HELP! WILL NIGERIA SURVIVE?

“Sometimes even to live is an act of courage” …Seneca (4BC – 65AD) Roman Philosopher

Who we are

Believe it or not, who you are really does play a vital role in how the world eventually turns out, perhaps that is why the environment can become subjective because there is always an opportunity to recreate one’s self.

So who are you? Would it be accurate to assume that you are a good person? If so, what does good really mean, especially in the world we currently live, and what good does your kind of apparent good do to poor humanity?

There is crisis the world over as you are reading this article, this is because accidents happen, but also, some people are deliberately causing chaos due to the evident facts though hidden in plain sight that there are benefits gotten at the expense of human lives.

So who are we? Before I break it down in my own words, there are of course other angles to view the world from.

“When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in; he has no choice but to be an outlaw” …Nelson Mandela (1918 – 2013) South African anti-apartheid revolutionary, politician, and philanthropist, who served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999.

Oppression

You guessed it, we are the bad guys, and when I say bad guys I don’t mean like the types in the movies with guns blazing and those that rip off homes and tear families apart. We are bad guys to planet earth, to nature, to our families, friends and ultimately ourselves.

We are unique beings that have reduced ourselves to a bunch of selfish, greedy, deceptive and insecure people.

Using Nigeria as a case study in the spirit of constructive criticism, there have been apparent surges in virtually every sector of the economy right? Or we might as well say not really, simply because there are massive elements of prematurity, bias and artificiality. Want instances? 

First off, Nigeria has gained an international reputation for corruption as embarrassing as it may be. The corruption which has remained virtually unchecked till date has turned a small percentage of the Nigerian population into shameless billionaires that have failed to give back to the society, and how repressive they are.

Imagine a considerably great country of about 180 million people, huge economy, crude oil, untold potentials, serene weather and no natural disasters, and still there has been no significant development especially in proportion to her population, none worthwhile per say asides the ones that the western world that enslaved us built.

Nigeria is a unique country where her citizens would apparently speak English language better than the British, wear the most luxurious apparel, drive the most expensive cars and invariably claim to do virtually everything the white folks have handed down from skills to material possessions, without building a sustainable future for her up coming generation.

We can build Jets, cars, phones, mechanize agriculture and so much more. If at all they are actually rocket science, which they entirely aren't, we simply need to create policies and enabling environment to make it happen on our father land.

“Aren’t we all slaves? Empty shells in closed cabins, souls for purchase, zombies for hire?

Aren’t we still slaves?

Third generation nations are definitely still slaves either to material wealth or to the western world only in a modern way, although they may be bewildered about it, or they may have knowingly turned a blind eye to the suffering of the masses while the privileged few benefit abundantly from oppressing the people, ignorant or unconcerned of the inevitable aftermath.

Nigeria has had the opportunity to diversify her economy for as long as we can remember, it has always been a matter of initiative, faith, sincerity and priorities, which have been ignored without considering genuine principles.

How high can the insult go? Nigeria is practically itching towards being a failed state as she constantly battles with unstable electricity, terrible roads, unemployment, ridiculous educational structure that foreigners do not recognize Nigerian university degrees, but cherish an average Nigerian’s intelligence independently, poor health system so much that her President Buhari has been out of the country for over two months on medical leave so much that it appeared as a mockery on cnn.

“I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound by the starless midnight of racism and war that the bright daybreak of peace and brotherhood can never become a reality. I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word” …Martin Luther King Jr. (1029 – 1968) An American Baptist minister and activist who became the most visible spokesperson and leader in the Civil Rights Movement.

This is war

If we are not at war, I really don’t know what else to call it. This is a state of emergency, everywhere looks calm because we are used to the rot, and some people are behind the scene packing the dirt and paying for our filth.

We might not be at war with other nations, but with ourselves, how dare we stand akimbo as we watch our kid’s future wither away like smoke which is surely short-lived along the way?

We are so immersed in greed and material wealth that we fail to see that it is all vanity and will become useless even after we are gone away from this world. How can we not teach our children that we can never be satisfied, but that it is contentment that brings forth great wealth?

Look around you, there are misguided youths everywhere, some smoke cigars, cigarettes and even weed without knowing why, some go into internet fraud to get money they don’t actually need thereby wasting it, binging on arrogance and getting hurt, most are exposed to STDs through indiscriminate mating and homosexuality which they really don’t understand, and even the educated ones rely on their brainpower with pride rather than be humble and seek wisdom and emotional intelligence.

“The best way to not feel hopeless is to get up and do something. Don’t wait for good things to happen to you. If you go out and make some good things happen, you will fill the world with hope, you will fill yourself with hope” …Barack Obama (1961 - ) American politician who served as the 44^th President of the United States from 2009 to 2017. He is the first African American to have served as President.

A ray of hope…perhaps

Do you believe in miracles? I do, and I like to see it in different forms. Firstly, what is a miracle? Although some define it as a marvelous event manifesting a supernatural act of a divine agent, it is also fair to say it is any amazing or wonderful occurrence.

Going with the second definition means even as mortal as I am, I can perform a miracle. I have been so flat broke before that when a friend of mine saved me by hooking me up with some cash it was really a miracle to me.

Likewise, if I give some random kid who appears to be hungry food or money, perhaps I have restored hope in humanity by that singular mysterious act, and isn’t that what life is about? To show love and compassion towards ourselves in order for there to be a state of harmony for mankind, co-existing without conflict and being able to navigate a prosperous future. I am talking people, but are you listening?

We don’t have to be the bad guys if Nigeria must survive, no not anymore, we know better now, and we need to realize that we are a team of intelligent, good and creative people ready to take on the world, and a chain is as strong as its weakest link.

Thank you, and be awesome because you can.

Akin Abimbola

akinzogee@gmail.com

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SOURCES: Brainy quote, cnn, Financial Times,  Good reads, Google, Holy Bible, Webster’s Dictionary, Wikipedia

This article is an original piece, reasonably researched and contains considerable opinion and a unique style of the author.

The names in actual stories are not real and the stories in this write-up are fictional, consequently, people’s names appearing are purely co-incidental, except for quotes and news that are typically referenced.