WHAT IS NIGERIA’S PROBLEM?

When I came up with the title for this article, the first question that came to my mind was whether to leave the problem as singular, or to add an (s) to it.
It would be a crass understatement to say that Nigeria has just a problem, no?
There are problems in our schools, politics, transportation, electricity…………………..or, perhaps we should rather highlight the places where we do not have problems. That would be simpler.
There is always one complaint or the other about life in Nigeria, that life itself now seems like one huge conspiracy theory. The labour market conspires against you. PHCN conspires against you. Even your government conspires against you.
Nigeria’s problems are very obvious, but yet hidden. They are simple, yet extremely entangled and complicated. They are self inflicted, yet brought about by the actions of others. Nigeria has grown to become one big problem.
Just yesterday, my mum got back from the market, and said that the mallams selling tomatoes were on strike. I thought it was a joke. But it turned out to be true. The northerners who bring their farm produce to sell down south, in Lagos, have refused to bring their goods for a couple of days now. That sounds absurd, until you consider that, in this country, even tanker drivers and policemen go on strike.
The funny thing about the tomato sellers’ strike is that, this time last year, my mum was complaining that the cost of foodstuffs was becoming unbearably expensive. There was no strike then, but even garri became a rich man’s staple diet. Things always degenerate in this country. The only thing that changes is the reason. If it isn’t increase in fuel price, then it would be increase in Value Added Tax (VAT).
One of the frustrations of the Nigerian situation is that we always seem to be complaining about the same set of problems. I am in my twenties now, and people have always complained about poor electricity supply, right from my childhood days. Isn’t it pathetic that we are still tackling the same problem for years? The most logical answer to that puzzle would be that Nigerians are dumb and unintelligent, but that’s a big lie. Nigerians are one of the smartest, intelligent, business savvy, industrious people on the surface of God’s green planet, so what then is our problem?
Our PROBLEM is a lack of will to tackle our PROBLEMS. We know what they are, but the people who can do something about it are comfortable with the status quo because of its benefits to them.
Journalists have written. Activists have shouted and lost their lives. Even students have donned the toga of liberation soldiers, and many of them have been cut down in their prime in the process.
Methinks we don’t need to talk about our problems anymore. Rather we should start solving them.
After studying the Nigerian palaver, I came to realize that our major problem is short sightedness, and not corruption.
If a politician is not short sighted, he would realize that, for example, if money meant for the building of a hospital is used for that purpose, it would be more beneficial to him, his family and the whole country at large, than for him to take that money into another man’s land.
Dubai is now a tourist’s haven because its leaders were fore sighted enough to make good use of the monies they made through oil. If Nigeria does the same thing, then we would really be a giant indeed.
The world doesn’t need changing, because there is nothing wrong with it. The problem is you. The problem is me. The problem is as a result of our actions and inactions.
When next you drop litters on the streets, remember that you have actively contributed to Nigeria’s problem. When next you offer or take a bribe, don’t bother praying for Nigeria to get better, because it won’t if you don’t.
When next politicians rig elections, and you keep quiet, you shouldn’t bother complaining about the poor economy, because your vote is your voice, and if you do not exercise it, you are simply forfeiting your right to speak up about the affairs of your country.
Nigeria is more than a geographical representation on the map. Nigeria is you and I, and it needs us to deal with its issues. If we genuinely want to help her, then the first step should be to stop contributing to her problems.
I believe that Nigeria can stand tall and proud! I believe that we can be free from the shackles of disgrace and scorn. I believe that we will shine! But that’s only if we work towards it. Nigeria needs you. Nigeria needs me. We mustn’t fail her in her hour of need.