A CASE FOR THE NIGERIAN SOCIETY BY ENYINNA ISAAC JOSEPH
Though very young, I have seen and though very small I have come to know that Nigerians and everything Nigeria is as a product of its society.
As Nigerian, we are used to and very common with the habit of blaming one another for the deficiency in our society today and with much ado pointing almost all the fingers to the government of the day as the sole perpetrators of the deficiency of the society.
The Nigerian society is filled with so much discontent not just because of its deficiencies in infrastructural development, economic growth and unemployment but also because of its diverse creativity by its citizens in the same area where it is most deficientthus the longing for the nation to do more, to be better and to be self sufficient.
Diverse in ethnicity, religion and tradition but yet very little impact of human and natural resources can be seen for such a country blessed with many God given human and natural resources because of its failure to use its diverse resources or because of its failure to actualize or aid the actualization the full potentials of it human and natural resources.
These and many other vices have turn the Nigerian society to a place of ethnic, religious and traditional division.
Today the Nigerian society has become a decay of itself bothering on the lack of men and women who are ready to sacrifice themselves for the sole good of a greater Nigeria rather would prefer to sell their right and join in the ruin of what is suppose to be a great nation and if you ask, all you will get is "I NO COME THIS LIFE COME SUFFER" and I ask myself if you are not ready to suffer now for the good of tomorrow, who then will bear your cross?
These are common questions I ask myself everyday as a concerned Nigerian:
WHAT WOULD BECOME OF THE NIGERIAN SOCIETY AND THE NIGERIAN NATION IF WE KEEP LIVING FOR OURSELVES?
WHERE ARE WE HEADED AS A NATION?
WHERE DID WE GET IT WRONG AND WHERE AND WHWN DO WE START TO CORRECT IT?
These are only but a few questions that has pricked my young mind; I know many have asked these questions and many more are willing to ask and thus I want to give my thoughts on these questions.
I want to start from the main areas of our problem or what we would say are the main areas of our problem.
THE GOVERNMENT (THE SOCIETY)
While very few Nigerians will tell you it has once had good governance and a better taste of democracy, almost all Nigerians will also tell you how it has had a bad governance since independence and thus have not or never taste the dividends of democracy.
No doubt the Nigerian state have had the worst government in subsequent years but still, they have also been better in their own way.
Thus the reason while our government is also considered to be one and major perpetrators of the deficiency in the society today being that the government is also regarded as the society.
Well some of the facts that have supported this factors is because our successive governments tends to put party and ethnicity, religion and tradition above all else thus the decay in our society and successive governments.
But what we also as a people fail to realise is that even our government whether past or present and future is made out of our society where division in ethnicity, religion or tradition has been the order of the day and thus they rule and govern in such sentiment.
Our government (society) have failed because we as a people have failed; our government (society) have failed because the smallest institution (family) put in place by God to question correct the activity of the society have failed to take responsibility or be responsible in laying not just a good but also a solid foundation for their children so that when they are either in the society, government or in the helm of affairs tomorrow, they will do the right thing and not put ethnicity, religion and tradition above all else.
Our government (society) have failed because we all have chosen to sell our right and or do the right thing and refusing to hold anyone accountable for their actions, contributions and role in the Nigerian Society.
These and many more has put Nigeria as a country with many or nothing to show for; a country with many or nothing to talk of; a shame of itself because it has failed to harness its diverse glory both in ethnicity, religion, tradition, human and natural resources.
We talk of how corrupted the government is and fail to talk of how corrupted our society is; we talk of how ineffective and irresponsible the government have been and fail to see how ineffective and irresponsible our society have been because even the government whether past or present and future is made out of our society where division in ethnicity, religion or tradition has been the order of the day and thus they rule and govern in such sentiment and thus as a people of the poor Nigerian state, we have brought more decay to it and our society than good.
THE NIGERIAN HOME (THE FAMILY)
This is the smallest arm of government and the smallest medium of institution divinely place by God to question the activities and correct the wrongs of the society but this have not been the case as most Nigerian parents these days are too busy to even pay the slightest attention to their child's activity or the path to which such child have taken and thus deferentiating the good from the bad and correcting the wrong of the child (the society)
We pay more attention to what we can provide for our children and not what they want, feel, see, know and hear thus have failed to give room for a better society because you and your child are the society.
Even in our homes we have failed to realise when our children are taking the wrong decisions about life and instead of correcting, we encourage them by pampering them; this is how our society has become corrupted, decayed and is a shame of itself because we as a people are corrupt, decayed and a shame of itself.
Parents these days no longer give time to the activities of their children, all they think of is how to make money because they say "THE COUNTRY IS HARD" thus they should gather enough money which will and can never be enough to fend for their families forgetting to lay not just a good but solid foundation for their children so that when they are either in the government or in the helm of affairs tomorrow, they will do the right thing and not put ethnicity, religion and tradition above all else thus they have brought more decay to the Nigerian society.
OUR EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS (EDUCATION)
Many of our academic institutions now pay more attention in a child's certificate and not the child's work ethics (as a matter of fact, they are ready to take bribes in other to give you a good or better certificate not merited) rather than building the child academic insights and work ethics, societal values and moral discipline.
They pay more attention on how much they would get as daily, weekly, monthly and yearly income forgetting the sensual and moral development of the child thus have aided in bringing more decay to the Nigerian society.
OUR RELIGIOUS INSTITUTION (RELIGION)
This is another divine placement by the creator to right the wrongs of the society but instead many have turned it into a means of making money, use it for discrimination and denomination.
We are more divided in our religion than we are as a person; some are more concerned with the numbers in their religion than the purpose of the religion thus bringing more decay to the Nigerian society.

THIS IS MY MY CONCLUSION:
Truth be told, the Nigeria society have not failed rather it is the people that have failed the society and so I would say that:
@60 Yes I know the government is not good but I believe it can be better;
@60 Yes I know the government have not done anything but I believe it can do something;
@60 Yes I know the government have failed but I believe it can succeed.
@60 Nigeria has not done bad to us, we have done bad to Nigeria;
@60 Nigeria have done a lot to us and we have done nothing for it;
@60 Nigeria has not failed us, we have failed Nigeria.
@60 That if only and if only we could all shawn the selfishness of ethnicity, religion and tradition and rise with the pride of NIGERIAN above all else, we can be better;
@60 That if and only if we could shawn the selfishness of making enough money which will and can never be enough to take care of our families and pay attention to our children, their activities and to not just laying a good foundation but a solid one that will make such child put NIGERIA and NIGERIAN above all else, that we will do a lot.
And that @60 if and only if we would do our part as a government (everybody playing their role and not waiting for elected officials to do it for them) then and only then Nigeria (we) will be a success.
Yes I pride myself as an Annang man;Yes I pride myself as an Essien Udim man
And yes pride myself as an Akwa Ibom man
But above all, I pride myself as a NIGERIAN.
GOD BLESS THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA.
Enyinna Isaac Joseph
A concerned citizen
Writes from Port Harcourt, Rivers State Nigeria.
Facebook: Isaac Joseph
Contact: +2348097197432[color=#006600][/color]

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NIGERIA CAN BE BETTER IF ONLY WE CAN ALL WORK TOGETHER TO ACHIEVE IT.