OPINION: The Key to Nigeria’s Problems!

To say Nigeria has a ton of problems is to state too many obvious things, and seems like playing a broken record that has lost many of its notes, now sounds rhythmic. A baby born in a Nigerian state knows from day one, that he has been thrown into a labyrinth of confusion, dysfunctionality, frustration and misplaced priorities, all wrapped up in a system that refuses to adapt or yield to normal solutions adapted from any part of the world.

The problems are varied; structural, fiscal mismanagement, politics-to-politics orientation, systemic failure, disorientation of leadership and citizenship, and the wrong mindset – everyone knows the problems but avoids them because of the financial considerations that poverty creates, both in mind and in mind, in an environment where survival is the main consideration.

Nigeria, a country blessed with everything any country could desire, is now wallowing in want! The human resources are very talented and numerous, so they excel in many fields anywhere in the world, even for those who are forced to japa because of the situation in their hometown. The country’s natural resources are so abundant that foreign exploiters come to steal them, because they know the system is so broken, they can work hard and smile at the bank every day.

Nigeria’s natural and human resources are enough to make any country a superpower tenfold!

So what is the problem with Nigeria, and better still stealing, what is the key to getting it back on track?
Unfortunately, the biggest problem is that the key to Nigeria’s problems has long been lost and has not been found again until now.

The main problem facing Nigeria, which has been repeated many times, is that a proper leader has never taken responsibility for the affairs of his country. Additionally, whether by design or simply by fate, citizens have never had a sense of ownership in the nation’s affairs. They really don’t believe that they have any interest or business with Nigeria, except for their survival.

Leadership in Nigeria is largely blessed by individuals who strive to gain political power and control over the country’s rich resources and treasury. Therefore, little consideration has been given to actually improving the lot of the average citizen popularly called the ‘common man’. Otherwise, how can it be explained that whoever is fortunate to obtain public office in Nigeria will become very rich, far exceeding the salary they receive from the office they occupy. In the same way, anyone closely related to them, whether by blood or friendship, also amassed wealth large enough to provide for generations yet unborn.

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Not surprisingly, most politicians find it very difficult to survive outside public office. Which begs the question; why they fail to apply all the wisdom, intelligence, and dexterity they possess when seeking public office, or when occupying such office in their personal or business lives.

Nigerians are actually this country’s big problem! They are so conditioned and traumatized that they now believe that they are not important in many ways, or that they have no say in how their society is governed or managed. Otherwise, how could anyone in their right mind hear that their common inheritance, which was enough to allow them to live like kings, was being plundered by a handful of people, leaving those who owned the wealth to live in poverty, and they just ignored it and moved on to their next busy life.

Nigerians do not understand, or even appreciate the fact that every naira embezzled or mismanaged from public funds will make them suffer more. Long convoys of bulletproof SUVs paraded by public officials are the reason why there are no medicines, or competent staff in hospitals, that is the reason public schools are fake, that is the reason roads are death traps, that is the reason public electricity supplies cause epilepsy, if available, that is the reason the system does not work.

The public does not understand that groups of fully armed security officers protecting public officials are the cause of high levels of insecurity in the country. That’s why they can’t sleep with their eyes closed, or why citizens can’t move freely in their homeland. That’s why farmers can no longer produce food. This is the reason for the high prices of consumables in their local markets.

Nigerians either don’t ask important questions of those who run the affairs of the country, or they simply don’t care. How do you explain a situation where communities provide almost all the infrastructure and facilities for themselves, but the government routinely allocates huge sums of money for the same purposes.

To overcome poor roads and poor public transportation systems, citizens struggle to afford cars that often break down due to bad roads. To power businesses and have comfort in their homes, citizens scramble to buy generators, or as is the case now, install solar power systems. When sick, public hospitals are the place to go – those who can afford it, will go abroad for medical treatment. They send their children to private schools to give them a good education. Every house has a drill hole or well to get water. People employ private guards in homes, streets and communities to gain a sense of security, as they cannot rely solely on the police and other security agencies.

However, the government budgets billions, even trillions of people’s money every year for the same purpose. The same people don’t bother to ask very important questions; where does this money go?

The wrong mindset of the average Nigerian makes them fail to understand that the money spent and committed by public officials can go a long way in making life better for its citizens. It’s everyone’s money, it doesn’t belong to public officials, politicians only keep the money for the benefit of the people.

Similar to this anecdote: a rich man had three children from the same mother; James, John and David. He bequeathed his wealth equally to his three children. After his departure, the bank handed over their father’s ATM card to them. They considered and chose David to be responsible for the card. David then withdrew millions of naira regularly from their father’s account, built a mansion, drove a number of luxury cars and lived a flamboyant life. Meanwhile, James and John share a rundown one-bedroom apartment and commute or take public buses to get around every day. They are lucky if they are fed twice a day. From time to time, David gave John and James small gifts. They praised him and bragged to everyone about what a ‘big man’ their brother was.

That’s the story of Nigeria! David represents politicians and public officials. James and John are the masses.

Unfortunately in Nigeria, when a public official is accused, or charged with theft or financial embezzlement, citizens who should be demanding a fair trial and justice, instead defend the suspect based on religious or tribal sentiments. Often they just hear their story, ignore it, and continue with their busy lives. Therefore, it is absurd that a public official is accused of stealing billions of naira that could have been used to build and equip schools and hospitals, build good roads, meet security needs and other needs, yet there are also those who carry placards, not calling for a fair trial or justice, but calling for his release because he belongs to a certain ethnic group.

But not everything is gloomy. There is still much hope for this country. This country can still be a country where everything goes well, a prosperous country where life has meaning, and living standards are reasonable. Hospitals can still be created to save lives, public schools can be compared to other schools anywhere in the world, roads can be made passable for vehicles, and adequate housing provided for all. Farmers can plow their fields and people can move freely, not moving because of insecurity and attacks. Public utilities can function, infrastructure is available, prosperity can flow.

The key to our misplaced problems as a nation is very easy to find. Leadership must be responsible and accountable to the people. The people, the masses must hold leaders accountable and demand performance. Every naira must be accounted for wisely.

Leaders in democracies do not provide any benefits to their people by carrying out their duties in governing. Quite a jamboree every time a project is completed. It is enough to include a politician’s name on an empowerment project or program sponsored by government funds.

Society must realize that politicians and public officials are servants, not masters. They exist because society allows them to. The day when the standard and quality of life of politicians is equal to that of the average citizen, that is when Nigeria will discover the key to its problems. When a commissioner, local government chairman, councilor or even a state governor uses the public transport system to work every day, and no one cares who they are, that is when Nigeria arrived.

By: Edirin Etaghene

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