Charlesmud:

This is just the point, we have to find a way to come together, then tackle the government, anything else from this like expecting government officials to change will be a waste of dream.

Apart from the fact that I am having to rush my posts as usual, I am not sure how you keep getting tackling government from what I type. I am not in any way advocating TACKLING government in any way. From where I stand, the people are the ones to decide government and so it is not for us to TACKLE government but to change our perception of what government is; as soon as we start to understand our place in Nigeria, and how all depends on our own choices as individual Nigerians, only then will we start to make choices that will change that country. The Ribadu’s and the maradona messiahs we have had in the past can only do so much. You name any one of them and you will see that the change they were able to make only impacted a few for a while. If, however, the people were to change, the resulting change will go even further in resolving most of the problems we have been going around for so long.

Fela said it all in his song Sorrow,Tears and Blood

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=JfR3JteUjAQ&feature=related

"My people sef dey fear too much, ;We fear to fear to fight for liberty, we always get reason to fear;my mama dey for house, i get two houses, i no wan die,e.t.c."

Nobody is ready to take a bold step and even worse nobody is ready to follow those who are ready to take the bold step. Corruption is a norm in Nigeria,

After what happened to ribadu, How do you think Mrs. Waziri will carry out her own duties? Step on the same toes? I dont think so.

while we all have a part to play in fighting corruption, you also have to understand that most people only pay lipservice to it. any number of nigerian companies will trumpet about crystal clear business practices, whistle blowing policy, etc, but thats all bullshit. the accountant who blew the whistle on enron - in any nigerian company would have been out of a job/ set up /or even killed.

combating corruption, at one's own level (in the workplace) requires knowing exactly what one's leaders/ogas really stand for. the weird thing is, if you gain a reputation as a person who will not bend, you will not advance;if you decide to play along, in the hopes that when u get to a position of power, you will change things, you may find you have changed by the time you get there.

its sad, ribadu is only the most visible of the persecuted. you can be sure his trusted lieutenants etal have all been purged/relegated to traffic warden type positions

ultimately, i think the only real way to sanitize nigeria is to pull a jerry rawling and kill all the corrupt pricks. failing that, an idiagbon type president. . .

@Oyb
I think you missed the point.  It's like you are placing the cart before the horse, which will put the horse in an awkward situation.  You can't bring the idea of whistle blowing in this discourse when you know that without the enabling Act, as in legislation, duly enshrined in the constitution, the whistle blower is doomed to perdition.  Even when the protection is offered to the whistle blower in the constitution do you think corrupt officers like the Minister of Injustice, Mike Andoakaa, who has made no pretense whatsoever to shield corrupt ex-governors from prosecution, would offer that protection especially when his patrons are involved? I do not think so.
Moreover, a person would be interested in a whistle blowing action when all the social infrastructures i.e. Courts, a fuctioning legislature that is up to its tasks in the real sense of the word, a vibrant press that will shy away from accepting brown envelopes, are in place as in the developed world. Not so in obodo Nigeria.
Also, if you must be aware, the whistle blowing action in the US is a creation of law to wit, the Civil Rights Law of the 60's. So anyone blowing the lid is guaranteed protection by the Act, as was done to the accountant who esposed Ken Lay & Co of Enron.
Are you saying that the legislature has enacted similar act in Nigeria? Do you think the present crop of leaders of NASS and the servant leader in Aso Rock have the stomach to pass this legilation? I doubt it much.  Not in a country where the president forced the staff of the presidency to sign a oath of secrecy and the NASS topbrass too are contemplating same action for their staff.

[/quote][quote author=oyb link=topic=214867.msg3310576#msg3310576 date=1231275477]
ultimately, i think the only real way to sanitize nigeria is to pull a jerry rawling and kill all the corrupt pricks. failing that, an idiagbon type president. . .

I agree with you 100% on this.  But unfortunately, we have missed the opportunity, the chance to rid our country of the greed and avarice that have permeated the entire social fabric of the country has been lost.  The wise have said it loud and clear that opportunity once lost, can never be regained. Idiagbon is dead, cout d'etat is no longer fashionable and sanitizing the country and freeing it from the gridlock of corruption remains a tall order.
Ribadu has been shoved aside, humiliated and disgraced.  Other than writing on pages of Newspapers, no formal complaint by way of PROTEST took place to register dissatisfaction with the way the administration handled the matter.

Though I share the views of people-centred-change approach or down top approach, but I still believe that top down is more effective in bringing about change in Nigeria or any society for that matter, because "everthing rises and falls with the leadership" I know we can do a lot in our own little spheres of influence and essentially, change must start with the individual. I discovered that Nigeria has high percentage of youth population, and I think that's the right place to start. I am planning to start a nationwide forum that will educate the youths on national issues such as governance, accountability, public service, leadership, electoral issues. A society that is well informed will not sell their vote to the highest bidder, they will vote by informed choice. I keep asking myslef, why do Nigerians vote for bad leaders when we have opportunities to choose the right people, Nigerians electorate are not informed, we don't vote for issues, we vote for the wrong reasons, ethnic and religious issues affect our choices. As a matter of facts National Orientation Agency has failed us, this forum will have chapters in all tertiary and secondary schools. We need an enlightened society to make an informed choice, to elect good leaders and not thugs and we can start from the youth of this nation whose future is being mortgaged and sacrificed on the alter of today. However, we can find a reconciliatory approach to solving our problems in Nigeria, both leaders and the led must start with themselves, we must all start somewhere.

We already have some examples of TOP -DOWN Approach to changing the nation. Remember Idiaghon regime? What happened? Change had to be forced on the people. When there was a coup to remove his government, the people did not fight for him. They simply sat back and watched as Babangida came in to remove that which they did not all seem comfortable with (CHANGE).

A Top-Down approach most likely will entail FORCING change on the people, sort of like what we see happening in Lagos now. Are Lagosians cooperating? Are the people going to FIGHT to retain Fashola next election, or will many turn on him then? Forcing change on the majority leads more often than none to a situation where the change becomes harder to maintain than when it is not forced on the people. I believe when we have a people who really understand the place of government and the reason why these changes are needed and the people are carried along in the change, and then we will see progress in all facets of society.

SegzyJoe:

Though I share the views of people-centred-change approach or down top approach, but I still believe that top down is more effective in bringing about change in Nigeria or any society for that matter, because "everthing rises and falls with the leadership" I know we can do a lot in our own little spheres of influence and essentially, change must start with the individual. I discovered that Nigeria has high percentage of youth population, and I think that's the right place to start. I am planning to start a nationwide forum that will educate the youths on national issues such as governance, accountability, public service, leadership, electoral issues. A society that is well informed will not sell their vote to the highest bidder, they will vote by informed choice. I keep asking myslef, why do Nigerians vote for bad leaders when we have opportunities to choose the right people, Nigerians electorate are not informed, we don't vote for issues, we vote for the wrong reasons, ethnic and religious issues affect our choices. As a matter of facts National Orientation Agency has failed us, this forum will have chapters in all tertiary and secondary schools. We need an enlightened society to make an informed choice, to elect good leaders and not thugs and we can start from the youth of this nation whose future is being mortgaged and sacrificed on the alter of today. However, we can find a reconciliatory approach to solving our problems in Nigeria, both leaders and the led must start with themselves, we must all start somewhere.

Thank you so so so so so so so so so much for this words and point, this is just it, we know the problem and were it is, It is purely goverment, leadership so if this 2 things can be in good condition then surely the people will change for better and inventually Nigeria will become a better country.

So we have to find a way to come together, educate ourself, make a form, group, organzation that will be able to stand against the government in form of movement. Simple,