Language cannot be discussed outside the human context; this is because it is a universal property possessed by all humans. It is a universal means of human communication. It is an instrument of social existence, without which communication would have been completely impossible. Language is indispensable because it serves as a vehicle which conveys human thoughts, information, ideas, emotions, ideologies etc. Language is central and crucial to man, and it is the quintessential endowment that differentiates man from other animals. Language provides man a tool to enhance growth and progress. The language one speaks tells much about one’s identity with regards to where the person comes from. Not being oblivious of these magical powers of language, individuals and groups have used it persuasively to inculcate their ideologies in the minds of others, and our pen goddess, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, is one of such individuals.
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JUST IN: Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) suspends strike
The Nigeria Labour
Congress (NLC) has suspended its ongoing nationwide strike following promises by the
Federal Government to reconvene the tripartite committee on national minimum
wage on October 4. The workers are
demanding a new minimum wage of about N50,000 instead of the current national
minimum wage of N18,000.
The suspension of the
warning strike takes effect from today, Sunday, September 30, 2018. Announcing the decision in Abuja on
Sunday, the NLC President, Ayuba Wabba, stated that the labour action was
suspended to enable the tripartite committee to hold its crucial meeting and
conclude its work.
With
this, workers are expected to resume duties on Tuesday as Monday has been
declared a public holiday by the federal government to mark the country's Independence Day.
An Open Letter to the Buharists
Dear Buharists,
I'm here to
sympathise with you in this your trying period. For over 3 years now, I have
watched you suffer in the most difficult situations trying to defend your bad
news of a president. The worst of it is that while you do so on empty stomachs,
some have become stupendously rich at your applause.
The son of a man who once
borrowed N21m to purchase presidential form can now afford a N45m playing toy.
But you who contributed to see him becoming the president can't even buy
textbooks for your wards in school. My love for humanity will not let me know these
things and not pity you.
As a lawyer, I
know what it is and how it feels to defend a bad case, especially when my
client keeps exposing the bad situation I try to cover up and making me look
empty headed. I also know as a lawyer that I have to keep doing my job no
matter how bad the situation is. But the law allows me to back out when my
conscience is being impeached , especially when I become aware that my client
never told me the truth in the matter I try to defend.
In your case,
I see you can't back out as it becomes obvious that you may be under a spell. I
have a strong feeling that Baba has taken your matter beyond the earth, hence
you cannot see even when we shout it that your brains might have been replaced
by the concoction probably exhumed from the grave of a wicked native doctor. It
would be heartless of me not to show understanding of these possible facts so
as to limit the weight I attach to your insults.
Your case is
likened to that of a deaf and blind man walking in the direction of a moving
trailer. You don't call him foolish; you try to rescue him because his ability
to see or hear the danger is zero. Now you understand why you are still on my
list.
The highest
level of your ignorance is calling everyone who points out the wrongs in this
government corrupt or PDP members. I know the concoction wouldn't let you see
that some of us have never been politicians or in any party. I know the
concoction lacks the potency to tell you that we don't need to be corrupt to
know that the market price of all commodities have tripled since Baba came on
board. Yeah, it can't tell you that since fuel price was hiked to N145 per
litre in the bid to remove subsidy, the actual amount still spend on subsidy is
far above what the PDP government spent on subsidy when fuel price was N87. Do
I blame you when I know you are under a spell? No!
You have
before you 2019, another opportunity to liberate yourselves. But you seem still
far from the knowledge of the realities on ground, even though you now lack words
to defend this failure of your supposed Messiah. Day after day, the realities
reflect even in your pockets.
My pain,
still, is that you are growing stronger bones in your gullibility, obviously
because you've stayed too long mirroring "lifelessness". You can't
stay too long perceiving faeces and not inherit the smell.
Accept my
sympathy. Trust me, when the spell is broken, you will be fine....
Or I should
say, if the spell is broken.
It's I, Itse
De, your "better-life" wailing friend.
© Barr. Itsede Kingsley Okhai
© Barr. Itsede Kingsley Okhai
First Term's English Examination Questions for JSS 1 – SSS 3
But for some factors like
low pay, writing of lesson notes, setting of examination questions, marking of
students' examination scripts and compilation of students' results, teaching is
really an interesting job. Among these factors, setting of students' examination
questions, especially English examination questions, is really tiring and has made teaching
job more taxing. To help reduce the workload of my colleagues, I decided to
publish first term's English examination questions (for JSS 1 – SSS 3) from
which they can set their first term's questions.
Click HERE to get the
questions.
Joint Ownership of Property in Marriage: What the Law Says
Partners in a marriage
sometimes find it necessary to jointly acquire property while the marriage
lasts. The property may be acquired in their individual names or both names.
![]() |
Barr. Itsede Kingsley Okhai |
Most incidents
of joint ownership occur where a husband and wife contribute to the purchase
and/or development of a property. Such contribution may be financial or
material, provided that it is substantial and ascertainable. The reverse is the
case where no contribution is proved. Unless the spouse claiming contribution
is able to provide convincing proof of a direct and substantial contribution to
the acquisition of the property, such spouse cannot claim joint ownership. This
is particularly so where the property in question was purchased in the
individual name of the husband or the wife.
In some other
cases, a husband may purchase a property in the name of his wife or vice versa.
In such circumstances, the law would presume an intention to gift the property
to the wife or the husband as the case may be. This is called a presumption of
advancement. The presumption of advancement can, of course, be rebutted by
proving that no gift was intended. In the absence of evidence to the contrary,
property bought by a husband in the sole name of his wife is presumed to be a
gift to her. This extends to where a husband acquires title to land with his
sole funds but inserts his wife's name as a co-owner. In such cases, the wife
will acquire an equal interest in the property. The husband may prove that his
wife contributed nothing financially but the court would presume that the
wife's half share is a gift to her.
Where a
property is bought in the name of a partner for which both parties contributed,
what is the status of the other spouse whose name is not on the title documents
of the property? The answer has been given by the Court in the case of Okere v.
Akaluka (2014) LPELR-24287(CA).
In the above
cited case, the Federal Ministry of Housing and Environment allocated a
property to Mr. Paul Akaluka in his name alone. At the time of allotment, the
property was a one-bed room apartment. Mrs. Theresa Akaluka supported her
husband by contributing financially towards the payment of the purchase price for
the property. She also contributed to the reconstruction and improvements to
the property. When the property was reconstructed and expanded to a three
bedroom apartment, Mr. and Mrs. Akaluka moved in there with their seven
children.
They lived
together until Mr. Akaluka packed out of the building and abandoned his family,
choosing to live with his concubine in another part of the town. While his wife
and children were still resident in the property, Mr. Akaluka sold the
house to Mr. Okere without the knowledge of his wife. Shortly after
this, Mr. Akaluka died.
Upon her
discovery of the sale, Mrs. Akaluka went to the High Court and asked the court
to declare that alongside her husband, she was a joint owner of the property.
She also asked the court to order that the purported sale of the property by
her husband to Mr. Okere, without her consent as joint owner, was void.
Finally, she asked the court to make an order restraining the buyer and his
agents from ejecting her and her children from the property.
On the other
hand, Mr. Okere disputed her claim of joint ownership of the disputed property
and contended that the sale of the property to him by the late Mr. Akaluka was
valid because all the documents were in the name of Mr. Akaluka alone and he
was the only one described as the owner therein.
The Court held
that the property was jointly owned by Mr. and Mrs. Akaluka as she
substantially contributed towards the purchase of the property and also
contributed towards its reconstruction, expansion and improvement. And
so, Mr. Akaluka cannot dispose of the property without her
consent.
By this
position, the fear of some wives whose husbands have been outsmarted by
omitting their names in the title documents after contributing to acquire
family property has been taken care of. It's however difficult most times
to prove that a party whose name is not captured in the title document is a
contributor. It's safer to insist, in wisdom, to have your name
reflected.
Note, however,
that this does not apply to properties singly purchased by a partner before a
marriage and those individually purchased without any form of contribution by
the other spouse in a marriage. So, marrying a rich man or woman is
not a guarantee of your share if your contribution in acquisition of the
property is not ascertained. The Court considers what is just and equitable in
each case.
Happy knowing😊!
© Barr. Itsede Kingsley Okhai
About the Author
About the Author
Itsede K. Okhai is the Lead Associate of Majek-Aina, Okhai & Associates, a firm of legal practitioners based in Lagos and an Advocate for
Justice.
Get a whopping 5.2GB for N100 and 10.4GB for N200 on glo jollific8
Inarguably, this month
(September) has been the best in terms of data bundles. While some MTN
subscribers are still enjoying the MTN mPulse data plan with flawless
downloads, some Glo subscribers are busy grooving on their Glo data ships.
Nice! We deserve the best, and it is obvious Glo already knows this truth as it
has pushed out another amazing package to some of its subscribers. This package
is known as Glo jollific8.
How to Get 5.2GB for N100 and 10.4GB for N200 on Glo Jollific8
1. Dial *603# to migrate
to Glo Jollific8 package.
2. Recharge your line with
N100 or N200 via e-top up such as bank mobile app, bank USSD code etc.
3. You’ll receive either
5.2GB for N100 or 10.4GB for N200.
How to Check Your Data Balance on Glo Jollific8 Package
Dial *606*6*2*2#
Data Validity Period
The ‘awof' data you get on
Glo Jollific8 is valid for 30 days, that is, a month.
Note: Every recharge gives 8 times the value of what you recharge, and every recharge comes with free data and free voice calls. You can also choose to share free data with someone else via gift. On-net and off-net calls are charged at 67k/s.
Math Tutorial (Lesson 1): Addition and subtraction of whole numbers
This is our first math
tutorial, and it is from scratch. If you are not good at Mathematics, I advise
you take this tutorial very seriously. Never miss any lesson(s). For those who
are too good at Mathematics, kindly wait until we get to your level.
Click HERE to get the tutorial.
The expected and unexpected challenges faced by all first-year students in Nigerian Universities
As against general assumption, gaining admission into any Nigerian
university does not put an end to the problems one faced while seeking
admission into a university or any tertiary institution in Nigeria. Rather, it
is the starting point for some familiar and unfamiliar challenges. These
challenges are discussed below:
1. SETTLING DOWN
First on the mind is the curiosity of getting to know your new
environment for the foreseeable future. House hunting is supposed to be
done at this stage, and most students actually prefer having their
lounge/apartment closer to the campus for easy transition. But when that isn't
possible due to lack of space or unwillingness to live in campus-provided
lounges, they tend to look outside for suitable houses with affordable price
tags.
Getting used to campus environment is quite stressful because one has to
find his faculty and teaching centres in the midst of other gigantic structures
which are far away from where one lives.
2. LANGUAGE
Language is also a challenge as most universities are located in states
or communities where one's mother tongue is not spoken. This will make it
difficult to get vital information about the school and the community from the
natives, especially the elderly ones who neither understand English nor Pidgin.
Besides, the importance of language in trade cannot be overemphasized. A
food item of N200 can be sold to a student at N150 if he/she bargains price
with the seller in the seller's language. In other words, a student who does
not understand the language of the community where his/her school is located is
likely to get goods and services at higher prices since most of the traders
will be natives of that community.
3. LECTURE TIME
In most tertiary institution in Nigeria, lectures start at 8:00am and
end at 4:00pm. However, some lecturers are good at fixing their lectures before
and after the official time to suit their schedules for the day. First-year
students always find this challenging since they are not used to it.
4. CONGESTION OF THE LECTURE HALLS
Unlike in secondary schools, most of the lectures in universities take
place in halls. And halls are usually bigger than classrooms, yet overcrowded
to the extent that lecturers may be forced to speak with public address
systems. This doesn't help the situation either, especially when they choose to
do so in high tempo and linguistic accents that may be difficult to decode.
5. LECTURES' TEACHING STYLE AND MARKING SCHEME
The mode of teaching in any tertiary institution differs from what
first-year students are used to in secondary schools. Most university lecturers
only scratch a topic on its surface and compel the students to research on it.
This is one of the familiar challenges that a first-year student encounters in
any Nigerian university. Students are perceived by university power brokers to
be sophisticated and flexible in all aspects of their academic lives hence the
complex scheme of work.
Also, students whose secondary schools failed to implant in them the
necessary ethos of dictate writing will struggle to take down important points
as a lecturer explains a topic or dictates his note.
Surprisingly, most lecturers do not mark your examination scripts based
on correctness. Rather, they mark them based on what they have given you in
class. In other words, if your explanation of a concept does not correspond
with the lecturer's, you will be awarded zero regardless of its correctness.
This is entirely different from secondary school examinations where students
can always go behind to pick points and ideas which correspond with their
teachers' explanations but differ in style.
6. LIBERTY
Liberty is an unexpected challenge, too. Most first-year students who
have been deprived of certain freedoms while in college or secondary school due
to strict parental guidance or rules and regulations of their secondary
schools, may want enjoy the freedom that comes with being university students.
They develop this terrible habit of procrastination. Postponing and delaying
every assignment, missing classes and indulging in other frivolities with
friends. This, if not quickly and carefully managed, may cost the students
their academics. One needs to strike the right balance between school and
social affairs in order not to face the awkward distraction when they meet in
loggerhead.
Freshers might just need to find repose in new ways because there are
always going to be bouts of nostalgia by virtue of being new to town and having
fewer sidekicks. The thoughts of family and friends left behind could come
flooding in, especially at a time when they feel regress and need someone close
to comfort them.
Tertiary institutions have always been skilled at announcing themselves
to incomers, especially 'jambites,' and these 'jambites' always arrive in quick
successions. However, the ability to prepare for their arrival has been a major
challenge. And that is why we have the aforementioned problems which may not be
resolved soon. Therefore, determination, resolve and focus are the correct
tools any fresher/freshman must wield in order to address these problems, and
one just has to look beyond them in the right manner in order to maintain a
positive outlook.
WRITTEN BY:
Victor Wisdom
AGRICULTURAL SCIENCE: First Term's Scheme of Work for SSS 1 – 3
Below is first term's
scheme of work for Agricultural Science for Senior Secondary Schools (SSS) 1 -
3.
First Term's Scheme of
Work for SSS 1
Week 1: MEANING AND IMPORTANCE OF
AGRICULTURE
i. Definition of
Agriculture
ii. Branches of
Agriculture
iii. Importance of
Agriculture to the individual, community and the nation
Week 2: PROBLEMS OF
AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA
Problems created by
inadequate:
i. Land
ii. Basic amenities
iii. Finance
iv. Transportation
v. Shortage and
processing facilities
vi. Agricultural
education and extension
vii. Tools and machinery
viii. Farm inputs
Week 3: SOLUTIONS TO THE PROBLEMS
OF AGRICULTURE IN NIGERIA
Possible solutions to
identified problems
Week 4: HUSBANDRY OF
SELECTED CROPS (ROOT AND TUBER CROPS) e.g.,YAM, CASSAVA, SWEET POTATOES.
i. Method of propagation
ii. Climatic and soil requirements
iii. Land preparation
iv. Manuring and
fertilizer application
v. Harvesting, processing
and storage of the selected crops
Week 5: HUSBANDRY OF SELECTED
CROPS (CEREALS) e.g., MAIZE, RICE etc.
i. Method of propagation
ii. Climatic and soil
requirements
iii. Land preparation,
planting dates, seed rates, spacing, sowing depth
iv. Manuring and
fertilizer requirements and application
v. Harvesting, processing
and storage
Week 6: LAND AND ITS USES
i. Definition of land
ii. Uses of land for:
a. Agriculture
b. Forestry
c. Wildlife
Week 7: FACTORS AFFECTING
LAND AVAILABILITY
Factors affecting land
availability for Agricultural purposes:
i. Alternative uses of
land, e.g. building of cities, towns, industries, roads
ii. Soil type and
topography
Week 8: HUSBANDRY OF OIL CROPS,
e.g., OIL PALM, MELON, GROUNDNUT
i. Method of propagation
ii. Climatic and soil
requirements
iii. Land preparation
(pre-planting and planting operations)
iv. Manuring and
fertilizer requirements
v. Harvesting, processing
and storage of oil crops
Week 9: HUSBANDRY OF
BEVERAGE, e.g., COCOA, TEA AND COFFEE
i. Method of propagation
ii. Climatic and soil
requirements
iii. Land preparation
(pre-planting operations)
iv. Manuring and
fertilizer requirements
v. Harvesting, processing
and storage of beverage
Week 10: HUSBANDRY OF LATEX CROP,
e.g. RUBBER
i. Method of propagation
ii. Climatic and soil
requirements
iii. Land preparation,
nursery requirements
iv. Manuring and
fertilizer requirements and application
v. Harvesting, processing
and storage
Week 11: PRACTICAL:
IDENTIFICATION
Identification of the
common crops available, e.g. oil palm fruits, cocoa pod, kola nut, rubber seed,
cotton seed and lint, groundnut pod, different species of maize etc.
Week 12 – 13
REVISION/EXAMINATION
First Term's Scheme of
Work for SSS 2
Week 1: AGRICULTURAL LAWS
AND REFORMS
Land ownership and tenure
systems in Nigeria
Week 2: LAND USE ACT OF
NIGERIA
Land use Act of 1978:
i. Features of the Act
ii. The need for government
to enforce the law etc.
Week 3: ROLE OF GOVERNMENT IN
AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION
Role of government in
Agricultural production, e.g.,
i. Making of agricultural
policies
ii. Drawing of
agricultural programmes
iii. Provision of loans
and subsidies
iv. Provision of
agricultural education etc.
Week 4: FOREST MANAGEMENT
Forest management
techniques:
i. Forest regulation
ii. Selective exploration
iii. Deforestation
iv. Regeneration
v. Afforestation
vi. Taungya system
Week 5: DISEASES OF CROPS
Diseases of major crops:
e.g.,
i. Cereals – smut,
rice blast, leaf rust
ii. Legume – cercosporal
leaf spot, rosette
iii. Beverages
– cocoa blackpod, coffee leaf rust
iv. Tuber – cassava
mosaic virus, bacterial blight etc.
Week 6: SYMPTOMS AND ECONOMIC
IMPORTANCE OF CROP DISEASES
i. Symptoms of diseases,
e.g., spots, yellowing, rots, wilting, stuntedness etc.
ii. Economic importance,
e.g., increase cost of production, reduces quality of crops, reduces farmer's
income etc.
Week 7: PREVENTIVE AND CONTROL
MEASURES OF DISEASES
i. Cultural methods
ii. Biological methods
iii. Chemical methods
Week 8: IMPORTANT INSECT
PESTS OF MAJOR CROPS:
i. Cereal – system
borer, army-worm, ear-worm
ii. Legume – pod
borer, aphids, sucki bugs,leaf beetle
iii. Beverage
– cocoa myrids (capsids)
Week 9: OTHER IMPORTANT PESTS
i. Other important pests:
a. Birds
b. Rodents
c. Man
d. Monkey
ii. Nature of damages
done:
a. Destruction of leaves
b. Destruction of tender
stems
c. Destruction of
root/tubers
Week 10: ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE
OF SELECTED PESTS
i. Economic importance of
pests:
a. Reduction in quality
of crops
b. Reduction in quantity
of crops
c. Makes vegetables
unattractive and unmarketable etc.
ii. Preventive and
control measures:
a. Cultural methods
b. Biological methods
c. Chemical methods
iii. Side effects of the
various preventive and control methods:
a. Chemical pollution
b. Poisoning etc.
Week 11: PASTURE AND FORAGE CROPS
Morphology of the common
grass and legume species of Nigerian pastures.
Week 12: TYPES OF PASTURE
i. Types of pasture:
a. Permanent pasture
b. Rotational pasture
c. Temporary pasture
d. Irrigated pasture
ii. Factors affecting
pasture:
a. Establishment
b. Distribution
c. Productivity
iii. Management practices
of a pasture land
Week 12 – 13
Revision/Examination
First Term's Scheme of
Work for SSS 3
Week 1: CROP IMPROVEMENT
a. Meaning and aims of
crop improvement
b. Mendelian Laws
Week 2: CROP IMPROVEMENT II
c. Processes of crop
improvement
i. Introduction
ii. Selection
iii. Breeding
Week 3: PRINCIPLES OF
ANIMAL HEALTH MANAGEMENT
a. Susceptibility and
resistance to diseases
b. Predisposing factors:
i. Health status of the
animals
ii. Environment
iii. Nutrition
Week 4: PRINCIPLES OF
ANIMAL HEALTH MANAGEMENT II
c. Symptoms, effects and
mode of transmission, e.g.,
i. Viral – foot
and mouth diseases, rinder pest, new castle disease
ii. Bacterial
– anthrax, brucellosis, tuberculosis
iii. Fungal – scabbies,
ringworm
iv. Protozoa –
trypanosomiasis, coceidiosis
Week 5: PRINCIPLES OF ANIMAL
HEALTH MANAGEMENT III
d. Ecto-Endo parasites,
life cycles and mode of transmission
e. Methods of:
i. Preventing – quarantine,
inoculation, vaccination, hygiene, breeding.
ii. Control – treatment
by a veterinary doctor, destruction.
Week 6: FISH FARMING AND FISHERY
REGULATIONS
a. Establishment and
maintenance of fish pond
Week 7: FISHERY REGULATIONS
b. Fishery regulations
Week 8: ANIMAL IMPROVEMENT
a. Aims and Meaning of
animal improvement
b. Methods of animal
improvement:
i. Introduction
ii. Selection
Week 9: ANIMAL IMPROVEMENT II
iii. Breeding – inbreeding,
line-breeding, cross breeding
Week 10: IRRIGATION AND
DRAINAGE
a. Importance of
irrigation and drainage
b. Drainage system:
channel, sprinkles, underground etc.
Week 11: IRRIGATION AND DRAINAGE
II
c. Merits and demerits of
each: irrigation and drainage system
d. Problems associated
with irrigation:
i. High cost of
maintenance
ii. Water availability
iii. Build up of pest and
diseases
Week 12 – 13
Revision/Examination