Nigeria’s Independence In Retrospect

Whenever I think about the fact that Nigeria is 57 years old, it plays back memories of our huge and untapped resources and potentialities. It creates in me imageries and mixed feelings.
I am amused when some people compare Nigeria to the advanced world and claim that after all they also passed through our stage and that they were in our situation some years ago. For these ones, Nigeria is like Rome that was not built in a day. This argument, for me, is untenable for a country at 57.
Take Singapore as an example. This country gained independence in 1962, two years after Nigeria. But see where they are today. Singapore has left us far behind while we still crawl and embark on forward and backward movements.
It is not in doubt that Nigeria has numerous problems some of which are self-inflicted. But so are other nations. Right now, the country is bugged by agitations of all kinds. There are agitations for secession, agitations for restructuring while religious and ethnic embers are fanned daily.
All these calls and agitations threaten our unity and weaken the bonds that tie us together. Progress is hardly achievable in the midst of these grievances. We must therefore put our house in order. In doing this, we must work out parameters that will ensure equitability and fairness in the country.
For any change to take place in the country, good leadership must be put in the front burner. This is because effective leadership is the foundation of good governance globally. And every good governance must be characterized by accountability, transparency, honesty, integrity and good planning.
Of course, a good government must respect freedom of the press and the rule of law. Corruption must never be tolerated in any guise. These facts are necessary if we have to attain a strong nationhood.
Another issue that stunts our growth as a nation is the type of federalism we practice. Our kind of federal system is unique. I don’t know how anyone can describe the kind of federal system that is practiced here. Is it military federalism or unitary federalism as some people prefer to call it? But if it is unitary federalism, is it not a contradiction in terms?
This type of federalism is too bogus and takes so much of our resources to implement. A system of this kind is enough to ground our economy and deny us development. See the expenses that go into recurrent spending alone. No nation can develop at this rate.
I advocate a massive reduction of our spending on governance. In other words, the cost of running government should be reduced. If this will take us to change the system of government we have here, so be it. As a nation, we have tried parliamentary system of government and we are currently practicing presidential system.
Given our experience of the two, we are now in a position to choose anyone of them. The parliamentary system for me is preferred because it is economical and less bogus. Not much money is required to run this system. With all its disadvantages, the parliamentary kind of government is more suitable for us.
The question we should ask ourselves is, what has both the presidential system and our so-called federalism benefitted us? Can anyone point to significant development 57 years after independence? None; and the reason is attributable to the structure of government we have in place.
Our brand of federalism is faulty. It will not give us development. Rather, we shall continue to retrogress in all aspects. Therefore, let’s consider some of the calls or agitations that saturate the air. For instance, the call for true federalism should be heeded. With the aid of true federalism, not only will the component parts of the country be competitive  economically the nation will experience constitutionalism.
We have been depending on crude oil for the past many years with nothing to show for it except corruption. Or can anyone point to what crude oil has given us in this country except agitations, militancy and corruption? It is time to drive an alternative to oil and that is agriculture. I am glad at the news that oil will soon be out of demand. This will compel us to look elsewhere. As I said earlier, agriculture remains the best alternative to oil. We must develop that sector if we have to survive as a nation.
Similarly, a country at 57 with dysfunctional education system is as good as dead. That is our story as a nation. When education is deficient as it is in our country, what will drive development? Is it corruption and greed or ethnicity and religious fanaticism? Surely, it is none of them. That is why at 57, this nation ought to be an exporter of education, science and technology.
It is also a shame that a nation as big and old as Nigeria lacks viable youth’s policy. If I may ask, what programme does this country have for its youth? I am certain there is none. The future of every country is the youths. That is why they must be developed and prepared for leadership. Don’t forget that the founding fathers of Nigeria (Azikiwe, Awolowo and Balewa) were all youths when they faced the British and got independence for us.
As we bask in the euphoria of our 57years of existence as a nation, let our leaders and all Nigerians bear in mind that we owe this country a sacred duty of ensuring that it remains one indivisible country. But that doesn’t mean that our leaders will not pay attention to agitations and cries against marginalization. They should without compromising the unity of the country.
Udofia is a student of Western Delta University

Ima-Obong Udofia