Travel note: On a visit to Nigeria (2)

Posted by admin Headlines Wednesday, May 28th, 2014

On Friday, May 9, 2014 some 250 plus passengers arrived to chaos and hostility at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja Lagos. I was amongst them. On the other side of the Atlantic Ocean was the beautiful Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport – but on this side of the ocean was the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, a structure that time, maintenance and commonsense had abandoned. How a country would allow such an edifice to go into disrepair beats my imagination. Even so, I was happy to be back to my country of birth.

After a few days in Lagos, I headed for Abuja. This was supposed to be a modern city. However, what you get and what you see is a city that is unlike any other that was built in the last three decades. There is no honesty to it. No purposefulness. No detailed planning. It appears more like a hurriedly assembled city than a planned city with several billions of dollars devoted to its birth.

I have seen some pretty big houses in my life time, but nothing prepared me for Abuja. Many of the buildings are large, very large. But unfortunately, many lack form and beauty or architectural wonder. And even if their sizes caught your attention, you begin to wonder if there was something wrong with the owners of the houses and the estates. You wonder because many of the buildings occupy rows of roads and streets that are untarred and unkempt. To get to some houses and or neighbourhoods, you’d have to drive through craters and dusty bowls.

In spite of the clash between modernity and Stone Age, there is a certain allure about Abuja. It is also the melting pot of all the ethnic groups and stripes and shades that constitute Nigeria. And of course, there is money to be made. Several billions of it! There is something else: We think politicians and elected officials are corrupt? Of course, they are! But their type of corruption is mild compared to what we have in the civil service system. They are the most corrupt, depraved and lecherous in the country.

The civil service is so bad, knotty, convoluted and inefficient that it feeds on the marrow of its constituencies. Other than power and access, money is the most important thing within the civil service system. Money is a big deal, a really big deal. Good or bad, that’s the way the system is. It may not have been designed that way, but that’s how it has turned out to be.

Strikingly, in my rendezvous with everyday Nigerians, not many blamed or are blaming President Goodluck Jonathan for what’s going on within the political, social and economic space. And frankly, there is a lot wrong with the system. The vast majority seem to believe that (a) the system was already broken before Jonathan assumed power; (b) that unless there is a fundamental restructuring of the Republic, nothing tenable will come out of the current contraption; (c) that there are individuals and powerhouses within the system who are sabotaging Jonathan and his government; and (d) a lot of people seem to believe that Boko Haram, as is currently fashioned, intends to undo Jonathan and his government.

As I was getting ready to return to the United States, there was one question on most people’s lip: “Does it make sense to relocate to Nigeria at this point?” My steady answer was “Yes, please do!” I encouraged them to relocate as soon as they are able to.

And here is why: First, about 20 per cent of Nigerians living in the USA, Canada, the United Kingdom and elsewhere have no business living in those countries. They are better off in Nigeria. Many of us live on the margin: pay-cheque-to-pay-cheque and are just one to three cheques away from poverty. In other words, we are just “managing.” We’d be better off in Nigeria, but unfortunately, we are not bold enough to pack our bags and leave.

The truth is that many of us living overseas have nothing: No fat bank accounts and no investment portfolios. And we also have nothing in Nigeria to fall back on. And in fact, another 10 per cent actually live in poverty. And secondly, many of us would be better off in Nigeria because of our “superior” skills and training and worldview. America has an abundance of these types of people, but not Nigeria. In essence, Nigeria needs her sons and daughters currently living overseas who are university professors, software designers and computer engineers, medical doctors, dentists, accountants, administrators and investment managers. And many more!

Going into exile or relocating to one’s homeland is risky. And in fact there is an element of risk in life and in living and in all that we do. Therefore, those who intend to relocate must not take such a move lightly. Plan but don’t plan excessively. You must not be afraid to fail and lean from the occasional setbacks. But above all else, one must be ready mentally and be able to make attitudinal changes. In spite of all that is or may be wrong with Nigeria, the time to relocate is now.

The Chibok abduction saga…

There is nothing about the Chibok schoolchildren abduction story that makes sense to me. Nothing! There are too many unanswered questions – so much so I am inclined to think that it is all a hoax.

How could 200-plus girls go missing without a trace and with no credible witnesses? What does the Borno State Government know that it is not telling us? And what does the Federal Government know that it is not telling us?

And why are the intelligence agencies of several countries congregating in the country? And does anyone know why Boko Haram is taking credit for a crime it might not have committed? And who benefits from the continuing globalisation of a possible hoax?

Assuming my hunch is correct, this would be one of the biggest hoaxes in modern history. If indeed this is a fraud, the fallout would be far-reaching: it would have a chilling effect on the government, the civil society, and on journalists. And it would make it harder on the social media and other media avenues to champion causes such as this in the future.
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