Buhari: President vows to crush Boko Haram

President Buhari has vowed not to rest until the dreaded Boko Haram sect is crushed.

Buhari said “I assure all Nigerians and friends of the country, once again, that my administration will not rest on its oars until the ungodly terrorist sect is totally eliminated from our country.”

He made this declaration during his maiden Children’s Day speech on Thursday, May 26, 2016.

He also said “As peace gradually returns to the insurgency-ravaged North-Eastern States, the Federal Government will continue to work diligently to ensure the rapid and full reintegration and rehabilitation of all internally displaced persons, including orphaned children in the region.

“We will also sustain and strengthen ongoing actions to protect children more effectively from violence, child-labour, child-trafficking, forced marriages and other related offences.”

Mr. President also called on the children to imbibe the attitude of service and patriotism, which he said is needed to make Nigeria great again.

He also said the youth have a significant role to play in the development of Nigeria and upholding of democratic institutions.

Angry

My next topic is gonna be about anger. I hate getting angry. It sucks. You feel hot, bothered and the worst part is your BP rises so much that an artery could just pop.
Read a lot of stuff about it ___ everyone has his or her own ideas on how to avoid stress. The hulk anyone? lol
Over the last few days I have had so much going on to keep me enraged for weeks on end. The phrase you have some good days and bad days really come to mind. The last couple have been a series of bad. Not cos something awful happened but cos people seemed to be going out of their way to piss me off.
Some people throwing advice around as if they care when all they are just doing is subtly letting you know they are better than you. Why? Cos they are getting results and you aren't. But I don't let it get to me__ its the way of the world. I can only work hard and press on until my own results come.
The anger that hits closer to home is when a loved one or sibling is being bullheaded and refuses to see what's right in front of his eyes and when you try correcting and offering advice he snaps at you! Now that really gets me mad.
But I read in the good book that anger rests in the bosom of fools, so I have to get past my anger and forge ahead. Maybe disconnecting and not caring is the key. Still trying to figure that part out.
But I know what's really wrong with me ___ its not the series of things that are doing their damnnest to piss me off that gets to me. It goes deeper than that. Its the results am craving that seems to come too slowly that gets to me.
Thats it then! I discovered the problem. Now that I know what it is I am not so angry anymore.
When you feel angry, identify the root of your anger and come to terms with it. Most often when you do, you take control and put the anger away.
lol If it was only that easy. Nice day pips. 

The world I live in

I struggled with what I wanted to say today and nothing seemed to come to mind. Then like a light bulb coming on in my brain I had this great epiphany. Why don’t I write a poem kind of thing? Ok that sounds good. But what would it be about? Hmnn.... this was a toughie. And then it came to me. A wise man once said you can only write about what you see, what you experience.

It’s difficult describing something you haven’t seen or experienced. Can I get a witness somebody? Ok without wasting anymore of your time. I best get right to it.

The World in which I live

The world I live is something that cannot be described; it is something that is best seen with your eyes.

It is a world filled with so many lies. Where people seem to despise__ the truth

Where people could care less about their roots or even the youth; I see injustice, I see suffering, deprivation on the most extreme levels while those that govern pat themselves on the back and tell all who care to listen that they are on the level.

It is only in this world that we are forced to pay for electricity we do not use. We have light roughly four or five hours a day and when the month ends the electricity board sends __

Bills, that give life to the humorous saying that na fire dey make crayfish bend. But we have no choice but to pay, else the grim reapers will come and take the electricity away bringing darkness to stay.

It is in this same world, governors expect the workers to work without pay. In my state, five months have come and gone away, and the governor hasn’t deemed it fit to see that workers get paid. But he sits in the government office day after day, getting patted on the back that he is the messiah and has done us good in the most beautiful of ways. This is the world I wake up to everyday.

But it’s not all bad. After all I have it better than most __ some would say. A car (though old) which runs well and has satisfactory air conditioning which keeps the heat at bay, a house to stay with another on the way.

God has been kind to me I guess. But I shiver at the suffering all around me as people suffer to stay, cling to an existence that hurts in the worst kind of way.

God where is thy face? Do not let these injustices go unanswered. Do something and save. Perhaps then the darkness can be erased. And maybe, just maybe light and prosperity would have come to stay.

This, my father is what I pray. Hear me and answer speedily and let my world be great. Do not leave us to such grim a fate. I pray you hear us and me today. I love you father, you are great. Am glad you put me on the slate to do great things and relate, To give me so great a destiny and an enviable fate. YOU MY FATHER ARE GREAT!

For more of my writing go here 

https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/semanticdmax

http://www.amazon.com/Ifedayo-Adigwe-Akintomide/e/B00FB3J1Y2

A sweet surrender

Hi,
back again pips! This time I want to talk about a relatively unpopular topic. What could this be? You might ask. Well its about being a christian and the challenges that come with it. In case you haven't guessed by now, I am a christian. Its one of the most beautiful things to be. God is the most awesome being to follow. He is the only one who has your back and loves you for who you truly are__ faults and all.
He will never leave you, abandon you, look down on you and tell you your fears, concerns and troubles are of little or no consequence. He is always there to listen and help in whatever way he can. Though his help or lack thereof isn't something we always understand. But at the end of the day, we realize that his intervention or ignoring always works to serve a specific purpose which will work for our good in the long run.
Some of you already know this and you are probably thinking what's he on about. Why doesn't he get on with it? Well as in everything else in this world __ being a christian and following Christ isn't a walk in the park and as easy as many would make it sound. It comes with rules___ lots of them. Depending on the individual some are quite difficult to abide by.
I am lucky enough to be able to obey the little ones like tithing, offering, giving (to a point) etc.
Dunno about most but righteousness isn't as easy to abide with as the other ones for me. Not looking at a woman carnally, not keeping malice, no hatred, lust, impure thoughts, I could go on. Its like you are required to become more than any human can ever be.
Not to mention your conscience or the devil harping incessantly on your mistakes and rubbing eternal damnation on you every time you stumble. It gets frustrating at times. Temptation to give up comes very strong at this points.
It took me a long while to realize that he doesn't expect me to be perfect. But what he expects is for me to allow him to mold me into the man he wants me to be. And that means surrendering to him totally and completely. Opening my heart up so he can get in and smooth out all my rough edges and wash out every impurity so I will stand blameless before him. This cleansing isn't pretty I assure you.
It isn't because you are forced to confront parts of yourself that you buried so deep that you've even forgotten are there.
But by the time he is done with you, you are lighter and better than ever striving on with hope to a glorious future that he has prepared for you. We are continuous works in progress, Clay in the hands of the potter.
If you haven't let him in, please I beg you to do so. You won't regret it. He is the best I assure you and he will fix all that concerns you.  

Fuel Subsidy and the attendant concerns

Hi everyone!
Hope you've all been well since last we spoke? Well things are tensing up in  my location. How you may ask? Well the word on everyone's lips is the recent removal of fuel subsidy by my country's leadership.
People are polarized, some arguing nay and the other yay. At the moment I am not sure what to believe. The government will argue that they are doing it for our best interest but like most of my country's citizens I find that extremely hard to believe.
The Nigerian government hasn't exactly had a great track record doing things for the good of its citizens. They claim they spend trillions monthly or is it yearly subsidizing Premium Motor Spirits (PMS) and for the good of the economy it is not sustainable. If that is true I can reason with them but I am not sure its entirely true. As a citizen I am well aware of the hardship that will be placed on the average Nigerian by increasing the pump price. In a nation where most live on less than a dollar a day, life has just got even harder.
What we see now is a far cry from the millions of campaign promises made by this government. But that is starting to become something of the norm in Nigeria.The Government breaking its promises to its people.
Another thing boggling everyone's already frayed nerves is the statement by the British Prime Minister that Nigeria is FANTASTICALLY CORRUPT. That statement though true has angered a good many people. My president's only response was to say he wouldn't demand for an apology but for the return of all money stolen and repatriated to the UK.
The British Prime Minister wasn't wrong. The country is CORRUPT! Fantastically corrupt! Nevertheless I consider those fine words from someone recently discovered to have secret accounts and investments by the infamous Panama papers. He claims they were made by his father but I would have thought in light of his strong statements on corruption and such, he would have made every part of his financial dealings public.
Even though he has now done that the words 'too little, too late' come to mind. Another analogy is those who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones. I for one believe its too early in the day for him to begin to pontificate. But that's just me.
Moving on, The government has done what they did, Whether it will benefit the average Nigerian Citizen remains to be seen. We all have to watch and wait. I continue to hope that one day we have the nation we so richly desire.

Batman V Superman and CW

I am a superhero junkie. Any film with a great story line and a good deal of visual exuberance works for me. I loved Batman V Superman. To me the interpretation of a much darker dark knight who has spent so long fighting crime that he is now disillusioned and vengeful really resonated with me.
What puzzled was how the vast majority hated the movie. I concluded perhaps I am the slow empty one who is easily swayed and taken in by good visuals and ignorant about what makes good film making. I wouldn't know.
The movie wasn't without its faults but I left the cinema really satisfied with what I got and really looking forward to what Warner Bros and DC had to cook up in the future. That doesn't make me a DC fanboy totally, cos  I do enjoy some of the Marvel films. My best being Captain America Winter Soldier.
That to me is still one of the best superhero movies till date. It delivered on every level. I can't say the same for the rest of their heroes. Iron Man doesn't do it for me. Don't get me wrong, I love Downey. He is one of my favorite actors but the whole Iron Man thing doesn't do it for me. Perhaps cos I don't believe it truly follows the source material. I could be wrong.
Saw Civil War on Thursday preview screening. Let me pause for a bit ___ if one was to rate a film on action alone I'd give it a solid 120%. The action sequences were WOW! But to say its a better film than BVS as some have been claiming ____ eerrrrrr___ NO!
One thing alotta BVS haters claimed was it was crammed with too many heroes and sub plots etc. What would you call CW? I for one found it a bit tiresome keeping up with so many heroes most of whom didn't have ample justification for fighting as they were doing.
The best parts of the movie to me had to be the emergence of black panther and unveiling of spidey. It was a fast and furious action fest that left you breathless with the pace of it. I credit the Russo brothers for that.
The fact they were able to combine so many heroes in one movie and still give all of them enough screen time says a lot for their capabilities as directors. I look forward to Infinity Wars. Its in good hands in my book.
That being said though ___ I still maintain BVS was the better movie all rounder. It was deeper, darker and left me thinking and debating about it with friends for weeks after its release. The only thing I see myself discussing about CW are the action sequences. But that's just me. I know am gonna enrage a few marvel fans with this but___ lol There it is. 

Loving a country

I love my country....
Yeah that's a hell of a great way to begin a blog post, but i couldn't think of anything better.
Nigeria is a beautiful place filled with great people. Beyond the landscape, the rich natural resources and the million and one things that make this place unique is an unfortunate blight on the otherwise perfect and serene environment.
The people are suffering. A great percentage live on less than a dollar a day. When you consider how wealthy the country is in terms of natural resources its quite sad considering. It will be easy for me to heap all the blame on the corrupt leaders. God knows they deserve it.
After all, billions of tax payers dollars that should be ploughed back into the country to provide much needed basic amenities, city infrastructure, health care and education are being stolen by our leaders. Panama papers anyone?
Our senate president is being indicted for multi count charges of corruption and looting and he still sits in the senate administrating justice in the nation's capital. Its only in Nigeria such a thing can happen.
But before we heap all the blame on them lets consider this for a moment. I remember queuing in a fuel station a couple of weeks ago and I saw the rabid, almost animalistic behavior of some of my beloved citizens. Most were refusing to stay on the queue and when they were called up on it caused such a ruckus that the owners of that station were forced to stop selling.
I was forced to come to the inescapable conclusion that the average citizen is the problem the nation has.
I remember Micheal Jackson's song Man in the Mirror. He appealed to each individual to change his ways. Every change in a nation must begin with the man in the mirror. With US! Before our country will heal we must first heal ourselves. Fix every character defect we all have, only then will the country improve. Ask yourself this ___ even if you became the president, would the nation improve under your leadership or get worse? The country is not the land or the buildings, the country is the people. And until the people make a choice to put away self and consider others, we will never move forward.
Think about this
Peace