Photocredit: nairaland
I have one question for you?
Is this country- Nigeria beyond saving?
A friend told me today that Nigeria is beyond saving and I went on defence, arguing and arguing about how that is a lie.
The truth is many of us believe that Nigeria is also beyond saving, that President Buhari is fighting a defeated battle and it is a complete waste of time.
So what if it is true? I don’t believe Nigeria is a lost cause, but what if I am wrong and you are right and things will just keep getting worse till there is nothing left ?
Should we continue sitting and watching our country burn? Should we continue running to other countries where milk and honey flows? Should we watch the once giant of Africa slowly crumble?
Well that was what I heard today! “No don’t sit and watch. Just go about your daily life, do your hustle and ignore it.” Funny as it sounds that is exactly what many of us are doing.
We spend hours in beer parlours instigating how the country is failing instead of actually doing something about it.
We criticise and even make fun of the communication flaws of our leaders when we are not better speakers ourselves.
We talk about corruption in our system when we cheat customers, exploit people, defraud others, lie, cheat and even butcher ourselves in our little communities. It’s not only our leaders that are corrupt, but our contractors who collect money but fail to execute the contract, or engineers who use substandard materials for buildings, those with the motive of getting power only to have a slice of the national cake. We are all sinners who are ready to throw the first stone.
Ignoring the problems in Nigeria without doing anything about it, is like living in a trash house saying you will stay in the filth because everyone else keeps dumping trash.
Just because everyone else doesnt mind the filth doesn’t mean you cannot clean out your domain. Sooner or later, others will observe your cleaniness and copy.
There are many forces working against leaders and if we can just stop for once and think, we would not blame our leaders so much.
I was once guilty of this until I became the president of my association and with all optimism and change agenda, I entered into office.
It was not a big association, with a little above 150 students, we were not much but with so much to offer, I was certain I would make a great change within a year. But with the bureaucracy and red tapism, difficult administrative assistant, not too eager exco members ( yes! even those who were voted to be part of the team where not so eager to work and coperate as well and even those who were clearly aware of the agenda, openly criticized it), uncoporative students ( the very people you are trying to please and serve ). Lets not get started on other demads I had; classes, tests, project, term papers, Univeristy programs I couldn’t avoid, family issues etc. In the end, I had very little but great supporters who encouraged me through the one year.
I didn’t accomplish all that was on my change list but I didn’t leave the system the same. I let the system pass through me and I passed through it.
My point is, there are so much contingencies in leadership, we should encourage, support and pray for our leaders, rather than condemn them. Recognise the little they have done and egg them on for greater things.
The fact is that Nigerians are the problem of Nigeria. And if we can stop and realise ‘how we can stop being the problem of our dear country’ we would have solved the first problem.
Even if you are too lost to lift a finger for Nigeria at least change your mindset, at least pray and be optimistic that it is not a lost cause.
I Unini Mosimabale, am no politician, I am only an agent of change and I don’t know how many people will read this or if it will make any difference but hey! This is me cleaning my domain, this is me making a change I believe can happen in Nigeria. It might be a little drop of water in the ocean but it is still a drop that can spark life on a dry earthen ground.
#Charmantworld
