Dr UCHE DIALA
True Heros Like Saints Are Often Recognised, Appreciated and Canonised Long After They Are Gone.
I have no doubt whatsoever that many Nigerians will only come to appreciate the transformational work President Buhari is doing for Nigeria after he has left office; maybe long after. My only pain is I wish more of us Nigerians understood and supported today. It would have made our journey to renaissance faster, easier and sweeter.
Indeed even in enclaves like the South East where I come from where many have baselessly assumed Buhari is their worst enemy, time will prove to them that indeed he is by miles a better friend than many we called friends. Whether in the area of infrastructural development or human capital development; even in the area of the much touted insecurity, especially in ‘saving’ us from what would have been the worst consequences of the misadventure by Nnamdi Kanu who misappropriated our collective Biafran heritage and franchise, feeding on the trite emotional and sentimental attachment of every Igbo man to that heritage.
A heritage which has since been confined to a thing of the mind as admonished and practically exemplified by Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, who in paying full and unalloyed loyalty to the Nigerian state, long after the Nigerian Civil War which he led on the Biafran side; with benefit of hindsight, age and wisdom; after deep meditation and introspection said Biafra is now a thing of the mind. “We fought the first war, we do not need to fight a second war”.
This might sound very wierd, even annoying or provocative to many today because emotions have clouded the reasoning of many and many have been sold a different or altered history and indeed badly brain washed but the passage of time brings along with it, clarity, reason and understanding. Only the visionary and free minded can fathom tomorrow from today.
For instance I have asked the question on several South East platforms: “For all the hate we say Buhari has for the South East (Igbos), even for the ‘little’ he has done, has he not done more for the South East in the area of infrastructure in 7 years than did other Nigerian leaders mostly of the PDP stock for the South East in 16 years (1999 – 2015) combined”?
No one has been able to answer this straightforward question. Perhaps because the answer is too obvious but providing that answer would belie all that many concerned have erroneously and hastily convinced themselves to believe about the man Buhari.
However that is not the focus of this submission.
I hear and read talk of things are bad, hunger, no food and all that. While I have exactly no beef with those; indeed I am victim of those too, I wonder if many of us Nigerians understand what makes a nation truly great, in deed, not in words. While I understand the basic needs of man which include food, I also understand that no nation can feed its citizens simply by providing food for them or sharing food rations. Food is provided by the policies and programs that the nation forges, executes and implements which make it possible for its citizens to have decent jobs and means of livelihood from which they can clothe, house and feed themselves and indeed go into farming and food production by themselves to feed themselves.
In doing that it becomes important to build relevant infrastructure that not only make life easier and meaningful but also provide employment, business opportunities for the self employed and enhance trade and services with better, faster, safer and cheaper means of movement of persons, goods and services amongst other things. Basic economics.
Sadly, Nigerians over the years, especially since the return to civilian rule in 1999 have been deceived by what is termed ‘stomach infrastructure’. That mentality suggests that somehow there is a way the government can cater for the personal needs of every citizen other than creating a fertile and conducive environment for them to thrive and achieve their individual potentials. The concept of teaching people how to catch fish which is more sustainable, rather than giving them fish.
It is this defective and lazy-politics driven orientation in my considered view that has bred and fueled the ‘in-the-now’ mentality which makes many fail to appreciate that we are not only born or duty bound to take care of ourselves in the now but to plan, prepare, preserve and provide for the future which would ensure sustenance and survival of the nation and generations to come after us.
It is this that has led many to fail to comprehend and appreciate the determination of President Buhari to focus on building a Nigeria for the future whether in the area of infrastructure like rails, roads, airports, seaports, bridges, gas pipelines, agriculture, schools, hospitals, refineries, power stations and dams to mention a few or in the area of strengthening institutions like the military, local government, legislative and judicial autonomy etc.
These are not low hanging fruits and quick fixes that the effects would be felt instantly but they are surely the ingredients that needed to be put in the soup of nation re-building for the nation to be truly worth its name, earn the respect of other nations, grow the economy, ensure sustenance for coming generations and indeed solve the problems of unemployment, food insecurity and physical insecurity that many lament about. That many Nigerians are unable to make that simple connection beats my imagination and exposes the magnitude of the problem we have on our hands of ignorance and poor citizen education and orientation.
Take the area of the Military for instance. The military of any nation is the singular parameter for the level of respect a nation has or can command. Reason why nations like the United States, Russia, Germany, United Kingdom, China to mention a few invest heavily in their military. Not just for defence or wars but for national honour, pride and for the leverage it gives them on the world stage and negotiating table. This has being the case for as long as the world has existed and has not changed neither is it about to ever change.
President Buhari as an experienced player on that stage; nationally, internationally and militarily clearly understands that and that is what has informed his determination to rebuild, re-equip, re-professionalise the Nigerian Military and by so doing restore the pride of place of the Nigerian military and by extension the long held but backsliden position of Nigeria as the nation with the most sophisticated, advanced and competent military in Africa. From procurement of new, modern, state of the art Millitary aircrafts and other assets to training and retraining of personnel, building in country or local capacity in military assets production, repair and maintenance to boosting morale of troops.
As we Igbos say ‘ahu dimkpa ahu ogwogwo imi ya’ (when you see a giant, you see his big nose). We cannot be answering the ‘Giant of Africa’ for nothing.
Some stomach infrastructure apostles and short sighted individuals might ask how does that ‘put food on the common man’s table or end the insecurity’ which has become the sing song. Well, it ought to be obvious for the wise and discerning but I will break it down. When these things are done as they are being done, in addition to ongoing efforts in the areas of infrastructure, agriculture, institutional reforms, anti corruption and actual fight against insecurity in its various forms – banditary, terrorism, secessionisim etc it all adds up to create a productive, powerful, safe, peaceful, respected and functional nation.
The ripple effect of that would be more employment opportunities, more food on the table for the common and uncommon man, improved healthcare and better quality of life and living, better economy and better value for the Naira, less motivation to take to crime and criminality which breed insecurity, improved or enhanced security with deterrents in place, more unity and collaboration amongst Nigerians, better support and cooperation from the international community and ultimately a better Nigeria for all and a more assured future for incoming generations.
One key ingredient I see missing though is the required quantum of buy in and support of Nigerian citizens. A large proportion of Nigerians do not believe we have a role to play in this nation rebuilding efforts and that sadly includes many elected and appointed public/government officials, from the local government to state to the national level. This is also where I once more fault and call out our National Orientation and National Integration. They have fallen way below standard and until and unless we deliberately rejig them, we will continue to struggle. I hope and urge the Buhari Administration to do something urgent about those two. Otherwise the task of rebuilding the nation which the President has sincerely embarked upon would continue to be challenged.
IN CONCLUSION
Incidentally, many of the gains I highlighted above like I already stated are not low hanging fruits or results that would be instantly felt. The reason many Nigerians; even well meaning Nigerians have prematurely lost faith (and I totally understand) but if there is any time that patience is a virtue, it is at this time. We often preach patience and many of us have gotten tired because of constant disappointments but the patience I preach here is anchored on the fact that for the first time in a long time, I see a Nigerian leader who is sincerely committed to actually getting things done and doing real, strategic and revolutionary things. Things that truly matter, that would transform the nation. Therefore this patience that I preach would pay off, if we could keep aside our many disappointments of the past and muster it one more time. The instant pains we all feel today will give way to gains. If we persevere.
I BELIEVE NIGERIA WILL BE GREAT AGAIN IN MY TIME WITH MY SUPPORT.
#KeepFaithAndHopeAlive
#GodBlessNigeria
@Uche Diala
druchediala@gmail.com
