Something To Ponder

September 24, 2009.

What a terrific book, what an extraordinary man? As I flipped through the pages of ' IN HIS OWN WORDS' by Nelson Mandela, page after page I read his commitment and focus to the struggle for what he believed, his determination to be imprisoned rather than accept to live passively in a society that alienated it's own citizens, I couldn't help but wonder: When will Nigeria's Mandela come?!

Why do we keep deceiving ourselves with religion? By the grace of God! God's grace is already sufficient, so if we refuse to embrace it whose fault is it?. I am of the opinion personally that when Karl Marx made this statement '... religion is the opium of the people....' he had Nigerians in mind.

Various literature has been written about a number of African countries and their "long walk to freedom" the determination to sustain and improve on their hard earned freedom. The question is why  Nigerians do not adopt the same attitude, it is perhaps because as they say, our freedom was handed to us on a platter of gold.

To say that nothing works in this country will be a cliche, but it is a cliche we will be stuck with hearing because truly NOTHING WORKS! How else can one explain it, that whereas the natural order of things is to be progressive, in Nigeria it is the other round. What would you say is the cause of unrest (never mind by what names it is called) all through the country? Your guess is as good as mine.

I understand there is a re-branding campaign going on at present. Believe me, I would like to be a strong supporter of the cause but re-branding in my opinion (I stand to be corrected, after all what do I know, I am a product of our faulty educational system) is a process of taking an already existing brand (Nigeria) and reworking the brand into something different or better than before. Now the question is: Has there been an improvement on the system? Has the poverty level been reduced? Are there more jobs? Has the power sector improved? Is the educational system better? If the answer to all these questions is NO, then what are you re-branding  We gained our infamous image primarily because of a system that does not work and self-seeking public office holders. So is it not reasonable, if I may dare, that we revamp our system and let that gain us credibility instead of 're-branding' when we are still same old Naija. Is that not DECEPTIVE ADVERTIZING?