Funny that Nigerians tend to see things in some kind of straitjacket fashion.
If a Nigerian is a naturalized Briton or American, then he or she is home. I don't get all this 'home' ideology.

Like debosky said, the absurdity of it all is just amazing. The Nigerian abroad believes he is far better off than anybody in Nigeria. The Nigerian at home believes he makes more money than any Nigerian abroad. And the cycle goes on.

We prolly need to fix ourselves, not our country per se.

I ASSUME THE HOME IN THE TOPIC IS NIGERIA/AFRICA.

It  depends on what to be comfortable or happiness  means to you. there are alots of people in africa who have no access to social amenities yet more happy and cormfortable in their world more than some living in the western world,while there are some in the west who are more comfortable in their world more than some said comfortable people in nigeria. to be rich,comfortable and happy starts from within.


Difficult to return home-(A)  I tell you some are ashamed to go home empty handed after many years in the west and nothing to show for it,because west hapens not to be the bed-of -roses which they thought.

(B)some are professionals who have worked hard earn their profesion and cannot go to where they cannot be favoured.
so it all depends.
THE LIST GOES ON AND ON,

Another reason people are "stranded" here is "kpali" or paper. Most guys are assumed to have forgotten home while in actual fact they cant travel because they dont have valid papers.

Another reason is prison. Do you realise several Nigerians are singing "locked up" by Akon in yankee? Drugs, scams etc. A lot of stupid Nigerian are in the pens for that.

Another reason is money. Face it, places like UK are very hard to make a living from. Most Nigerians are on low income of about £1000 to £1500. Pay your rent/ mortgage, send money home and other expenses from that and tell me what savings you have to come home with? Dont forget so many of them have given the wrong impression of living in the laps of luxury here. The false image of being a millionaire as everyone back there multiplies your income by N250.

this most nigerians that don't have papers and earn £1k a month - really cos i don't know people like this - although my circle of friends consists of few nigerians I do have african friends and they are all doing fairly well and have their papers in tact so honestly this song people are alwasy singing of everyone abroad is cleaning toilet is false.

My consultant is nigerian and one of the locum GP's in my doctors is nigerian i doubt they are cleaning toilets on the side to eat 3 times a day. I guess it just depends on what one is exposed to on a daily basis. If people don't want to go "home" why is that such a crime - no one crucifies those that choose to leave nigeria so why so much venom and insult for those that have a life elsewhere.

the fact that people keep talking of how the well off live in nigeria and choose to ignore the plight of the majority who live a life engulfed in poverty is truely sad.

AjanleKoko:

Funny that Nigerians tend to see things in some kind of straitjacket fashion.
If a Nigerian is a naturalized Briton or American, then he or she is home. I don't get all this 'home' ideology.

Like debosky said, the absurdity of it all is just amazing. The Nigerian abroad believes he is far better off than anybody in Nigeria. The Nigerian at home believes he makes more money than any Nigerian abroad. And the cycle goes on.

We prolly need to fix ourselves, not our country per se.

really ? let me tell you where home is. the formative years of your life are the most impressionable years of your life. this is where you acquire the mental blueprint that will serve you for the rest of your natural life. it is where you spend this formative years that is home. the formative years will be between the ages of 5 and 18.
if you grew up in naija during that period, you can exist anywhere else in the world, but your heart will always be in conflict because it subconsciously yearns for home

ada24:

this most nigerians that don't have papers and earn £1k a month - really cos i don't know people like this - although my circle of friends consists of few nigerians I do have african friends and they are all doing fairly well and have their papers in tact so honestly this song people are alwasy singing of everyone abroad is cleaning toilet is false.

My consultant is nigerian and one of the locum GP's in my doctors is nigerian i doubt they are cleaning toilets on the side to eat 3 times a day. I guess it just depends on what one is exposed to on a daily basis. If people don't want to go "home" why is that such a crime - no one crucifies those that choose to leave nigeria so why so much venom and insult for those that have a life elsewhere.

the fact that people keep talking of how the well off live in nigeria and choose to ignore the plight of the majority who live a life engulfed in poverty is truely sad. 

your attempt to distance yourself from the stark reality of life in england is laughingly comical. you dont know people like these ? you dont know nigerians who earn 250 pounds a week ? you have never met nigerians with no papers ? the only people you have met are locum doctors ? you are trying too hard and it makes me wonder if in fact you are hiding something. you tryna overcompensate 

^^^ There are people struggling in the UK, just as there are people struggling in Nigeria (and there are people doing very well in both places).

Remind me what the point was again ?

The picture is more mixed than people think. Yes, there loads of Nigerian doing well in the UK, educated, doctotrs, lawyers, accountants. Its cost allot of money to get to the US/Europe. I know people who have spent upto £20k just to get papers!

Everytime I go out to nice bar/ restaurant in central London and I use the bathroom, the guy handing me a cloth to dry my hand is a nigerian, or the security guards at the apple store, or at any west end night club.

Sometimes I have to go to Heathrow earlier in the morning, the train is full of nigerian cleaners and porters. This being said I know a nigerian cleaner who saved every penny, put her son through priavte school in naija, and he works as a banker in naija. I know of mechanics who own three houses in magodo. I know of porter saving that every last penny to build that bungalow in enugu. People are struggling whether in Nigeria or US/UK, they all want a better life, or more opportunities.


There tons of  people without papers, everyweek you hear about a nigerian being deported, or caught in a sham marriage.

The real truth why people will not relocate is :

Basic levels of trust do not exist - send your car to the mechanic because the engine has knocked and he will sand paper the bearings and put the same old ones back and claim he bought new ones.

Send your househelp to the market and she will rip you off.

Politicians and too interested in their pockets than making sure there are good roads or electricity, water.

Ask your driver to go and buy petrol alone in your new car and you wont see the car again,

Go to the petrol station to buy fuel during feul scarcity and you are likely to end up in LUTH,

You dare try to sleep with both eyes closed and they might never open again,

We can do without all these issues,

Although alot of nigerians have bad jobs in the UK, alot also have very good jobs which they could never dream of in nigeria.

buzugee:

your attempt to distance yourself from the stark reality of life in england is laughingly comical. you dont know people like these ? you dont know nigerians who earn 250 pounds a week ? you have never met nigerians with no papers ? the only people you have met are locum doctors ? you are trying too hard and it makes me wonder if in fact you are hiding something. you tryna overcompensate 

i honestly don't know what your problem is - i did not grow up in nigeria - neither did my siblings or any of my friends. my non- nigerian friends all grew up here, if one has a professional job that is the circle of friends u will keep, i don't personally know people who don't have papers and i don't see why i should go out of my way to find them just to have the reality of life in england bestowed on me. yes i know there are people like this just as their are asians and other africans with these same problems.

trying to hide something really online is it so hard to believe that some of your fellow country men and women abroad are doing ok and have no desire to return to a country that stopped being home for them and their children years ago. Trust me adjusting to life in nigeria is not easy just like adjusting to life in any other country will not be easy - but if a nigerian says it then all many of abuse is rained down on them.

as defensive as I sound u also fail to address the poverty aspect of my post. picking on the fact that i only know doctors is also strange. the simple fact of the matter is just as u are trying to show us that people are enjoying back home people are also ok here. as someone has already noted here what exactly is your point. In america there are people who also die from lack of access to good healthcare just as there are people who have six 2010 SUVs parked outside their mansions - that is the way of the world - but u don't ant to face the reality of the fact that the majority of people are poor in nigeria  and no one is doing anything to develop a welfare system that ensure women do not die in childbirth - or u want to ignore the known fact that nigeria has the 2ND HIGHEST MATERNAL MORTALITY RATE IN THE WORLD but i guess this is ok cos u know people that earn N20million and live in gated communities.

Yinkaboy:

The picture is more mixed than people think. Yes, there loads of Nigerian doing well in the UK, educated, doctotrs, lawyers, accountants. Its cost allot of money to get to the US/Europe. I know people who have spent upto £20k just to get papers!

Everytime I go out to nice bar/ restaurant in central London and I use the bathroom, they handing me a cloth to dry my hand is a nigerian, or the security guards at the apple store, or at any west end night club.

Sometimes I have to go to Heathrow earlier in the morning, the train is full of  nigerian cleaners and porters. This being said I know a nigerian cleaner who saved every penny, put her son through priavte school in naija, and he works as a banker in naija. I know of mechanics who own three houses in magodo. I know of porter saving that every last penny to build that bungalow in enugu. People are struggling whether in Nigeria or US/UK, they all want a better life, or more opportunities.


There tons of people without papers, everyweek you hear about a nigerian being deported, or caught in a sham marriages.

you have said it all. life na struggle.

cmdr:

The real truth why people will not relocate is :

Basic levels of trust do not exist - send your car to the mechanic because the engine has knocked and he will sand paper the bearings and put the same old ones back and claim he bought new ones.

Send your househelp to the market and she will rip you off.

Politicians and too interested in their pockets than making sure there are good roads or electricity, water.

Ask your driver to go and buy petrol alone in your new car and you wont see the car again,

Go to the petrol station to buy fuel during feul scarcity and you are likely to end up in LUTH,

You dare try to sleep with both eyes closed and they might never open again,

We can do without all these issues,

Although alot of nigerians have bad jobs in the UK, alot also have very good jobs which they could never dream of in nigeria.

if you are lazy enough to hire a househelp then you deserve to get ripped off 

if you are silly enough to give a stranger (albeit your driver) your car to go and fill it up with gas and he runs off, you deserved it for being a mugu.  thats all am sayin

Someone said this discussion is like a treadmill; going nowhere. Nobody is ready to raise the white flag. Still one of main topic but I expect it to fizzle out by this weekend. 

Ok let’s look at things from this angle:

The “return home, Nigeria is better, HEAVY Cash flow” advocates don’t seem to appreciate the benefit of strong and vibrant Nigerian communities outside the shores of the motherland. Tourism is one good example.  Some of us visit at least once a year, and by spending in Nigeria the economy benefits; I just can’t quantify the actual benefit. What happens if everyone decides to come back as you constantly preach? Yes, it’s always fun to visit and see my folks, but life is very good here as well.

I grew up in Nigeria, spent my years up till university level and it's etched in my heart forever; I will lalways love her regardless.  Just tiered of hearing this kind of talk:  igbawo lo ma pada si ile, oje se kia ko wa ri inkan mole (when will you return home; better make haste and build a mansion here) as if…

Lets get the basics straight, which nigerian in the UK other than those diplomats or ex-bankers, have a driver? a househelp? nanny? Please they would love to have equal the space in London as somebodies boy quarters in Lagos, instead of living in council house.

ada24:

i honestly don't know what your problem is - i did not grow up in nigeria - neither did my siblings or any of my friends. my non- nigerian friends all grew up here, if one has a professional job that is the circle of friends u will keep, i don't personally know people who don't have papers and i don't see why i should go out of my way to find them just to have the reality of life in england bestowed on me. yes i know there are people like this just as their are asians and other africans with these same problems.

trying to hide something really online is it so hard to believe that some of your fellow country men and women abroad are doing ok and have no desire to return to a country that stopped being home for them and their children years ago. Trust me adjusting to life in nigeria is not easy just like adjusting to life in any other country will not be easy - but if a nigerian says it then all many of abuse is rained down on them.

as defensive as I sound u also fail to address the poverty aspect of my post. picking on the fact that i only know doctors is also strange. the simple fact of the matter is just as u are trying to show us that people are enjoying back home people are also ok here. as someone has already noted here what exactly is your point. In america there are people who also die from lack of access to good healthcare just as there are people who have six 2010 SUVs parked outside their mansions - that is the way of the world - but u don't ant to face the reality of the fact that the majority of people are poor in nigeria  and no one is doing anything to develop a welfare system that ensure women do not die in childbirth - or u want to ignore the known fact that nigeria has the 2ND HIGHEST MATERNAL MORTALITY RATE IN THE WORLD but i guess this is ok cos u know people that earn N20million and live in gated communities.

there you go again running off the side of your mouth and being a rambunctious and boisterous woman. just because you do not know someone personally does not mean you do not see them. london is not that big. i am sure you have ventured into peckham, brixton, camberwell, tottenham, dalston, new cross, lewisham, dulwich, seven sisters, wood green, stoke newington, elephant and castle, stratford, barking etc etc. i am sure you have at least being to one of the aforementioned places, unless of course you walk around with your head tucked in your handbag like an ostrich.

as per poverty in naija ? there is poverty in naija and there is poverty in london. some parts of england you do not even want to go to. moss side in manchester, gorton in manchester, cheetham hill in manchester, a huge part of leeds, huge chunks of the northeast and huge chunks of the northwest. the poverty there is glaring. in a whole street of like 20 houses, like 19 of the houses will be boarded up and you will see gang signs and graffiti all over the boarded up houses. the chavs in the area all look hungry and desperate and will cut your neck for 3 pounds. sometimes you have to leave ya comfort of london to go and explore poverty in britain because i have. all these places i mentioned ? i have being there.

occam:

Someone said this discussion is like a treadmill; going nowhere. Nobody is ready to raise the white flag. Still one of main topic but I expect it to fizzle out by this weekend. 

Ok let’s look at things from this angle:

The “return home, Nigeria is better, HEAVY Cash flow” advocates don’t seem to appreciate the benefit of strong and vibrant Nigerian communities outside the shores of the motherland. Tourism is one good example.  Some of us visit at least once a year, and by spending in Nigeria the economy benefits; I just can’t quantify the actual benefit. What happens if everyone decides to come back as you constantly preach? Yes, it’s always fun to visit and see my folks, but life is very good here as well.

I grew up in Nigeria, spent my years up till university level and it's etched in my heart forever; I will lalways love her regardless.  Just tiered of hearing this kind of talk:  igbawo lo ma pada si ile, oje se kia ko wa ri inkan mole (when will you return home; better make haste and build a mansion here) as if… 

;Dmake you go build ya mansion for fillage my fren seriously though do not let anyone pressure you. if you are comfortable wherever you are, stay there. my argument is not about people going home, my argument personally is that dont talk down about naija because you are abroad. there is poverty everywhere and there are riches. find wherever you have rest of mind and chill there. but do not start yabbin naija because you are eating fish and chips in london

Yinkaboy:

Lets get the basics straight, which nigerian in the UK other than those diplomats or ex-bankers, have a driver? a househelp? nanny? Please they would love to have equal the space in London as somebodies boy quarters in Lagos, instead of living in council house.

you aint lie too. those council houses are the size of boys quarters. i have lived in a couple of them

Yinkaboy:

Lets get the basics straight, which nigerian in the UK other than those diplomats or ex-bankers, have a driver? a househelp? nanny? Please they would love to have equal the space in London as somebodies boy quarters in Lagos, instead of living in council house.

Oh please! This topic has turned into disses and jabs. How mature!

So having a househelp or a nanny determines or ups your socio- economic status? Doing things yourself and being resourceful isn't a bad thing.
The West is very DIY and we like it just like that.

buzugee:

;Dmake you go build ya mansion for fillage my fren seriously though do not let anyone pressure you. if you are comfortable wherever you are, stay there. my argument is not about people going home, my argument personally is that dont talk down about naija because you are abroad. there is poverty everywhere and there are riches. find wherever you have rest of mind and chill there. but do not start yabbin naija because you are eating fish and chips in london 

You're not making any valid points. Duh! Obviously, simple logic suggests that poverty exists everywhere but at varying levels, like every other thing in life. In Nigeria, when you're poor, you're basically hopeless. Why? The government don't give a damn. Don't even try to compare the level of poverty in Nigeria to that of London, America, or wherever.

As for the person talking about having drivers/house helps and what not, that just shows how lazy many 'rich' Nigerians are. Your average rich American(who is richer than your average rich Nigerian) does not have a chauffeur. People are up and doing. They also don't have live-in house-helps(usually a minor) whom they treat like sub-humans, accuse of stealing, seducing husband, and what not. And they say they aren't part of the problem.

Nigeria as a nation can not change for the better if the citizens are just as corrupt as the government.
#justsaying#

Yinkaboy:

The picture is more mixed than people think. Yes, there loads of Nigerian doing well in the UK, educated, doctotrs, lawyers, accountants. Its cost allot of money to get to the US/Europe. I know people who have spent upto £20k just to get papers!

Everytime I go out to nice bar/ restaurant in central London and I use the bathroom, the guy handing me a cloth to dry my hand is a nigerian, or the security guards at the apple store, or at any west end night club.

S[b]ometimes I have to go to Heathrow earlier in the morning, the train is full of nigerian cleaners and porters. This being said I know a nigerian cleaner who saved every penny, put her son through priavte school in naija, and he works as a banker in naija. I know of mechanics who own three houses in magodo. I know of porter saving that every last penny to build that bungalow in enugu. People are struggling whether in Nigeria or US/UK, they all want a better life, or more opportunities.
[/b]

There tons of  people without papers, everyweek you hear about a nigerian being deported, or caught in a sham marriage.

reminds me of a woman that does our hostel back in uni, she was asking me about fees for international/home students i think she was thinking of getting her youngest child over as a student; then i got to know her other daughters are in private universities in the SW, the eldest guy manages the flat she has built and buses she sent home for transport business- if the kids were asked what they would prefer, her being around or her being able to send money for their fees etc

Lets get the basics straight, which nigerian in the UK other than those diplomats or ex-bankers, have a driver? a househelp? nanny? Please they would love to have equal the space in London as somebodies boy quarters in Lagos, instead of living in council house

Of course, almost everyone can employ a house help or driver in Nigeria. How much you do guys pay them a year, $1500 or $2000?
We understand that is part of the reason "home is sweet or the best" to some people because you get to have another human being serve you round the clock only to pay them less than $150 a month. You can get upset and yell at them too when it suits you!

I get 6 hours of house cleaning service monthly and I get to pay the maids $250. Add in another $100 for the yard man to take care of the lawn twice a month (probably not more than 4 hours total). Pretty soon, you can see that I have just spent my True Religion or Moet money on house help - no more HEAVY CASH FLOW right there!

Now imagine I get to keep them upwards of 8 hours a day and you get to realize there is no way I can afford it. The funny thing though is that the maids and yard man, have their own vehicles and take themselves from one home to another, earning enough to take care of their families? Can you say dignity again? How many people in their shoes can boast of doing the same in Nigeria? I am
sure there some exceptions in Nigeria, but the vast majority are being abused daily. Over here, crime is bound to high in places were there are little or no jobs, or where the pay is just too little for the work being done.

This is very funny -

in the UK- you "buy" a house, maybe a three bedroom flat, but you are asked to pay for it for 99 years or so?

In Naija - you pay cash to buy a plot of land to build your own mansion - within two years, if you work hard and God smiles on you, you finish your mansion - may cost over £100,000 in cash- no mortgage, no loans, no debts- fully owned.

In Naija- you buy everything cash down - abroad, half them peeps live on credit cards.

Everything in the UK to me is just very funny - thank God I moved back home after eight years over there.

Agreed, you can be comfortable abroad- I worked as IT consultant in the UK and was netting £300 per day when things were realy great- but, boy o boy- how much of it gets home with you? and how much can you save out of it?

^^ It is a matter of choice and if Nigeria works better for you then fine
But putting the UK down is just mere mockery!

^^^^^

Where have i put the UK down? or what have i said about the UK that people havent said worse about Nigeria and the Nigerian people?

mortgage of 99 years damn i missed out on that one b4 the credit crunch

people should not be insulted cos of where they choose to live. I'm still going to harp on about a system that enables all to access healthcare irrespective of the size of the pocket. I don't know why people think its ok to die simply cos they are poor and don't get me started on the modern day slavery of househelps and other help people seem to harp on about. The way these human beings are spoken to and treated is just pathetic to witness.

Always known Buzugee to be an eloquent all-rounder, but i gat to doff my hat to Salamsm, i see you guys too - Axeman, Yinkaboy, Ibexy, Labiyemmy and Dtouch oh, keep killing it and repping Naija to the core, may God bless you for not losing hope and keeping the faith


No electricity, no water, no job security, blah, blah, blah, as if they get them free, as if everything is dandy where they are, as if their respective adopted Countries don't have their own ills and woe too, shior


Plus Nigerians in diaspora can lie, all their Nigerian mates hold top jobs in the upper echelons, virtually all of them only know successful Nigerians, non of them ever know any immigrant doing menial jobs, non, not one  

^^ Have you moved back yet?

^^^


Check my location, I have gone locomental babes yabaleft is home You should come and visit me, i wanna host you

^^ Story! I read somewhere that you are still thinking of moving back
Your behind is still in the UK. Abeg o jare. You fit host me when I come to Jand abi?
I want Wagamama please

^^^


That was two years ago na. Hubby doing some projects in Naija and words filtered to my ears that a "married single" man in Naija is like dangling a fresh roadkill in front of a shark. . . yeah so in my own case na "aggro" and love of "kini" and unwillingness to share my "kini" that prompted my move back home, otherwise I too would have been singing i'm not going back cos there's no electricity, no road, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera


In other words, home is where the heart is, and as it is, my heart is with my Hubby who just happens to be home Yuck, cheesy cheesefest