Nigeria-cannot-be-great-if-we-continue-on-our-current-path
September 7, 2020 | News
“NIGERIA CANNOT BE GREAT” – IF WE CONTINUE ON OUR CURRENT PATH
I have severally noted that the root, and underlying factor on why Nigerian political leaders are not performing as they should, particularly in the South-South States like Delta, is simply because of their insatiable GREED, which is also fueled by THE UNREASONABLE 'EXPECTATIONS' of the people who are also driven by their own Greed, and the love for LIVING ABOVE THEIR MEANS. And because of these underlining factors, it is practically impossible for Nigeria to attain any significant level of greatness and development to reckon with across the world.
I am glad that many well-meaning Nigerians are also thinking in this light. As this was reiterated by Ace World Africa (Forum for Mindset Redirection and Empowerment), in a short video that has gone viral online recently. The video started with the subject phrase that: “Nigeria Cannot be great. A country where the primary mission of a politician is to make money... Where politicians loot public funds without fear of recriminations. Have you ever thought about where this started from?
“Two young guys connive, kill and dump the remains of a delivery man in a soak-away after placing order for two phones. Does that headline sound familiar? Here is A COUNTRY WHERE GREED RUNS IN THE BLOOD OF ITS CITIZENS! Don’t be too quick to declare yourself as a saint. When at any party, you are used to collecting souvenir three times under the pretense of having non-existing neighbours beside you; when visiting an office you sight free candies, instead of picking just a piece or two, you fill your purse to the brim, after all, you careless about who else comes visiting the same place after you. At a buffet party, we want a taste of everything in large portions, our plates look scary even to us. You know truly well that you don’t need so much, but the greed in you won’t let you give any consideration to the next person. The fast food restaurants that prefer using rotten pepper and then sell the food at high prices. The building developer that uses low quality materials in erecting the building which ends up collapsing and killing innocent occupants. The house agents that heaps unbelievable amount of money under the rent, under the tag ‘agreement and commission.’ What about bus driver and bike men that hike transport fare just because the bus stop seems to be over-crowded with commuters? An employee who takes a lavish vacation at the expense of his employer, by claiming the vacation is a business trip, even when they really aren’t.
“We all have something in common – GREED. IF YOU HAVE SELFISH, GREEDY AND IGNORANT CITIZENS - YOU’RE GOING TO GET SELFISH, GREEDY AND IGNORANT LEADERS. Nigeria cannot be great, until there is a total redirection of our mindset. Until then, Nigeria cannot be great!!”
As hard as that may sound, but that is the bitter truth and reality we have admit, and then sort to change this very unhealthy narrative. Greed is the major driving force that is making 99% of Nigerian politicians in the country, want to occupy public office, not necessarily because they want to serve. But it is the surest and quickest means to become rich/wealthy overnight and stay rich. Hence, our elections here are usually the most violent that is ridden with all kinds of electoral malpractices. Some politicians in South-South States for instance, also pay attention to Area Boys/Miscreants, whom they use for election periods to snatch ballot boxes and rig/manipulate election outcomes in their favour. And after elections, these politicians still keep these boys under their payroll as Personal Assistants, Senior Special Assistants and other kinds of undefined portfolios, including bouncers.
That is, on the one hand, pertaining to the state of mind, and how politics are played here by the typical politicians in this part of the country. but then there is also the issue of the outrageous and unreasonable 'expectations' of the people. Once you are in government, the first set of people who are on your neck to sort out their every needs, are your close family members, associates, friends, and of course, your kinsmen/ethnic nationalities – who glaringly expect you to do whatever that needs to be done satisfy their own greed, often to the detriment of the overall good and development of all and sundary. Take Delta State for example, for any politician to stand a chance to becoming a Governor in Delta State, such a politician must be ready to spend a lot of money because the locals 'expect' and demand that the aspiring candidate should put them on monthly salaries, pay the school fees of their children, buy them cars and also maintain such cars, have free access to the candidates house where they can meet daily to eat and drink, and so on. In some cases, people enter into an agreement with the aspiring candidate to make commitments of what to do for them even before they get into government; from contract patronage, building a house for them, to other unthinkable demands.
Without this, such a politician will not be liked and supported by many, and he/she will be considered as a bad candidate, regardless of whether the person has what it takes to perform or not. The people and elites are not even concerned if the person has what it takes to deliver as a governor. EVERYBODY IS MORE INTERESTED IN WHAT THEY WILL GAIN AND HOPE TO GAIN FROM AN ASPIRING POLITICIAN. So, at the end of the day, when the candidate eventually makes it into government, he has a lot of demands to meet on the one hand and also needs to recoup all that he has spent before getting into government. And at the same, he needs to enrich himself, family and fronts, so as to live the wealthy life, and to remain in government space in the near and far future.
Of course, all of this is done to the detriment of the execution of needed infrastructural development in the State. Before you know it, four or eight years is gone, and another aspiring governorship candidate comes along, to repeat the same things his predecessor did, or something even worst. THAT IS WHY STATES LIKE DELTA, HAVE REMAINED THE WAY IT IS IN THE LAST TWO DECADES, DESPITE THE ENORMOUS WEALTH THAT COMES TO THE COFFERS OF GOVERNMENT AS REVENUES. Though, the situation is different in some of the States in the South-East for instance, where all that the people want there is a governor that will provide them with the needed infrastructure, which will help them go about their 'independent business hustling', however, they equally have their own kind of Greed running through their blood. But in the South-East, nobody is really after what they will gain from an aspiring candidate as we see here in Delta State. Not that this practice is completely absent there, but it is not as prevalent as it is in this part of the country. And that is why they have been able to produce some of the best governors in the country, who are prudent in the management of State funds to execute visible infrastructural projects. Former Governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, and the current Ebonyi State Governor, Engr. David Umehi, are very good example of what I am saying.
Beyond these droplets of examples, the underlining factor of Greed, is responsible for all the woes we can think of in this country within the last more than five decades.
The level of dishonesty and greed amongst the people themselves is making matters worse, and a serious cause for alarm. A vulcanizer will place more holes in your car tyers just to create room for himself to change more of your tyres so that he can get more money; a motor mechanic will remove original spare parts that had no problem, and replace them with fake ones so that you can frequent his workshop for more repairs and more money for him; the garri seller will put paper under her basket which she uses to measure the garri, so as to cheat the unsuspecting buyers; same with the rice sellers, most of whom are known to ‘repackage’ the bag of rice content to either reduce the quantity, or put a different brand of rice in the same bag, giving buyers the impression that they are buying the real thing and quantity. All of these are driven by GREED. According to Smart Ofugara: “Poverty, greed, no respect, no conscience, dishonesty amongst the people, etc. are responsible for the ignorance displayed all across the country…”
So, until we address the level of insatiable Greed amongst us as a people in this country, we would remain grossly underdeveloped and lacking behind others like us across the globe, whom we are well-endowed more than in terms of natural and human resourcefulness.
Zik Gbemre.
June 9, 2020
We Mobilize Others to Fight for Individual Causes As If Those Were Our Causes
I have severally noted that the root, and underlying factor on why Nigerian political leaders are not performing as they should, particularly in the South-South States like Delta, is simply because of their insatiable GREED, which is also fueled by THE UNREASONABLE 'EXPECTATIONS' of the people who are also driven by their own Greed, and the love for LIVING ABOVE THEIR MEANS. And because of these underlining factors, it is practically impossible for Nigeria to attain any significant level of greatness and development to reckon with across the world.
I am glad that many well-meaning Nigerians are also thinking in this light. As this was reiterated by Ace World Africa (Forum for Mindset Redirection and Empowerment), in a short video that has gone viral online recently. The video started with the subject phrase that: “Nigeria Cannot be great. A country where the primary mission of a politician is to make money... Where politicians loot public funds without fear of recriminations. Have you ever thought about where this started from?
“Two young guys connive, kill and dump the remains of a delivery man in a soak-away after placing order for two phones. Does that headline sound familiar? Here is A COUNTRY WHERE GREED RUNS IN THE BLOOD OF ITS CITIZENS! Don’t be too quick to declare yourself as a saint. When at any party, you are used to collecting souvenir three times under the pretense of having non-existing neighbours beside you; when visiting an office you sight free candies, instead of picking just a piece or two, you fill your purse to the brim, after all, you careless about who else comes visiting the same place after you. At a buffet party, we want a taste of everything in large portions, our plates look scary even to us. You know truly well that you don’t need so much, but the greed in you won’t let you give any consideration to the next person. The fast food restaurants that prefer using rotten pepper and then sell the food at high prices. The building developer that uses low quality materials in erecting the building which ends up collapsing and killing innocent occupants. The house agents that heaps unbelievable amount of money under the rent, under the tag ‘agreement and commission.’ What about bus driver and bike men that hike transport fare just because the bus stop seems to be over-crowded with commuters? An employee who takes a lavish vacation at the expense of his employer, by claiming the vacation is a business trip, even when they really aren’t.
“We all have something in common – GREED. IF YOU HAVE SELFISH, GREEDY AND IGNORANT CITIZENS - YOU’RE GOING TO GET SELFISH, GREEDY AND IGNORANT LEADERS. Nigeria cannot be great, until there is a total redirection of our mindset. Until then, Nigeria cannot be great!!”
As hard as that may sound, but that is the bitter truth and reality we have admit, and then sort to change this very unhealthy narrative. Greed is the major driving force that is making 99% of Nigerian politicians in the country, want to occupy public office, not necessarily because they want to serve. But it is the surest and quickest means to become rich/wealthy overnight and stay rich. Hence, our elections here are usually the most violent that is ridden with all kinds of electoral malpractices. Some politicians in South-South States for instance, also pay attention to Area Boys/Miscreants, whom they use for election periods to snatch ballot boxes and rig/manipulate election outcomes in their favour. And after elections, these politicians still keep these boys under their payroll as Personal Assistants, Senior Special Assistants and other kinds of undefined portfolios, including bouncers.
That is, on the one hand, pertaining to the state of mind, and how politics are played here by the typical politicians in this part of the country. but then there is also the issue of the outrageous and unreasonable 'expectations' of the people. Once you are in government, the first set of people who are on your neck to sort out their every needs, are your close family members, associates, friends, and of course, your kinsmen/ethnic nationalities – who glaringly expect you to do whatever that needs to be done satisfy their own greed, often to the detriment of the overall good and development of all and sundary. Take Delta State for example, for any politician to stand a chance to becoming a Governor in Delta State, such a politician must be ready to spend a lot of money because the locals 'expect' and demand that the aspiring candidate should put them on monthly salaries, pay the school fees of their children, buy them cars and also maintain such cars, have free access to the candidates house where they can meet daily to eat and drink, and so on. In some cases, people enter into an agreement with the aspiring candidate to make commitments of what to do for them even before they get into government; from contract patronage, building a house for them, to other unthinkable demands.
Without this, such a politician will not be liked and supported by many, and he/she will be considered as a bad candidate, regardless of whether the person has what it takes to perform or not. The people and elites are not even concerned if the person has what it takes to deliver as a governor. EVERYBODY IS MORE INTERESTED IN WHAT THEY WILL GAIN AND HOPE TO GAIN FROM AN ASPIRING POLITICIAN. So, at the end of the day, when the candidate eventually makes it into government, he has a lot of demands to meet on the one hand and also needs to recoup all that he has spent before getting into government. And at the same, he needs to enrich himself, family and fronts, so as to live the wealthy life, and to remain in government space in the near and far future.
Of course, all of this is done to the detriment of the execution of needed infrastructural development in the State. Before you know it, four or eight years is gone, and another aspiring governorship candidate comes along, to repeat the same things his predecessor did, or something even worst. THAT IS WHY STATES LIKE DELTA, HAVE REMAINED THE WAY IT IS IN THE LAST TWO DECADES, DESPITE THE ENORMOUS WEALTH THAT COMES TO THE COFFERS OF GOVERNMENT AS REVENUES. Though, the situation is different in some of the States in the South-East for instance, where all that the people want there is a governor that will provide them with the needed infrastructure, which will help them go about their 'independent business hustling', however, they equally have their own kind of Greed running through their blood. But in the South-East, nobody is really after what they will gain from an aspiring candidate as we see here in Delta State. Not that this practice is completely absent there, but it is not as prevalent as it is in this part of the country. And that is why they have been able to produce some of the best governors in the country, who are prudent in the management of State funds to execute visible infrastructural projects. Former Governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, and the current Ebonyi State Governor, Engr. David Umehi, are very good example of what I am saying.
Beyond these droplets of examples, the underlining factor of Greed, is responsible for all the woes we can think of in this country within the last more than five decades.
The level of dishonesty and greed amongst the people themselves is making matters worse, and a serious cause for alarm. A vulcanizer will place more holes in your car tyers just to create room for himself to change more of your tyres so that he can get more money; a motor mechanic will remove original spare parts that had no problem, and replace them with fake ones so that you can frequent his workshop for more repairs and more money for him; the garri seller will put paper under her basket which she uses to measure the garri, so as to cheat the unsuspecting buyers; same with the rice sellers, most of whom are known to ‘repackage’ the bag of rice content to either reduce the quantity, or put a different brand of rice in the same bag, giving buyers the impression that they are buying the real thing and quantity. All of these are driven by GREED. According to Smart Ofugara: “Poverty, greed, no respect, no conscience, dishonesty amongst the people, etc. are responsible for the ignorance displayed all across the country…”
So, until we address the level of insatiable Greed amongst us as a people in this country, we would remain grossly underdeveloped and lacking behind others like us across the globe, whom we are well-endowed more than in terms of natural and human resourcefulness.
Zik Gbemre.
June 9, 2020
We Mobilize Others to Fight for Individual Causes As If Those Were Our Causes