This is the News Analysis segment of the Voice of Biafra International (VOBI) Broadcasts.  

For September 27, 2003  

You have heard the news; now the analysis…  

Fellow Biafrans:  

What are the three most important categories that define the status of a country? Wouldn’t you agree with us that these are social, political and economic?  When one evaluates these categories as they apply to any country, one can quickly and accurately arrive at a conclusion as to the stability, viability and progress of that country—or lack thereof. Let us assess each category in the so-called country, Nigeria . We call Nigeria a country out of custom and habit; it is an expediency for which there is no practical substitute in the present dispensation.  

The social situation in Nigeria is truly terrible and horrible, where “terrible" and "horrible” are considered a sort of compliment for Nigeria . A worse term is more appropriate, but we cannot think of any.  Why terrible and why horrible? Nigeria is a contiguous geographic area inhabited by different ethnic nations forced to live together as a balkanization strategy by the British colonial masters. The real meaning of “Balkanization” is the deliberate grouping of different peoples in such a way as to introduce intra and inter-mural hostilities resulting in internecine conflicts. The goal is to keep the peoples fighting among themselves as a direct result of such grouping or division; thus occupied, preoccupied, and distracted, the peoples lack the disposition to band together and confront and fight against the colonial master. We know that this is an effective colonial weapon: history confirms that. For Nigeria , this has worked so well.  

Thus one has a social environment full of strife. The Northerners’ culture is totally unlike the Westerners’ or the Easterners’. Dominated by the Muslim religion and feudalistic arrangements, the culture of the North clashes with Eastern entrepreneuring  individualism and Western hierarchical system.  Forceful expansionist Islam led by militants and adopted by Muslim faithful in Nigeria marching to the tune of copied Muslim Arabic militancy has become the latest threat to other nations living in Nigeria . This has led to bloodshed—mostly of Igbo-Biafrans / Easterners—a cyclic occurrence starting in the 1950’s and intensifying in the last 3 years.  

Underlying all this is the reality that the Igbo-Biafrans are roundly hated by other ethnic nations for their Igbo-ness, which (Igbo-ness) to these other nations, translates into their inability to keep up with the Igbo-Biafrans in any arena of pursuit where merit is the determining factor. The result is tension: no Igbo-Biafran can live in peace and security outside of the Igbo-Biafran enclave, because he or she is marked and hated; any excuse is transformed into a real opportunity to hurt the Igbo-Biafran, kill, displace and dispossess him or her. Every effort is made by the other nations (aided by the structure of, and using the instrument of, Nigeria ) to suppress and repress Igbo-Biafrans; conditions are tilted and deliberately manipulated so as to ensure that the Igbo-Biafran is at a huge disadvantage. And this is practiced not in a furtive manner: it is perpetrated  with pride and with relish by the other nations living in Nigeria against Igbo-Biafrans.  

Little wonder that there is inter-ethnic national suspicion all the way around. Only pretense and denial (by especially the Igbo-Biafrans) that this adverse practice against them exists, maintain the façade of one country. When this has failed—as it has, since the other party remains implacable—some Igbo-Biafrans have resorted to begging for acceptance in Nigeria and even offering apologies to Nigeria on behalf of Ndigbo-Biafrans.  Never mind that Igbo-Biafrans bring not only a formidable human resource asset, but also the natural resource asset to the table. Nigeria ’s only source of income is crude oil; most of it is produced in Igbo-Biafraland. The reality is that Nigeria takes away the oil and accruing revenue and squanders the money elsewhere, while denying and depriving the source, the East. At the same time, they reject and turn away the Igbo-Biafran human resource asset.  How then do you expect the social category to be rated better than terrible in Nigeria , given the above?  

Politics in Nigeria is no better. The peoples living in Nigeria have been struck so many times and beaten into submission with the bat of politics that they now live in such a state of apathy and depression—coma, if the truth be told—that anything goes, and goes unchallenged. The military governments came and went unchallenged; if the international community had not frowned on military coupists and deprived them of access to foreign banks and foreign travels, they would still be reigning over Nigeria . Then, there was the so-called divine intervention in the form of the untimely death of Abacha who had successfully prepared to slide himself from a military dictator to a civilian dictator—without any serious challenge, and without a peep from the peoples living in Nigeria .  

Then the word “democracy” was introduced to the populace in Nigeria , a term that meant one thing to the rest of the civilized world, another thing to the political opportunists living in Nigeria , and meant yet another thing to the peoples living in Nigeria . The first elections were fixed by godfathers. The recent 2003 elections were controlled by godfathers and rigged with the help of the electoral commission, intimidation by security officers with partisan orders, and lethal violence committed against unarmed civilians, most especially, against the MASSOB, to prevent them from voting. In the end, Obasanjo rigged himself into self-succession, and his PDP party arranged to have itself sweep the country. Never mind that PDP had not accomplished anything of worth in their previous regime.  

Take a look at General Obasanjo and you will see a man who talks about democracy, yet he is the worst kind of anti-democrat. He deliberately disobeys the constitution which he is supposed to defend—at will, doing what he darn well pleases. Worse still, when challenged, he accuses his challenger of anti-democratic acts. He rules like a military officer which he really is, relying on orders just like in the military, instead of a constitutionally based civil and civic due process.  Although their styles may differ, General Obasanjo treats Nigeria in the same manner that Abacha did—like she was a mere harlot at his beck and call, disposing of her any way and any how he pleases. Abacha got away with it until his time on earth was up; Obasanjo is getting away with it too. And the peoples living in Nigeria , in their comatose state, can do nothing, will do nothing, and do not even care that something is wrong.  

Where General Obasanjo left off, his PDP party takes over in this political trip into oblivion. Having successfully rigged themselves back into power in Nigeria , they have continued in their lack of performance. All we have witnessed is the unimaginable level of corruption within the party. And ineptitude. We have witnessed unbridled arrogance wherein this party acts like it is Nigeria per se, not even the representative chosen by the people. (Of course, we know and they know that they are there as a result of fraud.)  The PDP has no respect for the constitution either, doing what they please, when they please, how they please. Politically, they ran Nigeria aground between 1999 and 2003; now, they are determined to finish the job by scuttling the political ship called Nigeria altogether.  General Obasanjo and his PDP party are a visionless system who have commandeered a floundered ship of state called Nigeria in order to properly sink the ship using their abundant talent in ineptitude, corruption and fraud. Yet, the peoples living in Nigeria are too weak and too numb to react appropriately.  

If you think Nigeria is doing really badly in the social and political categories, then consider the economy of Nigeria . The Military rulers of Nigeria starting with the moron, Gowon, and including General Obasanjo then, whose total expertise and knowledge of economics could be contained in a shot-glass—with room to spare—managed to reduce Nigeria to a one-commodity economy. That one commodity is crude oil. Today, General Obasanjo is continuing and perfecting the tradition in all ways. In choosing to micromanage the economy himself; the total economic IQ of his administration, his party and him is in the decimals. The result is that dependence on crude oil is a tighter life-or-death relationship for Nigeria . The foreign indebtedness of Nigeria is larger than her dwindling reserves by almost four times. The ups and downs of crude oil prices in the world market throttle the little life left of Nigeria , threatening to choke her right to death, at any moment.  

While “dumbing down” the economy of Nigeria , these same players went on a borrowing spree, accumulating a compounding debt with foreign governments and banks. Now,  the burden is on the slumped shoulders of the hapless peoples living in Nigeria . And, believe it or not, those of them—the military coupists—who are alive today are still drawing money from whatever is left in the coffers of Nigeria, and they get it first—before anybody else.  

What has this meant for the peoples living in Nigeria ? Pension funds have evaporated—there is no money to pay for due pensions. There is no money to pay government workers. There is no money to meet the budgets passed by the legislators. There is no money to run the government. There is no money to pay contractual obligations. There is no money to help the States. There is no money to run the so-called local governments. What money is collected from oil revenues is mostly stolen by corrupt officials who get their loot “from the source”—a popular terminology among these leeches, meaning that they grab their loot as soon as the money is there, before  the government herself can even touch the money with her own leprous hands. The rest will go into servicing foreign debts.  

And so, the General announces to the peoples living in Nigeria that they are expected to make more economic sacrifices in the coming months because of this situation. More sacrifices? Is there no bottom to how much sacrifice the peoples living in Nigeria can make? Yet, the people, in their weakened state, appear to just lie there and take it. No challenge thrown at one of the architects, and now, the sole vehicle of the peoples’ economic woes and misery?  

Fellow Biafrans: only Biafra actualization can save us now. We have always known this. God has provided our salvation. Come, then, let us join in God’s Plan, for Biafra lives and awaits us!  

That’s the news analysis for the week. Thank you.

God bless and keep Biafra ; and you, until our next broadcast. Voice of Biafra International broadcast continues. (http://www.biafraland.com; follow “Voice of Biafra” ink.