The former president of Nigeria, Olusegun Obasanjo, asserted that if God is not a Nigerian then the country would have gone into extinction. He made this known while delivering a keynote address at Babcock University, IIishan-Remo.
Here is part of what he said;
“God is a Nigerian because what we have gone through in Nigeria and what we are going through, probably, Nigeria should not be on the map of the world. That is why I say God is a Nigerian. God has been kind to us; if not, the country would have ceased to exist”.
His assertion that God is a Nigerian actually got me laughing out my ribs. It was really funny. But then, it actually got me thinking about the problems Nigeria is facing and yet it still remains the “Giant of Africa”.
First, our diversity is second to none. And it is something that we are not handling well. Obasanjo pointed out in his speech that “We are badly handling our diversity that we are losing our identity. And for as long as we are doing that, we are not going to get far even if we get anywhere at all” and that is absolutely true. Most of the problems we are facing in Nigeria today are because of how bad we are handling our diversities.
Our religion diversity is one of the reasons why Boko Haram came into existence messing with the security of the country. Bombings, kidnappings and other violent activities prevent many Nigerians from feeling safe in the country. And how can a country be administered if it is not secured?
Aside the security issues, there is also a problem of “Poor economy”. As much as it would have been good for the country to change her status as a developing country, the poor economic state keeps pulling her back. This is really depressing and you begin to wonder if Nigeria is really the “Giant of Africa” since some African countries have attained the economic stability that we have been struggling to have.
And then there is a problem of “corruption”. This corruption issue has really eaten deep into our culture that it will be almost impossible for the country to move forward. None of the sectors in this country is corruption-free. It is that bad. Law enforcement officers require bribe before carrying out their duties. So many innocent youths are behind the bars probably because they don’t have the money to pay for bail. Election-rigging is not unheard of in Nigeria. I mean everyone is tired of coming out to cast their votes on Election Day because they feel their votes wouldn’t even count at the end of the day.
Most times, when I look at these numerous problems facing Nigeria, I don’t blame most of us that will take advantage of any opportunity to flee this country. I mean, we are fucked in this country but then we just keep pushing forward hoping that things would change one day. Change? That is a very strong word but I hope things would get better.
So, looking at these problems facing Nigeria and the fact that we are still breathing fine, do you think God is really a Nigerian like Obasanjo has said?
