Children's Fire Safety Programs in Edinburgh Term Paper - 1

Children's Fire Safety Programs in Edinburgh - Term Paper Example The first level of operational assurance that will be available will be based on the evaluation programs that will be implemented. The surveys that will take place after the programs can be considered and assessed for the short-term goals being met. If the retention levels of the fire hazard programs continue to improve and if the teacher responses are implemented, then it can be seen that the staff are providing the right level for the programs. Continuous innovation and the ability to meet the short-term goals will then provide a stronger basis for the programs and will become a measure of the operational assurance that is a part of the program. This will be furthered by the specific needs that are within the educational areas. Being able to meet these and receiving direct responses from the educational institutions will ensure that there is a higher level of quality that is being met.The operational assurance will then be followed by the understanding that the staff needs to meet the standards that were provided as a main resource in the beginning. Monitoring and mediation will be given to the staff to ensure that they continue to meet the standards that are expected with both the programs and inside the office. By doing this, there will be the ability to ensure that the staff continues to comply with the standards that have been set by past programs. There will also be the ability to ensure that the standards continue to be implemented while raising the standards to current issues that are a part of the community. This will be followed by the ability to create programs that are built from a combination of innovation and basic standards that are in compliance with the expected resources.

Pre-Columbian History of the Caribbean Indigenous People Essay Example for Free

Pre-Columbian History of the Caribbean Indigenous People Essay Both indigenous groups, Tainos and Siboneys migrated to the Caribbean region. The first indigenous group to migrate to the Caribbean was the Siboneys. Although their origin has been debated, the common perception is that they came from either the southern top of modern day Florida or Mexico. It is estimated that around 500 B. C. they settled in the Greater Antilles region of the Caribbean. This region includes the Bahamas, Cuba and Jamaica. The Taino migration occurred approximately around the same time as the Siboneys. Their migration started from the South American mainland, most notably the area between Venezuela and Colombia to the area known as the Lesser Antilles of the Caribbean. This area included islands such as Trinidad and the Virgin Islands. The Taino utilized canoes to travel between each island during their migration. The canoes were made out of tree trunks and measured approximately 25 meters in length. Each canoe had a travel capacity of approximately 50 people. The main reason for the Taino migration was increased agitation and threats from the Carib indigenous people from the same region in South America. The Caribs were fierce in the their pursuit of the Taino and followed them up into the Lesser Antilles. Culturally, both the Taino and Siboney differed greatly. The Siboneys communed in small societies. Some would argue that they were culturally unsophisticated. They did not make any complex tools, just wood, stone and shells. The Siboney’s also settled by the riverside since they did not practice any form of agriculture. Their diet consisted of easily attainable animals such as fish and reptiles. They also ate wild fruits that were native to the islands. Conversely, the Taino were more advanced than their northern neighbor the Siboneys. The Taino had a complex society that consisted of settlements of as much as 500 inhabitants. They also contained a social structure for each settlement that consisted of a chief known as a cacique, a tier of elders who represented various families of each settlement, women and children. The Taino designated tasks to its members according to their position. Men cleared uninhabited areas of land and fished. Women were in charge of crop cultivation and child rearing. Unlike the Siboneys, the Taino mastered the art of farming. They farmed various crops such as yucca, guava and sweet potatoes. They also hunted various small game around the islands. The Taino also mastered clay pottery. Lastly, the Taino exercised their religious beliefs regularly. They believed in Gods that they called Zemis. The Caicique’s job was to carry out religious ceremonies by nasally ingesting a hallucinogenic mixture of tobacco and crushed sea shells through a long pipe called a cohoba. This snuff allowed the caciques to communicate with their Gods. Unlike the Siboneys, the Taino were a highly advanced society. They played a sophisticated team game called â€Å"Batey†. This game can be considered as the precursor to modern day soccer. Specially designed ball courts were created for Batey. In addition, The Taino also created jewelry and ornaments in which both men and women wore to Festivals and other celebratory events. In conclusion, the Taino and Siboney indigenous people both migrated to the Caribbean region. They both make up the genealogical and cultural starting point for all individuals who hail from the Caribbean region.

Qualitative Research in Geography: An Overview

Qualitative Research in Geography: An Overview Geography seems to be one of those disciplines that shifts its interest from one perspective to another without necessarily changing its central research questions. Qualitative methods have long been used within the discipline of human geography. However, it was not until recently that they have become sufficiently established that some consider them to have gone too far (Marshall, 2001), as the last decade has undoubtedly seen an expansion in qualitative work in both terms of the types of work and the topics addressed. This essay will address the fact that we have moved from a period when papers were prefaced with legitimisations of qualitative work to a time when we are seeing debates within qualitative methods over establishing orthodox approaches and standards. This will be done thorough a reflection on current re-evaluations of the most common methods – mainly interviewing and ethnography –and where they are developing. Qualitative approaches have long had a strong association with cultural, social and radical geographies, in part as a reaction to quantified social geography. For example, in terms of the geographies of gender, feminist critiques of masculinist approaches were picked up and an argument about empathy amplified the concern with qualitative methods. This also could be reversed, labelling qualitative work with a feminist `softness as opposed to hard science. This debate though, has matured, from quick over-assumptions that qualitative work was generally `soft, to considering its weaknesses and strengths in a more balanced fashion (Raju et al., 2000). Qualitative research has also had to wrestle with the argument that simply listening to, giving voice to and representing the silenced is not enough. There is now a maturity about qualitative methods in geography, but also that there comes with this a certain conventionality of approaches. In delving deeper into this discussion it is important to consider the continued debates about the framing of qualitative, and especially ethnographic, work, after the so-called ‘crisis of representation’ and work in the performative vein, as qualitative research is often torn between a constructivist approach and a longing to convey a ‘real’ sense of the field. Geography has followed anthropology through these debates on ethnography and representation, responding to the question ‘how is unruly experience transformed into an authoritive written account?’ (Besio and Butz, 2004: 433). There has been a backlash against what are described as ‘excesses’ of reflexivity in some responses to this question. For instance, Bourdieu (2003) called for a renewed ‘objectivity’ via structural reflexivity in a participant observation. He argues for a personal understanding of reflexivity, to address the academic and social structures that drive research agendas, which for geography in non-western settings would show how ‘academic research practices †¦ have relied extensively on remnant colonial discourses and structures of domination for access to research subjects, efficacy of data collection and legitmation’ (Bourdieu, 2003: 288). Katz points out that ‘in the field and in their private readings, ethnographers share a culture of evaluation which is masked by the fractious, even righteously indignant commentary that characterises rhetoric about ethnographic writing’ (2002: 64). Katz argues that ‘as ethnographers, we must do more than claim: we need to show’ (2002: 68). However, Besio and Butz (2004) offer an alternate reflexivity, taking Marie Louse Pratt’s definition of autoethnography. Where rather than being about reflecting on one’s own practice it refers to the subject or dominated people’s self-representation to colonisers’ terms while remaining faithful to their own self-understandings. This tradition is not just framing local knowledges; Gold (2002) looks to a globalised religious movement that is using its self-representations and indeed academic work in its self-constitution. This makes the important point of not separating ethnography from writing – not privileging oral research over written material but rather seeing productions of various representations as moments for situated reading and interpretations by all actors. If we thus move to models of representation as intervention rather than corresponding to prior reality, we might look for new ways of producing and judging truth. Besio and Butz (2004) provide their own critique of transcultural representation. They point out that this is not an automatic process but something that has to be worked at and may only be achieved in specific circumstances. The apocalyptic tones of this debate seem particular to anthropology with its habitual [re-] definition of fieldwork as residential participant observation – as opposed to the more plural practices of qualitative methods in geography. These reflexive studies raise questions about how the usual methods fit these new topics. Meth (2003) suggests that reflective, discursive diaries first offer a ‘discontinuous writing’, allowing people to change their minds and priorities, meaning that they are not dominated by what happened in the morning before an interview. Moreover, they offer different and possibly easier routes for respondents to express themselves, especially their emotions, and reflect upon their own world-views. Alternately, Harper (2002) provides a history of the ‘photo-elicitation’ interview where pictures push people’s normal frames of reference to form the basis for deep discussions of values. The use of pictures in presenting material raises the issue of how visual and verbal relate to each other, whether they could speak to different ways of knowing rather than just being treated as different kinds of evidence (Rose, 2003). As Basio and Butz (2004: 444) note, the ‘visual in ethnographic has generally not been used intrinsically for interpreting and representing ethnographic data and culture’ but either as just more data or subordinated to a textualising metaphor. Whatmore (2003: 89) notes ‘the spoken and written word constitute the primary form of ‘data’’, whereas the world speaks in many voices through many different types of things that ‘refuse to be reinvented as univocal witnesses’. This comes back to the heart of a new kind of programmatic writing which is ‘suggestive of nothing less than a drive towards a new methodological avant garde that will radically refigure what it is to do research’ (Latham, 2 003: 2000). It is normally at this point, as we engage artistic approaches, that policy-orientated researchers voice concerns about a turn away from commitments to engaging ordinary people and offering them a voice. This seems to me to be a false opposition of committed, ‘real world’ versus ‘inaccessible’, theoretical research. It might be a good idea to end this report by returning our attention to the rich yet ambiguous and messy world of doing qualitative research. As Thrift notes: ‘Through fieldwork is often portrayed as a classical colonial encounter in which the fieldworker lords it over her/his respondents, the fact of the matter is that it usually does not feel much like that at all. More often it is a curious mixture of humiliations and intimidations mixed with moments of insight and even enjoyment’ Thrift, 2003: 106), where knowledge is coproduced ‘by building fragile and temporary commonplaces’ (2003: 108, see also Tillman-Healy, 2003). This seems to be a good summary of the qualitative work currently being done in human geography. It remains inspired by ethical and political concerns, and practitioners are deeply concerned by the moral and political implications of their work. Some of the old taken-for-granteds about fieldwork have been replaced, but it is instructive to wonder what questions have not been asked. While researchers have struggled to populate their work with real subjects rather than research objects, there have never been fewer attempts to talk about materialities in practice if not in topic. However, it does not seem that this entails a rejection of work that has been, is being and will be done, nor a turn from engaged and practical work; but that it does raise issues about the investment in specific notions of what ‘research’ is, what evidence is and how the two relate to each other. References Basio, K. Butz, D. (2004) Autoethnography: a limited endorsement. Professional Geographer, 56, 432 – 438. Bourdieu, P. (2003) Participant observation. Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, NS9, 281 – 294. Gold, L. (2002) Positionality, worldview and geographical research: a personal account of a research journey. Ethics, Place and Environment, 5, 223 – 237. Harper, D. (2002) Talking about pictures: a case for photo-elicitation. Visual Studies, 17, 13 – 26. Katz, J. (2001) From how to why: on luminous description and casual reference in ethnography (part 2). Ethnography, 3, 63 – 90. Latham, A. (2003) Research, performance, and doing human geography: some reflections on the diary-photograph, diary-interview method. Environment and Planning A, 35, 1993 – 2018. Marshall, G. (2001) Addressing a problem of capacity. Social Sciences, 47, 1 2. Meth, P. (2003) Entries and omissions: using solicited diaries in geographical research. Area, 35, 195 – 205. Raju, S., Atkins, P., Townsend, J. Kumar, N. (2000) Atlas of women and men in India, London, International Books. Rose, G. (2003) On the need to ask how, exactly, is geography visual? Antipode, 35, 212 – 221. Thrift, N. (2003) Practising ethics, in Whatmore, S. Using social theory, London, Sage, 105 – 121. Tillman-Healy, L. (2003) Friendship as method. Qualitative Inquiry, 9, 729 – 749.

The Cold War Essays -- World History Communism

Following World War Two, two distant political governments emerged to dictate the direction the world would take. These two governments consisted of Communism and Democracy which stared untrustingly at each other and staunched economic growth with their excessive military budgets. In the end though, Democracy would prove to be the preferred government archetype for the general population of the world. During World War Two, the United States and the Soviet Union along with their allies were united to defeat Nazi Germany. After the war however the two nations began to distrust each other after negotiations on how Europe should be governed. These negotiations called the Yalta Conference in 1945 consisted of the big three, Roosevelt, Churchill and Stalin. It established that Germany and Austria were to be divided into four parts of occupation as well as the capitals of Berlin and Vienna. Later that year the Potsdam Conference was attended by Truman, Atlee, and Stalin, which fell through over the East-West hostility which made it difficult for the council to reach a unanimous decision. As Russia sought to dominate the whole of Eastern Europe as a defense against invasion, the United States wanted Democracy for the European people. It was during this time that the cold war began and the iron curtain came down across Eastern Europe. The Cold War in the United States came from the fear that Communists intended to take over all of Europe. Seeing that Communist governments were established in Poland, Bulgaria, and Hungary by the Soviet army, along with local communists setting up their own governments in Albania, Yugoslavia, and the United States began her policy called the Truman Doctrine. This Doctrine was est... ...rappled with questions about her new place in the world. The collapse of the Soviet Union ended the division of Europe into two opposing camps and united Europe with the sole purpose and shared commitment to capitalism and democracy. In the end of this entire struggle communism fell and democracy was governed the majority of the world for the first time. Works Cited McKay, et al. A History of World Societies volume C. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s 2009 "ECONOMIC RECOVERY AND ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION 1945-1960." TheCorner. @HW Poon, 1979. Adapted by TK Chung. Web. 08 Jan. 2011. . Betts, Raymond F. "Europe in Retropsect: The Decade of European Recovery - The Cold War & Bipolarization." Britannia: British History and Travel. Web. 08 Jan. 2011. .

Democracy in Nigeria Essay

By May 2009, Nigeria’s nascent democracy should have been a decade. Thus, the thrust of this paper is an in depth analysis of the possibility of sustaining democratic values beyond any sudden reversal. The. paper however, takes a cursory look at the daunting challenges ahead and infers that unless the government increases social expenditure and truncate the current brazen corruption, the hope of democratic consolidation may eventually be a mirage. Key words: democracy, nascent, corruption, state law and order As rightly collated by Decalo1, the events in Africa took scholars by surprise, since most doubted Africa could move towards democracy. Even in the mid-1980’s, one argued that by reason of their poverty or the violence of their politics, African states were unlikely to move in a democratic direction. Another adding that â€Å"to have expected democracy to flourish would have been historical blindness†3, since ‘outside the core (industrialized states) democracy is a rarity, support for Tilly’s thesis ‘why Europe will not occur again – with a few exceptions, the limits of democratic development in the world may well have been reached4. However, despite the doubts and skepticisms openly expressed by scholars, Nigeria, like several other African countries, became democratic. On May 29, 1999 Nigeria became a ‘democratic’ state. Prior to 1999 political transition, Nigeria was under firm military autocracy and absolutism for close to 29 years (since 1966), when the military made their first incursion into Nigeria’s government and politics, following the collapse of the first republic5. It is vital to note that authoritarian governments were interrupted only by a brief period of civilian rule in the Second Republic (1979-1983)6. Thus, Nigeria’s march to constitutional democracy was a chequered one marked by anti-colonial struggles, crises, coups, counter-coups, and a thirty-month agonizing civil war between 1967 and 1970. So far, Nigeria has passed through several phases in her democratization bid viz: (a) era of colonial autocracy and absolutism, that is, period of formal colonialism till October 1st 1960, when the country gained ‘flag’ independence; (b) emergence of constitutional democracy – (1960-1966), (c) the return of military autocracy and absolutism – (1966-1979); (d) restoration of constitutional democracy – (1979-1983); and (e) the second coming of military autocracy and absolutism – (1983-1989) . 7 Since 1989, that Nwabueze made that observation, the polity has added more phases to her democratization bid. With the inglorious ‘stepping aside’ of General Ibrahim Babangida’s administration in 1993, an Interim National Government (ING) was put in place, headed by Chief Ernest Shonekan, handpicked by an unelected military President (General Babangida), thereby making the ING suffer a serious legitimacy crisis ab initio6. The interim contraption collapsed after eighty-two days, following the declaration that it was illegal by a Lagos High Court in a suit instituted by the assumed winner of the June 12, 1993 presidential election – Chief M.  K. 0. Abiola. Cashing-in on the court verdict, General Sani Abacha staged a coup d’etat, dissolved all the extant democratic structures retained by the ING, and once again, returned the country to a fiilJ blown military dictatorship. It was in this state of confusion that Gen. Abacha died in June 8,’ 1998 in a mysterious circumstance. Gen. Abdulsalam Abubakar, who took over after the demise of Gen. Abacha, who h ad a transition programme reputed to be the shortest in the annals of military-midwife political transitions in Nigeria. Eventually, barring all odds, Gen. Abubakar handed over the reins of government to Chief Olusegun Obasanjo (a retired general) in 1999. With the inauguration of Chief Obasanjo’s civilian administration in 1999, hopes were high once again that democracy would be sustained and consolidated. But alas, the military background of Chief Obasanjo became a serious liability on the system when the supposedly democratic government became a replica of dictatorship in its entire facet. By 2003, after the expiration of his first term, his administration conducted a general election, and handed over to itself. This election was generally perceived to have been massively rigged. 9 In 2007, at the expiration of his administration’s constitutionally mandated second term, another general election was conducted to usher in another civil government. This election was remarkable in a number of ways. First, it was after eight tumultuous years of democracy – the longest period since independence from the United Kingdom in I960. 0 Secondly, for the first time in the history of the country, there was a civilian-civilian transfer of power. It would have been even more remarkable if there had been a transfer of power from the ruling party to the opposition. † Meanwhile, the thrust of this paper is an indepth analysis of the major challenges facing the nascent democracy in Nigeria to prevent it from the threats of authoritarian repression or what David Beetham calls â€Å"reverse waves†. 2 It is to these anti-democratic forces that could lead to democratic reverse which had taken place in Mauritania recently via a military coup d’etat that we now turn to. (A) As I have argued elsewhere13, quantitative cross-national research on the economic determinants of democracy and democratization generally consistently reveals that a country’s level of economic development is associated positively and strongly with the extent to which the political systems manifest properties of democracy. There is, therefore, a two-way causal relationship between the economy and sustainable democracy; the state of the economy is the determinant of enduring democracy, but democracy is a key pre-requisite for sustainable economic transformation. The message is: ‘oroad-based economic prosperity sustains democracy, whereas widespread poverty and ignorance undermine it. To mimic President Clinton of U. S. when he was running for office in 1992, ‘it is the economy, full stop! ’14 No doubt. Nigeria is potentially Africa’s largest economy. Every year, the country produces over 200,000 graduates of tertiary institutions (including 65 universities), has the 6th largest gas reserves in the world, eighth largest oil producer (with abundant, but largely untapped natural resources – gold, limestone, among others), and with 60 percent of its arable land lying fallqw. In the words of Soludo (2005), Nigeria has also millions of its citizens in Diaspora (with estimated 100,000 Nigerian medical doctors and scientists abroad). Unfortunately, was not lucky in the first 40 years of its independence with sustained good political governance. In his perceptive public lecture, Charles Soludo, Nigeria’s Central Bank Governor,16 noted further that democracy has not been endured in Nigeria simply because the economic numbers did not add up; whereas, democracy and indeed any form of government must deliver tangible economic benefits to the generality of the citizenry to be credible and sustainable. In a seminal article on ‘What Makes Democracy Endure’, Prezeworski found the empirical evidence that: Once a country has a democratic regime; its level of economic development has a very strong effect on the probability that democracy will survive †¦ emocracy can be expected to last an average of about 8. 5 years in a country with per capita income under $2,000; 33 years between $2,000-$4,000 and 100 years between $4,000-$6,000 †¦ Above $6,000 democracies are to live forever. No democratic system has fallen in a country where per capita income exceeds $6,033. 17 Be that as it may, most African states have few economic potentials of any significance (many literally nothing) that could attract foreign risk capital, which is why entrepreneurs did not flock into them in the past, irrespective of ideology or level of democracy! And to rely on local capital to fuel development is to foredoom many to perpetual marginality. 18 Taking a cue from the same line of argument, Akintunde19, while rationalizing the reasons for the demise of democracy in the first republic, postulated that a democracy which is not founded upon a secure economic base is not likely to succeed because it lacks an essential condition of efficiency. It is unable to fulfill the expectations of its citizens; in the common parlance, it cannot deliver goods. So significant is the economic base that many people have surmised that even communist countries, as they become wealthier, will come to resemble western democracy more and more20. Unfortunately, in Nigeria, as in most of the developing countries, due largely to the poor economic base, the middle class is a very small minority of the population. Western democracy is, therefore, not securely founded because it lacks one of the essential ingredients of success – an influential middle class. This fact, which is sometimes a surprise to African leaders21, was well known to Aristotle more than two thousand years ago. According to Aristotle, ‘when democracies have no middle class and the poor are greatly superior in number, trouble ensues and they are speedily ruined’. The nexus between democracy and the strength of the economy reveals that those who are not rich usually confined to mere voting, political career thus become the privilege of those who are wealthy enough to afford the leisure to devote to politics in most western countries, until the advent of Trade Union M.  Ps. 23Thus, while blaming the politicians, it is worth repeating that, by embarking on western democracy on an inadequate economic base, the Fourth Republic was set on a death course, it was bound to be corrupt. 24 The same scenario is playing itself out in Nigeria presently. No doubt, it is a daunting task in the face of the aforementioned historical evidence to sustain democracy in an economy like Nigeria, where per capita income has been below the $1,000 mark. That, according to Prezeworsk25, poses a serious threat. Considering the nexus between democracy and the economy vis-a-vis the expectation of an average African, Claude Ake (of blessed memory) averred that: The ordinary people of Africa are supporting democracy as a second independence. This time they want independence not from the colonial masters, but from indigenous leaders. They want independence from leaders whose misrule has intensified their poverty and exploitation to the point of being life threatening. And they are convinced that they cannot now get material improvement without securing political empowerment and being better placed to bring public policy closer to social needs. [Nonetheless] democracy is being interpreted and supported in ways that defeat those aspirations and manifest no sensitivity to the social conditions of the ordinary people of Africa. Generally, the political elites who support democratization are those with no access to power and they invariably have no feeling for democratic values. They support democratization largely as a strategy of power†¦Ã‚  The people can (only) choose between oppressors and by the appearance of choice legitimize what is really their disempowerment. 26 In line with the above postulations, Jerry Gana (a one-time Information Minister) admitted, too, that: You know the mentality of our people. If democracy does not produce clean water, if democracy does not produce good roads, transform agriculture, cultivate industrial development, sanitise society, give us power supply, democracy will lose credibility and they may say, na democracy we go chop? 7 The caveat is that where democratic processes do not yield economic returns, a regression to dictatorship cannot be ruled out. This point is clearly stated by Larry Diamond thus: †¦ Many new democracies in Latin America, Eastern Europe, Asia and Africa will probably breakdown in the medium to long run unless they can reduce their often appalling levels of poverty, inequality, and social injustice, and through market oriented reforms lay the basis for sustainable growth. When this is juxtaposed with the admittance by the Central Bank in its 2008 firs’; quarter report released to the public29, the economy is in perpetual crisis. The Apex Bank attributed the high rate of inflation in the country to the erratic power supply. According to the report, the inflation rate on a year to year basis was 7. 8 percent, compared to 6. 6 percent and 5. 2 percent recorded in the preceding quarter and the corresponding period of 2007. The report noted further that inflation rate on a 12-month roving average basis for the first quarter was 5. 8 percent compared with 5. percent recorded in the preceding quarter. Indeed, nothing can be more soothing to the nation’s debilitating power crisis, largely fingered for stunting the economy, rendering it comatose and occasioning a declining industrial sector, whose capacity utilization nosedived to a paltry 20 percent by the end of 2006. Epileptic power supply, a very prohibitive business climate and in consistency in government policies, have combined to smother the country’s industrial sector leading to the closure of multinationals, like Michelin, Panalpina, and other notable firms. The shrinking of the textile sector from 170 in the 60s, 70s, and 80s to 10 in the 90s, also evinces the acute nature of the problem. The recent disclosure by the House of Representatives Committee on Power, which probed the power sector that the country now generates less than a pitiable 1,000 megawatts, makes mockery of the country’s vision of becoming one of the 20 largest and most resilient economies by 2020, compared to South Africa, a country of 42 million people, which generates over 42,000 megawatts. Much of Nigeria’s investment in the power sector has been enmeshed in corruption and enthralled in the lust of the political elite for primitive accumulation. 31 The concomitant effect of poor economy is lingering with the poverty problem. Nigeria’s poverty conundrum has assumed a frightening dimension. In the words of Dr. Magnus Kpakol, Senior Special Assistant to the President and National Coordinator of National Poverty Eradication Program, in a public lecture entitled â€Å"Poverty Solution: The Role of Government in Poverty Eradication† declared that: The number of poor Nigerians could be, put at an estimated figure of 70 million †¦ n 1980, the figure was 28. 1 million. 1985, 46. 3 million; 1992, 42. 7 million; 1996, 65. 6 million and 1999,70. 0 million, 2004,54. 4 million. 32 He gave the statistical breakdown along the six regional levels to be â€Å"North-East, 72. 2 percent; South-East, 26. 7 percent; South-South 31. 5 percent; South-West 43. 1 perc ent; North-Central 67. 0 percent; and North-West, 71. 2 percent†. 33 Undoubtedly, something must be wrong somewhere, for a critical official poverty statistics, which revealed that over half of Nigeria’s 150 million population are poor, is unexplainable going by the abundant human and material resources in the country. The economy was so gloomy that 2007/2008 United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP’s) Human Development Index (HDI) ratings placed Nigeria at 158th position out of 177 countries. 34 No doubt, democracy is endangered in Nigeria more than ever before. Poverty, want, and squalor are anti-democratic forces in the polity. The only exception is Indian democracy, which has long baffled theorists of democracy. Democratic theory holds that poverty, widespread illiteracy, and a deeply hierarchical social structure are inhospitable conditions for the functioning of democracy. But the historical novelty of Indian democracy was noted by Barrington Moore: Economically (India) remains in the pre-industrial age †¦ But as a political specie, it does belong to the modern world. At the time of Nehru’s death in 1964, political democracy had existed for seventeen years. If imperfect, the democracy was no more sham †¦ Political democracy may seem strange both in an Asian setting and one without an industrial revolution. 36 To avert recapitulation, my earlier work glaringly with empirical data proved the pathetic downslide of Nigeria’s economy over the years with the attendant threat to democratic sustenance. 7 Bruce Baker too in his perceptive piece emphasized much the strength of the economy and sustainable democracy. As a corollary to the aforementioned weak economy, the state, in terms of being weak or strong, matters to the study of threats to democracy both from within and without, as well as one of the common modes of failure of democracy and democratization. 39 Perhaps, the greatest manifestation of a weak state vis-avis sustainable democracy is that it cannot successfully administer a true and fair credible election which is the kernel of democracy. No doubt, one of the. fundamental problems that post-colonial African states are facing is that of how to sustain and consolidate democracy through credible elections. 40 In the whole continent of Africa, few states could lay claim to having genuinely conducted free and fair elections as universally perceived. Hence, election administration that will attain governmental legitimacy after polls has always been a serious concern to electoral scholars. 41 The reason for this is not far-fetched. It is well known that most new states in Africa, Asia, and Latin America are too weak for the assignment. This is why state capacity is one of the major prerequisites for democratic nurturing, sustenance, and consolidation. In the extant literature on democratization and state capacity generally, five elements are crucial to the strength of the state vis: (a) monopoly of the coercive power of society, that is, control of instrument of coercion; (b) the right to improve tax and collect revenue; (c) the power of legal enactment, that is, power to make laws; (d) sovereignty over territory and society; and (e) control of the institutions of the state or state apparatus, i. . bureaucracy. 42 These five elements taken together constitutes the basis of state power and they endow the state with the status of statehood. However, it needs be emphasized that nation states which qualify for the status of statehood may differ in their degree of stateness; some are strong states, and others are weak. No doubt, Nigeria falls into the category of weak or soft states. Like others in her category, Nigeria runs a system, one in which formal rules (laws, officially stated administrative rules and practices, etc. are applied copiously and in a lax manner rather than rigorously and consistently. It is one in which private advantage can be gained and private bargains struck concerning the enforcement or non-enforcement of the rules as when a businessman bribes a tax official. Besides money, another inducement is kinship sentiment while another is the favour of superiors. The consequential effect is that in several cases, individuals may be too powerful than the state in which the rule of law is abused with impunity. Cases of such were too numerous to be mentioned during the last Nigeria’s general elections in April 2007. 43 In a nutshell, the stronger the state in all ramifications, the better for deepening of democratic values in Nigeria. This can be achieved via the entrenchment of state institutions cum congruent political behaviour by the political elite. Perhaps the most crucial of all imperatives for the consolidation of Nigeria’s nascent democracy is the restructuring of the lopsided and structurally imbalance federal arrangement. As rightly noted by Emeka Anyaoku, former Secretary General of the Commonwealth: At the heart of the several conflicts plaguing the Nigerian state today is the consequence of the failure of the practice of true federalism. The power shift debate that characterized the politics of transition from military to civil rule and which has persisted several months after, rose largely out of the frustration of large segments of the population with the structure of the political system that has shut significant sections out of the corridors of power for most of the post-independence period. 4 With Nigeria being one of the most complex societies in Africa, federalism was adopted to integrate the plural and divided societies. This is in line with the perception of early generation of students of inter-group relations or plural societies, which considered federalism an effective way of achieving and preserving both integration and stability in deeply divided societies. Whenever events seemed to demand that a compromise is affected between the necessity for unity and cooperation on a wide territorial basis, â€Å"the temptation is to proffer catch all management formula, such as federalism .. >>45 This tendency to see federalism as a magic wand that can channel irreconcilable inter-ethnic hostility into conciliation and federal cooperation was subscribed to by Carnell, thus: â€Å"in tropical area characterized by extreme cultural and ethnic diversity †¦ federalism comes as something of a political panacea†. 4 In a nutshell, federalism is considered the most appropriate framework for governing multi-ethnic societies. However, recent events in Nigeria clearly demonstrate that the polity is far from being a federation, or alternatively as has been suggested, that Nigeria is not a true or real federation. 47 Since 1954, when the foundation of classical federation for Nigeria was laid,48 the system is still far from being problem-free. The story is that of both ‘political and governmental instability’. 49 Worst still, Nigeria’s ethnic make-up remains what Furnival calls â€Å"in the strictest sense a medley (of people) for they mix but do not combine†.

Useful Vocabulary for a Job Interviews and Résumés

Useful Vocabulary for a Job Interviews and Rà ©sumà ©s During the job interviewing process its important to use verbs that precisely describe your duties and responsibilities at your present and past positions. The following list provides verbs that are both precise and commonly used in an English-speaking workplace. These verbs are used to express responsibilities and tasks performed throughout an applicants professional career.   Great Action Words  for Your Rà ©sumà © A Verb Example Sentence accomplished I've accomplished a lot in my current position. acted She's acted as head of the department. adapted I adapt to team working situations easily. administered I administered four committees. advanced I've advanced many new ideas. advised I advised management on purchasing decisions. allocated I allocated resources on a weekly basis. analyzed I analyzed financial data. applied I applied my knowledge to workflow. approved I approved new products for manufacturing. arbitrated I arbitrated for Fortune 500 companies. arranged I arranged meetings. assisted I assisted the CEO. attained I attained the highest level of certification. B-C Verb Example Sentence blended I blended traditional approaches with new insights. brought I brought a team player sensibility to the job. built We built more than 200 homes. carried out I carried out a wide range of duties. cataloged I cataloged our company's library. collaborated I've collaborated with more than fifty clients. completed I completed the highest level of the training. conceived I've conceived of numerous products. conducted I conducted telephone surveys. constructed I constructed prototypes for marketing. consulted I've consulted on a wide range of issues. contracted I've contracted with large and small businesses. controlled I controlled more than $40,000,000. cooperated I cooperated successfully on more than team projects. coordinated I coordinated between sales and marketing departments. corrected I edited and corrected company brochures. counseled I counseled clients on insurance policies. created I created more than twenty advertising campaigns. D-E Verb Example Sentence dealt I've dealt with a wide variety of issues. decided I've decided I need to further my career. decreased I decreased spending while improving profits. delegated I've delegated tasks on a number of projects. detected I detected a number of mistakes. developed I developed an invention. devised I devised a plan to improve profits. directed I directed the sales department. discovered I discovered the reason. distributed We distributed throughout the country. documented I documented company policies. doubled We doubled profits in only two years. edited I edited company communications. encouraged We encouraged research and development. engineered I engineered a wide range of applications. enlarged I enlarged our community outreach. escalated We escalated the problems to the director. established I established company guidelines. estimated I estimated future costs. evaluated I evaluated investment opportunities. examined I examined sites for pollution. expanded I expanded our sales to Canada. experienced We experienced difficulties meeting the deadline. explored We explored a wide range of possibilities. F-L Verb Example Sentence facilitated I facilitated an exchange of ideas between the companies. finalized I finalized projections for the year. formulated I formulated answers to the questions. founded I've founded two companies. functioned I functioned as a liaison between management and employees. guided I guided operations through the process. handled I handled customer complaints. headed I headed an exploratory committee. identified I identified issues and reported back to management. implemented I implemented company plans. improved I improved the feedback process. increased We increased sales by over 50%. initiated I initiated investments into the latest technology. inspected We inspected more than two hundred companies. installed I installed air-conditioning units. introduced We introduced innovate products. invented The company invented double-sided tape. investigated I investigated customer complaints. led I led the sales department to its best year. M-P Verb Example Sentence maintained I maintained the company database. managed I've managed more than five hundred employees. moderated I moderated negotiations between the two companies. negotiated I negotiated a better deal for the company. operated I've operated heavy machinery. organized I've organized many projects. performed I performed as company clerk. pioneered We pioneered new sound technologies. planned I planned company retreats. prepared I prepared documents for management. presented I presented at many conferences. programmed I programmed the company database. promoted I promoted employees in human resources. provided We provided feedback to management. purchased I purchased materials for the company. R-Z Verb Example Sentence recommended I recommended cutbacks at the company. recorded I recorded notes during meetings. recruited We recruited the best talent. redesigned I redesigned company workflow. repaired I repaired watches for a few years. replaced I replaced the director after only six months. restored I restored the company to profitability. reversed We reversed the trend and grew. reviewed I reviewed company documents and made recommendations. revised I revised figures at the end of each quarter. screened I screened applicants during job interviews. selected I selected employees and assigned tasks. serviced We serviced all the buses in the area. set up I set up four branches. stimulated I stimulated discussion between departments. strengthened We strengthened sales abroad. summarized I summarized complex ideas so everyone could understand. supervised I supervised two teams on the project. supported I supported management with research. tested I tested a number of devices in the field. trained I trained employees. transformed We transformed the company in a short time. upgraded We upgraded our IT infrastructure. validated I validated customer claims. Use these verbs to really sell yourself. You only have a few minutes to show how good you really are. Using this precise vocabulary and being confident can help you make the best impression possible.