Nigeria at 60: There’s no future here

IMOLEAYO OYEDEYI and LUCKY UKPERI report that both the older and younger generations of Nigerians are sad, going by the current situation in the country, which they say the founding fathers could not have imagined.

On Thursday, October 1, 2020, Nigeria clocked sixty years as an independent nation. Like its precedents, the day witnessed simultaneous but low-key celebrations in each of the 36 states of the country, including the Federal Capital Territory. The discordant tunes that greeted the day from Nigerians both home and abroad and across generations were indicative that the country is still miles away from achieving the dreams of her founding fathers.

The worrisome development index flattened by spiraling inflation rates, spiking electricity tariffs and fuel price hike are no less indicative of how low the nation has sunk from its ‘Giant of Africa’ heights of the 70s to the present.

The situation is not lost on the nation’s president, Muhammadu Buhari, who during his independence day speech referred to a ‘retrogressive Nigeria crawling amid reeks’, adding that “sixty years of nationhood provides an opportunity to ask ourselves questions on the extent to which we have sustained the aspirations of our founding fathers. Where did we do the right things? Are we on course? If not where did we stray and how can we remedy and retrace our steps?”

Sunday Tribune spoke with a cross section of Nigerians made up of both the older and younger generations on their views about the nation’s diamond jubilee and how they feel with the situation of things.

Elder William Odudu, who is in his late 70s, is simply upset about almost everything. A former President of the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV), former President of Association of Professional Bodies of Nigeria (APBN) and former chairman, Estate Surveyors and Valuers Registration Board of Nigeria, Odudu said during his days as a young man growing up, the several layers of the malaise that have beset Nigeria were not there.

He lamented that despite the abundance of resources, the country is simply groping in the dark, adding that “During the pre-independence era, there was no security challenge. One could travel by road from Sapele to Lagos without any fear of attack. We travelled free; we rode on bicycles from Ebute-Meta to Oyingbo without hiccups. A lot of things have gone wrong now.”

While lamenting the way the country had been plundered by its leaders who amass properties abroad, Elder Odudu proffered that the country should return to the pre-1960 constitution, when each region (West, East and North) developed at their own pace.

“What happened in Ghana might show up here. There may be an unplanned revolution here. During my time, as you were graduating from school, jobs would be waiting for you. I am not happy at all. Things have gone bad”,  he lamented.

Dr.  Olubunmi Ajayi, former President of the Nigerian Institute of Town Planners (NITP), is similarly not happy at what Nigeria has become; a country he described as “bankrupt, a rogue nation, a copycat nation, a nation without nationals, a nation without a national carrier, either aircraft or ship,” noting that “The future is frightening with the vagabonds in power coupled with the high level of insecurity of life and property. There is no national commitment even from the leaders themselves.”

Having retired from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Chief Ikenna Nwaokoroigwe, looked forward to a blissful life but it has not been so. He feels sad and would rather not talk about Nigeria as, according to him, things have literally collapsed and become static, signifying no future.

“I have since stopped talking about Nigeria and the question of my views on Nigeria at 60 is irritating and irrelevant to me because Nigeria is a failing state. What we have is a fragmented country as Nigeria collapsed in the First Republic when the civil war broke out. The hardship is so heavy on the poor. The ordinary man in the street has no future in Nigeria because there is nothing on the table for him and his family to eat”, he said bitterly.

For Chief Nwaokoroigwe, the way forward is “a national rebirth and change in the value system where leaders would sincerely work for the masses, to lift them out of poverty and not seek the welfare of their own immediate families alone.”

Another retiree, Emenike Onwuchekwa, also believes that the nation began to deteriorate after the civil war, acknowledging that things are no longer what they used to be.

“Today as a retired Nigeria Railway Corporation staff and a senior citizen, I pick bottle corks from street to street to survive. I sell them to make money. Life is becoming unbearable for me and my family. Although I am very old now and I cannot carry guns to fight but I support the fight for secession because of the worsening condition.

“The killing is too much with no safety; herdsmen are killing us because of their cows and the government is looking the other way. We need to split so that every ethnic group can live in peace. This is not the dream of the founding fathers of Nigeria. There is too much hatred now unlike before when there was unity of purpose,” he said.

That Nigeria could be named among the poorest nations in the world today is the crux of Elder Stephen Nwankwo’s bitterness. Like others, Chief Nwankwo, a retired banker also sees Nigeria as a failed state having been on the same level with others like South Korea and Indonesia among others as of 1965, but is today far behind these nations.

“At 60, Nigeria cannot feed itself, our health system is in a shambles and our leaders travel overseas to access medical facilities. Our educational system is in comatose. There is widespread unemployment. There is deep-seated animosity and unhealthy rivalry among the various ethnic groups in the country.

“At 60, Nigeria is still a mono-economy and no diversification in the last 50 years. A nation like China started her economic march in the late 70s; compare it with Nigeria that has not started her dream march. This is not the country I hoped for and I believe that many Nigerians hold the same view. And this is not the kind of country I wish to bequeath to my children,” he said.

For Chidiebere Udenta, a spiritualist, Nigeria has literally abdicated its leadership position and as a beacon of hope for others on the continent and “has become a pitiable spectacle in the comity of nations”.

“However, there is hope and we should still be optimistic if only those with arms butchering their fellow African brothers on the grounds of differences over foreign religions could pause and ponder if actually we are as godly as others.”

Other citizens spoken to by Sunday Tribune such as Mallam Mohammed Lawal, a 65 year-old retired civil servant; Mallam Dauda Aliyu Rambo, a politician and Mr Shuaibu Zuberu Tatu in Kebbi State, all lamented the state of the nation just as they expressed reservation about things getting better. They listed the menace facing the country as corruption, insecurity, kidnapping, insurgency, among others.

Mallam Rambo, however, blamed Nigerians for the woes the country is passing through, asking that they should stop blaming their leaders for everything. He noted that “by the time the people of this country stop blaming their leaders, God in His infinite mercy would fight those bad leaders Himself and bring a new set of leaders who would do good for the nation.

The younger generation of Nigerians is no less concerned about the state of the country, more so the future, which as it is often said, belongs to them.

Omoyemi Adeayo, a young businesswoman is concerned that Nigeria is literally in a state of neocolonialism as, according to him, “Every world power is seeking to control Nigeria and if care is not taken, it’s possible they would achieve that. China, Russia and other world powers have been trying their possible best to give loans to Nigeria in order to gain access. Though things may look rosy, there is an imbalance due to incessant strikes from different sectors. (Ethnic) diversity is so glaring.”

A young businessman, Adigun Abayomi, also lamented what he calls the country’s “deplorable state.”

According to him, “Nigeria’s Independence came rather too early because we could only count the number of years of independence but very few landmark achievements. If at 60 we are still an underdeveloped country, then we aren’t fit to be independent,” he lamented.

The issue of ethnicity, corruption, nepotism among others are the problems that Ade-Alao Temilade, a civil servant, believes are threatening the very existence of the country and stunting its development.

“I am not happy with the current state of the nation, no one can be. A man of 60 years should have been mature, made some achievements and even be a mentor to other people, but Nigeria at 60 is still an eyesore. No development to show, corruption is still at its peak, nothing is right with the country and it is very sad.

“We need to start seeing ourselves as one, not as different ethnic groups, and we need to acknowledge everyone’s strength: the good business sense of the Igbo, the good education sense of the Yoruba, the agricultural strength of the Hausa and harness all these. We should put good people into office, not based on nepotism, but on what they can offer. And we as the citizens of this great nation should serve as checks and balances to our leaders, let’s send away those who are not delivering on their mandate and bring others in,” he said.

Babatunde Adeleke, a writer, however, believes that though things are bad, there is hope of a better future as “our democracy is getting solidified and we can take comfort in that, even though a lot is still left to be desired. The Independence Day should be one of sober reflections rather than celebrations. It should be one of collective thinking rather than partying and merriment – of hope that perhaps, there would be something to celebrate next year.”

Danjuma Al-Zakari Adams, a contractor, like others of his generation is not pleased with the situation of the country and is tired of Nigeria being referred to as a developing nation and that others had experienced tougher conditions. As far as a he is concerned the situation “has been growing from bad to worse” and “nothing is encouraging.”

Additional stories by Dayo Ayeyemi, Adeoye Ajoge and Jude Ossai.

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