Lounging yesterday in my office, having finished consulting for an enormously bitter man with parkinsons who has been given several prescriptions for his condition which his UK doctor has thrashed over the phone, I engaged in some cogitation in respect of that experience concerning the truly poor level of expertise in the Nigerian health system. This issue has been, for some time, a source of intense emotional turmoil for me, so it was predictably an exhausting exercise in reasoning as I considered all shades of possible solutions.
In time, I decided to engage in something more palatable and having developed a habit of visiting nairaland for some titbits of mostly entertaining news when am bored, I navigated once more to that familiar terrain.
I perused titles, (one must develop a knack for that on this forum or you may end up reading lots of irrelevant things) and came at long last to one of interest 'Ezekwesilil calls for Fani-kayode's arrest over Hate Speech'.
Nairaland in recent times has metamorphsized into a literary canvas for a quite a number of racial bigots intent on propagating the gospel of triablism and tribal differences so it is my disposition in that space, never to read these rantings. But here were the names of two former ministers, people one might say to be of substance, so I delved in.
Only then did I become aware of an article composed by the illustrious Fani-Kayode titled "Lagos, the Igbos and servants of truth" (sic). But first I read this speech credited to Fani-kayode and to describe it plainly, my heart bled. Consequent upon that emotional state, I went looking for the article, found it and, at last, read it.
My immediate reaction was to seek out this man's facebook page and endeavour, to the best of my abilities, to respond. But I restrained myself for several reasons. One, fani-kayode by his writing depicted a depth of conviction running deeper than words, my words, may affect, he also showed himself to be a man of considerable arrogance; he desribed his article as intellectual and schorlarly and thus stated that only responses worthy of such status would he consider even to attend to. I reasoned that if, by some stroke of misunderstanding of definition or probable ingenuity yet obsfuscating to the plebians, he had described his article to be of intellect and scholarship then my response surely will be a wasted effort. Added to that was the fact that I do not bear a known name.
Secondly, a man, if prudent, must to the best of his ability, establish a store of patience as inexhaustible as his ability portends.
So by virtue of these reasons, I cancelled, before the page was opened, my facebook search for Mr Fani-Kayode.
Then all day I lapsed into thought for I was deeply disturbed. In time, I reasoned that the article would have been worth no manner of proper response had it been written by certain elements of our unique society. But this thing, was done by a man of prominence, a member of a nation with a deeply rooted respect for authority and who Is, by certain measures, an authority, one who may be assumed to be high in certain circles of the hierachy. I reasoned that he has not been openly chastised by his people for his writings (which truly are his own in a democracy), and that he was widely supported in this thing for it is known from the beginning of time that silence is a proof of acceptance.
Therefore, at the end of it all, I knew, as many wiser than I have known before this day came, that this was not a matter for the crossing of literal swords but one demanding action from the people so described.
At the end of it all, after all is said and written, it came right down to the action, the reasoned, properly considered action (not reaction) which the Igbo nation has decided to take.
For this is a matter of tribal concern, for Nigeria as a nation, in this present order of things, is a mirage.
At this realization again, permit to repeat myself, my heart bled. For I know my people, I know my origin.
The Igbo man is enterprising, it is what he is, at the very core of his nature, the source of his power under heavens, yet. I will describe him by an unusual means; there is one Arewa forum, there is one Afenifere, but in the land from which the sun rises on the nation, there are Aka ikenga, Ohaneze ndi Igbo and others in their nascent state.
That article, that despicable thing hinting on the perception of one people by another, required response from a nation. But by whose will, in the light of whose summons.
The Igbo man has no king. He has no leader, no Tinubus, no Babagindas. He does not submit his will to another unless compelled on the pain of death. His thought cannot be influenced by any scholarly writing neither is he overly stirred by passion insofar as it requires sacrifice. He is, by his very nature, individualistic, and even then, to the point where it becomes foolishness.
The sort of paradigm shift which as a matter of necessity, must happen is nearly an exercise in futility for under whose guidance will it come to pass. Is it not enough evidence of that futility that more than twenty candidates are clamoring for the seat of government in Anambra state alone?
So I asked myself; When will this end? When will there be some unity, a uniformity of purpose, a mighty voice that is the voices of millions of igbos made whole? When will we stop marginalizing ourselves for its what we do.
And from the depths of my heart the questions surged to the surface; Under what front shall the battle for a viable port come to bear fruit, the lesser allotment of national positions of authority (such as has become that it is considered a political move of some import to employ a little more Igbos than ones precedecessor and to expect praises and acknowledgement for that despite the inadequacy of such appointments in the scheme of things ) come to an end. When shall we become of one body and mind, and capable therefore, by that singular achievement, of making the hard decision necessary for tackling the origins and the manifestations of these vituperations as posed by the Fani-kayodes of Nigeria. By which means we will take what is our share and bring to an end, this despicable thing. Can Anambra not be a nerve center of diverse commerce with a port in place and an international airport nearby? Rather than the market cities we have!!! Why then, with these things, should I do business in lagos, why would I come here to leave Nigeria, why should my manufacturing firms, or my companies, be situated here, why would I invest heavily in real estate. For business will be drawn to my land, there will in turn be massive development of all necessary kind, there will be jobs! And our governments will demand for special status for they will be sufficient in themselves. Then, for reasons of expansion, should I take some of my business to a place like this i will be welcomed with all warmth, and hatred shall have no reason to come into play

Again I reasoned; These things can be. But will they? Will we facilitate them? Can we let ourselves be led and can these leaders be trusted to speak for the people?
Can we begin to think of true independence (for we are enslaved; what's is our share is kept from us, consequently we are dependent on the favours of others. What more is slavery)
We, for all intents and purposes, are the vanquished.
It was clear then as always that Unity is imperative, that a change of mentality is of the utmost necessity.
Jews are back in isreal now, most of them anyway. No one will persecute them anymore. Can we not be back home? Surely we can. We simply have refused to do what must be done.
These things however, we must do should we desire an ending to that we pass through.
And these men who claim to be our leaders, these greedy, conniving syncophants, these myopic non entities, these disgusting men and women of terrible dispositions, devoid of any initiative and dignity, these short sellers. These men and women who has made us pawns in their games and play these games at the price of our future and the future of our children, Heed!, change may yet come!