I was a bit of a rascal when I was in Federal Government College, Kano and the Principal of the school, described me as virus that spreads and cause all kinds of problems, so he told me parents to find another school for me, where I will be uncomfortable so that this viral infection can not grow or spread.
I was moved from one of the best schools in the country to one of the schools that can be aptly described as local – in the sense of being pedestrian, underachieving, with students that wear shorts instead of normal Trousers at FGC, Kano, and instead of nice pairs of shoes, they wore sandals or in some cases, bathroom slippers, because some of them were from such poor homes, their substitute to slippers will be to come to school bare feet.
I was moved from the “great” Federal Government College, Kano, where the students were from some of the richest families, middle to upper class of the country, elite kids from homes where summer is spent abroad, to then go to a school where the average student was born and grew up in Otta, the boundary area or as I would put it then, the middle of no-where between Lagos and Ogun States.
This is a story I will tell someday and the experiences can be likened to how a friend of mine described the BBC’s “Welcome to Lagos”. This friend said that the programme has some amount of hilarious comedy in it, making one laugh and some bits of it bring tears to one’s eyes because of the abject poverty on display.
However, the essence of this preamble is the Principal at Iganmode Grammar School, Otta, he ensured that every single morning at the assembly, he never failed to put a new spin on his favourite saying “seest though a man diligent in his business? He shall stand before kings; he shall not stand before mean men.”
Where am I going with this, especially as I have not made any reference to the subject matter? OK, let me put it in perspective, when you think of the top ten most powerful leaders in the world, there is often the understanding that the President of U.S.A. seat at the top of that list. The Prime Minister of United Kingdom will be in the mix of the next 3 to 4 names.
If I am diligent in my business, including the politics of governing the country that is now my home, then of course, I should be standing before the Queen, and of course the leaders of this nation. I should be rubbing shoulders with them and asking questions about what their plans are for this country where my children are growing up. I should be positioned to network with them and secure acknowledgement that my vote counts and my ideas, thoughts and views could potentially influence or inform their policies, decision and strategies for governance.
Well, this little boy-rascal has grown out of that rascality and become a diligent man that is trained, educated and now aspires to greater things than he has achieved so far. I am keen to see my presence in a place contribute to development of groundswell or impact change in that commune. That will not happen if I sit on my hands and do nothing, because those who give excuses for not being able to influence, cause or impact change cannot be described as diligent.
A “mean man” according to a dictionary is one who is “ignoble, base, miserly, stingy, low in quality or grade, low in value or amount, low in social status, selfish in a petty way”. I will choose to now put myself in situation where I share the same space with “mean men” because what they do is moan, groan and whinge about anything and everything. They are never diligent enough to get up and contribute their quota to anything.
So, now I have gone full circle and would want to know who should be out of the list of people I can call friends or even acquaintance. Who can I deem worthy of calling to join me when I stand before kings, king-makers and leaders that are recognised worldwide?
I will be at the BLACK BRITAIN DECIDES this Wednesday the 28th of April 2010 at 6.30pm, to join other diligent black people in Britain. The intention is to have a show of face to let the eventual leader of this country know that my vote will count in the decision to see any political party emerge as party of government.
In securing my vote, the emerging leader will have to give a thought to what my needs are, what my aspirations are, what kind of Britain do I want to live and raise my children in. I will want to hear what the programme of the leader will be and hear the leader confirm he cares about me and understand that being black in Britain comes with its own challenges and he is planning to make life better for me and my children because I am diligent member of this society.
You can find more details about the event by checking this website: www.BlackBritainDecides.com
You can register to attend and I hope a large number of my friends will show they are diligent too and do not sit on their hands doing nothing only to moan, groan and whinge when government fail to meet the needs of the black population of this country. If we do not get them to commit to anything as baseline programme, then there is nothing to challenge them on if they deliver nothing for our community.
I look forward to seeing my diligent friends meeting Messrs Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Clegg this Wednesday 28th of April 2010 at 6.30pm. Venue is:
The Methodist Church,
Methodist Central Hall,
Westminster, London,
SW1H 9NH.
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Voluptuous, beautiful and awesomely talented – would you vote for her?
I left home at exactly 7a.m. this morning to catch my usual bus, but somehow, I missed it by a few seconds, despite the fact that I ran all the way to the bus stop and even spilled some of my coffee. Fortunately, the coffee did not spill on my suit, thanks to the presence of mind that I remembered to put a paper napkin on the lid so that it soaked the spillage.
Sometimes I do push my luck with timing things to the very last minute and it backfired today leading to a few seconds mistimed and missing the bus. But I won’t complain as it led to a chain of events which in some ways seem almost like “Sliding Doors” the film starring Gwyneth Paltrow, but without the tragedy of the film... awww thank God for that... :-)
Well, I would normally take the bus to Grays Station, but since I missed it, I took the next bus, heading off to Chafford Hundred Station. Imagine a guy running with a big bag on his back, seemingly heavy because my laptop is in there too, and my jacket on one arm, then my coffee cup from Starbucks on the other.
That’s not all, my two mobile phones on one hand, and guess what, I had my wallet in my bag on my back, so with both hands full, coffee spilling out of Starbucks coffee mug that should normally not spill and both hands kept in use, I strolled on to the bus on the other side of the road. Mind you, my shirt collar was still up because my tie is yet to be knotted and I pretty much must have looked like some bloke chased out of the house... not funny but true.
The bus driver had one look at me, asked where I am going to know what ticket to give me and how much I will be charged. I told him its Chafford Hundred station return, “that will be £2.40 matey” he said with a hand outstretched to collect money.
I had to put all my stuff down on one side to get to rummage through my backpack for my wallet and two ladies behind me, one seem in a hurry to get through and the other smiling gently encouraging me to get on with it. I stepped aside for the lady in a hurry to pay and go on, told the tall, beautiful and smartly dressed lady to go on to. But she told me not to worry, I got distracted by the smile, stylish trouser suit and I could not help noticing the hour-glass shape. Hey, the driver was waiting and getting impatient, so he I had to snap out quickly and get the wallet out to pay. I paid as quickly as possible and started packing my stuffs and getting myself together.
I could smell a whiff of nice perfume, I had a feeling it must have been Jean Paul Gaultier or something more delicately sweet. The lady was behind me asking if she could help, I handed over my jacket and coffee mug, grabbed my bag, phones and wallet and followed her to a seat near the door.
I thanked her profusely and she was almost going red in the face, asking me to stop saying thank you and mumbled something about me being too polite. I sorted out my tie, shirt collar, put my phones and wallet in my backpack collected my jacket, put it on and then collected my coffee mug. She introduced herself as Chrissy and we got into conversation about what she does and so on.
Chrissy is a lawyer that works in the city with one of the big firms, she did not tell me her age, but I guess she must be in her early thirties and enjoying her career, chipping into our conversation that career comes first, so family is secondary at this stage of her life. She is Caucasian, exceptionally beautiful, softspoken and very articulate. The kind of lady that you listen to, even when she is not making sense, you simply enjoy the presence.
Well, Chrissy is interested in politics and wants to sort out some stuff she is currently working on over the next couple of years, then she will go into politics. She is one of those swing voters that waits till close to election to decide if she will be Tory, Labor or Libdem and she is holding fire for now to decide who she casts her vote for in the forthcoming election.
I got to Chafford Hundred, shook Chrissy’s hand and told her I will be putting this morning’s incident on my blog and she promised to read it... :-) and I hope she does.
But where I am going with this is the issue of who will you be voting for on 6th of May 2010. There is the potential problem of hung parliament and the idea that the black vote could become the new swing vote that could change the polls and eventual results of this election.
A silly thought in my head was, if Chrissy was one of the political party leader today and asks for your vote, would you be trooping out with your entire family and friends to go vote for Labor, Tory or Libdem, because of this voluptuous, intelligent, beautiful and really sweet person is the leader or would you just not be bother.
I am then pondering, why would majority of our people, Afro-Caribbean and Africans including the ones referred to as Black British, choose to avoid stepping in the polling booth to be counted as one of those that influence the future and direction of this nation.
What would it take to get the average black Joe Blogg in the UK to go to the polling booth on Thursday the 6th of May 2010. If there is an answer, to that, I guess if I know it, I could work wonders in this country, but even if its not one strategy fits all, I will be keen to know why would you vote and why not.
Meanwhile, as if that was not enough to spice my morning, I then got to the station and ran into a good friend, one of those Nigerians who has done supremely well working within the community and driving the agenda of helping the young black population in the UK to find direction, footing, voice and give them reason to believe they can.
My friend is a Pastor and in recognition of his work in the community, he has been honoured by the Queen with Member of the British Empire (MBE). He has met with most of the political leaders in the UK, has been actively involved in helping the police combat the Black on Black crimes, working with young, black kids who are disenfranchised and sometimes expelled from school.
Pastor Nims Obunge (MBE) is a family friend and just as I got through the barrier at Chafford Hundred station, he looked up with a smile and asked me how I was doing. We quickly exchanged pleasantaries and got into discussion about 6th of May election.
The rest of my conversation for this interesting morning will be continued, but before that comes, check out this website Pastor Nims asked me to log on to when I get to the office – www.BlackBritainDecides.com
... :-) to be continued....
Sometimes I do push my luck with timing things to the very last minute and it backfired today leading to a few seconds mistimed and missing the bus. But I won’t complain as it led to a chain of events which in some ways seem almost like “Sliding Doors” the film starring Gwyneth Paltrow, but without the tragedy of the film... awww thank God for that... :-)
Well, I would normally take the bus to Grays Station, but since I missed it, I took the next bus, heading off to Chafford Hundred Station. Imagine a guy running with a big bag on his back, seemingly heavy because my laptop is in there too, and my jacket on one arm, then my coffee cup from Starbucks on the other.
That’s not all, my two mobile phones on one hand, and guess what, I had my wallet in my bag on my back, so with both hands full, coffee spilling out of Starbucks coffee mug that should normally not spill and both hands kept in use, I strolled on to the bus on the other side of the road. Mind you, my shirt collar was still up because my tie is yet to be knotted and I pretty much must have looked like some bloke chased out of the house... not funny but true.
The bus driver had one look at me, asked where I am going to know what ticket to give me and how much I will be charged. I told him its Chafford Hundred station return, “that will be £2.40 matey” he said with a hand outstretched to collect money.
I had to put all my stuff down on one side to get to rummage through my backpack for my wallet and two ladies behind me, one seem in a hurry to get through and the other smiling gently encouraging me to get on with it. I stepped aside for the lady in a hurry to pay and go on, told the tall, beautiful and smartly dressed lady to go on to. But she told me not to worry, I got distracted by the smile, stylish trouser suit and I could not help noticing the hour-glass shape. Hey, the driver was waiting and getting impatient, so he I had to snap out quickly and get the wallet out to pay. I paid as quickly as possible and started packing my stuffs and getting myself together.
I could smell a whiff of nice perfume, I had a feeling it must have been Jean Paul Gaultier or something more delicately sweet. The lady was behind me asking if she could help, I handed over my jacket and coffee mug, grabbed my bag, phones and wallet and followed her to a seat near the door.
I thanked her profusely and she was almost going red in the face, asking me to stop saying thank you and mumbled something about me being too polite. I sorted out my tie, shirt collar, put my phones and wallet in my backpack collected my jacket, put it on and then collected my coffee mug. She introduced herself as Chrissy and we got into conversation about what she does and so on.
Chrissy is a lawyer that works in the city with one of the big firms, she did not tell me her age, but I guess she must be in her early thirties and enjoying her career, chipping into our conversation that career comes first, so family is secondary at this stage of her life. She is Caucasian, exceptionally beautiful, softspoken and very articulate. The kind of lady that you listen to, even when she is not making sense, you simply enjoy the presence.
Well, Chrissy is interested in politics and wants to sort out some stuff she is currently working on over the next couple of years, then she will go into politics. She is one of those swing voters that waits till close to election to decide if she will be Tory, Labor or Libdem and she is holding fire for now to decide who she casts her vote for in the forthcoming election.
I got to Chafford Hundred, shook Chrissy’s hand and told her I will be putting this morning’s incident on my blog and she promised to read it... :-) and I hope she does.
But where I am going with this is the issue of who will you be voting for on 6th of May 2010. There is the potential problem of hung parliament and the idea that the black vote could become the new swing vote that could change the polls and eventual results of this election.
A silly thought in my head was, if Chrissy was one of the political party leader today and asks for your vote, would you be trooping out with your entire family and friends to go vote for Labor, Tory or Libdem, because of this voluptuous, intelligent, beautiful and really sweet person is the leader or would you just not be bother.
I am then pondering, why would majority of our people, Afro-Caribbean and Africans including the ones referred to as Black British, choose to avoid stepping in the polling booth to be counted as one of those that influence the future and direction of this nation.
What would it take to get the average black Joe Blogg in the UK to go to the polling booth on Thursday the 6th of May 2010. If there is an answer, to that, I guess if I know it, I could work wonders in this country, but even if its not one strategy fits all, I will be keen to know why would you vote and why not.
Meanwhile, as if that was not enough to spice my morning, I then got to the station and ran into a good friend, one of those Nigerians who has done supremely well working within the community and driving the agenda of helping the young black population in the UK to find direction, footing, voice and give them reason to believe they can.
My friend is a Pastor and in recognition of his work in the community, he has been honoured by the Queen with Member of the British Empire (MBE). He has met with most of the political leaders in the UK, has been actively involved in helping the police combat the Black on Black crimes, working with young, black kids who are disenfranchised and sometimes expelled from school.
Pastor Nims Obunge (MBE) is a family friend and just as I got through the barrier at Chafford Hundred station, he looked up with a smile and asked me how I was doing. We quickly exchanged pleasantaries and got into discussion about 6th of May election.
The rest of my conversation for this interesting morning will be continued, but before that comes, check out this website Pastor Nims asked me to log on to when I get to the office – www.BlackBritainDecides.com
... :-) to be continued....
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