From time to time we listen to great nations talk about their dream. Dream as in what they as a people are collectively aiming for. Every child in America knows about the American dream, which is freedom for all. This makes me to ask the big question about Nigeria, what is the Nigerian dream?
Nigeria is a great nation and to be truly so, we need a dream. Collectively as a nation and as a people, Nigeria needs a dream, something to dream about, a purpose to fight for. Any great nation without a purpose that can keep everybody running will not remain great for long. Nigerians are asking for the Nigerian dream. What are we after, what is our purpose, what should be our drive? This billion-naira question must be answered if we as a nation must take another step forward.
Driving back to the history of the ‘Niger-area’ I realise we once had a dream – the Nigerian dream. But because we had leaders who don’t know that for survival you must either run with a vision or burn with a passion. They let the dream die or they foolishly multiply the vision and thereby short-circuiting the passion of our nation. We as a nation must reconnect to this vision/dream if we must see the glory of Nigeria. We can reconnect to this vision, with or without the government. Like the Americans, we can tell, talk and walk our Nigerian dream with or without our leaders. I quite believe when we all step into our dreams collectively our leaders will have no choice but to follow. By then we can say, the leaders are now the followers and the followers the leaders.
What is the Nigerian dream? If you remember the Biafra war, during and after the Civil War you will have a clue of what our dream could possibly be. Many patriotic Nigerians have kept that dream in their hearts but didn’t know how to go about it. General Yakubu Gowon in that his infamous speech declared that we must fight to keep “Nigeria one” and concluding he said, “to keep Nigeria as one is a task that must be done”. Later the nation coined a slogan that speaks the Nigerian dream, which was “one Nigerian, one Nation” this could be the undeclared and publicly acclaimed Nigerian dream, is unity. It is in our coat of arms, in our flag, in our everything but our hearts and our drive. We sing it everyday in our national anthem but we have never practice it.
We all have freedom except “political freedom” so we are not asking for freedom for all. Beside, we can’t ask for freedom in nepotism. And we can’t ask for justice in diversity, we can only ask for justice in unity. We can only fight selfishness in this country with unity. Nobody will take patriotism to heart if we lack unity. Our leaders will keep amassing wealth for “self” if unity is not their watchword. We can never fight corruption except we stand together. In America, the nation as a people has the last say, not the president, the key to that is unity. “Don’t ask what your country will do for you but what you can do for your country” was borne out of patriotism, which emerged from the womb of unity. We can’t say that in Nigeria because we dwell in nepotism, which can never give birth to patriotism.
Our nation is a full-grown man of 49 years without a dream or purpose, it is abnormal, it is an error. We should use this independence celebration to ponder on where we have been and try to realize where we are heading, if we are heading anywhere at all. We must stop this political travelling in circles; we must believe in our nation and live by the codes of unity. The truth remains that even if our leaders are irresponsible, we as a people, as individuals can’t afford to be. We must bear the responsibility of uniting the nation. The more we speak disunity, the more destabilized the nation will be. It is only unity without tribalism that can heal the many diseases and corruption that has bedevilled our beloved nation.
This we can achieve with or without the so-called leaders. We have long complained about our leaders, it is time to do without them. We can teach them what it means to live the Nigeria Dream, by learning to love ourselves irrespective of our tribes and ethnicity. Love is the big word, it is the magic that can turn a follower into a leader. It is the weapon that can make leaders to nod in obedient to the biding of followers. If we have love, we have the ticket to unfeigned unity.
Imagine the difference love would make in our society if we allow her to sweep across the nation unpretentiously. Love don’t need supervision, love is beyond the law, love is beyond leadership, he that has love is an influential leader, who leads without force or pretence but by example, a life of love. The only glue that can unit the different tribes in our nation is love. The cure for corrupt practices is love. The panacea for bad government is love. And the paint brush for re-branding out nation is love, and infant, we don’t need re-branding where there is love.
Love is the answer; if learn to help ourselves, we would need the government as much, would we? Just imagine, if you have a generating plant with enough watt to power four houses and love drove you to help power the houses of three neighbours instead of selfishly pulling some plugs out and powering only your house. Imagine if other good heart Nigerians should imitate you and spread the message of love. Of course, they will follow the example of unfeigned love.
Multiply this with every other thing. Sink a water borehole and share. Beautify your house and street as well. Share your care, love, kindness, time, attention, irrespective of who is at the receiving end, irrespective of their tribe, colour or language. Your little contribution of love is what the nation needs. The Nigerian Dream is unity and to foster that unity, everyone should be involved.
Ghana recently emerged as the top country in Africa; among the succeeding countries in the world, fast growing economy, stable democracy and above all, well organised patriotic citizens. The key to all that happened and is still happening in Ghana is her citizens. When last did you litter the street with pure water sachet? How do you react to people who are likely lesser than you are or to strangers?
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