Nigeria Our dear Mother Land
... a call for attitudinal change....
Ask Not what the next President will do for Nigeria or you but ask
what you can do for your dear Mother Land.
January 20, 1961, in Washington, D.C. during his presidential
inauguration John F. Kennedy rightly declared “Ask not what your country can do
for you – ask what you can do for your country,” he challenged every American
to actively contribute to the development of America. The citizens heard him and
obeyed.
Fast forward sixty-two (62) years later America is still the world
power and a leading light of a Nation, thanks to her citizen’s contribution to
her advancement.
In contrast,
Though Nigeria national anthem boldly declares;
“Arise, O compatriots, Nigeria’s call obey. To serve our fatherland.
With love and strength and faith”
I doubt if Nigerian ever hears nor care to obey this call of her
mother land. Rather, it is everyone for himself, Nigeria for us all.
Or, how do you interpret these:
After the creation of Northern Nigeria and Southern Nigeria Protectorate on 1 January
1900 the British felt that the two protectorates will do better as one is, on 1
January 1914 the nations were unified under the leadership of Sir Frederick
John Dealtry Baron Lugard.
But Nigerians never felt that the unification was in their best interest,
most people kicked against it, no one tries to make it work.
Everyone’s expectations were shifted towards gaining independence “once
we have our independence Nigeria will be a paradise” or so our fathers thought.
So, in October 1, 1960, forty-six (46) years later Nigeria independence
became a reality yet things were not as hoped, most people believed that it is
due to our lack of an indigenous Constitution and so began another agitation
for a Nigerian Constitution which became a reality three (3) years later on
October 1, 1963.
Yes, we now have it all as a Nation, our much-anticipated accelerated
development should now begin, or so they say, yet no meaningful national
progress thereafter.
Most people became and overnight critic, everyone was now pointing
accusing fingers at the leadership of the country, their ignorance, greediness,
incompetence, corruption, wastefulness, overbearing affluence and also the
parliamentary system of government imposed un us, and so on.
These are what embolden the Nigerian military personnel for coup
d'état of 15 January 1966 led by Chukwuma Kaduna Nzeogwu and Emmanuel Ifeajuna
during which many people were killed, including the Prime Minister of Nigeria,
many senior politicians, many senior Army officers (including their wives), and
sentinels on protective duty.
The coup plotters promised to make things right ……., but they never did, rather made it worst.
THEY SET THE STAGE FOR THE PRESENT UNITARY SYSTEM OF GOVERNANCE WHERE TOO MUCH POWER IS CONCENTRATED AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL, and so began the downward slide into national distrust, disloyalty, unpatriotic, tribal bigotry, religious bigotry, government brutality and eventually the Nigerian Civil War of 6 July 1967 to 15 January 1970.
NIGERIANS CONTINUES IN THEIR ERRONEOUS PART OF HOPING FOR A MESSIAH
WHEN IN REALITY EACH OF US ARE THE MESSIAH THE NATION NEEDS. WE CONTINUES TO
POINT FINGERS AT THE OTHER PERSON, TRIBE AND GOVERNMENT AS THE CAUSE OF OUR
NATIONAL WOES, necessitating the counter which began as a mutiny at roughly
midnight on 28 July 1966 and was a reaction to the killings during the 15
January same year. The July mutiny or counter coup resulted in the murder of
Nigeria's first military Head of State General Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi and Lt
Colonel Adekunle Fajuyi (who was hosting a visiting Aguiyi-Ironsi) in Ibadan.
So, Lt. Colonel Yakubu Gowon became the Head of State. He too
promised to make Nigeria better and painted a vision of a better Nigeria ….
Since then, we have had so many unrealized promises do you remember
these visions? VISSION-20:00, VISSION-20:10, VISSION-20:15, VISSION-20:20, the
list never ends.
If I may remind you more, below:
- 1960: Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe and Abubakar Tafawa Balewa (16 November 1960 - 1 October 1963)
- 1966: Major General Johnson
Aguiyi-Irons and The Central Military Government / Council (16 January 1966 -
29 July 1966)
- 1966: General Yakubu Gowon and The Federal Military
Government / council (1 August 1966 - 29 July 1975)
- 1975: General Murtala Ramat Mohammed and The
Federal Military Government / council (29 July 1975 - 13 February 1976)
- 1976: General Olusegun Obasanjo
and The Federal Military Government / council (13 February 1976 - 1 October
1979)
- 1979: Alhaji Shehu Shagari and The National Party
of Nigeria (1 October 1979 - 31 December 1983)
- 1983: Major General Muhammadu Buhari and The
Supreme Military Council (31 December 1983 - 27 August 1985)
- 1985: General Ibrahim Babangida and The Armed
Forces Ruling Council (27 August 1985- 26 August 1993)
- 1993: Chief Ernest Shonekan and
the Interim National Government (26 August 1993 - 17 November 1993)
- 1993: General Sani Abacha and
The Provisional Ruling Council (7 November 1993 - 8 June 1998)
- 1998: General Abdulsalami
Abubakar and The Provisional Ruling Council (8 June 1998 - 29 May 1999)
- 1999: Chief Olusegun Obasanjo
and The People's Democratic Party (29 May 1999 - 29 May 2007)
- 2007: Alhaji Umaru Musa
Yar'Adua and The People's Democratic Party (29 May 2007 - 5 May 2010)
- 2010: Dr. Goodluck Jonathan and
The People's Democratic Party (5 May 2010 -
29 May 2015)
- 2015: Muhammadu Buhari and The All-Progressives
Congress (29 May 2015 till date)
- 2023 – February: WHICH MESSIAH
ARE YOU WAITING FOR?
These leaders can not be all evil, check out their inaugural
speeches, so articulate, eloquently presented and full of hope and promises
like John F. Kennedy’s inaugural speech only that nothing came out of theirs
because they are but ordinary men with human limitations. The task of changing
Nigeria is on all her citizens and not on Mr. President and his Cabinet alone.
Our problem is placing too much hope on a mere man instead of joining forces
with them to move Nigeria forward.
Obviously,
WHATEVER RETROGRESSIVE NATIONAL OUTCOME WE ARE FACED WITH AT THE
MOMENT, IS THE TYPICAL OUTCOME PROBABLE, WHEN OVER TWO HUNDRED MILLION (200M)
CITIZENS RELIED ON LESS THAN FIVE THOUSAND PEOPLE IN GOVERNMENT TO CHANGE THE
NATIONAL FORTUNES.
"ẸNÌKAN KÌÍ JẸ́ ÀWÁDÉ"
"IGI KAN KÒLE DÁGBÓ SE"
(a Yoruba adage meaning,
ONE PERSON DOES NOT MAKE THE MARKET
And;
A TREE DON'T MAKE THE FOREST)
We will see the change we desired; when:
§ The majority of us choose to be patriotic to Nigeria.
§ Majority of us choose to be productive and contributing to the
National Cake with less of us are depending on government handouts and sharing
formular.
§ Most of us refrains from seeing the country and government as they
an we or I, because you are the country and the government.
§ All of us repent of our exploitative spirit in the market places
§ All of us sees our neighbors as our kith and kin and we become our
brother’s keeper.
§ When we stop destroying our national asset at the slightest
provocation.
§ We all choose to be the change we want.
This is January 2023, … many are still waiting a man to fix Nigeria
for them …
We became so good at blaming the others that people that have being
so long government and a day after they exist power, they immediately start
blaming the new man on the job.
It so laughable that we several years later and several of our
people have handled our state affairs yet many are still blaming the colonial
government for our problems.
Can we please stop waiting for Obi, Atiku of Bola Tinubu to come and
fix our motherland? These are mere men; they are not gods but collectively we
shall birth the change we seek.
AT THE FINAL ANALYSIS, THERE ARE TWO KINDS OF PEOPLE IN NIGERIA.
1. THE MANY PULLING HER OVER THE EDGES and;
2. THE FEW PULLING HER AWAY FROM THE CLIFF, which group are in.
GOD BLESS NIGERIA
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