Nigeria of my dream.

 A Nigerian

It was another rainy day in the city of Port-Harcourt, Rivers State, a typical characteristic of this coastal city in Southern Nigeria. My father (a devoted Naval Officer) was away on National assignment, but thankfully my uncle & grandmother (now late) were available to assist my mother arrive in good time at the hospital as her labour signs had become very apparent. Yes, I was the one that had been tucked away in her womb these past nine months, now yearning and eager to make my grand entry and appearance into the world. 

As is the tradition of the people of my tribe in South-Western Nigeria, the Yorubas, with the circumstances surrounding my birth (given that my father was not around), it was already clear what one of my names would be, yes you guessed right, Bidemi! As an adult now, my parents would tell me stories of how admirable I was a child and how our neighbours at Borokiri, Port-Harcourt (lovely city with lovely people), would always carry me and loved on me like I was one of their own (even though in actual fact, I was truly one of their own).

Barely five months after my birth, we relocated to Lagos, South-Western Nigeria, as the call of duty had come again reassigning my father to Naval Base, Apapa, Lagos. Thankfully about that time we were able to secure an apartment at Naval Barracks, Ojo, Lagos, as this was where myself and my siblings (to be later born) were to spend the most of our growing up years. Typical of most barracks, it was a mix of people from virtually every tribe in the country, as we used to call it mini Nigeria then. The barracks gave me a firsthand exposure into various cultures (clothes, food, and language) & lifestyles of people and places across the country that I may never even get to visit throughout the course of my lifetime. However, little did I know at the time that life was preparing and equipping me with the tools I needed to effectively function as a Nigerian. Each tribe may have had their different identities in their names, accent & religion, but we co-existed happily in the barracks, placing no emphasis whatsoever on tribal sentiments or anything of that nature that could set us apart.

 

Education was yet again to take me to Uli, Anambra, South-Eastern Nigeria and then Effurun, Delta, South-Southern Nigeria. In the months and years I spent in these places, I was at home with the people. As fate would have it upon graduation, the one year mandatory National Youth Service Scheme (NYSC) deployed me to Port-Harcourt, in what was to be a return for me to my original place of my birth.

Over the years, I have since visited Abuja, Niger State and several other cities across Northern Nigeria and can gladly boast of traversing a good portion of my country, seen a lot of beautiful sceneries cutting across the most of the six geo-political zones and made friends from all across the country, positioning me as a self-acclaimed ambassador of this great country Nigeria.

My Dream

My dream for this country has always been a country where the emergence of both leaders and followers would truly understand the import of their roles, this being at the core of what we have struggled with as a people over the years. 

As a nation, God in His infinite mercy has blessed us and we are not in short supply of the tools to work with: Rich & diverse culture for tourism, favourable weather conditions all year round for productivity, vast arable land to be the food bank of the world, natural resources for local manufacturing and exportation and a population large enough to command the attention of the world. Standing alone, these resources may very well amount to little, but with sincere & conscious Managers (both the leaders & the led) of these resources, we can begin to level up.

The template of a typical barracks I presented in my story offers an insight into the original concept of leadership, order, discipline, cultural and religious acceptance & integration, education, healthcare, hard work, sense of responsibility, co-existence and unity. All these are factors that play a major role in forming any solid, robust and forward moving society. 

My dream for Nigeria is a country where competence & character is premium and rewarded, as against the current practice of nepotism and tribal sentiments. I dream of a country where values & integrity becomes a norm in society. I dream of a country where children can dream and aspire without the thought of the system frustrating their dreams. I dream of a country where the youth understand that there is dignity in labour, applying their energy positively and that hard work truly pays. I dream of a country where adults and the working class recognize that their conduct in society and their inputs are critical to nation building. I dream of a country where public office holders would understand that their appointment is a call to nation building, a call to serve, lead by example and serve as models for others to follow. My dream for Nigeria is where all citizens would begin to take the task of nation building more seriously and see themselves as stakeholders in the drive to make a better society.

Revamping our situation as a country and get this nation working again no doubt would require a lot of commitment and sacrifice from all citizens (home & abroad). We will need a total reset of our mindset, choosing to believe that we truly have all that it takes to be great, with the leaders and the led constantly engaging themselves in constructive dialogue on ways to move the nation forward. Every citizen (old & young), from the remotest of villages to the capital city of Abuja deserves to be heard and given a sense of belonging.

The campaign is on-going from door-to-door, neighbour-to-neighbour, street-to-street, community-to-community, colleague to colleague etc. I strongly believe that better days are ahead and that these dreams of mine would one day become a reality.

God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.