Top contributors to Barack Obama's election campaign in 2012, by amount donated (in U.S. dollars)

Top contributors to Barack Obama's election campaign in 2012, by amount donated (in U.S. dollars)

Misery index scores for the 20 most miserable countries in the world, 2012

This statistic shows the most miserable countries in the world as rated according to the misery index for 2012. In 2012, the most miserable country in the world was considered to be Zimbabwe with a misery index score of 100.6 %.

Misery index scores for the 20 most miserable countries in the world, 2012

 48.90%

.......UK would not exist anymore – David Cameron, UK Prime minister

How not to build a nation: Reflections on Nigeria @ 52 (1)

“Except in the eyes of the extremely naive and incurable swindlers in the corridors of power, this country has already collapsed; only that the horror of its probable disintegration would be difficult to face.”

 This fascinating quote by journalist and activist, Godwin Onyeacholem, truly captures the Nigerian reality today. It’s been 52 years in the making.

Today, October 1, 2012, the Nigerian State under the supervision of President Goodluck Jonathan will perform the ritual of celebrating the country’s independence. It is noteworthy that the Jonathan administration has decided not to go for the pomp and circumstance associated with such celebrations which really would have added more insult to our collective injury. But typical of our ruling elite, the planned sombre celebration is just another ruse, meant to pave the way for a more elaborate, yet misguided, multi-billion naira celebration in 2014 to mark the centennial anniversary of the creation of Nigeria in 1914.

By every standard one decides to judge Nigeria, it has failed woefully as a nation. It is worth repeating because there are those afflicted with eternal delusions about, to use the weasel words of our politicians, “moving it forward”, the way it is presently constituted. It is  mere wishful thinking. No amount of fancy talk or transformational balderdash can alter the fact that Nigeria is a full-blown “kleptocracy”, a state ruled by thieves, in the words of Prof. Niyi Osundare, on the way to imminent implosion.

It has been said that Nigeria is a country of great potential and promise. It remains just that after 52 years: a country of great potential and promise. The reality, to quote Prof. Chinua Achebe, is that “Nigeria is not a great country. It is one of the most disorderly nations in the world. It is one of the most corrupt, insensitive, inefficient places under the sun. It is one of the most expensive countries and one of those that give least value for money. It is dirty, callous, noisy, ostentatious, dishonest and vulgar. In short, it is among the most unpleasant places on earth.”

That was almost three decades ago. We have since raised the stakes. “Today, rogues, armed robbers are in the state Houses of Assembly and the National Assembly,’’ former President Olusegun Obasanjo – a man whose style of government, in saner climes, ought to be in question – said a few months ago. Obasanjo should know. He, more than anyone else, facilitated the emergence of these scoundrels who have taken over our democratic space. 

Very few countries in the world can take the unrepressed pillage, outrageous abuse and unmitigated violation which the self-acclaimed giant of Africa has received and remain standing. David Cameron, British Prime Minister, has been quoted as saying, “If the amount of money stolen out of Nigeria in the last 30 years was stolen in the UK, the UK would not exist again.” There are many figures in the public domain about how much our leaders have siphoned from the country since independence. From Nuhu Ribadu, former Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, we learnt that the amount is “more than six times the total sum that went into rebuilding Europe in the aftermath of the Second World War via the famous European Recovery Programme, better known as the Marshall Plan”. The ERP programme was $13bn. Interestingly, Germany, the choice location for medical care for our leaders, was one of the beneficiaries of the Marshall Plan.

We can spend the next few weeks cataloguing the problems of Nigeria and we would not have scratched the surface. Where do we start? Is it something as basic as education where it has been revealed that “Nigerians commit about  N160bn ($1bn) to the education of their children and wards in Ghanaian universities every year”. A recent newspaper report quotes the Chairman, Committee of Pro-Chancellors of Nigerian Universities, Dr. Wale Babalakin, as saying, “the cost excludes huge amounts also spent on education of Nigerians in other countries such as the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Canada and Malaysia”. From Babalakin we also learnt that there are about 75,000 Nigerian students in Ghana, a country which, in the last decade, has been spending up to 35 per cent of its annual budget in education.

Let’s take a minor issue like polio eradication. Just recently, the Independent Monitoring Board of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative issued a report which noted that “of six global sanctuaries for the poliovirus (which stand against the anticipated eradication), Nigeria’s Kano and Bornu states are the most problematic”.

“Apart from Afghanistan, Nigeria’s northern region specifically constitutes major concern for global polio fighters, who now worry over the quality of local personnel and efforts. Although Kano, Bornu, and four other global (problematic) spots represent a relatively tiny proportion of the earth’s land surface area, the Monitoring Board had hinted that they ‘pose disproportionate risk to the likelihood of success for the entire globe’”, the report noted. “There are now just six countries with persistent polio transmission. Afghanistan, Nigeria and Pakistan have never interrupted transmission. Angola, Chad and DR Congo have ‘re-established’ polio. Nigeria has slipped back in a quite alarming way. Afghanistan’s programme is consistently performing at a reasonable level.”

This is a snapshot of the sorry story of Nigeria. We are not just the poster child for corruption. Whether we are talking about education, maternal or infant mortality, security, justice and rule of law, we rank at the very bottom and are constantly in competition with the world’s most retrograde countries.

As is well known and documented, the failure of Nigeria is essentially the failure of leadership. For some strange reason, it appears, we have been cursed with bad leaders right from the moment the colonialists departed 52 years ago. Unlike in places like Ghana and Tanzania, our post-independence rulers, rather than building a new nation and an egalitarian society, were more eager to replace the departing colonisers and subsequently initiate a more malicious brand of internal colonialism from the contraption that was handed over to them.

Over the years, the quality of leadership has degenerated, breeding various vices and entrenching unparalleled corruption which has now become a directive principle of state policy. There are those who accuse “ordinary” Nigerians of complicity in this rot. A typical example would be to point to the policeman or woman at a “roadblock” and conveniently say corruption is a Nigerian and, therefore, there is nothing we can do about it. I disagree. If the man on the street is corrupt, it is simply because the country’s leadership has not led by example.

Where is the incentive for the policeman to be upright? Is it that his take-home pay can take him to and fro work in a month? That his children can get basic education or that his family can afford adequate medical care when they  need it? Never mind that he is more likely to buy his own uniform and other paraphernalia of policing. That’s after he must have paid around N200,000 ($1250) to middlemen to join the police. Meanwhile, his boss is the proud owner of numerous housing estates and companies that would rank him amongst the richest in the country.

•Onumah, Coordinator, African Centre for Media and Information Literacy, Abuja, wrote in via conumah@hotmail.com

So Goldie Was Still Married to This White Man?

I got several messages from fans intimating me of the fact that the late Goldie was married to a foreigner, identified as Mr Andrew Harvey. But I can't really tell if they were "still" married as at the time of her death, also Kennis Music statement never said she was survived by a husband. So, what role Prezzo was playing in her life? Please, if you know more kindly share with us.

See photos of Goldie and Andrew Harvey's white wedding below...

    

Me And My Mum Would Split A Meal Because We Couldn’t Afford Two – Justin Biebe

Justin Bieber has revealed how when he was growing up, he and his mum would halve their dinners because they could not afford to buy two. It’s a different story today for Biebs.

The singer admitted that when he was growing up, his family had little money and would be very frugal with their spending. That explain why he works hard, wouldn’t you say?

The 18-year-old whose mum had when she was 18, is now an international superstar and has sold gazillions of records worldwide. It is this difficult start in life that the Baby singer insists helped make him the man he is today.

Justin Bieber with Mum, Pattie Mallette

“I experienced not having a lot of money and growing up poor. I felt like that really helps me today. Especially with money – I see the value of money.”

“When I used to go to restaurants with my mom, I had to look at the menu [carefully] – I couldn’t order drinks because they were too expensive; I’d only get water.

“Me and my mom would split a meal because we couldn’t afford two.”

The Canadian star, who earned an estimated $108 million dollars in the past two years, went on to say that now – he feels that he has worked hard enough to spend his money on whatever he likes, even if it is just dinner.

“Now, being able to go to a restaurant and not have to look at a menu and be like, ‘I can afford this, I can afford this…’ I can just get what I wanna eat.”

“And it just feels so good because I didn’t have that privilege before.”

Justin is currently gearing up for his next venture, hosting and performing on US TV show, Saturday Night Live.

The Believe star has been working hard to prepare all week, although his mum Pattie Mallette admitted that he is slightly nervous about going on stage.

Mum shouldn’t forget about helping Biebs ward off those bad influences putting him in the news about smoking pot all the time.

'Country pricing' a cause of Canada-U.S. price gaps

Canadians are paying far more than Americans for the same products because of a systemic and unjustifiable markup scheme by many manufacturers, a retail expert says.

A Marketplace report on Canada-U.S. price gaps found Canadians paying higher prices — more than double in some cases — for the same retail goods because of an industry phenomenon called "country pricing."

"Multi-national brands, they have two different price lists … (one) for retailers in Canada, and (one) for retailers in the United States," says Diane Brisebois, president of the Retail Council of Canada. "And I can guarantee you that the price lists for retailers in Canada [have] prices that are between 10 to 50 per cent higher than the prices in the United States." In some cases, the final sale price is much more.

Marketplace's investigation found a bottle of Bayer aspirin, which costs $5.96 at a U.S. Wal-Mart sells for $13.86 at a Canadian one, a 132 per cent difference.

Prices are local, and on the day of the investigation, the Canadian dollar was trading at 99.3 cents US.

The Senate finance committee's Wednesday report on the price gap contained other pronounced examples. Automobile tires cost 32 per cent more in Canada, and a bottle of ibuprofen cost 70 per cent more than the U.S. price.

Edmonton resident Christine Maligec was shocked to find the playpen she bought from Toys "R" Us cost $129.99 in the U.S., but jumped to $249.99 in Canada.

"I can understand paying a little bit more, but nearly twice as much?" she said. "And our dollar is nearly at par — what's going on with that?"

Manufacturers claim that Canadian prices are higher due to labour and transportation costs, tariffs, the smaller Canadian market and other issues.

"These dynamics are influenced by a variety of factors such as local economic conditions, cost of goods, differences in product formulation and local regulatory packaging and distribution costs," it read in part. " A direct comparison of Canadian and U.S. prices is not appropriate."

Brisebois says those issues should only cause slight price increases, but such high double- and triple-digit markups are indefensible.

"I don't care what the manufacturer says," she told Marketplace host Tom Harrington, "You cannot justify 30 per cent, 50 per cent, 100 per cent more in Canada than in the United States. It may cost a bit more to do business in one country versus another, but we're talking about five to 10 per cent.

"I don't believe in that crap," she added. "I think it's a bloody lie, and I think retailers are saying enough is enough."

It's difficult for many retailers to fight back effectively, because the manufacturers can essentially hold them hostage.

"We have small retailers who have been complaining to their manufacturers that they're charging them too much in Canada," Brisebois said. "And the manufacturers are saying, 'You don't like my price, then don't carry my line.' They're threatening retailers."

In her testimony to the Senate committee, Brisebois elaborated on the issue.

"If I am a sporting goods retailer in this country, and I do not carry Reebok or Nike, chances are that I will not have too much retail traffic in my store," she said. "That explains why they also have the ability to tell a Canadian retailer … how much they will sell a product for if the retailer wants it in their store."

The markups hurt retailers too, since many shoppers are choosing to take their business across the border.

A May 2012 report from Bank of Montreal estimated that cross-border shopping is costing the Canadian economy approximately $20 billion per year, and Brisebois says the government is losing another $8 billion to $10 billion in tax revenue.

It's not just foreign manufacturers exploiting Canadians. Brisebois says even Canadian manufacturers are guilty of country pricing.

"We have Canadian manufacturers who are selling to Canadian retailers at a higher price than they are to U.S. retailers," she explained. "And the product is made here. It doesn't make sense."

One reason that Canadians pay so much more is simply that they're accustomed to it.

Bayer responded to Marketplace's story with an email pointing to similar causes.

"(Manufacturers) say… the market can bear it," Brisebois said. "(Canadians) had more money or they were used to paying a higher price."

Brisebois says that attitude springs from times when the Canadian dollar was typically closer to 60 cents US and cross-border shopping was less popular. Prices were naturally higher in Canada, but Canadians came to expect those prices, so they never pushed back even as the dollar neared parity.

During the recent Senate probe, multiple witnesses — including ex-Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney — said the problem of "charging what the market will bear" is due to a lack of competition.

The Senate report concluded that "increasing competition in Canada is crucial to eliminating price discrepancies between the two countries."

The report also calls for a "comprehensive review of Canadian tariffs," and possible increases on duty-free shipping limits.

Brisebois applauded the Senate findings and hopes that changes are coming.

"The government must now act in its upcoming budget to implement many of the recommendations of this report and be a part of the solution," she said.

"Retailers continue to do their job in delivering value to consumers. It is now time for our government to assist in leveling the playing field for our businesses in Canada."

Watch Marketplace's episode, Price Tag Confidential, Friday at 8 p.m. (8:30 p.m. in Newfoundland and Labrador).

Needleless Vaccinations a Huge Step Toward Eradicating Infectious Disease

Bill Gates' philanthropic foundation funds research into a needle-free vaccination method using molds made of sugar, a technology he hopes could help patients in areas that need it most.

In his first appearance on The Colbert Report last week, billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates made a bold prediction: “Polio was down to 250 cases last year in the entire world. In the next six years we’ll get it down to zero and it’ll become the second disease to ever be eradicated.” Gates is putting his money where his mouth is by financing cutting-edge vaccination programs in the areas hardest hit by infectious disease.

Live vaccines—which contain active viruses or bacteria—are notoriously hard to deliver in resource-deprived areas because they must be continually refrigerated to keep them viable. However, with funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, researchers at King’s College London have found a way to administer a dried live vaccine directly to the skin—without needles—that remains effective at room temperature.

Besides solving the problem of refrigeration, needle-less vaccine delivery eliminates a host of other issues: the pain of injections and fear of needles that keep some people from being immunized, the risk of needle contamination with blood-borne illnesses like HIV, and the cost of purchasing many thousands of sterilized hypodermic needles.

If the technology becomes commonplace, it could also better the lives of millions who use needles every day to check their blood sugar levels, administer insulin, and inject anti-inflammatory drugs. In fact, clinical trials of a peptide-based vaccine for type 1 diabetes, led by Professor Mark Peakman of King’s College London, dovetail with these efforts to find better, less painful ways to administer life-saving drugs.

The groundbreaking research on room-temperature vaccine delivery was published this week in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

How Does Needle-free Vaccination Work?

Mary Poppins says “a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down,” but in this case, the sweet stuff helps the drug get under your skin.

The King’s College team dried an experimental live HIV vaccine in sugar (sucrose), and then used a specialized mold to shape the concoction into a microneedle array—a small disc with several tiny points that dissolve when imbedded in the skin.

“Current licensed vaccines for humans are mostly injected into muscle or into the deeper fatty layer of the skin, which can be quite painful,” said Dr. Linda Klavinskis, lead study author and a researcher in the Department of Immunobiology at King’s College London. “We anticipate that the shallow penetration of the sugar needles, simply dissolving into the upper layer of the skin, should be more patient friendly.”

Thus far, the technique has only been tested on mice, but the results are more than promising. Researchers were able to identify, for the first time, a group of cells in the skin that can detect this type of vaccine and put the body’s immune system on alert.

With the help of these specialized cells, the new, room-temperature vaccine produced the same immune response as traditional liquid medicine stored in a freezer and injected with a needle.

What Can I Do to Protect Myself Now?

Klavinskis says that before the sugar “micro-needle” technique reaches consumers, her team will need to scale-up their production, file for and conduct clinical trials on human subjects, and seek approval from agencies like the FDA.

In the meanwhile:

• Follow the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) immunization schedule for yourself and your children to keep you safe and to stop the spread of disease.
• Always get a seasonal flu shot, even if you’re pregnant.
• If you’re diabetic, carefully follow the blood glucose monitoring and insulin regiment prescribed by your doctor.