Nigeria: Disaster Foretold; More Disaster Inevitable!

 By Tony Eluemunor

What Nigeria is going through now, be it religious, ethnic, social, political and economic, national insecurity, uncontrolled militancy and banditry, all our national ills, were disasters that were clearly foretold in a major publication.

*Tinubu

Next month will mark the 30th anniversary of Robert D. Kaplan’s “THE COMING ANARCHY – How scarcity, crime, overpopulation, tribalism, and disease are rapidly destroying the social fabric of our planet”.

Published in the Atlantic Monthly magazine in February 1994, it pretended to scrutinize the entire planet Earth, though it actually focused on West Africa – with Nigeria receiving a special attention which detailed out our problems and warned that things were about to get worse.

Will Bangladesh Be A Victim Of Chinese Debt Trap?

 By Hussain Shazzad

Bangladesh, the second highest recipient of China’s investment in South Asia after Pakistan, imports the highest volume of goods from China making it Bangladesh's largest trading partner. This is the beginning of the story where China offers Bangladesh financial assistance and development experience for its ‘big-ticket megaprojects’ to fulfill its vision-2041- a well-crafted dream to be a developed country. The overwhelming funding from China makes the critics pessimistic to ask a question, citing the example of Hambantota in Sri Lanka, “Is China trying to bait Bangladesh with its ‘debt-trap’ diplomacy?”

*Rural community in Bangladesh

‘Debt-Trap Diplomacy’, a widely used narrative against China, is thought to be originated from ‘infrastructure war’ between China and Western Allies. It's an apple of discord if China really has any ‘Machiavellian Strategy’ as Chinese projects in Bangladesh are too fragmented to achieve such cunning strategic objectives. Once ‘The Sleeping Giant’ now the ‘Second Economic Superpower’, China follows ‘socialist ideology’ in political affairs but adopts ‘open market policy’ with the name ‘market socialism’. The historical data demonstrates that China always has strong affiliation with South Asian countries because of the region’s ‘Big Bazar’. The geo-political eminence & commercial noteworthiness of Bangladesh has made China pay special heed to catch this money-making market.

Heart-Wrenching Tales Of An African Illegal Immigrant In Europe

By Joel Savage

It's hard for many Africans in Europe, to tell Africans at home the truth about the hard living conditions in Europe. In the midst of suffering, many Africans in Europe take pictures sitting behind a table covered with bottles of beer, creating a false impression that they live in comfort and luxury.

I share my stories to warn Africans that Europe is not paradise, a perfect place of riches, peace, and happiness. After reading this story, any African who wants to come to Europe must think twice. As a child growing up in a strongly religious family, I was taught that everything which is opposite to the teachings of the Holy Bible, including laziness is a sin. I tried my best to live a clean life. We were taught to believe that Israel, Jerusalem, and other Biblical countries were all in heaven, without a slight knowledge those countries were all on the same earth we are living.