In Oct 2012 i was opportuned to attend a seminar organised by one church for young people, one of the speakers Lawrence Watkins an African American motivational speaker said "i prefer seeing more Black businesses to more Black politicians" this statement struck my cord and got me thinking about this country called Nigeria and her people.

Nigeria a troubled entity plauged by corruption and ethno religious differences, there are more pastors and politicians here than anywhere else but she keep recieving gold medal in corruption.
What prompted this write up is the great divide between Nigeria politicians and the masses.

Many people are taunting and abusing Igbos on how politically naive they are but lets analyze what political sagacity and sophistications brought to the masses of those that call the shot.

Beacuse there are more individual business villages like my hometown Okija now have 2 combanks & 1MFB, Ihiala, Abriba, Okigwe and Orlu see more trailer loads of building materials than 4 states in Nigeria combined bc of Indvl businesses.
East have more indvl buildings, you can mistake Onicha for Aba or Nnewi for Orlu bc of the structures the succesful indvls not govt put in place.
East have the best and most planned cities in Nigeria graced with highrise residential buildings by indvl where politicians are nowhere to be found.
Nnewi developed without any government input and today the town is home to the most billionaires in Nigeria with great industrial and commerical output, imagine if Nnewi waited for her politicians to develop her, the burstling city will look like ancient ruins graced by mud houses and dirty old decayed zinc that will be begging to be changed.

Aba and Onitsha were destroyed during the war, today Aba maybe having leadership issues cause by corrupt politicians but the people of Enyimba are not poor, in Aba tailors build 3storey buildings, shoemakers build 4 to 5 sorey buildings witout any politicians supportin,they even exported 1M pairs of shoe this yr.
Onitsha destroyed during the war, the city still stunned first time visitors how people could ever make such money to bulild those clusters of highrise residential neigbouhood with reckless abandone.
If Onitsha and Aba residents where to depend on politicians like others, the 2 cities will be like those whom their wise politicians share parboiled rice and odourless fufu to survives.
Owerri and Enugu another 2 cities that is yardstick on how not to depend on politicans to survive, these 2 lovely cities were reduced to ashes but presently none look like an average Nigeria city where the populace depend on politicians to survive.
We saw pics where a politician was sharing money to kids in the streets, these are people that shout us down for being politicaly naive.

Earlier this year i was at Westmister Apapa to purchase goods that i will take to East, i discovered many things that shock me, those that do the selling&transaction are those with failed politicians but those that man the gates collecting tolls of N10, N20 and N20 are those whose politicians are sagacious.
I bought the goods, paid N20 3X toll.
The story is the same when you step into computer village, Lapido, ASPAMDA,Mandilas et al, those running the system are those whose politicians are naive but those watching from the sidelines shouting pinks lips and tattos, waiting for crumbs are those whose politicians are sagacious and sophisticated.
We all know those that cut the nails, fetch the waters, itinerant tailors, break woods and dispose refuses despite their political sagacity and sophistication.

Ndigbo i prefer seeing more Ibetos, Berth Nnajis, Coscharis, Innosons, Obijacksons, Dozies, Elumelus, Utomis, Ovias, Ekes, Tonimas, Chicasons et al to seeing more Igbokwes, Orjis, Ubas,Udenwas and other belle-first politicians masquarding as Igbo progressives and messiahs.
We know the region tha have the highest number of politicians but the East have the highest number of enterprenuers, the regions that recieve more federal allocation than the East but poverty is lesser in East than any other zone in Nigeria according to NAPEP which attributed that to private enterprises those in East go for.

In conclusion let me ship in one thing, am not a GEJ fan but Its not all about having the presidency beside his kinsmen do scramble for rice, GEJ have really help Igbo businesses, visit Nnewi and see wonders of Anaedo people, go to Onitsha and see industries springing up everywhere.
During Obj a southerner, he revoked Ibeto's license, siezed and auctioned Innoson 25 40ft but gave Dangote waiver, under Jonathan Innoson is a success story and Ibeto is back in business.

Its not all about Igbos supporting Jonathan, its about a level playing field for Bola, Emeka & Aliyu so that an Okoro can sent his kids to school and donate a cottage hospital to his village.
Igbos join PDP & APC but protection of Igbo businesses should be paramount.
Lets have 20% politicians and 80% enterprenuers in Igboland

Happy Xmas Message from Buddah Monk writing from Nairaland Pen.

POST OF THE YEAR! This is the solution to the Black man's problem whether in Africa ,America,or the Caribbean. This is Powernomics as stated by Dr. Claude Anderson. We need a religion of Produce More Than You Consume. We need a religion of PLANNING/WORKING NOT PRAYER! We need [ a playbook] a Bible that gives us a Economic education, a Military education and a Family First education.

Businesses of course. This is something that the Jews understood everywhere they lived. Money before Power. You control the economy first, then you influence the politics later. Any money gotten after power tends to be out of corruption and crime.

South East needs to Lunch an Infrastructural and investment fund as soon as possible. Lets start using our republican nature to our advantage.

Nnewi, Aba, Onitsha and so many organic cities in east exist today because of individual effort and grim determination. Not because government built supporting infrastructure like lagos and abuja.



Having a development fund will be the great equalizer....

Government will never do for us what it never does for us.....

I can feel the pulse of your heart!
You are a wise man!
He that have ears, let him hear.

That is why I like to hear our governors talk about industrialization and commercialization.
This was why I fell out with Chris Ngige: when Soludo was talking about modeling Anambra after China and Dubai, Ngige was talking about building a "befitting state capital"!

Jonathan's administration has created the enabling environment for our industries to grow!
Any body who does not see that must be blind.

OP, thanks for this thread.
May you live long.

more business men; great question!

Why would igbo want more politician? More businessman biko. Easy question