Nigeria, a sub-Saharan african country with an estimated population of 200 million people. The reason for the astronomical rise in population figures is not farfetched as Nigeria’s revenue sharing formula is based on population, land mass and other criterion. There is every motivation to inflate population figures so as to get more money from the federation account.

This goes to show the level of decadence in the leadership of the country as people who are poor in duty, value, character, empathy amazingly find themselves in the corridors of power.

In 2018 Nigeria had a Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of $2,028, and currently plagued with the ravaging Corona virus pandemic, political instability, strained economy, and with a large section of her citizens living in extreme poverty based on a World Bank report. So far Nigeria is struggling to keep up with the infectious disease pandemic outbreak as most hospitals are over stressed, poorly equipped, under staffed as a result of brain drain and also the health sector has been poorly funded over the years by past and present administrations due to frequent medical tourisms . The pandemic has so far exposed the ineptitude of our health care system in Nigeria as the Nation is yet to increase her Covid-19 testing capacity like some of her African counterparts who have improved theirs.
Past and present leaders have been tasked with the need to improve the ailing health sector and to diversify our economy from over reliance on crude oil. A mono cultural economy depending on crude oil is regarded as most unstable, assailable and susceptible in the world due to its volatility and persistent dwindling fortunes. Added to this problem is the demand for palliatives on the part of the citizens from the government to cushion the hardship faced.

The pandemic seems to have erased all ideas from the leadership class which makes it safe to posit that Nigeria is fleeced and bereft of a determined leadership class that is capable of coming out with a national blue print for development. At best Nigeria continues to live to fight another day. But for how long can the citizens put up with a defeatist mentality on the part of the leaders who continue to play it safe every time.

Nations of the world thrive because they are successful at doing one or two things well for a long time; Russia and North Korea for instance have been successful in wading off external aggression , USA have been successful at delivering prosperity. But when it gets to Nigeria, citizens cannot pin point a single thing that has been done very well, except when it is in the negative. This has led to the questioning of Nigerian unity which has been left hanging by a thread as the incompetence of the leadership class and the Nigerian state undermines the case for Nigerian unity

The Chinese regardless of the communist and authoritarian conditions they have been faced with seems to have endured it peacefully because they have watched their country move from a 3rd world nation to an industrialized society with state of the art technology and infrastructure. This underpins the tenets of social contract theory; which emphasizes the leaders existence as a result of the people but the reverse seems to be the case in Nigeria as the followers serve the interest of the leaders. In the face of Covid-19 pandemic citizens have been left to fend for themselves as they have always done since the inception of the entity called Nigeria.

Poverty ravages the land leaving people vulnerable. Policies made by the government are often done without the citizens input which makes it anti-people before being enacted. The minimum wage in Nigeria is a clear example; thirty thousand naira is adjudged to be a reasonable amount for the workers, yet the monthly allowance of a senator is 13.5 million naira. This is mind boggling and makes a strong case for the violation of citizen’s mental rights.

In saner climes of the world, policies and programmes that are people friendly are formulated and implemented to assuage the effect of the pandemic on her citizens but in Nigeria the government continues to solicit private partnership and support without adding value to them in return. Nigerian leadership class could be likened to as a “fair weather friend” who shows up when she is in dire need and disappears once things get rosy. Palliatives are being shared but majority of the citizens are yet to receive anything still they are advised to pay their taxes. Why pay a tax to a government who cannot come to the aid of her citizen in in the face of a pandemic?.

The Nigerian political elite must retrace their steps back to the old idea of social contract and be accountable to the people’s needs and demands whilst also creating an enabling environment for all to thrive. Incompetent leaders and lopsided policies cannot lead to a blessed nation even if it is a fairy tale nation. Policies must be tailored and structured based on citizen’s demands.

Citizens must also stop acting all resilient and unfazed but rather push to obtain better by demanding for improved leadership, better service delivery, good governance and a crop of leaders who will not only tell but show.

RealUncleJohn:


Citizens must also stop acting all resilient and unfazed but rather push to obtain better by demanding for improved leadership, better service delivery, good governance and a crop of leaders who will not only tell but show.

This is very true, as soon as you complain and demand accountability, fellow Nigerians say with resigned defeat "This is how it will always be, just look for a way to survive".

Many successful countries today had to fight for their freedom. All these successful countries were corrupt and to some extent are still corrupt today but their citizens demand accountability and have their say. If their Government fails, they simply vote them off in the next election. In Nigeria, many Nigerian citizens are wooed during the election campaign by fake promises, bags of rice/beans and 5000 naira. I don't know if Nigeria is even ready to overcome and prosper as a functioning Country.