A journey of a thousand miles starts with a step and that step can’t be taken without a thought and decision to embark on it, so also anything one does in life.
There isn’t anything one does that wouldn’t pass the first step through a thought process no matter how instinctive. No one becomes a billionaire over night. There is always a first step.
There is always a first step of struggle, falling, challenges, pains and oftentimes serial disappointments.
We live in a world where imitation is prime, we imitate with an accuracy that is top notch much more than the imitation of a parrot.
For over one week now, long fuel queues have returned to Abuja, reason, the “Locko tusnamic flood” which blocked roads , houses submerged and bussines premises over taken.
This morning as early as 4.30am I drove out to look for fuel. Getting there, there were fours cars, mine making the fifth car. Within 30 mins the line got longer ,surprisingly some people instead of joining the main line began to create parallel lines, blocking the main road and causing traffic as a result.
The line didn’t just start, it was a step taken by one person who thought about it, processed it in his mind and boom! He moved to implement and others followed.
There is always a first step in everything and if that first step is not resisted and discouraged by the outspokeness of people especially in bad things it becomes a pattern.
Niping things on the bud, isn’t just an adage. It is one that has a whole of meaning, neglect it, you do so at your peril. If I had spoken out, preventing the first person that formed the parallel line, of course he would do the initial ,”garagara” but with others lending their voices ,he would have no choice than to move back and align to the main line.
He took the first step to do a bad thing and I didn’t take the first step to stop him, the illegal line was sustained.
There is always a first step to things either good or bad. Nigeria wasn’t born with corruption, the bad leadership and near Impunity often seen in the administration of our Ministries, Agencies and Parastetals werent twins to our administrative system. Somebody started it and nobody had the courage and boldness to stop it and it continues, transforming into a pattern, a way of life that is today synonymous with the name Nigeria. Sad!
Like a joke one taxi painted colour crazily climbed a place meant to be a walk way and formed another line, still nobody talked. Every body was complacent, minding their bussines not ready to be the first to speak out against it. It was a sad sight, how human beings can be irrationally stupid and inconsideratly senseless. Only a goat would be able to do so. For him it was a bravado act , smart and sharp.
To those who came earlier and maintained the main line weren’t smart enough to shunt line and creat shorter route to the entrance gate. They were fools in his eyes
My challenge anyway wasn’t the attitude of those that either shunted or formed an illegal line, rather the silence and complacency of those of us that were there earlier who would have maintained and insisted that the right thing be done.
For two hours, we waited patiently for them to start dispensing fuel. Surprisenly we were told that there was no fuel. You can imagine the disappointment on the faces of all of us. The lines began to disappear, the illegals lines too disappeared. As the lines were thining out, the taxi painted colour that crazily formed a line at the walk way beckoned on me to help him push his car off the walk way, I looked at him and reminded him how he stupidly behaved and pointedly said to him, I wouldn’t help you. It hit him bad , he got the message and all over his face it showed how stupid he was acting in such a despicable manner.
There is always a first step to things. Things don’t just happen. Patterns and habits are first steps sustained, first step tolerated, first step neglected and treated with complacency. To get these patterns and habits reversed and stopped, one needs to take still the first step. Nothing happens by chance, nothing is too instinctive that it escapes the thought process of splits second.
We are into this mess as a country because of the first wrong steps of one individual that was not challenged and resisted. It became a pattern many have found comfort in. To correct it, it wouldn’t be magical, one individual will take a step and other will follow. There may be resistance, however it appears, persistence would have the walls of those bad and wrong steps crumbled.
2023 is a year that will see us take this first step of getting things right, correcting the numerous and various ills and soul-bleeding steps of our past and present leaders.
The future is now, it can’t be bussines as usual! We must take this liberating first step of saying no vote buying, rigging, looting etc.
Be the voice to speak out, condemning ills, don’t wait for others, as you wait for others, they equally may be waiting for you. Let the chains of complacency, indulgence to negative system, etc be broken by your own link of the chain.
Speak out no matter how difficult. Sweep clean first your frontage, one may then have the moral standing to persuade others to do theirs.
Let us not be complacent at the face of illegality , aiding and abetting ills and wrong by share complicity.
The humongous oil theft alleged against NNPC started by one individual and sustained as a pattern. It takes another individual to say no to such pattern and chart a new positive and integrity path.
There is no problem that is insurmountable. It takes a courageous voice to speak out and others will join.
Through one man sin entered and through one man Salvation and reconciliation were achieved. Be that one man for the later not for the former.
Nigeria will soon be good! A project, collectively it will be achieved at record time.
Jarlath Opara
Jarlathuche@gmail.com
