NIGERIAN JOURNALISM

Journalism plays a very sensitive role in the growth and development of any nation. It is meant to serve the citizenry with the latest genuine information and has the responsibility of keeping the government of the day in check by timely reminders of the government’s promises to the electorate before and during its tenure in office. However, this has for a long period not been the case in our beloved nation.

Daily, we are served with what I would call ‘’street journalism’’. This is a system where the average Nigerian journalist is too busy to carry out investigation and research in order to present us with the issues behind the news, so he simply reports the same ‘’gist’’ we could get on the streets, as THE NEWS. They constantly feed our eyes and ears with footage of accidents and incidents that occurred several hours earlier with ‘’authentic’’ stories from eyewitnesses; who most times are so excited to even be interviewed by the media that they tend to exaggerate their observations.

Also, the Nigerian journalist or media house sees nothing unprofessional or wrong with directly lifting news reports and recordings from foreign media agencies on issues and incidences that happened in our own country. Interestingly, these Nigerian journalists have formed an unethical practice of writing up fictitious stories which defame the characters of innocent citizens for the purpose of increased sales or improved ratings. Sadly, nobody seems to call them to order or demand evidence to back their claims.

Another worrying trend is their love for the ‘’next big story’’. These journalists ferociously pounce on a big and juicy story and when Nigerians seek to arrive at the conclusion of the matter, they simply and unapologetically move on to the next big news. I often ask myself,
- Whatever happened to Clifford Orji?
- What was the resolve of the Justice Oputa panel?
- What was the outcome of Senator Obasanjo’s scandal?
- What will be the fate of the Justice Uwais electoral reform report?
- Are the assassination cases of Bola Ige, Funso Williams, and the many others closed?
Nigeria, the list is endless.

Amazingly, all these media houses consistently flaunt awards won for excellent journalism. I ask myself again, who gives these awards? What do these awards actually represent? How credible are these awards? I am yet to get the answers to these questions.

It is always easy for we Nigerians to point fingers at the government and public officers, meanwhile many of us in the private sector are also underperforming. We must begin to task ourselves, increase our professionalism and benchmark against world-class standards in all sectors if we are ever going to achieve our desired Nigeria. The government has its role and we as the people have our responsibility in creating the nation of our dreams. We must demand investigative journalism, conclusive stories, prompt reporting, genuine publications and shun all forms of mediocrity.

Please never forget this;

We need the right journalism to keep the government on the right path and to help us make the right and informed choices in life.

Thank you and God bless Nigeria.

NIGERIA, Can They Serve And Protect Us?

The English language is the adopted official language of Nigeria; most of our daily interactions and communications are expressed in this language. Therefore, any Nigerian who does not understand the fundamentals of this language could be grossly misleading and frustrating in an attempt to achieve mutual comprehension. This is simply because he definitely cannot grasp what is said to him, thus, making it impossible for him to offer the required answers. This is known as ineffective communication or no communication.

Communication is said to be the basis for all human relationships and in Nigeria the English language is key for this to work. If this is true, why has this vital requirement been waived in many sectors when recruiting staff? One of the worst places this trend could be observed is in the area of our national security; that is, in recruiting new police officers. This is what makes communication with the average Nigerian police officer using the English language seem like an arduous task. The average Nigerian police officer most times would want to fulfil his sworn oath; that is to serve and protect lives and property but he just cannot. This inadequacy led me to write this piece, asking the following questions;

How can the officer serve my needs, if I cannot make my needs known to him? How can the officer protect my life and property, if I cannot effectively communicate my dangers and fears to him? How can the officer read me my rights, when reading, is a great challenge for him? How can he correctly check my papers or documents, when he can hardly identify any of the written words? Lastly, how would this officer discern my balderdash spoken to him even when I am at fault and not misjudge it for ‘’big grammar’’ by a dignified Nigerian citizen?

For the above questions, I beg that we the people of this nation cry out with the same passion or even greater than the one we’ve used in condemning the corrupt practises of the police force for the continuous education and training of our police personnel. We should call for higher and stricter screening standards in recruiting these officers.

This is a change we must fight for now as a united voice because if we truly seek a greater Nigeria, these officers must be taught how to properly serve and protect us. We need a police force that will measure up to the inevitable coming change. NOW is the time to ACT.

Thank you and God bless Nigeria.

WIN BACK THE YOUTHS!

Since the beginning of the Democratic dispensation in Nigeria, 1999 to be precise, we as Nigerians have had to deal with issues like Election Rigging, Politically motivated violence, Abuse of Power- in the area of embezzlement, corruption and misuse of public funds, selective passage of Bills with Bills that are priority on the minds of Nigerians being avoided e.g. F.O.I. bill, A slow pace in growth and development in comparison with the wealth and capabilities available to the country, just to mention a few.

These things have come, not entirely as a result of bad governance, but a definite major causative effect. Bad governance has risen because the right people have not been put in the right places. Men have seized the Reigns of power either by force or by Financial Capital base with the youths been used as the instruments by which they do their "thing". Now, the question on my mind has been that if these youths had not succumbed to their requests and demands, will these men have succeeded in their plan? the answer is no. Lets take a look at what is happening in Iran today, the youths, University students, began the protest against what they felt was political injustice and Election Rigging and now the entire populace is behind them, calling for a cancellation of the elections in the face of brutality.

In America, it was said that Obama won the elections because of the massive turn out by the youths and the African-Americans who were driven out by the young African-Americans ( P.Diddy, Usher, and the likes with their "Vote or Die" campaigns ). This has not been the case in Nigeria, we have sat and watched as our right to appoint a leader of our choice has been trampled upon with the youths yet again used as the weapon. This tells us that without the youths of a nation agreeing to what is happening in that Nation, that which is happening or about to happen will not stand. So, i dare to say that the situation that we face today in this Country is as a result of the agreement of we the youths ( note, doing nothing is tantamount to agreement), no 40 or 45 year old man with a wife and many kids will rise up and start snatching ballot boxes from the watch of able bodied 30 year old's who are in a ratio of 5:1 with him. All i am trying to say is that the future of Nigeria depends on we the youths, what or who we stand for or against.

We need to win back those youths who have lost hope in the Nigeria we envision and have resulted to submitting themselves to be used as puppets in the further destruction of our Country. We need to rise and take up the reigns of power that rightly belongs to the people. We need to win back the Youths!

By: Femi Olaoye

PURGING OUR SYSTEM

So many times we hear people utter statements like, ‘’if only we had better leaders’’ or ‘’this government is so corrupt’’ or ‘’our rulers are very wicked’’ and so on. Such statements litter our media, our streets and our market places. Taking a deeper look at the Nigerian plight I could arrive at only one conclusion; that is since the government is not made up of foreigners but Nigerians like you and me, then our leaders must be products of a prevailing system in the country. Permit me to say that this system gave birth to most of us also and if the opportunity were to present itself we might walk the same paths as our present leaders.

Every Nigerian is born into this system. It is a system that makes us believe that what is available is not enough to go round so we automatically become defensive, untrusting, discriminating, breeders of unhealthy rivalry. It is a system that preaches transparency but openly celebrates corruption. It is a system that speaks of fairness and equal rights but upholds only favourable judicial rulings and enforces selective discipline. It is a system that teaches the dignity of labour but underpays and sometimes fails to pay the salaries of those who dedicate their hours and energy to produce the nation’s wealth. It also falls short on the payment of the pensions of the retired workers who served this nation wholeheartedly through their active years giving room for regrets and heaping of curses on a nation they worked hard and sweated to build. It is a system that preaches selfless service but rewards excessively the few elected and appointed “servants” and spreads the remnants amongst the rest of the country. Sadly, this is the system in which we were brought up.

Many Nigerians have come to hate this system, and rightly so. We clamour for a change but hate; our hate has not enough of a will to change this world. The change we seek as a people must be founded on love; our love for Nigeria. We, the people must initiate this change. If we seek a new Nigeria then we must be ready, indeed willing to purge out this system and deliberately take into ourselves the ideals that shall produce in us a new way of life, a new way of thinking, a new Nigerian system.

A new system established on unchanging principles such as trust, fairness, equity, oneness, empathy, service and justice. It is a system that thrives on patriotism and where each Nigerian is held accountable for his actions or inactions. It is a system where Nigerians are taught to become responsible for fellow Nigerians. It is a system that fuels a culture of doing the right thing because it is the right thing to be done not only when it is convenient or profitable. It is a system that programs the young Nigerian child to know he has something good and valuable to offer his generation and helps him develop his potential. It is a system where every Nigerian is given equal opportunity to benefit and contribute to the growth and development of the nation. It is a new era which overwhelmingly shows that the only things that bind us as a nation are FREEDOM, PEACE and UNITY.

This shift from the old to the new way of living is the process that will birth the NEW NIGERIA which we all desire. The journey ahead will be tough and long, full of obstacles and resistance but I am certain that our commitment to change and our love for a better Nigeria for the coming generations is stronger and greater than any challenge we may face. It is time to arise and pull down the old order by erecting the new.

Please never forget this;
The change we long for is not in any government or leader; they come and go but Nigeria remains. This change is us; you and me. It is in us, by us, through us, and is now upon us; we the beautiful people of this blessed land, Nigeria.

Thank you and God bless Nigeria.

The National Union of Nigerians

Over the years we have observed the power in unity harnessed by certain unions and organisations against an unfavourable policy or action by the government in power infringing on their rights as Nigerian citizens. Examples of such groups are; Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT), Tanker Drivers Association, Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and so on. These groups have fought the government several times and sometimes gotten to their way. These victories prove to us that power actually belongs to the people if they demand it and not in the hands of the government as some would have us believe. However, many of these fights were triggered by a decision of the government affecting an interest of the group and not by the group seeking out better policies and laws for its existence. They fought events and incidences but not VALUES and ISSUES.

I believe it is time we; you and me, unite against issues and values which hinder the growth we seek for our nation. We must become the ‘National Union of Nigerians’ to fight against vices that have plagued our nation for so long. If we must down our tools once more as a nation, let it be for national causes like;

- Seeking better funding for our education and health sectors and not leaving the fight to the NUT and NMA alone. It is our collective future as a people at stake,

- Adopting probe reports and recommendations that we deem to be in the nation’s interest. An example of this for many Nigerians is the Justice Uwais electoral reform report,

- Enacting laws that abolish barbaric and inhuman traditions still observed in some parts of our nation. An example is the manner in which widows and the fatherless are treated by a certain culture in Nigeria. Some say it is a tradition but they are so quick to forget the exploits of Mary Slessor who spoke against the slaughtering of twin babies which also was a tradition,

- Demanding the resignation of certain political officers or appointees who we see as lacking integrity or appropriate qualifications. An example could be the present boss of our electoral body.

I could go on and on but I think the message has been passed. I often ask myself, ‘’what if the people of Nigeria had downed tools to see their mandate fulfilled in the election of June 12, 1993?’’ That is history now; we have present causes to fight and win, and WIN WE MUST. We have united in the past as individual groups for our own interests but now we must seek to unite for causes larger than us. Galvanizing the energies of all Nigerians will not be an easy task but it is a necessary one. There will definitely be murmurings and seeds of discord sown as the struggle gets tougher, by those who feel untouched by the present situation. Paraphrasing President Obama, we would never unleash our greatest potentials as individuals until we are ready to commit to a cause larger than us.

We may never be directly affected by many of these policies or issues but it is our responsibility as citizens of Nigeria to fight for those who are; many of whom cannot plead their own case.

Thank you and God bless Nigeria.

THE UNUNITED STATES OF NIGERIA

The entity called NIGERIA has over the years evolved into just an official identity for a group of self-regulated people in the heart of Africa. This geopolitical area is currently made up of thirty-six separate groups called States and a thirty-seventh serving as a headquarters called the federal capital territory. These groups are further divided into over seven hundred sub-groups called Local Government Areas, LGAs. Lastly, these LGAs are broken up into over three hundred and fifty tribal sects with diverse languages. It must be said here that the geographical area described above with so many identity markers is smaller in size to the state of Texas in the United States of America.

Day after day we hear an endless clamour by some special interest groups for the creation of more states and LGAs for the benefits of the system we operate to get to the grassroots. Sadly, these outcries are not motivated by love or empathy but by a lack of trust and greed. We were trained subconsciously not to trust the other Nigerian seeing them as subtle competitors for the scarce resources available. A simply test can be applied to check our mindset concerning the other Nigerian; that is asking yourself this question, ‘’what is the literal translation for the names given to other Nigerian tribes in my local dialect?’’ I took this test a long time ago and found the answers to be derogatory and insulting. How then can we trust one another?

Greed is the root of all forms of corruption, fighting, and marginalisation experienced in Nigeria today. The system we operate in Nigeria is orchestrated to fail because the Federal government financially upholds the States, which ought to be the reverse. With all the divisions and segregations in Nigeria, we do have a common ground that is the FEDERAL ALLOCATION. Each State and constituency skims and strategises new ideas to improve on their percentage from this allocation not considering what more they could do to increase their contribution to this allocation. This is the height of greed.

However, there is hope for our nation. We must choose to shun all forms of discrimination and divisions either on the basis of state of origin, language ties, ethnicity or any other. We should learn to see one another as NIGERIANS and work hard and smart to fulfil the words of our 1999 Constitution, which states;

‘’Nigeria is one INDIVISIBLE and INDISSOLUBLE sovereign state to be known by the name of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.’’

‘‘Accordingly, national integration shall be actively encouraged, whilst discrimination on the grounds of PLACE OF ORIGIN, SEX, RELIGION, STATUS, ETHNIC or LINGUISTIC association or ties shall be prohibited.’’

Please never forget this:

From the words of our beautiful national anthem, ‘‘ONE NATION BOUND IN FREEDOM, PEACE AND UNITY.’’

Thank you and God bless Nigeria.

PATRIOTISM: Taught OR Learnt?

For a child born into this world, stages of growth and development are inevitable. The child sits, crawls and then begins to walk. Many of us have always thought that the child is taught these abilities but research has shown that the child grows into these different stages by observing and learning from his immediate environment. This is so important because teaching suggests offering the child a new skill while learning simply means developing into the norm.

Barry Schwartz, an American psychologist said, ’’one way to not instil moral ethics is by teaching more ethic courses....celebrate moral exemplars, people are inspired by moral exemplars.’’ In Nigeria today, the cry of many is that we should have more courses on civics and ethics put back in our educational curriculum as a way to awaken patriotism. However, we seem to forget that no matter how much ethics and morals are TAUGHT within the four small walls of a child’s classroom, the child LEARNS much more from the vast, uncoordinated, uncensored classroom of life. Patriotism is contagious; it is who we are, what we are and why we are, it is not a course of study.

Civics and ethic courses have a role to play in promoting patriotism but not in birthing it. Sadly, we operate a SYSTEM that not only allows corruption but also endorses and rewards it, a system where transparency, integrity, fairness and equity are preached but seldom practised. Please do not be misled for a moment thinking I am addressing the government of our nation, they are just a fraction of the general blessed with positional leadership. I am actually addressing a system, a structure that pervades every facet and sector of this nation; I’m talking to you and me.

We all seek a change for the better but this change will not happen overnight or in one year or even ten years but will surely come by our deliberate, conscious, sustained efforts to promote the right values at all times no matter the consequence. We must choose to celebrate people with patriotic values, locally and nationally. We must be willing to sacrifice our all for the benefit of the nation and the common good of the people. We must arise to the call to true service to humanity and the nation not minding who is watching, but remember someone is watching.

I close with this popular quote from Emerson, ’’what you are shouts so loudly in my ears I cannot hear what you say.’’ This is so true especially in our nation today.

Please never forget this;
We are all teachers and pupils in the school of life, make sure you are passing across and picking up the right messages for a greater Nigeria. Together we can build a new culture where patriotism is key.

Thank you and God bless Nigeria.

The Sun Is Gradually Setting In The West And Rapidly Rising In The East

It is no news that world power is slowly and evidently shifting from the West to the East. The Key issue here is Education, formal or informal. Education is the greatest form of empowerment and the foundation for any lasting growth or development in a nation. While the western countries are de-emphasizing the relevance of education in the lives of their youths, the East, on the other hand has discovered the importance of education in the sustenance of their future.

This has given rise to massive funding of the educational sector of these eastern nations, especially China and India. The result of this is evident in the global economy of today. The western countries have unconsciously celebrated entertainment above education thereby destroying the foundations on which their founding fathers built.

President Obama kept warning against the drop in the importance placed on getting an education in most of his speeches, alluding to the painful fact that the American labour force is grossly overpriced. Jobs today are speedily moving eastward where there is an equally effective and efficient labour force at a much cheaper cost.

Bill Gates speaking at the TED conference in February2009 gave some staggering statistics for education in the U.S;

-over 30% of U.S kids drop-out from High school
-over 50% of minority kids in the U.S drop-out from High school
-kids from low income families have more than a 25% chance of going to prison than completing a college degree

These statistics are alarming but if something is not done in the educational sector of Nigeria and the current trends of the Nigerian youth, the above will be nothing compared to what we will see as a nation. Nigeria as a developing nation should place high priority on the education of her future, the youths. It will be a great injustice for Nigeria to undermine the relevance of education in nation building and adamantly follow the facade and glamour of the entertainment industry.

The average Nigerian youth is seen today but not heard. This is because he has very little to offer. The Nigerian youth has been flooded with the charm of entertainment;
• soccer,
• musical concerts,
• reality shows,
• home videos,
• pageantry,
• Comedy shows.
These however, have their place in the development of any nation but not at the expense of education.

The Nigerian youth is more than entertainment; he wants to be educated and educated at the highest levels and standards. On this lies the hope of this nation but year after year we see government, corporate bodies spend millions upon millions on entertaining the youths at the expense of their education, forgetting that in the coming years these 'uneducated' ones will be saddled with running the affairs of these bodies.

I believe that a greater part of these millions should be invested in educating the Nigerian child, in provision of world class education facilities, renovation of existing structures and providing substantial scholarships and grants for deserving scholars. It is said that Nigeria has over 22billion naira in her education trust fund but it is presently inaccessible to our ailing educational institutions, how sad.

It is time we as Nigerians took up the responsibility of educating our future. This is something we can all do in our own little way by helping the child next door. Every major revolution starts with the people not the government.

Please never forget this;

It is up to us as a nation to either SET with the West, having never risen or RISE with the East to greatness and relevance in the world today.
''Please give me entertainment and I'll be excited for a season but give me an education and I'll be empowered for life''. It's up to us Nigeria.

Thank you and God bless Nigeria.

What Really Binds Nigeria?

Martin Luther King Jr fought and succeeded in the battle against racial discrimination not just because of his speaking prowess but by stating the facts. He consistently reminded the American government to be true to what they had said on paper; that all men are free, all men are equal and all men have a right to pursue their happiness. It was a fight with understanding.

In Nigeria, we face a similar fight, but this is not a fight against racial discrimination rather it is one against our national identity. We are posed with a bigger problem than the U.S because they had only two major sects, based on colour while we have over three hundred ethnic groups. Have you ever heard statements like; ‘so where are you from?’, ‘which state are you from’, ‘what local government and which village in particular?’, and ‘what language do you speak’. Then they say, ‘okay you are truly my brother/sister’.

Why do we need such lengthy interrogations before we can embrace another Nigerian as a neighbour? I believe strongly that the problem is that we have not been taught right. Most of us never realised these words or some don’t even know they existed- ONE NATION BOUND IN FREEDOM, PEACE AND UNITY.

If we truly believe that Nigeria is one nation and the things that bind us together as a people are not our DIFFERENT LANGUAGES, SKIN COLOURS, GEOGRAPHICAL BOUNDARIES, POLITICAL AFFILIATIONS, RELIGIOUS INCLINES, ETHNIC DIVIDES, DIVERSE CULTURES but these three profound qualities as stated clearly in our beloved national anthem; FREEDOM, PEACE AND UNITY, then we must think this, speak this, live this and teach this to our children with our lives.
As a people, we must consciously teach and preach this to all Nigerians, that we are;

- Bound in freedom: free to live anywhere we choose, free to work or trade in any part of this country, free to speak and express ourselves, free to worship what, when and where we want, free to study in any state we desire and be treated as EQUALS,

- Bound in peace: always seeking only the best for neighbours, friends and visitors. Knowing that the peace we desire is only gotten by sharing peace with others. Never self-seeking but forever accommodating and welcoming,

- Bound in unity: harnessing the beauty in our rich cultural diversity for the common good of all. Never discriminating or generalising but judging people as individuals and not through the eyes of biases such as ethnic groups or language. Choosing to speak only the language of unity which is ‘WE NIGERIANS’.

It is high time we expunged the item, ‘State of origin’ from all bio data forms in Nigeria and replace it with ‘Place of birth’. This will remove the discrimination and favouritism that may arise from state/ethnic differences. Also, we must do away with the ‘Quota System’ from all parts of our existence as a nation. This system promotes inequality, mediocrity and compromise. We can no more afford to forfeit having the best hands and minds on the job simply because of a geopolitical bias.

Please never forget this,

We are FREE but not IRRESPONSIBLE
We are PEACEFUL but not WEAK
We are UNITED but not ONE-SIDED
We are DIVERSE but not DIVIDED

This is who we are, we are GREAT and we are NIGERIANS.

Thank you and God bless Nigeria.

The Nigerian PIKIN and YOU

Who is the Nigerian pikin?

This is that Nigerian child who is born into a family where the basic necessities of life such as food, shelter, a standard education, good health care and the love of parents are esteemed as distant luxuries. He finds himself among the greater percentage of the Nigerian populace living well below the poverty line. He is brought up with a victim’s mentality passed unto him by his parents, surroundings and peers; constantly blaming others for his present predicament. He grows up with a very low sense of self-worth, feeling undeserving of any of the pleasures of life. He by experience has come to believe that the hard way is the only way and that such words as riches, influence, greatness, happiness belong to another species of humans.

We could all shut our eyes and close our ears to the plight and sufferings of the Nigerian pikin next door or we could make a choice to be the difference in the life of that pikin. In Nigeria, we do not have in place a functional welfare scheme to address this issue and I honestly do not think we have need of one. All we need is YOU.

Who is this YOU?

YOU is that Nigerian not driven by the mundane motivation of me, myself and I but is ready and willing to commit to a vision larger than himself. YOU is that Nigerian who will deliberately inspire both in words and actions the Nigerian pikin to discover and unleash his God-given potentials. YOU is that Nigerian overflowing with empathy, seeing life through the lens of the Nigerian pikin. YOU is that Nigerian who has decided to treat and relate to the Nigerian pikin as he would his own. YOU is that Nigerian prepared to sponsor the Nigerian pikin through a standard school.

The much needed change does not call for a grand or capital intensive project but simple and conscious everyday gestures such as;

- Picking up new clothes from the mall for that pikin while doing the same for yourself or your kids
- Occasionally taking that pikin to the same eateries you would patronise that he may have a healthy meal
- Even as little as giving that pikin a comfortable ride around town in your air-conditioned car not minding your ‘’expensive, posh, crocodile-leather seats’’ could go a long way in changing that pikin’s perception of life(people are of more value than THINGS)

I conclude with this, Bono speaking at a presidential prayer breakfast in the U.S said, ‘’this is more than charity, it is justice.’’ It is time we stood up for the Nigerian pikin, whom by no fault of his found himself in such demeaning and unhealthy conditions. Also, in the words of former American president, Ronald Reagan, ‘’if not you, who? And if not now, when?’’

Please never forget this;

Every child is your child. Our actions or inactions today will ultimately form the Nigeria in which our kids will live, let us make it better because we can. Let us unite to start the change from where we are.

Thank you and God bless Nigeria.