7 October 2008
editorial
Lagos — All through human history, rulers and peoples have built structures, erected monuments and named them after themselves or in honour of their gods and founders or after citizens who have served the sovereigns well, achieved feats or earned glory in battle.
The pyramids of Giza in Egypt named after the Pharaohs and the city of Alexandria which contained the greatest library in antiquity also in Egypt named after the famous Macedonian General are cases in point about how honorus are bestowed or earned.
And even in recent modern times, the rule subsists that structures and monuments are named after notably enduring citizens and potentates most often after they have passed away. The general idea of these structural and physical memorialisation of people of exceptional achievements is both to immortalize them and hold their memories as inspiration to those who come after, to emulate them as heroes.
However, this age-long idea of holding worthy citizens up for emulation by subsequent generations has been diluted, perverted, even bastardized in our times by successive Nigerian rulers wishing for unmerited grandeur or even vicarious immortalisation.
Self-nominated tin-gods have had national structures, institutions and boulevards named after themselves by subterfuge, or have out-right named these land-marks after themselves.
More bizzarely and annoyingly, national land-marks already bearing historically well-deserved names have been re-named by fiat by those who hold temporal power, only to have these names reversed immediately they have lost power, or kicked out of it.
Names are not necessary here but any casual observer would have noticed the cavalier manner those in authority have named, renamed and reverted to original names of these national land marks. Interestingly, while one or two gratuitously honoured Nigerians could have multiple land marks named after them by sycophantic state authorities, other more deserving citizens are hardly ever remembered, mentioned, or have anything to memorialize them.
Which is why the recent exercise carried out by the Federal Capital territory Administration (FCTA) regarding the renaming and subsequent naming of streets in Abuja, is very timely and apposite. The collateral rejection by President Umaru Yar'Adua and his Vice Goodluck Jonathan to have streets named after them in the FCTA's new proposals, is even more praise-worthy. Any agreement to the new FCTA street-naming proposals by Yar'Adua would have effectively neutralized the worthy parameters which the FCTA proposals had aimed at. Acceptance would also have lent Presidential weight to blatant sycophancy on the part of the FCTA, not because ultimately Yar'Adua and Jonathan would not merit immortalisation but because they are still in power over the FCT itself and would have contradicted the rule of law and due process postures of government.
Beyond and above all that, the new FCTA proposals on street names are consistent with the long-held objective directive principles of the Nigerian state which is reflected in our foreign policy of Nigeria-centred Afro-concentrism. This simply means that after what concerns us, the rest of Africa, the black world and global humanity, take precedence accordingly.
It may be one of the major historical achievements of the Yar'Adua administration that, under it, worthy, patriotic but previously maligned and unjustly treated Nigerians have been ideologically recognised, rehabilitated and honorued in a move that re-defines Nigeria, her dreams, promises and potentials for gratness.
Regardless, many nations of the world would have been content to have one of the honoured Nigerias icons as citizens.
But here is Nigeria, a country that is merely 48 years old, being blessed with the like of Fela Kuti (musician) Chinua Achebe (writer) Sunday Aknite, Maman Shata (musicians), Francis Arinze (High Catholic Churchman), Adeyinka Oyekan, Umaru Sauda, Shehu Garbai Abdulahi Bayero, Ofala Okagbue (traditional rulers) Jay-Jay Okocha, Nwankwo Kanu, Mary Onyali-Omagbemi (Sports icons), all in one or two generations who matured, or were just gaining existential maturity, around Independence in 1960.
Surely, Wole Soyinka, who also will be honoured in the new national ideological dispensation, may have missed the mark when he described his generation years ago, as a wasted generation.
Examine the list of honorees who were named for 70 streets by FCT Minister Aliyu Modibo to mark the nation's 48th Independence anniversary and one will discover other illustrious Nigerians over whom many a nation will construct national monuments for!
Dele Giwa, Sam Okwaraji, Margaret Ekpo, Hafsatu Ahmadu Bello, Michael Imuodu, Madam Gambo Sawaba, Chike Obi, Atiku Abubakar: these are names you can go to town with. Unfortunately, these icons have been sidelined for one reason or the other that is mostly anti-reason, anti- logic and ideologically negative.
This ideological recognition and restoration of the iconic status of erstwhile rebels, anarchists, anti-establishment and other intellectual suspects, by the Yar'Adua administration, may appear on the surface to be cosmetic. But, viewed dispassionately, it may turn out to be a radical re-definition of Nigeria's national credo and policy.
The remembrance of Africa's giants in the disapora like Rosa Parks, Bob Marley, Marcus Garvey and Malcom X, who, even in captivity, made their marks on the global scene in areas of arts, human rights and creativity, only adds this Yar'Adua process of ideological re-examination, recognition and restitution.
In all these, we are in agreement with Aliyu Modibo, the FCT Minister, that honour is not for sale but should be given only to those who truly deserve it.
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