Let me admit straight away that I got the inspiration for
this write up on the 4th of September 2016,precisely natal
date of my fiance on my way coming from work.
A commuter engaged fellow commuters on political and economy
issues in the country taking into consideration the time in
which we are now. Permit me to quote them verbatim;
"Buhari has spoiled this country olorun, that's( God ),
see how people are suffering, see the dollar rate, see every
states no dey pay salary again. No money again to spend; no
money in town." And the whole bus fired up with
criticism of buhari and his team with the exception of three
or five that differ on their point of view and tried as much
as possible to educate and expanciate on how we got ourselves
where we are now.
All the explanation and enlightenment doesn't go down with
them. They don't see genuine substance in it and never see
any progress being made under the current administration.
What I noticed from their point is immediate benefits not the
long time own. It was so noisy that both side couldn't agreed
on anything; but then I realized I'm in Nigeria which is
allowed.
Having, narrate a tip episode of what happened on a
daily basis in every nooks and crannies of the country depict
the position of our nation and the kind of people we are
individually and collectively.
Although,it was written in 19th century, Charles Dickens'
opening words in his novel on revolutionary france, A Tale of
Two Cities, aptly captures the spirit and atmosphere of the
times in which we live today. In his memorable words, "
it was the best times, it was the worst of times, it was a
season of despair, it was a season of hope, it was the age of
wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of
belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of
light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of
hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before
us, we had nothing before us......" There are millions
across the globe who once had jobs and homes but have today
lost all to the economy recession. They once had everything
but now have nothing. It is for multitude season of despair,
darkness and despondency.
The entire world is currently shivering in the cold winter of
economic despair with millions of individuals and hundreds of
corporate organizations thrown into pain, devastation and
even hopelessness. It is Crystal clear now that no nation is
an island on his own and what is happening in international
markets always have an impact on different nations of the
world.
Such is the case of Nigeria which is operating mono-product
economy that has adversely affect the forex Income and cause
economic stagnation in the land.
Again, I do not subscribe to the school of thought that
believe the current hardship we are experiencing is caused by
President Buhari or APC So to say; but one thing is
certain the current economic quagmire predated Buhari. More
so, to apportion blame is not the right thing to do in the
face of dwindling economy.
The Case For Passing over and moving forward.
Stagnation is a problem in life. Very often people choose to
remain within their comfort zone where there will be no
disruption to their daily routines, and where challenges are
kept to bare minimum. Yet life cannot remain stationary. The
knowledge of today will be inadequate to meet the challenges
of tomorrow. We must strive to move forward as a nation, and
knowledge must be acquired on a continuous basis. Even when
undertaking a journey, the pilgrim is expected to be
constantly on the move.
The Yoruba encourage people not to limit themselves, but to
explore alternative possibilities for break-through, until
success is achieved. As a Yoruba proverb put it " ona kan ko
wo oja".- there is usually more than one road to the market:
One should learn to sing new song because the
old ones are already well known and have achieved the purpose
for which they were introduced.As a nation we need a new
conviction, a new strength that will enable, enrich and
empower for sustainable living. Each generation
requires a new direction at work and at home, a means of
review and revitalization, a retraining, a rebirth,a new
strength,a new resolution and commitment.
This is the period where we have to decide to move forward,we
have to acquire the attitude for bravery and possess the
wisdom for courage. Moving forward means never giving up and
constantly searching for an alternative opening.
Thus, the process of passing over and moving forward ends
with the attainment of higher level after a period of
uncertainty and anxiety. Nature abhors stagnation and
standing still. The bible tells us the story of how the Lord
frowned at Moses when he felt so intimidated by the red sea
that he stopped moving:
"And the Lord said to Moses why did you cry to me? Tell the
children of Israel to go forward".
As soon as the Israelites advanced, the Red sea opened up and
they passed through it to their promise land. The Lord Jesus
himself challenged his disciples to cross over to the other
side of the sea where he had taught.
Suffice to the above it is worrisome how the blame game is
hovering between PDP and APC when the masses are suffering. I
understand the fact that this current administration is doing
very possible to revive the economy and make life bearable
for Nigerians. But that should not negate the fact that
Nigerians voted for them in the first place and they are
answerable to them. I know the change is not over night
change or one mighty abracadabra. Also i
am an incurable optimist. I am a firm believer in the maxim
that no matter how dark a tunnel may appear to be, there will
always be some ray of light at the end.
Of course, this presupposes that for you to encounter this
light, you must not stand still at the darkest end of the
tunnel. Therefore, the philosophy underpinning this belief is
that for you to get to the bright end, you must keep moving
away from the darkest end.
You must stay the course; perseverance is the watchword.
Don’t quit because quitters never win. Here, pragmatism is
an inevitable companion.
This conviction also informed my reaction to the
socio-political and economic developments in our country in
recent times.
I strongly believed that no matter how starkly the national
augury may seem to tilt south, we shall overcome as long as
we have a leadership that is prepared to put on its thinking
cap, prepared to listen, be pragmatic and innovative in
handling the myriad of problems confronting the nation.
The last thing we need right now is a leadership that is in
denial, a leadership that revels, like the ostrich, in
burying its head in the sand, thinking that nobody is seeing
it. The last thing we need in this country is a leadership
whose only solution to the problems is to point fingers of
blame at others. Unfortunately, this is the leadership we
have right now.
However, My worry was not informed by the frightening numbers
released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on
Wednesday, August 31, which finally confirmed what many
already knew – that the economy had slid into recession or
that Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth at a woeful –2.06%
performance did worse than expected. It was –0.36% in the
first quarter.
The fact that $1 exchanged for N425 last week with a
potential of going beyond N500 before the end of the year,
while inflation rose to 17.1 per cent in July from 16.5
inJune is scary, but didn't worry me much.
Ditto the unemployment figure which increased to 13.3 per
cent from 12.1 per cent and investment inflows which dropped
to the lowest levels at $647.1 million from $710 million.
These figures are the natural consequences of a nation that
refused to planned and save for the future. My major concern
is the antics of shifting blame. It is the responsibility of
Buhari and his team to take us to the presume promise land.
So in the interim we must all stop the blame game and cross
over to the other side where Nigeria economy is revived. More
jobs are back on board,constant electricity, Good Roads,
modernize Rail system, surplus of food and friendly
environment for business. So also we must prepare to
learn our lessons this time around because getting to other
side comes with difficulties and challenges.
Finally, let me say here that I'm a staunch supporter of this
current administration and I wish them well in all sectors. I
give it to them in the area of security and fighting boko
haram to a stand still but they must proceed from there and
use the same zeal to pursue economic development and make
life better for Nigerians. The masses are dying. There's
suffering in the land only the rich are coping. And on this
note I submit that we should stop the blaming game
theory.
GOD BLESS FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA
AND GRANT THE PRESIDENT AND HIS TEAM WISDOM TO SUCCEED.
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