Death of Moral Courage

I am no saint neither am I aspiring to be one. I indulge in some of the lousy exuberance synonymous with my age bracket. My obeisance to the bitter liquid, encased in bottles of different colours and sizes, is as constant as our politician’s addiction to embezzlement. I also indulge in some clandestine extra curricular activities that my parents may frown upon if they ever find out.  Now, I did this disclaimer to avoid one seeing me as a moralist or a self righteous pugilist as you read along.

There comes a time in ones life when you have to look inward and tell yourself some hard truths. Truths which you might not easily admit being guilty of in the public. As the Holy Writ will succinctly put it; “thou shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free”. The importance of such self corrective surgery or self appraisal (facing the truth) is instructively encapsuled in Socrates bold statement; an unexamined life is not worth living.

Africans, nay humans generally are accustomed to pointing fingers. Blaming everyone but you is one age-long disease that has defied all known medical panacea. When this disease eats deep into the deep crevice of ones psychology, it limits its victim and keeps him short sighted. More so, It kills the victims mental ability to look inwards and search his soul, and reduces one to a ludicrous state of self imprisonment. Albeit, this disease cuts across racial divide, territorial hemisphere, continental shelves; however, I feel as a nation, our case is peculiar and heart wrenching.

Nigerians as a people are averse to shying away from the truth. We are quick to point accusing fingers without ever admitting our own shortcomings, or our direct and indirect contribution to the quagmire. Bulk passing and campaign of calumny are our stock in trade. We are always in an obsessive haste to run down governments, Nollywood, institutions, Presidency and everything Nigerian.

I doubt if we have ever stopped for one day to ponder how we contribute daily, through our actions or inactions to this disgusting mess. We run our mouth, that’s one area we have a doctorate degree without certificate, cast aspersions as if we are saints in our private and public lives.

I am challenging anybody who feels he or she is a saint to cast the first stone.  Where are those parents, groups or students, spewing from all corners of their mouth that the standard of education has fallen in Nigeria? Is it the same parents that register their wards to take exams in special centers? Is it the same parents that allow their wards to watch MTV Base, Films, Play games, Ping and Chat all through the night? Is it the same parents that have never bothered to force their children to finish one single piece of literature year in year out?

Where are they? Is it the same student that hopes to peep his neighbor during exam? Is it the same student that read (cram) to pass and not read to learn? Is it the same student that does not read beyond what he’s been taught? Is it the same student that seduced her lecturer for marks? Is it the same student that was praying when he’s supposed to be reading?Come on,

Someone should wake me up with a bucket of water.

Where is that civil servant that is complaining about the minimum wage? Is it not the same staff that resumes work by 10:00am and attends to people as if he is doing them and the government a favour? Is it not that same fellow that collects 100 naira for photocopy and typing when is meant to be free? Is it not the same fellow that chats all day and close for the day before 4:00pm? Is it not the scoundrel of a man that is building a gigantic structural edifice at his village, when his salary for all his years in civil service put together cannot afford such Tower of Babel?

Come on, Is it not this set of people that keep extending their ages, fifty this year, forty five next year, swearing affidavit upon affidavit, so they will shamefully remain in government's. payroll? Is it the same civil servants that are political when they are supposed to be apolitical? No, don’t tell me about the complaints of this ungrateful drain pipes that consumes most part of the country’s yearly recurrent expenditure. These unrepentant servants that join in saying; there is no job for their graduated children, whereas they have obstinately refused to retire, in so doing, creating a vacuum for their children.   

Can someone pinch me back to life?

Where is that Nigerian that complains about corruption? Can I see his face? Come on, is it not this same guy that voted for a man because he is from his tribe and not because he is competent? Is it not the same face that bribed some policemen when his brother was arrested for possession of Marijuana?  Is it not the same guy that jumped queue in a bank by bribing a security officer or because he knows the Teller? Is it not this same faces that collaborated with their friends to defraud a white man via the internet? Oh yeah, that is not corruption abi? It’s being smart right? The same is with the political pilfering by those in power.

Now who is having the last laugh?

Ok, what of those that travelled abroad impersonating another man’s bank account details? What of those that build illegal structures without government's approval and when the government finally wakes up from its usual slumber to demolish the shanties and stalls, you cry foul? What of those that sleep their way to get a job, those that come into an organization, be it private or public, through long legs? What of those that patronize Okada men that have been banned? Yeah, this brings me to the area of patronage.

We complain a lot that we do not produce anything in this country, but have we ever stopped for once to think how many of us take pride in patronizing made in Nigeria products? Now,how many of us practically go to the cinema to watch Nigerian films? How many of us buy made in Nigerian clothes or patronize our local clothes and shoe designers? How many of us watch local TV stations? How many of our beautiful ladies can afford to go through the year on corn rows without patronizing those superficial plastic human hairs? How many of us are thinking of improving our local content instead of condemning them? How many of us will agree to stay back in Nigeria if they are given opportunity to live and work in UK or US?

Nobody is raising his hands? Morale, low!

We are blessed as a country with committed noise makers, faithful habitual blamers, gifted finger pointers and stone throwers, irritable white wannabes, poor imitators and most regrettably, humans who are unable to look beyond their nose. Newsflash; those who think Nigeria will brake up some day or that Nigerians will revolt one morning as a result of frustration should take a weekend getaway at SCOAN, where they will be delivered of their delusion.

Those who are blaming the government for their woes should ask themselves, how am I contributing daily to this rot in my own little fief? If you feel that you have been wholly upright as a patriotic citizen of Nigeria, then indulge me and cast the first stone. But if you lack the moral courage, I have one piece of advice; drop your stone, sheath your sword, go home and make contribution in your own little corner.

Enough of this blame game! Aluta continua!..