The Nigeria of my dreams

I dream of a nation where corruption is history, where the rich and the poor are in tweedledum and tweedledee without oppression, a nation where education wont be disapproved due to some erroneous beliefs.

I dream of a country where the leaders of tomorrow cites the youths and not the old men, where leaders won't be voted for because of their ethnic similarities, a nation where young graduates won't be scattered abroad unemployed, where power problems will be a thing of the past. This is the Nigeria i dream of

When we gained independence from Britain in 1960, hopes were high that we would become the continents first super power and a stabilized democratic influence in the region. With immense mineral wealth and well over 100 million people, the most educated work force in Africa, the new Nigeria seemed positioned for success. Nigeria was dubbed Big Black Hope by a section of the world media. That expectation appears to have been shattered.

Side by side with the problem of unemployment is that of the quality of the education we offer our youth. The nation must teach, not only the use of the mind but also the use of the hand, the studies which we offer ought to be great utility to the nation. We should modify our curricula to meet our conditions. Education should not make its recipients proud or distant from the community.

Our studies must be relevant to our condition and our aspirations. The minds of our students must be properly directed towards positive things. We must begin to take more seriously, those courses by which the minds and the hearts of the citizens are formed. We must learn about our duties to ourselves, to fellowmen, to society and to God, Education must teach self respect, a proper appreciation of our own powers and of the powers of other people.

At independence, we were one of the richest, but today we rank amongst the poorest. There is great need for us to strive to be self-reliant. It ought not to be the case that in all our cities and even in some of our villages our young men and women, in their thousands, are seen on the streets and highways selling goods manufactured by other nations which are less endowed than ours. We are not going to be self-reliant by enjoying the luxuries that other nations have produced. We shall become self-reliant only by making those sacrifices which those other nations made to produce those luxuries.

We are a hardworking people; strong, resilient, patient and humble. We ought to be feeding other nations. We should not be fed by them, as is now happening. As far as the economy is concerned, the Nigeria of my dream is that in which the nation shall be inward-looking, following the path of import substitution and export promotion. We are an intelligent, hardworking and resilient people gifted with vast mineral and natural resources.

Only by participating in world trade through the export of our goods and skills shall we bring prosperity to the nation. It is indeed unfortunate that fifty- six years after independence, we have added no value to the crude oil which we continue to sell to the world. I commend the efforts at dispensing with our massive, inefficient and monopolistic public sector. In my estimation, nothing has discouraged direct investment and capital inflow more that our lack of dependable energy. The greatest setback for this sector has been the corruption of its officials and members charged with responsibility in the sector. The lack of dependable energy, more than anything else accounts for the return in investments. I say nothing of our over-regulated private enterprises with crippling controls and pampered organized labor with extremely low productivity. We still have many rivers to cross.

In conclusion, i would like to say that leadership is crucial in setting the course for our society. I would like to denouement that the Nigeria of my dreams an only emerge when it is led by the right man or woman. I absolutely believe that one right person can make all the difference in the welfare of the nation.

Notwithstanding the perilous times our people have suffered and the shattered hopes and dream, i believe one day Nigeria will rise to the top and regain its long lost glory. I wish one day the Nigeria of our dreams will come into reality.

God bless Nigeria

Credits
Victor Agbenro