We can be angels with and of change

A scarcity of loose change

To the many disadvantaged and destitute in my city, I can only imagine how the pandemic and technological advancements have affected them. For instance, I used to have some change in pound coins or lesser value coins in my pocket somewhere that I could give when asked for some help.

I can think of the many times that I have not been able to give any change nor had the immediate means to collect and handle money physically. Everything is now done electronically either online or through contactless payments.

There was a time I was approached by one man who said he needed something to eat, I was just passing by a fish & chip shop, so, having my mobile phone that could complete a transaction, I put in an order for a meal and drink, paid for it and told him to collect when done. It probably is easier to just ask before I go into a supermarket if someone needs anything, and I get it for them, with a little extra.

Not much change for many

It is the little one can do because even the charities and social services are stretched, they almost always do not have enough places, beds, supplies or the essentials to meet the demands, and even if the supplicants did qualify many have to go through too many hurdles that humiliate and dehumanise them to get the bare necessities, if at all.

Direct help in my view is useful, if anything, it reminds us all, that we have the poor amongst us and that the milk of human kindness and angelic provision still exists in our tough times and tougher, if sometimes, indifferent society. I have purposed not just to give change, but to give money that can do something, to get a meal or a bed for the night, sometimes even more.

Change given without any judgement

Leaving church earlier, I was accosted by someone who wanted money for a meal, I could not even imagine if he had had a meal recently, but I had a monetary note in my wallet and as I was trying to get it, he went on about him only needing it for food, not for drugs or for alcohol. It is that person's prerogative what they use the money I give them for. Obviously, I would rather they applied to use and care rather than abuse, but that is left to them.

As I gave him the money, I told him, I am not here to judge you. It is an evolving lesson of maturing, if I dare, some empathy, that I would constantly entertain, I do not want to stand in judgement because I have means, opportunity, or privilege.

I know what it is to fall on hard times and I am grateful for all those who pulled me through those almost impossible circumstances, I have been blessed abundantly beyond words I can find to express, the much that I have enjoyed.

Give more than just change

Further down the road, a lady smiled at me from under her sleeping bag in the doorway of a building on one of main shopping streets and I determined to do something about that brief encounter, for I smiled back.

I walked up the road to find an automatic teller machine (ATM) and there were none for a good stretch of what is a commercial street. Banks are closing and removing the heretofore ubiquitous ATMs that they are becoming quite scarce to find. I had committed in my intentions to give her something, so, I walked back on myself to find an ATM, even that had a notice that it would be removed in just over 3 weeks.

That would mean that for most of the length of Deansgate in Manchester, there would be no ATMs, how and why that is allowed to happen is perturbing and disconcerting.

We are angels of change

However, I did get some money and walked back up to the lady and gave it to her. I probably should cultivate another thing; the habit of conversation and learning more about the people I have helped, for they all have a human story that I am usually disinterested in.

There is gratitude and uncertainty that crosses their faces, they cannot believe the generosity in the first place and wonder if I am sure I want to give them whatever I have given. I understand their plight, but I assure them, in the worst-case scenario, they have been visited by an angel. That seems to assure them, for whether we acknowledge it or not, we all seem to believe in angels, and that my friends, is a very good thing.

Coronavirus streets in Cape Town - LI

Rich as could be seen

A Bentley coupe was about to turn into the road in front of me and at the steering wheel was a man with the gentility of rich sophistication, he could have used an eau de Cologne of crisp new currency notes, that he might be described as stinking rich.

It was the highly understated art of making a statement, nothing showy, yet to the eye unmistakably posh. To all appearances on his way from one place to another, not in a rush or hurry to get anywhere.

Poor as could be warmed

A man in a wheelchair, just out of the way on a wide pavement minding his own business and a stranger wraps a jacket around him, a gift, from an angel, a present it was, and sounds of gratitude rent the morning air as one good deed brings warmth and a new lesson of our common humanity.

For on these streets, destitution resides like it has been here a long time with title deeds and not leaving anytime soon. For one man crossed the main road to pick up a discarded used face mask which he then puts on, I cannot tell if he had to, to access premises demanding that precautionary measure. I make a mental note to always have spare face masks on my person.

Needs as could be met

A lady gestures to me, mumbling something incomprehensible even as the message of need cannot be misunderstood. I dip in my pocket and produce a high-value note that I hand to her. She bursts into tears. I do not wait to comfort her, but I pray a silent prayer that we all find places to shed the tears of thankfulness.

We live to give blessings, we belong to one another, for the lack in one is a slack that affects all, even the advice that we contribute to charities does not seem to affect or touch the people me meet on our streets seeking a basic handout for food and sustenance. The pretence of a safety net being available to help assuage our sense of guilt and duty is all that, a pretence because if it did go far, we probably would rarely have such encounters.

Where shall we put our hope?

In plenty and in poverty

There is no doubt that we love Cape Town, but we visit a city of stark contrasts. The opportunities and privileges we have brings into a Cape Town of luxury, of access, of comfort and a relative sense of safety and security.

Yet, around the hotel where we are staying, we cannot miss or ignore another face of Cape Town, not so much that of the poor, but one of the destitute. I differentiate between the poor and the destitute from a personal viewpoint of the poor having shelter and sustenance, those who have basic needs met, but are stretched to consider wants.

In the case of the destitute, they have no shelter or live in makeshift settings prone to changes in nature and the abuse of authority figures, they cannot determine when or where their next meal will come from. Some are in threadbare clothes and probably have no access to basic cleaning facilities.

Great policy minds required

The other day, I walked into a convenience store and I was accosted by two people, not for money, but things, I acquiesced and by the time I was paying, there was milk formula, baby diapers, soft drinks and basic foodstuffs at the checkout. One of the men, knelt in thanks, I was quite embarrassed as I asked him to get up.

It was an opportunity for them, and for me, there was both the means and opportunity to affect a situation, though, it was nowhere near the solution. There are no easy answers to the poverty and destitution issue in South Africa. You can’t even begin to think of jobs before you have installed a kind of welfare system to make these people suitable for any work environment and this is if they have the skills required to do the jobs.

Either way, there would have to be some poor laws and institutions for the poor to give them a sense of human dignity to raise them to some kind of opportunity. It would take some creative and inspired policy-making to address the destitution problem and this would should be different from policies to address basic poverty, accommodation, access to services and the broader unemployment issues with the matter of giving the majority the skills to exploit opportunities that arise.

Is there hope for the many?

Another cohort is the pre-teen street kids, in any progressive society, these kids should be in school and cared for by responsible adults in some setting. I fear residential institutions because of histories of physical and sexual abuse. However, society does owe these unfortunate young members the possibility of a bright future. This requires selfless humanitarian work for which the government should be a major sponsor and supporter.

There is much that ails South Africa, not everyone has a voice or one that must be heard and acted upon. This especially for the poor and destitute for whom the wasted Jacob Zuma years and the preoccupation with the state capture machinations have left them further behind than humanity should countenance for much longer.

We who come to appreciate the beauty of South Africa do contribute to the growth of the economy, but we are not the answer to the question that many South Africans have been asking since 1994. Where shall we put our hope?

Courtesy of the William Kentridge exhibition at Zeitz MOCAA, Cape Town.

In the aftermath of Grenfell Tower

From that fateful night in June,
And the days that followed that conflagration,
Nary a tower block that I see,
Fills with the angst of the souls therein,
For in the other was the struggle and fight,
Against the rigid and established order,
That bullied and threatened,
Those who spoke and wrote of foreboding disaster,
The indifference of officialdom was palpable,
As the double-barrelled named,
Could hardly be bothered,
At the shrieking of the poorer,
In a borough of the stupendously rich,
To wit, they sought to beautify,
The Babel of today,
They spent pounds and saved pennies,
With cladding that offered skin-deep beauty,
Low in the building on that night,
A fire started that should not have spread,
But like tinder, the cladding lit,
And a ladder it became for the fire to climb,
To the top, the flames did race,
In the building, the victims did panic,
Many in flat and stairwells trapped,
As they succumbed to fumes and smoke,
By the time we knew what had happened,
Over four score souls had perished,
The councillors with their tin ears,
Ignored the tragedy as they had ignored the residents,
She of whom was spoken of as strong and stable,
Lacked the paps for care and compassion,
Scurrying she raced from the heart of the matter,
As selfless neighbours showed great humanity,
In it, we saw the great divide,
That had become an unbridgeable cavern,
Between the have-nots and have yachts,
Our unequal society indicted and convicted,
Which makes me constantly wonder,
When I see a tower teeming with life,
Do they all sleep in there safe and sound?
Knowing that from disaster they can flee,
If an ugly day does come like in June,
Where many in the edifice of mock-beauty,
Were cruelly and atrociously cremated alive,
Because someone somewhere did not care,
About life and livelihood that brings no profit,
To their selfish political aims,
In my city, I see many a tower,
Stripped of the panels of superfluity,
Revealing the raw underbelly,
That might well save a life or two,
As we find in many tests conducted,
All around the land and abroad,
That the safety we took for granted,
Was a standing crematorium,
We must not rest on this matter,
Until the culpable and accessory,
That conspired in this murderous enterprise,
See the sternest face of the law,
Even after that is done,
It would never really be,
Justice for the victims of Grenfell Tower.

The UK: In a country where the poor are roasted for the privileged

The ringing question

"What does it take to get the voice of the poor in this country heard?" A member of the audience at the BBC Question Time broadcast on Thursday the 16^th of June 2017.

On the 14^th of July, Grenfell Tower, an apartment block of 24 storeys was reported to be on fire around 1:00 AM, what was shocking was the rapidity with which the fire spread with resulting fatalities that could rise to over 100. [Grenfell Tower fire - Wikipedia]

What made this fire and tragedy more shocking was the fact that the tower block residents, the Grenfell Action Group had been complaining and agitating about fire safety and hazards from as far back as 2013. [Grenfell Action Group]

Money for style over safety

In recent years, a £8.7 million refit was done to the apartment block, completed in 2016, the activity included a suspected accelerant cladding that is banned in Germany and the United States of America, which might give a lie to the idea that our building safety regulations are worth the paper they are written on.

The refit which could have included fitting in a sprinkler system at the cost of £138,000 was not done, invariably putting aesthetics above the safety of human life.

It goes without saying that a whole institutional framework in the British establishment involving council apparatchiks, councillors, mayors and ministers are responsible for not learning lessons of the past, ignoring pertinent concerns, sitting on reports and recommendations that should have been expedited and implementing stringent cuts in the relentless pursuit of cutting the deficit at the expense of the human lives of the poor considered insignificant, irritant and irrelevant to their absurdly greater purpose and goals.

Mining for a forced-upon humanity

When the Prime Minister visited the scene of the tragedy yesterday, it failed to occur to her that leadership includes taking the brickbats whilst being there to offer succour, sympathy, comfort, empathy and assurances to the victims. She failed to use her humanity and the opprobrium that resulted after other leading politicians and senior royalty visited and interacted with the people has forced her to find the smidgen of compassion eked out with duress.

It goes without saying that Theresa May has lost the moral right to be the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Despite her remedially late actions, if at the first opportunity the Prime Minister of this great country could not for whatever reason meet with victims of an entirely avoidable tragedy exacerbated by some member of her cabinet, she by all terms cannot then aver that she has the authority to negotiate Brexit on our behalf.

The matter is about humanity, it is political, it is social, it is economic, it is about government, it is about caring, it is about a more equal society and for the unfortunate souls lost in the Grenfell Tower fire, it is the realisation that no one thought they mattered until the clamour for justice has forced the cossetted and comfortable political class to feign a sense of empathy with the poor who normally wield very little power and rarely have their voices heard.

The poor left to rot

In the last 7 years, the changes in society security entitlements, the outsourcing of eligibility criteria to death panels with a profit motive, the cuts to public services, the starving of the National Health Service to ready the institution for a fire sale to the moneyed classes, the dearth of buildings and accommodation for the working classes and the favouring of the rich over the poor in terms of access and policy initiatives has been a race to the bottom that has widened the chasm between the rich and the poor to an unbridgeable existence.

We have a democracy in name only that in its reality is the government of the people, by the few for the fewer still.

That is why the question at the beginning of this blog needs asking, “What does it take to get the voice of the poor in this country heard?”

Hold them criminally responsible

The blood of the innocently shed out of indifference, disinterest, the lack of consideration and concern revelling in institutional inhumanity shall be visited on the heads of all those responsible. Nothing but a criminal prosecution of the whole chain of responsibility that allowed the Grenfell Tower tragedy would be adequate justice.

Meanwhile, the need to expedite action to rehouse the victims and find means of ameliorating compensation for them must be the most urgent consideration. It is shocking that in the 5^th largest economy in the world we suffered such a display of the dereliction of duty to our poor as if we were in some lawless and chaotic Bantustan.

No, I do not think the government have nearly begun to feel the aggrieved sense of injustice and anger from the people, that they presided over this atrocity must be a blot on their records, recorded for posterity without the mercy of sophistry. These leaders who engage with soundbite are completely out of touch with our reality. Send them packing forthwith.

UK Elections 2015: A depressing prospect

On our fears

This election season is the first in the UK I have participated in since Tony Blair won with a landslide in 1997.

Having read manifestos, watched debates and reviewed all sorts of analyses and permutations, I have never felt as downcast about leadership quests in the UK as with the lot shopping for my votes.

Yet, having been on the sharp end of things in terms of moving back to the UK and finding no support systems for reintegration, the inscrutable hurdles into the welfare system for being out of work or being homeless; the policy framework that dehumanised me and many others with stories too harrowing for words demands change.

On our tears

There is no doubt in my mind even with the financial prudence of the Tory Party and the moderating influence of the Liberal Democrats, the Tories have to go. For the deficit, if it is the poor, the jobless and the everyday man that have suffered the most. The rich have been protected from most of the fallout.

The Tories continued the atrocity of privatising profits and socialising the debts. They sold off the commonwealth for a song whilst the big corporations cashed in with little sweat for the humongous rewards.

Oh my dears

The alternative; the Labour Party is bearable, but if they fail to win a comfortable majority, a possible coalition or arrangement with the Scottish National Party spells doom to just over 300 years of the union of Great Britain which comprises England, Scotland and Wales.

These political robots have no soul, no persuasion and no conviction, they are in perpetual soundbite spewing party points like clowns in a circus, and it is so depressing.

Never has a country in need of a vision to maintain hard-won relevance been at the mercy of men with no depth in experience or humanity, talk less of compassion.

Nigeria: Mrs Joy Ifije, the widow, visits Governor Oshiomhole

As things turn

On Saturday, I wrote, Nigeria: How Humanity Lost Oshiomhole and Gained a Widow and waited to see how things would pan out. The concerns in that blog remain valid much as the governor has now addressed the particular; the general is in need of action too.

Probably, the consensus is that Adams Oshiomhole, the Edo State governor, has dramatically redeemed himself after the video of the excoriation of the widow on Benin-City streets where he told her to, “Go and die!”

The widow, Mrs Joy Ifije was sought out by the governor, and after extraneous attempts to justify his intemperate expression, employed her as an activist for the cause of chasing street hawkers off the roads, presented he with a large brown parcel of cash totally NGN 2 million ($12,620) and a scholarship for her son.

The governor’s advice was that she put it first in the bank and eventually use it to setup shop to trade on legal trading premises – it would appear all’s well, ends well.

The viral video did it

However, if we must review this situation properly, the event where the Mrs Joy Ifije was dehumanised was recorded over a fortnight ago, but the video when viral last week, the consequences of which must have forced the governor to address a serious public relations gaffe.

The governor himself said his daughters had asked him to attend to the issue too, it had become too much of an embarrassment as some even found to make political capital out of her misery to doubly embarrass the governor.

Walk a mile in her shoes

Much as one cannot suggest that beyond the direct apology to Mrs Joy Ifije, the compensation she got was state money, some Utopian idealists would have preferred she spurn the governor and reject his gift.

My answer to them was that they walk a mile in Mrs Joy Ifije’s shoes and it is very probable that from their gilded cages of privilege and opportunity they would never have understood to any degree the situation of her widowhood. That, along with the pressures to meet the needs of her immediate family and other societal demands that placed her in the situation she found herself in the first encounter with the governor.

Sadly, some were keen to limit the outpouring of goodwill and sympathy that followed the publication of that video to make the point of ridiculing the governor whilst for a second time making an example of Mrs Joy Ifije.

For the greater social good

There is the particular of what happened between the governor and the widow and there is the general of what the social consequences of driving street hawkers off the roads without providing safe, adequate, affordable or subsidised trading places for their wares.

Street hawking is the source of many livelihoods, people resort to this because they cannot access the formal market areas for many reasons too many to mention. It is unlikely that any would resort to the streets if they had the means to rent market stall spaces and fill those stores with wares and goods to ensure the business thrives beyond breaking even to profitability.

That should become the bigger welfarist goal of the governor.

A wonderful change has come for her

Nevertheless, one thing must not be lost on us, the fact that if that video did not go viral, it is unlikely Mrs Joy Ifije’s circumstances would have been altered.

Certain eagle-eyed observers noted that Mrs Joy Ifije did not seem to have changed her clothes from her first encounter; one cannot read too much into that as much as it probably tells a deeper story of her situation.

We can only hope that what she got along with other generous contributions will put her on the right path to sufficiency and success. Along with the two children who accompanied her, I wish her the very best and that her sorrows and hardships become things of a long distant memory.

Much as Adams Oshiomhole appears to have acquitted himself well in being responsive and understanding of his unfortunate folly, it is yet to be seen if whether on or off record, after he became governor he was ever a nicer man than what obtain in the “Go and die!” video – time will tell.

Nigeria: How Humanity Lost Oshiomhole and Gained a Widow

The global theatre of local events

The Edo State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole, a one-time trader unionist took the opportunity to visit the streets of his entire to chase away street traders as per the law of the land. [Wikipedia]

One encounter became the theatre of a video recording where a widow in flailing and very pitiable supplication appealed to the humanity and consideration of the governor, but he ignored her. [Sahara Reporters - YouTube]

Just so cruel

To compound her humiliation and denigration with the knowledge of her somewhat dire or desperate circumstances, the governor in full strut of princely omnipotence flippantly told her to, “Go and die”, as her wares were grabbed by the egregious thuggery of the law enforcement agents that accompanied the governor.

We can all appreciate that the Edo State Government wants to rid the streets of hawkers, and they have identified that they are an accident risk, but in a case of giving the dog a bad name to justify harming it; stret hawkers have been maligned as thieves, vermin and obstructions to the free flow of traffic. [Edo State Government]

What the government has not identified in their assailing on the underprivileged who subsist on chance encounter of custom for their livelihood is alternative, affordable, safe and subsidised hawking areas or premises they can move these people into, if they really want to address a menace. [Edo State Government]

Cart before the horse

In 2009, these street traders were given a two-day ultimatum to clear off the streets as if there would be no social consequence for legitimising destitution in the name of beautifying and cleaning up the main city centres.

One can posit that the real menace of theft, obstruction and crime will increase if people do not have the means to earn a livelihood in the absence of jobs, have affordable places to trade, have the absence of welfare support or have no new or sponsored means of alternative engagement of their skills and idle labour.

It beggars belief that a man who cut his teeth on labour and trade unionist activity will now be the nemesis of the underprivileged, and that is a great shame.

The act of street trading is a crime that should be stopped. According to section 53(1c) of the State Environment Waste Management Board regulation of 2006, any individual who sets up a stall or a trading spot in an unauthorized area has committed an offence which is punishable in the court of law and for those street traders who specialize in the sales of audio and visual compact discs, who blare their music as a way of advertising their goods, section 51(1) states that no equipment or facility capable of producing noise above 85 decibels should be used by any individual for more than four hours a day, this makes them also liable to the law. [Edo State Government]

Breaking laws through law enforcement

Now, if street trading has been criminalised and such persons have been identified as committing an offence, the law requires that the offender be punished in a court of law.

It is understood that the Governor as the chief law officer of the state should be seen to uphold the law, but nothing in that video demonstrates that he was doing anything of the sort.

The widow had her goods confiscated and the Governor could be heard saying she should not be taken away; by inference the widow was not going to be charged to court.

Now, as the Executive Governor, it is possible that the governor had arrogated to himself the powers of a court and in that encounter constituted a kangaroo court to be the judge and the jury of the woman. Thereby exercising the power to proscribe, to excoriate and to punish, but that would add the licence of egregious impunity to the immunity from prosecution the governor already enjoys as a constitutional right when in office.

One engagement did suggest in our discussion on Twitter that the widow was deploying the fallacy of argumentum ad misericordiam, the appeal to pity, but if this issue did end up in court, the mitigation pleas to the judge will deploy this fallacy to temper justice with mercy.

Regret is not apology

We should be human beings first before we find the weak to sacrifice on the altar of proving potency and ability to rule with an iron fist.

Adams Oshiomhole, by design and for the opportunity went on a public law enforcement raid of the street traders to make an example of someone, but providence and circumstance of the person of a widow, her pleadings, his intemperance, the recording and the viral reach of the event as he stood as unconstitutional judge seems to have backfired.

He has expressed regret at his choice of words, but that does not constitute an apology to the woman he treated with the most reprehensible disdain. Even criminals, but in this case, until charged, she was still a suspect, have rights and the least that can be expected of a person in authority like the governor is to treat any Nigerian citizen, no matter how lowly with respect, dignity and courtesy – that is just basic humanity. [DailyPost]

How revolutions are triggered

Many viewers of that video were touched by the plight of the widow and were utterly repulsed by the lack of comportment of the governor that she might well be helped by funds being raised for her cause – there is no saying that she might become a figurehead against the egregious abuse of power and privilege of the Nigerian ruling class. [Nigerian Tribune]

The Arab Spring was set off by the mistreatment of Mohammed Bouazizi, a street vendor in Sidi Bouzid, Tunisia, the list of injustices in Nigeria is piling up, and no one can tell which of the many documented flagrant abuses would become the catalyst for a national insurrection that could usher in a Bastille moment in Nigeria. [Wikipedia] [Wikipedia]

Consider the human consequences of making bad laws

Yes, the law must be upheld, but when it affects people, enacting laws and enforcing them without consideration for the social consequences of the law is at first atrocious and then heartlessly lacking in vision, foresight, compassion or humanity.

On the balance of what appeals to our humanity as opposed to the atmospherics of environmental comfort and conduciveness, I am with the widow for an apology, adequate redress, prompt restitution and effective rehabilitation. Then for a broader plan to help alleviate the sufferings of street hawkers by offering them affordable, safe and accessible places to ply their trade.

Why Ask Why Do Poor People 'Waste' Money On Luxury Goods?

A very good question

From Facebook, I came upon this controversial headline, Why Do Poor People 'Waste' Money On Luxury Goods? It is in my view one of the best-written commentaries on the sociology of hedonism and consumption.

I will not attempt to rewrite the article here, I suggest you click on the link and read; however, there some interesting points that the person raised that are good for discourse.

Respecting others in how we present ourselves

The issue of balancing means with acquisition in pursuit of keeping up with the Joneses or putting up a façade is something I have opined about that I think plagues one of the cultures of my ancestry.

Besides, a very robust exchange on Twitter about appearance and respect went along the lines of a lady taking offence at being approached by a man in sagging trousers.

I could understand what she meant, I opined about how appearance is a function of comportment, and the way people might react to us.

Presentable is not exactly acceptable

In this, I see the conflict or the confusion between presentable and acceptable. The article takes a stab at it with this, “Presentable is the bare minimum of social civility. It means being clean, not smelling, wearing shirts and shoes for service and the like. Presentable as a sufficient condition for gainful, dignified work or successful social interactions is a privilege.”

“In contrast, ‘acceptable’ is about gaining access to a limited set of rewards granted upon group membership. I cannot know exactly how often my presentation of acceptable has helped me but I have enough feedback to know it is not inconsequential.”

I have found that there are elements of presentable that ease the way for being acceptable, but one should know the difference between sophisticated and ostentatious, just as the subtlety of understated compares to the vulgar to the Englishman in me.

I believe these matters of presentable and acceptable reach beyond goods and things to personality, the names we bear or the ones we dare to give our children, the way we engage friends and strangers, and it is a function of comportment.

Keeping up with the Joneses

However, we return to the question that highlights another aspect of character, the earn-and-spend culture that means we have nothing in store for the future and exemplified in the immediate gratification of acquiring for status instead of status being the determinant of acquisition.

None of which is entirely healthy regardless of status, if the need to have is to satisfy a vacuous want to be seen having something to be able to belong or show-off.

Yet, there is a market for this type of person because the virtue of contentment and the wisdom that informs better choices for deciding what is presentable and hopefully acceptable is different from what drives the acquisition of things.

What our presentable should do

What we do in striving for the presentable is to allow the gatekeepers open the doors to where we can be acceptable, it requires we either know the defaults of presentable or acquire the Shibboleth of acceptable.

This is quite different from self-aggrandisement, the luxury good from underwear through designer wear, accessories and expensive toys in the quest to belong. Thereby presenting a public face of plenty underpinned by a private penury.

Penny-wise, pound-foolish

We all have our stories, but I tried to sum it up in this tweet that I posted earlier, “The context of presentable and acceptable in terms of the decisions we make and how we spend can be the difference between foolish and wise.”

Back to the article, if you have not yet read it, Why Do Poor People 'Waste' Money On Luxury Goods? – A very good question with a long backstory.

Switzerland: A misunderstanding of racist proportions - Great for tourism

I know what I want

When I bought my home about 12 years ago, one of the things I went shopping for was a bed, a good sturdy bed that will stand the test of use and time that I sought advice from my estate agent where best to go.

It was on the other side of town, in Amsterdam, so I mounted my bicycle and was outside the shop in about 25 minutes. The shop owner walked up to me and asked what I wanted and I told him, I was somewhat immediately profiled and he thought what I needed was the ordinary box spring variety, I allowed him his spiel before I specifically told him what I really wanted, it was deeper in the store.

I strode in and immediately saw what I was looking for, wooden, carved, polished and really sturdy to the touch, the feel and the hold apart from it being quite heavy – I pointed at it and immediately he said it was too expensive – maybe it was, but that was what I wanted.

Means-profiling

He remonstrated until I snapped back at him, “Who told you I can't pay for it? That is the bed I want and let’s be done with it.” With that came grudging respect, an offer to deliver the bed at any time of my convenience into the late evening and the service I should have had from the moment I showed up as a customer – Courtesy, respect, friendliness and helpfulness.

What had happened to me was I was ‘means-profiled’ by reason of some subjective quality, probably race, in the mind of the shop owner, he had thought – “I have seen many shoppers come here and this chap cannot afford the best goods I have in my store, I will not waste my time with him window shopping, I’ll just show him what belongs to the affordable profile of his type.”

We all suffer it

I am sure many of us have been ‘means-profiled’, belittled, patronised and basically disrespected on the premise of some subjective and prejudicial perception of another and in those circumstances have had to endure a looming humiliation from people who honestly think they are doing us some good or as a shop attendant said to Oprah Winfrey in Zurich recently, “I don’t want to hurt your feelings.”

In the narration Oprah Winfrey gave and one should not have to introduce her, she was in Switzerland to attend TinaTurner’s wedding when she decided to go shopping without an entourage or posse. [The Oprah Interview with CBS ET – The story has since been edited after I first read it.]

A clear perception

She walked into one of the Trois Pomme luxury shops in Zurich on Bahnhofstrasse, probably with the name Prada Donna and a conversation ensued where she wanted a particular bag and the shop attendant refused thrice to obtain the bag for her with a clear statement that it was too expensive.

It is not that the attendant, did not want to serve Oprah, but the attendant concentrated on showing Oprah bags she did not want, as Oprah pressed thrice to have a look at the $40,000 bag before she left the shop having been pitied, sympathised with, belittled and patronised, with a lovely statement from the attendant, “Oh, I don’t want to hurt your feelings.”

In fact, Oprah delivered that line with a mock-Swiss accent, highlighting occasions of subtle racism that she has encountered as a self-made billionaire, successful and powerful global media figure who just happens to be African-American.

No, she didn’t say that

As the backlash began to grow against the store, then, Zurich and possibly might even engulf Switzerland and create a seething animosity to any encounter with the Swiss from here on, the shop owner, Trudie Goetz, so lacking in nuance and perception of the grave situation that had been triggered, first apologised for the “misunderstanding” and then palmed it off with, "We don't have any facial recognition here.”

You have to ask, what can be so misunderstood with a simple request as, “Please can I see that bag?”? Especially, when that request was made thrice, giving time to exercise the utmost patience and avoid the need to flare up like a diva that you are probably in your rights to do, if you needed to.

The one about facial recognition is beneath contempt, it is lower than a rotten snake’s belly. Why should a shop have to have face recognition to determine whether a stranger is of means or a pauper to decide what service they should get?

Strike off Switzerland?

No, but the smarter heads in charge of tourism for Zurich and Switzerland are in crisis and damage-limitation overdrive because the last thing any city that thrives on the rich and tourism needs is this kind of publicity – not in a million years, the cost will be unquantifiable.

The worst part of this is, if such rotten treatment can be meted out to a global personality like Oprah Winfrey, we the lesser personalities who are striving to be popular in the smallest sphere of influence with might have numbering on just the fingers of one hand, have no chance.

Now, I have been to Switzerland twice before, to Zurich and Geneva – these are supposed to be global cities of renown, I had a wonderful time, I met good and friendly people, I loved the place, I love the lakes, but if this kind of attitude lurks in the underbelly of some of the people one might encounter, it is easy to keep Switzerland off one’s itinerary without much effort.

Nigeria: Rich Man, Poor Man Billionaires

Setting the O. K. Corral

I was awoken to the tweets and Facebook comments of people who had read a Forbes blog [1] that followed the Forbes 2011 Billionaires’ List that included two Nigerians.

There was Aliko Dangote [2] who had made the list for 4 years running but also had seen a rise on percentage terms of 557% of his wealth in a year to maintain his 1^st position in Nigeria and now become the richest in Africa.

For a man who had been in business for over 30 years and despite his various business activities had been stuck in the low billions until the public offering of this commercial vehicle that brought in the bucks, there could be no dispute to the fact that he was that well-heeled.

Then the man who places second in Nigeria is Mike Adenuga [3] but a good 544 places behind the 51^st placed Aliko Dangote in the world and this is Mr. Adenuga first showing on the Forbes List, though he might have been on the radar in the earlier years as one to watch but his recent valuation does not touch any of the three previous estimations of his compatriot.

Making the billionaires list with audited sources of income is a feat in itself especially if that derives from industry and services rather than from political power as is usually the case with many disreputable African moneybags who have gained a form of respectability from roguery and are unabashed to display their ill-gotten gains.

A billionaire’s row amongst minions

The contention however that has come out of Nigeria and even so the supporters of the second-placed Mr. Adenuga is that he cannot be that far behind Mr. Dangote.

Now, this is not some isolated issue but an endemic problem of one-upmanship and penis-envy, powerful Nigerians and their sycophants cannot bear to think there is someone more powerful than their potentate, surely not more influential or richer.

However, no one can present corroborated or undisputed figures to close the gap between Adenuga and Dangote but the sentiment and illusion exists that the valuations are too conservative as outrageous comparisons are made to give credence to fallacy.

The fantasy numbers game

I could remember when the census figures [4] were published in 2007 and though it was just 370,000 odd people between Kano State (9,383,682) and Lagos State (9,013,354), politicians were plucking figures out of the air of Lagos State having at least 14 million people but no one had verifiably counted that number, they just needed to say it long enough for the precipitation of supposition upon supposition to become fact.

So, one supporter was willing to bet, though no wager was placed that Mike Adenuga was worth at least $10 billion or $15 billion; I would suppose there is nothing about the $5 billion difference when Mr. Adenuga is said to be worth a paltry $2 billion.

Another did not know what he was worth but knew he was worth over $20 billion which conveniently puts Mr. Dangote in the shade and then the same person allows a swing of $15 billion in chicken change to aver that if Mr. Adenuga was poor he would be worth at least $5 billion.

A pissing contest – Not!

They were so aggrieved by the valuation that they urged the correspondent to seek an interview with Mr. Adenuga who his staff address as Dr. Adenuga whilst might be because of the conferment of an honorary doctorate rather than academic ability, he has an MBA.

It is doubtful that Mr. Adenuga would subscribe to a pissing contest to prove he can do it better but if Aliko Dangote had not made the astronomical gains he made last year, he would have been at $2.1 billion (2010) and created less agitation but because a new man has joined the billionaire’s club a ravilry should ensue considering Dangote lost in 2009 from an even higher valuation in 2008.

The issue is no more about billionaires but that absurd case of Nigeria having a rich billionaire and a poor billionaire – just part of the usual Nigerian narrative and possible grist to the mill of Nollywood imitating life.

Sources

[1] Mike Adenuga Is Not A Poor Nigerian Billionaire, His Reps Say - Kerry A. Dolan - Shades of Green - Forbes

[2] Forbes - Aliko Dangote

[3] Forbes - Mike Adenuga

[4] Akin Akintayo: Gauging the Nigerian 2006 Census

Nigeria: Why Poor Countries Are Poor

Why Poor Countries Are Poor

It is important that people who are involved in the development in developing countries recognise the task ahead of them and the difficulties they face.

When I read the chapter “Why Poor Countries Are Poor”, in the Undercover Economist, I was taken aback by both the insight and truth of the things the author say.

I found an online version of “Why Poor Countries Are Poor” which I implore you to read.

The role of bureaucracies

There are many issues I cannot address here but one interesting issue is the role of bureaucracies in stifling development, progress and economic growth.

Corruption is exacerbated by the layers and hoops of unnecessary bureaucratic requirements that simply keep pen-pushers and deadwood in their positions of unwarranted privilege as enemies of change – people need to get things done and the only way to smooth out any activity is to grease grubby palms.

All certificates ever had

One interesting example of this useless bureaucracy is the story of someone who has had most of his education in Europe which includes a PhD from a reputable university along with 2 Masters degrees in different but related disciplines, a smattering of certificates and professional qualifications, almost countless.

He had recently been appointed to a senior directorial role in the government sector in Nigeria and he has been asked to produce all certificates he has ever had since he was in primary school.

So, after a 30-year career, you need to find the yellowing pages of teacher opinions when he was in primary and secondary school to do a job his peers already think he is well qualified for.

Documentation and searches

We have bureaucracies in the West, but also structures and institutions that work after a fashion and we recognise that the highest qualification attained might be the person satisfied the requirements for being granted that qualification, preceded by the person having satisfied the entry requirements for that course and all that down the line.

Another thing is the way we document and computerise records such that the search for any information or confirmation of any detail is at the behest of the enquirer rather than the giver of the information.

Unfortunately, these structures are disjointed in Nigeria, there is very poor record keeping that most legal deeds have to be given as sworn affidavits with no corroborative authority apart from the hope that the person has been truthful.

In those circumstances, one may not question too strongly the need for all certificates going back to the birth certificate.

Now, this is ridiculous

I was however thrown when I heard they also want the birth certificates of the parents; they have been long dead and were born sometime in the 1910s or 1920s, probably a tree was planted when they were born as was when my father was born, but birth registration and certificates?

What you may ask does the birth certificate of parents have to do with someone satisfying the requirements for job and being vetted to assume that position?

The birth certificate of the principal would if registered at birth have contained the names and professions of the parents, that should suffice, but bureaucracies breed mountains of useless data accumulated for no other purpose than to give mandarins and bureaucrats undue relevance and power to oppress or inconvenience the citizenry without helping anyone.

The best thing any government of a developing country can do is reduce layers of bureaucracy, bureaucratic irrelevance and the people who feed that system – time to register companies, accumulation of unnecessary information, provide access to relevant economic data without strictures and nip all sources of patronage in the bud.

Nigeria will not tolerate rude airlines

Aviation in better hands, it seems

After all the aircraft accidents in Nigeria which lead to the redeployment of the oaf that was put in charge of overseeing that carnage, the replacement with Femi Fani-Kayode as Aviation Minister left many rather unimpressed, most especially myself.

It would however appear Mr Fani-Kayode is doing something useful in that position and this should be commended.

He has revoked licenses of some airlines, berated some of their activities and exacted policies to help improve safety and bolster confidence in a precarious aviation industry.

Now, he has set his sights on poor customer service on airlines that operate between Europe and Nigeria; their rude staff, as reported by the BBC.

Rude trolley dollies

I have heard of instances where passengers have been treated with utter contempt by trolley dollies (cabin crew) and it has required launching a formal complaint with the threat of involving race relations to obtain grudging apologies from these airlines.

What is really annoying is that these African routes are rarely bargains, there is good business and a profit being made from Nigerian travellers but the quality of service is despicable, sometimes to the extreme.

A grievance to be addressed

Mr Fani-Kayode said he “would not sit by and allow our people to be treated like animals by anybody or for any reason”

This is a valid grievance that needs to be addressed pronto by both British Airways and Virgin Atlantic and if this information has not percolated upwards that it has had Becky Livingstone of BA saying, “We take great pride in our customer service and have the same excellent standards for all our customers throughout the world”. They have now been given notice and they have to act.

If BA is very distressed, it is because they have rotten staff, visiting the Aviation Minister does not address his concerns if they do not improve the service and Virgin Atlantic is preparing a response to his valid and truthful accusations.

Asking that Nigerian passengers be treated with respect and decency is not too much to ask, especially as we also pay premium fares.