Nigeria has been blessed, and also cursed with all hues of leadership – the good, the bad and the ugly. (And the slow). While some of those leaders have been invaluable assets, the fact is that put collectively on a balance sheet, the leadership scorecard in Nigeria would be in deep red. Bankrupt, even. Put together, they have been a collective liability on the country.
We like to describe Nigeria as a country with an area of land of nearly 1 million square kilometers. (Less, since OBJ ‘dashed’ Bakassi to Cameroon). The country is rich in natural and human resources. It is customary that when people talk of Nigeria, they mention our huge oil and gas deposits, as well as our solid minerals like gold, precious stones among others. Then very proudly, add that we have a population of over 140 million people. But like our leaders, has it occurred to anyone that put together, rather than be an asset, we may actually be a country of 140 million liabilities?
Yes, there are millions of intelligent, honest and hardworking people in Nigeria. Perhaps, you are one of these assets. These people would gladly be accepted anywhere in the world. They have made giant strides in as many fields as one can think of. But on the other side of the scale, there are more millions of small time crooks, petty thieves and unprincipled politicians, (and many more) that contribute nothing to the nation. A Hausa proverb, roughly translated states that ‘being able to feed yourself is not a feat’. These people, (and they are all over Nigeria) just sit and wait for manna to fall from heaven (government). When added to our national balance sheet, these unproductive elements and professional complainers would drag us into the red.
We take pleasure in complaining about our condition - no light, no water, bad roads, poor hospitals, declining education, corruption etc. But what have we, individually and collectively done about it? Have we not, in our own small ways, contributed to this sad state? From the filling station attendant who tinkers with dispensing machines; the messengers and clerks in public offices who hide files; the stockbroker who manipulates the markets; the banker who round trips; the judge who fiddles with justice; the lawyer who sells out his clients; the teacher who solicits favours from students; the farmer who hides rotten foodstuff under fresh ones; to the hawker in traffic who runs away with your change - do we really deserve any better?
What about the numerous cases of plagiarism and intellectual fraud that have been exposed among some of our supposed intellectuals? What about the contractors that supplied motorcycle crash helmets (as opposed to bullet-proof military) helmets to men of the Nigerian Army and sent them to battle in Liberia and Sierra Leone? What about the bread seller who gives you stale bread and tells you it just arrived? What about the policeman who asks for bribes, then charges you for bribery, and finally asks for a bigger bribe to drop the initial bribery charge? What about the driver who obeys no known rules and laws of driving? Or the doctor, whose malpractice sends patients to early graves, then hides the evidence?
It is customary that when public commissions and committees meet, they always begin with Christian prayer and end with Moslem prayer, or vice versa. But in between those prayers, all that is discussed is how to defraud the public. The publicity committee is thinking of how to place shorter adverts, the protocol committee is thinking of how to settle for cheaper hotels, the transport committee is thinking of how to hire cheaper transport, etc. At the end of the meeting, they ask for God’s blessing. How do we expect God to bless such mockery? If people cannot discipline themselves at the sight of one or two million naira budgeted for a small committee, how can we expect those in government to restrain themselves at the sight of billions of dollars?
googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('content1'); });
Even in the conduct of our personal lives, how sincere are we? Parents who can afford to, take their children to schools known for having unusually high pass rates to enable them pass exams. Another name for it is ‘organized’ exams malpractice. Is that honest? Do they have the moral imperative to now blame government for falling standards of education? As an economy, we like to think that we are important. But has it occurred to us that the global financial crises has not affected Nigeria significantly because we not really a part of the global economy? Even Angola exports more crude oil than Nigeria. South Africa’s economy is much larger than ours. Everything here is made in China. So where do we really belong?
Some things can only happen in Nigeria. Remember the contrived fuel scarcity of the Abacha years? After punishing Nigerians unjustly for years, and contributing in no small measure to sabotage our economy, Obasanjo said he would leave those responsible for the debilitating shortages to God. And they escaped justice. These days, if you have a grudge against the government (don’t we all?) and happen to be from the Niger Delta, just look for an oil or gas pipeline and blow it up. And government will offer you amnesty. If you want to loot public funds, don’t take millions. Grab a couple of billions, so that when you are caught, you can pay off the police, the judiciary, the media, the probe panels, and indeed, public opinion. And live happily ever after.
Many like to pretend that they love the country. They like to repeat the obvious: that our leaders have mostly let us down, and that nothing works in Nigeria. They attack our convoluted political system and blame the mad geniuses manning INEC. They bemoan corruption in high (and low places). They think they can do better, given the opportunity. They may be right, but very often fail the very first test: the test of character and intrinsic values. They often fall into the trap of regional, ethnic or religious sentiments. When we are unable to see beyond our very noses, the larger picture would elude us. The red blotch on the balance sheet becomes a deep red, angry splash, straining the scales further into negative territory.
When we discipline ourselves individually; when professionals from all sectors of national life conduct themselves ethically; when students from all over the country; when public servants and politicians from all parties; when jobless youths and militants from the whole country come together, not to attack pipelines and kidnap hapless foreigners – when we are able to come together, review our biases, accept our shortcomings, and forge alliances to challenge the deficit of leadership we are confronted with at the federal, state and local government levels, only then can we begin to see our huge population as potential assets, and not liabilities.
In the meantime, when you think of 140 million Nigerians, ask yourself: what is our collective worth?
Suleiman wrote in from the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. ([email protected])
googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('comments'); });
googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('content2'); });