Tag: Economics

Energy, Politics

₦40 per Litre: Local Refining to Save Nigeria

Jilomes

I wonder what Danish philosopher, Soren Kierkegaard, would have witnessed to trigger his assertion that “There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn’t true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true”. Usually, a lack of information makes people susceptible to being fooled, especially when they are marinated in well-spun tales generously adorned with the best spices of propaganda. But there is another set who ordinarily should or seem to have relevant information, yet choose to be fooled. With regards to arguments about local refining in Nigeria, it is such persons that should get Soren’s hammer.

Continue reading “₦40 per Litre: Local Refining to Save Nigeria” →
Politics

Of a Food Blockade and Common Sense

Jilomes

“Babe, the market is scanty. Many fresh food sellers did not show up, and those around said food supplies are limited.” My wife’s voice on the phone finally made it personal. I had been following reports online of a “food blockade” on Southern Nigeria by Northern Nigeria, but now it had gone beyond mere news reports to something that would make our family spend more on food this month. Fortunately, we could stomach the higher cost of limited supplies at the market, but I wondered about the infamous pyrrhic victory and a seemingly maniacal drive by some persons to cut off their nose to spite their face.

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Energy

Electricity, Gas & Kerosene: Which is Cheaper?

Jilomes

Have you ever wondered whether to boil water using an electric kettle or to use cooking gas? Or maybe you currently use kerosene and wonder what the hype is about gas. My wife and I routinely debated our home’s energy cost with regards to different energy sources, so I decided to do an empiric comparison. Maybe someone else could use this to settle their own debates.

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Change, Politics

Cry, My Beloved Port Harcourt

Jilomes

There is a popular proverb in Nigeria which states, “The person who has never left his father’s farm thinks the farm is the biggest in the village”. If the meaning has not jumped at you, here’s another version: “Until you leave your father’s house, you will think your mother is the best cook on earth”. There’s some kind of epiphany that happens when you go outside your conventional zone and get to experience life in other areas. This has been my experience with Port Harcourt.  Continue reading “Cry, My Beloved Port Harcourt” →

Change, Politics

Shackles of Independence

Jilomes

Two centuries ago, Brigham Young said that “True independence and freedom can only exist in doing what’s right.” Those words are as true as the knowledge that the earth is spherical. Whereas some persons view independence as being free to do whatever they like however they like, such persons have a myopic view that points to immaturity. When one is truly independent is when one comes to appreciate that independence implies a responsibility to do the right thing. It is the Nigerian state’s inability to understand this logic that has kept it in shackles for fifty-six years. Continue reading “Shackles of Independence” →