News
Food for Living: The Secret Behind Solving Other People’s Problems
By Henry Ukazu
Greetings Destiny Friends,
As human beings, we all have problems, but what differentiates our problems is how we manage them. In the same vein, each of us have a secret frustration which no one knows.
According to some schools of thought, we have three forms of lifestyle; public life, which we exhibit when we are in public arenas, private life which only our family members and close friends know, and secret life which only us know.
We all harbour a form of guilt which we believe we ought to have handled or managed differently. In the same way, government agencies, private and non-for-profit organizations have problems they all battle with. Solving these problems can be a herculean task.
Every problem has a solution. Any problem that doesn’t have a solution is because the right person with the solution hasn’t arrived. I liken every problem or challenge to a door. If you have the wrong key, you won’t be able to open a door. It’s just like solving a mathematical problem, without the right formula, you’ll have a hard time arriving at an answer.
You may be wondering what the secret to solving a problem is. The answer is not far-fetched; it lies within you. This article is structured to assist any progressive mind to be selfless in addition to living for humanity.
In the global world, we are taught to know that in order to have money, you must solve a problem. Yes, it is true to a reasonable extent, but in reality, solving a problem can be relative. People like it when we solve their problems, we also feel good when we solve other people’s problems.
As human beings, we all have problems. These problems make us insatiable and blind to the needs of others. The question we normally ask ourselves is, how do we solve other people’s problems while having our problem living inside of us? That’s the crux of this article.
Problems exist around us; within our families, personal life and even in religious organisations. As human beings, sometimes we find it difficult living for humanity; we fail to understand that the joy of life is not how happy you are, but how happy others can be because of you. If you are creative enough to look around and solve the needs of your immediate environment, you may be surprised to know the recognition that will be accorded to you due to your selfless act. I charge you today to look around your environment and attend to that little problem you can conveniently solve without blinking an eye.
We all have friends who face different challenges. Sometimes we look at the other side of life just because we feel we have our concerns, but the reality of life is that we are doing ourselves a disservice by not assisting in solving the problems, especially when we have the capacity to do so.
The question now becomes, how do you solve a problem? You can do this by leaving yourself out and focusing on assisting other people. Don’t withhold opportunities to help people if you’re in a position to help. As a leader, use your opportunity to empower people and see how you’ll be remembered when you leave office. You will be surprised to see the universe will work in your favour. Isn’t it true that the joy of life is not how happy you are, but how happy others can be because of you.
The real secret of solving a problem lies in getting what you want faster. This always happens when you help other people to get what they need. It’s just like when you use your time, resources, talents, gifts and knowledge to mentor a kid, you’ll be surprised to know that the same kid you mentored yesterday may turn around to mentor your kid tomorrow and the cycle continues. Isn’t it true that when you spray fragrance on someone, you leave some fragrance on your palms? The laws of success vary. Sometimes your true success lies in helping other people to reach their peak. It’s always good to celebrate other people’s success because you never know, their success may be tied to your success.
If we are honest to ourselves, it can be difficult to help others while we are in pain, but then, when we do the little we can, the universe has a way of compensating us. You can solve a problem in several ways including sowing a seed. Then watch how the seed will metamorphose into something greater, tomorrow. Again, you can support someone by your words of encouragement, gifts, time and knowledge.
As you help others, you may not see or feel it, but you are helping yourself. What most people don’t know is that you’ll get what you want faster when you help other people to get what they need. Try helping someone despite being in need or in pain yourself, and see how the universe will pay you back. For example, if you are believing God for the fruit of the womb, pray for other women in similar need. If you’re in need of financial success, try giving others even when you don’t have enough to pay your bills.
Sometimes the reason you can’t have your problem solved is because you need to solve other people’s problems. Today, I charge you to make a commitment to solving a problem by sowing a seed in someone’s life.
Henry Ukazu writes from New York. He works with the New York City Department of Correction as the Legal Coordinator. He’s the author of the acclaimed book Design Your Destiny – Actualizing Your Birthright To Success and President of gloemi.com. He can be reached via info@gloemi.com
Three Nigerian secondary schools are in the ring for the grand prize of N5m in the ongoing Glo Innov8 National STEM competition for girls in Senior Secondary Schools across the country.
The three top finalists were selected for their originality and innovation in the different entries for the competition. A total of 20 secondary schools were picked from over 200 schools which registered for the competition. After a series of considerations, 10 of them made it to the semifinal from which three; Ephraim High School, Isolo Campus, Lagos; Regina Pacis International School, Onitsha, Anambra State; and Peakfield Academy, Jos, Plateau State eventually coasted home to the finals.
Schools from Plateau, Kano, Lagos, Rivers, Edo, Borno, Kebbi, Nasarawa, Ondo, Oyo, Anambra, FCT, Delta, Kaduna and Adamawa states had signified intentions to participate following a call for entries by Glo Foundation, Globacom’s corporate social responsibility arm as part of its celebration of the 2025 International Day of the Girl Child.
Glo Innov8, a STEM-driven challenge, has scheduled prizes worth N5 million to the three schools in the finals. The competition “is geared at inspiring young girls to Compete, Innovate and Win, while also strengthening their confidence and expanding their knowledge in STEM subjects”, Glo Foundation explained.
The eventual overall winning school will go home with a cash prize of N2,000,000 while the 2 students representing the school will each get a laptop. The Teacher/Mentor/STEM Coordinator also gets N200,000.
The schools that come second and third places and their Teachers/Mentors/STEM Coordinators will also receive mouth-watering consolation prizes.
The three female judges of the virtual phase of selection of the top 20 schools said they were excited by the quality of presentations by the competing schools. One of them, Tosin Olabode said: “I was particularly impressed by the prototype presentations from some schools. They demonstrated that they had done their homework”.
In the same vein, Amina Gabriel disclosed that she was thrilled by the variety of ideas that the schools came up with. “The schools presented innovative solutions tackling issues in agriculture, security, waste management, and firefighting. The top 10 schools showcased outstanding prototypes, from apps to robots, making the judging process truly competitive. I’m grateful to Glo Foundation for the opportunity to serve and support young girls in STEM”, she said.
According to Sharon Ibejih, the third judge, “This competition has showcased a highly competitive next generation of women leaders in STEM. This was an excellent exercise and a means to encourage more students in STEM to develop problem-solving and innovative thinking skills”.
The overall winning school will emerge at an event set to hold later this year at the Mike Adenuga Centre (Alliance Française), Ikoyi, Lagos.
The leader of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPoB), Nnamdi Kanu, has filed a motion to stop the judgment of the Federal High Court, Abuja, in his trial for alleged terrorism.
Justice James Omotosho, on November 7, fixed November 20 for judgment on the case.
The judge fixed the date after Kanu’s defence was foreclosed following his insistence that he would not enter his defence under a repealed law.
However, in the motion on notice marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/383/2015, he personally filed, the IPoB leader sought seven reliefs.
In the application dated November 10 and filed same date, Kanu sought an order arresting the delivery of judgment in charge no: FHC/ABJ/CR/383/2015.
The document was made public on Tuesday.
In it, he alleged that the proceedings were conducted under a repealed and non-existent statute and in disobedience to the Supreme Court’s directive contrary to Section 287(1) CFRN 1999.”
He sought a declaration that by virtue of Section 287(1) CFRN, the trial court was constitutionally bound to give effect to the Supreme Court’s finding that count 15 (now count 7) “does not exist in law,” and its failure rendered all subsequent proceedings null and void.
He also sought a declaration that the court’s failure to take judicial notice of the repeal of the 2013 Terrorism Act, contrary to Section 122 Evidence Act 2011, vitiates all steps taken thereunder.
The IPOB leader equally sought a declaration that by virtue of Section 76(1)(d)(iii) of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022, the Federal High Court lacked jurisdiction to try him in the absence of proof that the alleged conduct constituted an offence under Kenyan law or of any Kenyan judicial validation or extradition order.
Besides, Kanu sought “a declaration that the plea purportedly taken on March 29, under a repealed and non-existent statute and in violation of Section 220 ACJA 2015 is void and incapable of conferring jurisdiction.
President Bola Tinubu has dispatched a strong delegation to London to address the situation of Ike Ekweremadu, a former Deputy Senate President, who has been imprisoned in the UK since March 2023.
The delegation includes the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, and the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi.
The team arrived in London on Monday and held discussions with officials from the UK’s Ministry of Justice.
Alkasim Abdulkadir, spokesperson for Tuggar, said on Tuesday that the presidential delegation was in London to engage with UK authorities to consider the possibility of Ekweremadu serving the remainder of his prison sentence in Nigeria.
The London Metropolitan Police detained the Ekweremadus in June 2022 after a man was deceitfully presented to a private renal unit at Royal Free Hospital in London as a relative of their daughter Sonia, in what turned out to be a failed attempt to convince medical professionals to perform an £80,000 transplant.
The 21-year-old man, who had allegedly been promised employment in the UK, reported the incident to the police in May of that year, saying that he had been brought to the country for an organ transplant.
In March 2023, the former presiding officer of Nigeria’s Senate was convicted of organ trafficking by a UK court. Beatrice, his wife, and Obinna Obeta, a doctor connected to the case, were also found guilty.
This verdict marked the first of its kind under the UK Modern Slavery Act.
On May 5, 2023, Ekweremadu received a nine-year and eight-month prison sentence, while his wife was sentenced to four years and six months, and Obeta was given a ten-year prison sentence.
In his ruling, Judge Jeremy Johnson determined that Beatrice should serve half of her sentence in custody and be supervised for the remainder. However, she was released from prison in January and has since returned to Nigeria.
