Artsville. With Desmond Elliot as director, she and Emem Isong co-produced the "nocumentary,***" Edikan, a film highlighting the ills of the "child witch" phenomenon in Akwa Ibom. The film premieres Friday, July 17th at Terra Culture by 5:30pm. The film "attempts to enlighten the parents of affected children who are themselves victims of the greed and wickedness of some fake pastors. ..." I can't imagine that the film will be anything less than amazing and kudos to the director and producers for highlighting such an important issue in a format that I am sure is accessible to the Nigerian audience. Hoping that the film will soon cross the Atlantic for my...I mean, our...viewing as well...(hint, hint...).

Below is a youtube preview of the film (Uduak, hope you don't mind)...

***Nocumentary = Nollywood meets documentary

"child witches" participate in peaceful protest

2009-07-14T21:02:00.006-04:00

I have been following the Akwa Ibom child witch phenomenon for some time now. unfortunately the only time i mentioned their plight on this blog was in reference to Maduekwe's incredible denial of their existence. For more information and the organization that seeks to protect our society's most vulnerable members, Child's Right and Rehabilitation Network (CRARN), I would check out the following posts from members of the Nigerian blogosphere...

naijablog - has been following the story since 2007
bellanaija - her personal take on the situation
Nigerian Health Watch - a more recent piece on the CRARN attacks

Fortunately, the children of CRARN are taking matters into their own hands, peacefully, and protesting police brutality against the children and staff members. See the article here. Inspiring. However, I went to the comments and found that one particular fellow seemed to deny the existence of maltreatment of these children. Of course I reacted (hopefully 234NEXT will publish my comments soon). However, I began to wonder, beyond Maduekwe, how widespread is this attempt on the part of Nigerians to close their eyes to the horrible "child witch" phenomenon in Akwa Ibom? I have talked primarily to my fellow Naijamericans here who do believe that such is happening and needs to be addressed promptly (however, I have noted that many have used it as a platform to rehash their horrid stereotypes about the perceived backward-ness of some ethnic groups in the South-South - to which I whole-heartedly disagree with....).

Anyway, it may be my naivete....but how and why would someone read about the plight of these innocents and then figure that such news is not real? Am I missing something?

"It wasn't me..." says Obama on behalf of the West

2009-07-13T13:15:00.004-04:00

Like the rest of you, I so much looked forward to Obama's first visit to sub-Saharan Africa since his inauguration. As much as I secretly envied Ghana for getting first dibs at the international superstar, I couldn't help but share in their excitement. Were it not for poverty, I so would have been there.

In the excitement, I, admittedly, may have fallen into the trap of expecting a "miracle speech," as Akin puts it. Of course, it was not. But I believe I have sobered up a bit and realized the folly of my ways. However, lingering disappointments still remain.

The crux of Obama's message to the continent was that in essence Africa needs to shape up or shape out. According to the American president, several of Africa's modern day woes are largely due to its own mismanagement of its governance. He cursory acknowledged the role of colonialism, but largely placed blames on despotic regimes and leaders. By declaring such, Obama has opened a whole new debate on Africa - how we got here and where we are going. Obama has voiced the opinion of many in the West who, because of the overwhelming sense of "white guilt," would not dare voice such criticisms of Africa.

Yes, I do agree that Africa has on many an ocassion shot itself in the foot - perhaps one too many times. However, I find that Obama's speech was tantamount to absolving Western powers of their past and current role in the failure of several African states. Unfortunately, the privilege of having "African blood run through his veins," has provided additional fodder for Westerners to point all five fingers at the African continent. If the most powerful black leader in the world agrees that Africa is to blame for Africa, then who is the West, to counteract such.

In addition, Obama chooses Ghana as an example of Africans finally deciding to choose democracy over autocracy. In essence, Obama concludes, if Ghana can do it - there is no reason why other African nations cannot follow suit. it goes without saying that it is an impossible exercise to extrapolate the results of one African state's efforts at nation-building to another (different colonial histories, sociopolitical climates, etc). However, as I always say, echi di ime - tomorrow is pregnant - no one knows what tomorrow will bring. A few years ago, Obama could have chosen Ivory Coast or even his paternal home of Kenyan as that great democratic hope we should all aspire to (Please, I am not wishing ill to my brethren in Ghana - just merely stating a fact of life). I don't think there exists an African country in which its populace would rather choose chaos over stable and peacful governance that is responsible to it citizens. However, to ignore or rather deny the role of colonialism, followed by our independence which was not truly independent, serves to demonize a people in the eyes of a world that is already showing signs of wanting to give up on our continent. Like I mentioned in a comment on SSD's piece on the Obama speech, it is funny how Obama is willing to support affirmative action in the US, but does not recognize the need to equalize the playing field between Africa and a world that has spurned her. It is almost as if Obama looks at his ascendancy to to the American presidency as a self-made effort, and cannot imagine why other Africans cannot excel as he or his goat-herder-father-turned-graduate did.

Personally, I think Obama's message did further damage to the continent's PR campaign. I think I have said this before in my blog (or possibly in conversation), we cannot move forward without a thorough analysis of what brought us here to our current predicament in the first place. A man who does not know when the rain began to beat him, will truly remain lost***

I am tired of Bush-esque 15minute speeches sympathizing about the plight of the hapless Africans, and now growing tired of Obama-esque, "it is not our (the West) fault," lectures.
***Borrowed this from an Igbo proverb, which states "a man who does not know when the rain began to beat him, will not know where he dried his body."

couldn't let this one get away

2009-06-30T21:53:00.003-04:00

seems like everyone has been talking about Yar'adua's offer of amnesty (...white flag of surrender, perhaps?...) to Niger Delta combatants (freedom fighters, thugs, what-have-you).

all well and good...

now, maybe he can focus on the hundreds, perhaps thousands, of ordinary Nigerians anxiously awaiting trial in the hell holes known as the Nigerian prison system.

sorry, couldn't let this one slide. And thanks to all those who have commented in the past and asked after me. Will get to your emails soon. As to whether I have returned to the blogosphere...we'll see what is in store for the future.

i'm excited about....

2009-03-30T13:04:00.007-04:00

well, i've been meaning to blog about two recent discoveries that I have been all over as of recent. I couldn't choose between the two, so i decided to post both here.

Celebrating Ndi-Igbo: Acclaiming People of Igbo Descent

I am so on this blog...literally a daily post on big things members of the Igbo Diaspora have accomplished both past and present. Kudos to Ababoy for this initiative.

K'Naan
This guy has been in my head for the longest ever since I picked up his 2009 CD, Troubadour. I thought this CD was incredible, with tracks like Wavin' Flag and Take a Minute, until I checked out his earlier CD, The Dusty Foot Philosopher - a more reflective, somber version of K'Naan.

Excited about Mogadishu and Ndi Igbo.....but as for what I am not excited about....

my zune which decided to die on me like a month after i got it....i guess it's back to Apple (i tried, Bill Gates, i tried....)

misguided idolatry

2009-03-23T22:51:00.006-04:00

just came back from vacation and realized that new england did not receive the memo that spring started days ago....well that is by the way.

while on vacation, a friend pointed me to idols west africa clips on youtube (since youtube, these days, seems to be my main source of free entertainment). these clips are most likely quite old (wikipedia says the show aired two years ago)....but as usual, I am late with everything. i apologize for those who have already laid this show to rest.

amongst these clips was one of a fela kuti imitator who shows up to audition in his undies (pants, tighty whities, briefs, what-have-you). i admit, i laughed hysterically at the clip....

however, i found the comments by judge dede mabiaku to be more than aggravating. about 50seconds into the clip, dede asks the contestant if he had ever seen fela on stage dressed similarly. the contestant answers yes - only to be rebutted by dede accusation that he, the contestant - is a liar. dede later goes on to express how the fela's memory is being insulted by this guy's penchant to appear before the camera in his underpants.

well, dede, apparently, you are not aware that imitation is the the best form of flattery. while dede feigns appreciation toward the legend that was fela, he forgets that fela "death is in his pocket"** kuti was known to dress similarly on stage.

many commenters on that youtube clip expressed their outrage at dede's denigration of the poor guy - outrage that is justifiable. but what i find more aggravating is dede's blatant ignorance of a man he claims to worship. a nigerian man dede's age, especially one judging a musical contest should be at least half-way competent enough to know that fela kuti was on different wavelength from the rest of the country in mannerisms, politics, and music. in fact when dede says that the contestant is on some wrong pills, i couldn't help but think of how dede would have responded if the contestant rolled up into the auditions smoking a marijuana joint in keeping with the fela imitation.

in a show about west african music, none of the judges knew fela kuti (or maybe they confused him with someone else - femi, perhaps?). and i have a feeling that alot of nigerians and lovers of nigerian music (me, included) are quick to idolize fela without really knowing what he was about. when people mention great african musicians, fela is one of the first to come to mind. to think otherwise would be blasphemy. in fact, when i was a bit younger, i was absolutely shocked when i found that my father, who's taste in music i respect, expressed his revulsion at fela kuti. initially i found this unforgiveable - but later realised that my dad's preference was an informed one. he did not care much for his politics and found his lifestyle undesirable.

this post is in no way meant to be a bash on fela kuti. rather, i personally wanted ask us why we respect the fela kutis of the world who have long passed on. i cant help but think that if such people lived amongst us today, they would most likely be shunned by many of the likes of dede and i. our idolatry is, at times, misguided.

**learned from a good source....(cough...atupa....cough) that anikulapo means death is in his pocket....most likely an allusion to his HIV/AIDS diagnosis

oh, in regards to the picture above...i do not endorse smoking of any kind - particularly of joints nearly as large as my arm...

ndi a enweghi atu

2009-03-09T18:37:00.006-04:00

just found out through loomnie that the famed Igbo historian, Professor Adiele Afigbo, died this morning. when one iroko tree falls, it is big news....but now it seems that of late several of our great ones are dying. just yesterday i twittered (yes, i twitter now) on how i had celestine ukwu on repeat and just this afternoon while driving, i cried as i listened to the old school highlife my dad and I used to dance to on saturday mornings. Egwu ndi a enweghi atu....works that can never be duplicated.....Achebe, Nwapa, Okigbo, Igwe, Egbuna, Isichei....were names that regularly graced our shelves. Most are aging and some are no more. I'd hate to get off tangent, but I sometimes wonder the kind of cultural legacy I will one day find myself passing down to my own children.***

Afigbo is a native of Okigwe, not too far away from my maternal home. He remains one of Igboland's most noted historians having authored several books on the history of southeastern Nigeria. His "Ropes of Sand," (a gift I received some years back from a good family friend), was probably my first formal introduction to Igbo history and origins. I remember only reading an excerpt of his other earlier work "The Warrant Chiefs: Indirect Rule in Southeastern Nigeria," during one of my many moments of procrastination. I have yet to read some of his later works, but hope to do so when chanced.

Professor Afigbo will be missed.

*** just to qualify this, i do believe that nigeria currently finds itself in somewhat of a cultural renaissance with some of the newer works that are coming out. i guess my comment here is more a reflection of wondering whether I, personally, would be able to share that culture with my children as effectively as my parents did. I look at my shelves and all i see are textbooks - "Bate's Guide to Physical Examination and History Taking" is not much of a literary legacy to pass down...sigh...

nigerians talk....let's listen

2009-03-06T11:46:00.006-05:00

nigerians are talking....all the time. and i'm not just talking (haha) about everyday conversation or mindless chatter (like that of our esteemed parrot of the House, Patrick Obahiagbon). rather, the Nigerian blogosphere is blowing up and new bloggers are being added to our ranks daily.

in honor of Nigerian bloggers and to promote both veterans and newbies, Loomnie and I started NigeriansTalk.com

NigeriansTalk.com is basically like a blog-round up for, about and by Nigerians. Every Monday, starting next week, we will post a review of the hottest news from bloggers such as yourself (and ehemm, myself)...on occasion we'll have blogging tips, interviews with famed nigerian bloggers (cough...SSD...cough) and other really interesting things - once we think of them.

so when you are chanced, check out the website...and if you are interested in becoming a reviewer....even better...

A bit about NigeriansTalk.com (sorry could not figure out how to do that block quote thing that loomnie had on his site...but anyway...):

NigeriansTalk is a weekly review of posts written by bloggers of Nigerian extraction, bloggers living in Nigeria and bloggers who blog about Nigeria. NigeriansTalk seeks to cover the wide spectrum of perspectives on various social, political, and personal issues, issues that affect Nigerians at home and abroad. We hope that through our collective voices, we will bring about the future we seek for our country.

now back to our regularly scheduled program...

i'd hate to beat a dead horse...

2009-03-02T21:01:00.006-05:00

but the conversation around slumdog millionaire has been so interesting thus far. would like to forward you to obla yoo's blog who is of a differing opinion than mine. I love a good debate, especially amongst friends.

as i was responding to the various comments, i remembered Uzodinma Iweala's Washington Post article entitled, "Stop Trying to 'Save' Africa" (which is funny because I totally forgot that he wrote Beasts of No Nation, which on ther surface, would seem like a "Save Africa" book....will read it eventually I see if this is true or not). His article was in part response to the flagrantly annoying "I AM AFRICAN" campaign, which to this day, still makes my skin crawl....ergghhh (see this for an interesting pic responding back to this nonsense)

Personally, as much as I enjoy films about countries other than the US, I sometimes feel that amongst some Westerners, such films are so one-sided that it gives them the idea that all Indians are like this or that all Africans (regardless of nationality) wear various colours on faces for no apparent reason, on the regular.

This is Africa, folks, this is AFRRRRRICAAA (shouts Nneoma, raising her face to the sky which hangs peacefully over the Serengheti, as scantily-clad tribal natives sing the songs of the ancients in concert with the rhythmic bleating of wild chimpanzees....oh and by the way, this, this and this goes to prove that it is indeed Westerners who live one on one with the chimpanzees, not us...lol)

My apologies for bringing up an older topic and making matters worse by referencing an article from two years ago....will bring fresh content soon...i think.

"i am not a slumdog"

2009-02-22T17:07:00.008-05:00

recent winner of four Golden Globes and several other cinematic accolades, Slumdog Millionaire, apparently has been facing much criticism and protest by Indians and related social activists. the new york times digs deep to discover the roots of this backlash by seeking the opinions of Indian intellectuals. Their comments, that that of the NYTimes readers, are quite interesting. I have yet to see the film (admittedly, I live under a rock), but I can't help but empathise with those who may find this film as "poverty porn," much like several depictions of "African" everyday life by the West....the "experts," however, seem to diasgree...

update january 2010: last year I did manage to watch the film (thank you HBO OnDemand). And by the end of the film, I *almost* cried...I'm a sucker for romance...sue me.

why the victims remain just that....

2009-02-16T11:50:00.005-05:00

victims....

Few months ago, the world was abuzz with the outing of the heinous crimes occurring against mere children deemed as witches in Akwa Ibom. For more on this subject click here. I think it was generally agreed upon that driving nails through the skulls of adolescents and young people in efforts to rid them of the devil is not the most humane route.

Fortunately, Akwa Ibom, after much international and local uproar took a stand against such acts and prosecuted perpetrators of such acts. Strangely enough, we did not hear from the federal government until now.

Our good friend failed-Transportation-minister-turned-foriegn-affairs-minister finally provided the world with the Nigerian government's reaction to the plight of these children. These children, who suffered very tangible physical and psychological bruises from their ordeals, were PAID, yes paid to admit they were tortured, reports NEXT from the Universal Periodical Review session on Nigeria. From a previous post and comments I have made on other blogs, I am sure you can tell that I am not his biggest fan (and that horrendous striped Kangol cap doesn't help matters either). However, this latest admission trumps all - it reflects his blatant disregard for the basic human rights of communities less-privileged than those he may find himself in. His statement is analogous to blaming the rape vicitm for his/her rape or rather denying those very real events. It is because of people like Chief Ojo Maduekwe, "O Gbu Umuntakiri I" of Nigeria that victims remain victims.

Under normal circumstances, Yar'adua should have him sacked as the spokesperson of Nigeria to the outside world....but then again, the case of Nigeria is not a normal circumstance.

of medicaments, erectile dysfunction and diabetes

2009-02-11T01:28:00.001-05:00

i have apparently been living under a rock (aka the United States) since it is only recently that I heard of the great Dr. Louis Obyo Obyo Nelson, who has been touted to have found a "cure" for diabetes.

last week, several Nigerian newspapers, including ThisDay, celebrated Nelson as a home-grown national hero, relishing the idea that something good has finally come out of Nigeria. Recently appointed Minister of State in the Federal Ministry of Health, Dr. Aliyu Idi Hong echoes such sentiments by describing Nelsons' "medicament" as historical....one would think Obama was being elected all over again considering the excitement that has been generated over the past few days.

why this news bothers me....let me count the ways....or rather let me start with the positives. In light of a piece I wrote some time back for mimimagazine about the growing, yet silent, dangers of chronic disease amongst Nigerians, I am quite elated that a discussion of diabetes has taken a prominent place in national headlines. The World Health Organization predicts that in Nigeria, mortality due to infectious disease, maternal/perinatal conditions AND nutritional deficiencies are expected to decline by 6% by 2015. However, in that same period, deaths due to diabetes and related conditions are expected to increase by 52% (please check my numbers, i just lifted this from and old assignment). I expect that this is largely due to the fact that we hardly talk about chronic disease on a national scale in Nigeria - or in developing nations in general....and when we do - its a whole lot of misinformation. But at least, diabetes is getting some shine time.

and speaking of misinformation, this brings me to my dear Dr. Nelson. from some work I did in the East sometime ago, I made the crude observation that many talk about chronic diseases, such as diabetes, as a condition to be cured. I guess the infectious disease model of you have an infection which requires a drug to rid the body of that foreign body is being applied to diabetes as well. I have encountered several Nigerian patients, family and friends who have either sought a cure for their diabetes or claimed to have been cured - medically, spiritually, or otherwise. Such thinking, my friends, is dangerous. This is because, in thinking that they are cured, diabetics abandon needed treatment/monitoring to keep their ever-fluctuating blood sugar levels under control. So when Nelson talks of a cure for diabetes, not only am I highly suspicious, but also, I am greatly concerned at the message he and his unofficial advertisers (Dr. Aliyu Idi Hong) are sending to folks. Now if Nelson's medicament (you can tell I am totally digging this my new word, medicament...) could manage diabetes....then all well and good.

several people have cited that the credibility of Nelson's claim lies in the fact that he's getting an almighty US patent and is working in conjunction with GDPAU - which I found out is a school of Ayurvedic medicine in New Jersey of all places (thanks google). Honestly people, I could scrape dandruff off my weave, bottle it, medicament-ize it and submit it for a US Patent - as long as someone has not done it before. I just hope that ordinary Nigerians are not the ones to suffer from some wuru wuru clinical trial remiscent of my other good friend, Pfizer.

oops....i lied....apparently Nigerians are indeed the guinea pigs of Nelson's drug.....forgot to read the rest of the ThisDay article....its really late....

now, you may have noticed that the title of this post mentioned erectile dysfunction....well, not only was it a carefully crafted ploy to get more hits on my blog....Nelson has also claimed that a side effect of this drug includes improved sexual function. Considering that erectile dysfunction and diabetes almost go hand-in-hand for men, I would be quite impressed with any drug that addresses both diabetes and prior vascular damage caused by diabetes that leads to erectile dysfunction....and that's about all I have to say about erectile dysfunction and related medicaments.

by the way, I am very pro-alternative and complementary medicine....its just that at the same token, i am anti-misinformation....

new voices

2009-02-09T21:33:00.006-05:00

so Nigeria and Ghana have recently added some new bloggers to their ranks, who happen to be good friends of mine. Please, when you can, check out the random, yet relevant, thoughts of a gal and the Lamp, or Atupa,when you are chanced.

my dears, two new stars have been born....

mosquitoes are soooo hot right now...

2009-02-05T16:10:00.004-05:00

apparently, mosquitoes are not just for the poor anymore (or those unfortunate souls caught in Connecticut boonies during the summer....ehem....like me).

Bill Gates, speaking at the TED2009 conference, desired to make this plain to his audience by releasing 150 (who counted?) malaria free, though hungry, mosquitoes on his audience.

The stunt is cute, but what is even better is his commitment towards funding efforts to find a malaria vaccine to prevent related deaths in the future. For more on the "ideas worth spreading" being discussed at TED, check out their website for streaming coverage (and links to live bloggers at the conference).
thanks mommy for the link...

on incessant "punditry" and the like...

2009-02-03T08:25:00.002-05:00

of which I am guilty of.....check Grandiose Parlour's post, "Nigeria: Can We Wiki Our Elected Officials," discussing the potential of possibility of....gasp....seriously holding our elected officials accountable for what they say and do.

(scratches head)

2009-01-30T04:23:00.005-05:00

wait...so i think this is the first time i realized that the Nigerian government is representing the families affected by the 1996 Pfizer meningitis trials in Kano. i blogged about this case briefly sometime back. as of Tuesday, the Nigerian government, representing these unfortunate families, has decided to settle out of court with Pfizer. hmmmm, how convenient for enlargement of federal government coffers.

why, again, is the Nigerian government representing these families (scratches head)? i am all for government helping the needs of the less fortunate, but it seems that in the interests of these familes and the Nigerian government can and probably do conflict. I am not terribly familiar with the details of this case, since such info is not being broadly distributed to the public....but it seems like a better course would have been to hold two trials (unless I am in the dark and this is what is in fact going on...). One trial would be Nigeria v. Pfizer and would give the federal government the opportunity to sue the company for operating such a drug trial without proper permission from the Nigerian government. The second would be that of the Kano families v. Pfizer in which the drug company would be charged for crimes they committed against these individuals. Let me know what you think on this one....or please share other resources on this particular issue....

justice may remain elusive for these families after being pimped by large pharma (Pfizer) and now quite possibly, their own government. well, i guess this is the end of the road for this particular case. quite unfortnately though, this is an increasing trend on the part of pharmaceuticals to test their product in developing nations. trying to get my hands on Sonia Shah's "the body hunters," which I plan to devour and share after i get thru a brutal exam next week.

people are so entertaining

2009-01-27T05:59:00.005-05:00

in my younger brash days, I used to be among the many who saw advanced fee fraud, popularly known as 419 scams, as fitting "punishment" for westerners attempting to get rich quick from the corruption that runs relatively unchecked in Nigeria. in fact, upon receiving one of these 419 emails some years back, i replied giving the scam artist tips on how to make his emails more believable (hint, getting rid of the CBN@yahoo.com address and using sentence case rather than all caps, etc)....it was out of jest at the time....but i now find my actions regrettable. these days i have sobered some and realized that not only do these scams destroy families and their livelihoods, it has an enormous impact on the willingness of foreigners to engage in the Nigerian economy. It hurts us in the long-run moreso than we think.

anyway, i am happy that some on the receiving end of these scams are wising up and I was pleasantly entertained by this man's attempt to get the scammer at his own game....i believe making almost $200 in the process (which he says he later donated to charity). thanks BB for giving me a good laugh with this one...

barack obama....the President of the united states of america

2009-01-25T16:21:00.005-05:00

....and not the world.

I personally cast my vote on November 4, 2008 in favor of Barack Obama as president of the united states. although I appreciate his mass appeal to just about everyone on this planet, i do have to come to the realization that Obama was indeed elected to look out for american interests and the welfare of its various alliances and whatnot.

american presidents have been doing this since the birth of this great union...and we can expect this trend to continue - kenyan-blooded president or not. considering the position of the united states as the rome of its day and its founding principles of committment to justice and equality for all, i have never been totally comfortable with such a self-interested view. i have mentioned this in a previous post american independence day 2008, when I came to the conclusion that in the US the life of one american seems to be far worth the life anyone else.

as i tuned into the comments of newly minted President Barack Obama on the Israeli attacks on the Gaza strip, i find that i now have to amend that previous conclusion. the life of one american and perhaps its allies trumps that of hundreds of other non-american or non-allied people. as much as i love the man, i must be very honest - the position of Barack Obama - and democrats in general - is not terribly different from past administrations such as Bush I and II. i guess Obama does admit that humanitarian assistance is needed in the Gaza strip - but that is about it. i find this very disconcerting.

Since the unrest late December, there have been a total of 13 Israeli deaths (mostly soldiers) while on the Palestinian side, the number is at 1,200, with the majority being innocent civilians. as much as i am for any country defending its borders, i think that common sense would tell us that the punishment did not fit the crime. however, in keeping with the american ideology that americans and their partners lives are worth far more than that of others, a CNN poll found that the majority of americans felt that the israeli use of force was too little or just about right...

of course i found this incredibly troubling especially after watching the account of this young man, a former middlebury college student, who lost two brothers due to this "justified" onslaught of violence against palestinians. as someone who has brothers of my own, i could not help but see myself in him and consider that quite possibly, we all are deserving of the right to life - regardless of nationality or affliation.

thank God...

2008-11-11T12:24:00.004-05:00

...that the South no longer dictates the outcome of presidential elections. NYTimes article explores the diminishing power of low-income, uneducated white Southerners in politics as evidenced by the failed Clinton and McCain bids for president.

Most of the comments from the interviewees, such as how the Obama administration will cause blacks to be more aggressive or that Obama voters should seek penitence, did not surprise me. I spent some of my formative years in the rural South and often my family received threats from neighbors in our all-white neighborhood. As for Southerners and the seriousness of their politics, I found that out the hard way when I was physically assaulted by fellow classmates in the second grade for wishing that Ross Perot would become president in the 1992 elections. (For those who were not there, Ross Perot was the independent party challenger who threatned to siphon Republican votes from Bush I which would result in a Clinton I victory. I was seven or eight at the time and only picked Perot because he was the underdog and felt bad that he did not have many friends....).

Anyway, I think the era of Southern-strategy and catering to hard-working Americans (read Caucasian and barely-educated) is overdue for its demise.

as for the pic....yeah, it might be offensive, but....of course, not all white Southerners who dropped out of high-school look like this....it was more illustrative than anything else

soweto blues

2008-11-10T06:19:00.009-05:00

just yesterday, i first noticed my neighbor's old school Simon and Garfunkel record stashed with some of her other "antiques" (in quotes since antiques means different things to different age groups). My mind immediately went to Miriam Makeba, who I had not heard from in such a long time since the unfortunate demise of my first-generation iPod.

Anyway, the first time I encountered Miriam Makeba was at the Paul Simon concert in 1987. No, I am not that old to have personally attended what was dubbed the African concert. My parents taped it when it first came out on Public Television and then years after, when I was seven, my brothers and I spent an evening with my parents watching our homemade copy (back when most people had VCRs). The concert took place in Zimbabwe due to apartheid restrictions in South Africa. My parents took the time to explain to us the horrors of apartheid which then led to our first primer on African-European relations over the past decades and centuries. At the young age, after watching my parents' again homemade copy of Sarafina on Broadway and then the moving performances by Miriam Makeba, Hugh Masekela, and Ladysmith Black Mambazo, I began to appreciate the role of that performers had in highlighting the ills of their society. (Note that I said "began"...at this age, I was still very much picking snot out of my nose and playing with barbies...not engaging in activism and the like).

Now, with the death of Miriam Makeba at the age of 76, I have revisited that footage of the African concert in which she details the plight of South African blacks under apartheid. Listening to her that evening with my family was probably one of my more transformative moments in childhood. Miriam possessed an indescribably soulful voice that challenged and soothed the heart in manner that could only be accomplished by a mother. Mama Africa, our mother, you will be missed.

I couldn't choose between these two performances at the African concert. Hope you will enjoy both though. After hearing the news of her death I have not had the courage to finish the entire clips without breaking down into tears. So please enjoy them for me. The first is entitled Soweto Blues, written by Hugh Masekela and the second, Under African Skies is a duet with Paul Simon. Memories.

where's the outrage

2008-11-06T17:55:00.013-05:00

so I am sure many of you are familiar with the Uzoma Okere tragedy and the footage that has been posted online. If not, I would suggest visiting this site, this one, or this.

While the blogosphere, particularly the Nigerian blogosphere has surmounted an amazing response to Okere and other recent travesties to human rights in Naij (note Elendu and the more recent Asiwe detentions), I am somewhat disappointed by the silence on the part of the Western media. (okay, so I only did a google news search....but I am quite confident that most of the coverage of these incidents has been performed by Nigerians at home and abroad).

While checking out the facebook group organized on behalf of justice for Okere, I was recently reminded of the Amina Lawal issue a few years back when Sharia law demanded her stoned for having a child out of wedlock. Women's groups, international organizations, major western newspapers and the like were all over it once the story broke....all over it....like white on rice...(sorry for the reeeeeally lame joke, but i just couldn't help but amuse myself a bit)

While replaying the events of Amina Lawal case in my head, I couldn't help but wonder why there is not a similar response to the Okere incident. Where are the western feminists, the American bloggers, the New York Times...Brazil, for crying out loud!

Understandably, Amina's life was very much on the line...moreso than Okere (though both events are grave examples of Nigeria's devaluation of basic human rights). However, there is a part of me that still wonders why the response to the Amina case was so much adopted by the Western media...I'd hate to say it but it seems that the Amina case was much "appealing" to the West. The Lawal case had all the elements of a "let's save the backward Africans"-type drama - a religion that the West finds abhorrent, adultery and sin, and the suppression of sexual freedom mediated by an ancient patriarchal system.

Probably, in a few days, I will be proven horribly wrong or someone will correct me that the Uzoma, Elendu, and Asiwe cases have been accorded the same gravity as the Lawal case....I hope. But if not, I think it just further goes to demonstrate that to look to the West to fight our battles will not give lasting solutions. While the participation of the West in matters of Nigerian human rights is encouraged and much appreciated, I think we all as Nigerians need to look to ourselves to efficiently organize around such issues - mounting a response that rivals that of outsiders. I think to a degree we were able to effectively do so in the British Airways case (at least to the extent that we were able to get some type of apology from them...small steps, people). Personally, I am at a loss as to which means of organizing ourselves will be most effective in Nigeria (admittedly, I am much more familiar with American forms of grassroots-level organizing and protest and I don't assume you can transplant their methods to the Nigerian context...or can you? Hmmmmm...).

(ooooooh, check this out, i blogged twice in one week....this toad is starting to enjoy this afternoon sunshine)

out of hiding

2008-11-05T18:22:00.009-05:00

yes, i have indeed come out of hiding after some intense initial weeks at school (of which more are to come). i have heard on many occasions, "awọ anaghị agba ọsọ n'ehihie n'efu," which means that the toad doesn't come out in the afternoon for no reason (apparently, they are nocturnal creatures).
So what has prompted my coming out back to the daylight of the blogosphere....you may wonder?'nuff said. considering the gravity of the election of President Barack Hussein Obama on the psyche of both native and first generation African Americans such as myself, I am nothing but speechless, (both literally and figuratively...I woke up this morning with little much but a whisper from all the screaming from election night). I will return back to the blogosphere on a later date to process what an Obama presidency could look like.

For a photo-journal of reactions around the world to the Obama victory, please check out the HuffingtonPost...

...brother can you spare a job?

2008-09-03T03:32:00.005-04:00

apparently, governor babatunde fashola of lagos state is hiring at his place. amongst new applicants for menial jobs such as cleaners include university degree holders and those who have recently completed their NYSC programs.

but i guess to governor fashola, the planting of trees trumps discussion of the current state of the nigerian university educational system and the future of its youth.

needs a rethink...

2008-08-29T20:55:00.006-04:00

sometime ago, i wrote on the recent rise of the polio epidemic in the north and its inextricable link to the 1996 Pfizer drug company scandal. as a result of the unethical practices undertaken by Pfizer during that time period, many northerners to this day remain wary of immunization campaigns, and understandably so.

the mysterious aftermath of the Pfizer scandal and the very real possibility that some communities are still perceived to be susceptible to be used as human guinea pigs (please see Naapali's comment on that post) has caused many parents of Plateau state to refuse the polio vaccine for their children. the health minister of the state, Dr. Angela Miri in response has called for punitive measures against parents who refuse to have their children vaccinated stating that the behavior of such parents is "very shameful and uncalled for."

while i acknowledge that the vaccination of children against the life-crippling polio is critical to its ultimate eradication, i have to disagree agree with the approach of health officials in Plateau state. The abuse of northerners in the name of medicine was a very real event and so far no measures have been put in place to prevent a repeat of 1996 meningitis trials.

i think health officials would further their cause by first acknowledging the legitimate fears of the Plateau state parents. i am very sure that the parents of Plateau state are looking out for the best interest of their families in light of a system that fails to protect them from internal and external medical/scientific exploitation. in acknowledging those fears, the government should then proceed to address them - possibly educating the public on how to avoid being "419'ed" by multi-national drug companies and the like. then, as was done in the past, work with religious and community figures in convincing parents of the need to vaccinate their children.

Of course I came up with this while eating dinner, so it is not the most well-thought out course of action. but i think simply punishing Plateau state parents because in their perceived best interests for their children refuse vaccines serves as a temporary bandage on an ever-festering wound.

it seems like affirmative action...

2008-08-28T20:34:00.007-04:00

...is not just for black people and women anymore.

in all honesty, did anyone think the VP pick for the Democrats would be another "change" candidate? Seems that some of the major qualifications for the veepstakes included being male, white, and significantly older than the average American.

...before I receive any hate mail, I post this in jest.

silence...

2008-08-12T18:54:00.002-04:00

i know, i've been avoiding the blogosphere for a while, but with good reason - reasons that i don't care to explain here. I apologize for the continued silence. I have a backlog of possible blog topics, so please excuse me if rehash something you've discussed weeks past.

few weeks ago, we all of the Nigerian diaspora within the United States shivered at the news of the cold-hearted Minnesota murder that silenced Mrs. Anthonia Iheme, 28, by her husband, Mr. Michael C. Iheme. Shortly after the murder, Mr. Iheme dialed 911 stating that he has "killed the woman that messed [his] life up." Bail has been sent at $1 million dollars and Mrs. Anthonia leaves behind and four-year-old son and three-year-old daughter.

unfortunately, the Iheme murder is part of a growing trend of spousal homicide, particularly of women, amongst Nigerian immigrants in the United States. First let me point out that Nigerians are not the only perpetrators of such acts - remember, the number one killer of pregnant women in the United States is homicide - usually by their husbands or significant others. However, incidents such as this, this, and this within recent memory should warrant some introspection amongst our people everywhere, particularly the United States.

earlier this week, I shared the details of this story with my hair dresser, a recent Nigerian immigrant. Of course, she like all others with a pulse, found this story to be horrifying. She wondered what the woman did to warrant such punishment.

problem....

why should the first concern be about what the woman did or did not do to warrant...what?...murder?

anyway, since she was much older than I, of course, I asked for her insight as to why such things happen and why they have been happening in the Nigerian community in the US. She gave the usual battery of complaints that life in the US to too stressful and increased expectations on men cause them to go mad and some murder their wives.

I proposed that the problem was not that life in America was unbearably hard (if so, I would gather that most Nigerians would have murdered their wives long before they reached the US....but that is a topic for another day). Rather, it starts with this notion that sometimes Nigerian culture (whatever that means...), does its people a disservice by placing undue power in the hands of one to control the fate of another in a lesser position of power. Such manifests itself in marriages, especially when there is quite the age gap between partners. (Not all of such unions are horrible, and some relationships I admire the most are those between couples of differing ages).

there exists this idea, that upon marriage, ownership of the woman is relinquished from the father and transferred to the spouse. With this ownership, comes the idea that one has the mandate to treat the newly acquired property as they please - particularly when it comes to issues of domestic abuse. America is a culture that openly threatens this ideal and pushes perpetrators and victims of wife battery into the dark until something more serious occurs. Yes in this case, Anthonia went to the police on a previous occasion, but I wonder how long it took for her to get to this point or how serious she was in maintaining the restraining order against Mr. Iheme.

i'm sure you're like "...not another domestic violence post...." But I've witnessed such themes repeat themselves in other relationships as well - master/househelp abuse and child abuse, such as this case where a man placed pepper in a child's eyes and genitals.

I noticed my hairdressers' chants of "you're right, my sister" started to die down into silence as I continued on my rant. I think in my excitement, I started to talk too much and challenge some long-held assumptions of who has which place in Nigerian society.

preparing for victory

2008-07-11T11:03:00.008-04:00

yesterday, i read this incredibly interesting article on theRoot regarding Rev. Jesse Jackson's desire to castrate (yes, castrate) Barack Obama for not paying more attention to the needs of African Americans in the US. I would encourage you to take a few minutes to read the article. But in case you're short of few minutes, the author, Jack White, sees an Obama presidency as a major victory for members of the African diasposra, not only in the US, but globally. White contends that just like the rest of America, blacks especially, do not know what to do with an African American presidency. In essence, they have spent so much time fighting for a cause,that they, including Jesse Jackson, have no idea how to handle victory. (Or rather, Jackson, like the honourable Rev. Jeremiah Wright, is a victim of the "Jealous Negro Syndrome.")

I (and I am sure the author of the article, too) realizes that an Obama presidency is not the end all of race relations issues - but it is definitely a huge move forward for blacks in America and the rest of the United States. But when we finally do get to that blessed day where "...little black boys and little black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and little white girls..." - what will we do with it? Before answering that, what does that blessed day even look like?

As I was going over the comments from my last post, StandTall reminded me of the sort of jaded-ness that Nigerians at home and abroad have of October 1. Its been almost 48 years since that October 1st victory and it we have not yet been able to handle its aftermath. Its seems like our forefathers failed to adequately prepare for this victory. Its the same type of mistake that Bush made of the Iraq invasion and the mistake that we sometimes make in our own personal lives when we spend years struggling towards a goal and fail to plan the next step. What does our own victory look like and how do we prepare for it?

I definitely think that Nigeria is on the road (very slowly, though) to improving itself in several different arenas - politics, health, business, etc.
We have a achieved democracy (or some version thereof)...now what?
We have passed a National Health Bill...now what?
Constant electricity is slated to come in 2011...then what?
If these are some of the victories we have achieved or are looking forward to, what's next on the agenda? What does our Nigeria's victory look like and how do we prepare for it?

Sometimes I wonder if the fact that we don't know what our victory looks like hints at our deeper personal and national expectations.

independence afterthoughts

2008-07-05T14:39:00.004-04:00

question: if you had a friend, who was responsible for all sorts of tragedies on others - discrimination, murder, indifference, theft, genocide - and whose parents raped and denigrated your mother, stole and continue to rob her naked....

would you honor their birthday invitation?

that is how I've been feeling most of today, July 5th, after yesterday's July 4th - the United States' Independence day - the day we celebrate the nation's birth. Yesterday, my immediate family and I had a small celebration - the standard fare - a small cookout followed by watching fireworks from our rooftop interspersed with random television reruns. It wasn't as big as how we usually celebrate this day: several invited and uninvited guest to be followed by hours and hours of cleanup. Meaning that today, I was alert enough to think of yesterday's events and why, indeed, I really celebrated on the 4th.

To say that I have not, nor the world has not gained much from the US since its independence would be a huge lie. But I can't help but witness the bad that comes with the good. Especially as of late with the Iraqi crisis - a modern take on the brutality of Western colonialism - I have become disillusioned with patriotism as portrayed in the US. That is a patriotism that remains unswervingly pro-American without respect for the sovereignty and dignity of other nations.

As the nations continues to gorge holidays meats and desserts and pop the last of its firecrackers, I can't help but wonder what other nations, those under our thumb - particularly Iraq - must feel about the birth of the United States of America and its subsequent rise to global dominance. Independence Day no longer excites me as it used to. Actually, its quite sobering...

Empathy is a painful thing.

some "quirky" things

2008-06-26T20:07:00.006-04:00

I've been tagged....since....by both Loomnie and Standtall. I'm trying to attempt to blog at least once a week, maybe twice - so I think I am doing well so far....maybe. So as for six quirky...or maybe not so quirky...things...

1. I like to dance....alot. I'm not so good at it, but I enjoy it incredibly. I can't stand most of the R&B/hip-hop out there because of the lyrics (except for the Southern-style crunk, because I don't understand most of what they're saying anyway - and it's strictly meant for dancing). Why is this quirky? Two reasons A. Because most people I come in contact with think otherwise. I'm quite shy - but when it comes to dancing, I get a little ahead of myself. B. "Old school" music is what gets me jumping - put together tracks from Osadebe, de Coque, Oriental Brothers, Bright - and I'm so there. I enjoy the occasional soukous, but oldies are the goodies.

2. I've spent the past ten years of my life looking for a good planner (calendar, agenda book etc.). And haven't found it. I don't think I'll ever find one that will carry me for more than two months. I get bored very quickly and I am easily titillated by the search for a new planner/calendar (when I probably have more that enough in my possession).

3. Sleep is like my drug. There is no problem a 2-hour nap cannot assuage. I just feel sooooo much better after a good nap. Also, I never understood how some people find it difficult to fall a sleep - either because of stress, worries, or being uncomfortable. I have found that some of my best naps have taken place on the floor of the school library hours before a final exam or assignment. Pillows and blankets, purely optional.

4. When I was younger (around age 5-6), I used to think that some Caucasian women with a flat bum (behind, butt, ikebe, etc.) used to purposely wear cardboard paper in their undies. For the longest time, I itched to ask my first-grade teacher why on earth she would put cardboard in her pants. Fortunately, I was a good child and avoided the potential spanking I would receive at school and at home (I spent some of my elementary, that is primary, school years in rural North Carolina, where they still spanked unruly kids...this was in the early nineties....I think they have since abandoned corporal punishment in all North Carolinian public schools...correct me if I'm wrong....and of course, whenever my brothers and I got in trouble at school, we would receive even worse measure at home....but I think my parents' probably would have laughed over the situation....though privately and most likely after I received my beating....)

5. I get cold very easily - which is strange, because I have spent the majority of my life in a cold climate. I hate air conditioners because they are always too cold. I think the wind messes up perfectly warm days. I am the only one not looking for shade, even amongst my fellow Nigerians in Nigeria - and for the few times I was in Naija during the dry season, I felt so much at ease. I'm not terribly afraid of getting darker or sweating. I am usually the one wearing a jacket in the classroom or wearing long-sleeves in the summer (sometimes, summer fashion is sometimes lovelier than than of winter wear...sometimes). I think I seriously need to get this checked out.

6. I'd do anything for some roasted corn and ube (pear), right now, anything....uhhh, almost....well, it depends...email me - and we can figure out the details of the exchange. lol.

I tag the following people (who've probably been tagged like twice before)....Trae_Z, theAfroBeat, SolomonSydelle, Oracle, BacktoNaija, and Pink-Satin.

The rules:
1. Link the person who tagged you

2. Mention the rules in your blog

3. Tell 6 unspectacular quirks of yours – six, not more.

4. Tag 6 following bloggers by linking them

5. Leave a comment on each of the tagged blogger’s blogs letting them know they’ve been tagged

a great iroko tree has fallen...

2008-06-23T11:32:00.004-04:00

The passing of Chief Oliver Akanite (1947-2008) also known widely as Oliver de Coque closes a legendary chapter in modern Igbo music. He will be greatly greatly missed.

on akata-ism...

2008-06-18T19:44:00.000-04:00

i've been holding back on whether i would like to discuss this topic seeing that i made a vow to myself that I would try not to divulge too much personal information on the web....but i felt that it is a topic that has to be dealt with...and dealt with, it shall...well, in the best way I can.

I recently made a vow to myself to stop frequenting the many African Hair Braiding salons that line almost every other corner of the town that I live in. Besides the fact that they charge me extra for having thick hair (well, before I cut it), are getting ridiculously expensive, can't do regular twists (I'm not a big fan of the kinky twists...), and never entertain my feeble attempts at bargaining...I'm finding that more and more my skin crawls at the salon gossip. Of course, gossip is a guaranteed feature of any hair salon and I have been known to indulge in this shameful habit (tsk, tsk). However, the more I frequent such places, the more I realize that the denigration of our trans-Atlantic brethren...i.e. African Americans....is a staple at some of these places (at least, the ones in my community....I'm sure it is not universal).

It is not only amongst our French-speaking African hair braiders does such exist. I have found myself shrinking back at many conversations I have had amongst Nigerians/Ghanaians that center around African Americans (aka, akata in Naija or cotton pickos in Ghana - both of which I find derogatory, since I have never heard those words used in a positive light before.....correct me if I am wrong).

Many find it interesting that I take such offense to such things, seeing that I have some ties to the recently immigrated African community. However, I feel that by being born in the US, I have recently come to the realization that I am, indeed, African American, though not in the traditional sense of the word. More, specifically, Nigerian American - though they never have that option on tax documents and college applications...but if anyone cared to ask...now you know.

Why the "recently?" Well, growing up, like many other first generation Americans of Nigerian extraction, I struggled trying to reconcile the two incongruent parts of my identity....that of being Nigerian and that of being American (I have the two passports to prove it....). And unfortunately, my ties to either community were tenuous, at best - being not fully accepted in the African American community because of my name, rice and stew luches (instead of ham and cheese sandwiches), and my threaded hairdos that my mom insisted I wear (errghhhh - they stuck out everywhere). On the flipside, in the Nigerian community I also stuck out because of my "ascent" (accent), my incessant questions, and my virtually non-existent pidgin English (I have improved since then, thanks to my significant other).

So I stood in between two communities - not realizing that I, my brothers, cousins and fellow first generationers belonged to a community of our own. And we possessed not a mixure of identities, but rather a valid identity all to its own - Nigerian American - to be defined by the individual at his/her own time.....but anyway I digress.

But back to my point. I believe that while living in United States, the category of "Nigerian-American" rightly falls under the umbrella of African American. Being African-American in the United States embraces a diversity of experiences - first-generation African Americans, descendants of slaves, recently immigrated Africans, and mixed race individuals like presumptive Democratic nominee, Barack Obama (!!!). So I personally feel insulted when others under this umbrella of "African-American" denigrate (would I say, traditional?) African-Americans either because of their names (e.g. Tyquesha), food (e.g. chitlins), Ebonics or hairdos that stick out all over the place in a wide variety of Kool-Aid-like colours. The fact that after centuries of degradation from the dominant group, they have been able to maintain their own culture and traditions, distinct from mainstream America - is a testament to their strength of character. I personally think that amongst Africans in the US, the uniqueness of all African-American experiences, especially those different from our own, should be appreciated and not targeted for ridicule.

okay, I have finished my sermon for today...

ana enwe obodo enwe...

2008-06-04T18:14:00.007-04:00

first a hearty congratulation is in order for the Obama victory last night. Hope all are fired up and ready to go.

i know this is more of a continuation of my last post, but it seems that many are also of the opinion that Nigerian politics is inherently corrupt - very much unlike American politics. However, as the the Democratic primaries dragged on (and continue to do so, apparently...), I can't help but find parallels between this race and the Abia state gubernatorial contest, which a year plus after the last votes had been cast, continues to go forward. Hmmmm, I thought it was "only in Nigeria," where one can take challenge the results of an election in the courts or so-called Rules and By-laws committees.

After Chief T.A. Orji of the Progressive People's Alliance (PPA) had been declared governor in Abia state, the Election Petition Tribunal wanted to nullify his victory on the grounds of ties to the infamous Okija shrine. Apparently, there is a video on youtube (which looks like a fake to me) of one of his excursions to the shrine. Sounds like Obama detractors took a page out of Onyema Ugochukwu's (PDP) play book with the youtube videos of the fiery Jeremiah Wright sermons. Does anyone know whether Orji has adequately "denounced and repudiated" his associations with the controversial cult....I'm a bit out of the loop?

While Obama detractors borrow (or is that plagiarize....remember the Deval Patrick debacle?) material from the PDP campaign, Ugochukwu has been caught borrowing material from the Democratic National Committee, stating that like McCain, Orji will serve as the "third term" of the failed incumbent (Bush, Orji Uzor Kalu).

At last check, T.A. Orji remains Abia state governor and Obama Democratic party leader. Both have that "...winning personal touch," which they use in "...courting people...." While Ugochukwu and Clinton are "distant and cannot seem able to rally the party...behind [their] efforts to achieve [their] ultimate goal." (quotables from this Vanguard article).

Personally, I can see how people might come to the conclusion that both Ugochukwu and Clinton might feel a sense of entitlement to the Abia state governorship or Democratic candidacy. That may explain why they just can't let go....just can't bow out (concede) gracefullyI mean, who is PPA? PDP is king regardless of where you go in Nigeria. And who is Barack Obama? Hillary is a Clinton...a CLINTON...afterall. I guess Oliver de Coque's mantra "ana enwe obodo enwe" (there are people that own this land) is a dying concept. (though, technically in the case of T.A. Orji, there is evidence of godfatherism....to be honest).

Please note, people, that most of these comments are made in jest and with a heavy dose of sarcasm.........we all need a little fun after quite the torturous primary season. I respect both the Clinton and Onyema Ugochukwu candidacies...way back when there was a time I was pro-Hillary. And still, there is a selfish part of me that wanted Onyema to win because he would be more likely to develop my side of Umuahia....

nna, i don tire

2008-05-23T02:09:00.002-04:00

I had a conversation with a young Igbo man last night (who reads this blog by the way - I'm not telling names - but I hope you still come by to visit) in which he expressed his frustration with Nigeria and his newfound adoration for the US. A recent immigrant to the US, he made it clear that I will never be able to understand why he hates Nigeria seeing that I was not born there. I have since given up on trying to explain to my fellow Naija brothers and sisters that my American-ness doesn't prevent me from forming a credible opinion about Nigeria just as their Nigerian-ness does not prevent them from forming a credible opinion about the US. But I digress....

When he made his opinion known that he hates Nigeria, I simply stated that I was not surprised – and left it at that. In the past I would have countered with a plethora of arguments, forwarded the misguided individual to website after website and rattled off fact after fact from the tip of my tongue until the poor individual was suckered into waving the green-white-green with his fellow Compatriots.

Now, I think I have given up trying to convince people otherwise, in fact, I don tire. If I got a nickel anytime a Nigerian or child of Nigerian immigrants expressed a favorable view of Nigeria, I'd be very poor, miserable woman.

Of course, I still have high hopes for our nation and I have witnessed tremendous positive change in Nigeria within the short timespan I have been alive. And yes, there are downsides - legion. I know why my heart in Nigeria, but I am just curious as to why you, the reader, has any care for Nigeria at all. Why do Nigerians like Nigeria? I know why they don't. But for the half a percent that does, why?

ode to nollywood

2008-05-21T20:31:00.004-04:00

after much wrestling back and forth, I decided to start another blog....the nollywood critique at wordpress. I will still be here at pyoowata, but will be posting at the nollywood critique as well. if you don't know, I am a nollywood addict, and enjoy these naija films thoroughly. however, just like the rest of you, i hate spending four hours on a film and finding out it was a flop. i've been to other sites that review nollywood movies, but at times the sites can be a bit distracting with other things....what better way to review nollywood films than a blog. the nollywood critique is still in its infancy, but when you can, take some time to visit it once in a while. Leave some comments, and also propose naija films that you would like to see reviewed. I watch at least one naija film a week (seriously) and I am somewhat conversant in nollywood gossip and news, so expect the site to be updated often.

throwbacks...

2008-05-20T12:27:00.005-04:00

my dears, thank you for all your well wishes and posts while i was on hiatus. they were highly, highly appreciated. I had to hold myself back from posting on other's blogs during that time, lest i find myself spending hours online that should have gone towards schoolwork. i will be replying all of your posts within the next 24 hours or so. also, watch out for some of my comments on your blogs as well, especially the "Brutish Airways" debacle (I have long since boycotted BA and wondered why it took the rest of y'all so long to do the same too...I say that with love and respect...welcome to the light).

speaking of scandals, does anyone know what came out of the Pfizer meningitis clinical trials of 1996 - I know very very old...but I was discussing it with someone the other day and could not find updates on what happened so far. For a brief recap....

In 1996, northern Nigerian witnessed an unprecedented meningitis outbreak in which 12-15,000 people died within a span of six months. During this time, Pfizer scouted for potential young participants for a clinical trial of the antibiotic Trovan, which, at the time, was largely untested for use in children. In a field hospital in Kano, 200 children were selected for this trial and half were administered Trovan, while the other half were given a low dose of another antibiotic. As a result of the trial, several children died or were rendered permanently disabled, claims the Nigerian government.

The problems: I think in terms of ethical research case studies, this is probably the worse I've encountered in recent history. Here's why:

- The trial was performed at at time when Doctors Without Borders, who, true to their mission, sought to alleviate the epidemic by providing free and effective antiobiotics at the same field hospital. The conspiracy theorist in me wants to believe that Pfizer took advantage of this in that families could have consented to signing their children up for the Pfizer trials thinking that the Pfizer and Doctors Without Borders were one in the same.

- Pfizer claimed that the clinical trial was approved by the Nigerian government. However the letter of approval written by some Nigerian ethics committee was a fake, written more than a year after the trial had ended. In fact the letterhead used was created months after the trial.

- No documents detailing if and how consent was obtained by parents of participants exist. Pfizer maintains that nurses on the ground obtained verbal consent from parents, though parents who are suing Pfizer deny this claim.

- Patients whose condition worsened after use of the experimental drug were denied standard therapy. A big boo-boo, to say the least.

- In 2006, the Nigerian government released the results of a panel meant to look into the Pfizer trial and reports found that Pfizer not only violated Nigerian law, but also flouted the International Declaration of Helsinki, and mandates espoused by the UN Convention on the Right of the Child. The best part is that the results of this Nigerian investigation is that the report had been suppressed for five years. It is only as of recent that anyone has come to know of the findings of this report.

Google Pfizer and Nigeria and I am sure you will find more details, I have only scratched the surface. But to give an update, Trovan has since been banned in the United States and Europe because of its life-threatening side effects. And as many of you know, as a result of the Pfizer trials, the once-eradicated polio has resurged in northern Nigeria and has spread other parts of West Africa. Muslim clerics in northern Nigeria used the Pfizer trials to bolster their arguments that polio vaccines were part of a plot to extinguish the Muslim population.

Recently, in 2005, the suit against Pfizer went to court in the United States but was dismissed on the grounds that the US did not have jurisdiction over this case. And in January of this year, a federal high court in Abuja issued a warrant for the arrest of eight former directors of Pfizer Nigeria.

However, beyond this, I have no idea what has happened in regards to this case. If someone can please shed light on what is currently being done to adequately bring justice, please let me know. But this issue brings up several potential points of discussion. One, corruption is not solely a Nigerian commodity. It seems as if in this case, corruption was initiated by the multinational corporation, Pfizer. The former NAFDAC director claims that this trial was conducted without the consent of the Nigerian government. However, we must acknowledge that the Nigerian environment, in fact the developing world environment allows for such tragedies to happen. What if anything can be done to prevent such in the future? (I apologize for the open-endedness of this post, but I have to reorient myself back to the blogosphere once again). By the way guerreiranigeriana, a post on my take on the short-term medical mission's phenomenon and its abuses is forthcoming.

on hiatus...

2008-04-15T04:29:00.009-04:00

i know...again....

But its crunch time and this is the time in the school year when I actually do work, so sad. So I apologize if I have not gotten back to your interesting comments so far, but will do so when things start to settle down. But for the meantime, I will still be visiting your blogs from time to time and will hold myself from posting lengthy responses...at least for now. I'm hoping that life will return to some semblance of normal in the next two weeks.

...till then
-nneoma

his ice is colder than yours

2008-04-03T12:20:00.006-04:00

amongst older African Americans, there is this saying that "the white man's ice is colder than that of the black man." It's usually said with some sarcasm because everyone knows that ice is ice, regardless of who sells it or not. What they are trying to say is that some people have been so brainwashed so as to think that things of the West are ultimately superior in every respect and that such a fact can never ever be questioned. I am sure we have all seen instances of this both in Nigeria and abroad. Like for example, we may know of someone who insists on buying their "Made in China" shoes when the AbaMade brand looks similar and may be superior in quality.

So what does all this have to do with our formerly esteemed, but now fallen, Minister of Health, Dr. Adenike Grange. Plenty...well at least, in my humble opinion....your own opinions are most welcomed.

Two weeks ago (yeah, I know, I'm late), Dr. Grange resigned from her post as the nation's Minister of Health, under allegations of corruption and mishandling of funds allocated to the Ministry of Health. As for the specifics, N300 million of unspent funds meant to return to the national treasury went missing or - according to the Ministry - were spent on Christmas bonuses. Grange claims that she did not personally benefit from these funds, but, in my opinion the gross mishandling of these funds hints that she handled her post irresponsibly, at the least.

I was still in Nigeria when Grange was appointed to the position of Minister of Health. When I did a proper search on her credentials (ehem...google), I was more than impressed. Actually, I was inspired, even hopeful. Beyond being a Nigerian woman, (because most Nigerian women are simply awesome...), she served as the president of the International Pediatric Association (IPA) and as a consultant for respected institutions such as the World Health Organization and UNICEF.

I believe it is safe to assume that while she was working for these institutions, which are heavily funded and monitored by the West, she must have been very careful in carrying out her responsibilities. I'm sure that is why she was recommended to and later given the post of Minister of Health (as for the junior Minister, who in his former life was an architect...i no know wetin he dash Yardy make da man call am...but i digress).

But what happened when she entered the Ministry, if this whole debacle is indeed, as she claims, a "lapse" in duty on her part?

That is where the white man's ice comes in. I feel that many (including myself at times) tend to perform differently amongst different people. I feel that amongst the company of her oyinbo peers, Grange probably was meticulous in her various appointments. But when it came to handling the affairs of Nigerians, it seemed as if her guard went down. After all, this is Nigeria - anything goes (including the sum of N300million). If, Grange felt that the white man's ice is colder, then when she goes into his store to buy such ice, it required of her a higher degree of decorum, as she displayed when working with the likes of WHO, IPA, and UNICEF. I guess entering the black man's store she let her guard down and the millions of women and children she claimed to protect.

Dr. Grange is not the first, and definitely not the last, to behave in such a manner. I know that I have done the same too (I won't get into specifics). But I guess this post and the Grange issue serves as a reminder to myself that we should be careful when we approach the work of humanitarian aid or service to our fatherland (or motherland, whichever). Grange in her resignation shifted blame to inherent political corruption in the Ministry. But I wonder if that is a good enough excuse to ignore her own personal call to promoting high moral standards in government. Personally I think she did not take her post as seriously as she did her other appointments in the West simply because she was amongst Nigerians.

But then again, this is just my take on things. She might have had this "lapse" because of personal problems at home or work that made her miss the millions of naira being reshuffled.

But I do agree with her, in a speech she made in 2005, when she quoted Rev. Martin Luther King that "'We shall have to repent in this generation, not somuch for the evil deeds of the wicked people but for the appallingsilence (and inactivity) of good people.'"

Might I add, that our generation shall have to repent, not so much for an unwillingness to do good, but for being crappy at doing good (sorry, I'm having a brain freeze - no pun intended - and "crappy" was the only word I could think of...)

are they to blame?

2008-03-24T13:01:00.005-04:00

i am somewhat familiar with the issue of domestic violence in Igbo households, both from personal experience (that is observing other families who engage in this practice) and from what I see in the media (ehem, Nollywood). However, I have recently encountered a disturbing article, (actually there are several more out there) on domestic violence incidence in a random sample of Imo state women, which, I may venture to say, could be generalized to Igbo women at large, and perhaps, Nigerian society (pleeeease correct me, if I am wrong).

The article is entitled, Prevalence, Patterns and Correlates of Domestic Violence in Selected Igbo Communities of Imo State, Nigeria (Okembo C et.al. 2002). I guess you can google scholar it if interested, but if you don't have access to it, email me and I can send you the pdf file. (I'm not sure if I will get in trouble for distributing it, but I think I am willing to take the risk, for the sake of the cause).

For the sake of space, I will spare you the intricate details about study design, sample size etc (though, they are important, I just gloss over these things...bad habit) and highlight some of their results. In a sample of about 300 women (I know, this is a pretty small sample), they found that almost 80% had experienced some form of domestic violence. I thought the number was unbelievable. Women in urban areas were more likely to experience physical beatings from their husbands than rural women. (In regards to polygamy, it was found that women in polygamous marriages were less likely to undergo abuse - just thought that was interesting - please note that I am not advocating the practice). There were other interesting results documenting kinds of abuse, prevalence and preferences and predictors of abuse that you can pick out on your own time.

I would really like to know, if some of you, from your own personal experiences find that domestic violence is as prevalent as this article suggests and your thoughts on this idea that domestic abuse is more common in the cities than rural areas and why? (of course, this was just a preliminary study and I did not check out other papers to find out if they support this stat.

I think what really caught my attention were some of the responses from the participants to why abuse occurs. For example, here is one:

"...Usually [men] see women as physically, economically and socially inferior to [men]. They also feel that they bought women with their money..."

The authors stated that cultural institutions amongst the Igbo are to blame for the continued practice of domestic violence. Particularly, the idea that male children are worth more than female children therefore creating the notion that women can be treated that way. Besides traditional institutions that support the prevalence of domestic abuse, some women cited Christianity as to institution to blame for this continued practice stating that the Bible calls for the "subjection" of women by man.

Let me first state that I would not go so far as to condemn Igbo cultural institutions, which I appreciate and adhere to, nor condemn Christianity, which I practice. However, are these two institutions to blame for the continued practice of domestic violence? What particular aspects are to blame for domestic violence and can one use these institutions to prevent and abolish this practice? What should be done about it and why isn't more being done about it (like addressing it as a vital component of a family planning or reproductive health agenda)?

Sorry if this post is a bit long, but I seriously cut out a lot of stuff in order to get the main point across. I always look forward to all of your responses because they seriously challenge me and get me thinking in ways unimagined.

Oh in regards to the poster above....yes, another google image search. But I thought the poster was interesting in that it is appealing to adherence to tradition which calls for utmost respect for mothers and older-womanhood. An example of how existing societal institutions which promote violence could be used to eradicate it....yes, I said ERADICATE it.

race before gender, gender before race

2008-03-11T18:28:00.005-04:00

by the way, this blog endorses Barack Obama as the Democratic presidential candidate - just thought I would get it out there.

Beyond policy, commitment to change, his anti-Iraq War stance, and the fact that Clinton will "fire up" the Republican base, I have decided to back Obama because he represents many first-generation Americans who are doing big things. I mean, what can be bigger than running for the presidency against the Clinton machine (note, I used to support the Clinton/Clinton ticket....how I changed, na long story....will explain another day).

And for many African Americans, the choice is sometimes based on the fact that they would like to see one of their own in the White House as well. I sort of assumed that this would be true for most who consider themselves Black (though let me add, that I have nothing against those who think otherwise...and I )

Anyway, this assumption was questioned when I caught some of the commentary of Ohioans during their primary last week. A black female (can't remember her name) said she was voting for Hilary because according to her, "she is a woman first and an African American second..."

My initial reactions to these comments were that this woman has imbibed the unpopular stance of "betraying the race." However, as i thought more over this woman's comments, I began to realize that she is not alone, that there are several black women - African and African American - who have often chosen gender over race. For example, one person that easily comes to mind is Alice Walker and her classic novel, The Color Purple. Many in the black community felt that she weakened the fight against racism in order to pursue a feminist agenda. I guess an African example would be women who fight against female circumcision at the risk of portraying their people in a bad light. Or, to bring it home, my post on misogyny in African music. Sometimes in the course of pursuing Africanism (if there is such a word), feminist issues can be sidelined.

I have not yet sat down to think of who I am first - a woman or a member of the African diaspora. I would think that I am first an African and then a woman therefore countering this woman's statement. And in regards to females that I admire that I mentioned in my first post on african feminism, I have a feeling that they would also take the same stance as well. I, admit, I have not read much on african feminist theory, but I wonder if that is the point of african feminism - to put the african back into feminism as opposed to putting infusing feminism into africa. Or rather, as I hope to do, find a balance between the two. Once again, thoughts on which you consider first - africanism or feminism - would be appreciated. If you have some recommended reading that would also be appreciated (Misan, I read A Thousand Splendid Suns - it was great...a post on Afghani feminism...akuko nke mbu...is forthcoming).

Oh, and Happy International Woman's Week!

all is not lost....

2008-03-10T18:26:00.006-04:00

for the Nigerian sporting world that is...

After Nigeria's disappointing show at the African Nations Cup (I had to return my green-white-green victory gear back to the recesses of my closet), I began to give up on seeking national pride in sports. Well, I (and several other Naija bloggers) are proud to report differently.

This weekend Akwa Ibom native, Samuel Okon Peter clinched the World Boxing Council's (WBC) Heavyweight title in a sixth round knockout. Personally, the only time I have enjoyed boxing is when he is featured as one of the contenders so I am not sure of all of the boxing terms. All I know is that the opponent went down in the sixth round.

He was featured in The Guardian today, and I found his story to be very inspiring. Dig one of the statements he made to the reporters.

"I have been doing this for about seven years now professionally; I have never been down in my career. I have been knocked down but I stand up to win."

I will definitely keep this one in memory, and I think as a nation, we should realize that our past has been rough - colonialism, civil war, losing the African Nations Cup (I mean that light-heartedly) - and we have been knocked down on several occasions. However, we should take a page out of Peter's playbook that though we have been knocked down, we should continue to stand up to win. I am very much for taking a critical stance on Nigerian national affairs, but let's not just leave at that, criticism. Rather, there should be a hope that through journalism, blogging, activism, going to work every morning etc. we can all inch our ways towards a knockout future. (I apologize in advance if this seems overly-idealistic, but hey, I'm young and it's my prerogative).

on african feminism...akuko nke ano

2008-02-20T18:47:00.007-05:00

so, I got tired of seeing the image below of the Ghana Black Stars fan whenever I visited my blog and thought that it is high time I put up another post. since this is the month of love and US black history month - i would like to speak to a topic that has affected american black females for centuries and as i am starting to witness, african females as well.

last night, after simultaneously studying and keeping my eye out for the wisconsin and hawaii primaries (more of the latter than the former), I caught the last half or so of BET's "25 Events that (mis)shaped Black America." Under normal circumstances, I would not be caught dead watching late night BET, but my brother was watching it, the show seemed to have some usefulness, and I am a big Michael Eric Dyson fan.

One of the (mis)shaping events that caught my attention was the the hyper-sexualization of the black female or the misogyny of the black female as portrayed by hip-hop. First, I found it interesting that BET should admit that the negative effects of the portrayal of african american females as b****es and hos since they are one of the major exporters of these images. But I started to think that the hypersexualization of the black female is not limited to hip-hop music as well.

Earlier in the week (or maybe last week), I was put off a bit by cover story on the BBC news website, "Ivory Coast's 'big-bottom' Craze." Initially, my annoyance stemmed from the fact there are other more pressing concerns in Ivory Coast other than bum and breast enhancement creams and some song's tribute to big bottoms. But after this BET special, I began to wonder whether the African continent also exports this idea of a hypersexualized black female thru its music in similar ways to Nelly and Ludacris. Granted the history of the black female in the US, especially in light of forced sexual relations with white slavers and the simultaneous systemic emasculization of American black men during slavery stands in stark contrast to the situation on the continent (or I may be wrong here)...but how different is Meiway's call to shake our lolo's from Baby Huey's insistence that the bum should be popped, locked, then dropped? The videos are strikingly similar. I also wonder, is this an anomaly amongst blacks - I mean, are there other people groups that dissect and exploit intimate parts of the black female physique in order to sell records or initiate dance crazes? Africans have also had their own share of exploiting female sexuality by colonial masters (remember Hottentot Venus).

Of course, before I close, I must admit, that although I hate the images of half-naked black women on BET and Awilo's soft porn music videos, I can't help but play some of these catchy tunes on my iPod during a workout. I'm a huge fan of soukous music - HUGE. Additionally, I never leave the house without making sure that my jeans properly "fit" and accentuate what needs to be accentuated. I have struggled alot with the issues I just raised - especially the added dimension of African music turning towards lurid depictions of black women. A part of me says, its just music - not only that, but it's music with an irresistible beat that I cannot find in other genres. And perhaps, in some cases, there is a genuine appreciation for the black female physique. But then another part of me, the one that started this post, wonders if I am contributing to the degradation of black women by espousing any such music. I am slowly leaning towards the latter....

I would really really really like to get your opinions on this topic (also, let me know if I should clarify a bit). Let me know if you think it is "just music" or whether we have allowed the hypersexualization of black women to go too far or whether I have approached this topic incorrectly in comparing the African American situation with that of the continent.

vogt go home

2008-02-03T14:28:00.000-05:00

after this stunningly sad match between Nigeria and Ghana, it is time to give Vogt, the current coach of the Super Eagles, a long overdue boot. What type of nonsense soccer/football was Nigeria playing this evening? The Nigerian soccer team needs a revolution (sorry to borrow your term solomonsydelle). maybe instead of recruiting soccer players from posh leagues in the West they should recruit some boys from the streets of Aba, Ibadan, Kaduna who would actually care about doing well in such games since their livelihoods depended on it. I mean c'mon Super Eagles, the Black Stars were down by one man.....how sad, how sad....

I promise, this will be my last sports commentary of any kind until 2010....seriously. now back to our regularly scheduled program....

and I will get back to all of your comments and emails soon, I just really had to get this one off my chest...

the state of the US African Command

2008-01-29T13:54:00.000-05:00

seems like january is a good month for blogging. did anyone bother to catch the state of the union address by President Bush, last night? well I happened to and the pre and post play commentary. well, realising that most of what he was going to say on Iraq and the economy would be nothing new, I tuned in to his besides-Iraq-Afghanistan-Iran foreign policy commentary - which was not much.
Considering his proposed trip to the African continent, I am surprised he did not mention anything about USAFRICOM, which would provide and American military presence in the African continent in order to provide stability and peace. However, when he did talk about Africa - there was NO mention of this program whatsoever. Besides his weak declaration that there is indeed a genocide occurring in Darfur, the rest focused on the usual Africa is a bastion of poverty, disease, and pestilence that needs our help. But it seemed that AFRICOM, which has been rejected by nearly every African country besides Liberia (please correct me if I am wrong), should feature prominently. I wonder why. It seems like USAFRICOM is more of a front to protect the US's "vital interests" (cough...oil...cough) rather than promote stability.

on african feminism...akuko nke ato

2008-01-28T13:29:00.000-05:00

this is part three (akuko nke ato) of a series of posts on african feminism. (for those of you who take Igbo language and grammar seriously, i apologize in advance for the absence of dots under certain vowels, if some can show me how to do this on blogspot - that would be very helpful).

I was reading BBC this morning in which, of course the Kenyan crisis featured prominently on the Africa page. It truly baffles me how, Kenya, once an exemplar of a peaceful and stable African nation, could collectively go mad in the span of a few days. it's deeply disheartening. it only serves to fuel the idea that the African continent is prone to such violent outbursts and is need of protection (according to the USAFRICOM website more on them in a later post and Bush's planned visit to Africa - minus Nigeria).

Amidst stories of gun-slinging and bows and arrows came up another weapon of war - rape. It should disturb our most common sensibilities that the female body (and sometimes male) is considered fair playing ground in war, conflict, and other clashes. It is literally universal that this happens. According to the article, formal reports of rape have more than doubled in some places rendering hundreds of women the living casualties of war. While trying to find an end this conflict, special attention should be paid to the most vulnerable - women. Additionally, more needs to be done in order to shed light on why this phenomenon happens and how can we prevent it. If anyone has any interesting reading suggestions, you are more than welcome to share. If I find anything, I will post in an addendum. I simply wanted to bring light to the issue.

So, what does a Nollywood film and wartime rape have in common. Well, for those of you who are so inclined to watch Naija films, I would encourage you to check out this film, Silver Stone (yes, part 1 and 2), starring Dakore Egbuson, Bimbo Akintola, Fred Amata, and Mike Ezuruonye. Besides having an awesome cast (woohoo! Mike and Dakore) it sheds light on some of the long-term consequences of wartime rape, using the Biafran war as the example and its effects on families decades later. The film is written by a budding producer in the Nollywood scene, Uche Ice - and I look forward to more of his works in the future. I would especially encourage you to take a peek at the interviews with actors/actresses, producer, and director. What is especially comforting is that the movie project was initiated by a Nigerian male sensitive to the extensive damage of wartime rape on both the female and the rapist. I think that Uche Ice is an African feminist, or at least one in the making...and much kudos on this particular film.

so yar'adua is not that mediocre....yet

2008-01-26T21:38:00.001-05:00

so for the next post, it was a toss up between Dr. Iyabo Obasanjo's child kidnapping charges, my finding out about former president Obasanjo's alleged siring of his son's children, and Yar'adua's reaffirmation of his commitment to fighting corruption at Davos, Switzerland. Well, though this blog is a compilation of many things, a gossip blog it is not. I'll allow you all to read all the juicy details of the Obasanjo family woes at your own leisure (it's quite hoot - guerreiranigeriana, this is what I do for procrastination).

some of you may remember when i relegated the future of Yar'adua's term to the hallowed halls of mediocrity. well, i haven't gone back on what I said just yet, but I found his "prediction" of the abolition of the immunity clause for governors and presidents to be a great step in the right direction in terms of fighting corruption. I'm not sure if a prediction automatically means implementation - which is why I have not yet removed him from my mediocrity hall of fame. well, I am looking forward to getting rid of the immunity clause that exempts "elected" officials from the rule of law. maybe if they had implemented it sooner, the chief Abian Agbaro, Orji Uzor Kalu, would have been sent to jail long ago. (though I know that he has been released on bail - anyone know of the status of his case so far?)

random fact:
did you know that one of Obasanjo's wives contended in the 2003 election against her own husband. apparently, Major Moji's rejection as candidate for First Lady rubbed her the wrong way. and obviously, i have lots more procrastination time in 2008 than i did in 2003 - which is why I am finding out about this now.

and yes, I know, if the post is supposed to be about Yar'adua, then I should put up a Yardy pic, right? I couldn't help it, Obasanjo makes some of the funniest facial expressions...and let's be honest with ourselves, two-thirds of the post is about Obasanjo and his family wahala. Again, I couldn't help it....okay, okay - here's a semi-funny pic of the current Naija president - I had to dig through the farthest recesses of Google Images for this one. So it is not that funny. I have to admit, it takes very little to get me rolling on the floor laughing.

the igbo man and his money

2008-01-24T13:00:00.000-05:00

i think I've heard it all, or at least I have heard many jokes, rants and other negative comments on Igbos and their love for money both from outside ethnic groups and within. i can take a good joke once in a while, but when these jokes begin to mark one ethnic group as being more this than the other or less this than that one - it tends to irk me a little bit.

usually such stereotypes have embedded within it some deeper story, some truth that is clouded by the hype. in regards to Igbo and money, I would definitely be the first to admit that the Igbos have done well for themselves in terms of trading, commerce, business etc. but why have many suggested that the Igbo man loves and lives for money.

i cannot in anyway claim to be a spokesperson for Igbos, neither can I claim to be an expert in its history and culture. but in my opinion, it seems like Nigerian has left Igbos with no other choice.

I believe the most of my readers are familiar with the atrocities committed during the Nigeria-Biafran war and how it reduced Igboland to nothing, physically, economically, but fortunately, not mentally. Those who fled from their various homes from the North and otherwise left for the East with nothing and returned to nothing. At the end of the war, Igbos were compensated with a mere 20pounds per family, regardless of how much they lost or started off with. And even such reparations were a joke when it came to actual implementation. In fact, there are many who still are not aware of the 20pounds the Nigerian government owes them. to compound their woes post-Biafra, educational and political opportunities were denied to many bright former Biafrans in the name of "reflecting federal character" forcing thousands to flee the country during the 70s and 80s in search of merit-based university admissions abroad.

one million dead during the war, emigration of thousands of its intelligentsia, no indigenous infrastructure to speak of, and a 20pound promissory note from the Nigerian government. what other options are the igbos left with other than to put a good work ethic to use and start building their economy from the ground up.

so i encourage all Nigerians, to stop embracing such petty stereotypes. and the next time one feels the urge to denigrate Igbos for struggling in order to make something of themselves, they should try to imagine where they came from as a people within the last 38 years.

....oh, and someone owes me 20pounds...

the measure of blackness

2008-01-19T14:53:00.000-05:00

I know it's been long since I last posted but for a number of reasons over the holidays I took a mental, physical and otherwise break from everything. I think I am sort of back into the swing of things, school, blogging (maybe) etc.

So over the course of this semester I will be writing on health disparities in cardiovascular disease outcomes, particularly amongst black immigrants to the US and the influence of acculturation on health (I know, that was a mouthful). Some of the things I have come across is that relatively few people care about the health of black immigrants (seeing that I can't find that much on it) and that studies of black immigrants and their health could have some potential for addressing the health of African Americans.
In the course of digging through the literature for information on acculturation and African immigrants (I had to dig very deeply), I came across the African American Acculturation Scale, (AAAS) which I wanted to ignore at first, but sat down and thought about it for a while, especially in light of my own experiences.

I think of myself as a lot of different things, being a first generation American to African immigrants. In the United States, I identify myself as African American, not only in a literal sense, but also partaking in the African American culture which over the past 400 years has come to mean so many different things. I think the African American culture is one of the most diverse, seeing that it comprises of people like me, biracial people, and those who's roots can be traced all the way back to the trans-Atlantic slave trade. It took me a long time to realize this, especially while attending a predominantly black high school where most were from similar backgrounds and found it necessary to to categorize who was "black enough" and who talked or acted like white people. Needless to say, my accent and my inability to rattle off rap lyrics from the top of my head placed me in the latter category. Fortunately, there was a growing silent majority of "blacks" and "whites" at my high school who felt that the definition of blackness is quite flexible.

Apparently in academia, the definition of blackness is not as expansive as I and some of my high school mates believed. According to the AAAS, blackness can be measured in your thoughts toward traditional African American foods, willingness to date outside of your race, and political affiliations. Yes, I sort of see the rationale behind looking at these social and cultural aspects of race in order to determine willingness to engage in certain health practices. But there is a part of me that shudders at the thought of determining who's a traditional African American and who is not. And honestly, I think its somewhat outdated. It almost reminds me of a comment a teacher of mine made when I was in high school in which she wanted to find out if my family was "tribal." (yeah, she actually seriously asked me that - I was too stunned to give her a smart answer like if her family still lived in caves or waved the Confederate flag in front of their house or something like that).

Anyway, those are my initial thoughts on the subject, they may change over time or maybe I might find myself challenging these notions in a more public forum (meaning, beyond my blog).
Thoughts?

tag...I'm it!

2007-12-31T15:19:00.000-05:00

So I've been tagged by Ore...what a milestone especially for the end of a great year. So I guess the point is to reveal 7 weird (not necessarily weird, but interesting) things about me....I'll try my best. Sorry for getting this so late. And Happy Happy New Year to all and I hope all of your New Year's Resolutions come true (like mine which is to lay off stripes and flared jeans, oh, and of course other more serious ones)

1. In response to Ore's first point, I don't like driving....at all. In fact, I don't drive. I either use my feet, take a bike (an ostentatious green and white one) or take public transport - and I enjoy all three - thoroughly.

2. I make jewelry from time to time - that is when I have time. Just some beading stuff. I like beaded jewelry alot, so I used to buy the cheap ones, in quantum - but they kept on breaking. So I figured that if I want to be cheap, I should try and salvage them rather than buy new ones. Now my latest project is to learn how to sew (inspired by my dearest).

3. I hate going to the mall, unless I am amongst really good company so that I may forget that I am in the mall. I also hate shopping online too. I rather plan to go to one store stay there and pick what I want and leave. Too many choices annoy me (especially when I have neither the money nor the time).

4. I have a pet dog and before this I used to be mortally afraid of them. This one is a pretty small one so it's no biggie. My only other pet before this one (besides the turtle we picked up from the park one day - I was seven) was a hamster. I was five then, and this hamster came to an untimely end when I decided that it was looking kind of dirty and needed a bath. I filled up the bathtub and allowed it to swim. I thought it was having fun in the tub until it stopped moving.

5. I used to wear my hair relatively short and natural until last year (2006) when I decided to relax. I am still regretting that decision.

6. I'd prefer to watch a Nollywood flick any day over an American film. My favorite actresses/actors include Bob-Manuel Udokwu, Rita Dominic, and Dakore Egbuson. My brother and I are the Siskel and Ebert of Naija films - seriously, try us.

7. My favorite food is pounded yam with egusi soup - and when I say egusi soup, I mean heavy on the egusi. The the thicker the better (which is actually quite strange, seeing that my second favorite soup is watery - ofe oziza).

So onto the next victims - I tag solomonsydelle, trae_z, femme, KreativeMix (aka SaLonePikin), and Jeremy Weate.

musical interlude

2007-12-17T17:14:00.000-05:00

just happened to find out that Patty Obassey is also on youtube.com. here is one of my personal favorites. enjoy!

check me out....

2007-12-10T13:31:00.000-05:00

well, not me, but an article I wrote for MIMI Magazine, an online publication for young African women. Here is a snippet:

" In the time it takes you to count from one to ten, another individual dies from complications relating to diabetes. According to the World Health Organization, 80% of chronic disease deaths occur in low and middle income countries and deaths attributed to diabetes and related diseases surpass that of HIV/AIDS. While we in Africa continue to hang-up our bed-nets and practice safer sex - as we should - we remain helplessly behind in the fight against chronic diseases. This leaves our continent vulnerable to having to fight two enemies - acute infectious diseases such as malaria, but also long-term chronic diseases such as diabetes."

Not terribly inspiring, but I thought that the message needs to get out...

now back to books...until December 21st.