"Glorified secondary schools" is the derisive term coined by Nigerians to describe their country’s universities. Classrooms are overcrowded, with students sitting on the floor during lectures. Libraries lack books, and laboratories are ill-equipped to conduct experiments. And, just as facilities are decaying, so is the quality of education being received by students.
"Kill and go": this is the nickname that has been given to Nigeria’s mobile police unit. Its members have an alleged propensity to gun down people at the slightest provocation, then walk away unconcerned. The reputation of other police units is scarcely better. Nigerians often hear reports of people shot dead either by the mobile or regular police.
"Leaders come and go, but there will always be workers’ unions." This is the philosophical view that Elder Linus Ukamba, senior assistant general secretary of the Nigerian Labour Congress, has adopted towards plans by President Olusegun Obasanjo to dismantle the union federation.
For many Nigerians, daylight hours are too busy to spend on commuting. As a result, they use nights to travel between the various towns and cities where they conduct business. But, fatigue, poor visibility and bad roads have taken their toll in the form of accidents.
Oil is the undisputed kingpin of Nigeria’s economy, contributing more than 90% of its export earnings. But more than four decades after the start of oil extraction in Nigeria, the industry remains in foreign hands — much to the frustration of local entrepreneurs.
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/ 25 February 2004
The growth of information technology, however, that has been identified as possibly the biggest factor behind the 419 email scams’ expansion. It’s estimated that the public is duped into sending them hundreds of millions of dollars each year, with the United States and Western Europe worst affected. But despite these efforts, it appears the scam is going from strength to strength.
The next presidential election in Nigeria is not due until May 2007. While that might seem a long way off to some, aspirant contenders have already emerged -– and they include the man who plunged Nigeria into a political crisis in 1993: former military ruler Ibrahim Babangida.