Canadian Aboriginal Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Canadian Aboriginal Law - Essay Example This assists in managing and bonding the interaction between the government and the aboriginals. The aboriginal law was adopted from several sources of legislation since Section 91 (24) of the 1867 Constitution Act gives federal parliament the powers to legislate on matters affecting or relating to the Indians and their reserved land. Such mandate has led to enactment of various legislations including Indian Oil and Gas Act, Indian Act, and First Nations Land Management Act among others as discussed by Elkins (1999 p23). However, there had been a breakdown of the rule of law for Aboriginal people as this paper discusses. The study also describes how breaking the laws affect the Aboriginal people and the involved stakeholders such as the governmental agents. The study points out various aspects of the breakdown of the rule of law and government defiance in respect to aboriginals. The first aspect is the way the Aboriginal people are colonized internally in Canada through processes of cultural suppressions, breaching the trust and promises, legislative, dispossession, and public discriminations. The Aboriginals have no freedom of dispossessing their traditional resources and land in Canada. There had been forced relocations and taking of First Nations’ land and resources that increase the dispossession cases from indigenous people. There has also enforcement and enactment of other policies, laws, and practices perceived to weaken the Aboriginal societies and economies, forcing the people to be assimilated into Canadian mainstreams. The Aboriginal Law reinforces the approach of colonialism by ignoring the fundamental rights of the aboriginal people, especially the rights treaty (Hogg p.631). The Canadian Constitution ironically, recognizes such legislations. Moreover, the federal government of Canada continues to strengthen and maintain the domination of Indian Act by adopting legislations that affect the Aboriginals’ human rights of determining and governing their own political future. The federal government also breaks the law by refusing to fairly, promptly, and equal address several cases of private or governmental theft of Aboriginal’s reserved land and resources. This undermines the rule of law and hinders the aboriginal people from getting their justice. Another aspect is the dishonor of treaties between the government and the Aboriginal people. The treaties gives a fundamental framework for the First Nation people to govern themselves and their cultural diversities be respected by all stakeholders in the country. Unfortunately, the dishonor by the federal government of the treaties means the infringement of law and order. This gives the government an opportunity to oppress the aboriginals, especially discriminating them from better public service deliveries. This results to poor governmental services to the society such as health, water, poor infrastructures, and food safety among other services. Study reveals th at among the diseases such as Tuberculosis are commonly affecting the Aboriginal societies, as compared to un-Aboriginals in Canada. Other diseases such as diabetes were uncommon to the Aboriginal society, but it is currently affecting them at the highest rate as compared to the rest societies in the world (Coon, 2003). This is because the government discriminate them from the medical services such as insurance care system. The life expectancy of Aboriginal people is six years lower than the non-Aboriginal Canadians. This

Data description Essay Example for Free

Data description Essay The next step of the analysis is to compare the rank order of the relative true factor endowments in Table 1, to the rank order of the trade-revealed factor endowments in Table 2. Comparing these rank orders shows that both rank orders are identical, except that the rankings of land and un-skilled labour are switched. Furthermore, this table demonstrates that the trade performance of Vietnam, measured by exports minus imports, is dependent on the country-specific abundance of land, low-skilled labour. This implies that Vietnam has a comparative advantage in goods that make intensive use of unskilled-skilled and land, and a comparative disadvantage in goods that make intensive use of capital, intermediate and highly-skilled labour. The limitation of the study is that the absolute value of trade-revealed factor endowment (value of F: the left hand side of equation 4) and the relative true factor endowment (value of the right hand side of equation 4) do not coincide. This may be due to five factors: first, a key explanation is that each country uses different production techniques, these differences reflect factor endowment differences. Therefore, factor content studies that use a common technology matrix will systematically understate actual factor content. This leads to a failure in the assumption of factor price equalisation. Second explanation for the early failure to find factor content is an apparent bias in consumption towards locally produced goods. Third, although the input-output tables are becoming available for many countries, they are arguably not the highest quality economic data available. Fourth, the differences between the trade-revealed factor content and relatively true factor endowment also comes from the introduction of costs to international trade, which could have a strong effect on trade volume9. Finally, goods of intermediate factor intensity fall into the non-traded sector, so we tended to underestimate the true factor content of trade. There is a systematic correlation between country capital abundance and industry input usage not only in tradables (where this now suggests specialization) but also in non-tradables (where this suggests factor substitution). Thus, a mismatch can occur in calculating the factor content of trade and relatively true factor endowment. Some researchers are trying to build a new model that predicts some of the technology and demand modifications needed by the empirical factor content studies to make the Heckscher-Ohlin model fit the data. In addition to the two tests, based on the figures in column two and four, Spearmans and Kendalls correlation was computed. The value of coefficient is 0. 9 and the correlation is statistically significant at 97% level of confidence. In addition, Kendalls correlation was also performed for the rank test using information in column three and five, the coefficient is also 0. 9, and it is significant at 96% level of confidence. Therefore, findings of the sign test and rank test support the H-O-V theorem in trade between Vietnam and the world. 6 Conclusion The HOV theorem on trade between Vietnam and the world was tested by measuring both true and trade-revealed factor endowments. Two non-parametrics tests were conducted, the sign test and the rank test. Since the sign test was completely successful and the rank orders of factor abundance according to both methods of measurement are very similar, the HOV theorem is confirmed. The analysis of Vietnams factor endowments has shown that Vietnam has factor abundances in land and un-skilled labour, land whereas it has factor scarcities in capital, semi-skilled labour and highly-skilled labour. This implies that Vietnam has a revealed comparative advantage in goods that are intensive in the use of land and un-skilled labour and a comparative disadvantage in goods that are intensive in the use of capital, semi-skilled labour and highly-skilled labour. Therefore, the theory performed well, indicating that the relevant framework may be a reasonable framework for policy studies. In addition, studies of the factor content of trade may help in addressing policy questions of the impact of openness on national income levels and distribution. In fact, there already is a study mapping measures of the factor content of trade into impacts on domestic relative wages for the United States and other members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) under some conditions which such a mapping makes sense. This work has been very important in clarifying issues to be addressed in future work. A major area for future work is taking the empirical frameworks favored by the studies of factor content and find out the consequences of international integration on incomes and inequality. To sum up, study on factor content of trade bring out a deep understanding of how resources may drive patterns of trade between a country and other countries, and between a country and a region. References Bowen, H. P. , Leamer,E. E. , Sveikauskas,L. , 1987. Multicountry, Multifactor Tests of the Factor Abundance Theory, American Economic Review, 77:791-809. Brecher,A. Choudhri,E. U. (1982), The Factor Content of International Trade without Factor-Price Equalisation, Journal of International Economics, 12:277-283.

Memo On Internal Control Audit Accounting Essay

Memo On Internal Control Audit Accounting Essay The purpose of this memo is to document the audit objectives with related planned audit procedures regarding the Faculty Professional Expense (FPE) accounts audit as well as to identify the internal control weakness and recommendations within the FPE process. The current concerns about the Internal Audit department will also be discussed at the end of this memo. Use of FPE Accounts: The objectivity of the use of FPE accounts is to provide faculty members reimbursements and credits for allowable expense paid that are directly related to the pursuit of faculty members teaching or research activities. Faculty members bookstore purchases claims are processed differently from non-bookstore purchases. The maximum entitled FPE account for each member per fiscal year is $3000. The board would want to ensure that all FPE accounts are being used as intended; that all expenditures being claimed must be legitimate and specifically meet the definition of allowable expenses. Thus, we need to examine the current control procedures and policies in place within the FPE process, then evaluate and document the effectiveness and sufficiency of controls over FPE process. Exhibit 1 provides three detailed Audit Objectives related to our internal control audit of FPE account and the related procedures that we would perform to provide a high level of assurance. Exhibit 1- Audit Objectives and Procedures Audit Objectives Audit Procedures 1. All expense claims (both bookstore purchases and non-bookstore purchases) are certified; that they are being properly authorized and approved to verify for its occurrence/existence. a)  bookstore purchases  : Inquire bookstore managers and clerks whether they are aware of the list of allowable products that faculty members can purchase in the bookstore using their FPE account and whether there are policies and procedures that guide the bookstore clerks on how to deal with the FPE account. Observe whether the clerks would refuse to initiate a purchase transaction(s) related to FPE account when the purchase consists of non-allowable products. Obstacles:  Although the bookstore manager is aware of the policies and have knowledge about most professors taking advantage of the FPE account, but it seems that she didnt properly train her staff of what items are allowable for FPE credits and further instructed her staff to be nice to the faculty members as these transactions would help them to increase store sales and do not want to dissatisfy long term customers. Thus, the integrity of bookstore manager is questionable and the information we get at the bookstore level is likely to be biased. Inquire Maggie on the monthly generated report of bookstore purchases using FPE account. Whether the report consists of an automatic control by computers that would match the product codes of each purchase to its allowable product codes list for FPE claims and generate an exception report on any unmatched items. If automatic controls do not exist, then examine whether manual controls are in place to confirm allowable product codes for claims. Inquire Maggie on product codes for any non-allowable product purchases using FPE accounts and send an invoice to the faculty members for any non-legitimate claims. b)  Non-bookstore purchases Inquire relevant Department heads on their normal practices of approving faculty members claims.   Interview with Department head on their awareness of the FPE policies that they should be experienced with the definition of allowable expenses. Obstacles:  The Department heads answers to our questions may be biased if using the FPE accounts for personal benefits is a normal practice for the faculty members and that approving these types of expenditures are acceptable for the most of the Department heads. Randomly obtain copies of approved expense claim forms and ensure that all claims come with supported documents such as types of purchases, relevant receipt, and evidence of approval by their Department heads. Consider randomly examining the large amount or usual claims and verify its appropriateness. For example, office furniture purchased could be verified by checking to see if the furniture is located at the office of the faculty member; Membership fees in professional bodies could be verified by checking if that the professional bodies are related to the home faculty where that faculty member belongs to.   Obstacles:  Some expenditure may be harder to verify. For example, travel or travel related expenses and laptop could be claimed primary for personal use. 2. Controls are adequate to ensure that balance of FPE accounts are accurate and that they should be reconciled with reimbursements made to bookstore and/or faculty members. Inquire Maggie on her procedures regarding the monthly reconciliation of FPE accounts. In the event of discrepancy is found, inquire about her follow up procedures to correct the discrepancy. Randomly select the completed reconciliations done by Maggie and examine whether they are initialed by Darlene. Check to ensure that no credit balances exist for all FPE accounts (i.e. faculty members could not use their FPE account for more than $3000 per fiscal year.) Check to ensure that at year end (April 30), all remaining balances of FPE accounts are transferred to the Scholarship Trust Fund either automatically or manually. (i.e. FPE balances should be zero at each year end) 3. Management policies are in place that the FPE programs are being effectively managed and monitored. Inquire The Human Resource Department on control procedures over termination of faculty members. That the lists of faculty members should be complete and up to date. Inquire HR department staff whether they would notice the Financial Service Department immediately after terminating any faculty member so that they could terminate the FPE account associated with the terminated faculty member on a timely basis. Check to see if Financial Service would verify with HR department for a new faculty member when setting up a new FPE account associated with that member. Ensure that the FPE program is being monitored for its effectiveness on a continuous basis and any major changes should be presented/ discussed with the board. Current Control Weakness The current control environment and general control over the FPE accounts are considered to be very weak mainly due to the lack of control procedures and policies in place in the bookstore level, poor quality of review/procedures before approving receipts by Department heads and lack of independent check/verification of approvals made by department heads including lack of segregation of duties in the Financial Service Department. Exhibits 2 identified these significant internal control weaknesses within the FPE process, described the implications of each weakness as well as recommendations for improvement. Exhibit 2- Control Weakness, Implication and Recommendation Weakness Implication Recommendation 1. Either no well established procedures and policies regarding the use of FPE account for bookstore purchases in place for manager and staff to be followed  or  Policies and Procedures exist but Royola Berterson, Bookstore manager did not follow and didnt instruct her staff to follow. Instead bookstore manager instructed the staff to be courteous and helpful to faculty members because they are long-term customers and do not want to lose them and hence doesnt really care of what allowable purchases to expense against FPE account. e.g. Brian Ross (professor) bought clothes, computer for personal use at home. This clearly shows the staff members credited FPE account for clothes bought at bookstore. Either it is possible that the bookstore staff does not have the list for allowable expense under FPE which they should have or if they have the list then they are just not following it. Most professors take advantage of the Bookstore for a number of purchases. These purchases included the non-allowable expenditures that were not supposed to be charged against the FPE accounts, resulting in misuse of the FPE accounts for the bookstore purchases. -Establish clear and enforceable policies and procedures at the bookstore to ensure that FPE accounts may only be used against allowable expenditure. -Implement an automatic system at sales terminal that would read the product code and match them to the pre-authorized categories of product code (i.e. books, equipments), so that non-allowable purchase such as clothing from the bookstore using the FPE account could be automatically rejected. -Book store clerks should confirm the identity of the faculty members before crediting the FPE account to prevent the misuse of lost cards. -Consider hiring another bookstore manager since Royola Pertersons integrity is questionable 2. Poor quality of review of approvals for non-bookstore purchases by various Department heads. No procedures of how to review the attached receipts of non-bookstore purchases to check if those expenses are allowed to be deducted under FPE account or not. No procedures to check if those non-bookstore purchases were used for office or personal purpose. e.g. Brian Ross (professor) plan to travel for business and holiday purpose- expense related to business purpose and non business purpose needs to be segregated Misuse of FPE account can result in an increase of FPE expenses. Faculty members can claim reimbursements for purchase of items for personal use by providing those receipts. Faculty members can claim for items not allowable under non-bookstore purchases due to lack of control procedures. FPE expense can be maximum of $3000*195 faculty members= $585,000. Faculty members will be more inclined to deceive/ claim unallowable expenses if errors go undetected. Require all division managers to review all the receipts submitted by faculty members to check if its an allowable expense to be reimbursed to employees for non-bookstore purchases. Need to check the date on the receipt submitted by faculty members for allowable reimbursements to see if the expense incurred is in the current year for cutoff. -Need to check if non-bookstore purchases/expenses were solely for the purpose of office/university benefit (not personal benefit)- to segregate the personal expense from office expense (e.g. Travel expense related to business and personal use- to reimburse business related travel expense only) -Check for previous years receipts submitted by those faculty members who are found to claim unallowable expense by providing receipts to charge back those amounts. 3. Lack of independent check in the Financial Service Department of the receipts submitted by different department heads for its accuracy and reliability if its an allowable expense that is being claimed for reimbursement as Maggie just debits the expense account and initiates a cheque requisition for payment to the faculty members. Maggie shouldnt do both reconciliation and writing cheques at the same time, which clearly indicates lack of segregation of duties. Intentional/ unintentional errors made by divisional heads will go undetected. This will result in reimbursing amounts that shouldnt have been which increases the expense under â€Å"FPE account† which otherwise would have been transferred to a â€Å"Scholarship Trust Fund†. Faculty members will be more inclined to deceive/claim unallowable expenses if errors go undetected. Fraud may occur as Maggie can easily make adjustments at the year-end if the total university account posting related to FPE is not equal to the amount relieved from the faculty FPE accounts. -Requires Financial department to check for all claims/receipts that are being claimed to confirm if its an allowable expense under FPE account before initiating a cheque requisition for payment to the faculty member. -Hire a new employee in financial department to check all the receipts initialized by department heads. -Duties of reconciliation and writing cheques should be segregated by hiring a new employee. Current concerns about the Internal Audit department Structure- related Lack of independence as there is no direct presentation/reporting to the Board at their quarterly meetings. Responsibility- related Nature of job duties- Internal auditor working/replacing staff in the financial services during vacations violates independence issues and is not a part of responsibility of an internal auditor. Internal auditors should not prepare bank reconciliation for bank accounts. Independence rules will be violated if internal auditor assists Vice-president of financial services. Recommendations: Need to present/report findings, results and issues directly to Board of Governors at quarterly meetings rather than reporting it to VP to avoid independence issues. When employees in financial service department goes on vacation there should be employees within the financial service department to cover for them and they should be paid overtime to give an incentive to them. Only one financial employee should be permitted to take long planned vacation at a time which can be reserved by employees well in advance. Additionally, work done by the employee replacing the employee on vacation should be double checked by someone else for its accuracy. Duty of bank reconciliation for all bank accounts should be segregated so that employee responsible for bank reconciliation is not responsible for any other accounting department work (i.e. A/P or A/R department) to have proper segregation of duties. Internal auditor shouldnt assist Vice-president of financial services to remain independent as internal auditor will be auditing the work of vice president, in case if internal auditor does assist Vice-president, it should be clearly disclosed in internal auditors report that is presented to external auditor. Conclusion Bloomington University does not have effective controls procedures in place for use of FPE account. Evidences have been found to prove the misuse of FPE account by faculty members because of lack of review by bookstore manager, department heads and financial department to allow reimbursing all claims. We recommend the Board to immediately take action to improve its control weaknesses over the FPE process. A list of our recommendations is provided in exhibit 2. An alternative way would be to eliminate the use of FPE account, because the integrity of FPE program seems to be very questionable. The procedures to replace the FPE accounts could be as followed. For book-store purchases and non-book store purchases, different department should be in place to order/buy on behalf of faculty members. Faculty members can just place an order to that separate department of their needs to carry out their job and that department will automatically take care of all allowable purchases to be made.

Use of Light and Darkness in Joseph Conrads Heart of Darkness Essa

Use of Light and Darkness in Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness  Ã‚      Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness contrasts light and darkness, to represent the civilized and uncivilized sides of the world. Conrad uses light to represent the civilized side of humanity while contrasting the dark with the uncivilized and savage. Throughout the thematic stages of the novel, that is the Thames river London, the company's office in Belgium, the journey to the "heart of darkness" and the conclusion, light and dark is used to represent these sides of humanity, but on a deeper level many assumptions of darkness and light are challenged, with the appearance of light and dark, and in turn good and evil contrasting with the reality. From the initial setting, the Thames river, London, on the "cruising yawl" the Nellie, light and darkness are used to symbolize the good and evil side of humanity. Marlow's tale of the Congo is where light and darkness is used to represent the civilized and uncivilized. Marlow talks of the lights that are reflected in the water, creating the idea that the members of the Nellie are civilized. The   lights of London are again used represent the civilized nature of the society, with connotations of "good" coming from the bright lights of civilization. However this is then contrasted with the juxtaposition of the "light", with Marlow saying - "And this also has been one of the dark places of the Earth". By saying this Marlow is portraying London as a city with once the same darkness of civilization, of which the civilized Roman's brought light to. This establishment of light representing the civilized demonstrates the dominant assumptions of the white society, later in the novel it is demonstrated that civilized does no... ...story. However Conrad also challenges many assumptions of darkness being solely associated with evil, and light being solely associated with good, as throughout the novel the light of the white society is critiqued, representing the evil side of humanity. Works Cited and Consulted Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness. Middlesex, England: Penguin Publishers, 1983. Gillon, Adam. (1982). Joseph Conrad. Twayne's English Author Series: Number 333. Kinley E. Roby, ed. Boston: Twayne. "Joseph Conrad." The Encarta 1998 Encyclopedia Online. Microsoft, 1998. Kunitz, Stanley J. "Joseph Conrad." Twentieth Century Authors: Vol. T. New York: H.W. Wilson Company, 1942. 307-9 Stape, J.H.. The Cambridge Companion to Joseph Conrad. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Taylor, Derek. Conrad's Heart of Darkness. The Explicator. No.4 Summer 1998: 195-8.   

A Critical Expose of the Effects Of 1914 Amalgamation on Nigeria

Chinua Achebe citing an Igbo proverb in his â€Å"There was a country† tells us that a man who does not know where the rain started to beat him cannot say where he dried his body. The rain that beat Nigeria began more than a decade ago, from the resolutions of the Berlin conference of 1884/1885 to the economic–driven amalgamation of the northern and southern protectorates of Nigeria in 1914 by Lord Lugard. When the British set foot on the area presently known as Nigeria, it was a cacophony of many nations; nations which the British preferred to call â€Å"tribes†.Encouraged by the western anthropological binary of the â€Å"self† and the â€Å"other†, the British colonialists saw themselves as destined and equipped to rescue these African peoples from deep-scaled savagery, superstition and statelessness. They could not acknowledge that these peoples had any form of civilization or system of governance. Even if they did, they did not see the need to encourage the maturity and crystallization of such institutions.Theirs, they thought was a superior and more authentic civilization, and history especially that of slavery, had perhaps taught them that the need for European to conquer and â€Å"pacify† the â€Å"other†, the rest of the world, especially Africa was a divinely ordained enterprise (Davison 1991:21-51). Little wonder that when the British came to Nigeria in the 19th century, first as traders and merchants, they did not hesitate to bring along their religion and later, government.With a conjunction of force, tact and artifice, they set up administrative machinery which was later to become a metaphor for the suppression and annihilation of indigenous political and socio-religious structures; machinery which was designed to proclaim and establish the superiority of the European â€Å"self† over and above the African â€Å"other†. For easy administration more than for any other reason, British co lonialists banded several nations together in 1914 to create Nigeria: one of the liveliest housewives composed a national anthem for the new nation.In recognition of the artificiality of the concept of Nigeria, the anthem’s author wrote inter alia: †¦though tribe and tongue may differ, in brotherhood we stand†¦ Throughout the existence of Nigeria, the second line of the stanza above evokes hypocrisy; it represents one of the major falsehoods on which the British founded Nigeria and on which modern Nigeria thrives. Then the questions as to why do the British merge culturally diverse peoples to forge Nigeria? Was it not possible for them to allow these nations (which they called tribes) to evolve with minimum external influence and interference?Amalgamation of 1914; Reasons and ProspectsThe primary aim of the British in amalgamating the northern and the southern protectorates in Nigeria was simply economic. Compared with the colony and protectorate of southern Nigeria , the protectorate of northern Nigeria proved relatively poor neighbor. The entire south was very viable and richly endowed with surplus resources. The north was not as rich as the south, and was costing Britain money since it was not generating enough revenue to sustain itself.It was in the bid to offset the cost of the northern Nigeria that Lord Lugard who was the governor appointed a committee to recommend ways of running the almost barren north at a minimal or no cost to Britain. The group recommended the amalgamation of the southern to northern; to join the two vast areas as one country. On January 1, 1914, northern and southern Nigeria were amalgamated into one country and named the colony and protectorate of Nigeria. The amalgamation hence, was purely for administrative convenience and economic exploitation and as Chinweizu (1978) stated, British profit was too important to be allowed to suffer.The above summary indicates the making of Nigeria and we can observe that the amal gamation of the northern and southern Nigeria was not in the interest of Nigerians as they were not consulted before the amalgamation.Consequences of the Amalgamation: a Toddler After Hundred YearsWhatever Europe did in Africa in those twilight days, she did them solely for her own advantage and almost always at the detriment of the African. The amalgamation of Nigeria in 1914 is no exception. It was a political blunder; much of the history of Nigeria supports this thesis, although no one would acknowledge this in modern Nigeria.Before independence, the shadow of ethnicity had grown so tall that even the contradictory colonial national anthem could not exorcise it. When the British granted us independence in 1960, it was certain that they have left not a truly â€Å"pacified† and unified federation built on love and mutual respect and equity but a mere â€Å"geographical expression† as Awolowo, one of the founding fathers of modern Nigeria, put it. When Tafawa Balewa r eceived the independence charter at racecourse in 1960, he, perhaps, also received the charter for instability and disaffection.The history of Nigeria between 1960 and 1967, when the civil war finally broke out, is a testimony. Generally, amalgamation preserved the difference among peoples and their administration. The adverse national issues were now looked at from local interests. Closely related to this was the unhealthy rivalry which developed between respective administrations as they struggle for different group interest which they represented. So that even in Lugard’s time, Nigeria was divided along north-south lines. Thus, the way the amalgamation was implemented left a legacy of tension among component parts of Nigeria.Also, the boundary adjustment which accompanied the amalgamation left some geographical in-balance between the north and south thereby creating same adverse impact on subsequent nation-building efforts. Furthermore, in spite of all efforts since the fa mous amalgamation of the northern Nigeria and the southern Nigeria hundred years ago, an act which the northern leaders to this day consistently and publicily condemn as a mistake, Nigeria as a united country was nothing but a fiction. Certain basic features mark a country out as united. Some of these features are:Common or similar culture, as well as social system.Common citizenship, with equal rights and privileges for all men anywhere in the country.Common laws and a common judicial system.A common electoral system.Equal rights of all citizens before the law.Rights to acquire property and make a living anywhere in the country.Equal rights to employment anywhere in the country.Equal rights to protection of life and property.Most of these features or even more are completely found lacking in our â€Å"dear† country Nigeria.No thanks to ethnic consciousness among Nigerians.Any Way  Forward?To get the right answers presupposes asking the right questions. Amalgamation of Nige ria is in itself not intrinsically evil. The problem is that many critics of this very concept tend to be more emphatic in its exposition of the ills of this principle, relegating to the periphery and obliterating it good aspects. We tend to sound and resound the trumpets of disparity among Nigerians but prefer to be myopic about things that are fundamental to us as Africans.It is true as some critics may choose to argue that our amalgamation was an â€Å"unconsulted† one as against the United States of America’s voluntary amalgamation. As an Igbo proverb will have it â€Å"anyukoo amiri onu o gba ufufu† (igbo proverb portraying that unity is strength), the merging of the northern and southern protectorates of Nigeria could if utilized devoid of ethic sentiments and prejudice will make Nigeria a formidable force in its leadership role as the â€Å"giant of Africa†. This could only be possible when national interest is placed foremost as against ethnic int erests.Furthermore, Nigerians at all level should learn to imbibe and assimilate more readily the African spirit of â€Å"Ujamaa socialism† as propagated by Julius kambarage Nyerere. This brotherly spirit of communalism will help to eliminate every form of division against tribal lines and foster that brotherhood that is deeply rooted in â€Å"Black consciousness†, In conclusion, Nigeria constitutional arrangement should be re-visited and made in such a way that it reflects true federalism by restoring more powers to the regional governments as this will â€Å"de-intensify† the unhealthy struggle to control the center: that led Nigeria where it is today.

There Are Four Elements to a Valid Contract

There are four elements to a valid contract. 1. At least two separate parties entering into an agreement: The agreement can be between two people, or one person and a company or between two companies. 2. The parties are qualified to agree to the terms and conditions in the contract: The parties must be of legal age and have an understanding of what the contract is and details it outlines. 3. Both parties are receiving consideration or value from the agreement: This is most commonly money in exchange for a good or service, but there are other methods of consideration, especially in the business arena. . The contract is created for legal activities: Contract are not binding or considered legally valid when they propose illegal activities or violate existing laws in anyway. (What are the four elements of a contract, 2010). The Objective theory of contracts is a principle in U. S. law that the existence of a contract is determined by the legal significance of the external acts of a party to purported agreement, rather than by the actual intent of the parties. (Objective theory of contract, 2010).This theory applies in this case because in this case it was stated they could win a Harrier-Jet if they collected the Pepsi points, but in actuality it was never their intent to give one away. The Court held there wasn’t a valid agreement here, because one party (Pepsi-co) made an agreement, but never signed a contract with the other party (John D. R. Leonard). As expensive as that jet was, a commercial ad couldn’t have actually offered the consumers the jet. (Unilateral Contract, 2010). Some advertisements are considered offers because if they advertise something and you have to pay for it that is money exchanged for a good or service.This case differs, because Leonard fulfilled his end by coming up with the points, but didn’t actually receive his reward upon the completed act.References Objective theory of contract; Retrieved from, http://www. encycl opedia. com/doc/1G2-3437703138. html Unilateral contract; Retrieved from, http://www. legal-dictionary. thefreedictionary. com/Unilateral+contract What are the Four Elements of a Valid Contract? 123; Retrieved from, http://www. life123. com/career-money/business-law/contracts/what-are-the-four-elments -of-a-valid-contract. shtml