By Olakunle Agboola – Over the weekend, I was lost in a deep thought asking questions about Nigeria. I travelled miles in thought asking myself about the possibilities of the nation having stable electricity, and good roads linking the rural areas and the urban centres. I examined the possibility of free medical care at the hospital or having a well-equipped hospital for the citizens while the elites or the political representatives won’t have to travel abroad. I looked into the educational system and I got worried about many Nigerian students who have been out of school for several months due to The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) on-going strike that seems not to have a solution.
I was perplexed by the security architecture in Nigeria at the moment. I lost a blood brother in the hands of the Fulani’s herdsmen last year after a ransom of 1.65 Million was paid. There have been upsetting killings of many citizens after kidnapping by the Fulani herdsmen. This led to Sunday Igboho rising to defend his people. I was almost killed last year in my house in Nigeria when ten armed robbers surged over the fence, broke my door, and took away my personal belongings. I was one out of many who have faced a similar occurrence and the security architecture in Nigeria is too weak to put an end to robbery, kidnapping, and killings of innocent citizens.
The political structure in Nigeria has been a malady and absence of hope to find a leader or a good leader who will rally the citizens together to a common purpose while the seed of corruption is forcefully removed. You hardly find any citizens going into politics to better the lives of the people rather it is personal gain. Sensitive political positions have been commercialized and it is difficult for a common man to think of making a change in the political system in Nigeria.
I got talking to Wale Akintokun, a Nigerian lawyer who came on a visit to the United Kingdom. He has been a friend for ten years and we deliberate a lot about politics and the development of Africa. He asked if I still believe in the alliance of Nigeria due to her sinking boat, which will need a great leader to make it afloat. I have always been positive about Nigeria most especially the marriage of 1914 which I believe, we could turn around to our advantage by understanding the essence of our diversity in unity and progress. My friend has a contrary opinion and always said that Nigeria is a mere geographical expression that will soon be left for the Hausa/Fulanis to sink inside
“The British handed the management of the territory called Nigeria to the least informed, the least educated, least independent, and MOST submissive group within the territory. The NORTHERNERS. It was deliberate, intentional, and well orchestrated with selfish interest and absolute disregard for a predictable future that was fraught with failures, mischief, disappointment, and dehumanization, which in essence are what we are witnessing unfold in Nigeria.
How can we discuss the greatness of a nation if it lacks leadership capable of organizing and harnessing its citizens? Simply identifying the natural and human resources that define greatness as the world has done to date in the case of Nigeria is foolhardy if nothing else.
The British had a vision for Nigeria when they brought together disparate groups with different backgrounds, cultures, languages, religions, and interests and desires to create a nation. Have you ever thought why the British would hand over power and control of the new nation to the party who least wanted to be independent or govern, except that it served the interest of British rule? Which one might interpret as an attempt to continue indirect rule, control of Nigeria, and decisions made by the leaders”
The ethnic division that has been brewing under the surface for many decades is finally spilling into a non-declared civil war under the auspices of the current administration, which is been charged by many observers with tacitly inciting the crisis that is engulfing the nation and can only lead one to surmise that the very existence of Nigeria as a nation may be mere fabrication.
Considering the crisis around disintegration and agitations for separation or break up by many Nigerians and especially by southerners of various ethnic groups threatening violent exit, if necessary, all of which can be attributed to the lack of good leadership and a shared vision.
The South Easterners who have been agitating for separation for almost a decade now have found companionship with the South West. A clear demarcation of Nigeria as a South vs. North issue, where southerners want out of the union. And northerners who have been the primary beneficiaries of inequities in the system are resisting.
Strangely, while the president has proscribed IPOB as a terrorist organization, he refused to proscribe Fulani herdsmen (who are devastating the country with mass killing, kidnappings, and displacement of indigenous people) as a terrorist group.
The blatant disparity and lack of equity are driving Nigerians and Nigeria to the brink. Could there be a leader to unite the nation, break the wall of ethnicity and end British indirect rule like my friend has said? There might be a possibility for Nigeria to attain greatness but on the contrary, it is difficult for the Northerners not to be in power because they have been told that Nigeria belongs to them.
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