Reviving a Wearied Citizenry

BY MONDAY PHILIPS EKPE

No formal surveys are needed to determine how disillusioned many Nigerians have become with the affairs of their country. There is hardly any sector that is protected from the forces of retrogression, retardation or defeat. Very religion-conscious, most Nigerian citizens are quick to saddle God with the same challenges that he has already given them the abilities to solve. Elections, for instance. The persons and organisations involved in their prosecution, though aware of the centrality of polls to democracy, often fail to demonstrate commensurate commitment before, during and after the exercises. The populace also sometimes undermines them through compromises that can only yield fleeting satisfaction.

The result of this socio-political disequilibrium is a situation in which the blames for the nation’s current gross underperformance are multidimensional. It’s been a chequered journey into the present quagmire. By the time soldiers returned to their barracks in 1999 after many years of their self-appointed rescue mission in the nation’s political life, most Nigerians felt a huge relief. They had witnessed a catalogue of recklessness on virtually all fronts.

The tortuous trip from the first coup in 1966 to the day General Abdulsalami Abubakar handed power over to President Olusegun Obasanjo in Abuja was a bag of mixed fortunes at various levels. That the military fought to keep Nigeria together, at least physically, during the civil war was, arguably, one of its most outstanding achievements.

But, apart from the systemic disruptions, high-handedness and brutality that characterised the incursions into politics, the successive change of baton at the seat of government and the serially broken promises made discontentment among the people inevitable. The dawn of democracy in the Fourth Republic was, therefore, naturally received with great expectations. Nigerians had hoped that their political leaders, having tasted the aberrations of the previous era, would have learnt enough lessons that could reposition them for a more purpose-driven leadership.

The fact that Obasanjo, a retired general and former head of state, was the first on the driver’s seat at the commencement of the present dispensation appeared to have set the right tone, serving as a bridge between the old khaki and new civilian periods. Even with its own flaws, that administration didn’t disappoint in setting the pace. One of its major accomplishments was the drastic reduction of the nation’s heavy external debt profile which freed up some capital for redeployment to critical areas of development. The management of that opportunity may not have been optimal but it is to the shame of the political class, the pain of citizens and the bewilderment of lovers of Nigeria everywhere that no government since 2007 can confidently boast of being better than Obasanjo’s.

Sadly, the inexorable slide in the country’s corporate achievements without visible signs of going north soon is beginning to take the form of a jinx. And the corresponding dwindling of the citizens’ capacity and readiness to believe in their own country’s recovery has continued with no meaningful indications that the leaders truly care about this despondent atmosphere. The quest to seek salvation elsewhere has also taken hold of many Nigerians, more than any other moment in the nation’s history.       

It’s difficult to comprehend how people are coping with the numerous troubles which undermine all known variables that safeguard their wellbeing. Unfortunately, even in the face of these stark realities, the twin monsters of poverty and hunger have seriously weakened the capability of Nigerians to protest. The position is that pathetic. Out there are lamentations against clueless and greedy leaders but there’s also another argument that the led are equally guilty. Political office holders are constantly under pressure from their constituents to meet subsistent and other needs. It’s the chicken and egg debate, actually.

In the midst of this predicament, Nigerians should listen to the admonitions of thinkers like George Bernard Shaw, a foremost Irish writer, critic and political activist, who once declared: “I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community and as long as I live it is my privilege to do for it whatever I can. I want to be thoroughly used up when I die…. It’s a sort of splendid torch which I’ve got to hold up for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations.” That resolve wasn’t grounded in his sensuous self but a part of him which yearned for the sort of immortality only made possible by elevated legacies.

Shaw’s choice – to exist principally for the common good and play that role as if his very life depended on it – won’t be an easy act to follow in an environment that is increasingly being defined by the paradox of lack in the midst of plenty and the deliberate flaunting of ill-gotten wealth by a privileged few. But it points to the sublime practice of first looking inwards in search of solutions to general difficulties.     

Albert Schweitzer, 1952 Nobel Peace Prize winner, corroborated this stance. According to him, “it is not enough to merely exist…. Seek always to do some good, somewhere…. You must give some time to your fellow man. Even if it’s a little thing, do something for those who have need of a man’s help, something for which you get no pay but the privilege of doing it. For, remember, you don’t live in a world all your own.” A clear counsel to break free from self-indulgence in the pursuit of public goals. 

True, the trust deficit between government and citizens has widened substantially. And the words – change and hope – that should ordinarily endear democratic governance to the people have lost their meanings largely due to the glaring insincerity of politicians. Deliberate introspection as a tool for re-igniting inner survival and communal energies has, therefore, become a national imperative. Succumbing to the skepticism and despair that walk our streets isn’t a viable option.

MONDAY PHILIP EKPE  Currently an adjunct lecturer at the University of Abuja, Ekpe was at various times editorial page editor, features editor and general editor at THISDAY. A brilliant writer with special interest in human stories, Ekpe obtained his first degree in English and Literature from the University of Benin and a master’s in Communication and Language Arts from the University of Ibadan where he completed his Ph. D in 2015.