“Patriotism means to stand
by the country. It does
not mean to stand by the president.”
Theodore Roosevelt
In the light of the uprising
in this country ranging from the Niger delta avengers crisis to the book haram
insurgency (which isn’t new) to whatever other drama happens in the country at
this point in time that we are oblivious or aware of, I have seen mixed
reactions from citizens of this country in response to the situation. I like to
state first and foremost that I am not for the government neither am I against
the government. I am for Nigeria. I stand with Nigeria and Nigeria is my
business irrespective of who is in power.
From the elementary
school to the secondary school, we are taught to recite the national anthem and
pledge. The reason for the action is unknown to me but I believe it is to
instill in us the need to never forget our duty to country and countrymen. The
irony of the situation is when we become adults and in a position to make
decisions regarding our country and its welfare, we forget the national pledge
we kept making to our country for over 10 years. We forget that the country
belongs to us and not just the government or the law makers. We forget this is
motherland, the place of our birth, the land our heroes fought so hard that we
might have. A nation where peace and justice should rightly reign (or isn’t that
what the second stanza of our national anthem says?)
Now, I do not want to
feign ignorance to the situation of my country and its citizen. That would
indeed be self deceit. The citizens of this country are dissatisfied;
dissatisfied with the government, dissatisfied with the situation of things,
dissatisfied with the response to the situation of things. And they have every
right to be. We elect these people into power so they can work to better our
lives and our country, so that we can build a better and greater country for
ourselves and the next generation. When the elected comes and performs below
our expectations, we are enraged and furious. This isn’t what we bargained for.
This isn’t what we expected and this isn’t what was promised us.
But what I kick against
and the whole essence of this article is to let you know that supporting
insurgency or anything wrong in this country because you do not like the
government makes you a problem in this country. You are a RENEGADE. There is no reason why you should even think of it
because you feel the government deserves it. So if the government deserves it,
do the Nigerian people who are all going to be affected by the dilemma
inflicted by these people and situations deserve it? I hear people say “Let the
Niger Delta avengers keep bombing the pipelines. This government deserves it. That
was what the North used to destabilize the past administration with bombing in
the North East so let this administration taste what the former enjoyed. Let
them make this administration a failed one also” I also hear dumb speeches like
“this administration claimed they can crush the Boko Haram insurgency in a
matter of months right? Good. Let them show them.” Another group of ignoramus
says “let the Niger delta avengers be, they are fighting for their rights”
You know who suffers
the most from all of these? The masses, the citizens of the country. The insurgency
in North eastern Nigerian has rendered thousands of fellow countrymen homeless;
they now cannot even afford a square meal. The lives of your fellow citizens
have been ruined and so many dreams have been shattered and destroyed. And what
about the southern region? The lands and waters are polluted to the detriments
of the people in the region and their health. Oil production which is the major
source of revenue generation in the country has dropped from 2.2m barrels per
day to about 1.5m barrels. Workers are now being owed salary, the country is in
recession and many people are out of job. The unemployment rates are rising
higher than the tower of Babel and everything is just going wrong at the same
time. Fellow countrymen are stealing their neighbor’s pot of food just to eat
and survive. The country is in trouble and some shallow minded ones still think
the government deserves it.
Yes! Maybe the
government deserves all of these and a lot more. The government should be
punished for not meeting up to standard and because the people or persons we
would have wanted to be in power didn’t get elected. The government deserves it
because they aren’t from our own tribe and religion. The government deserves it
because they marginalized an ethnicity completely from the government system
out of spite ignoring federal character and constitution.
But the citizens of
this country don’t deserve it. The citizens of this country deserve a better
life. The IDPs (internally displaced people) in northern Nigeria don’t deserve
any of this. We all deserve a better life. I do not care about the government.
I care about the homeless people whose lives have been shattered by insurgency,
I care about those who have their lands destroyed by oil spillage. I care about
my countrymen and their well being. Our duties are to God, Man and country. And this
country we must fight to protect irrespective of our like or dislike for
whoever is in power.
Nigeria must rise above
it all. We cannot rise without you. Unity from all tribes and religion, Faith
in this country, Peace with all countrymen and then Progress will be sure for
our great nation Nigeria.
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