I am compelled to write
this article following the events coming from Nigeria lately. I am particularly bothered by the gross
negligence, lack of trust for each other, level of corruption and increased-unwarranted
religious killings. My greatest worry
stems from the neglect of our national interest, we have fallen in many aspects
of our lives and it is important we started picking the broken pieces and began
to rise from our current debacles.
Nigeria has fallen seven times over in its political systems,
public services, education and business; also in religious, cultural and family
sectors. We have fallen short in our
character, resilience and perseverance as humans. We have adopted selfishness and greed as our
daily menu. The country has fallen seven
times and is yet to get up the eight times.
There are high degree of negligence,
low values and morals. Money and
luxuries is paramount in the life of many and various vices are used daily to
make money by all means and these ranges from kidnapping, ritual killing,
political assassination and various untenable money-making schemes, while
ignoring the grace and resilience need to complete our life cycle.
Our leaders have ignored
the need to develop our land, they are still in the business of stealing the
nation’s purse dry and those not stealing are just clueless, while the rest
sees their exalted positions as a means to flaunt their ill-gotten wealth, they
junket around the world, fly in the best jets and buy the priciest mansions in
the best regions of the world from the wealth that rightfully belong to all,
leaving Nigerians to languish in abject poverty.
The religious killing in
the north of Nigeria has taken a dangerous and evil dimension. The presidency promised to terminate the
insurgency within 3 months; equally the Islamic group named Boko Haram has
issued a threat to the life of the president of Nigeria and threatened to stop
the President in 3 months. The populace
is watching this unhealthy development, while many innocent lives are being cut
short daily and we know killing is never
the right way forwards. We urgently need
to rise from our fallings and do the right things.
I am beginning to wonder where is Nigeria
heading to, the pillars of the nation is shaking and about to fall, except
something is done urgently. Boko Haram
is busy sucking peoples blood in the north, Kidnappers are busy sucking peoples
blood in the East and Armed Robbers are doing the same in the South. We are busy trading arms and ammunition,
declaring war where there is no war. Lets us rise and save our nation.
Nigerians deserve to lead
better lives; the country is one of the richest countries, not just in Africa,
but in the world. We have enough
natural, human and material resources.
How do you live close to a river and bath with mud water? We have allowed a few to milk our wealth for
too long, while the rest Nigerians suffer in silence.
It is only in Nigeria that
our leaders believe that charity begins abroad.
They use our resources to develop foreign lands, steal and stash our
money in foreign bank accounts, buy the best houses abroad, the best cars ever
produced and all available greener pastures in foreign lands, while they
abandon their own land to its sufferings.
I want to urge all Nigerians
to know that not everything in life is easy, but it is not whether or not something
is difficult or easy, but it is how we deal with them that makes the difference
and give it the resultant success or failure. Let’s stop the ‘I want it by all means mentality,’
which is destroying our society. When no
one is ready to go through the difficulties and challenges that make life
complete, nothing gets better and we would keep going in cycles.
Nigeria
has the power to bounce back from its adversity, though we have fallen seven
times, but we can still get up the eight times.
Let’s show character, resilience and
strength, let’s not give up the struggle. Nana Korobi Ya
Oki Nigerians.