October 31, 2008
I am not a prophet, I lay no claim to being one. I am not a soothsayer, seeing visions of the future can not be counted among my gifts. Rather, I am an ordinary fellow, just like the guy next door, trudging and striving to make ends meet; pushing and shoving to pay my bills and earn my living. More so, I am a Nigerian, a proud one at that, with an abiding faith in the imminence of my country’s greatness.
Like Martin Luther King (Jnr) some forty years ago in far away America, I do have a dream, a dream that confounds even me- the dreamer, because it is at complete variance with the reality of the times; a total departure from the torments and lamentations of the moment. But isn’t that what dreams are meant to be? A broad and deep gaze into the inner recesses of the future to reveal the hitherto concealed.
On August 28 1963, when Martin Luther stood on the steps of Lincoln Memorial, Washington DC, to share his dreams on America, it sounded like some bogus display of oratory with no thread of possibility whatsoever, but today, forty five years down the line, the dream is on the verge of fulfilment in Barack Obama, a black man so close to being elected the most powerful man on earth.
And experiences all around us have clearly established that dreams are hardly ever some exclusive stand alone destinations, rather they require some meticulous processes and conscientious actions to pave the way toward the destinations. My fear is the readiness of Nigerians, you and I, leaders and followers alike, to provide the pathway leading to the rosy destinations of these dreams.
I have a dream that this great country of ours will one day shake off the misfortune of poor and inept leadership that has plagued it over and again since its historic independence some forty eight years ago to take its rightful place in the comity of nations as a nation that cares for its citizens and is alive to its numerous responsibilities.
I have a dream that we, the docile citizens of this country, who are ever so comfortable with resigning ourselves to fate in the face of damning failure of leadership, and laying all our disappointments at the door step of an innocent God as if we have no responsibilities whatsoever to ourselves, will one day wake up from our deep slumber to hold our leaders accountable for their actions and inactions, and see ourselves as principal stakeholders in the Nigerian project by fulfilling all our civic responsibilities to our fatherland.
I have a dream that soon, very soon, Nigeria will be counted among the best in the world in all ramifications; holding our own in all spheres of human endeavour; playing our part responsibly in all our involvements; playing a pivotal role in the affairs of the African continent, and a principal role on global issues.
I have a dream that one good day, Nigerians will no longer be insulted and demeaned by leaders who pride themselves in the mundane, by measuring their achievements in terms of the length of roads tarred, salaries paid etc. Rather, we will be blessed with visionary leaders who can see beyond the immediate; who can gaze farther down into the future and engage in higher level thinking on development, thus laying the groundwork for sustainable development far into the future.
I have a dream that the basic necessities of life will be available and affordable to all Nigerians, regardless of their status and standing in the society and that one day, we will all revel in the belief that we have responsive governments and leaders who truly care for us and put the nation above self.
I have a dream that the spirit of social justice, fairness and equity, genuine rule of law and social order will prevail in our land; all Nigerians will be equal before the law, corruption will be an anathema in our national psyche, and we will all be proud of our heritage as Nigerians.
So much for dreams, as stated earlier, my concern is whether we have the character and conviction to bring about the changes that will launch our country into its rightful place. As long as we continue to be docile in the face of leadership failure instead of rising up and taking our destiny in our hands; as long as we continue to see social infrastructures as belonging to the government instead of taking full ownership of what our taxes have been expended on; as long as we continue to stay away on election days with the belief that the callous politicians will always have their way anyway, instead of going out to vote for those with the pedigree to transform our situation, and actually making sure our choices count; as long as we continue to evade paying our taxes because government can not be trusted to use it judiciously for the common good, instead of paying and then holding the government accountable for how it is spent; for so long will these dreams remain what they are- dreams!
More so, as the message of change keeps resonating all around us lately, we also need to embrace it. We have a responsibility as a people, to provide the pathway towards the actualisation of these dreams. If we continue to mourn our misfortune in the type of leaders we have had over the years, we will never make any remarkable progress. Since leadership has consistently failed us, I think for once, the change we desire will now need to flow from bottom up. As followers, let us all be alive to our responsibilities and over time, the leaders will have no option but to change. We will package change and drop it on their table, and willy- nilly, they would be forced to embrace it.
God has given us all we need to make a success of our country and meet the needs of each and every one of our 150 million brethrens. We will simply be asking for too much if we still expect him to come and personally administer the country to our benefit.
It is a general belief that the average Nigerian is very gifted and determined, and can make a success of anything he commits his mind to. It is time to bring the same Nigerian can do spirit to bear in bailing out our fatherland from its present predicament and launching it on the path of progress and development. Every Nigerian has a role to play, regardless of the part of the world where he or she is planted. We can do it. We must do it. We owe it to ourselves and to posterity. These dream lie entirely in our hands!
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