Making Skype a nuisance

Anytime some new technology is introduced on the Internet it tends to create utter nuisance.

Be it chat programmes or instant messaging programs, every silly stranger wants to get on your list and converse with you about things that do not concern them.

So, this evening my Skype goes off, thinking it was a friend I ran to pick up the phone but ended up in a chat conversation with someone who was just beginning to irritate me.

The conversation went thus. (Pseudonyms used).

[22:03:23] Mitah.28 says: hello

[22:03:42] Akin_NLD says: Hello

[22:03:47] Akin_NLD says: Who are you?

[22:03:55] Mitah.28 says: i'm Mitah

[22:04:22] Akin_NLD says: I do not know you - why have you contacted me?

[22:04:57] Mitah.28 says: just for cominicaition

[22:05:13] Mitah.28 says: do you have problem

[22:05:33] Akin_NLD says: I see, do you just pick strangers in the street and converse with them?

[22:06:18] Mitah.28 says: why

[22:06:34] Akin_NLD says: I don't have a problem and I do not use technology to barge in on other people just because they are there.

[22:07:49] Mitah.28 says: you dont want to cominic aition with antone

[22:07:58] Mitah.28 says: anyone

[22:08:32] Akin_NLD says: I want communication with people I know or people who share my interests - complete strangers are just hard work

[22:09:13] Mitah.28 says: tell me where are you from

[22:10:20] Akin_NLD says: I think that is none of your business, you have not told me anything about yourself, nor have you taken time to find out if I want to converse with you

[22:11:50] Mitah.28 says: you want to talk you about my self or what

[22:12:28] Akin_NLD says: What a nuisance

[22:13:34] Mitah.28 says: no thing

Really, do people just approach strangers on the street and strike up a conversation without prompting or is it the technology that allows people to become busybodies and a complete nuisance?

Margaret Hill - Home with parents

Debunking my scepticism

Earlier this evening, I viewed with healthy scepticism the assurance from the Governor of Rivers State in Nigeria that the 3-year old Margaret Hill would be released to her parents by the morning.

The news also said the police knew of where the girl was being held - I said a silent prayer hoping the police don't do something silly and endanger the life of the girl.

So, it is with great relief that we have now been informed that Margaret Hill has been released and been reunited with her parents with no ransom paid.

The release is really good news and one can only say let the process of healing begin from the trauma of being kidnapped at gunpoint and hosted in some hostile environment being fed plain bread and water.

We can only hope that she would mercifully be spared the nightmares of her ordeal and even forget the episode as the love and care of her family and relations overflow in comforting her and help her recover.

Handsome ransom?

The story of no ransom being paid does leave me a bit unconvinced; I once had to sign a release form for my employees' release from police custody saying I had paid nothing when in fact I had paid a large amount of cash to secure their release to the police.

The quest for money is an unquenchable pursuit that feeds the madness of this mendicancy, men who have sold their souls to perpetrate despicable evil purveying menace for monetary gain through unwarranted duress, it beggars belief that those brigands and criminals would part with their captive without something in the bargain considering the reckless abominable activity they indulged in.

Capture, censure and condemn them

This should not be the end of the matter, the story should not end with the good news of the girl's release; all the people who were involved in this criminal act should and must be brought to book.

It reads with great discomfort that it has taken the abduction of a British/Nigerian girl to highlight the fact that this is the third child kidnapped for ransom in the same locality - we need the firm hand of the law to deal a complete blow to this intolerable and unacceptable development.

Just like Jesus was minded to have a millstone put round the neck of any offender of children before they are thrown in a lake; I can made the exception of the death penalty being visited on these condemned and damned people - a mediaeval torture chamber is too good for these people and the sooner they are removed from society the sooner we can get back to tackling the real issues in the Niger Delta region.

At this time of good news for one family, I remember Madeleine McCann, hope she is safe and alive and pray that her parents can receive such good news - the finding and reuniting - as the Hills have had this weekend.

Other Related Blogs

Child in Niger Delta Kidnapping and Death Threat

Reasoning out the girl's kidnap

London, 731 days on

7^th of July 2007

Sometimes, it is important not to get carried away with the significance of numbers and dates. Dates should be remembered for reflection, commemoration or celebration however when numbers come together like yesterday the 7^th day of the 7^th month or the 7^th (in fact 8^th) year of the millennium, soothsayers, rumour mongers and people of dubious intent come together to give another day more significance than it should have.

Obviously, the masses would find some significant thing to do on that day, for instance the new Amsterdam Public Library opened on 070707, luckily no moons were to collide, meteors hit the Live Earth concerts or Second Coming frights.

London getting on

So, London was on my mind yesterday as Aldgate East, Edgware Road, Russell Square and Tavistock Square reached the solemn procession of victims, survivors, friends, family and sympathisers in low-keyed commemoration of the 2^nd anniversary of the London Terrorist bombings.

As they contemplated on the things they have been through, London received the peloton to commence the Tour de France through the big streets of political and royal London, a Live Earth concert was hosted to save the world from carbon pollution that exacerbates global warming and Venus Williams was winning the Wimbledon Ladies Single trophy for the fourth time.

We must not forget that event two years ago that radically changed London and the country, however, with that at the back of our minds - This is London and it is business as usual.

Reasoning out the girl's kidnap

Irrational vengefulness

I stopped over at the African Shop on my way home this evening when I ran into another patron who had a view of the 3-year old girl's kidnapping in Port Harcourt, Nigeria I could not countenance.

As far as I am concerned, there is nothing that can justify the kidnapping of a child no matter how aggrieved you might be.

His view was that there might be mitigating factors that we do not know of that would have lead to the girl's kidnapping and what we all should be wary of, is situations where we cause offence to others leading the offended to react or seek revenge in an extremely irrational way.

He went on to say that if he was one of the people apprehended at the Grand Café and summarily deported as some were; any Caucasian he meets back in Nigeria would definitely bear the wrath of the actions in Amsterdam to their harm. That is definitely irrational.

I then said, if ever this kidnapping issue gets resolved in some amicable way, would the kidnappers be able to present their case in court to justify the kidnapping of the girl? I doubt it.

Prevent through restraint

But our man was more concerned with the mantra - "prevention is better than the cure" or later "to obey is better than sacrifice" - now what is preventable is probably preventable, but how do you prevent a situation where a deal, a business, an agreement or even indifference leads to your child being kidnapped violently at gunpoint?

I was exasperated and perplexed; I want to believe I live in a better world than one that accommodates that kind of view.

For instance, the same analogy could be extended to say, after I was beaten up by three drunken Moroccan guys, I get a gun and shoot any Moroccan in sight - No; the human race has really come a long way from that kind of unpersuadable and intemperate attitude.

Accepting the unacceptable

Unfortunately, there are some who would welcome that view as trying to see beyond the prevailing circumstances to understand the motivation for such actions - I see this in one of two shades, black or white.

Nothing and nothing ever can justify the kidnapping of a 3-year old at gun point - not in a jungle where cannibals and savages thrive, not in highly civilized societies and not in the Niger Delta region where criminals rule as laws unto themselves answerable to no formal authority.

We parted ways agreeing to disagree - I cannot convince myself more of the fact that this thinking must not be tolerated and for all the prevention and sacrifice; if you have been so aggrieved to the point of uncontrollable anger and seething for pay back, revenge and having the biggest last laugh - the Good Book says - Vengeance is mine, saith the Lord.

What you plan to do would probably be criminal and the law would not be sympathetic to the wrongs you feel you have suffered. How did I get embroiled in such a conversation?

Child in Niger Delta Kidnapping and Death Threat

Worsening Niger Delta Region

Whilst I have never given voice to the happenings in the Niger Delta region in Nigeria, the most recent developments would give anyone a great deal of concern.

It has transpired that a group of lawless brigands with no semblance of humanity or a conscience have grabbed a 3-year old mixed race girl from the comfort of being driven to school in Port Harcourt and threatened to kill her. This is pure evil.

I cannot understand what these people are trying to achieve, it is a given that British citizens have been advised to leave the Delta area because of seriously deteriorating security situation which has had the federal government without clue, initiative or inspiration, they have been caught flat-footed every time as Niger Delta criminals pretending to be activists have created a state within a state fomenting unrest.

These events are hardly local, they raise hackles internationally as global oil markets wobble and Nigeria makes the news again for all reasons but commendable ones.

Mike Hill, her father, is essentially a local who is both an oil worker and he runs a bar frequented by expatriates in Port Harcourt, her mother Oluchi is literally inconsolable, the kidnappers have asked the father to take her place.

Big man wades in

As usual, we are told that resources are being mobilised to search for the girl and rescue her from her captors, but is shows an utter embarrassment of duties and responsibilities if the Inspector General of Police has to fly out to Port Harcourt to coordinate the search.

Now, rescuing this child of utmost importance and the best resources we can get which should be devolved around the country must be applied to this task.

If I am now hearing that there is no District Superintendent, State Police Commissioner, Regional Commissioner or Assistant Inspector General of Police (IG) to coordinate this but the big cheese himself, we do have a sorry state of law enforcement in Nigeria - though an opportunity for the IG to ingratiate himself with foreigners and have the media spotlight.

Beyond this, one is worried about the fact that the girl might be taken into some nightmarish enclave in an unfamiliar setting whilst these rotten criminals exact their demands for a ransom or some other ameliorating deal - it is important that they do not bungle this rescue operation.

Get the girl then finish the men

The most important task is to get the girl back to her family safe and sound, after that, those men should be hunted down and exterminated like vermin - there is no cause in this world that can warrant the kidnapping on a child to gain some bargaining advantage.

These men do not deserve to walk the face of this earth one extra second, it is utterly contemptible and evil that anyone and even a Nigerian can think up such a scheme.

Maybe, it is necessary to have the Oga police in there coordinating things, but the job would only have been done with the speedy rescue of the girl and the apprehending of all the culprits to see justice and have the full wrath of the law visited upon them.

For now, despite all the real and palpable suffering in the Niger Delta regions, their cause is completely lost if any group of criminals can do this in their name, they must repudiate this activity and turn up these criminals with the utmost alacrity.

Police recklessness in Amsterdam - Update

Justice rescinded

Just an update on the events in Amsterdam regarding the unwarranted police raid on a Nigerian social event. On Tuesday, the immigration judge ordered that the people be released forthwith, but the Council of State has temporarily rescinded that decision on the application of the State Secretary for Justice who is appealing the verdict of the court.

Ironically, the selfsame State Secretary of Justice - Nebahat Albayrak- was handing out resident permits on Wednesday under the general amnesty for illegal immigrants plan - she being of Turkish descent, though one must say she is a lot more humane in her outlook than her predecessor who was the Minister for disintegration and Emigration - Rita Verdonk, known on this blog as Lady Oddjob.

Obviously, one can understand the concern of the government if they already have 23 illegal aliens who were illegally arrested in custody; letting them go would be a logistical nightmare if they have to be traced again, however, the premise on which everyone (legal and illegal residents) was arrested was the police assumed that patrons of the café were all illegally resident in the Netherlands.

In fact, the case of the police is too prejudiced for reasonable debate because the police cannot produce evidence proving that illegal activity is mainly perpetrated by those illegally resident in the Netherlands - it is a crass and subjective defence unworthy of the least of Dutch values.

These are seriously murky waters of institutionalised xenophobia because releasing the "illegal" aliens would create an uproar from right-wing elements of society who would say the government is doing nothing about crime first and then illegal immigration. The justice that is served by following due process in apprehending illegal aliens through proper legal conduct of the law enforcement and immigration authorities is conveniently subsumed or suspended.

These people would now languish in custody for another five weeks within which the Council of State would hear the appeal and decide.

However, if the basic legal premise indicates that the raid is unlawful, they should and must be released or this would be a classic case of Machiavellian justice - The end, justifying the means. Surely, this must be utterly unacceptable.

I acknowledge the blogging community that has highlighted this case to a wider audience.

Don Thieme at LifeCycle Analysis

Editor's Pick at African Loft

Lady Oddjob - blogs

Presidential prerogative, pride and persuasion

Pardon me, forgive them

Whilst I do not in anyway condone the way in which an active secret agent was exposed to discredit her husband, I think the case that was built up against Lewis "Scooter" Libby was chasing after the wrong things.

He was charged and convicted of perjury and obstruction of justice as a peripheral issue to the case of who really revealed that Valerie Plame was an agent.

However, I am amazed at the prerogative of the President who regardless of what the courts have decided can exercise the power to commute, forgive or pardon the convicted with the judiciary having no recourse to appeal that decision. Clemency is an amazing demonstration of humanity and mercy.

The United States Constitution, Article II, Section 2 states - ... and he shall have power to grant reprieves and pardons for offences against the United States, except in cases of impeachment.

Interestingly, this is a power that the President has not exercised with too much political patronage 76 pardons and 4 commutations, none however for murders or heinous crimes, which is understandable.

So, Lewis "Scooter" Libby had the jail portion of his sentence removed by presidential reprieve and though the probation and fines remain, the President has not ruled out a complete pardon - Lewis simply has to continue to be a good boy to obtain grace and find mercy which is in the gift of the President.

With such power can come serious abuse, but I think Presidents have been quite disciplined with the use of this instrument even though there has been controversy about this half-pardon and the Clinton pardoning of Marc Rich - it is still the President's prerogative - take it or leave it.

My son, the President

Then President Putin went visiting George W. Bush and isn't it a pleasure to have an ex-President seeing his son become President; we might call that Presidential pride. George W. Bush has put his father George H. W. Bush to work on a number of projects as the Indian Ocean Tsunami fund with Bill Clinton. My heart warmed when he had his father greet and receive Vladimir Putin for their informal summit at the blue-blooded family retreat of Kennebunkport - Our dear Dubya is no red-necked Texan cowboy with a ranch, he was born with a gold spoon in his mouth and he wore silver slippers around the house.

The Olympic Linguist

However, President Putin had a stop-over in Guatemala where he pushed the case for Sochi the Black Sea resort in Russia for the 2014 Winter Olympics in impeccable English and French charming IOC members and jetting off before the vote of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). For months, I had been wondering about the adverts for Sochi and then suddenly there were adverts for PyeongChang, South Korea - it took a while for me to realise we were being subliminally programmed for the 2014 Winter Olympics. Strangely, I never knew Salzburg, Austria was in the race till they were eliminated yesterday.

Sadly, for PyeongChang, they are now second-time losers for the hosting of the Winter Olympics - strategy back to drawing board, I could not help but notice that within minutes of the announcement the PyeongChang advert was played again by BBC World - what cruel irony - I seemed to subconsciously have name-recognition for Sochi, that is how effective their campaign was, whilst I thought PyeongChang was in China - Go figure.

In the end, it was Presidential appeal that put this in the bag for Sochi and good luck to them before the environmentalists get all excited and destroy the games as their clamour destroyed the livelihoods of the Inuit in seal-hunting without consideration for alternative means of income.

Those rotten single-issue advocates who never consider the consequences of their actions apart from achieving their selfish narrow interests in the guise of saving our planet - even the planet needs people who can live their lives without townies imposing ideal values on traditional folk.

I digressed - this was about the presidential prerogative for pardons, presidential influence and appeal through persuasion and not to forget the presidential pride of seeing ones offspring do well.