To live in Nigeria these days is to expect the worst. Sometimes, it seems that death stalks the land snatching people away when they least expect it even if it appears that many people in the country have attuned themselves to expect the worst. Children go to school in Nigeria and are abducted sby terrorists and held for months to be returned only when huge ransoms are paid that is if they are returned at all. Farmers go to their farms for routine farming activities and are slaughtered by those whose minatory warnings have recently come to include startling lines that those who depend on their farms for everything should stay away from those farms.
The pattern has recently become that just when Nigerians think they have seen it all, something jumps out of nowhere to renew shock and stretch shock absorbers to breaking point. It has also become the excruciating experience of many Nigerians that the road networks within the country have become death traps which people ply, all the while unsure of their fate.
It is common knowledge that on Nigeria`s poorly maintained network of roads, many Nigerians have met their grisly end. Many others who were in accidents but somehow survived have gone on to lead lives with permanent disability afterwards. Yet, at the merest hint of scrutiny, many government officials around the country are quick to rattle off the number of roads they have constructed.
But many Nigerians look around and do not see these roads. When they strain further, all they see are death traps. On Thursday November 10, 2022, an auto accident which quickly resulted in an explosion killed no fewer than eleven persons while reportedly injuring many persons and destroying many vehicles.
The disaster which occurred in the Ochadamu area of Kogi state started when a truck had a brake failure and rammed into a fuel tanker parked at a military checkpoint which immediately exploded. In the worst possible way to die, many of the victims were burnt beyond recognition. While a multitude of factors have immediately been blamed for the accident including the military checkpoint that caused the fuel tanker to park, poor vehicle maintenance, overspeeding and outright criminal negligence, the question must be asked about just how many more of such disasters Nigeria is ready to put up with as it continues what has been a most difficult journey to nationhood.
Every day in the country, people die needlessly and are quickly forgotten, becoming no more than fading footnotes on the fragile pages of history. Every day, families in Nigeria count their losses at the hands of needles and completely avoidable deaths. A country steeped in religion has even become tired of ascribing all its ills and woes to the will of God. How does Nigeria respond to emergency situations? While the flames raged at Ochadamu, perhaps, the hapless victims would not have been burnt beyond recognition if Nigeria`s response to emergencies of that nature was as swift as what is obtainable in serious countries.But as can be seen in the devastations that recently cut through many Nigerian communities as floods came, Nigeria is a country that is never available when its citizens are in peril. Maybe, it is a country that should not exist after all.
Kene Obiezu,Twitter: @kenobiezu
