Nigeria, which became a sovereign nation-state in 1960, stands on the three legs of a tripod, namely Igbo, Yoruba, and the Hausa/Fulani. She is a nation of nations, what with the more than 250 ethnic and linguistic groups that make up Nigeria. And it is said that one out of every five black persons on earth is a Nigerian. Today, the population of Nigeria is put at about 250 million people.
In addition to her possession of ethnic and religious diversities and immense human resources, Nigeria is blessed with abundant natural resources. Beneath Nigeria’s large expanse of land lie such natural resources as kaolin, limestone, bauxite, tin-ore, coal, crude-oil, and others. Nigeria has many waters, namely rivers, ponds, lakes, and seas. And they are incentives to our practice of mechanized agriculture.
But for all our immense human and material resources, Nigeria still brings up the rear on the ladder of global development. So why is Nigeria, a well-endowed country, still trapped in the cocoon of economic and technological backwardness? The chief reason for Nigeria’s low-level of economic and technological advancement is not far-fetched. In fact, it is obvious to us.
The fact is that we have not got it right, politically since we became a politically independent country in 1960. Is there not a nexus between good political leadership and national development? The answer to this question is an emphatic yes.
The first-world countries that are economically and technologically developed have good political leaderships. Think about America, Great Britain, Canada, Germany, France, Japan, and others. In those countries, if there is decline in the quality of education obtainable in their schools, and if they’re experiencing economic downturn, the citizens will hold their leaders accountable. And since the ultimate sovereignty rests with the people, they will vote out those bad political leaders during periodic elections.
But back home in Nigeria, our political recruitment processes are hinged on the culture of imposition of leaders on the populace. And the factors of ethnicity and religion play a major role in the emergence of national leaders in Nigeria. So Alhaji Tafawa Balewa, Alhaji Shehu Shagari, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar’adua, and Dr. Goodluck Jonathan became our national leaders at different periods in our democratic experience, not based on their leadership competence, but based on our egregious variant of democratic culture called the imposition of leaders on the populace.
Consequently, Nigeria is mired in the mud of economic stagnation and caught in the quagmire of technological backwardness. That is why Malaysia whose leaders took palm tree seedlings from Nigeria in the 1960s has overtaken Nigeria in all facets of national development. And countries, which are less endowed than Nigeria, as to human and material resources, have outpaced Nigeria, economically and technologically.
We are not unaware that it is only visionary and conscientious political leaders that can imagine and envision the type of countries they want. And they will work assidously, conscientiously, and patriotically to achieve their lofty dreams about their countries.
Let us take a look at Singapore whose national leader, Lee Kuan Yew, revolutionized his country through the execution of pragmatic economic and political policies. And Chairman Mao Tse Tung of China laid the groundwork and framework for the development of China through his copious writings, which spelt out his ideologies.
But it is saddening that since the demise of such erudite first republic politicians as Mokwugo Okoye, Osita Agwuna, Obafemi Awolowo, Mathew Mbu, Nnamdi Azikiwe, Tafawa Balewa, and others, our political arena has been filled with jesters, clowns, knaves, and philistines, who do not evince tendencies towards embracing politics of ideologies. Rather, we have political leaders, who are ethnic chauvinists and religious bigots. And they perceive their occupation of exalted political offices as ample opportunities to loot our national treasury.
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Consequently, today, Nigeria is slipping into a dystopian state. Bandits, insurgents, and terrorists roam freely in different parts of Nigeria, kidnapping rich people for ransom and killing other people to achieve their sinister religious and ethnic goals. And the naira, which has depreciated in value enormously, is weak against the dollar. That is an indication that our economy is distressed. Are millions of Nigerians not living below the breadline in today’s Nigeria?
Nigeria, as it is today, needs reimagining and remaking so as to place it on the path of national development. But only a visionary and competent political leadership can revamp our comatose economy, ignite our country’s industrialization, and jumpstart our technological innovation and development.
But some of those jostling for the topmost political job in Nigeria are flaunting only their ethnic origins, religious faiths, and past lackluster leadership scorecards. They are destitute of probity, fealty, leadership qualities, political ideologies, and forbearance.
But at this critical juncture in Nigeria’s political odyssey, Nigeria needs a president, who possesses leadership qualities, fealty, knowledge, and pan-Nigerian dreams and visions. Such a president as we need must be knowledgeable and well-acquainted with our national problems in order that he can solve our multifarious national problems and harness our immense human and material resources to drive our developmental initiatives.
And Nigeria, which is divided along ethnic and religious lines, does not need a president, who will pander to ethnic and religious sentiments. Nigerians are yearning for a president, who will perceive the entire country as his constituency and execute measures to disabuse the minds of some Nigerians of the feelings and thoughts that they are being marginalized.
So it behooves us to be circumspect when we are choosing our president. We should not consider the factors of religion and ethnicity when casting our votes in the presidential election. Rather, we should cast our votes for a presidential candidate who is competent, patriotic, healthy, knowledgeable, honest, and scrupulous.
Okoye, a social networking commentator, writes from Uruowulu-Obosi, Anambra State
