on moving forward
Dear Chinedum,
Thanx for your posting, please. I had earlier emailed Otive, Sam and Carol, demanding the issuance of the Conference's documents as a signpost of the way forward after March 21, through discussions on the serve. Carol responded pointing out that the triumvirate had done its bit and commendably (I totally agree with that view, not only did it take them much less than tor organise the Conference than the the time it seems to be taking for the results of the same Conference to come out (!); they also gave us an immediate synopsis of the meeting vide Otive's posting in less than 24 hours after). She referred me to the members of the Communique and Working paper drafting committees.
I forwarded the same email to the CDC (since I saw its task as preceding that of the Working Paper Committee's as at then). There was and has been no response whatsoever to this by any of the following that are its members: Boniface, Kenneth and Hilary.
My thinking has been: if the Conference had been an NGO event where there was the need to get back to donors in the citadel of imperialism, would we not have had the resolutions with press conferences at cosy hotels and video recordings to boot? Does ngoist mentality not make us place the dog in a state where it is being waged by the tail? Could the routine of our NGO (or is it 'CSO') work on this and that branches of a problem tree suffice while we neglect a project that seeks to address the root of this same tree by organizing for change?
I am actually perplexed but definitely will not stop demanding that the mountains be brought down, the valleys be filled and the crooked pathways be straightened or whatever it was Elizabeth's son was calling for in the wilderness, even if it costs me my head as well.
I do hope that my worst fears with the present state of our seeming concern or lack of it on moving forward -despite all hue and cry that are mere posturings of the contrary-, is not validated. I do hope that as you and others as well raise the cry for the issuance of these documents they will be released. After that again, I would also keep my fingers crossed that the same attitude and spirit which has made post-March 21 a drab, empty, fallow anti-climax (at least thus far...) will not bound us to further one step forward, two step backwards, parambulatory motion.
With this present state of things though, I am morally obliged to categorically and unequivocally tender a public apology to Kayode 'Sankara' Ogundamisi, Omolade Adunbi and Femi Ibrahim, the first two being friends and comrades for the last two decades (I never got to know if Femi Ibrahim is the same I met with Jaye at Kano in May 1991 or Femi Jadesola I met with Joel E, just a few years back...but that is besides the issue, really). While I do still stand by the principles of my engagement with these trio's skepticism, in general, I do think that they probably had a better appreciation of just how bad things have gone with the atrophying of our genuine readiness to fight for our rights and the future of our children. Thus far, your conclusions have been right and while even in my posting then, I foresaw such a possibility, I guess I had too much faith in our at least realizing just how endangered our community of fate is and that this if nothing else could be a fillip, to ensure that this beginning would not be just an abiku's short visit to the earth of organizations.
I still hope though Chinedum, I do. I hope that the conclusions I tend to be arriving at from what I now see (...or don't see), is controverted by subsequent developments. I will as well keep raising my voice in this light. Thus:
I DEMAND THE ISSUANCE OF THE COMMUNIQUE AND WORKING PAPER STEMMING FROM THE MARCH 21, CONFERENCE FORTHWITH AS A POINT OF DEPARTURE TO RE-BUILDING POPULAR FORCES FOR SOCIAL CHANGE IN NIGERIA!
Patriotic regards,
Baba Aye
___________________________________________________________________________
From: chinedum odenyi
Date: Friday, May 8, 2009, 4:29 PM
Baba,
As you know, I attended the March Meeting at Rockview. A communique Committee was set up. There were practical suggestions. I wonder why the Committee is keeping mum. Dr. Otive, Sam, Emma Ezeazu, Jaiye, Odemwigie, etc were the pilots of that day. Why cant we have an agregation of our resolutions put down in paper and debate our way forward from there? I remember Mr. Adeniyi speaking about holding government to account (a personal opinion, for sure) and Diego talking with such passion about everybody in Abuja getting to know who his counsellor was, and using the Area Council election in Abuja to test how far we want to change Nigeria for good. We must not necessarily contest. We could support good candidates.
The 56 who attended, yours truly included, are waiting for when the Communique is released and further action can be taken from there.
Regards.
Chinedum
Thanx for your posting, please. I had earlier emailed Otive, Sam and Carol, demanding the issuance of the Conference's documents as a signpost of the way forward after March 21, through discussions on the serve. Carol responded pointing out that the triumvirate had done its bit and commendably (I totally agree with that view, not only did it take them much less than tor organise the Conference than the the time it seems to be taking for the results of the same Conference to come out (!); they also gave us an immediate synopsis of the meeting vide Otive's posting in less than 24 hours after). She referred me to the members of the Communique and Working paper drafting committees.
I forwarded the same email to the CDC (since I saw its task as preceding that of the Working Paper Committee's as at then). There was and has been no response whatsoever to this by any of the following that are its members: Boniface, Kenneth and Hilary.
My thinking has been: if the Conference had been an NGO event where there was the need to get back to donors in the citadel of imperialism, would we not have had the resolutions with press conferences at cosy hotels and video recordings to boot? Does ngoist mentality not make us place the dog in a state where it is being waged by the tail? Could the routine of our NGO (or is it 'CSO') work on this and that branches of a problem tree suffice while we neglect a project that seeks to address the root of this same tree by organizing for change?
I am actually perplexed but definitely will not stop demanding that the mountains be brought down, the valleys be filled and the crooked pathways be straightened or whatever it was Elizabeth's son was calling for in the wilderness, even if it costs me my head as well.
I do hope that my worst fears with the present state of our seeming concern or lack of it on moving forward -despite all hue and cry that are mere posturings of the contrary-, is not validated. I do hope that as you and others as well raise the cry for the issuance of these documents they will be released. After that again, I would also keep my fingers crossed that the same attitude and spirit which has made post-March 21 a drab, empty, fallow anti-climax (at least thus far...) will not bound us to further one step forward, two step backwards, parambulatory motion.
With this present state of things though, I am morally obliged to categorically and unequivocally tender a public apology to Kayode 'Sankara' Ogundamisi, Omolade Adunbi and Femi Ibrahim, the first two being friends and comrades for the last two decades (I never got to know if Femi Ibrahim is the same I met with Jaye at Kano in May 1991 or Femi Jadesola I met with Joel E, just a few years back...but that is besides the issue, really). While I do still stand by the principles of my engagement with these trio's skepticism, in general, I do think that they probably had a better appreciation of just how bad things have gone with the atrophying of our genuine readiness to fight for our rights and the future of our children. Thus far, your conclusions have been right and while even in my posting then, I foresaw such a possibility, I guess I had too much faith in our at least realizing just how endangered our community of fate is and that this if nothing else could be a fillip, to ensure that this beginning would not be just an abiku's short visit to the earth of organizations.
I still hope though Chinedum, I do. I hope that the conclusions I tend to be arriving at from what I now see (...or don't see), is controverted by subsequent developments. I will as well keep raising my voice in this light. Thus:
I DEMAND THE ISSUANCE OF THE COMMUNIQUE AND WORKING PAPER STEMMING FROM THE MARCH 21, CONFERENCE FORTHWITH AS A POINT OF DEPARTURE TO RE-BUILDING POPULAR FORCES FOR SOCIAL CHANGE IN NIGERIA!
Patriotic regards,
Baba Aye
___________________________________________________________________________
From: chinedum odenyi
Date: Friday, May 8, 2009, 4:29 PM
Baba,
As you know, I attended the March Meeting at Rockview. A communique Committee was set up. There were practical suggestions. I wonder why the Committee is keeping mum. Dr. Otive, Sam, Emma Ezeazu, Jaiye, Odemwigie, etc were the pilots of that day. Why cant we have an agregation of our resolutions put down in paper and debate our way forward from there? I remember Mr. Adeniyi speaking about holding government to account (a personal opinion, for sure) and Diego talking with such passion about everybody in Abuja getting to know who his counsellor was, and using the Area Council election in Abuja to test how far we want to change Nigeria for good. We must not necessarily contest. We could support good candidates.
The 56 who attended, yours truly included, are waiting for when the Communique is released and further action can be taken from there.
Regards.
Chinedum
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