the News

Not long ago I received a call from the wife of a friend of mine. She sounded very disturbed, the cause of her worry being my friends diminishing faith. She complained that ever since their migration to the United States (courtesy of a successful visa lottery application) her hitherto spiritual husband was becoming less prayerful.

At first I was inclined to share her fears that perhaps the allure and distractions abound in Gods own country may be responsible for his backsliding. However after a lengthy conversation with my friend my fears were put to rest. He reassured me that he was and is still the same spirit filled brother who left the shores of our dear country in search of greener pastures. However on getting to the States he met with a different scenario. He found out that to his surprise the countless prayer points and requests that he spent days and nights fasting and praying for while in Nigeria were actually things to be taken for granted. For whereas he found himself constantly praying for “little luxuries” such as power supply after a hard days work, his daily bread and against countless demons mandated to forestall his progress, and whom sometimes came disguised as one-chance operators, armed robbers, in-laws and envious co-workers, he realized for the most part these problems had taken a background role. Indeed my once prayerful or paranoid/frustrated Nigerian (depending on who is judging) had finally broken free of the endless onslaught of witches and wizards with a mandate to retard his progress. This same friend who at certain times in the past could always read the spiritual conations to life’s oddities such as a heavy downpour on the day of a job interview or the presence of moths in his living room, because he inadvertently forgot to shut his window, could now afford the luxury of a rational thinking.

He said rather than spend his days looking for real or imagined spiritual devils and occultist to attack with all forms of spiritual arsenal, he was content with observing his daily devotions and meditations with his family and had more time and energy in his pursuit of happiness.

Rev. Tom writes from Lagos.

Articles should please be sent to nigerian_views@yahoo.com

The 419 internet scam or what is known in local parlance as ‘yahoo yahoo’ has continued to grow unabated. Could this be as a result of the methods adopted in fighting the menace???
Nigerian Views is of the opinion that rather than trying to clamp down on the thousands scammers located worldwide, a pragmatic approach should be adopted, such as mass enlightenment.
In view of this, Nigerian Views, (no pun intended) decided to lend a hand in this huge fight against the scourge by publishing a list of tips by the EFCC*.
We couldn’t however resist the urge to add a bit of humor to it…after all what better way to learn than with a bit of humor, right?

TIP No. 1
DO NOT BE GREEDY:
This vice according to “Yellow Kid” Weil, one of the most successful con artists of the 20th century, is the most common vice that con artists prey upon. He believed the success of his swindles was made possible by his fellow humans greed. “I took money only from those who could afford it and were willing to go in with me in schemes they fancied will fleece others”.
Unfortunately, this is the mindset of most con artists, hence the self-justification for their misdeeds.

TIP No. 2
NEVER RESPOND TO MAILS ASKING FOR PERSONAL DETAILS, SUCH AS BANK ACCOUNTS OR CREDIT CARD DETAILS, UNLESS YOU ARE SURE OF THE PERSON MAKING THE DEMAND.
“Er… did you say 345 or 245?”

Also if ever you must, make sure when giving out information over the phone, the guy on the other end doesn’t keep repeating everything you say.

TIP No. 3
IF YOU HAVE NOT PARTICIPATED IN ANY BUSINESS DEAL, DO NOT ACCEPT ANY PROPOSAL FROM ANY SOURCE TO SHARE IN THE PROCEEDS,

(FORMAT)

This scam actually bears great resemblance to the “Drake Swindle.” Made popular in the 1920’s by a con man Oscar Hartzell. It basically involved promising any sucker or “mugu” surnamed “Drake” a substantial share in the long lost “Drake Treasure” to which he, Hartzell, had access. Thousands of people fell for the scam, which Hartzell succeeded in turning into a crusade against the government and all opposed to keep the Drake fortune from their rightful heirs. And in the process he made himself a quick fortune. (more…)

STEP 1: SELECT YOUR ACTORS:
Do this even before writing the script or determining the plot of the movie. The golden rule of Nollywood is: the more the number of popular actors you can cram into your movie, the better your sales will be. The actors don’t all have to play major roles. Most of them only need to appear on screen for five to ten seconds throughout the whole movie. You could get them to walk past in supermarkets or on the street or just walk right past the camera in the middle of a live shoot!

STEP 2: CHOOSE A TITLE FOR THE MOVIE:
Choose a title that clearly explains the plot of the movie. Nollywood audiences do not like vague titles. Examples of great movie titles are; THE MAD MAN, THE STUPID HUSBAND, THE LOVE OF MONEY IS THE ROOT OF ALL EVIL, I’M SEARCHING FOR A HUSBAND etc. HINT: you can use a phrase that is repeated by all the actors in the movie.

STEP 3: PRINT YOUR MOVIE POSTER:
This has been described as the most tasking part. It’s where real talent comes in as you are faced with different options from different schools of thought. One proposes that you tell the whole story on the poster. The easier it is for people to be able to predict the plot of the movie and the final outcome, from looking at the poster, the better the movie will do in the market. Another school of thought suggests cramming the faces of the fifteen or so actors you convinced to make appearances in the movie on the poster.
In addition to the options described above, the pictures on the poster can show them doing things they never did in the movie, e.g. Desmond Elliot holding a machine gun and sweating despite the fact he played a three-minute role as a doctor in the movie. You are also allowed to include one or two actors who didn’t actually appear in the movie. No one will ever know until they have seen the whole movie, and by then it’d be too late. Most would be successful movies fail at this stage…it is very demanding.

STEP 4: GET YOUR ACTORS TO START ACTING
Everyone will naturally gravitate towards his or her instinctive roles, and before long your movie will have acted itself out. Jim Iyke will always play the fine boy, bad boy, Pete Edochie, a billonaire red-capped chief, Aki and Paw Paw will always be street urchins living from prank to prank and Osuofia, can be whatever he wants to be. He always comes as a bonus as he never needs a script.

………. (more…)

The menace of Jungle Justice is indeed a deep rooted social evil that has led to the loss of countless souls. This misnomer, Jungle Justice, basically involves the trial and execution, usually in a gruesome manner, of alleged culprits who have committed crimes ranging from petty offences like shoplifting to cases like armed robbery. In the laws of the jungle no one is spared as even an attempt at a crime is enough to evoke the wrath of the jungle.

Recently however, the menace has taken a different dimension and its reaching out and claiming new victims- children.

Residents in Lagos and television viewers nation-wide witnessed first hand, the brutality of a mob. It involved the trial, condemnation and execution of an 11-year-old boy, Samuel. This gruesome 20 minute flick which hit the airwaves during the evening news showed in vivid pictures the extent of mans inhumanity to man, or as in this case an under aged boy. Is this the case of a dysfunctional system? A loss of faith in the nations security system and a perceived slow judiciary? A total collapse of sanity and loss of respect for the sanctity of human life? Or is this a case of getting a full dose of justice à la jungle justice? You be the judge.

Our story takes place in Surulere, a suburb in the heart of Lagos, the commercial nerve center of Nigeria. It takes place on a sunny afternoon where the unsuspecting victim, a street urchin named Samuel, is about to be executed by a mob.

11-year-old Samuel was accused of attempting to kidnap a child. A woman allegedly spotted him while he was playing football in the midst of local children. The sum of N50 ($0.38) was found on him and this was to be used, as evidence by his would be accuser as the fee paid to him to execute the job.

(more…)