By Kayode Emola
A few years ago, the British people voted to leave the European Union (EU). This was predicated on the promise that so doing would allow them to take back control of their lives and destiny. Several politicians promulgating the “Vote Leave” campaign produced a number of catchy slogans to persuade people against remaining in the EU. I believe that now, with the benefit of hindsight, many people would have preferred that professionals had carried out a detailed study of the situation and publicly explained the results, before the matter was put to a vote.
Had it been done this way, it would have ensured that people were voting from the position of knowledge, rather one of sentiment. It is sad that this is what politics has become, where the common man cannot decipher between a genuine politician with their constituents’ best interests at heart, from those who want the position merely to bolster their ego.
Just as Britons were seduced by the catchy phrases into leaving the EU; so also were Nigerians cajoled in 2015 into voting for the Buhari administration by the promise of change within the country for good. With a few weeks remaining in the Buhari-led administration, I do not believe that his change mantra has brought any good to the average Nigerian who is now poorer as a result of bad policies implemented by the Buhari government.
Not only did Buhari trash the economy and quadruple the exchange rate from $1 – N135 to $1 – $780 within 8 years. He made living in Nigeria unbearable for everyone with his open invitation of foreign Fulani militias who terrorise the populace from north to south threatening the peace and tranquillity of the country. If only slogan translated to real development, then Nigeria should be a better country after the 8 years of Buhari but alas, we are now the poverty capital of the world despite our humongous human and mineral resources.
With the new administration of Tinubu promising to continue on the failed legacy of Buhari, one should not wonder why the political atmosphere of Nigeria feels somber. Many youths disillusioned about their future now seek a better life outside the shores of Nigeria. The situation is so dire that an average Nigerian no longer sees a future for the country but now seeks to emigrate as a means of escaping the hard life Nigeria dishes out on a daily basis.
Many people who use to be proud Nigerians and are willing to sacrifice their all for the betterment of their country no longer see Nigeria as a country to live in. The truth is that Nigeria was not as bad as this when Britain left the affairs to its people to manage in the 1960s. In fact, a former Head of State Yakubu Gowon in the early years of Nigeria’s independence was quoted as saying the problem with Nigeria is not how to make money but how to spend it.
If we were making lots of money in the 1960s what has happened to us as a people 60 years down the line into the 21st century with all the sophistication that computer has brought to the world. Were we so careless or carefree that our people are now poorer than the proverbial church mouse? Or is it that we are a people given to greed that has allowed our politicians to steal from the people blindly without any sense of duty.
Our people must realise that Nigeria as an entity is no longer a viable project. It is riddled with corruption in every sector that nothing can be done without the ‘C’ word. If that be the case, one would wonder if the people are under a spell to continue in a system that has trapped them in perpetual poverty and no way of escape.
One would have expected that a nation of over 200 million people will have courageous people who can help salvage it from the doldrums of destruction. Yet, it seems the sleeping giant may have been dead a long time ago without the people realising it. Nigerians, Africans and indeed the world are just marking time for a giant that will never wake up. Those who are courageous to fight for justice are either all dead or are now part of the slogan branding arena promising the people false hope that would never materialise.
If Nigeria exists all but in name only, then I do not see a reason why many Yoruba people still believe that they can change the country. After all, we’ve been in the country for more than 60 years after Britain left, why have we not succeeded in changing it for the better by now? Why are we poorer than when the British colonial government left? All these are questions begging for genuine answers and not any slogan of hope that would not come.
The time is now for the Yoruba people to take their destiny into their own hands and sever ties with Nigeria. We do not need another decade of hopelessness before we make our minds up. Nothing great can ever come out of Nigeria for its leaders are hell-bent on destroying the good fortunes of the country.
We will therefore be doing ourselves and our children a disservice if we continue to pretend that all will be well one day only if we persevere. The time is now for the Yoruba people to come together and make a strong demand to exit Nigeria. This will save our children a lot of headaches in the future as they will be living in a Yoruba country where peace and justice will reign.
