Nigeria First!

The just concluded Ghana ‘s world acclaimed and certified presidential elections may have come and gone but one sentence GHANA FIRST that featured prominently during the elections has continued to send ripples across Africa more especially Nigeria. A witness to the elections proper has been speaking of how Ghanaians in the spirit of Ghana first handled the electoral processes in such a way that the results met international acceptable standards and produced credible results. Stories have been told of how the leadership of both New Democratic Congress (NDC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) provided logistic supports to assist party supporters to vote the candidates of their choice. We have been educated on how other stakeholders-the intelligentsia, academia, professionals, statesmen, youths, ordinary fathers and mothers etc worked in tandem, in harmony and in one accord with the party leaders (because politics is too important to be left to politicians alone) to make things happen in Ghana. We are excited and elated that something good can come from Africa-a continent of brutal dictators, heartless and wicked rulers, plunderers, killers, ethnic jingoists, shameless rulers who divide their nations to win elections and a continent of anything goes. After getting the details of what happened in Ghana, We came to the happy conclusion that all hope is not lost for Africa. We ran away with the thinking that with few committed men and women, shamed and assaulted by Ghanaian example seizing the initiative, our own Nigeria can join the class of civilized nations. Placing Nigeria first is what we all need to do right now after almost 50 years of rudderless, irresponsible selfish and myopic leadership. If we had placed Nigeria first, the 1966-1967 pogroms would have been unnecessary, the annulment of June 12 1993 presidential election won by Chief Moshood Abiola would have been uncalled for, the riggings in 1999, 2003 and 2007 would have been avoided. If we had placed Nigeria first more than 50 bloody and ruthless religious and ethnic crisis we have witnessed, starting in Jos in 1945 and still taking its tolls on Nigerians till date would have been nipped in the bud. We may be 150 million Nigerians but the questions are: How many of us believe in Nigeria? How many of us can stand up for Nigeria? How many of us can die for Nigeria? How many of us can say patriotically, Nigeria first in everything we do? How many of us can work for Nigeria without looking back? How many of us can make sacrifices for Nigeria? Pastor Taiwo Odukoya has just told us that ‘Happy New Year’ is not just a cliché – it provokes a spirit of reflection and appropriate projection. This is a brand new year, a brand new beginning, a brand new hope for all of us and Nigeria if and only if we can develop the character that will make the difference in the way we do things. Character, we are told is the power which makes a friend, draws patronage and support and opens the way to wealth, honour and happiness. The future of Nigeria is in our hands. Martin Seymour says it all: “whether democracy succeeds or fails continues to depend significantly on the choices, behaviours, decisions of political leaders and groups” We have seen leaders who turned their nations into forests and we have also seen leaders who turned their forests into nations. The choice is ours! If the attitudes of the Nigerian political leaders make our hearts to bleed, the inability of the Nigeria’s critical mass to rise to the occasion kills us gradually. The Ghana’s example rubbished and humiliated us further and we do not know about you. Let us now focus on 2011, and insist that we must get it right. Yes we can! Joe Igbokwe Lagos AC Publicity Secretary

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