Arnold1:

[size=14pt]More on the Osu caste system in Igboland[/size]



One of the factors that enabled early Christian missionaries to establish a foothold quickly in the Igbo heartland was their promise to new converts that the new order would guarantee equality of rights and opportunities to everyone.

In most Igbo communities, the osu were the first group of converts to flock en masse into new churches and schools that mushroomed everywhere.

Disillusionment soon dampened their enthusiasm when it gradually became clear that even the Whiteman’s church was powerless to stop discriminatory treatment meted out to the minority osu population.

Osu pursued Western education in large numbers and many of them joined the new Christian mission as priests and school teachers. In spite of these accomplishments, the osu’s right to equal treatment remained unfulfilled because neither the Christian missionaries nor the sketchy colonial administration in place at the time could muster what it would take to dictate a needed change of attitude at the grassroots level.

Before too long, there was mass conversion to Christianity and this reduced osu converts to a minority, just like in the society at large. The majority, in spite of their acquiescence to widespread inculcation of new faith and Western education, never saw the urgency in undertaking a major transformation in Igbo sociocultural practices, particularly as regards discriminatory treatment that the osu continued to receive.

Nigerians and their archaic cultural beliefs. This Osu thing is so sad that it's hard to even comprehend

Arnold1:

[size=14pt]The Osu Caste System in Igboland: Discrimination Based on Descent[/size]


http://uk.geocities.com/internationaldalitsolidarity/cerd/dikeosu2002.html


The Osu, by definition, is a people sacrificed to the gods in Igbo community. And they assist the high priest of the traditional religion to serve the deities or the gods in their shrine. It is the belief of many Igbo traditionalists that the deities, which were (and are still) perceived in some quarters as being very powerful, would wreck havoc in the society, if they are not appeased.

In some special circumstances, those who hold the traditional beliefs of the Igbos could transform a Diala who committed certain atrocities against the land, into an Osu. This process involved intricate rituals (offering of libations and sacrificing animals to the earth goddess). Some of the ancestors of the present-day Osu people inherited their dehumanizing social status this way.

Because of many oral interpretations of the construct, the Osu has various definitions. It has been defined as a ‘cult slave,’ a living sacrifice,’ an ‘untouchable,’ ‘outcast,’ ‘owner’s cult,’ ‘a slave of the deity,’ and a ‘sacred and holy being.’ 3 These names mean the same: it is an abomination in the Igbo society for the Diala to marry Osu.


All human beings are created equal, but human experiences are heterogeneous. Some people have had it rough all their life on earth, while others do not have a lot to complain about. Naturally, life has the same meaning for everyone, but the Osu caste system in Igboland seems to have changed the meaning of life for a group of people branded Osu


Osu are people our igbo ancestors used to do sacrifies to the gods for the difficulties they faced then, which includes disease, lack of rain, poor farm produce, children and babies dieing etc.

The gods then asked for human sacrifies to help with these issues. When a sacrifice is offered to gods it is damned evil to touch those things.



Even in the bible when Abraham offer sacrifice to God, nobody eats the sacrify, it is burn to ashes.

The stigma that Osu have had today this that they were used for gods sacrifice and dimmed to the igbos as outcast.

To my understanding, most of then are very wealthy and brilliant people, their girls are very beautiful.

I myself will NEVER marry osu, not because I don't like them. It is because of the stigma the igbos has on them. For example, they do not involve in active igbo events. No one will elect an osu person as a governor, local chairmen, Eze, Chief, etc.

If an Osu people tries to speak on behalf of the igbo he/she is immediately discredited, because of this stigma. I still have great ambitions for myself and would not want something to hold me back.

If you are not igbo you can never understand. This thing will NEVER go away and I feel very sorry for them. We call it Ome na ala (The law of our land) We cannot leave ome na ala and start to do ome na elu (Not the law of the land)

When you go to village and see how these people live, you would feel sorry from them. They do not trade because nobody would buy from them. In school nobody plays with osu children etc, it is really terrible.

If you want to leave in diaspora all your life, them marrying osu will not really affect you. But if you plan sometime in the future to return back to Nigeria, hmmm, you really have to be very careful. Remember we do not only mary for ourselfs we marry for children as well, you do not want to give our children a bad start in life.

I am sorry I have to say this, but this is the way it is and I did not make it so. Remember that osu are human being like us too.

It really is an outrage that at this day in age, people are being discriminated against because their fore fathers were sacrificed
to the Gods (an Osu).

When are we going to do away with all these old barbaric facist ideals ?

How can Osu practice be acceptable in 2008 ? Why deprive a group of people of their dignity and pride because their
forefathers were supposedly sacrificed to the Gods ?

How long is this type of tradition going to persist ?

shuppie:

this osu caste issue is really sad o,

It really is sad to say the least.

Tonim:


THE Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has accused former Plateau State Governor, Chief Michael Botmang of stealing N1.5billion of the state money within five months, while in office.

Chei, this guy is real barawo. 1.5 billion naira within 5 months of being sworn in as an acting governor. Na waa

eminemkayc:

I THINK You MUST BE POSSED BY AN EVIL SPIRIT IF You THINK GOING TO SIVERBIRD GALLERIA AND ALL THE FANTASTIC RUBBISH You MENTIONED ARE CREDIBLE YARDSTICK FOR MEASURING A SUPPOSED CITADEL OF HIGHER LEARNING!! ITS REGRETTABLE THAT PEOPLE LIKE You WOULD WANT TO RULE THIS COUNTRY TOMORROW AND LEGALIZE CORRUPTION!! FOR GOODNESS SAKE, WE NEED UNIVERSITIES WHERE RESEARCH AND PRODUCTION OF FULLY BAKED GRADUATES, ARE THEIR WATCH WORDS!! SHORT OF THESE, SHOULD GIVE SUCH INSTITUTIONS NIGHT MARES!! ONE OF SUCH INSTITUTIONS THAT RESTORES THE WORSEN DIGNITY OF MAN IS UNN AND NOT UNILAG . AS DESCRIBED BY UR POORLY PREPARED DATA HANDED OVER TO You BY THE DEVIL HIMSELF!!

Dude you need to calm down. The thread said the best out of 3 universities, you are yet to respond to that.

Instead, you are insulting people. Also, stop writing in caps.

@poster

1. Ife, 2. UI, 3. Lagos

[size=14pt]
South-East Senators reject PDP Board posts[/size]

SOUTH-EAST Senators have alleged a grand-design to edge Southeasterners from meaningful positions in the country and vowed to reject what they yesterday described as peripheral offerings in federal board appointments.

Responding to the tentative allocation of board appointments which gives the South- East the least number of board appointments, the South-East Senators also alleged what they described as a whispering campaign to force Prof. Chukwuma Soludo out as the Governor of the Central Bank.
Senator Ikechukwu Obiorah (PDP, Anambra South) who spoke on behalf of the South-Eeast caucus yesterday said the caucus was set to articulate its grievances for the nation next week.

“I am speaking on behalf of South-Eeast Senators that we are shocked, beyond belief that the number of board appointments given to the South-Eeast is the least, 104 as against 120, 140 in the other zones,’’ [/b]Obiorah said yesterday.

“What it means is that it is an illegal confirmation that the South-East is the least populated geopolitical zone in the nation and you know it is not correct. By population, the South-East zone is the second most populous zone in the country,’’ he said.

“It is totally unjustifiable, [b]it is one of those acts of marginalisation or if you may, obliteration because that is what we are facing right now in this country.’’

“Look at the Head of Service, the very first time that a South-East person held it, she held it for nine months. We had hoped that the President was going to extend it, some form of compensation to give a sense of belonging, but that was not done.’’

“So what we are saying really is that there is a surreptitious demarcation of the South-Eastern people out of this country and we are totally unhappy about it.

Look at the positions of the boards given, totally useless. You can quote me that we are going to reject I,’’ Obiorah said yesterday.

“The nation has to make up its mind whether the Southeastern part of this nation is part of this nation or not because going in this manner will not work. It is totally unacceptable.”

Alleging a plot to ease out the CBN Governor, Prof. Soludo out of his position, he said:

“Look at the Central Bank, there is a concerted effort, we see a grand design to push Prof. Soludo out in spite of everything he has done for the economy, in spite of the consolidation he has brought to the banking sector, in spite of the fiscal policies he has engendered in this Government, you would anticipate that he would be looking for higher positions, but rather there is a smear campaign to take him out because the position has to go to another zone and we will not accept that,” Obiorah said.

[size=14pt]
Yar’Adua under fire: Over lopsidedness in appointments - Federal Character Commission begins probe[/size]


http://www.tribune.com.ng/20062008/news/news1.html


PRESIDENT Umaru Yar’Adua may be heading for a showdown with the Federal Character Commission (FCC) over various appointments he has made since he assumed office last year.

There have been reports that the president’s recent appointments had been in favour of a particular ethnic group in the country, a situation which is said to be causing some anger among other ethnic groups.

Recently, the president had appointed people of Northern extraction into the leadership of the Customs, the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA).

He also appointed Northerners as the chairman of the Security Reform Committee and Special Adviser on National Assembly matters.

However, the FCC has begun the probe of these appointments and has threatened to reverse any appointment found to be contrary to the principles of Federal Character as enshrined in the 1999 Constitution.

The Executive Chairman of the FCC, Professor Shuaibu Oba Abdulraheem, made this disclosure on Thursday at his maiden press briefing.

He said since President Yar’Adua appeared on a live television interview marking his first anniversary in office, the questions of lopsidedness of appointments became critical, saying he had ordered his men to compile a comprehensive list of all the heads of the federal parastatal agencies with a view to analysing them and making appropriate recommendations.

He said, however, that contrary to the sentiments expressed in some quarters, “President Yar’Adua is a law-abiding citizen and an apostle of due process and rule of law and would not have subverted the principles of federal character in his distribution of appointments and allocation of government resources.”

He said though Yar’Adua, since assumption of office, had not made many appointments, the commission would probe the existing structure and “I can assure you, if we find such inequity in the distribution of his political appointments and allocation of economic resources, my commission will say no to it, backing it with the law establishing the commission.”

Abdulraheem added that the commission had also commenced vigorous monitoring of the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to ensure compliance with the prescribed percentage range under the commission’s guidelines and formula so as to ensure fair and equitable distribution of employment and appointments among the geopolitical zones in the country.

He said already, 25 MDAs had been found to have flouted the guidelines and were currently under investigations, adding that the preliminary investigation into the activities of two of such agencies, National Board for Technical Education, Kaduna, and National Broadcasting Commission, Abuja, had yielded evidence of infringement of the federal character principles.

“All the options open to the commission are being closely studied to amicably effect redress,” he said, while also warning against non-compliance of the MDAs with the compulsory presentation of staff nominal rolls to the commission before the end of July of each year.

This is a piece I came across from the tribune.

http://www.tribune.com.ng/sun/15062008/news/news1.html


[size=15pt]PDP set to explode: Over composition of board appointments

- Aggrieved zones to confront Ogbulafor, Yar’Adua

- We are marginalised under Yar’Adua, says Middle Belt Xtians[/size]



The seeming peace within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is about to rupture and give way to bitter acrimony among members against the backdrop of the alleged lopsided distribution of appointments into boards of government parastatals by the Yar’Adua administration.

A proposal for the distribution of the board appointments currently being considered by the PDP, Sunday Tribune can report has started tearing the party apart following vehement complaints by four geo-political zones that the North had been heavily favoured in the sharing of the appointments.


Some aggrieved members of the party had leaked the proposed composition of appointments into boards of government parastatals to the media with indication that out of about 758 available appointments, the North-west zone where Yar’Adua comes from had been favoured with 145 slots as against South-south which got only 122.

The proposal also indicate that while the Middle Belt zone got 140 appointments, the South-east zone, which considers itself the most marginalized in power distribution in Nigeria ,was allotted only 104 slots.

However, the South-west zone was offered 123 appointments into boards of government parastatals while North-east got 124, according to the proposal.

Against this background, the South-east, South-west and the South-south members of the party are already rearing for a show down with the leadership of the PDP and indeed President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua on the basis of their perceived complacence with the increasing dominance of the North in the balance of power under the present civilian government.

Some top members of causes of each of the aggrieved zones in the ruling party, who spoke with the Sunday Tribune in separate interviews dropped the hint that they would reject the board appointments allocated to their respective zones if no alteration was be made to balance the equation among the six geo-political zones.

It was learnt that while the South-east and the South-south zones had met on the issue and resolved to meet President Yar’Adua next week with a view to formally laying their complaints to him, the south-west caucus in the ruling party are said to be contemplating holding its meeting mid next week to take a decision.

It would be the first time since the government of President Yar’Adua took off that caucuses of the PDP on zonal basis would be coming together to lay bitter complaints against the lopsided distribution of power.

A South-south leader, who spoke with SundayTribune said the only explanation offered by the presidency on the lopsided distribution of the board appointments was that the compilation was done on the basis of number of states per zone, stressing that no member of the party agreed with such explanation since the situation was not so during the past government of President Olusegun Obasanjo.

Although the Middle belt zone appeared to have been favoured in the proposal for the distribution of board appointments, the composition was said to have kindled the anger of the Christians from the zone who are said to have complained about being maliciously marginalized under the Yar’Adua administration.

Investigations however, revealed that the turn of events has started encouraging the regrouping of different fora such as Middle Belt Forum and Christian Organisations with the intention to fight the Yar’Adua government on the perceived marginalisation of Christians in his administration.

A cleric and member of one of the Christian organizations in Plateau State, Mr. Kenneth Abba expressed dismay at the sudden twist in the distribution of power under the present civilian administration, stressing that government has more to learn from its predecessor which he said distanced itself from acts of tribalism and nepotism.


He said “From indications, we have returned to the old order which we felt we have put behind us in Nigeria. if there is anything this government is doing and doing well, it is to remind us about our differences; that you are a Muslim and I am a Christian and that you come from the south while I come from the north. This is dangerous for all of us. It was not like this with Obasanjo”


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It is also widely rumored in the press that Yar'adua is keen on replacing Charles Soludo of the CBN with a Northerner.

Yar'adua said OBJ was wrong to use the excess crude account to finance the NIPP power projects without the backing
of the National Assembly. He used this as an excuse for stop funding the NIPP projects.


Now, we are hearing he is planning on withdrawing $5 billion from the same excess crude account for his power sector
rescue mission, again, without the backing of the National Assembly.

So much for his stand on abiding by the rule of law

True, that is if the lesbian identifies herself with lesbians otherwise, how will you know?

Perhaps the sexual preference takes precedence over the status of her kitty

@nalijah

I think you should change your title to "Why don't some Nigerian Men Bring Their Wives Abroad"

I'm sure you have met Nigerian men with their wives in the states.

It'll be like me asking - Why don't American black men recognize and take care of their children or
be a father to their children.

I have been in the U.S. for over 10 years and I have met too many black people whose fathers did not have
any role to play whatsoever in their upbringing. I'm sure you can probably relate to this.

From Sheniqua

did someone say kobojunkie?
intelligent and versatile? Shocked Shocked Shocked Shocked

abeg make I go laugh

hahahahaha hohohohoho hehehehehe
I no go die.

[size=15pt]If you believe that you should also believe that almondjoy/Xiomara is a choirmistress married to a deeper life preacher[/size]

landis:

Soludo's AFC criminal activity cost UBA $15mil in FINE. UBA(Elumeu) paid quickly without any questions because they know the can of worms that would open.

Only uninformed Nigerians can be deceived. EFCC alone should have picked this case, why Nigerian Bank fined $15mil and they paid without questioning.

Very true @ landis


AFC: Soludo Spent $17m As Pre- Operational Expenses

From: SULE AMUDA Abuja


http://www.nationalmirroronline.com/cove/article02

The probe panel inaugurated by the federal government to investigate the whopping $462 million investment by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC), has revealed that Professor Charles Soludo, the embattled governor of the apex bank spent $17 million as pre-operational expenses to mid-wife AFC before commencement.

According to the highlights of report of the panel headed by the director of operations of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua, the said amount was allegedly spent on consultancies and travelings.


The report also stated that Soludo transferred to foreign accounts of AFC the sum of N750 million in November, 2007 and another N143 million in March, 2008.

It also frowned at the decision of Soludo to have accepted to be the Chairman of AFC in his personal capacity, noting that this is a clear violation of Section 9 of CBN Act 2007 which disqualify principal officers of the CBN from holding any office by virtue of their respective offices.

D-reloaded:


For the other stories from other states, the media was right on target but for some reason this one is so "unique" that the media is blowing it out of proportion. Lmao

Very good observation !

There is a thread on ESUT :

https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-107338.0.html

GinikAwa:


London SUCK, you 4 got the UNITED NATIONS, LARGEST NIGERIAN PARADE, Statue of Liberty,5 min 2 New jerzy-which houses most of Nigerians, Big city lights that shine like its day time , London lost its lust years ago. If I'm not in nyc I rather be in Hong Kong or Italy, bean toast sammichs n tea r

How does london suck ? Could you please elaborate further ?

big_bumper:

You people should carry your tribal palaver to the right section, you are disturbing the flow of my saliva as I drool of more revelation to come regarding where to satisfy my palate.

lol

make you no vex

I don't even know if adedibu is just staying in the hospital as a ploy to keep him from being arrested. A man that was
not elected to office causing so much chaos ! God bless our country

The statement by the BA authorities is a slap on the wrist, they need to accept responsibility for what happened

and promise our authorities that such an event will not never repeat itself.

i think you should have called both of them bigots like I just did so you don't come off as being biased. But I get
your point.

This place needs to be moderated badly.

romeo:

I am against him because he was asking her to Go to Bifraworld and leave Nairaland. this place belongs to all

He can attack her person and not using her to attack a whole tribe

Okay, I see where you are coming from.


Personally, I think both Sheniqua and Arnold are very ignorant people. Arnold kept calling Sheniqua a bigot, but he is a
bigot himself. They are both bigots.

romeo:

Yes she was very wrong by saying that

Okay, I am happy we both agree on this.

romeo:


and did you see me say anything to Trooe? no i did not because she was right and i am not defending Sheniqua but against the other tribalist called Arnold1

That's my point, why aren't you against both tribablists ? Why concentrate on one ?

This is what I am getting at.

romeo:

You are right!! [b]So far in this thread Sheniqua has not said anything degrading to the Yoruba nation [/b]other than crack a joke and the joke was not well taken by some people.

She actually made the babalawo comment on this thread which was uncalled for. Even Trooe reacted to this. This is where it all started.
You should try not to be biased when mediating, they both said terrible things about other tribes.

romeo:


All i am asking for is Respect for our different ethnicities

Yes, but you should condemn both of them. Sheniqua as babyosisi said some really nasty stuff, but you are not addressing that. You should
condemn them both.

You're are worse than any other tribalist in this Nairaland, stop parading yourself as an upright Yoruba protector and stop attacking other tribes for the sake of peace.

Actually, both Sheniqua and Arnold are tribalists. They have both made bitter remarks about other tribes. You should condemn both of them,
not just arnold.

This place needs to be moderated badly; how does a thread go from foods/trips to tribe bashing

Unfair thread, what about the homeless people demm ?

Her rage needs to be put under control or else you will be the next victim of the acid attack like
others have said. You need to keep her from having a reason for being so jealous.

If her behavior persists despite your intervention, well, I hate to ask people to get divorce sha.



_{I hope you are not cheating on her}

Ikoyi without a doubt.

Cadet:

Ask 4Him

4Him ?

Cadet:

but what about the ugly people demm, who do they thank ?