South Africa's Gwara Gwara on the news!

Had to find out what the fuss was about. 
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Rihanna's performance at the Grammy Awards last night drew particular praise from South Africans after she did the popular gwara gwara dance.

Some clips from Youtube

Video

George Weah has called for the removal of a "racist" clause in the constitution which restricts citizenship to black people.

Liberia's President George Weah has called for the removal of a "racist" clause in the constitution which restricts citizenship to black people.

According to him, the clause was "unnecessary, racist and inappropriate".

In his first State of the Nation address since being elected president, he also pledged to scrap the law that prohibits foreigners owning land.

Liberia was founded by freed US slaves in 1847 as "a refuge and a haven for freed men of colour".

The restrictions introduced at the time were no longer necessary, Mr Weah said, adding that he also wanted a ban on dual citizenship to be abolished.

"It contradicts the very definition of Liberia, which is derived from the Latin word 'liber', meaning 'liberty'," he said.

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I am so willing him to do marvellously well. Time for the continent to review constitutions which still has redundant colonial policies.

Culled from BBC 

Home remedy for stubborn cough.

Yesterday, I tried the cough home remedy I saw online. The ingredients consisted of lemon, onions, ginger, garlic and honey. You don't have to add water but only squeeze out the juices from the ingredients. I did mine by blending onion, ginger and garlic with the juice of the lemon. After I extracted the juices, I added some homey and had two to four spoonfuls. It is about 24 hours after I started this remedy and I can feel a great improvement. I don't know if it is a placebo effect but I have not coughed after I began taking it and that itchiness in my throat is gone. This is great! A month of a niggling and annoying cough, gone! What are some of the home remedies that work for you?

Stubborn cough!

I am down with the flu again and this time, it came with a nasty cough. I am so miserable and feeling sorry for myself. I have had this niggling cough since the end of last year and want it gone. So, I went on Google to look for some home remedies and came across one I thought may be easy to make. The instruction for the recipe states to blend onions, garlic and ginger. Then add lemon and honey. It didn't mention quantity or dosage.

Well, I am going to give it a try. I am desperate for relief 😌. I will let you know if it works ☺.

Here are my ingredients.

I sieved the juices out of the blended items and didn't add water. I added honey and took my first spoonful.

I thought it was going to taste vile but to my surprise it didn't and I quite liked it. I think apart from the strong breath, this will not do me any harm.

Angels amongst us!

Hey! Who said that we have lost humanity? We still have amazing individuals in our midst! So, yesterday, I sprained my ankle and was in agony. To add to my pains, I started suffering flu-like symptoms. I was utterly miserable and not myself. By evening, I was already in so much pain that I decided to go to the pharmacist and get some painkillers. On my way out of the office, I met a senior colleague. She saw how in pain I was and refused to let me leave work. She insisted that she would walk me to the pharmacist and train station, but I refused. I didn't want to burden her. She went to her office, got me some painkillers and Bandage. She got on her knees and bandaged my ankle. I almost cried! I was so touched by her kindness, I didn't know what to do or say. She then gave me her mobile number to let her know I was OK.

This act of kindness made my day! She didn't have to go out of her way but she did. Thank you 'B' for being an angel to me!

It is snowing!

It is snowing right now!

Poem!

A poem titled 'Who are you'?

Who are you?
Do you know who you are?
Who are you?
Not you that was moulded by family or society,

Who are you?
Do you know?
Do you seek to know?
Do you really want to know?

Who are you?
Do you like yourself?
Do you like who you are?
Do you accept who you are?

Who are you?
Are you still searching?
Are you still crying?
Are you still finding?

Who are you?
You are you
You are beautiful
You are unique
There is no one like you

Love who you are
Accept who you are
Embrace who you are
Value who you are


Written by Lilian S

Never give up!

In life, there will be people who will try to stop you from shinning, pull you down, or try to stop you from reaching the skies. They will collude and concort lies, cast aspersions on your person; and to your frustration, appear to be a 'good' person.

Good news, they can't really stop you! Time and space happens! They can try, succeed for a bit but, if you don't give up, there will be a shift.

You will excel! Those who think they can play God over your destiny are weak! Jokers! No one can stop your destiny!

Delay is not denial!

So,

Don't ever be afraid to speak up!

When you see injustice speak out!

You may be the voice that opens the door for another oppressed person.

Stay true to yourself.

Windy Weather

Last night was so windy and gusty and remained so all through the night. 

Trees did fall.

My experience at OIS London

The news that Nigerians would lose their hard earned money if they do not have their Bank Verification Number (BVN) done was shocking. According to the papers, those without the BVN would lose their hard earned money should they not have this. 

I quickly went online to search where I could have mine done. The OIS London came up. I went online, booked my appointment. The form was pretty straightforward but required a lot of information.

So, today was my appointment day and I went to the OIS at 56-57 Fleet street London. I got in and met the most ignorant security guy. He was so lackadaisical. I was a bit piqued. I booked a service and I am met with this rudeness? He started asking for my passport photograph, passport etc. I had to ask him if he was the person who was in charge of providing the service. He was taken back that I had a voice and quickly apologised and told me to go upstairs.

I got upstairs and sat down. It was not rowdy, thank God! I didn't want the lack of organisation that I was used to in Nigerian house. However, I noticed that people that I came before were being seen to. After about 30 minutes, I stood up to ask a lady what the procedure was and how come certain people were being seen to first despite me and others being there before them. The lady (who I think is an agent) explained to me that those people being seen to were there for another service.

Finally, this lady at the till who had been giving me the evils reluctantly calls my number and whispers something to the only black lady beside her at the till. I am confused by her actions. Is she not supposed to be providing a service? If the job is not one that she is happy with, why not leave so that someone happy can take up the role and do it with dignity and respect?

Anyway, I hear her say to the black girl by her side "I am not even going to try".

I am boiling at this minute but remained composed. She didn't explain anything. She 'didn't try' as I heard her tell the black girl at the till.

Now, my angst is this. Nigerian government or whoever came up with Nigerians being put in positions where we are treated as if we are really from shit hole countries, can this stop?

I don't have to be treated as 'shit' by someone who is not happy to do their job!

OIS London, sort your staff out and train them to respect paying customers and treat them with respect and dignity regardless of skin colour.

I hope I never have anything to do with this organisation! The customer service is rubbish!

The whole thing should not be more than 15-20 minutes and customers should leave satisfied but because of little miss attitude, who felt that she did not want to deal with me in a dignified manner, I left as a very unsatisfied customer!

Sort your staff out OIS London! I read a review online that your staff are rude and this was proven today. If they cannot serve Nigerians with the respect and dignity required, then, Nigerian governement or whoever is in charge should look for an effective and efficient service provider!

"Shit hole" is now the buzz word!

Hello, My name is Lilian and I am not from a "Shit hole" country! I chose not to go with the narrative or rhetoric of a white supremacist who utters the shittest things.  There is something seriously wrong with a person who chooses to hate others based on the colour of their skin or where they come from.

There are issues (serious issues) in my country of birth but that doesn't make it a 'shit hole'! What is meant by 'shit hole' and who has the right to describe a place as such? Surely, not by a person who has not taken the time to educate himself on the root cause of why people from where he labelled "shit holes" are seeking succour elsewhere.

He is not at fault for giving Africa a bad image. The press, academics and visitors to the continent project this negative view that people from the continent are helpless, need the help or intervention of the west, are inferior and need saving and that is the reality that is projected and believed by many in the West.

The reality for many in some African countries is that things are so bad that there is no hope. However, these things do not happen in isolation.  For many, there is no way out! No hope! and some people resort to taking the dangerous path of seeking a better life abroad. They embark on that dangerous journey to Libya where the women are raped and the men go through unimaginable and atrocious treatment. A people of no hope will do anything for some sort of meaning to their existence. They are willing to die just to live.

So, in a way, it is a "shitty" situation for people to find themselves in; a life that they did not have a say in to come into. No one chooses to be born into abject poverty where there is no hope of coming out of it. No one chooses to be born to go through the horrors of war, have every member of their family killed by Boko Haram or herdsmen. No one chooses to be born in countries where the government, people who are supposed to be serving their people, are their oppressors!

'Africa' was labelled as a 'shit hole'. The continuous homogenising of the continent is just ridiculous and ignorant. In this day and age, one would expect that there are few people who are so ignorant to homogenise the continent. Oh yes, Africa is a continent. It is diverse, with different histories, people, race,  languages and way of life.

An aspect of the continent which can almost be homogenised is one which is sidelined; the history of its colonialism. When certain individuals call people from the African continent 'shitty' or from "shit holes", they sideline or erase one very crucial part of history, colonialism, which whether by their making or not, are linked to. The destruction of every fabric of life in many African countries from religion to language is one that has engendered the loss of identity and in some ways, today, fans the embers of war in countries such as Nigeria.

I chose not to be angry but to find ways to contribute to the world through education. I believe that information to a certain extent will help make people less ignorant. It may not change the world but it will sure change the narrow epistemological lens through which they view humanity.

Words of wisdom!

Research says 'Twice as many die' in Africa after surgery

According to research, patients undergoing surgery in Africa are more than twice as likely to die following an operation than the global average. The research also showed that globally, an average of 1% of patients die after surgery, but this number rises to 2.1% for patients in Africa.

The most common surgery is caesarean delivery, which accounts for 33% of operations.

A lack of human resources was one of the reasons for this.

This report is not shocking as many Africans already know this or have experienced several tragedies engendered by a lack of adequate healthcare services.

The problem is that Africans are aware of the problem but there is a lack of putting into action feasible solutions. We have all these beautiful and brilliant ideas but when it comes to implementation, it becomes impossible.

It is sad that a few elite has hijacked the resources. It is sad when we see Presidents, for example, the Nigerian President and the elite families travel abroad for medical attention but the poor masses lack adequate access to medical care or facilities. It is sickening to see children die from treatable diseases because of lack of funding. 

Culled from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-42565723