The truth behind the 3 Missing Kids

The missing kids; Aderomola, Demola and Adedamola Orekoya

Social media has been awash over the last 24 hours with the story of three young boys allegedly kidnapped in the surulere area of Lagos, Nigeria by their nanny who had barely spent 24-hours in the employ of their mother. 

Apparently the criminals had their game plan and only awaited an opportunity!

After all said, what is most important of all is the safe return of the kids. Ink iyaff finish! Ok bye!

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RCCG and the APC desperation

 The desperation of the two major political parties leading to the 2015 general elections in Nigeria is such that may have not been witnessed in the democratic history of our nation. From bickering to name-calling, massive propaganda and even leveraging on brands and religious institutions such as the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) and even, the personality of its General Overseer, Pastor E. A Adeboye the parties have ensured that they stop at nothing in swaying the electorate to their side.

One co-incidence too many is that the All Progressives Congress (APC) has been at the fore-front of manipulating pictures, videos and stories relating to the G.O to suit their agenda. Recently, Pastor Adeboye had to put out a disclaimer via his facebook page stating that the church does not have any political alignment and would not use its platforms to portray such for any candidate or party despite one of his pastors being the vice-presidential candidate for the APC.

Recent developments beyond the phone call allegations leveled against same party is the desperation being exhibited by impersonators claiming to be senior Pastors of the RCCG, meeting with several pastors across the country and claiming Pastor Adeboye sent them informing them to embrace “change” and vote APC. However, an attendee at one of such meetings was wise enough to verify from the leadership of the church in one of such states and was informed there was no such directive in fact, there can NEVER be such directive given the earlier disclaimer put out by the G.O himself.

It is evident the APC are “not afraid” of soiling the person, character and brand of Pastor Adeboye and the RCCG all in a desperate bid to get to power. If the church has intentionally stayed out of politics leading to the 2015 general elections, I wonder why this party is employing deceit and other forms of propaganda, smearing the church and her G.O because if someone is so desperate and negates the fear of God in the process, I wonder if/she he can be trusted.  

A lesson or two...from Terry G!

 Fiddling with my laptop I thought of what to write, but didn’t feel like posting any pre-written article so out of boredom, I put on the TV, hoping to watch some documentary or some news but guess what I stumbled upon? An interview with Terry G yes, Terry G! Okay! So what is it about this 'bling'-wielding, street gangster-like “akpako master” that could possibly draw my attention enough to do an article on him? 

Well, before you run off (as I probably would) with bias concerning his person or on me for doing a piece on him, lets quickly learn…and run off still! Well, straight to the point. During the interview he was asked why he no longer has his piercings and he made valid points which struck me which I feel every artiste and individual reading this could learn a thing from. 

Firstly, he made a valid statement, “we are all children of God”. Of course we all know that yeah? Pretty sure a number of us including myself may be quick to judge this statement including the person saying it but hold on a second, I guess we were the same ones that judged the biblical Rahab in the Old Testament or Mary Magdalene or even, the 'brief' Zacheus! As much as we all advocate for a closer relationship with God, it is important that we never miss the baseline truth “we all are children of God”. As a Christian, Pastor, Preacher, Evangelist or Church leader, if you would bring someone to God, you must not miss this baseline truth. 

Whether the individual has taken up his son-ship by accepting and reciprocating this love is a different matter all together. Another thing he said regarding taking off the piercings was that “sometimes you have some friends you need to get rid of, some friends that are not just good for you” and then I remembered as a youngster how my parents were always particular about those I kept as friends. This of course helped me up to the point where I am today wherein I can proudly say, I choose my friends, people who are consistent with my values and beliefs. It takes guts to say NO to being friends with someone especially when you ‘go way back’ but it is better to stay off what can destroy you as its YOUR LIFE not theirs! 

The next thing he said is very important for every artiste out there. He said he got to a point where he discovered he didn’t need to look mad or wild to impact with his music. ‘Come for my shows, watch my performance and judge if anything has changed’ he said. A lot of us think embellishments are requirements for success in our artistry and this is a wrong notion. Terry G is a man who seems to have gained a maturity that eludes many artistes today. Let your music speak for you. Stop trying to create a person you are not all in a bid to impress and gain ephemeral influence. Let your music do the talking. 

If you are indeed convinced of your content, then why the fear? 

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Lessons From A Lagos Bus Conductor

What could I possibly learn from a tout - an uneducated, violence-prone, abusive, dirty and unkempt person as a bus conductor, especially the ones in Lagos? The above is a near-description to what you have running through your mind upon reading the title of this piece. So many times we are clouded by sentiments, prejudice and biases so great and so little, we fail to learn even from the smallest of things (ants) expecting our lessons to come from the most structured places (classrooms, trainings, seminars, conferences etc.).

After learning from one of Nigeria’s finest life coaches Steve Harris on Business lessons from hookers (#bizlessonsfromhookers) and after reading from my Bible Life lessons from ants (#lifefromants) I have drawn Lessons from Lagos bus conductors (#lessonsfromlagosconductor) which I will share with you and hope you draw inspiration from, sharing other lessons with us as well.

#lessonsfromlagosconductor the first thing noticeable about him is that he has a very strong, thick and coarse voice! Oh yes! That is what makes you know you are in Lagos. Your business must have a voice. He knows that the only way he can reach his customers is through that voice also, the best way he can withstand his competitors, union members and co. is by having that voice. Your business, brand or whatever it is must have a voice and you should know the appropriate channel through which to make this voice heard.

#lessonsfromlagosconductor another thing is his character. He has a strong character which is his major tool of oppression or resilience either on his passengers or on his fellow union members. It is this strong character that makes you readily comply with his demand for smaller denominations (money) with you once he says ‘do not enter without change’.

#lessonsfromlagosconductor the power of vision! Oh yes! (you must be laughing by now) He has vision else, how would he sight his passengers? He has his target, he doesn’t want the bus to move along empty therefore he must be quick to see opportunities (passengers) and communicate same to his driver when they get to that point to then maximize the opportunity. To excel, we must have the ability to recognize opportunities when they come our way and then maximize same and it is only when you have vision that you recognize an opportunity that is in tandem with the vision you have.

#lessonsfromlagosconductor he has negotiation skills. He is a good negotiator. When he mentions a price and it is inconvenient for the passenger, he negotiates with the passenger and based on the outcome of the negotiation, decides to either pick the passenger or let him be. His ability to negotiate well gets him a passenger or makes him lose one and so the success of any enterprise depends on how well you are able to negotiate for sole benefit or at worst, mutual benefit. Only those who are able to negotiate their way through life always get the best out of it.

#lessonsfromlagosconductor he has calculative skills! (laughs) yes, the same simple calculative skills that you probably struggle with. This one fundamental skill is required in his business in order to save him time amongst other things therefore, (assuming you gave him N200 for a N70 fare with an expected change back of N130) you then hear things like ‘do you have N20 there so I can give you N150?’ That is indeed simple calculation of addition and subtraction and he gets his problem solved in a jiffy. In other words, to be able to solve problems, you must have an analytical mind capable of solving problems that would otherwise have cost you time and resources by virtue of not being solved.

#lessonsfromlagosconductor he monitors the environment and assesses competition. The same bus that will delay you at a bus stop looking for passengers is the same one that will decide not to stop at a particular location, racing on to the next. I have observed that once he sees a bus going in same direction with his, he tells the driver to move on to the next stop preferring to get there first before this other bus gets there. 

#lessonsfromlagosconductor from the above, we also see that he has the power of foresight! You should be able to see what the market holds for your business or what the strides of your competitors are and race into the future before they get there so when the future eventually comes, you will not be stranded rather maximizing all the gains and value it has to offer. A perfect example is a company like Nikkon which continues to be relevant in the photography industry long after the demise of the film/dark room technology.

So, what lessons have you learnt from your everyday bus conductor which have gone unnoticed? Why not share them with us and let everyone draw inspiration from them!

Adios!

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The Business of Volunteering (Part 2)

The first part of this series highlighted the skills that one can acquire from volunteering via the real-life experience of a volunteer. However, it has come to my notice that not everyone knows all that volunteering entails and some of us may be misinformed about it so we would be discussing that here.

• Scene #1: Amina, 57 years old, spends two hours a day, three days a week, at a local school, helping to teach extra-moral (evening) classes.

• Scene #2: John, a 15 year old, goes roller skating at his estate park on a Saturday only to find that the park is a wreck. He could wait for the local cleaners to clean it up but instead texts some friends who show up with their boots and some garbage bags.

• Scene #3: Titi is a 43 year old lawyer who spends her days (and most evenings) as a partner at a high profile corporate law firm. One of her family's favorite weekend activities is gardening so they occasionally spend a Saturday afternoon at a community garden that provides fresh fruits and vegetables to local schools.

• Scene #4: Tanko is a 62 year old retired accountant. In addition to travel and other personal pursuits, he gives professional advice on the financial plans of a handful of nonprofit organizations. This is mostly done by email so he's found that he can get feedback to them whether he is at home or around the globe.

• Scene #5: Chinedu is a 24 year old recent University graduate who is in the process of looking for paid work in the nonprofit sector, preferably with an organization that focuses on public health. While he spends much of his time researching and applying for jobs, he also serves on the board of a local free clinic in Lagos.

From the above cases, we have an idea what volunteering is about. Common to all cases are; the people cut across different genders, ages and career stages. The time commitments range from impromptu to regularly scheduled work and it may include office-like work.

So volunteering means an interest, desire, or willingness to do good while contributing time, skills, and energy towards something that is not of direct benefit only to one's self, friends, or family and in the process, not expecting any sort of reimbursement or payment in return for one's efforts however with the option of choosing how, where, why, and when to get involved.

The United Nations has a volunteer programme called the United Nations Volunteers and has December 5 set aside every year for the International Volunteer Day. Volunteerism has evolved with society hence there are now virtual or online volunteers who can volunteer across the online space.

The many benefits of volunteering include meeting people whether for professional networking (in addition to making invaluable contacts, volunteering with a nonprofit is a great way to learn more about potentially working in the sector or a particular field), to make new friends, or to just understand a little more about others' ways of life. As stated in the previous post, volunteering also provides opportunities to gain new skills, practice existing skills in new ways, and learn more about complex issues like hunger, health care, and the environment especially when you volunteer for the United Nations and other international organizations. 

So, get online and look for the next comfortable volunteering opportunity next to you! You can start here!

[photo source: www.facebook.com]

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