GADDAFI'S GAFFES (Abla Ungalski) - 2

I am not who I am“I am neither a politician nor a diplomat……”

Address to the Students of Oxford University on Africa in the 21st Century” May 16, 2007

I know who I am"I am an international leader, the dean of the Arab rulers, the king of kings of Africa and the imam of Muslims …"Arab League summit, March 2009

GADDAFI'S GAFFES (Abla Ungalski) - 1

You are Mute devils
“This is a cowardly, despicable world that is incapable of telling the truth. There are mute devils among the adherents of all sects and religions, and in all the nations and the peoples. They are all insignificant and despicable…”

Address to the Heads of Churches in Libya, some Ambassadors of “Friendly Countries”, Political, Religious and Cultural Figures in Libyan Society December 30, 2006

I am not a mute demon…
“He who does not declare the truth is a mute demon, and since nobody wants to be a mute demon, I felt it was my duty to meet with you…”
Address to the Heads of Churches in Libya, some Ambassadors of “Friendly Countries”, Political, Religious and Cultural Figures in Libyan Society December 30, 2006

Gaddafi's Gaffes by Abla Ungalski

I recently came across a book on Muammar Gaddafi written by one Abla Ungalski. The book, released in June 2011 and titled Gaddafi’s Gaffes is a small compilation of quotes from the Colonel’s speeches in different forums. The author did a good job of portraying the complex nature of the now-ousted Libyan president through his own words. For those who do not want to be bothered with long and complicated books on Gaddafi and his 42-year reign in Libya, this book gives the opportunity to have some clues on how Gaddafi managed to make himself a controversial figure.

I will run the book in the small series on this site, believing that the author will see this gesture as a kind of free advertisement and publicity for him.

Here is the introduction as written by the author:

"My interest in Muammar Gaddafi dates back to my childhood years.

We had just been introduced to the works of William Shakespeare in Junior Secondary School. This was a major discovery for our young minds, and I do remember that soon after, all Shakespeare’s works were borrowed out from the school library. I went to the library twice a day to find out if anyone had returned any of his works. No luck. I later found out that a list of potential borrowers of Shakespeare’s books had been created by the library. I added my name to the list. I was either 67th or 76th on the list. I cannot remember precisely. But such was our “thirst” to discover the world’s greatest writer. The school principal soon ordered more of Shakespeare’s books for the library. “The Merchant of Venice” was my first and this marked the beginning of a long journey into the literary world. I memorized many of the lines in the play. And indeed, though a bit fuzzy, I still remember Portia lines to Shylock to “temper justice with mercy” at the trial. My father later bought me a compilation of Shakespeare’s comedies rendered in narrative. In a space of about a year, I had read most of Shakespeare’s comedies either as plays or as narratives. I was thirteen years old.

Then, Colonel Muammar Gaddafi came into my life. I had never heard of Gaddafi before my encounter with him on the pages of a newspaper on one Sunday. The name Shakespeare in the title of the article caught my attention. I was always happy to read anything Shakespeare or anything about him. Any “new discovery” on the master was always something to share proudly with friends and classmates in school. We sought to outdo each other in our knowledge of Shakespeare. I settled down to read the article. Then Colonel Gaddafi rolled in and created what would be, at first doubts, and then a source of annoyance, incredulity and much later, laughter in my life. He claimed in the article that William Shakespeare’s real name was Sheikh Speare! Not only that, but also identified his place of birth as somewhere in Benghazi. Colonel claimed that Shakespeare was not born in Stratford upon Avon but in Benghazi. Sheikh Speare from Benghazi!

Could this be true? I asked myself as I read the article over and over again. Stratford upon Avon or Benghazi? Shakespeare or Sheikh Speare? English or Libyan? I did not know what to believe. There was no internet (at least for civilian use) at the time, so there could not have been Google or any other search engine. My father was my search engine. I waited for him to come back from his club. I showed my father the article on his arrival. He laughed and said “don’t let other people’s dreams become your nightmare. Gaddafi is a dreamer. He imagined it.” I was relieved. Not because Shakespeare turned out not to be an Arab, but because Colonel Gaddafi planted doubts in my young mind. “Can a universally accepted truth be a lie? And more so, is it possible for only one person to know that this truth is a lie?” One doubt leads to another, and in a young mind, the potential damage is without limits. I should say that I make a clear distinction between scientific curiosity and baseless spurious claims.

I became interested in Colonel Gaddafi. I read his speeches. I followed closely his ambition to coerce African States into United States of Africa, which I suspected he wanted to rule over. I followed his frustrations, his fears and his feeling of helplessness. I saw him over the years as a man of contradictions and I saw in him too, a man who kills “the thing he loves”[1]. He loves Libya passionately and is killing his country with his defiance.

Another interesting aspect of this man’s life that has intrigued me is his obsessive desire for universal recognition as a brilliant statesman, a world-class literary scholar, a political philosopher, a religious expert, a social analyst and reformist, an erudite lawyer, an eminent historian and world’s best president. He hungered and thirsted for recognition which the world would not give him. When persuasion failed, he sought to buy this recognition from Sub-Sahara Africa, which he considered the easiest target, by funding various projects in poor African countries. The Africans understood him and paid him lip service to obtain his funds to develop their countries. Over the years, he has seen his goal for recognition go up in smoke and frustration has crept in. His speech and comportment at the United Nations General Assembly in October 2009 can be interpreted as manifestations of his frustrations. Contrary to the way he has dreamt to be perceived by the world, many see him as an eccentric, unpredictable, unreliable and moody ruler of an Arab Nation. This probably hurts him more than the demand on him to quit after more than forty years in power in Libya.

Describing Colonel Gaddafi is a great task. Understanding his thought process is even more daunting.

I leave the readers to judge."

What matters most is how you see yourself !

What matters most is the way you see yourself !

N'importe quoi 2: Goats in Prison in DRC and in Nigeria!

In the Democratic Republic of C0ngo

A minister in the Democratic Republic of Congo has ordered a Kinshasa jail to release a dozen goats, which he said were being held there illegally. Deputy Justice Minister Claude Nyamugabo said he found the goats just in time during a routine jail visit.

The beasts were due to appear in court, charged with being sold illegally by the roadside.
The minister said many police had serious gaps in their knowledge and they would be sent for retraining.

Mr Nyamugabo was conducting a routine visit to the prison when, he said, he was astonished to discover not only humans, but a herd of goats crammed into a prison cell in the capital. He has blamed the police for the incident.

It is not clear what will happen to the owners of the goats, who have also been imprisoned.
BBC Africa analyst Mary Harper says that given the grim state of prisons in Congo, the goats will doubtless be relieved about being spared a trial.

There was no word on what their punishment would have been, had they been found guilty
BBC 10th September 2008


In Nigeria
MR. Cheche Kalu Orji, the Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Zamfara State, says he is tired of errant goats that are making the highway unsafe for motorists and will soon begin to punish them.

According to a report, the Zamfara FRSC sector commander had promised to start arresting stray goats and other animals roaming the streets of Zamfara State. His intention about the animals was clear: They would be clamped into detention.

According to Mr. Orji: “These animals pose serious problems to motorists and we have resolved to arrest them anytime our men see them without any escort…”
Nigerian Tribune, 17th September 2008

Beneficiary Fatigue

For a myriad of reasons, political, economic or beneficiary refractiveness, the term “donor fatigue” was invented by donors and development aid agencies to convey their frustration at the slow pace of change or no change at all in their beneficiary countries and communities. They do not see the changes they have planned for, and many times, development plans from air-conditioned conference rooms do not survive either in the dust of the Sahel or in the humid heat of the coast. A seasoned development worker once said “the developers and their “beneficiaries” of development surgery simply see the same problems from different, sometimes opposing angles, but the beneficiaries tag along dutifully, but doing their own thing.” Then fatigue sets in. In order to relieve the fatigue and justify their continued “reluctant” support of “recalcitrant” beneficiaries, long term impacts have been nudged aside for in-depth inputs analysis, process emphasis and “lessons learnt” digressionism. And the beneficiaries have gotten wiser too. Better access to information on the politics and economics of development aid has changed the views of educated people and opinion leaders in beneficiary countries. Development aid donors and practitioners are seen as having a hidden agenda and are accused of self-satisfying and self-aggrandizing pseudo-samaritanism..

The beneficiary side of development aid harbors a growing disenchanted middle class, a cynical political class and a disillusioned rural and urban-ghetto populace. Illiterate beneficiary communities in particular, have become disillusioned with little or no impact on the quality of their lives, despite lofty declarations of donors and aid agencies over the years. These communities equate aid practitioners’ samaritanic declarations to mere intentions for which they have learnt to understand and accept their inability to hold the practitioners accountable. They have learnt to develop thick skin to “participatory approach” entreaties, and when they give their reluctant consent, they also have their own hidden agenda. The beneficiaries at all levels have found reasons not to commit more than self-serving placatory involvement and indeed to also claim fatigue.

Both donors/agencies and their beneficiaries have reasons for “fatigue.” The challenge and the way forward for both is to redefine their relationship on the template of good governance, absolute transparency, honesty and mutual trust.

Funny 1 - When Blair blared in his previous life

Cannot remember where I got this from. It makes me laugh each time I see it...Oh Tony!

N'importe quoi 1 - Gadaffi and Black Africans

This was reported by the BBC and other media outlets in 2010.

Libyan leader Col Muammar Gaddafi says the EU should pay Libya at least 5bn euros (£4bn; $6.3bn) a year to stop illegal African immigration and avoid a "black Europe".

Speaking on a visit to Italy, Col Gaddafi said Europe "could turn into Africa" as "there are millions of Africans who want to come in".

“We don't know... what will be the reaction of the white and Christian Europeans faced with this influx of starving and ignorant Africans”

"Tomorrow Europe might no longer be European, and may even be black, as there are millions who want to come in," said Col Gaddafi, quoted by the AFP news agency.

Now hounded by his "friends", this man that calls black Africans ignorant and starving is looking desperately for help from those he despises - his subjects during his reign as the "King of Kings". Let him face his demons all alone.

From my Scrap books

Over the years, I have created electronic scrapbooks from articles, pictures and features that appeal to me from different internet sources. Some of these articles are simply hilarious (those are my favorites), some too serious (difficult to grasp at the first read) and the others can easily pass for children’s stories (I adore those ones too). On the advice of a friend, who recently read one of my uncompleted articles and saw some notes from one of my scrap books, I decided to gradually post these items on my site.

No doubts, the original source will be credited and acknowledged. I will add my comments in blue font to each article posted. I debated with myself whether or not to classify the documents, and if yes, how do I classify them. I have chosen to classify the documents in these categories: Serious, Funny, N’importe quoi.

“N’importe quoi” (pronounced nimporti kua), a French phrase that means "anything", but this meaning has been abandoned and “N’importe quoi” has become a phrase that is now commonly used in French to express disgust. When used in this sense, it translates roughly in English to "nonsense", "rubbish" or "ridiculous". However, none of these English words really expresses or catches the depth of this phrase and the beauty of its expression.

“N’importe quoi”! I have so much fallen in love with this phrase, that a near future project of mine is to create a website called…..you guessed right! - “n’importe_quoi.com”, where I will gladly create free e-mail addresses for politicians who shirk their duties, who are corrupt, who commit outrageous mistakes and those who speak first and think later. For example: mailto:name%20of%20politician@n
You can try this with the name of your president or a politician in your area. Slot in the internet identification letters of your country. It is fun!

E-mails sent to these addresses by readers, victims of the politicians and observers will then be collected in a small book and sent as a gift to the erring politician. Maybe they will sit up when they read their history live!

If you have true events and stories that you want me to consider for the “N’importe quoi” category, send it to this e-mail address: nimportikua@hotmail.com.

Centenary of Misrule: Living the Legacy By Abimbola Lagunju

There is a Yoruba proverb that says if the wrapping leaves of a piece of soap are left for too long on the soap, the leaves turn into soap. A very apt proverb for the Nigerian existential experience in the un-abating atmosphere of misgovernance that has dogged this country since 1914. But for a few gruntlers, who, as soon as they shout foul are silenced with a Russian salad of plum appointments and loads of cash in all possible colours, we, the masses have learnt to accept failure of governance as a norm. Our norm. Misgovernance permeates every aspect of the Nigerian life. Homes, communities, schools, hospitals, government and religious ministries, banks, companies local and foreign, embassies etc. all revel and thrive in the most atavistic human instinct of survival of the fittest. No rules, even in the era of rule of law. For Nigeria, it has always been law of Rulers. The masses, who take hard knocks from the wooden rulers in the misguided hands of our Rulers, only have themselves to blame for their coconut heads. In short we are and have always been victims of social Darwinism. Social Darwinists (Herbert Spencer, Andrew Carnegie, William Graham Sumner), and their theory (now of blessed extinction on saner shores) argued that social existence was a struggle among individuals with different capacities and traits. The better the traits the more the chances for success and wealth; and those with less capacity and weaker traits became poor. Graham Sumner pushed it further by claiming that “it is not the function of the State to make men happy”. This odious social theory has been consigned to the dustbin of history and replaced with saner social policy by many countries of the world. Nigeria is not on the list of these countries. In fact it appears that Nigeria has decidedly embarked on a continuous exercise of reinvention and re-engineering of social Darwinism.

Ninety-five years (since Lugard) of misrule in different shades of colour, modes of dresses, ideologies, religions and constitutions is a very long time. Our Rulers have faithfully kept the banner of misrule flying. The legacy of misrule is being passed on from generation to generation of Rulers, each adding a new standard to surpass his predecessor. And the once virgin leaves of the masses are turning into this perfidious soap. We have no reference in our history for good governance. Scratch the veneer off our celebrated heroes and see what lies underneath. And because we know this, and cannot do anything about it, we are unconsciously metamorphosing from our state of submission into a copycat state. We copy misrule. We thrive in misrule. We worship misrule. We practice misrule in our homes, neighbourhoods, places of work, in the streets, places of worship and indeed everywhere. We have learnt to become vicious miniature Rulers; practitioners of social Darwinism. Everyone oppresses anyone oppress-able. The gateman of a company in his cubicle rules without the rule of law, policemen with one or two stripes rule the streets, cashiers rule the banks, secretaries reign supreme in the outer office, and messengers are kings who disappear files at will. These small Rulers will in turn be ruled and oppressed by their immediate bosses, who will then be oppressed by their bosses and the chain of oppression moves up the ladder. Haven’t you ever seen a special adviser to a governor or a councilor behaving like a mini-god? You think I am generalizing? Let him without sin cast the first stone. Think hard before you pick the stone though.

Nigerians have learnt to revere the legacy of misrule in all spheres of our life. We do not question the sanity of what has been handed over to us. Indeed we flaunt our deep knowledge of the legacy in courts, in the streets and even in distant lands. See the way our Traditional Rulers wrestle with each other in courts either over small border disputes or who should wear a beaded crown and who should not among them. And what documents of reference do our learned lawyers use to prove their points in these strictly traditional cases in courts? Documents handed over by the colonialists who misruled us and who twisted our logical order of reasoning. And our hallowed judges go on to rule on the basis of these same documents. No questions as to the sanity of who wrote the document in the first instance, neither are questions asked about the motives of the colonial administrator who wrote the document and worse still is that our over-learned compatriots do not even bother to ask themselves the relevance of these documents to our condition and existence. Suffice that it has been written by a warped colonial mind, it becomes sacrosanct in the hands of our learned citizens.

We cherish documents, good or bad. We worship any document written in the guise of a policy by anyone (with superior traits) who manages to get to sit on the throne of our nation. It does not matter if the ‘policy document’ out-rightly denies us of all rights; it is sacred if it is written. We are dead scared to think of making changes that will save our lives and enhance the quality of our existence. We are even more scared to throw out the document along with its author into the dustbin of best forgotten history of our nation and come up with something else. Nigerians live this fear in the macro and microcosms of our daily existence. At the national level, we are scared of touching the military 1999 constitution. We cannot amend it, we cannot change it and thinking of throwing it away altogether is a nightmare scenario. At the state level, we brandish about with pride despicable edicts of military governors and administrators some of whose names we have even forgotten.

“It is not the function of the State to make men happy”! If people want to be happy, they must do something about it individually or collectively, but they must not expect anything from our nation state. The State represented by the Rulers abdicates its responsibility and declares itself to be on a long, probably permanent vacation. Nigerians have learnt to live this, but it beats all sense of decency when this State on vacation imposes the responsibility which it has abdicated on the citizens through an edict. The State asks the citizens to carry out its obligation while it is away on holidays! One Mr. Chinyere Ike Nwosu, a one-time Military Ruler of Oyo State made an edict in December 1995 called “Mobilization of Community Development Committees Amendment Edict” through which he ordered the citizens of Oyo State to “contribute financially for the sustenance of vigilante groups and execution of projects embarked upon by the Community Development Committees to safeguard security of their neighbourhoods”! In a most outrageous display of ignorance of the responsibility and functions of a State, this Ruler went on to impose sanctions against non complying landlords and tenants: “A landlord or tenant who unreasonably refuses or fails or neglects to pay an amount fixed by his ward as his contribution for the sustenance of the vigilante group or for the execution of a particular project to safeguard security of his ward shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable to a fine of 200 Naira for the first offence and a fine of 400 Naira or a term of imprisonment of two months for a subsequent offence….” This document, written in the twentieth century conjures up in one’s mind a pre-historic state of nature where there is no structure, no state, no police and where small group of individuals with clubs in hands come together for their collective security. The document was rightly sent to the dustbin of aberration and forgotten when the Ruler left.

About fourteen years later, a group of well-meaning landlords somewhere in Oyo State exhumed the Edict and circulated it in their neighbourhood. They will like defaulting landlords to pay up their dues, and having run out of ideas to get these recalcitrant landlords to take up the responsibility given to them by the holidaying State, they resurrected the Edict. The soap of misrule has permeated the virgin leaves of our psyche. I am sure these bright landlords can do better than wavering about a despicable testament of misgovernance and ignorance of the role of a modern State.

As we all prepare for the centenary (1914-2014) of misrule in our nation, I will like to remind our different rulers, small and big, that there is another African proverb that says no matter how long a log of wood stays in water, it will never turn into a crocodile.

I am Not who I am By Abimbola Lagunju

I remember the hesitation,
my yet unanswered question,
“To be or not to be”, and on
which side of infant statistics to stand:
Infant mortality or Child survival.
An undecided lone voter,
curious, but afraid of their world,
their calendar of
Six hundred and sixty six days crammed into a year.

Someone decided for me,
I heard shots, hormonal shots from
glandular guns assisted by syringe-propelled grenades,
Boom…..boom,
I scampered for safety;
A rough hand, un- tempered by latex gloves
pulled on my head, hard.
They said to cross the bridge before the dam broke
and save me from myself....

Taken into cephalic bondage,
I take anything, I agree to everything.
When I ask questions, minor questions,
I am silenced with a cocktail of glucose,
to hyper the minority hypo, they say.

Fed on stabiliser E334, emulsifier B654,
low fat, cholesterol-poor, sugar-free, carbohydrate-starved,
CFC-safe, low-tar, high-fibre, caffeine free, nicotine high,
electron-free, atom-rich, tall and short molecules’ diet,
I AM
a walking multinational (quoted on the stock exchange), where
oxidizing agents work for reducing companies.
I AM the malleable concrete
of wired organics stranded on inorganic DNAs
conditioned to conform,
bribed with genetically modified dreams.

Will God recognize His creature,
this new me, reinvented by competition,
pushed to the edge by profit margins, and
driven out of Eden by market forces ?

I AM certainly not who I AM.