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Livinus Ukah
When you look at what is happening in Syria, Turkey, Iraq, Libya, Yemen etc, you will be able to understand that a divided country is like a broken egg that will never be a full egg again even if you use spoon to gather it. If you do so, what about the shell?
It is better to remain united than be divided. Opinions, ideologies, cultural concept of each other, stereotypes, political greed all contribute to conflicts that cause division in a country. Rwanda is another typical example that resulted to ethnic politics, tribes fighting each other for unattainable needs in this transient world, a world that is not a society of angels.
Nigeria is caught up in this web of social disorder. There is no place you go that people will not talk about their sitz-im-leben – their life situation, a situation common to all. When a situation is common to all, it can create big crisis that will not be controlled easily. The clouds are gathering as if there is going to be a heavy rain. But the good sunshine of thought and understanding can clear the rain and its storm. The whole world is watching Nigeria with its political chess games.
There has been huge amount of international opinion about Nigeria’s case especially Boko Haram and Nigeria’s political agenda. What still remains in the mouth of everybody today is “Restructuring Nigeria”. We are afraid of the conspiracy of silence among the international community. They have listed Nigeria as one of the terrorists’ countries in the world and also the world’s poverty capital. And we know what that means.
Not only that, we hear the cries of many clamoring for autonomy, to be masters of their political and social destiny. All these lead to a divide. Agitations upon agitations everywhere! Opinions vary. The international community is there waiting for the time Nigeria will explode and when we shall be like Alepo in Syria, where life is like hell because of the fierce battle there. God forbid!
America declared that Nigeria would split in the year 2015. That feeling is still haunting many Nigerians. As a result of this many Nigerians are living in a limbo of uncertainty. This can drag us low and we begin to look for the country that is ours. Once we think that we are not one, it takes time to build up a Nigeria that is ours. The government cannot do it alone.
The government can listen to Nigerians attentively and not overreact to what they are saying because they know where it pinches them. Misconception of who we are leads to bad politics. We need to know that we are living in a fragmented global world and that the ideologies we embrace are conflicting. The political elites need to reassess themselves to avoid marginalizing any part of the country. Nigeria needs to learn from these aforementioned countries that are ravaged by war. They have allowed ideology to create division in their countries. The world is now heading to ruin. If we allow these ideologies of divide to surface and the young people to swallow these ideologies that will not create a better future for them. The devastation of Alepo is very barbaric. Houses built by people were destroyed in a twinkle of an eye, and some buildings were seen as idolatry by the crazy guys. ISIS is training children to be bombers. They resort to different tactics.
How long will the world continue to watch? The international diplomacy is weakened. Hospitals are targets; children are targets. Embassies are burnt even diplomats divert to enemies of their country as it is in North Korea. There are diplomatic rows all over. Patriotism is dwindling and sectarian divide continues to spread all over the world and Nigeria is caught up with these dangerous ideologies.What we usually see in films are manifesting in reality.
The complexities of problems in Nigeria cannot lead to economic benefit. We need to face these problems to come out of economic and political doldrums. People now steal in broad daylights .There should ethical reflection of the economy. Various unfavorable policies are increasing. Solving various Nigerian economic problems is not by robbing Peter to pay Paul. The CBN’s rates on deposit and withdrawal and closing the borders would have greater adverse effects on the economy rather than growing it. What legacies are we getting from our leaders? Do they inspire hope for the future? Nigeria should wake up. She needs to join the global world in competition.
America, Britain, China, Russia and Japan used their technology to create world impression. What has Nigeria to offer the world? – Corruption, ethnicity and nepotism? Nigeria should outgrow international negativism, phobia from our leaders and soar higher because it has what it takes to be there. Nigeria has to be a model to keep up with the changing world.
Look at what is happening in America where Trump is called to resign based on his alleged “un-presidential” behaviour with the Ukranian president and other scandals. Can people speak to power here? Nigeria should not slip into era of tyranny. Nobody is perfect but our President should keep an open mind in accepting constructive criticisms from citizens that have patriotic minds for development.
Nigeria needs to adjust properly in thinking to avoid being a divided country. By the way if Nigeria is divided, is it not the same people that will navigate and continue to fight for their largesse? Nigeria should wake up and formulate policies that will help bring peace to stop what is happening. It is unfortunate that Boko Haram has now defied all available military tactics and we are resorting to prayer for God’s intervention.
We need both prayer and action. David after prayer got victory over Goliath by skillfully using his weapon. The Military needs prayer to back them up with their sophisticated weapons and professionalism.
Very Rev. Monsignor Ukah writes from
Lagos
