Resistance in Amma Darko’s Beyond the Horizon and Chika Unigwe’s On Black Sisters’ Street

Louis Althusser’s critique of ideology reveals that a subject can hardly ever escape ideology. This paper therefore examines the issue of resistance in the novels of two female African authors: Amma Darko’s Beyond the Horizon (1995) and Chika Unigwe’s On Black Sisters’ Street (2009).Both writers interrogate female autonomy against the backdrop of established traditional and modern socio-cultural formations. The paper highlights the actions of the female characters as rooted in the material practices of ideology, therefore making it rather impossible for them to reconstitute their agency, especially against the prevailing phallocentric African culture in which they find themselves.Key words: ideology, subjectivity, sexuality, resistance, objectificatio

Political Participation as a Catalyst for National Development in a Democratic Society

Political participation refers to the direct or indirect involvement of the citizens of a country in the governance of their country. Political participation can be broadly divided into two, namely, conventional and unconventional political participation. Conventional political participation is concerned with one’s involvement in political campaign, public hearing, recall, referendum, running for public office, voting in elections etc. while unconventional political participation has to do with one’s involvement in public protests, civil disobedience, political debates, community development, strike action, etc. political participation being an important paradoxical and delicate political theory, obliges individuals to form and support a given government or the implementation of a given policy based on certain grounds. It also obliges the same people to dissolve any government or oppose the implementation of any policy based on certain grounds too. This work attempts to show that political participation is an agent that provokes or speeds up significant change or action in development since it is only through conventional and unconventional political participation that one can influence the decisions, policies and other activities of the government for the good of the people. Without political participation, there can be no meaningful development in any country. This truth is evident / obvious in most contemporary societies especially in Africa where many countries are underdeveloped. This underdevelopment in some countries are due to marginalization of the people from active political participation and some time apathy on the side of the people towards political participation as this makes the leaders to do whatever they like since no one questions them. But with active political participation of the people, they will be able to demand for what is due to them in terms of development which will include both human and infrastructural development. Where the government fails to provide development, it is still through active political participation that the people will be able to change such a bad government and replace it with a good one. This change can either come through voting such government out during election or by revolution. Keywords: Political Participation, Democracy, Development, Society and Revolution

Mesenteric lipoma causing recurrent intestinal obstruction

Although lipoma is a common tumor found in almost all parts of the body, that occurring in the mesentery of the gut is a rarity. A 29‑year‑old man presented in our center with a 10‑year history of recurrent central colicky abdominal pain, vomiting, constipation, and central abdominal mass. Exploratory laparotomy revealed a huge smooth yellow mass in the mesentery of the mid ileum. Resection of the affected segment of the ileum and end to end ileal anastomosis were carried out. Histology report confirmed lipoma. He had uneventful post‑operative recovery. Mesenteric lipoma should be considered as a possible differential diagnosis in a patient with recurrent features of intestinal obstruction and a mobile abdominal mass. A high index of suspicion and improvement on the pre‑operative diagnosis and treatment are needed in secondary health facilities in Africa.Keywords: Intestinal obstruction, lipoma, mesenteryNigerian Journal of Clinical Practice • Oct-Dec 2013 • Vol 16 • Issue

Re-examining Nigeria's Contributions to the African Union and the Domestic Socio-Economic Ramifications

While there have been scholarly studies that address Nigeria’s diplomacy and contribution to the African Union (AU), many of them have failed to compare and contrast how those have added to the socio-economic development of Nigeria. We encountered a few instances where attempts were made to explain such, yet a fully-fledged analysis lacked in their conclusions. We applied documentary analysis methodology in our review and found that there is a serious misalignment between Nigeria’s diplomacy and support for the African Union on one hand and positive socio-economic development in Nigeria on the other. The study also looks at exploring how the general framework of Nigeria’s foreign policy goals and strategies in Africa can serve both its national interest and the overall development goals of Africa. We argue that for Nigeria’s role in the AU to be meaningful, the country needs to simultaneously revive its internal socio-economic condition

Counting the Cost? A Cautionary Analysis of South Africa's BRICS Membership

BRICS is a grouping of five major developing countries that includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, all with the ambition of changing the governance architecture of international political-economy but with claims to speedy industrialization, fast growing economies and relatively strong regional and global influence. South Africa joined BRICS at the invitation of China in 2010 and has shown commitment to the group through friendly relations with other member countries. The country’s extensive economic links with China and the other BRICS states underpinned its strategy of diversifying its external trade especially with regard to looking away from West. This article employs content analysis to reflect on South Africa’s membership of BRICS, focusing specifically on the country’s relations with China. It argues that, while South Africa’s economic indicators do not fit well with the BRICS grouping, China is promoting this relationship in order to counter the West’s neo-imperialism and neo-liberal rhetoric. South Africa’s willingness to accept Chinese superiority in the African market and to act as a junior partner in the global power configuration makes the country the perfect choice for this project

An analysis of the opinions of African immigrants on service delivery by the Department of Home Affairs, South Africa

This paper is an investigation into the views of African immigrants in South Africa on vital services that the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) renders to immigrants, such as issuing work permits, study permits, permanent residence permits, marriage certificates, and conferring South African citizenship. The broad research question this paper deals with concerns how the ideology of ‘Makwerekwere’ influences the Department of Home Affairs’ service delivery to African immigrants. The views of 200 randomly sampled African immigrants based in Pretoria were used to analyse the effectiveness of the DHA in performing its duties as a government department. In so doing, the researchers profiled the immigrants and tried to unpack their views about the technical functions and competence of the department. The findings suggest that the service delivery rendered to African foreigners by the DHA is generally poor and discriminatory, as it is largely shaped by the popular ideology of ‘Makwerekwere’ within which African immigrants are imagined and treated as the out-group and excluded from belonging and the formal and informal benefits of  citizenship. While making the point that ‘Makwerekwere” is not an official government policy, the paper recommends that the state has a role to play in not only reorienting its citizens, but also evolving a more inclusive model of belonging for African immigrants in South Africa in order to reduce inter-group anxiety

Empirical Assessment of Selected Financial Indicators and Nigeria Gross Domestic Product

This study undertook an overview of the financial sector and considered the contributions of some selected financial indicators to the gross domestic product (GDP) in Nigeria. Data were obtained from the statistical bulletin of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for the period, 1990-2016. The variables considered include: Lending rate (LR), Real Interest rate (RIR), Money Supply (M2), Credit to Private Sector (CPS), Inflation rate (IR). Multiple regression analysis method was used to analyze the data. From the analysis, it is observed that credit to private sector (CPS) has a positive relationship with the GDP whereas the rest had negative relationship with the GDP. Further analysis using analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed that one of the factors (CPS) is significant. From the result obtained, it is recommended that the private sector should be given more access to credit. This will help in improving the economy since it has shown to have a positive relationship with the GDP.Keywords: Inflation; Lending rate; Money supply; Gross Domestic ProductJEL Codes: E43, E60, O4