Walk
alone to walk fast but walk together to walk far.
… It is
not the fault of the Yoruba, Hausa, Ijaw or Igbo man that Nigeria is a shame of
a country. We are all guilty of this offense. You being alone in your own
country will just make it easier for the corrupt politicians to inflict more
agony on you the common man.
It is no news that a lot of Nigerians are concerned about
the direction of the country. The concern has recently been voiced louder than
ever before. I will not bother with rambling all over the place about how bad
things are and how there does not seem to be any hope for change. My main
concern here is with those who are clamoring for a disintegration of Nigeria as
the solution to our myriad of problems.
There are stories of the Niger Delta stocking up on enough
arms and ammunition to cause Armageddon in the quest for an Ijaw country. The
Igbos are also rumored to be gearing up for secession and the realization of
the dream of Biafra. The Yorubas are spreading propaganda about a progressive
Oduduwa nation in the making. The Hausas are also declaring that they are no
longer ready to continue in the shadows of the South’s development.
What is most alarming is that these calls and plots cut
across social and economic strata. The rich and the poor; educated and less
educated are all clamoring for the disintegration of the nation called Nigeria.
To those seeking their own tribal sovereignty, I have a few
questions. Do you see a messiah within your own “people” that will take you to
the Promised Land? How has this person positively influenced any form of
development in your village? What has the other tribes in the current Nigeria
done to you personally to make you not want to be in same boat with them
anymore? How many of your clansmen have been convicted of corrupt practices in
the past 50 years of Nigeria’s existence?
I’ve always said it and I stand by it, Nigeria’s failure as
a nation is not the handiwork of a particular tribe but a combination of
efforts from every nook and cranny of the nation. I refuse to be one of those
that will blame the British for our issues. If the British made any mistake at
all, it will be to hand us over to a group of selfish and visionless leaders.
It is unfortunate that those who asked and clamored for our independence did
not believe in our unity but wanted to reap the spoils of an independent
Nigeria.
Many great nations of the world celebrate their diversity. I
doubt that there is any nation that is as diverse as the US. I doubt that
anyone would disagree that it is one of the most powerful nation on the face of
earth. So, why can’t we learn from them? Why is it hard to see that our problem
is not tribal but classist? The ruling class believe they own the ruled and so
treat them as slaves.
The roads are bad, but they can afford private jets rather
than fix the roads for the general use of the poor and rich. Education has
decayed almost to none existent but they can send their own children abroad
with the money meant to fix the schools for the children of all. There are no
hospitals fit to treat animals but they can afford to get in their private jet
to treat common cold and food poisoning in Germany. These are Yorubas, Igbos,
Ijaws and Hausas.
So, why deceive ourselves into believing that the solution
is in disintegration? Walk alone to walk
fast but walk together to walk far. We should wake up and accept we are the
reason for our own plight. It is not the fault of the Yoruba, Hausa, Ijaw or
Igbo man that Nigeria is a shame of a country. We are all guilty of this
offense. You being alone in your own country will just make it easier for the
corrupt politicians to inflict more agony on you the common man.
The irony of it all is, even within the individual tribes,
there are ethnic groups who are already claiming to be more Yoruba or more Igbo
or more Hausa than the next man. So, if your tribal country starts experiencing
same problem Nigeria is currently having, you will break away into an ethnic
country?
