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.