Man… I don’t know what it is about economics, but it really gets me PUMPED! Let me know what you guys think about this…

Terrorism is the set of acts of violence against civilians by an organized group or individual. This act of terrorism is intended to cause harm to the civilians in order to inflict a wave of fear amongst a particular locality or a society. The individuals who get involved in these activities are called terrorists. It is a form of self help that is undertaken by these terrorists as a form of showing their grievances (Deflem). Basically, terrorism is an act of violence that is condemned by most of the nations. Counter terrorism are tactics and strategies developed by the ruling government to counter the actions of terrorists. Counter terrorism requires hunting down and killing or making arrests of the terrorist individuals or groups to avoid any future harm from acts of terrorism. In simple words, counter terrorism is the adoption of the same aggressive behavior that the terrorists have embraced in order to oppose the acts of terrorism.

Insurgency is the strategic movement by a group of people to overthrow the government and through gaining control of the political authority and government infrastructure. This movement is an organized set of actions that also includes armed conflicts with the government to weaken it and to occupy the power. Hence, counterinsurgency is the set of strategic actions and tactics undertaken by the government to defeat the insurgents without much violence. This set of strategic actions by the government includes psychological, economic, political and military measures to counter the actions of the insurgents (Kilcullen).

The war on terrorism in Afghanistan was waged by the United States and NATO after the 2001 attacks of terrorists on the World Trade Center in United States (Pike). Al Qaeda and Taliban were the major targets of the military action of NATO and United States army. However, after almost nine years of military action, the Obama administration thought of changing its strategy in the war in Afghanistan. The Obama administration had to decide whether to wage a counterinsurgency campaign or defeat the terrorist groups with counter terrorism strategies.

The use of military action and special counter terrorist forces allows the insurgents to be reduced in number and pushes the terrorist forces backwards. This allows the United States and NATO military forces to gain control of the land in little time. Unites States has a technology of unmanned aircrafts which help the military to kill the terrorists (Young and Pincus). There is no fear of loss of military lives in unmanned aircraft missions. The troops only have to identify the insurgent targets and their job is done. The unmanned aircraft fires missiles on the target, killing all of them. United States military has special trained forces to counter the terrorists and it has also been able to develop breakthroughs in technologies that can help find the terrorists in the Afghan landscape. The special technology and missiles developed for counter terrorism has given an edge to the United States and hence it would be better if it continues the war on Afghanistan.

However, the drone attacks in Afghanistan by the United States have caused many civilian casualties. Not only have the homes and schools of the locals been destroyed because of drone attacks and manned aircraft bombings, but also many innocent people have been killed. This has caused the civilians to stand up against the United Stated military and much new recruitment also took place in Taliban and al Qaeda after this. These counter terrorism measures of drone attacks and aircraft bombing consumer many resources of the United States. Although the numbers of terrorists reduce in the short run, but in the long run, their number increase. Counter terrorism also causes the loss of many American lives in the war which affects their families back in the United States. The total casualties of the United States troops in Afghanistan have reached around 1,200 since the beginning of the war (icasualties.org). This is not the only concern; the main concern is that the number of fatalities is increasing each year. 2010 proved to be the most deadly year for the United Stated forces in Afghanistan as 270 died in action (icasualties.org).

According to the Atlantic Council, an insurgency campaign would include the security of Afghan population and provision of basic services to the residents like food, water, education and health facilities. This will help in earning the support of the local Afghanis civilians. Their trust could be earned by establishing industries, providing health facilities, building roads and sharing power with the tribal leaders. The advocates of counterinsurgency argue that counterinsurgency is the only way through which this war can be won (Joyner). Hunting down and killing Taliban and al Qaeda representatives only creates more representatives. This is because these terrorist groups are able to recruit more people from the local population as the civilians think that the forces of United States and NATO have come to capture them and because of them, this war is going on. In the long run, the tactics of counter terrorism do not benefit United States or NATO because the civilians also get involved in the war.

Counterinsurgency may not work in all the conditions as there are a predefined set of conditions that are necessary in the country for counterinsurgency to be successful. The terrorist groups Taliban and al Qaeda have regained a lot of power in the recent months and have acquired weapons to fight the coalition troops (Gusterson). The problem for the United States government is that these terrorist groups have control over many territories and cities in Afghanistan. This does not allow the coalition forces to reach the civilians to provide then with supplies and basic services. Hence, the counterinsurgency plans may not work out as these insurgents might not allow the supplies to reach the civilians. Secondly, the Taliban is still in so much power that it can destroy the infrastructure built by the coalition to provide facilities to the locals.

One of the objectives of counterinsurgency is also to gain the support of the local tribal leaders so that the United States can earn the trust of the civilians. However, in Afghanistan, United States and the coalition forces have been fighting the war since almost ten years now and they have killed many civilians and have destroyed hundreds of homes of the innocent people. It would not be easy to earn the faith of these civilians, whose families have been killed because of the war in Afghanistan. It is estimated that in the first year of the war alone, there were 1,500 civilian casualties in Afghanistan. It would also be difficult to get the support of the tribal leaders when the civilians do not want the coalition to help them. It can take a long time, several years to regain the trust and support of the local population.

Hence it would be better if the United States and NATO continue counter terrorism in Afghanistan but start some development and provision of basic services to gain the support of the locals. This is because counter insurgency does not have many chances of success as the locals do not support the coalition. The only way to counter the attacks and insurgencies of the Taliban would be to engage in counter terrorism strategies. United States has state of the art weapons for war and cutting edge technology like drone planes that do not require any human and carpet bombing technology which can destroy a large area (BBC News). These technologies do claim the lives of the civilians, but there is no other way to push back the terrorist groups who are operating in the city and consuming the resources that should be consumed by the civilians. Use of full force to repent the terrorists and deploying the latest technology in military action is the only way in which this was can be won. The perspectives of Afghan insurgents cannot be changed because they have sworn to kill the soldiers of the coalition troops. Therefore, the only way is to fight back and employ counter terrorism strategy in Afghanistan.

Works Cited

BBC News. US heavy bombers pound Taleban. 1 November 2001. 7 August 2010 <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/1631533.stm>.

Deflem, M. Terrorism and counter-terrorism: criminological perspectives. Oxford: Elsevier Ltd., 2004.

Gusterson, H. Against counterinsurgency in Afghanistan. 1 July 2010. 7 August 2010 <http://www.thebulletin.org/web-edition/columnists/hugh-gusterson/against-counterinsurgency-afghanistan>.

icasualties.org. Coalition Military Fatalities By Year. 2010. 7 August 2010 <http://www.icasualties.org/oef/>.

Joyner, J. Afghanistan: Counterinsurgency or Counterterrorism? 25 March 2009. 7 August 2010 <http://www.acus.org/new_atlanticist/afghanistan-counterinsurgency-or-counterterrorism>.

Kilcullen, C. Counterinsurgency . New York: Oxford University Press, 2010.

Pike, J. Public Eye. 2010. 7 August 2010 <http://www.globalsecurity.org/eye/wtc.htm>.

Young, K. and W. Pincus. “U.S. counterterrorism efforts set to expand in Afghanistan.” The Washington Post 10 December 2009.

Lots of people would not even consider it, much less the politicians of today, who are not only trying to portray themselves as saints, but are also trying to bring the game industry down by refusing to consider poker a game of skill. However, they certainly cannot erase history, and it would be good for some of them to refresh their memories about the historical relationship between poker and politics.

In a time of controversial enforcement acts against the gaming industry, gambling has become a taboo, even a felony in one state, and money-transferring companies are now banning U.S. players for fear of getting busted and severely punished, like the recent Neteller case.

Even when some politicians and lawyers question and condemn the recent laws to the point of causing a lawsuit from attorney Lee Rousso against the state of Washington for turning gambling into a felony, most people in the Senate and other political circles declare themselves enemies of the gaming industry.

The question is: why now, if playing has always been a favorite past time within the political arena? Why not keep it silent, like it has always been?

It’s a known fact that ex-presidents and important political figures have been inclined to spending their leisure time playing golf, poker, drinking and partying with their peers. What are our current politicians trying to do with all this banning and censure? Are they indirectly saying they are ashamed of their political ancestors for their gambling?

Let’s refresh their memory. There’s a huge list of political personalities in the poker “black list,” including legendary figures like President Warren Harding and Secretary of State Daniel Webster, and more recent personalities, like president Nixon and presidential candidate Barack Obama.

According to presidential records, Warren Harding “played poker at least twice a week, and once gambled away an entire set of White House china. His advisors were nicknamed the ‘Poker Cabinet’ because they joined the president in his poker games.” Other sources even say “he was an ineffectual and indecisive leader who played poker while his friends plundered the U.S. treasury.”

President Harry Truman used to combine alcohol with poker in his long boat vacations, and it is said that “while he told most reporters his main goal was to get some sleep and drink some Kentucky bourbon, he also spends hours playing poker (pay $500 dollars to enter the game).” Some of his favorite poker guests were Speaker Rayburn and Chief Justice Vinson.

Richard Nixon learned to play poker during World War II, and it’s reported that “he became such as dedicated player that he once turned down a chance to have dinner with Charles Lindbergh when it conflicted with a [poker] game. He also won a great deal of money and used his winnings partially to finance his first congressional campaign.”

Secretary of State Daniel Webster, the greatest speaker in American politics, “was a well known poker player in his time [….] Kentucky Senator Henry Clay, a notorious gambler, was Webster’s friend, political ally and favorite poker opponent. They played high limit Draw and it wasn’t uncommon for the pots to reach thousands of dollars.”

Presidential candidate Barack Obama crowns this list, as his taste for poker is the most contemporary proof that politics have always gone hand in hand with poker: “’When he was a young state politician in Illinois, Barack Obama played his cards right. He had the stone face,’ said Senator Terry Links, who hosted weekly poker games at his home. ‘He didn’t stay in hands if he didn’t think he had a chance of winning.’”

There are many more politicians associated with poker, like President Dwight Eisenhower, Vice President Hannibal Hamlin, U.S. Senator Henry Clay, Presidential Advisor Clark Clifford and Justice Thurgood Marshall, to mention some.

Poker is much more closely linked to people who reach the top ranks of success in society than chess is, due to the fact that these personalities found poker more intellectually stimulating. Bill Gates, avid poker player while in college, once expressed to his college roommate that he “believed [poker] marathons were at least as productive and intellectually stimulating as his time spent in class.”

Maybe the answer to gaming persecution lies in what Radley Balko commented last year in Reason Magazine, “I think the main motivation for the bill was simply the moral aversion to gambling held by its chief sponsors – Goodlatte, Kyl, and Leach – and a desire to impose that moral rectitude on the rest of the country.”

Will current politicians achieve their unfounded moralistic quest? We can only hope that the American leaders elected in 2008 realize that these policies represent turning their backs on their political role models, the ones that built the America of today.

In the US, immigration is a complex subject that involves several rules and regulations. So, obtaining an immigrant visa is a time consuming procedure and involves a significant amount of attorney fees. However, as immigration issues are very sensitive and complicated, you definitely need the assistance of an experienced attorney to handle them.

Immigration attorney services in the US involve both employment-based and family-based immigration services. Immigration attorneys are fully knowledgeable about the most complex immigration issues and ever-changing laws in the US. They can help you with work visas, marriage visas, executive transfers, investor visas, adjustment of status, family-based visas and immigration, green cards, litigation and appeals, fiancée visas, citizenship and administrative appeals, consular processing, I-751 petitions to remove conditional residence, employer regulatory compliance, permanent residence, student visas, mergers & acquisitions and global visas.

The immigration process begins with a free evaluation of your profile with comprehensive feedback. If the profile is correct, the attorneys offer you services such as: destination selection, document preparation, document submission, and application monitoring. Before you are called for an interview with the Immigration officer, you are given instructions and tips on how to present yourself in the best possible manner. After you are issued the visa, the attorneys provide you all the resettlement assistance that you need to settle comfortably in the US. For those who are seeking employment, they give employment guidance.

There are a number of large national and international corporations, individual investors, multinational pharmaceutical companies, educational institutions, healthcare professionals, individual applicants, small and mid-size companies, engineering firms, and a variety of professional practice groups seeking immigration visas to the US. Immigration attorneys continuously monitor the latest changes in immigration policy, legislation and procedures in order to make sure their clients fully benefit from the most up-to-date information. They help you in all the procedures involved in the naturalization of foreign nationals who wish to become US citizens. The attorneys also deal with the legal issues associated with people who are refugees or seeking asylum. Their vast experience coupled with state-of-the-art online visa processing technologies ensure economical, fast, and secure immigration process.

Rachel Maddow exposes the latest desperate attempts by GOP candidates to pass the buck on the Iraq war.

I bet you are well aware of the existent of FOREX trading nowadays. FOREX market exists wherever one currency is traded for another. FOREX, or Foreign Exchange Market, is generally works as an international currency exchange market. Investors and speculators are allowed to trade currencies from all around the world thru FOREX trading. Major currencies traded nowadays are United States dollars, Australian Dollars, Japanese Yens, British Pounds, Swiss Francs, Canadian Dollars, and the Euro Dollars.

FOREX is a very unique type of trading where traders are buying and selling ‘money’ in the same time. The trades are done in pairs, such as Euro/JPY, USD/CHF, and CAD/USD. It is the world largest trading market where an average of $1.9 trillion trades is done on a daily basis. The turnover rates in FOREX are nearly 30 times larger than the total volume of equity trades in United States.

Despite its large volume of trades done daily, FOREX is relative new to the publics nonetheless. It is only made available to publics in year 1998 where big sized inter-bank units are sliced into smaller pieces and offered to individual traders like you and me. Before that, FOREX is a game only for banks, multi national cooperation, and big currency dealers. Only those with large business size and strong financial background were permitted to trade foreign currencies.

As a matter of fact, large international banks are still the major traders in currency exchange market. Deutsche Bank is one of the top currency traders; along with other major banks like UBS, Citi Group, HSBC, Barclays, J. P. Morgan Chase, Coldman Sachs, ABN Amro, Morgan Stanley, and Merril Lynch; these banks are said to be responsible for more than 70% trades in currency market.

If you are new to FOREX trading, I bet the FOREX quotes will confuse you. USD/JPY 119.8, EUR/JPY 127.95, EUR/USD 1.2385/1.2390, and GBP/USD 1.7360/65 these figures are just too complicated.

While FOREX quotes might looks like Greeks to the new comers, the concept behind of it is simple. Currency quoted in pairs simply means the relative value compare to the other. Always remember, currency listed at first in a FOREX quote has a constant value of 1. If you see USD/JPY 119.8, this means 1 USD (the first currency listed has a constant value of 1) is equal to 119.8 Japanese Yens. The currency USD in our example is known as base currency; while we normally call the currency listed in the second as the counter.

When you are trading FOREX with currency dealer, the FOREX quotes might look a bit different from our previous example. Often, a two-sided quote, consisting of ‘bid’ and ‘ask’ price, is listed when dealing with currency brokers. For example, EUR/USD 1.2385/1.2390: 1.2385 is known as the ‘bid’ price while 1.2390 is commonly known as the ‘ask’ or ‘buy’ price. The ‘bid’ is the price at which you can sell the base currency; while the ‘ask’ is the price at which you can buy the base currency. As you study the numbers, you might realize that the two-sided currency price is quoted against you. Traders are forced to buy the currency in a higher price than the selling one. This is done because FOREX trades are done without any commission chargers. Thru quoting currency ‘bid & ask’ price differently in this way, the currency brokers are manage to make profit without charging their client commission fees directly.

Strategies in FOREX trading: Fundamental analysis and Technical analysis

Fundamental analysis refers to the study of the core underlying elements that influence the economy of a particular entity. As in FOREX trading, government policies, bank policies, natural disasters, and speculators mood are some of the fundamentals considered to predict the currency market trends. Fundamental FOREX traders will review a country economy’s situation base on these fundamental elements and respond accordingly. To gain max, fundamentalists often apply precise method to convert study’s results into accurate entry/exit price indicator.

Instead of reviewing on the fundamental issues, traders from technical side define market movement according to data purely generated from the market. The term ‘Technical’ is applied in all trading fields, from commodity stocks exchange to option trading, from FOREX to futures.

Generally, the purpose of technical analysis is to find potential price reversal or pivotal points. These points basically refer the change of market trends, which then indicates when to enter or exit from the market. It is important to know that as with any other techniques in your trading system, these technical analysis indicators could be used alone or with other indicators. Traders are always recommended to learn more different technical methods to analyze different market data because none of these techniques are 100% accurate and 100% foolproof. Taking example of the ‘price’ data and the ‘time’ data, which are widely used by FOREX trader. There are some techniques consider solely on the ‘price’ factor, while some solely rely on the ‘time’ factor. The fact is if you know both technical methods, you can take both price and time into consideration during estimating market future trends. This will of course then reduce the risks of losing money in FOREX market. Also, it would be wise if traders combine both technical and fundamental techniques when trading FOREX, as a country currency value depends a lot on fundamental variables such as war, change of national leaders, terrorism attacks, as well as natural disasters.

Without a doubt, FOREX is gaining its popularity fast against other kind of trading. No limited market access, no liquidity issues-after market hours, zero commission fees, low capital requirements with high leverage rates, and no restrictions on short selling — FOREX can be very beneficial to a variety of people. Like any other trading business, if you are new to it, best advice you can get is to learn and practice more before you test your ‘wings’. Forex trading course, seminars, eBooks, Internet, papers, all these are helpful to raise your confidence level before you trade with your real hard-earn dollars. Plan your investment wisely by investing first on yourself; you shall get your reward at the end of the road.

Alex welcomes back to the show Catherine Austin Fitts, the president of Solari, Inc., publisher of The Solari Report, managing member of Solari Investment Advisory Services, LLC., and a former commissioner at the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development in the first Bush Administration. Fitts has a BA from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from the Wharton School. She serves on the board of the Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee. www.solari.com http www.prisonplanet.tv

You can write your father of the bride speech if you follow some simple guide and tips to help you with the writing process. As father of the bride you are tasked to deliver a special speech that will entertain and inspire the audience as well as the bride and groom. So hone your writing skills so you can start creating the best father of the bride speech.

Like you, I was also tasked to write and deliver a father of the bride speech for my daughter’s wedding. I was so stressed about the prospect of writing that I was unable to sleep weeks before the wedding. Fortunately I am computer literate. So I scoured the Internet for information and guides to writing the best father of the bride speech.

Allow me to share with you the things that I learned on-line.

1. Write your speech using a rough draft. Your first draft will allow you to free write your speech. You can write until you are finished while first ignoring grammar and spelling. You will have to edit heavily later, but it is all worth it for polish.

2. Avoid using fancy words when writing your father of the bride speech. Using fancy words may seem impressive to you, but it is more annoying if you can’t reach the majority of your listening audience.

3. Keep your father of the bride speech short and simple. The key to a good speech is coherence, cohesiveness, and brevity. So keep your speech short and simple by using conversational English and short sentences to fill your paragraphs.

4. Use descriptive devices like metaphors, simile, and imagery when writing your speech. This will engage the imagination of your audience. The key to this tip is to draw in the attention of your audience so you can tell a much more colourful story.

5. Start your speech by introducing yourself. Remember that not everyone here knows who you are. The next step is to tell humorous anecdotes or inspirational stories. You can tell stories about the bride and groom and how they changed for the better when they were together. The last part of your speech should be the obligatory congratulations.

Now that you have a guide to help you write your father of the bride speech, I hope that you are now more confident and ready. If you need more professional tips and guides to speech writing, then click this link http://www.weddingspeechesforall.com/father-of-the-bride-speeches-toasts-writing-guide/

INTRODUCTION

When general Yakubu Gowon established the NYSC by the decree 24 of May 1973, its primary aim was to promote the ideals of national unity and a sense of common destiny among Nigeria and eliminate mental suspicion and mistrust that has been engendered by the civil war, however it is high time the scheme had a face-lift, if not a new face in its entirety, with calls from different quotas on the president or who ever is in charge to to evaluate/audit the scheme, the president  has promised an overhauling of the scheme, in my own opinion I think the overhauling should be that which will involve the real  stakeholders in the business of NYSC, that will involve corp members, both serving and past, parents, educationist and community leaders, traditional rullers and employers of labour. In this meeting the NYSC’s objective should be examined critically and rephrased. Wordy of mention is the set and existing objectives which are

promote unity and national integration
raise the moral tone of the youths by exposing them to higher ideals of national building
promote even national economic development/mobility of labour into less developed areas
encourage employers to employ Nigerians irrespective of their background or ethnic group

having considered all this it will be of great benefit, if we examine how the scheme has performed/fared since its establishment.

NYSC IN RELATION TO NATIONAL SERVICE IN OTHER COUNTRIES

Nigeria – Service of one year in the National Youth Service Corps is compulsory for all university and polytechnic graduates below the age of 30, with exemptions for service in the armed forces, police and graduation with honors. 85,000 were enlisted in 1998/99. The program was founded in 1973 following the civil war to promote inter-ethnic group understanding by serving outside their home states and to contribute to the country’s development. 70% of corps members serve in schools; health clinics and other projects absorb the balance. One day each week all corps members are expected to participate in community service projects that are designed by the local communities where they serve.

Looking at the scheme in Nigeria, let’s consider what it looks like in other countries first are those in which it is mandatory for youth with certain qualities will participate, then those that require voluntary participation.

Programs in which certain categories of young people are required to participate:

Israel - A nearly universal military National service exists, and has been an important social welfare institution as well as defence force since the country was established (exemptions for ultra-orthodox Jews and for Israeli Arabs and religious women who serve in alternative service programs). Men serve for three years; women for two years. Government will establish a pilot for a non-military national service program for any Israeli who is exempted from military service for any reason (May2000) to address inequities in who serves in the IDF, e.g., Arab-Israelis are 20% of population. National service opportunities also exist through the Kibbutz movement and several Israeli Youth  movements, although participation in these programs does not replace military service. Current military force averages 500,000 out of total population of 6 m.

Mexico – All university students must participate in the University Servicie Social program in the last third of their academic programs to receive their degrees. This program was established by law in 1944 to apply the resources of universities to the National goal of eliminating poverty. All medically trained professionals must serve in disadvantaged communities for one year before they can be licensed. In 1996 conscripts were given the option of either serving in the army or in one of three national service programs involving adult literacy, social work and sports promotion. NGOs and

government youth organisations also organise youth service projects. youth defined as 12-24 years old, 28% of population of 98.1 m. Second national youth Development Conference Our Future Now – empowering young people through youth development Workshop Stream International Perspectives

Egypt – A national service program exists for young female secondary school graduates to serve as the military equivalent of military service for young men. In principle, women must fulfill their nationa service before they can be employed in the public sector. Women serve for six months, typically in a literacy center as part of the government’s literacy campaign. Non-governmental organisations such as Scouts and Guides and NGO-run programs in urban and rural areas involve youth in community service.

Programs in which participation is voluntary:

China – Chinese Young Volunteers Program sponsored and largely funded by Communist youth League; established in 1994; operated through a national network of provincial and local associations; 72.4 m participants in CYVP (460 m 14-35 year olds, 38% of total population); typical participant is a 19-25 year old student or worker who volunteers once a month for several hours during weekends and holidays (youth survey revealed that majority believe 80 hrs/year is right amount of time; survey also reveals that youth think the main beneficiaries should be handicapped people and lonely elders); CYVP is able to mobilise large numbers of participants for events such as Beijing Women’s conference, national games or rescue and disaster relief; highest motivation factors are helping others; lowest were to gain power and prestige and to respond to the call from government

USA - Government supports multiple youth service programs through the Corporation for national Service: service learning in schools and higher education institutions involving several million students; programs run by community-based organisations; and full and part-time service corps (AmeriCorps) for 50,000 people each year who are 17 or older. The annual Congressional appropriation has averaged $600m for the past 3 years. CNS also supports 500,000 senior citizens in service projects. Authority for running projects is largely devolved to states, and delivered through grants to public and non-profit organisations. Projects are focused on efforts to address education, environmental, public safety and a wide range of human service needs. In addition to programs supported by CNS, many non-profit organisations organise youth service programs.

UK - Government provides overall policy regarding the voluntary sector, including youth  service; funding for youth service programs is provided through several government departments (Homeb Office, DfEE, and DCMMS); DfEE has responsibility for two government-sponsored programs – Millenium Volunteers (MV)(1998) and European Voluntary Service. Voluntary sector agencies, which pre-date recent government initiative in youth service, deliver programs within the framework set out by government and in partnership with government. MV participants serve a minimum of 100hours. Size at full operation is projected to be 150,000 participants/year in England and smaller numbers in other home countries. DfEE has also introduced a new school curriculum, which will require citizenship education for all children over age 11 by 2001. Funds from the national Lottery support the Millenium Awards Scheme, which supports individual social entrepreneurs through a competitive process. Private sector support for youth service is significant.

Kenya – The national youth Service is a voluntary program for 2000 unemployed high school graduates each year, ages 18 – 22, who serve for 2-3 years on projects that address national development needs and contribute to the personal and professional development of the participants. (In the current year there were no new participants due to lack of funds.) Non-governmental youth service programs also exist such as Kenyan Scouts and several that target youth in vulnerable areas such as rural communities and urban slums.

South Africa – A white paper calling for the establishment of a voluntary national youth service(NYS) was developed by the national youth Commission in 1999 and sent to Cabinet for approval. If approved the NYS will develop programs to engage unemployed youth, university and technik on students, and youth involved with the criminal justice system. Five pilot projects will be launched in

Second national youth Development Conference Our Future Now – empowering young people through youth development Workshop Stream International Perspectives

2000 and provide the foundation for expansion to a national program. Government policy and funding incentives have created pressure for higher education institutions to respond to community development needs by engaging students and faculty with the work of NGOs and CBOs. In 1998 government required all medical school graduates to spend a compulsory year serving in disadvantaged communities. In 1995 the unemployment figure for young men and women was 23%, not including students. 16.2 m youth 14-35, 39% of total population

Costa Rica - The government requires all medically trained professionals to serve one year in the Servicio Social program serving disadvantaged populations in urban and rural areas. A newly implemented government policy requires community service programs in all high schools, although there is no requirement that the service must be related to the curriculum. The University of Costa Rica requires all students to perform community service work in relation to their academic studies. Several NGOs are developing community-based service programs with disadvantaged youth.

UNIVERSAL BASIC EDUCATION SCHEME

Summary of the act for UBE

As contained in the official Reference of the Federal Republic of Nigeria  Gazette (2004), the act provides for compulsory universal basic education and stipulates penalties for parents who fail to comply with the provision. On the issue of relevance of the school curriculum to the society Ehindero (2000) Adesina (2000) have raised doubts as it has been observed that there is a growing rate of poverty which is an indicator of problems in the system. It was therefore suggested that it should be so structured that each individual will be equipped to perform some six life roles e.g. role as an individual, as a producer, citizen, national consumer and as a family member. As far as the provision of human and material resources are concerned, Adebimpe (2001) opined that for the UBEto succeed, adequate provision should be made to produce sufficient qualified teachers and make them relevant within the limit of their area of specialization. Salaries need to be paid as at when due because it serves as a motivation factor towards productivity.

INCORPORATING UBE INTO THE NYSC SCHEME

What is UBE

First it will be of great import to examine what UBE stands for, its objectives and general framework, the fundamental principle of UBE in Nigeria is that everybody must have access to equivalent education comprehensively and co-educationally. The concept of the Universal Primary Education (UPE) introduced in 1976. (6 years education) was to change into Basic education (9 years education) twenty three years later. Basic education is not completely new but its meaning has been broadened after the World

Declaration on Education for All (EFA),and the Framework for Action to meet Basic learning needs.  President Olusegun Obasanjo formally launched the UBE in Nigeria on 30th September, 1999. The programme is intended to be universal, free, and compulsory. Since the introduction of western education in 1842 (Eya, 2000), regions, states, and federal governments in Nigeria have shown a keen interest in education. The goal of all these programmes is providing functional, universal, and quality education for all Nigerians irrespective of age, sex, race, religion, occupation, or location.

UBE is broader than UPE, which focused only on providing educational opportunities to primary school age children. UBE stresses the inclusion of girls and women and a number of underserved groups: the poor, street and working children, rural and remote populations, nomads, migrant workers, indigenous peoples, minorities, refugees, and the disabled. The formal educational system is only one of six components included in basic education in the implementation guidelines of the Federal Government. Others relate to early childhood, literacy and life skills for adults, nomadic population, and non-formal education or apprenticeship training for youth outside the formal education system (Nigeria 2000).

Education has remained a social process in capacity building and maintenance of society for decades. It is a weapon for acquiring skills, relevant knowledge and habits for surviving in the changing world. Invariably, the major problem identified in the Nigerian UBE system lies in the automatic promotion, that is, 100% promotion and  transition for 9years. This indeed is a mockery of any form of evaluation done at this level and is bound to reflect on the standard of education in no distant future  Goals of UBE The objectives of the programme as specified in the implementation guideline by

government in 1999 are as follows:

Developing in the entire citizenry, a strong conscientiousness for education and a strong commitment to its vigorous promotion
Provision of free Universal Basic Education for every Nigerian child of school going age
Reducing drastically the incidence of drop out from the formal school system
Catering for young persons, their schooling as well as other out of school children or adolescent through appropriate form of complementary approaches to the provision of UBE

- Ensuring the acquisition of appropriate levels of literacy, numeracy, manipulative communicative and life skills as well as the ethical, moral and civic values needed for laying a solid foundation for the life long living.

Going by the research published by ADenola Adepoju  and Anne Fabiyi  the Problem is the universal access to education has been prime target for Nigeria in the last four decades and Nigeria is a signatory of World Declarations on  education for All. Igwe (2006) reported that the United Nations Organization (UNO), article 26 on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states in part that everyone has the right to  education, and this shall be free in elementary and primary stages. So, both at the national and international levels, Nigeria is committed to the provision of basic education to all its citizens. Many attempts have been made in this direction but no appreciable positive results have been recorded. The problem of implementation continues to be a perennial problem to the fulfilment of a constitutional and social obligation to make access possible to all.   They also concluded in there research that   The cost of education has been reported to be on the increase yearly and in spite of increase in budgetary allocation for implementation of educational policies, the funds are still not adequate. In order to support government the new policy advocated for sharing the burden of funding with other stakeholders. The local community is expected to be mobilized to provide for needed infrastructure. In this research, principals/managers of schools assessed the community’s level of involvement to be very low. The lack of commitment and general apathy towards the course of a successful implementation of the UBE has been a problem. A survey research conducted by Ker and Okwori revealed that the participation of individuals, private and the three tiers of government was found to be the best option for funding and managing UBE schools.  Massive provision of teaching and learning facilities and improvement of existing ones will enhance programme implementation. The use of other facilities that enhance communication and productivity is also a mark of good performance. Falayajo, Makoju, Gladys, Okebukola, Onugha and Olubade (1997) had assessed the learning achievement of primary four pupils in Nigeria and discovered that this has not improved. Almost ten years after their research, this research also reveals that teachers, performance is rated as low, as their students achievements.  The principals observed that the use of computers is only limited to computer awareness and literacy to a large extent. Computer use for application was not emphasized. The use of computers should not be limited to teaching and learning but for school administration. Askar et al (2006) noted that computers in Turkish primary schools have become widely used in administrative work and that in fact, information technology has entered the life of teachers. Government policy on enforcing attendance at the UB programme has not been implemented as majority of parents are still involved in keeping their children and wards behind.  This research reveals that only a small group (17.8%) of respondents agreed that government was taking care of all their school needs whereas majority (82.2%) claim that their parents were largely involved in funding their school expenses. Adesina (2004) noted that private establishments, communities and individual parents must be called upon to fund UBE He cautioned that it was wrong and misleading propaganda that education can be obtained absolutely free as the actual experience on the field has shown that such propaganda is more of a political gimmick than a statement of good intention.  It was observed that the greater the stake in any venture, the greater the interest and commitment of the stake holders in that venture. An enabling law to compel parents to leave no child behind should be enforced. Other practical steps that could be taken to move UBE forward in Nigeria is to give national recognition to individual private organization and local communities who have contributed by way of commitment and financial backing to the ideals of the programme.

THE NEED FOR INTEGRATING NYSC INTO UBE

I think the primary purpose for setting up the NYSC scheme has been achieved long ago except we want to shy away from the truth, Nigerian now are united more than ever any crisis that is on now is not as a result of ethnic neither is it as a result of religious purpose, but its just a selfish nature of our politicians who are supposed to be the leaders, this is own to the fact that Nigerian youth even pick up employment, marry and even settle-down in there state of deployment during NYSC, even we now have NYSC club and an Alumni congregation has been instituted,

Even it was stated in (nigerianouline.com) that NYSC has it’s multiplier effect which are

The achievements of the scheme which are both tangible and intangible, are many, and they touch all known spheres of human endeavour. The scheme has over the years allowed for the regular and effective distribution of skilled manpower, the steady breaking of social and cultural barriers as well as the building of friendly bridges across the nation.

It has also promoted higher values of national unity and development, rekindled interest in neglected but vital areas of national development like agriculture, and promoted leadership qualities in our youths. In these and other ways, the scheme constantly pricks the conscience of the nation to the right course of development, thereby keeping the hope alive for a better Nigeria.

The regular invita tion of members of the Corps to participate in the conduct of such sensitive national assignments as Population Census, Elections, etc. and to provide material for the Technical Aid Corps (TAC), is not only an expression of faith in the ability of the scheme, but also an appreciation of its monumental achievements since its inception in 1973. The positive multiplier effects of these achievements on society are worthy of further examination, taking, for instance, the deployemnt of corps members.

From its humble beginning of about 2,000 corps members in 1973, it has rapidly grown to the staggering annual figure of 85,000 corps members in 1999. This phenomenal growth, apart from ensuring that the presence of the scheme is felt in all nooks and crannies of the Federation, also allows for the even distribution of manpower in the best interest of the country.

this shows the extent of its success but the problem of NYSC has to do with the implementation and management of the scheme, the following has been observed

under funding of the scheme by relevant bodies
welfare of corpers are not taking into consideration
corp’s member are just undergoing the scheme for selfish reasons (DISPATCH letter)
that there has been irregularities in the posting pattern of corp member especially PPA
corpers end up doing nothing because they are not been utilize in there field of studies.

The problem elisted above are a function of the refusal of the federal government to oblirge to the call of Nigerians to revitalize or evaluate the scheme for a greater height, first the aspect of funding the scheme is under unded this led to it having problem in the mobilization of 2007/2008 batch B corp members, although the federal Government under the leadership of president umaru yar’adua waded in and it was able to mobilize  graduates that are ready to serve that year. Because Nigerian universities and polytechnics turns out over 100,000 graduates ona yearly basis, and as we all know that the Scheme started with just about 2,000 graduates, this means that the scheme has grown fromits former state, it population expanded , its ideal broadened and the need for its objectives to be strengthen can not be over emphasized.

The aspect of welfare of corp member is of great concern too, but welfarism is a function of funding, for an institution not to be well funded I wonder how it will be able to carry-out the task of welfare of corp members, corp, member has frowned about the monthly allowance being paid them, because to you relocate a corp member from Mshin in Lagos to Meiduguri in Borno state theb you can imagine a graduate trying yo cope with 9,750 naira, “although it is still part of the training” the say, as for myself I was relocated from Bariga, in Lagos to Machina, in Yobe State. With no other benefits except that of the federal allowance, I think part of the overhauling that needs to be carried out should incorporated the upward review of corp’s members allowance.

As for the selfishness of corp member , just undergoing the Scheme in other for them to get their dispatch certificate for job purposes should be changed in other words, these NYSC scheme should be seen as giving back a little to what your country has done for you, because it seems as if it is just a ritual that all graduate must observe and so we all go/went for it, don’t forget this notion that “ do not think of what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country”, because truly truly if we look at it people will say that in Nigeria you are on your own, there is little or no Government impact on the life of its citizen and as such what are you serving the nation for, this notion should be corrected government or no government, it is important to serve your nation and the government and the institution should embark on massive campaign against that notion because it is causing damage to the scheme because corp’s member do not put in there best because of this reason.

The most important of all is the aspect of irregularities inposting of corp members to there various state and most importantly there respective local government, some corp members are posted to the urban centres whole others are posted to the rural areas, of all the cardinal objectives of the NYSC which are as listed in (Nigeria.com)

Elimination of ignorance
Regular source of income
Leadership traing
National consciousness
Socio-economic development
Education
Health
Rural development

The  rural development is of great importance and it deserve to be giving great attention because they are the once that need the Corp members the most owing to the fact that the concept of rural urban migration is a function of the uneven distribution of Socal infrastructure, such as education, road , electricity etc. now the corp members are ready made tools that could be used to bridge the Gap because they bring modernization to these areas a vivid example is that community tends to provide good housing units for corp members, electricity and even telecommunication network , I now of Fika Camp in Yobe state, whereby Celtel, MTN, and Glo Mobile Network came to be as a result of the site of the orientation camp in that village, and also corpers establish restaurant, bring in different electronic gadget and other modern facilities to mention a few to that area. Consequently, majority of the rural people have been poor and starved of social
amenities and they will need to be trained if these facilities are to be provided to the community, example of Machina local government where very few of the indigene are computer literate and can even use the internet not until corpers are posted to those areas and they started using all these facilities and involve the community in a training program before they could be able to use the computers. This program was taken by myself in the area of community development services not just for the villagers but also for corp members, it was also gathered from (Nigeria.com) that while all these have the effect of enhancing socio-economic and political activities, the scheme’s venture into agriculture since 1984 deserves special notice. It should be recalled that by this time, agriculture had already become a very neglected area of our national life. Consequently, a food crisis was imminent and it was mainly to avert it that the scheme found it necessary to go into  farming, and it paid off. Soon after its agricultural venture, more attention began to be paid to this sub sector with all the seriousness it deserves.  

So if all corp members are posted to the interior parts of the country to serve then this development of the rural area that we all long for will be achieved.

On the aspect of the underutilization and/or non-utilization of corp members has been a lingering problem, in establishment corp members are not been utilized properly and are turned to those that can be used as clerical staffs, in the place where that services are needed they are overstressed and overworked with little pay, because they regard them are cheap labour, and they are not entrusted with real duties.

In other part corps members are assigned task that have nothing to do with there training and are regarded as redundant fellows because they have little or nothing to do in such department, this amounting to corpers not acquiring any experience during there service tear regarding it as a share waste of time and as such not contributing to national development.

Also of importance is the special preference giving to medical doctors in terms there accommodation , special allowances and so on, while others such as engineers, lawyers, accountant are treated as ordinary, this on its own brings to bear the fact that there is an uneven appreciation of corps members services in a community.

NYSC OBJECTIVES AS REGARDS UBE AND OTHERS SHOULD BE

Transformation of Education Strengthening Civil Society and Social Responsibility
Productivity and Development of Youth Participant Economic Development, Social Development and Poverty Elimination
Cultural and Political Integration

The mode of posting and utilization of corp members should be

all prospective corp member should be posted to the rural area,

 People will say what about areas like Lagos where everywhere has been urbanize, I tell them too that areas like Igbogbo, Imota, Ibeche, Obadore and others in Epe needs corp members to serve in the community. If all corp members know that there colleague is also in a rural area serving then he/she knows that we are in it together, and the need to be sober when you receive your posting letter will not arise, it will also reduce corruption in NYSC, because people with connection to people in high places do find there way to major city in Nigeria.

2. since the UBE is facing a lot of problem in terms of manpower and other infrastructure then all corpers should be made to teach in schools except doctors which will be posted to hospitals in the rural areas, I believe if doctors are posted to the rural areas they will also bring development in terms of medical facilities to that area by them demanding from the relevant authority, instead of posting them to local government secretariat where they will be doing nothing. Every Nigerian graduate should be able to teach in secondary school and when the need arises primary school.

By this the aim of NYSC in to forestall National unity, cultural accumulation, social development, political integration and basic education will be achieved. Because the rural area will be a great beneficiary of the Scheme. Prior to UBE, curricula were rigid and inflexible, focusing on formal education at the expense of technical, vocational and pre-vocational skills. Technical equipment was imported and distributed to secondary schools to facilitate training in technology, but few technicians were available to operate it. In some cases, communities were unable to provide an environment that was conducive to achieving proficiency in operating the machines. Specifically, the curriculum was faced with problems such as

:• inflexibility;

• non-availability of funds for the Nigerian Education Research and Development Council (NERDC) to review education on a regular basis;

• limited capacity-building for curriculum experts;

• inability to respond to the need of the immediate environment.

In this regard corp’s member can  fill-in  in this regards and handle those equipment better, because of there vast experience and exposure in these areas.

The growing number of attacks on Shia Sect in Pakistan raised huge alarms for the Government of Pakistan.

Since the holy month of Moharram when Shia community in Pakistan observes the incident of Karbala with great enthusiasm, the surprising increase in terrorist attacks on Karachi have destroyed the peace and progress of the this important business hub of Pakistan. The focus of these attacks seems to be very straight on Shia Community and with the resent assault on Chehlum procession and at Jinnah Hospital, the intensity of actions by terrorists against this particular community seems to be gearing up immensely.

The Government is completely blind or may be hiding the real truth and motive behind these attacks. As usual, people are given a picture that it is a move of our enemies to trigger sectarian violence in the city.  However my observation and research finds another reason for these blood bathed actions against Shia Community in particular. I belong to Sunni Community and I strongly believe in sectarian unity and harmony among all the citizens of Pakistan.

Interacting to different people from Swat and Waziristan region, it has come to my knowledge that a very negative image of our Army is being developed by our enemies in the minds of the people of these regions. The attempt by our enemies by tagging the Pakistan Army as a Shia Army invading the Sunni regions of this Country has made things complex for our Security forces. I believe that this particular notion which is becoming a motivation for the Taliban and Sunni factions of tribal belt would turn into an uncontrollable menace in future. We are living in the cities and are completely unaware of this shocking reality as we believe what our media portrays before us. It is very strange to note that our Newspapers and Channels are hiding this reality very cunningly which is creating a negative impact on the operations in our tribal belt. Alarmingly this motive alone is becoming a core reason for preparation of more and more suicide bombers on legitimizing the killing of Shia people by the clerics and rebel commanders of those regions.

There are many fake stories of atrocities of Pak Army revolving in those regions and some are so infuriating that after hearing those, one can understand that how negatively the image of our Army is projected to those people who have no access to any news channel or newspaper. These stories are now used to trigger hatred against Pakistan Army particularly declaring them as Shia Army. Strangely, we see many fake videos and images circulated quickly on Internet about Pak Army beating Pashtuns. Such videos are playing dangerous part to create misunderstanding in the minds of Pashtun community against our Army.  It is very discouraging for many peace lovers that our Intelligence and our media are not acting responsibly to counter the negative propaganda against our Brave Army. There should be taken a strong action now and the projection of true face of Pakistan Army is needed that represents every sect in Pakistan but not branded with any particular one. There is also a great need that these areas must be provided facilities to access to the media and newspapers to obtain current situation with true perspective. Our enemies are very cunning and are trying their ugly moves to bring devastation to our country. It is our duty to stand strong against this propaganda war triggered by our enemies. We should also work together to clear the ambiguity and clean up the rusted hearts which is of course not an easy job to do.

It is my demand that the Government of Pakistan must look seriously into this matter and work sincerely to build a barrage against flow of negative propaganda against our valor Army. We paid heavy price of this kind of ugly propaganda during 1971 incidence when Bengali people were given similar picture of our Army that created the venomous Mukhti Bahni that helped India to dislocate our integral part in the most painful manner. It is time we should all understand the ugly move of our enemies. There is not a shred of a doubt that CIA, Mossad and RAW are behind this ugly game. It was America who pushed us into war with our own people and then initiated hate filled propaganda against our sacrificing soldiers.

I must also demand that Pak Army should be highly selective in targeting the Tehreek e Taliban Pakistan’s fighters and Commanders. The loss of innocent people always changes the support for a true cause of an Army that is fighting bravely against the enemies of the nation.  The Drone attacks I repeat are also serving negatively in our war on terror as TTP uses these attacks as a strong tool to club Pakistan with USA as aggressors against Islam.  Immediate suspension in Drone attacks is needed to strengthen the support for Pakistan Army and the nation.

It is my demand that Government should seriously take notice of the revelations made here in this article and formulate a policy to counter the ugly propaganda war waged by our enemies.

My hopes are high and I believe in Allah that our tough times would soon be over and we will move ahead as a prosperous nation if we would sincerely address and resolve the issues hurting our national interest and our security.