For First Nations Land: Fill & Download for Free

WARNING: This is probably going to be an evergreen answer because I keep seeing new stuff to add every time I look at it.Who I’d recruit:Vice: Political operator. Preferably someone charismatic to play the carrot to my big stick, the good cop to my bad cop. Skilled enough and with a good enough network to handle the National assembly e.g an Amaechi.Finance: International finance professional with prior experience in IFC, AFC or other multinational finance organisation.Central bank: promote from within. Must have clear economics/econometrics experience.Energy/Petroleum: Ex/Serving CEO/MD of any of the multinational oil and gas firms.IT/Communications: Comms professional or IT Professional. Prior telecoms experience in a CTO role is mandatory.Justice: Most reputable Litigations expert we can convince. Does not have to be a former judge but definitely a SAN.Immigration: Career diplomat with at least 15 years service.Internal Security: Promote from the DSS.The rest: Political appointments but with clear prior experience in role either civil or political.Constitutional Amendments:Push for constitutional amendment of the rule that requires recruitment of ministers from all 36 states to read “appointment from all 6 geopolitical zones”. That way I can get away with having 6 ministers.Eliminate the Federal Character Act or severely restrict its coverage.Remove literal statement of number of local governments in Nigeria and give states power to re-district themselves as they deem fit.Alter the Executive List: I’d be the President that gave all the power away…after a suitable period of stabilization of course…by transferring a lot of items off the executive list or sharing those items with the states. Specifically, Roads, Ports among others.Repeal land use act and provide a more reasonable alternative.Reform revenue allocation and ensure lg chairmen get the funds direct from abj not through the governor.Reform the constitution and remove the house of repsScrap office of the vice president. Senate President to be considered as de-facto Vice President.Make entry in constitution allowing creation and management of a sovereign wealth fund to house extra oil windfall above budgeted oil price.Minister of State posts to be restricted to serving Federal Civil servants or current State Permanent Secretaries within the Specified Ministry.NON GOVERNMENTAL ORGANISATIONS & SOCIAL WELFARE:Stop direct government administration of sports, culture and other soft activities and move government into more of a regulatory and supportive role.No funding of the Hajj or Jerusalem Pilgrimages.Repeal decree 101 and set nigerian football free.Stop spending government money on programs by first ladies.All NGOs in nigeria to be registered either asvolunteer movements who can never be eligible for a jot of government money orprivate social welfare organizations who must have a state prescribed minimum capital. (No more rent seeking charity orgs please).State foster institutions especially in the north to take in all kids deemed to be without adequate care.Police/Internal Security:Expand the Police act to enable states run their own police ( locally recruited , centrally trained and centrally supervised but totally answerable to and funded by the states).Mandatory bi-annual qualifying physical tests for the Nigerian police. You fail, you are out.Build more fire stations and also alter National Fire Service act to enable the setup of Privately owned/ State owned Fire services licensed to provide fire services on behalf of the government. Ultimate target is to have one fire station within 10 minutes of every home.Drop all other ID numbers and use BVN for everything.Establish Nigerian sex offenders database.Make car registration details searchable on the net.Corruption proceeds act to enable seizing of properties if detailed tax records and evidence of legitimate money sources cannot be established.Rebuild our prisons to enable a lower prisoner to room ratio.Build one forensic lab in in each of the top 10 cities by population.Nigerians who have been deported once should require exit visas from immigration before they can make international visa applications or before booking any international tickets.airlines to enforce this.50 thousand dollar fines if they are caught not enforcing it.Merge FRSC with Nigerian Police. (This has already happened)NYSC: I have a few suggestions on this.[Controversial] Make it possible to opt out of NYSC by paying a sizable sum e.g 250 thousand naira or equivalent of nine months NYSC pay. Paid exemptions would make the scheme near-independent of government.[Controversial] Also make it possible to shorten it by participating in 6 months full military training and being enrolled into a National Reserve Force which can be called up in times of crisis.[Controversial] Exclude Lagos and FCT from list of posting areas. All people from those areas MUST be posted elsewhere. You can be posted to any of the other states.[Controversial] Voluntary NYSC Exemption granted to registered student entrepreneurs with at least 10 employees and/or minimum annual turnover of 10m as at time of graduation.[Controversial] Setup mandatory national apprenticeship scheme to replace nysc. Expand to include non graduates. Age based.Justice/Prisons:Commence the building of more prisons for the sole purpose of increasing cell-to-prisoner ratios and to make it easier to administer the prison service.Push for Nigerian laws to become future-proof as far as fines are concerned (especially financial crimes) by tying them to a percentage multiple of the minimum-wage of the day or a percentage/multiple of assessed damage. This is to avoid people escaping jail terms using frivolous fines.[Controversial] Put together a task force to review legal cases for all un-sentenced inmates and announce blanket amnesty for all those charged but not sentenced in the following categories:Not presented in court for 2 or more years (except cases involving fatalities).Legal term of the crimes concerned is less than 2 years (even if the person has not been incarcerated for up to 2 years).No evidence of accurate legal documentation or no evidence available.Civil Service:Convert as many government parastatals as possible into government programs with a clearly identified end date and measurable. Extension of such programs would be dependent on parliamentary assessment of at least 75% outcomes till date.Deploy Open Internal Resourcing platform within the civil service to enable movements between ministries and also enforce a freeze on recruitments for first 6 months to two years of admin. All resourcing for any new agencies created by Senate/Reps should be done internally unless it can be demonstrated that no resources can be pulled from other teams in the civil service.Require federal civil servants be paid through special civil servant accounts. CBN to enforce compulsory biometric procedure for opening such accounts. No payment outside such accounts.Require GMAT or other accepted international graduate testing standard for entry into Nigerian Civil Service.Transform all government research institutions (except military) into private-public partnerships or fully private subsidiaries of tertiary institutions or scrap them totally.Mandate full cashless operation in all government agencies.Extend renewal periods for all official documents including Driver’s licences, passports and all other government to ten years.Implement renewal by mail for government documents excluding those that require sighting (both locally and in diaspora).Taxation:Increase percentage of VAT retained by states (This would be in the closing stages after I have delivered all my promised projects though).Transport:Designate certain roads as National Economic Highways in each geopolitical zone, make them six lane and hand them over to private orgs to toll and maintain for 25 years. Restrict to end point tolls (only two toll points per highway at each end) e.g Lagos-Ibadan with one toll in Ibadan and another near Berger/Mowe in Lagos. If you don’t want to pay toll, you can take alternate routes.Alter the Nigerian Railways Act to enable private construction and operation of railways subject to government licensing (similar to the GSM model).Prioritise rail projects to connect top 3 cities in each geopolitical zone by rail.Fully concession all airports to private management companies.Seek funding for and building more ports to reduce stress on the Lagos ports.Hand over the ports to private management companies too.Mandate all cars or buses used for inter city transport to run on natural gas and build natural gas stations nationwide or issue licenses for such.Mandate all state capitals to implement some form of Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) within the next decade.Immigration, Customs & Border Control:Implement full reciprocal visa arrangements with all other African countries even down to vetting procedures. Visa-on-arrival where possible for investors & vetted tourists.Tie size of and total expenditure on consulate offices around the world to a five-year trend of trade with the host country. No point maintaining huge mansions in a country we rarely trade with.Where possible, hand over visa services (including passport renewals for diaspora countries) to trusted immigration service companies similar to the way UK visas are handled by a private company here in Nigeria.Merge Immigration and Customs into one body.SECURITY & DEFENCE:Civil defense should be retained as a crisis response force onlySlim down nigerian army and create nigerian defense reserve who will be mobilized at intervals or during emergencies.Massive physical fences at certain points on our border.Expand Nigerian Ranger Service and expand scope of operation beyond just the Federal Forest Reserves but also to cover the woodlands between cities (which harbour kidnappers and other miscreants).Evacuate many of the cities currently subject to regular attack by Boko Haram and build new and functional towns/cities closer to the south of the Borno state and resettle people there.Communications:Float the NTA and FRCN on the Nigerian stock exchange but retain major ownership on a 51% Govt, 49% private basis.Draft and Implement a National Broadband Masterplan with the aim of ensuring Nigerian broadband is the cheapest on the continent. Feasible target is to be at least 5th cheapest in terms of broadband cost.Build a National Fibre Backbone. Expectation is that Telecoms companies can ride on this and also potentially reduce the cost of internet access.create legislation preventing any state government owning more than thirty percent of any media bodies.Release the ISM frequency band from government control.Government grant for companies running international internet fibre optic links for new projects.HEALTH:Free detoxification care for drug addicted individualsFree retroviral drugsFree mental healthcare to all indigent citizens especially the many mad men walking our streets.Alter PAYE Tax policies to include a mandatory NHIS tax for people who do not have a HMO policy registered. Issue NHIS ID after one year of paying NHIS Tax.Energy:Seek funding for and commence the building of a National Gas grid to enable natural gas be piped to many parts of the country ( this is to aid the siting of power projects in many parts of the country).Prioritise big industrial cities and grant them permission to run a closed power grid (and IPPs) separate from the national grid. (Requires altering the Power Act and negotiating with DISCOs).Increase the limit for captive power generation from 1 MW to a higher limit (personally, in my non-expert opinion I’d say 5MW).Drop all tariffs on alternative energy import products e.g wind turbines, solar cells etc.Pass Petroleum Industry Bill.Electoral reform:Alter the INEC act to enable INEC top boss be selected independent of the federal governmentAlter INEC act to include independent candidacy for all positions.Education:Provide government support including laws for student education loans at a sensible interest rate (single digit).Set universities fee to raise fees moderated slightly by government but give student loans through banks at single digit interest.UTME:Convert fully into computer based test andIncrease frequency of tests annually( 4 times a year).Scrap NECO.Private Sector & Economy:Reform nigerian insurance industry to allow micro insurance forms to operate or niche insurance firms.Handover the YOUWIN program to a private consortium.Tax breaks for cinema businesses in second tier cities.Take nigeria cashless at official levels and as much as possible in normal life.Make CAC registration in nigeria paperless and abolish many of their fees.FOREIGN AFFAIRS:Scrap Nigerian membership of organisations that promote sectional/religious interests e.g OIC(Organisation of Islamic States).Apologies:Formally acknowledge and apologize for all internal massacres that the Nigerian Govt has been party to since independence.

In answering this question, I will like to recite the first Stanza of our National Anthem to help make my points more colourful.“Arise oh compatriotsNigeria’s call obeyTo serve our father’s landWith love and strength and faithThe labour of our heroes pastShall never be in vainTo serve with heart and mightOne nation bound in freedom, peace and unity.Our fathers in the early 1960–1975 sang this stanza merrily with every atom of patriotism in them. The green white green national colours, were colours of honour. Traffic’s came to a pulse, pedestrians have to stand still whenever the national anthem is on the air. That was the height of patriotism and love for this country called Nigeria.This was an era when things were working the way the ought to. Probably like my father will always say (May his gentle soul rest in perfect peace), the shadow of Britain was still lingering with us, since it was barely few years we got our independence. The system left behind by the whites, were still working.This was a period, when Nigeria had something closed to a functional government. A government, that understood the value of education and its impact on its citizens. Universities were almost fully funded by the Federal Government. Students loans were easily available to all who care for it. Getting a scholarship was as easy as getting a ticket from Silverbird cinemas to go watch Black Panther. Most of our current political leaders were the benefactors of this generous system. In fact most of them would not have seen the four walls of a university, if not for social schemes like this.I will tell you this for free as well, foreigners were also coming to Nigeria to study because of the good educational system we had in vogue then. When I say foreigners I mean western expatriates, not fellow Africans. Seeing a Ghanaian in Nigerian schools then was so common like sunshine in the city of Kano.The universities were so neat, good infrastructures, and students were treated like kings and queens. Their hostels were cleaned by the university staff including their laundries. There was school feeding even for undergraduates . Milk and eggs were considered necessary for every student and the government provided it regularly free for all! Bursaries were given to students to aid their living expenses. Even when tuition is payable, it was so infinitesimal that it could pass as free education. Yes, Nigeria was once this beautiful, am not talking about Canada here.Even as an undergraduate, you are already getting offers for a job. My God! My mum told me after her secondary school and passing the Teachers college exams, various colleges were after her, offering her a job with accommodation at the age of 19 years. I mean as a Secondary school graduate, not even university! Being a university graduate, could land you a job in one of the government ministries or some of the functional foreign and local companies operating at this time with a good pay and perks like official car. Nigerians who travelled to UK for post graduate studies always returned back home to work, because Nigeria was far richer and better!The industries were working optimally, the government was supportive. Fiscal policies were made to encourage industrialisation. This caused other African migrants to flock into Nigeria for a better life, and we willingly welcomed them and gave them jobs. Yes we did!There were few roads, but most were in good motor able conditions. The health care system was also top notched. Most of the wealthy men then never travelled abroad for proper medical treatment, they had it here. Mother-Child mortality rate wasn’t as scaring as it is today. Our hospitals were fully equipped to cater to the needs of the citizens. They few that were existing at this time were fully staffed. There was no brain drain, our doctors were happy working here!There was great infrastructure, Lagos was the commercial hub for the entire black continent. Most of the infrastructures we are using till this moment were built in this period or before then. Loans were easy to be paid up, the banking system was near perfection even without modern technology. The public transport system was working optimally, the trains and busses graced our public routes. Crime was not as high as it is today. Inflation was under control and our government was getting the best financial advice from the experts.Buying a new car was never a big deal, mostly all working class Nigerians could afford it. Only few drove second hand cars. We were so rich and wealthy. The oil boom money was properly utilised! In a nut shell, the quality of life then was above standard!There was tribalism, corruption and nepotism then at a small scale notwithstanding. The civil war also caused a set-back, but to be frank,the Nigeria of then, is now the Nigeria of our dreams. Yes there was a time, Nigeria was the pride and giant of Africa.However now, in Shame I will write to pour out my disgust of what is making Nigerians flee, including yours sincerely. All the good life I painted above are either in an abysmal state or even non existent. The education system is if not the worst in Africa, one of the worst educational systems in the world. Everything is in shambles, excessive strikes, brain drain, poor infrastructure, lack of teaching tools, obsolete curriculums that cannot meet the demands of the modern day. Lack of enough universities to cater for the needs of millions of college graduates who seek admissions yearly. It is either you are exceptionally brilliant or your parents are rich enough to “buy" a slot for you in any of the public or private institutions. Travelling abroad for studies is now a luxury. Even to Ghana!When you finally graduate, there is no job. You will still join your uncle that graduated 5 years before you to be roaming the streets of lovely Lagos looking for a job that will pay less than 100USD per month. Even the minimum wage is 50USD! The worst is that the certificate you carry has no value at all outside the shores of Nigeria.Infrastructures are almost dead. Epileptic power supply that has almost crippled the industrial sector of the economy. Only companies dealing on FMCG running on diesel powered generators have survived. Don't ask me how that has contributed to inflation.The roads are death traps themselves. The Benin - Ore expressway has won several awards as the valley of death referred in the Bible by king David. Come to Nigeria and see it. Mokwa - Illorin expressway is so notorious in falling trucks, destroying goods and claiming life's. The transportation system is in shambles begging for a state of emergency.The health care system is not left out. Almost dilapidated. Visit the National Bureau of Statistics, and the number of people travelling out of Nigeria to India, Germany, UAE, Saudi Arabia etc for medical tourism will shock you. In this lovely country, a senator that claimed he built a world class hospital in his state was flown abroad after sustaining a minor injury due to an accident! Same with the President son! The health system is so poor. And the number of professional doctors and nurses leaving the country for better futures abroad is not even helping matters.Corruption is now our second name. It has eaten so deep into the fabrics of this nation, that nothing is working again in Nigeria. Occupying a public office is seen as an avenue to loot money and satisfy personal angrandisement. No one cares any longer. Our politicians now see themselves as gods.To many Nigerians, good and portable water is now a luxury. Better get yourself a borehole because none of the state water boards are functioning again except in FCT.Taking a loan from a bank is like signing a death warrant, because you can never pay it back. The economy of the nation is so bad that many can no longer afford 3 square meal in a day. It is indeed that terrible.Nigeria has become a country with no future for its citizens. The same people I read in books and called them former leaders are still leading me till today! When will the future of the youths now come?Frustration is all you see on the faces of those young men and women huzling on the streets of our major cities. A lot of workers are being laid off on daily basis most especially those working in the banking sector, economic depression is really hitting hard. Suffering and smiling!!!Our Security system is the worst in the world! In fact, God has been our security. No wonder we have the biggest churches and congregation in the world. Our security outfits are poorly trained and armed. The prisons are in poor state. Only the rich can afford to get personal security guards. If you don't know how to tip police men on check points, you will always be accused of flouting one law or the other. Bribery is now a norm in the society.Bureucracy is at is peak. Tribalism has reached an unprecedented height in recent times. My background now determines how the government of the day should treat me in case I am looking for job or favour in any of the federal ministries.Inflation is at its peak, and with a meagre salary, surviving in Nigeria is almost impossible. As a young lawyer in Nigeria, most law firms pay you something within the rage of 70–150 USD a month. You start asking yourself, is this why I wasted 6 years of my life in the university and Law school for?And in the face of all these challenges, you have a government that is either ill informed and unequipped to tackle the challenges or rather overwhelmed by it. Some proponents sees it as a political strategy by the political class to keep allowing the populace to be improvished so as to always use that disability to keep elongating their stay in power.These and many more are the reasons why Nigerians Flee Nigeria. To get a better life abroad. Many doesn't mind doing menial jobs on the streets of Canada and earning more than 1000USD monthly, than parading as a professional in Nigeria and earning less than 150USD monthly with no joy and peace to live a healthy life.I pray that the glory of the past years be revealed again. Let Nigeria be great again, we have the best brains in the world to drive the country to an enviable height in all sector of human living, we just need the political will to get there.“May the Labours of our Heroes past never be in vain”I love Nigeria.(Sorry for any typographical error.)

What makes up Biafra Republic is as confusing as the agitations of the agitators in relations to the land mass only. The reasons for Biafra , cannot , however, be contested . Look at what Nigeria is today. This people had foresight only blinded by greed for what is not theirs. The saying “a bird in hand is worth two in the bush” made no sense to them in 1967 and surprisingly even now , with all their intelligence, they are on the verge of making the same mistake.Regarding the land mass, what is called Biafra is very fluid. There are more than three maps which I have seen on the internet/Wikipedia that show different sizes of the proposed Republic.It will appear that these maps are been drawn by people other than Igbos. From what I have read on the News and on the internet in recent times, what started as an Igbo agitations is gradually becoming something else. Almost every Region is agitating but the Igbos are louder in their agitations and rightfully so. Niger Delta has only just came out of its own version of war against the Nation. The reason for this is the level of corruption and insecurity championed by a sect of the Nigerian Nation.Reason dictates that by now, the idea of Biafra should have been jettisoned and replaced with something stronger. A combination of Tribes with as much stakes as the Igbo is ceding from Nigeria. Today, Biafra should no longer exist but what is simply to be known as” The Land of the Rising Sun” just like The “United States of America”. If the leaders of the proposed new Nation are sincere to their agitations , the idea of an Igbo Nation (agitations on tribal lines) should be jettisoned now.So, the answer to the question “can Biafra becomes a separate nation?” is definitely a big NO. It did not succeed the first time because the agitators became tribal and very greedy trying to annex the Midwestern Region. If only the Niger Bridge was blown up and The Biafra Republic as it was then excluded the Midwestern Region, the war would have been in their favour. For Christ sake, it is impossible to win a war with English investments in the Region you intend to take. The English are old school and hate change, see how far they went before been driven off America.Biafra will never succeed but a free State with a name without reference to a past war will. “Land of the free States will. A Declaration of Independence must be written. The Igbos must be patient and let the war be fought by all who intend to cede from the Nigerian Nation- The Mid West, The East, the Middle Belt and the North Eastern Nigeria. Once this war is won then every component go their separate ways. Igbos will not suffer from being landlocked, they will be granted access to the sea just like Niger and Chad are.If, they continue to look towards the oil rich Niger Delta or the arable lands of the middle belt etc, they will definitely not succeed. They did not behave well the first time when the Midwestern showed support for their cause. Instead they tried to lord themselves over them.It is obvious that the “Land of the Rising Sun” excludes the West and the North. The pains been felt by the Igbos are also been felt by the Midwesterns, the northeasterners and the middle beltans. So, the questions now to be asked are: who owns the military now? Who are the puppets of the British? Who owns Nigeria? Why is there a need for the Igbo Nation?The West and the North own the Military, the West and the North are puppets of the British, the West and Britain owns Nigeria and Nigeria do not need the Igbo Nation made up of the Igbo States only at all for the nation to succeed.The British will do all possible to thwart any break away. This is their colony and as a friend said, Nigeria is a company set up by the British and it is they who decide the Directors and managers and gatemen and cleaners of the construct.To be forced to remain in a construct that you have no part in making is slavery. No matter how long the master is way, the servant cannot and never be the owner of the house!As soon as the above is understood, only will the Igbos idea of Biafra for Igbos only be achieved.In the meantime, no one is stopping the Igbos from creating their nation within the Nigerian Nation. If trully they have a plan, with the resources from the Federal Government, they can structure their region effectively. The chaos as they call it in the East is created by they themselves. To a large extent, the individuals States of the Federation can determine how their State is run. Will it be difficult for the Igbos to structure their nation now.? No.Rather, in the News and in the Newspapers they show lack respect for themselves and their people. They fight and back stab the other. They are constantly seeking how they can be better than their own brothers and too many bad sides that I can’t completely mention.The good thing about them is that they are industrious. See what they have accomplished from just the £20 per person they were given in 1970.The Igbos can do wonders. They are intelligent. Highly educated and I believe poverty as seen in other tribes do not exit there.The world has , however gone beyond 1967. They will not succeed to separate and the different maps of Biafra shows greed on their part. Oil and ocean are not all that makes a Nation.This is the map that should be flown from now on representing The RisenSun RepublicSources: shutterstock picturesThe land that has been improverished by Nigeria and its people wishes to leave, so why is Britain so invested the issue?The above is the type of flag of the sixteen States that I wish to see. A flag that shows freedom and life. Excluding the FCT, the States are: Edo, Delta, Bayelsa,Rivers , Imo,Anambra,Ebonyi, Abia , Enugu, Cross Rivers, Akwa Ibom, Taraba, Kogi, Adamawa, Benue and Plateau States. The Igbos will still be land locked but will be among allies and access to the sea.