The Anatomy of Our Nigerianess II

Finally I can say I’m back in business. For the past many months I have been so caught up in many things that I have left my blog space with so many cobwebs. I’d like to apologize to my many followers for robbing them of the opportunities to see the things God has been showing me on how we can be true catalysts of change in this great nation. Please accept my unreserved apologies.

I remember I left off on the note of the anatomy of our Nigerianess, right? Well let me just pick up from where I left off ok? Kindly read the following. These are true life experiences and are not fictional.

CASE ONE: A landlord had accused the tenant of entering into the place where the PHCN (NEPA) meter was and tampered with the meter such that the rotating disc had fallen off and the screws of the meter were broken. Now considering the fact that the meter is located under the staircase of the landlord and that access to the place is restricted to the tenant, the tenant defended himself. Both of them got into an argument. The landlord called the tenant a bastard and tenant called him the same name. Immediately the landlord slapped his tenant. The tenant went to report at the police station and eventually the landlord went to report at the same station that the tenant has destroyed fittings worth hundreds of thousands in his house and asked the police to detain him.

CASE TWO: On Allen Avenue, Lagos an okada (commercial motor-cycle) rider, while meandering through traffic, almost ran into a mobile police man in uniform. He immediately began to apologize profusely. Before you could say Yar Adua, the mobile policeman was raining slaps and blows on the okada rider.

CASE THREE: A bus driver suddenly decides to hike the fare of the route he plies. When the commuters at the bus-stop complain, he showers insults on them and even almost runs some of them over.

CASE FOUR: In Lagos Nigeria, Thursdays are environment sanitation days for Markets. To enforce compliance to this directive by the state government is a task force aptly named K.A.I. (Kick Against Indiscipline). These men clad in Glo-green uniforms, rushed at a lady, (who can’t be more than 23 years old) and confisticated her wares. What was she selling you would ask? Herbal concoctions! Stuff that couldn’t be worth up to two thousand naira. Not that it was right for her to sell when she should be cleaning up the area but couldn’t she have been cautioned? Why should an Isuzu truckload of KAI officials swoop down to arrest a small girl with wares not up to two or three thousand naira?

I’ll tell you why, ingrained into the mentality of the present Nigerian is an oppressive attitude. One of the things that characterize most Nigerians is this aggressiveness that makes us want to take advantage of the other person using whatever position we have. So a policeman will harass a citizen, simply because he’s got the authority to stop him. The bus conductor will harass the nicely dressed bank executive who takes public transport because he feels the bank guy is better off than he but he has the opportunity to lord it over him since he’s the guy in charge of his transportation to his destination. The scenarios are endless.

What could be responsible for this attitude? Well to put it simply, we don’t understand what leadership is all about. Our traditional African understanding paints a picture of leadership as lords of all as against the biblical instruction of service. So oppression is the order of the day. But tell me, in a society where our leaders steal our money and then come to show off the same wealth to us, how won’t there be a general oppressive attitude?

So how do we bring some kind of change, you may be asking?

Firstly, let us start by treating people with respect and dignity. We all occupy leadership positions in some capacity. We should begin to use them to serve much more than exert our authority. It’s a privilege to be in a leadership position and our actions should reflect this. Why? Our actions speak louder than our words and so when we show off much more than we treat people with respect and dignity, then we speak volumes to them.

Secondly we can start in our homes. We need to emphasize the values of service as against oppression. We should emphasize to those we have some authority over, the need to serve whenever we have the opportunity to lead. When I look at people like Gov. Fashola (Eko oni baje!), I am impressed. Do you know why the man refused to use sirens on the roads of Lagos? He said how could he be using tax payers’ money to disturb their peace? That is enviable and worthy of emulation.

Let me rest my case here. ‘Nuff said.