Vanguard
1 October 2008
editorial
Forty-eight years of Nigeria were satisfactorily exhausted on enunciating the country's potentials.
We have come to hold on to dreams as if they have meaning in the raw state they have remained since independence in 1960.The bounty expectations, the engaging enthusiasm of independence went into smokes within six years. The broken bounds have grown over the years, instead of diminishing, making Nigeria's rating as a nation to turn to a stymied story of failures, bad faith and a frenzy knock at the key fabrics of the country's sustenance.
Nigeria is a country perpetually on the move. Decisions are made and unmade with embarrassing ease -- no thoughts given to the effects on the lives of the people. This country defers all prescription for its wellbeing.
A damning combination of inept leadership and acrimonious resolution of disputes leave little time for nation building.
People variously blame the 28 years of military rule for the woes of the country. Instructively, most of the same people are all over the civilian governments of the past eight years. The difference has shown only in more sophistry.
After 48 years of moving in all, but the right directions, Nigerians must rescue their country from a band of pseudo patriots.
Corruption, tribalism, incompetence, uninspiring leadership and an endless focus on over-blowing Nigeria 's importance in the international platform have denied Nigeria the opportunities of a sober rating of its place in the human enterprise.
The most basic infrastructures available in places with a fraction of the resources Nigeria has are a rarity here. Sadly, not only have governments failed in providing, education, health, water, electricity, transportation, housing, security, job creation, and respect for basic rules of law and order, governments have fallen into the temptation of generating statistics to justify the high budgets they apply to projects that do not improve the quality of life of Nigerians. These reflect in the country's lowering rating in all spheres of meaningful human endeavour.
Skilled Nigerians go abroad in droves, in search of better appreciate for their value, and ultimately their survival. What future is there for a country that does not think of its present and has discarded its past?
Praise singers, sycophants, and panjandrums, who earn their living from proclaiming the dead alive, say Nigeria is on its way to emerging a world power by 2020. All manners of convoluted explanations are thrown into sustaining the lie that Nigeria is doing well.
The Niger Delta, the hunger, the disease, the insecurity in the land are peculiar indicators of our Nigerianness. Do they point to the pictures painted in official circles? The disconnection between those in governments -- at all levels -- and the people is total. The fabulous budgets government officials create for their welfare, while the people wallow in abject poverty testify to the irrelevance of government to the people.
Nations have challenges. The difference is an admission of the enervating impact of these challenges to the country and converting them to opportunities for unity, growth, focus a nd the acquisition of a national niche to earn a place in the global village.
Nigeria is constantly losing relevance to the global economy, with oil being the relic that strings us to the cords of world affairs.
At 48, Nigeria bears the extraordinary burden of finding a defining leadership to lift it out of 48 years of sheer potentiality.
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