We strongly believe it is about time for all Nigerians, regardless of our obvious differences, to wise-up in-respect of projecting a united front and common interest, against the enemies of the nation who want us to remain divided for their personal interests. Everybody knows that Nigerians are no longer respected outside the shores of this country. Once you are at the entry point of any country as a Nigerian, and the immigration officers see the Nigerian Passport, they suddenly become unfriendly and even hostile towards you, as they treat you as if you are a plague that needs to set apart for thorough cross-examination. This makes us wonder, because if the Western World – Europe/America and the rest, claim that all races are equal and all religions should be treated same, then why are Nigerians treated differently? Even with their song of ‘anti-semantic’ and ‘say-no-to-racism’, they still discriminate against the Black Africans, especially Nigerians.
Few days ago, when I wrote a short note on US President Donald Trump, of all he has been doing to protect his own country economically and against external influx of migrant caravans, I was criticized by some Nigerians because according to them, they see President Donald Trump as a racist. But I asked them whose fault is it? Is it Trump’s faults that Nigerians are daily striving to troop out to other countries and into the US and other developed countries in Europe, even at the risk of their lives or being sold into slavery? I asked them if it is Trump’s fault that our Nigerian political leaders have over years, refused to use the abundant wealth in the country to make life better for its citizenry, hence our younger generation are trooping out of the country in search of greener pastures abroad? I told my critics the bitter truth, even if they do not like to hear the truth.
As far as we are concerned, Americans are lucky to have Trump as their President now. He has brought America back to its status as a great nation that was once admired for its greatness. China’s statement, last year 2017, that it would overtake America’s economy by 2025, was well on cause to being a reality. While past US administrations ignored countries like China, Japan, South Korea, Mexico and the European Union for their trade imbalances, Trump dealt with the problem head-on. Trump has also fought for veterans, rebuilt the US military which was dangerously depleted, and tackled the illegal immigration issues and enforcement of immigration laws which he has been crucified over. Yet, with all the spears and arrows thrown his way, Trump has remained steadfast, strong, and magnificently defiant against the alleged CNN Fake News networks, who demonstrate daily, that they are truly the ‘Enemies of The People’. The truth is, we need the likes of Donald Trump in all the different levels of the Nigerian Government, to address all the many wrongs in our land. Though, some Nigerians may disagree with this opinion, but that is the realities on ground in the US. They know the truth but are afraid to own up to it for personal reasons. But America is ‘their’ country, while Nigeria is ‘our’ country, and it is only us that can develop our country to become any developed nation across the world, if only we start telling ourselves the bitter truth, and stop to claim the ownership of obvious public thieves in Government.
We must stop the ‘cover-up’ of our tribe brothers and sisters that are daily looting our collective public wealth for their personal use. We see people complain everyday and cry out against the abject poverty, no power supply, no access to healthcare, etc., in the land, yet we see the same people keep defending, protecting and celebrating some of these obviously corrupt political leaders just because they are from their tribe. Are Trump and the European leaders the ones directing these Nigerians to celebrate these common-thieves in Nigerian Government? Many keep on blaming President Buhari for the many problems in the country, yet they deliberately allow the wrong people for tribal reasons to rule us and continue to reap-off the common masses. Let us correct this anomaly in our home States. Take Delta State for instance, where, everyday we see workers under the Governor Ifeanyi Okowa-led Government digging most of the roads in Warri and Effurun, and we really do not know exactly what they are digging to find. Or when they will stop the digging and start constructing good motorable roads that are long lasting. Perhaps, the Okowa Government has been awarding ‘digging contracts’, as we do not know if the roads, they are digging everyday are gold mines.
The number of Nigerians trying to leave the country and trooping to the US, Italy, France, Spain, Germany, Canada, UK, etc., is not only alarming, but also calls for concern. The question is, why are they trooping to the US, UK, Italy, Spain, Germany, France, Canada and other developed countries? Why are they not trooping to countries like Haiti, Venezuela and the likes? Obviously, people are trooping to America (USA) for instance, because America has succeeded in making itself a great country that must be reckoned with economically, technologically and scientifically across the world. Some people can even sell their only property and possession (like many have done), just to go and seek for the ordinary US Green Card. And with the way people are desiring to enter the United States of America, it is only natural for the US President, to tighten its immigration policies and practices to safeguard its interests and that of its legitimate citizens. Again, nobody is bothered about why we have this situation on our hands. America is a great Country simply because the American nationalists practically sacrificed their lives, denied themselves earthly pleasures (and the opportunity to misappropriate public funds) just to make their country great on a global scale. So, the Trump message is clear and sound – You cannot destroy your own country and then run to America (USA) to take a refuge and enjoy the things others have sacrificed to build. The message is clear. But people, especially Nigerians, will not listen. They keep on castigating him for simply being an American Patriotic leader of this era.
We hear every day of how hundreds of Nigerians end up as slaves in Libya, while some end up as prostitutes in Italy and France, and others meet their doom trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea to Europe. Again, the question is very clear – how many Europeans and Americans are prostituting in Nigeria? How many Europeans and Americans are doing all the kind of menial jobs thousands of Nigerians are currently doing in those countries? None of course! Yet, many keep in blaming Trump to be the cause of their problem. But the bad governance in Africa and Nigeria in particular, is it caused by the Trump administration? When are Nigerians going to wake up and stop blaming others for all the misfortunes and problems we have brought upon ourselves as a people, with our own hands?
In the 70s and early 80s, I still recall how the Europeans, Americans and Asians were begging for Teaching jobs, and very willing to accept such jobs even in the remote interior villages in Nigeria. If Nigeria was what it is today back then, will they have come here for such Teaching jobs in those days? Obviously not! If Nigeria had continued with the ‘developmental pace’ it started with back then till today, we are very certain that no single Nigerian will desire to move to America or Europe in search of greener pastures. Rather, it will be the other way around – with Europeans and Americans desiring to come to stay as residents/citizens in Nigeria. But here we are – an ‘ever-developing nation’ daily plundered by some selected few to the detriment of the majority. Accumulated years of ‘bad leadership’, coupled with blind/ignorant elites and common masses, have ‘continued’ to create enormous problems for all and sundry, all of which have left countless many in abject poverty and the entire country in a perpetual state of underdevelopment.
In the midst of all this, many of us still shy away from the truth. Is it not a big shame that Nigerian politicians now prefer to troop to Dubai (United Arab Emirates – UAE), and China to have their so-called political meetings? Just like it was reported recently when the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Presidential aspirant, Alhaji Abubakar Atiku and about 400 members of the PDP, including Peter Obi and the PDP Speakers, went to Dubai just to hold a so-called brainstorming meeting. And some Nigerian stakeholders are arguing and justifying this by saying that it was due to “Security reasons.” But the question to ask, Is Atiku and Peter Obi telling Nigerians that, for Security Reasons, they are going to govern/rule Nigeria from Dubai if they are elected into Office? How many politicians in the UAE, America, Germany, Britain, etc. come to Nigeria to host their internal political party meetings? None of course. So, are these the kind of political leaders we need in this country now? The Dubai they are running to, is the same Dubai that was once a desert land in the last two decades. But today, is amongst the top exotic tourist destinations and businesses of the world. It is that same Dubai that is now preferred by our Nigerian political leaders for their meetings. They do not even have the courtesy, or see the need to hold such political meetings in any of the many good hotels and centers across Nigeria. Is that not a shame? And many Nigerian elites do not even see anything bad with that? Rather, they have kept on blaming President Muhammadu Buhari, US President Donald Trump, and Others, for everything wrong in the Nigerian system. Can Nigeria be developed by mere wishful thinking?
On Friday 2nd of November, 2018, I was in the midst of some elites and the discussion was on First Class Degree graduates. And it was reported that about 40 + graduates came out with First Class Degree Honours in Bells University in Ota, Ogun State Nigeria, which was founded in 2004 by former President Olusegun Obasanjo. The question that arose was, how can that be? It is impossible! This is hinged on a lot of factors. One of which is that there are practically little or no modern-day facilities and books in most Nigerian Universities to train any one to get a genuine First-Class Degree Honours that can stand any academic challenge and scrutiny in the global stage. Besides, a First-Class material/graduate should be able to stand any test at the international scene and not localized. A First-Class material will readily standout amongst the crowd anywhere he goes. But that is not the case in Nigeria, where the quality of education has gone down, and even the Nigerian lecturers need to be trained to cope with the high standard of education evident in other parts of the world. Most of our Nigerian Medical Doctors need to be re-trained to fit into the American Health sector. Nigerian higher Education Degrees have become worthless on a global scale. Education is not about one being able to cram and pour out everything back to the teacher. One must be able to understand and think for him/herself, and innovate ways to transform his society and environment. But here, our Nigerian education emphasis is on ‘certification’ and not ‘all-round-education.’
Precisely in July 2016, a middle-aged woman saw me at the London Heathrow Airport and asked if I still recognized her. But I said no, and she claimed she knows me in Ghana. But immediately I told her I am a Nigerian, She went on to say how Nigerians have spoilt their country Ghana. I had to make it clear to her that she must have mistaken me for someone else. We can see that even our African neighbours detest Nigerians and have nothing really good to say about Nigeria. And it is simply because they allege that many Nigerians have succeeded in spoiling African countries like Ghana and South-Africa, having spoilt things in Nigeria. And with the way things are going, very soon Nigerians will be driven out of Ghana and other African countries. The xenophobic attacks we see in places like South Africa, will be a child’s play. As a student in Nigeria. I recall that there were many South Africans with us back then as students. Nigeria was also known to have heavily aided, assisted and supported South Africa to gain independence and be freed from the Apartheid regime. But today, the black South Africans treat Nigerians as rubbish and plagues that should not be allowed to pollute their country. The excuse some Nigerians give to defend this is that the South African youths are envious of the hard work of the Nigerian youths. But such hard work/energy should be put into use in Nigeria if our political leaders are responsible and accountable, and the people do not encourage the carefree attitude and corruption in Government. No African Country has regard anymore for Nigeria because the Nigerian public and its political leaders have refused to accept the realities of life and their future and start making moves to address them before it is too late.
Nigerians trooping to UK, US, Canada, France, Germany, etc. is however not the solution to Nigeria’s many problems. If we continue with the way we are going as a people, very soon the other countries across the globe will start to reject Nigerians from entering into other countries because Nigerian politicians, elites, masses have refused to accept the reality of life.
In my view, there is no better time other than now, for Nigerians to wise up and start making the necessary changes they urgently need to make for the good of this country. We really do not have the luxury of time on our hands to think that the world would wait for us to wake up whenever we like. Every nation is speeding up ahead and overtaking those they can, in the race of development and economic domination, prominence and recognition. Nigerians, we seriously need to wake up and wise up! We simply cannot continue like this as a nation. We have heard of Brexit, which is obviously aimed at protecting the economic and territorial integrity of Britain amongst the European Union countries and people trooping freely into the UK. Very soon, it will be USexit, and they will start throwing out non-Americans, and will only allow brief visits into the US. This is because these people have kept on changing their laws to protect their countries. What has Nigeria been doing to protect herself, and become a global attraction for others? Even in China, where Nigeria import practically all its generators’ needs, they are already treating Nigerians very badly. When will Nigeria learn? Very soon, we will hear of Chiexit, Canaexit or all kinds of exists proposed by developed countries to keep Nigerians and others out of their lands. Also, Nigerians already there should not think they are comfortable being in UK, Canada, US, France, etc.
These Nigerians are being used by these developed countries to continue building their countries. It is foolishness for Nigerian political leaders and its people to think that the advanced countries will help us to grow our economy. These developed countries know very well that if we become developed like them, we will become an economic threat to them. That is why, despite the fact that the developed countries are seen to preach against racism, segregation, division, anti-semantic, and all kinds of names they give them, they are still the ones practicing these things in high degrees within and outside their countries, especially when dealing with Africans/Nigerians. It is all pretence. Even the American Democrats who preach liberalism, they are just pretending about all these. The Europeans and Americans know the Nigerian weaknesses and they want things to remain as they are with Nigeria. The Nigerians living in America and other places do not want to accept the bitter truth, and they keep on deceiving themselves in foreign countries. They have their own internal problems and they will never come to solve your problem for you. Nigerians, we need to wake up and wise up!
Zik Gbemre.
National Coordinator
Niger Delta Peace Coalition (NDPC
