The Republic of Suffering and Smiling: Nigerians Biggest Virtue ( An independence day reflection

By Soibi Ransom

We are here again for another 1st October Independence day Celebration as Nigeria our dear nation is a year older, We have had 57 years of existence and one with good and bad experiences, positives and negatives and hope for a better Nation.

Nigeria since its independence has carved a reputation for virtue and vices. We became the first African Nation to win the gold medal in Olympics soccer in 1996.
We have once been the greatest exporters of crude oil in Africa, we have once been voted the most religious country in the world. We have had Nigerians break world records in Literature, sports, computers, medicine and lest I forget we are also the most populous country in Africa. In fact statistics has it that one out of every five Africans are Nigerians.
On the negative end we are viewed by the elite countries as one with one of the most corrupt leadership in the world and in 2006 were even listed by a foreign survey as No.2 in the most corrupt countries in the world. Our wastefulness as a country is well documented as well as our great level of impunity. In 2009 we were shortlisted as a terrorist nation when Nigerian born Umar Faruk was caught with an explosive trying to bomb a plane heading from Amsterdam to Detroit. Many prisons overseas are filled with Nigerians and some countries have said they would not easily grant us Visas because of our level of dubiousness and financial fraud. The world however pays more attention to our negatives of being corrupt, fraudsters, wasteful, terrorist and all of them but our virtue and attitude of endurance and forbearance is ignored and downplayed. It is what afro beat legend Fela Kuti was referring to in his song '' Suffering and smiling'' where people who should be disturbed and unhappy over difficulties or people who are in pain would ordinarily strive to change it will rather find a way to bear it than Change it.

From our conception as a nation and as a republic we have faced so many challenges, most of which have been leadership centered challenges. We have had coups, counter coups, blood baths, spats and ethnic and religious confrontations, we have had an economy of the rich to enrich the rich and enslave the poor, we have had a country of a high level of nepotism from one tribe, a country of marginalisation, a country of hunger, suffering , poverty, desolation and low standard of living. We have had a government of looters, who embezzle the Nation, build mansions in their villages, send their children overseas, treat their families in the best of foreign hospitals. We have had security agencies who overlook justice, punish the innocent and set free the guilty. We have had a country that has moved a step forward today and three steps back ward the next day but yet we have totally endured. We have had a country whose main export petrol is scarce to its own citizens such that its citizens queue and sleep all night in fuel stations to buy that which they sell to other countries in large amounts. A country whose citizens buy petrol at a high price, kerosene which is mainly used by the poor at an outrageous price. Most often in the country we look at the short term benefits of what we do and suffer long term consequences, whether it is during our elections or selection as it sometimes is, we have always preferred to take a few bucks and install the man who will ruin us further and make us poorer rather that be patriots of the country we own. If there is one thing our leaders have understood it is that no matter how bad it goes, the masses will find a way to adapt even if it means feeding once a day, living under a bridge, stealing to survive, it doesn't bother them. That the cost of an egg is now N50 or a hungry man size indomie noodle which used to be sold at N100 is now N150 and the common man bread has now skyrocketted to N80 from N50. Nigerians will first shout, do their initial '' gra-gra'' after some months we will begin to enjoy our suffering like it is a step of progress. We have had religious institutions and heads who rather than speak out and confront these looters, will pocket their own share turn around and preach '' my economy is not of this world'' . We often tell ourselves it will be fine, it will get better, we preach it, we add In Jesus name, in Allah's name but we never work towards fixing it. We rather than solve our problems find a way to diminish it, undermine it and make it look like it isn't a big deal when really it is and we really should be fighting to solve it. When we hear foreign nations call us corrupt, we get upset and in defiance we say '' Corruption is everywhere'' We are the architects of our own condition, like Fela Kuti said further in his remarkable song '' If you are suffering, blame yourself'' .Yes Nigerians blame yourself, not just your leaders because you put them there, you instilled them with such wealth, affluence, power, command and yet you let them trample upon your rights and benefits like a worthless creature, you choose to be a peanut eater rather than a bread maker. You have adopted the attitude of suffering and smiling rather than the attitude of expecting good governance from them or at least character and progress. We keep lying to ourselves, to our citizens, to our congregation that all will be fine rather than face what is making it difficult and change it. You cannot change what you tolerate.

God will never change Nigeria for us if we don't decide to change it. As long as we keep letting the leadership get away with fraud and looting and not confront those who we elected, who have nothing to show forth in their duties but personal cars, jeweleries, houses and a fat bank accounts, we will be wretches, rats and roaches. We must accept our duties and make the country better. We are not supposed to be sufferers with the resources we have in place. Every man in this nation should own a house, earn a good pay no matter what we do as work. That a graduate will earn N30,000 a month when his years rent is N200,000 is unbelievable. That we have a high level of poverty in this nation especially the North that has held power for four decades shows the extent of our forbearance attitude. That does who loot us dry in the name of politicians walk about with a free mind and a lack of duty to us tells a lot. That our country lacks good health care services and this has led to the death of many of our relatives, friends and well wishers. That we have been so much oppressed by the powerful and we squeeze in busses without a good ventilation system to move from place to place is unheard of. The typical Nigerian wants to smile with his pain expecting the smile to remove the pain rather than change the circumstance that leads to such pain. If the world had given us a reputation of fraudsters, wasters and never do wells, its time they changed that as even our coat of arms which says Peace and Unity doesn't reflect that we are united rather '' Masters of Suffering and smiling''. So my dear Nigerians , you are welcome to Nigeria, the republic of suffering and smiling''.

( This article is not aimed at any tribe but rather a general wake up call for all

As sad as it is, it is true.