"Living in Abuja can be a fantastic experience. Commonly regarded as Nigeria's sole planned city, Abuja is a beauty to behold, with grandiose buildings, fantastic road networks and boulevards that make pleasurable commuting experience. Well manicured green areas spice the pleasure. The roads come alive under the lights at night. Stowed away in the nights are gardens and clubs to host fun seekers. Mega-chain stores adorn the city's corners to indulge shoppers (if you've got the naira) and cinemas for family relaxation. It is a city of affluence and you cannot miss the 'smell' of power in the air. The city is like a big construction site; it keeps changing and improving to achieve the original dream of a truly planned city.
The late Oronto Douglas is credited with the coinage – 'Abuja is city of sin.' There's money to be made and lots of openings to throw it into – sex, drugs and ostentatious living. For a landlocked city, without the riveting Lagos-type commerce – hustling and bustling and a people who never sleep, a lot of the money comes from corruption, mostly bribery, kickbacks, extortions, and diversions of government revenue. Politicians, super-civil servants, clergies, and NGOs sit atop stinking wealth. The real estate sector is one of the biggest recipients of these dirty monies. Palatial, opulent homes spring up at every corner of the metropolis. Estate developments follow in succession. But rather than crash, the costs of housing remain at the rooftop. Not even during the economic and financial crisis did housing prices crash in Abuja."
The vuvuzelas who drape their arms around El Rufai the bandit of Abuja should remember this each time they prop him up as a model of probity and accountability. The man is a common thief! And any one that applauds him is a thief also!
http://blogs.premiumtimesng.com/?p=168528
http://blogs.premiumtimesng.com/?p=168528
No comments:
Post a Comment