ICHABOD OF A NATION — By Leonard Akwo_

Nigeria is one among many nations in the world under spine breaking  tongue-lash from within and without. Everything seems to be wrong with every facet of her nationhood, so much that the global Community fears we might just be sitting on the brink of irredeemable collapse, if an intervention does not happen in a hurry. When a nation gets to a point where the one thing that announces her bloom is the very cause of her gloom, then an untold doom looms on that nation. Harsh and way pessimistic as these assertion may sound, Nigeria is unfortunately manifesting those symptoms and more.  A musician of the 20th century once wrote;

 ‘I used to dream, I used to glance beyond the stars. Now I don’t know where we are, although I know we have drifted far.’ 

 How true a case in point for Nigeria!

At independence, Nigeria was tipped by global economic experts, following a meticulous study of our strides, to emerge as the most successful black nation. We had a purpose driven population stuffed with an unbridled hunger to succeed. We had a splendid agriculture, immense natural resources, a fantastic GDP, a strong infrastructure, world class Institutions of learning, an awe inspiring telecommunication system, a foremost and wide reaching television station, an excellent sport, a vibrant and formidable military, etc. Indeed, we were a global economic power in the true sense of the word.


In the seventies, just shortly after we abandoned the use of pounds and shillings, we ran a currency far stronger than the United States Dollar, even the English pound, which were and still are amongst the highest currency in the world. Up to 1985, our currency was at an average of 0.68 naira to 0.90 naira for one dollar. We had about the most flourishing agriculture such that we had to be helping so many famine ravaged nations with food. We were the second highest producers and exporters of cocoa in the world. We were the world highest producers of oil palm. We were noted for massive production of cotton, groundnut, among other produces, which generated foreign exchange for us. We had so much food; we didn’t have to import any at all.  

Our educational system was a model to other nations of the world.  People had to travel down to Nigeria to be trained in the then University of Ibadan as medical doctors, journalists, lawyers, engineers, etc. Our educational system was immensely adored and celebrated globally as our students/gradutes showed unsearchable depths and great intellects in every discourse ahead of their counterparts in other nations. The likes of Chinua Achebe, Wole Soyinka, Prof. Allele Williams, John Pepper Clark, etc. are examples of great scholars who had their educational roots in Nigeria. We even awarded scholarships to other African countries to improve their quality of education and help build their nation. Our aviation system was among the best in the world too at the time. The Nigerian airways, as at 1973 was a super continental airline, traveling to over 1500 destinations across the globe, generating 150billion naira profit yearly, providing jobs to about ten thousand Nigerians, Kenyans, Ethiopians, and South Africa. At that time, delegates from the United Arab Emirate came all the way just to learn the ‘magic’ behind this great industrial feat of a nation considered the towering pride of the black world.

When Nigeria launched her first television in 1959, under the watch of Chief Obafemi Awolowo, she would be doing so ahead of China, Canada, the Netherlands, and a lot of top notch European, Asian, and South American countries today.

 Our military was so famous that we deployed hundreds of soldiers to support the peace of other nations. We always took the frontline in the resolution of internal conflicts of other African nations. We lent our voices in the fight against racism, and apartheid and it was loud. We were indeed a beacon of glory for Africa.


Such were the glory days of our dear country, Nigeria. But is the case the same today? The answer stares us arrogantly in the face. NO! It is mind boggling to think that with an increased population of about 200 million, when we should be enjoying increased manpower, increased labour force, increased human resources, we are rather retrogressing by the day, instead of surpassing our previously famous feats. BRICS for instance is an association of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, consisting of leading developing or newly developing industrialized countries. Upon seeing this Association, one thing that comes quickly to mind is; they are all largely populated countries. How come Nigeria, being the most populated country in Africa not in the Association and South Africa is the country standing in for Africa? Why are we letting our population size reflect so badly in our national growth, now the leading poverty capital of the world, even with our immense human and natural resources?

Our health system is now so battered that in 2018, Bill Gate announced Nigeria as the most dangerous place to deliver a child. Very avoidable diseases ravage us day after day. Life expectancy has crashed so low just as children and maternal mortality rate skyrockets every passing second.

Our educational system has taken a nose dive, as examination malpractice, constant strike actions, poor educational facilities, corruption, are all in the rise. Countries which once ran to us for quality education can hardly even admit our students, let alone employ our graduates, unless they undergo a compulsory preliminary training. Yearly, our streets are littered with thousands of half churned graduates, some who can hardly ever read or write.


How can a country which once delivered food to many countries of the world now become among the few helpless countries suffering from extreme poverty and hunger? Why is a country which once took the frontline in the conflict resolution of other countries and in the fight against racism now a captain of ethnicity, nepotism, tribalism, and religious sentiment? How is the once best military now unable to combat terrorism, arm robbery, kidnapping, cyber crimes and several other insecurities in the country? How did our currency of 0.68 naira for one dollar crashed to N500 and even growing? How did we become the corruption hub of the world, such that a prime minister of a country could term is; fantastically corrupt? Why are our leaders only serving their personal interest rather than national interest? Why are they refusing to live up to the true meaning of their office? Why are they always the first to neglect the rule of law? How can a country once predicted to be the greatest black nation and economic power of the world be standing just at the verge of bankruptcy, just as analyzed by experts recently?  Why is nothing working at all? What has happened to us many years down the line? What has dragged us so down to our knees, to this reeking, to this almost helpless state we are now?  When did it get this bad? What is wrong with our system?  How can one come to terms with this sharp slide in our national development? 


Every electioneering year, we campaign en masse, we come out to vote en masse. We do so, falling for the sweet promises offered by aspirants of various political offices we support. We fall helplessly, trusting that the redemption, the rebirth we seek for our nation has finally come. Yet every year, we are launched into the cruelest level of corruption, of impunity, of unemployment, and hunger and diseases and senseless carnages arising from intertribal conflicts and terrorism. Every year our hopes are dashed in nepotism and tribalism and unfair sentiment. Every year our hopes are slaughtered morbidly. And on the alter of mediocrity we sacrifice merit and competence. We reward mischief and despise sanity. We neglect capacity, embracing pettiness and vindictiveness. When we have to reduce our nationhood to supporting a thief and an incompetent crass because he is a brother, despising despising a man of integrity, experience and capacity only because he is from another community, then it is easy to tell how close we are sliding already to our doom.

We need our Nigeria back. We need our glory days restored. We need back a Nigeria of great patriots whose only interest is to build a nation of peace and justice and equal opportunities for the children of the rich and the children of the poor alike. We need back a Nigeria not divided between ethnic or political or religious lines. We yearn for a Nigeria that gives hope for our youths, our children and our children's children. A Nigeria where hunger and joblessness and diseases would become a tale told by moonlight. Nigeria is in a debilitating depression, and true patriots must rise up to deliberately drag her out of it. We must first seek the face of the one who controls the affairs of men to teach us and to guide us towards taking back our nation from the enemies of Nigeria who have sucked and are still sucking the nation dry. It is our only nation, and the earlier we all arise, the safer for the children of our children.

Save Nigeria, and save her now!