A head reeling corporate scandal has been exposed. Satyam the fourth largest software giant of India has finally agreed its misdeeds. The fraud is above Rs.7000 crores. In the own words of Ramalinga Raju, 54 year old USA MBA returned founder chairman of Satyam “The gap in balance sheet arose because of inflaed profits over several years—Every attempt to eliminate the gap failed—It was like riding a tiger and not knowing how to get off without being eaten--. Reacting to this many of India Inc members termed it as an “isolated case”. When we dig deep into other corporate finances it will be clear that many are involved in such kind of fraudulence. In the past Worldcom, Xerox, Enron, Daewoo motors and other corporate bigwigs fell to the scandal games. The recession webbed AIG, Fannie Mae, Fradie Mac, General Motors, Citibank, and other companies point towards the spiraling corporate crisis for a long period of time. It is a matter of time and luck for others to get trapped by the public for forgeries and frauds.

Private sector came with a big bang accusing public sector companies as unaccountable and inefficient. After the full circle it is clear there is no thick line between the two. Whether public or private there is a thin line of ethics. What we need urgently to reform the corporate and any other sector of the society is generating higher ethical standards in all walks of life. The common problem across the board is the absence of moral values, responsibility shouldering and accountability.

After TCS, Infosys and Wipro, Satyam holds the big name in the Indian software. The company is listed in the NYSE. It has 185 Fortune 500 companies with 53,000 employees on its pay roll which cost Rs.5040 last year. Following the World Bank’s debarring Satyam for 8 years for data stealing, investors’ objection to buying of Ramalinga Raju’s family companies like Maytas Properties and Maytas Infra for $1.56bn, DSP Merrill Lynch contract cancellation due to material accounting irregularities and other complex issues, Raju decided to surrender.

In collision with auditors and other important players, Satyam has fudged its accounts and balance sheets. In the Q2 September 2008, company announced a revenue of Rs.2,700cr. But the actual income was Rs.2,112cr which was less than Rs.688 cr lesser than the actual revenue. A 24% inflated revenue projection to boast to the shareholders and attract more investors. It also inflated cash and bank balances of Rs.5,040cr, Rs.376cr non-existent accrued interest, understated liability of Rs.1,230cr and overstated debtor position of R.490cr. The shareholders of Satyam are worst affected. The crisis wiped out Rs.9,376 crore in one day. From Rs.179.1 per share it fell down Rs.39.9 which is a loss of 78%.

Despite the presence of world’s best auditing company – Pricewater Coopers, M. Rammohan Rao, the dean of Indian School of Business, Harvard University’s Krishna Palepu and former cabinet secretary T.R. Prasad in the board of Satyam the scandal has happened. Pricewater Coopers, the company’s auditors, board members including Dr. Rammohan Rao should be penalized for oversight into this mega scandal.

More heads will roll if the scam is investigated length and breadth. Who’s who of the Indian governance system may have to face the axe. Due to the many political and crucial skeletons hidden in the Satyam cupboard, the full truth may not be out. Ramalinga Raju with the help of prorich pro criminal lawyers will come out on bail and roam freely with little dented image. After all his acquired wealth and real estates can keep his generations to come in the high social pedestal. Those who have money will be revered by the millions. This scandal is a death bell rang to the rich people, intellectuals, media and corporate world. They must organize their knowledge and wisdom properly to advise investors. Till then people like Ramalinga Raju can brand his company “Satyam” – truth and do Asatyam – false deeds.

The open pronouncement of India to be the future superpower creates nervousness among its close rivals. China is one of the prominent nations which are gravely concerned about India’s rising. Coupled with the neck to neck race of India with China in economy and other crucial areas, the high visibility of Indians in the international arena increases the communist nation’s anxieties. Although the Chinese leaders deny any antagonism towards India, in secrecy they aid all efforts to block India’s growth. For diplomatic brownie points they continue to speak high of India’s growth and achievement. One can notice these double standards of China from the near past events.

India did not get Chinese support for the candidature of Shasi Tharoor in the UN secretary general election. In the 2016 olympics bid India was not helped by Chinese. In the latest episode China blocked UN attempts to ban JUD (Jawud ud Dawa) the rechristened JeM (Jasheer e Mohammad) the deadly anti-India terror outfit operating from Pakistan.

It is nothing but natural for China to hinder India’s development indirectly. Any direct anti-India activities will be detrimental for the communist nation. Hence all possible support is given by China to Pakistan to checkmate India. This support is historical and more nearly half a century old. Aftermath of India’s independence Jawaharlal Nehru tried to close in with China and he succeeded little bit. But the over ambitions of China and conquer of Tibet strained both the nation’s relationships.

From late fifties to late eighties China was living in global isolation. Both its internal troubles and external hostility made China to soft tune in the international arena. Slowly it was preparing for the major global assault. Without much of its cards to the outer world, China built up its infrastructure and internal economy. There was a major transition in the political setup too. In the mid nineties elder communist leaders paved way for the younger generation. A strong economic foundation and one party rule helped the present political leaders to anchor strongly their image in the global arena.

The Chinese leaders are well aware of their weakness. Cleverly they managed to withstand global criticisms on the human rights in Tibet and conducted successfully the Beijing Olympics. Along with the strong diplomatic team the Chinese administration has conquered most of the Asian countries. Now they are quickly penetrating into the African continent. America, Europe and Australia often censor China for its poor human rights record. But they matter less when China has already brought rest of the world into its fold.

India must be aware of these underhand networks. Any threat to its development can emanate from anyone who is afraid of its growth. China is the potential nation spotted in India’s radar. Although the visibility is very thin Chinese role cannot be denied.

The United States of America was one of the potential aids to anti-India activities in the past. After the collapse of Soviet Union and the immediate threat posed by China, America is turning towards India. Green signal to the nuclear deal can be seen as anti-China syndrome of the Americans. In the nineties USA supplied F-16 aircrafts to Pakistan which was used for anti-India operations.

Thomas Reed and Danny Stillman, former director of intelligence of Los Alamos Laboratory in the forthcoming book, “The Nuclear Express: A political history of the bomb and its proliferation” that a nuclear weapon test was conducted for Pakistan by China on the Lop Nor test site on May 26,1990.

K. Subramanyam writes (TOI, 7.1.2009 P.18) “The Reed disclosure should dispel the mistaken impressions held by some Indians that the Indian nuclear test in May 1998 justified Pakistan going nuclear openly and that robbed India of the advantage of its conventional superiority because mutual number nuclear deterrence got established. In fact, Pakistan, by May 1998, not only had nuclear weapons while India had not yet conducted a specifically designed weapons test.”

From the past experiences it is clear that India is yet to learn practical lessons to chart its future course of development. Any amateur diplomacy would not leverage India’s success. First of all India must learn to soft tune its ambitions and strengthen its basics. It must fully use the 20 million strong diaspora. Any open reactions to China, Pakistan or any other nation should be stopped. The media must be reined in to stop giving run commentary on each and every strategy move of the nation. In this regard all those in the government should be stopped from leaking crucial information.

Trucks play a pivotal role in the Indian economy. Over 70% of the nation’s freights are moved by truckers. Needless to say their welfare is very important for the country’s development. Overburdened by the high cost diesel, harassments by the police and tax collectors, increasing cost of the spare parts and operating expenses make trucker owners frustrated. They wanted the government to seriously pay heed to their requests. More than 2 lakh truck operators have complained to the surface transport ministry for the early solution to their problems. The ministry is not able to solve all their requests because most of the truckers’ problems involve other ministries.

The truck owners want Rs.10 per litre cut in the diesel costs. They want an uniform 4% VAT on diesel. Scrapping of registration & return filling requirements in the new Carriers Act. Reducing tyre prices by 30-35%. Interest free truck loans and increasing the tenure of truck loans. Finally truckers demand reducing the national permit fee from Rs.5000 to Rs.1,500.

Chandrajit Singh Lohara, president of All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC), an apex transporters body, which has over 4,000 associations affiliated to it says ‘we had a meeting with the transport secretary. Despite being fully aware of our demands and our concerns, the government has done nothing. We will go ahead with our call and the impact would be felt fro Monday itself. The loss due to transporters strike is pegged at Rs.28,000 crores per day.

The retail prices of the vegetables in Delhi shoot up by 15% to 20%. Tomato price went up from Rs. 12/kg to Rs.15. Potato price has gone up from Rs.5 to Rs. 7 per kg. similarly onion price has gone up from Rs.17 to Rs.20. Despite the increase in the availability of the vegetables the prices have gone up.

Up, UP & AWAY
The Rising
Wholesale prices of vegetables at Azadpur Mandi

Items January 2 January 6
(Per quintal)
Potato 262 275
Onion 1,525 1,625
Tomato 560 620
Brinjal 300 450
Cabbage 300 337
Cauliflower 450 425

Prices of A-grade vegetables
All figures in Rs

Source: TOI, 7.1.2009, p.2

In the larger interests of the people who are reeling under recession, the government should act urgently to bring truckers back on the road. Any delay in the response will complicate the lives of ordinary people who depend on low cost vegetables and provisions. All the genuine concerns of the truckers should be addressed without any effort to cheat them with temporary assurances.

Sixty seven 24x7 news channels in India more often create nuisance than feeding information. Its strategies to survive in the business clouds media ethics. Result of the fight for media survival is the loss of credibility. In most of the cases news channels breach their line of control and end up in messing up others lives. The sixty hour coverage of Mumbai shootout proved to be the final warning to the media. The Government of India is ready with a law to rein in the media during the crisis hours. All socially concerned people will welcome this decision but the government will be cautioned not to use its control to crush the required media freedom.

The information & broadcasting ministry has finally put in a draft after securing the green signal from the law ministry. The draft is an amendment of the cable television network rules 1994. After receiving inputs from other ministries and public the draft will be put into final implementation. Instead of allowing news channel to cover crisis situation freely an authorized officer will provide information with footages. This is sensible and should be implemented with adequate sincerity to provide information to the public.

The programme code proposed in rule 6(1)(o) forbids telecast which:
• Contains live coverage of war, violent law and order situation or operations where security forces have to overcome terrorists or other hostile groups. However, with the approval of the authorized officer, such delayed carriage of live feed as may be specified may be permitted at its discretion.
• Contains details of identity, number and status of hostages or information regarding the number of security personnel involved or the methods employed by them in a hostage situation.
• Contains live-contact including live phone-in calls and interviews with victims or security personnel or other technical personnel involved or the perpetrators of crime,arson, violence while the violence or the criminal activity is in progress.
• Contains coverage of operational details in respect of war or any other security operations except as disclosed by the authorized officer.

The News Broadcaster Association has the same set of rules to be imposed on its members. Apart from forbidding the live telecast of terrorist operations, interview with terrorists or victims near ones the proposed law prevents channels from repeated telecast of archival footage carrying the world ‘live’.

The draft also prohibits “close-ups and extended images of blood or gore, dismembered or disfigured limbs of bodies or images of the dead or seriously wounded people or violence which may seriously distress or offend substantial number of viewers or cause public panic and incite further violence or compromise the dignity of the dead”.




It is doubt that the media must be prevailed upon to avoid heavy social damages. At the same time the Government should not misuse its media reining in act to fudge in the information. The officer in-charge should be responsible for all the information sharing. If there is any leakage of information to select channels then he should be held responsible and punished immediately. Apart from triggering government control of news flow the act may trigger a large-scale corruption in the news feed. Under these circumstances an independent media regulatory mechanisms should be put in place for the better functioning of the news channels.

The U.S. Mission to Nigeria has launched a secure online appointment booking system as part of plans to improve the processing of non-immigrant visa applications for Nigerians.

The U.S. government announced since October last year that the system will go live to offer service in the U.S. Embassy in Abuja and the U.S. Consulate General in Lagos. What this means is that, former procedures to make appointments and pick up passports are no longer operational.

Borne out of a partnership with VFS Global, the new system features a user-friendly and secure on-line way to make visa appointments; a call center to answer applicants’ questions about booking appointments and the visa application process. It also includes a downtown location and expanded hours in both cities for visa pick-up.

The U.S. Mission expects that, “this new system will allow more people to book appointments and complete applications themselves—and NOT have to pay costly fees to anyone else to do this for them.  By giving each applicant booking an appointment a secure and unique receipt number that is valid for one year from the date of purchase, the new system will increase transparency and open up more slots for legitimate visa applicants and eliminate the need for visa brokers.”

Under the new plan, the Mission says “VFS will charge a fee of N3500 for these services. This is in addition to existing visa application charges of $131.  Both fees can be paid in cash or with debit or credit cards at any UBA Bank branch.”

My thoughts on this

I think this development would help ease the stress involved with making visa appointments from Nigeria. However, since the demand for visa interview appointments remains high, I think visa applicants should apply as early as possible if they know when they plan to travel.

 

I’m awed each time I take a look at unotech’s design sense and simplicity - breathtaking! I wrote about Unotech Media some months ago and today they have a unique design - very web 2.0ish.

Unotech media, is a leading Nigerian based design company that specialises in designing and delivering cost-effective, tailored web sites for individuals and companies all over Nigeria and the UK.

The company has just launched a new website to usher in the new year. The website portrays the web 2.0 style and offers dynamic news updates, RSS feeds, and an updated portfolio showcasing some recent work in print, web design, identity/brands and multimedia. A video profile is also on the way towards the end of the month.

 

Unotech’s Strength In SEO Marketing

I was curious (as usual), so I ran a Google search of the top web design companies nigeria. The search results revealed that Unotech Media was ranked number 5 on the list, which I found interesting. Perhaps, if you run your own search, it might be different as Google’s alogrithm changes often.

What this means is that, Unotech Media might have spent some good money on SEO, since perhaps there are other top web design companies in Nigeria that could also rank atop.

What is Unique?

The site comes with an improved visual look and feel, corporate identity and portfolio section. The new website is built using robust CMS (Content Management System) and provides the greatest flexibility to publish news, add to the portfolio, work with images, and all the things one needs in a good, website. UnoTech Media also has a Facebook fans site that connects web-savvy people together.

Masterfully done by web design professionals, Dolapo and Damola Taiwo, the site continues to rock my heart. (I now have a different heartbeat):-)

Check out Unotech Media’s portfolio here.

Timbuktu Media has successfully launched its first print edition of the newest Nigerian newspaper called NEXT, published on January 4 2009, which follows the launch of its online edition in December.

The newspaper’s publisher Dele Olojede, a Nigerian Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and former foreign editor for Newsday,  described its aim as “to provide news and informed opinion fairly and accurately to the Nigerian public in any land.” Olojede was enthusiastic about its online reach also, saying that the paper would be delivered “via the Web, on your mobile devices, to your desktop, on YouTube and Facebook - anywhere we can find you.” Hmm, sounds interesting!

You can watch the video below from the launch event live in Lagos.

The printed papers are to be “distributed in multiple cities simultaneously in Nigeria, the UK, and in the United States.” He also plans to recruit young journalistic talent to produce a “youthful, inspiring and service-oriented” newspaper.

The online edition uses resources from the Garcia Media team to help with development of layout and content, as well as newsroom training. According to Garcia Media, “the daily edition will be in a compact format, but Sunday is big: a broadsheet, with several sections that include Arts & Culture, Sports, Metro, Book Review and Elan magazine.”

Nigerian Digg-like site, Sturvs.com has just launched their own advertising platform which lets you gain exposure to 3000 Nigerians who visit the website daily.

Sturvs, Nigeria’s leading social bookmarking site, is a Web 2.0 sharing and voting website where users can share music, videos, articles, read news and also promote events and services. The site’s contents are basically Nigerian stuffs found in various Nigerian newspaper websites, social media sites such as Youtube, various Nigerian blogs and other places. Users get the very latest Nigerian content from all over the internet brought together in one place.

The advertising platform is ideal for musicians, businesses, online stores, events, blogs, e-magazines, and other Nigerian websites.

The visually challenged people face innumerable problems. From performing day-to-day activities to functioning in the occupation they do not have easy sailing. Many innovative techniques have helped the visually challenged persons to overcome the hurdles. Louie Braille opened the gates through a self-help reader. From then onwards broad minded people are constantly striving to help the visually challenged people throughout the world.

The Times of India, 5.1.2009, p.1 reports
T.V. Raman was a bookish child who developed a love of maths and puzzles at an earl age. That passion didn’t change after glaucoma took his eyesight at the age of 14. What changed is the role that technology and his own innovations played in helping him pursue his interests.

Born and raised in Pune, Raman, 43, went from relying on volunteers to read him textbooks at IIT Bombay to leading a largely autonomous life in Silicon Valley, where he is a highly respected computer scientist and an engineer at Google.

Along the way, Raman built a series of tools to help him take advantages of objects not designed with blind users in mind. They ranged from a Rubik’s Cube covered in Braille to a software program that can take complex mathematical formulas and read them aloud, which became the subject of his Ph.d dissertation at Cornell Univerity. He also built a version of Google’s search service tailored for blind users.

Raman is now working to modify the latest gadget that he says could make life easier for the blind.; a touchscreen phone. “what Raman does is amazing.” Said Paul Schroeder, vice-president for programs and policy at the American Foundation for the Blind, which conducts research on technology that can help visually impaired people.

Some of his innovations may help make gadgets and web services more user-friendly for everyone. Instead of asking how something should work if a person can’t see, he says he prefers to ask, “How should something work when the user is not looking at the screen?”

T.V. Raman is now working to modify the latest technological gadget that he says cold make life easier for blind people. Such systems could prove useful for drivers or anyone else who could benefit from eyes-free access to a phone. They could also appeal t aging baby boomers with fading vision who want to keep using technology they’ve come to depend on.

With no buttons to guide the fingers on its glassy surface, the touchscreen cellphone may seem a particularly daunting challenge. But Raman said that with the right tweaks, touch-screen phones-many of which already come equipped with GPS technology and a copas-could help blind people navigate the world.

“How much of a leap of faith does it take for you to realize that your phone could say, “walk straight and within 200 feet you’ll get to the intersection of X and Y’” Raman said. “This is entirely doable.”

Adovcates for the blind have long complained that technology companies have done a generally poor job of making their products accessible. The web, while opening many opportunities for blind people, is still riddled with obstacles. And sophisticated screen-reader software, which turns documents and web pages into synthesized speech can cost more than $1,000 in US Even with a screen reader, many sites are hard to navigate

Some pages are just poorly designed, like e-commerce sites where the checkout button is an image that isn’t labeled so screen readers can find it.

We need more Ramans to put a smile on the under privileged people of the world. There is less doubt that technology can play a proactive role in this mission. But the human touch is very crucial. Whatever technology can aid the physically challenged people will become irrelevant if the attitude of the normal people are antagnostic towards them.

Northeast – India’s rising sun is less known to the outside world for its natural wealth and charming beauty. More people know seven sister states of the region for its violence. One fifth of the 50 million population of the northeast live below poverty line. Governance is missing in most parts of the region. The local tribal leaders enjoy their seats without doing much for the people. On the other hand the leaders of northeast complain about the neglect of the region by the centre. In fact both are responsible for the worst socio-economic stagnation in the region. Till the beginning of the nineties the government of India gave step-motherly treatment to the region.

The coalition politics, neo-liberal economy and the increasing relevance of tourism economy brought a new focus on the region. With 35 parliamentary seats and 8 states, northeast gave a political handle to the emerging BJP. It almost clinched deals with the existing leaders of the region who are frustrated with the Congress politics. In Arunachal Pradesh BJP shrewdly converted a long time congressman Gegong Apong into a BJP man. It also succeeded in capturing two parliamentary seats there and infused a hope to capture the seat in few years time. BJP’s fast growth in the region alerted Congress party. When it came to power in 2004 it started the Ministry of NorthEast.

The new liberal economy connected the region with the rest of the India. Mobile phones, satellite television, internet and increase in the number of flights to the region gave a new life to northeast. There is a large-scale migration of the people to other parts of the country. Delhi boasts a huge northeastern population. The attitude of rest of India towards the regions people also alienates them. In college hostels, theatres, railways stations, airports, a northeasterner is always asked “which country are you from?” Despite these problems, most of the people of the region to proud to be Indians. The government should capitalize this sentiments. Before that it should deliver what it promised to the region. In the first step it should talk to all the 12 active and 20 inactive terrorist groups and find a lasting solution to their separatist demands. All of them should be given autonomy package and brought into the political mainstream.

Without finding a solution to the violence northeast is going towards a worst phase in its life. In 2008 alone insurgency has claimed 1,057 lives. This is nearly twice the number of people who were killed in Kashmir violence in the year (539). According to the Anthropological Survey of India report, out 635 tribes in India 213 reside in the region. It is no doubt that the region is highly sensitive and needs full time concentration of the central government.


NorthEast: The Forgotten War

Civilians Security Personnel Terrorists Total

1994-2005 7,056 1,886 4,613 13,555
2006 231 92 317 640
2007 453 65 501 1019
2008 405 40 612 1057

2006 2007 2008
Arunachal 0 12 0
Assam 174 437 372
Manipur 290 408 496
Mizoram 0 0 5
Meghalaya 24 18 12
Nagaland 92 108 145
Tripura 60 36 27
Total 640 1019 1057

Sources: TOI, 5.1.2009, p.2
South Asian terrorist portal

There is no time available for the Central government to relax regarding the development of northeast. It must act on a war footing way and ensure overall progress of the region. More IITs, IIMS, central universities, vocational training centers, super-specialty hospitals, business ventures, industrials units should come up in the region. These measures will bridge the gap between the region and the rest of the region.


Insurgency claimed 1,057 lives in northeast in 2008, almost twice the number of people killed in Kashmir 539
Manipur alone accounted for almost 500 deaths; Assam had a body count of 372
Sharp rise in casualities among both civilians and terrorists while there’s a drop in fatalities among security personnel
Northeast is no stranger to insurgences with all its seven states having witnessed some form of armed separatism over the last six decades. In the 15 years since 1994, an estimated 16,271 persons have been killed in this volatile region.

A combination of persistent economic backwardness and the presence of several dozen ethnic groups has made this region a crucible of identity politics. Nearly 20% of the 50 million people of the region are below the poverty line. Of the 635 tribal groups identified by the Anthropological Survey of India, 213 reside in the northeast.

Some states have a very low or passive level of separatist activity like Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh. In Mizoram, the insurgency ended in 1986 after the accord between the Union government and the Mizo National Front led by Ladenga, Meghalaya too has a relatively lower and declining level of terrorist actvitiy through a number of separatist groups are active in extortion and other criminal activities. Tripura, which till a decade back was a hotbed of terrorist actions, appears to have overcome the menace through a determined political effort.

But in three states – Assam, Manipur and Nagaland –separatist violence continues with an incendiary mix of ethnic strife. While terrorist actions in Assam still get attention. Manipur, with the second highest number of terrorist related deaths after Kashmir, has remained below the national radar. All 59 police stations in the state have reported terrorist activities and 32 of them have been placed in the high violence category.


ATP estimates that there are at least 15 major militant groups with approximately 10,000 cadre active in the state. The desperate situation is highlighted by the fact that Manipur continues to remain classified as a disturbed area since the 1970s.

It has a higher police-to-population ration than the national average and yet here is no end to violence.

Assam, the biggest state in the northeast, has been the hunting ground of ULFA despite several army operations against it, including the 2005 sweep in sanctuaries in the Bhutanese foothills.

Decades of Ulfa violence has spawned rival outfits from amongst plains tribals and Muslims, leading to an ever escalating spiral of violence on innocent civilians of every community. Current estimates put active terrorist groups at 12, while inactive groups number over 20. Recent reports suggest that Ulfa has also tied up with some factions of Naga separatist groups, operating in Nagaland and Manipur.

Here’s an interesting development initiative from Ericsson that would boost ICT in Nigeria. ITNewsAfrica reports that:

International telecoms giant Ericsson has entered into a joint venture with 21st Century Technologies to install a Gigabit-capable Passive Optical Network (GPON) in Nigeria this month, a development that is set to benefit over 10 000 families.

Apart from bringing the much needed Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to the West African nation, the Ericsson-21st Century Technologies partnership will also see Fibre-to-the-Home (FTTH) networks being put in place.

FTTH connectivity is aimed at providing clear internet access, voice-over-IP as well as quality broadband services to the pilot project, which is likely to prove a success to Africa’s most populous nation.

Ericsson, which is also a renowned international company in terms of bringing up both 2G and 3G mobile technologies, will ensure that the use of fibre optic is expanded to the countryside.

Efforts by CAJ News to get comment from the Ericsson official in charge of West African region, Jan Embro, were unsuccessful. However, work on the ground is at an advanced staged.

My Opinion

It would be interesting to see how this development turns out, since Internet penetration in Nigeria is quite sluggish. Most of the internet access has been through VSAT, until recently where WiMax, WiFi internet access is gradually becoming popular.

The question is: Would this not be a drop in an ocean?

Nigeria has a lot of potentials if only there is high-speed broadband access. Until this is possible, lack of internet connectivity would still hamper the growth of web-centric business start-ups.

ngBot is a web 2.0 portal that connects mobile phone users in Nigeria thereby providing them a social networking community with the latest tips, tricks and hacks for mobile phones.

A Nigerian mobile 2.0 community for mobile downloads (mp3s/ringtones, videos, apps, games)and discussions about anything mobile, ngBot mobile goes beyond sending of SMS and mobile downloads. It is a user powered community where anyone can contribute to every part of the site including uploading mobile items, messaging (sms, mms, wappush), item bookmarking, downloads, adding tips, codes, hacks, as well as articles.

ngBot mobile is targeted exclusively at phones and mobility. ngbot mobile features mobile downloads, SMS, phone and network codes and hacks, tips and articles.

Unique Features

The site has also been designed with all the usual features of an effective social networking site where members create profiles with pictures, search for friends, use the intra mail and participate in the discussion board (forum). ngBot mobile also features a phonebook (storage of up to 500 contacts), phone store (30MB storage for your phone items) and more.

The chat system of the ngBot mobile phone version features one to one chat and public discussion in 7 rooms - Entertainment, Newbies, News/Gists, PC/Internet, Phones/Gadgets, Relationship and Sports.

ngBot portal has a directory of Nigerian websites with categories such as Arts & Entertainment, Careers, Computing & Telecoms, Education, Finance, Hotels & Travels, Internet & IT, Life & Culture, Media, National Issues, Organisations, Technology amongst others as well as several sub-categories.

What’s More?

ngBot recently introduced a service called nairaMngr (my favorite), a java (J2ME/MIDP 2.0) mobile application for day to day earnings and expenditure recording. This feature helps you track your earnings either through a gift, cash at hand and in bank, interest, salary and whatever.

nairaMngr also helps you keep tab on how much goes to expenses like food, transportation, phone, utilities, liabilities and such.

How to Use nairaMngr

nairaMngr displays the front screen with the record date, earnings, expenses and the balance for that date. By default, the shown date is the current date (from the phone’s date settings).

To change the date to either see, add or modify the records for a cetain date, simply scroll to the date (highlighted) and press the phone button applicable to the ‘edit’ button that will be shown on screen. Once a new date is selected, the records for that date is displayed.

To add, see details or modify any of the earnings or expenses records, simply scroll to the applicable one as well and select ‘edit’.

My take on this

I think that this portal would grow to become one of Nigeria’s most popular web destinations in the nearest future as mobile penetration has grown exponentially in more recent times in Nigeria. The site’s mobile applications are very web 2.0ish as they support open source as well as open search technologies.

The directory seems to be well organized, perhaps because it is admin-driven and doesn’t allow users to add a website to the directory. But I think if it has to grow, it has to be a user-generated directory.

I seem to like the idea behind nairaMngr, which happens to be my favorite ngBot mobile app. I’m interested to see more mobile apps from Nigeria that would get the world’s attention just like everyone’s talking about Kenya’s mobile messaging service - Mpesa.

And in terms of building a truly mobile 2.0 community, the guys at ngBot have what it takes to make things happen. I’m eager to use their next feature. Just can’t wait!

The new year bodes ill for prospects of Middle East peace going by the current happenings in Gaza with Israeli fighter planes bombarding this tiny strip of land killing over 300 people and maiming several hundreds while causing massive destruction to Palestinian settlements.

The unfolding mayhem as shown on satellite TV of mangled bodies and devastated buildings has once again raised the spectre of a dangerous conflagration in this most volatile corner of the earth where enmities date back to biblical times.

Israel says it was responding to Hamas rocket attacks into Israel territory. Whatever the provocation it is apparent that Israel has overreacted and overreached itself judging by the scale of the carnage and the destruction wrought.

The attacks and the violence coming as it does in the teeth of attempts by the international community to end the Israel Arab conflict is alarming to say the least particularly in the midst increasing tensions in the region.

It is certainly going to affect the prospects of peace negotiations which were painstakingly put to together by countries such as France and the EU. That is why the UN in an emergency session has called for an immediate end to violence in the Gaza and Southern Israel.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has expressed his "deep alarm' by the worsening situation in Gaza and Southern Israel and called for an immediate halt to all violence.

While recognising Israel's security concerns regarding the continued firing of rockets from Gaza, the UN Chief has reiterated Israel's obligation to uphold International Humanitarian and Human rights Law and condemned excessive use of force leading to killing and injuring of civilians.

That Israel has been flouting UN resolutions with impunity is plain for all to see. What is worse is that it has been allowed to get away with it all this time and spared those sanctions that would normally have visited lesser nations that flouted such resolutions with much less frequency.

It is therefore incumbent on the UN to intervene speedily to bring a halt to this massacre and put in place a mechanism for an enduring peace in the Middle East which at the moment is a powder keg with foreign powers manipulating the situation.

What is even more alarming is the danger of the situation degenerating into a full blown conflagration given the proliferation of modern military hardware and its fall out on the rest of the world. The developing scenario in the Gaza was the result of a chain of events that undermined the authority of the Hamas regime that was elected by its own people.

It was plain to all that the new Hamas regime that was elected by popular vote at a referendum was thwarted at every turn in attempts to forge a peace, by the insidious designs of interested parties. All ceasefires called became non starters and it was apparent that these extraneous forces were only desirous of fomenting conflict.

This is why it is hoped that the UN would take into account all the ramifications that has led to current state of play in approaching the situation. It is also hoped that the world body would play a more assertive role in bringing about a peaceful resolution to the conflict, giving full play to the radical reforms that has blown through the world body in recent times.

The latest development in the Gaza would no doubt be a major issue that will confront the new American President Barack Obama who is due to be sworn in on January 20. He will doubtless be in the world spot- light vis-a-vis his handling this first major challenge of his Presidency. So far all US President's who intervened to forge a negotiated settlement had failed in their bid.

It is expected that the new US President would comply and abide by the UN resolutions unlike his immediate predecessor who overrode the UN particularly in the Iraqi invasion. Because any open defiance of the UN at this stage can only make the situation more combustible leading to escalation of the conflict.

This, at a time when the world economy is in it's worst recession since the great depression of the 1930s and the financial edifices of many developing nations crumbling before their eyes driving people into penury. A full blown conflict in the Middle East is therefore a harrowing prospect which the world powers should come to grips with before it is too late. Hence the need for treading cautiously without plunging into any precipitate action that could only worsen the overall situation. This is why the UN which is the only credible world body in the area of conflict resolution between states should be allowed to act without impediments to douse the raging flames and revive the peace process in the Middle East which was stymied by vested interests all these years.

Sri Lanka has every reason to be concerned by the plight of the Palestinian people in Gaza. Lankan-Palestine relations go a long away and was reinforced by the recent visit of Palestinian leader Mahaumud Abbas to the country. Also being a country stalked by a different kind of terror all Sri Lankans no doubt would empathise with suffering of the hapless civilians in the Gaza. Sri Lanka has already added her voice to the sea of condemnations pouring from nations against the genocide and for the immediate intervention of the UN to quell the anarchy. It is hoped that this collective voice would carry enough resonance for the perpetrators of this atrocity to realise their folly and call a halt to the carnage and sit down for talks.

Translation of the Glorious Holy Quran:

Versus No 1 to 6,

Surah 109. The Disbelievers, Atheists
1. Say: O ye that reject Faith!
2. I worship not that, which ye worship,
3. Nor will ye worship that which I worship.
4. And I will not worship that, which ye have been wont to worship,
5. Nor will ye worship that which I worship.
6. To you be your Way, and to me mine.

Recently, my mom underwent mastectomy (a surgical term for removing one or both breasts for cancer). It was a shock to me when I found out about it. All along, I thought it was just plain lump in her breast. After all, the biopsy said it was benign. Her surgeon, who is the leading surgeon of our country, told her she had nothing to worry. Thing is, we have a history in our family. Two of my mom's sisters already had breast cancer, her youngest sister for 10 years and elder sister for 7 years. Both underwent mastectomy and are still living quite normally until today. So it was this reason why her doctors had to remove her left breast, just to make sure it would not spread.

During her operation, my sister began to panic and started crying. She said, how come the operation took so long when the doctors said it would only take 4 hours. I didn't know what was happening in the operating room. I wasn't aware of mastectomy as part of the option. But I didn't want to cry. I didn't not want to panic. I had to remain still. I already prayed and I kept my faith all the time. My sister asked, what if something went wrong, how could she live without our mom? I dismissed that thought. Mom would be alright. Whatever happened there, I knew she'd survive it.

If it was hard for me and my sister to wait, it must be harder for our dad, who at the time was in Europe, working thousands of miles away as an engineer. Could he sleep well? Was he focused on his work? What was he thinking, same as my sister or me? Dad used to sweat the small stuff. I wondered how he was taking it. Mom and dad are so closed and connected to each other, they feel each other when something is wrong with the other.

When hospital staff brought my mom in her room, I felt relieved. She just turned her head to me and my sister and then closed her eyes. She was still groggy. My sister began crying again and my aunt called me outside, she said she had something to say. This was the time she disclosed to me about mastectomy. A surge of fear and pain overtook me. I felt something was clutching my neck and I couldn't breathe. I was just quiet, nodded to my Aunt, and found myself walking endlessly round the hospital until I realized there was a place for me to go. I climed the stairs to the 4th floor and kneeled down in the chapel. I was face to face with the Blessed Virgin Mary, the loving mother who the world has come to know. Her face was still and her eyes were expressive, her arms were open, perhaps ready to catch me if ever I fell down. I began crying. I remember praying or asking her, "Tell me, it's gonna be alright. You love me right? You love my mom and my family? Please, please send me your love." For one hour I was just talking to her. But the whole chapel fell silent and the only thing I could hear was my mind, the beat of my heart and the constant soft sobbing. After awhile, I found my feet again. I was ready to see my mom and my sister. They didn't need to see me crying.

On my way back, I began texting my friends both global and local. I asked them to send me and my mom their love, prayers and healing positive energies. After a few minutes, my phone was filled with love and prayers from my friends. I saved them and thought of reading them one by one to my mom. That night, I didn't sleep. I was just beside her, holding her hands, sending positive energies. I said my prayers for her in all religious traditions I could think of: Tibetan, Buddhist, Hindu, Christian, Jewish, Islam, Pagan or just anything that I learned from the heart. I called the Gods and Goddesses who I loved. I told them to help heal my mom quickly and to keep her safe and positive.

It only took my mom two days to put a smile on her face, even if her surgery was very painful. She said, "it's just a breast, I still have my life." On the third day, she woke up early, took a shower, put on her make-up and perfume and changed her hospital gown to a regular pair of pyjamas (easier for nursing staff to check her wounds); she was ready to receive visitors. My family and friends came flocking and although her eyes get teary once in awhile, it was easy for her to put her smile back. She said, at the operating room, she was singing "jingle bells" until anesthesia put her to sleep. I read to her all the messages my friends sent her and she was grateful.

Looking back, I remember that a few months ago, I read Umberto Eco's Foucault's Pendulum, when Jacopo, one of the editors and main charcters, gets cancer. He talks about metastasis and how your cells turn against you. He says:

"And what are cells? For months, like devout rabbis, we uttered different combinations of the letters of the Book. GCC, CGC, GCG, CGG. What our lips said, our cells learned. What did my cells do? They invented a different Plan, and now they are proceeding on their own, creating a history, a unique, private history. My cells have learned that you can blaspheme by ana-grammatizing the Book, and all the books of
the world. And they have learned to do this now with my body. They invert, transpose, alternate, transform themselves into cells unheard of, new cells without meaning, or with meaning contrary to the right meaning. There must be a right meaning and a wrong meaning; otherwise you die. My cells joke, without faith, blindly." (Eco, 514)

My mom is fast recovering and her doctors are surprised and happy that she's healing faster than average women who have cancer, considering that mom is also diabetic and hypertensive. Mom can say to her cell which Jacopo thought it was only the cells who could do the talking, "...(M)ethistemi? It’s the same thing: I move, I transform, I transpose, I switch cliches, I take leave of my senses." (514) Yes, my mom's cells turned against her that's why she's left with one breast and her physical body altered. But when this happened to her, everything around her went on her side--love, love is on her side and that's everything she could ask for.