This Day (Lagos)
Tayo Agunbiade
22 October 2009
analysis
Lagos — Last week, in the midst of the economic doom and gloom came some inspiring news. Nigeria which for several years had been in the backroom on the international stage, won a seat as a non-permanent member on the Security Council of the United Nations. She will serve two terms on the Security Council starting from next January and is among the five countries which include Brazil , Gabon and Lebanon . This is not the first time we have served on the Council. The nation has infact served on the Security Council three times: 1966-67, 1978-79, and 1994-95; along with the others Nigeria will join the five permanent members China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States.
This development is indeed very positive for our image and presents plenty of opportunities to reinvent ourselves as a force still to be reckoned with on the African Continent and the world at large. Not a few felt that the most populous nation was snubbed by President Barack Obama when he decided to visit Ghana ahead of Nigeria . Several reasons were adjudged for this and several articles were published. The general belief however was that Nigeria was no longer seen as a force in Africa especially because of the issues she has had with her leadership. Whatever Washington had in mind can however not obliterate the fact that Nigeria does possess a rich history in peacekeeping and peace enforcement around the world. She has therefore made great contributions and sacrifices in this regard around the world.
The nation has been active in the area of peace and security in Africa and has been in the forefront of many a peace keeping mission to help stabilise parts of Africa . We have amply demonstrated that we understand the importance of peace and security to growth and development. Good neighbourliness and peaceful co-existence have been part our foreign policy both in name and in deed. What more we have demonstrated our ability to resolve conflicts nearer home. Not least in our own backyard where the Federal Government has successfully pulled off an amnesty initiative to restore peace to the Niger Delta. Clearly this latest peace initiative when contextualized within the bigger picture of the search for peace and security is impressive and helped to boost our ratings in the eyes of the world. It should be recalled that Nigeria 's role in restoring global issues dates back many years. We played an active role in the struggle for independence in Zimbabwe and Namibia and were in the forefront of the anti-Apartheid struggle too. The stories of the restoration of peace and stability to our neighbours Sierra Leone and Liberia will not be complete without the mention of the sacrifices made by Nigeria . Resolution of conflicts in Darfur , Niger , Cote D'Ivoire are on record as well. These deed should never be forgotten and make their way into our text books for the coming generations.
However despite these successes on the world scene Nigeria 's image took a bashing and is yet to fully recover from. The Abacha years did not do us any favours and will always remain a stain in our history. Nigeria 's name came top of the list on nearly every index on corruption, poverty, maternal mortality etc. A lot of negativity was attributed to us and the nation was said to be the epitome of corruption and everything vile. The latest is the District 9 movie. One has argued consistently that it is true that we have our challenges and bad apples but surely the entire populace should not be tarred with the same brush. We boast of some of the most brilliant and intelligent minds in the world. That is why today the writings and speeches of late chief Obafemi Awolowo are still points of reference. Nigeria should not be written off! Nationalists who fought for our independence and made meaningful strides during their lifetime are still revered till today. The Herbert Macaulay's and Nnmadi Azikiwe's helped showcase us as profound and resilient people.
It has however not been a smooth sail. For whatever reasons, Nigeria was not invited to the G20 summit. At the time President Umaru Yar'Adua according to reports in the newspapers say was quoted as saying "today is a sad day for me and it should be to all Nigerians when 20 leaders are meeting to find solution to the economic meltdown and Nigeria is not there."
Just at the point when many were beginning to conclude that Nigeria has been written off by the rest of the world a window of opportunity for us to demonstrate our capacities has been opened. Indeed this is an opportunity for us to go into full swing with our diplomatic competences on the world stage and prove that we have not lost the plot as it were.
We need to consistently project image as a place one can do business with. And just as we are ensuring peace and security on the global stage we need to sort out our home-front. Niger Delta apart, the general security in the nation can be pretty scary. Virtually everyday we read horrendous stories of armed robberies, assassinations etc. the number of policemen who have lost their lives during the course of duty increases monthly. It is indeed a sad story. The Inspector-General of Police Mr Ogbonna Onovo has huge challenges to tackle and Nigerians are watching to see if he will achieve what his predecessors were not able to. Crime reduced drastically; his men will be empowered to bring to book those carrying out anti-social activities security reigns on our streets and communities. A visit to the bank will no longer be undertaken with a lot of trepidation!
Now that we are back in the realm of activities as a global player, we still need to address some of the pressing issues that have earned us opprobrium over the years. Our leaders need to urgently at the frontline sectors such as education and health. Revamping the nation should be done holistically otherwise cynics may laugh at us. They may say we are active within the international community and have not got our act together back home. The very obvious gaps in the public education and health sectors should be urgently addressed. In the 21st Century why is Nigeria still bogged down with high maternal and infant mortality? Why are our public schools nothing to write home about? Our roads still deathtraps? The sight of the Ore-Benin Expressway is just one on a series of failed roads. One recalls that in 2007 the then Federal Minister for Transport, Mrs Diezani Allison - Madueke wept and apologized to Nigerians over the state of the road. She promised that the Ministry would spend over 80 percent of its resources for the road's rehabilitation and repair. Two years on nothing has change, the road still has deep craters and many lives have been lost either to accidents or incidents of armed robbery.
As Nigeria regains respect and honour on the world stage we all still have our role to play. No outsider will come into build our nation hence the onus lies on us and in the kinds of decisions we take to make our nation great. The kind of leaders we give the responsibility to run the nation matters a great deal. One can say uncontrovertibly that we have certainly been found wanting in this area. This has reflected in the kinds of politicians who represent us at the National Assembly. There is no gain saying that we have a motley group many of whom have no clue as to why they are there in the first place as is very evident from the goings-on we witness from time to time.
That said, one still believes in Nigeria's great potentials and is gladden to see that so does the international community.
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