We have come a long way as a nation, enduring the many challenges of nationhood, and continously living in hope that some day, somehow, the land of our birth, would one day, become the envy of the nations.
But, there's always that moment of truth in one's life, that moment where you have to reflect, to tell yourself the truth, and come to terms with reality.
I love Nigeria with a passion, and believe most of you reading this, actually do feel the same way. But the time to play blind love is long past. Even revered catholic bishop, Matthew Kukah, said Nigeria is no longer a country worth dying for.
In his own words he said, “Our nation is like a ship stranded on the high seas, rudderless and with broken navigational aids.”
“Today, our years of hypocrisy, duplicity, fabricated integrity, false piety, empty morality, fraud and Pharisaism have caught up with us.
“Nigeria is on the crossroads and its future hangs precariously in a balance. It is at a point where we must call for a verdict. There must be something that a man, nay, a nation should be ready to die for. Sadly, or even tragically, today, Nigeria, does not possess that set of goals or values for which any sane citizen is prepared to die for.”
To better paint the picture of the troubles of trying to make Nigeria work, he added, “We have practiced madness for too long. Our attempt to build a nation has become like the agony of Sisyphus who angered the gods and had to endure the frustration of rolling a stone up the mountain.
“Each time he got near the top, the gods would tip the stone back and he would go back to start all over again. What has befallen our nation? Nigeria needs to pause for a moment and think."
That moment of 'thinking', is actually the moment of truth I pointed out earlier, in this troubling piece of article. It is worth nothing that this same Kukah, drew the ire of the North while fighting for a better Nigeria, in a Christmas day criticism of the Buhari administration.
I could not keep count of the number of times I've heard the words "Nigeria is a failed nation." This very words have reverberated all across the country even from the very North, that fought tooth and nail to deny Jonathan a second term, back in 2015.
A failed nation is simply that which is not working for the majority of the people. If voices from the North also describe the country as a "failed nation", it then all but confirms that the four regions in the country have accepted reality, that the country, indeed, is not working.
If so, why then, do people who demand for a change, or criticize government, end up being on DSS's 'WANTED' list? Why is it difficult to quit the continuous patchworks and do the needful, by either revisiting Jonathan's 2014 confab report, or better still, hold a new one in view of the current realities facing the country? Or if going our separate ways would do the trick, why not?
But seriously, why would anyone oppose fixing something that's not working? Unless a certain region or class of people are benefiting from the nation's struggles, surely?
Addressing Nigeria's problems would take something extraordinary. What is going on right now is like trying to make something unworkable, work. In the end we all suffer, I mean we the poor majority, for only God knows how long.
There is more than enough reason for Nigeria to have taken a serious look at itself and say, "Ok everyone, the thing is not working, let's give another national conference a try, implement its resolutions, and see where we go from here."
We need a holistic and pragmatic approach toward fixing our unity crisis. But we are far far from getting it right.
Just take a look at the latest nonsense going on in the country, I mean the tit for tat approach to fixing our unity crisis.
Some weeks ago, a former presidential aspirant, Adamu Garba, highlighted what he says are the many advantages the North has over the South, and concluded that if the North were to harness its full potential, the South would stop bragging about its oil, and would realize that it needed the North more than the North needed it.
Garba's thesis, came following the week long ultimatum given to herdsmen to vacate Ondo forests by Governor Rotimi Akeredolu, back in February.
The move by the Governor which is said to be targeted at herdsmen accused of committing crimes in the State, attracted praises from the South, but fury from the North.
Now, the North is blocking food distribution to the South as a retaliation for persecuting Fulani in the South. In turn, the South is also threatening to block oil supply to the North. Now that's a great way to fix the country isn't it?
Or could it be that the North is carrying out a huge experiment to see how each region could survive on its own should a disintegration happen?
Reports already claimed there's already a food crisis in the South. Too soon isn't it? So the North is now happy that it's experiment is working impressively well right? And could be used as a way to inflict damage on the south should they continue to rebel against Northern powers right? Oh well.
By the way, where is Buhari?