Imoyera Otse
Nigeria! I call it a country! With love, pain, sorrow, and happiness Complicated right? Yes! ‘We experience hardship every day: death, poverty, corruption, and wildfire. We live in a country where students, against all odds, sponsor themselves to and through school. And after this struggle and acquiring all certificates with so much effort, they end up as jobless graduates’. An economic graduate ends up as a treasurer for the Okada Riders Association; a certified banker becomes a local market trader full of regrets.” Tuition and school fees are on the increase in our institutions, even when the students have slim chances of getting what they have studied for in the future. This is indeed the Nigeria we live in today. Amidst all this, words of encouragement keep us going. Indeed. HOPE IN ADVERSITY
If that yahoo guy with a good certificate had a white collar job where he disseminated all the knowledge he gained from secondary school and higher institutions, receiving irresistible air conditioners, he would not rob you off your money or deceive you with unfulfilled promises. That girl referred to as the street girl would not have become a sex worker if she got what she wanted from you, oh, government. Although lack of home training has its own face, not in all cases.
There was once a time when youth carpers served in schools and were given great respect by students, but now it is vice versa because they are seen as second fiddles since, according to popular opinion, their certificates will fetch them nothing! And now I am so certain to state here that this is not the Nigeria we all wanted, dreamt of, and prayed for.
How did we get here? Has it always been like this, you may ask? Of course not. There was once a time when, as my little history books tell me, Nigeria was good, peaceful, and great, and we were all proud citizens. When Nigeria had fairy-good leaders like Olusegun Obasanjo, he brought peace, security, and unity during his time, and it was also during his time that the EFCC and ICPC were created. We had again GENERAL IBRAHIM BABANGIDA, who created the FRSC and NDLEA, and as written and proven, these agencies were very effective, unlike today, and again GENERAL YAKUBU GOWON, who created 12 out of the 36 states of today, as well as the National Youth Corps program, which Nigerians enjoy today, as many can attest to. Indeed, we have had so many great presidents and heads of state who exploited us, and we all enjoyed their era, when we all had freedom and no harassment but didn’t appreciate it.
The good news, however, is that we can still have this freedom and liberty again, just as we can still be great again as a nation. Remember, problems are part of life; hence, sometimes things do not go well as planned. Sometimes too, we meet bad people just as we meet good ones, and certainly, that is why we have the scale of justice: Heaven and Hell, where all will be justly rewarded, bad leaders not exempt.
I know many people do not want to be wished a happy independence and do not want to hear about the country, but we are all still Nigerians! Yes! We are! We are all citizens of Nigeria. We can go outside the country to gain citizenship, but Nigeria is still our father’s land. Do you wish your fathers land for a time? Our past leaders labored for them to die like this. “Direct our learners right,” we sang from childhood. Why give up now? We still have hope, and we can’t just relent on our efforts; we all need to strive. DO AND GIVE YOUR BEST, AND I WILL DO MIAN, WE CAN STILL WIN! The bad ones won’t last forever. NIGERIA CAN STILL BECOME YOUR BREAM COUNTRY AND MINE. ALL BAD ACTIONS HAVE ADVERSE CONSEQUENCES, AND SO OUR BAD LEADERS WILL GET TO REAP THE NEMESIS THEY ARE SOWING NOW. Don’t give up! You can still get that white-collar job. I know the killings are many and everything, but nothing good comes easy. Save our fathers’ land! Our heroes’ past work cannot be in vain!
