Nigeria, my country, is a lovely place filled with loads of amazing stuff. From the people to our country, resources, traditions, and the likes, we're a nation that thrives in almost everything, be it music, movies, comedy, growth, finance, or even fraud. But despite how unique we are in everything, we've a huge lapse that keeps us in the loop for years, and it all draws down to things that happen in our history. We've got many things that played out and went on to ruin the present for us and to turn the tides around. We need to shed off some things and be deliberate about the changes we want.
Like I said, many things in our history ruin everything for us, and it all boils down to when Nigeria herself was born. The amalgamation on its own is a big flaw that leads to one of the problems we've had together. We're a country with over 250 ethnic groups and over 500 languages. You can imagine being addressed as one nation when you all share different ideologies, cultures, traditions, and several others, which keeps on creating a gap, and that's why I addressed Nigeria's amalgamation as a failed marriage.
But then, I think at a point, the people find a way to live happily with one another and groom a nation. But something else happens along the line that causes a huge dent in the interrelations between all the major tribes involved, and that's the civil war for a cry to break out of this failed marriage called Nigeria by the eastern people, leading to a war between the eastern people and the northern people and how the western people interfere, which leads to the eastern people losing their resolve to break out from Nigeria and start their own republic.
Do I blame the Igbo for wanting to leave? Of course not, I mean, what's the point of being in a relationship that doesn't benefit you as much as it benefits others? Of course I understand things were shared almost equally back then, but we all know northern people get most of the benefits, and the constitution of the nation favors them the most, and since everything can be shared equally, it's best everyone goes their separate ways and holds on to their own resources, but since the civil war started and ended, it causes loads of unrest. In the country, I believe this has led to some form of unwritten rule that goes on to cement the unfair treatment of the Igbos.
Since the civil war ended, the unwritten law that seems to be visible to all is that no Igbos would be allowed to rule the nation, and we've seen things play out year in and year out in the last few decades, not forgetting how resources are not shared equally or development being one-sided in the nation, and that's not to forget the enmity this has caused between all the tribes. We no longer have peace or good relationships with one another, and I think there's a need to give some things to reinstate peace in this nation.
Now that we all know some of the mistakes we've made in the past and the effect it's having on our lives presently in the country, I for one think everyone should be allowed to go and set up a republic of their own, but since that might not resolve the issue, since each state can still come and begin another fight after the separation, I'll suggest the following for the greater good of the nation now and in the future, and they are as follows.
- Firstly, we need to acknowledge our fault and work towards reconciliation by putting the past behind us and seeking ways to bridge the gaps that have been brought.
- Also initiate a constitutional reform that's well reviewed by all parties and made to ensure equal allocations of resources between each ethnic group.
- Encourage inclusive governance. Now, this is quite common in our country; most times, a ruling president usually puts people of his tribe in his cabinet. This has happened with Presidents Yaradua, Jonathan, Buhari, and now Tinubu. We need to have a governance whose cabinet is diverse and has equal or almost equal people from every ethnic group.
All of these, amongst several others, will lead to bridging the gap and reinstating peace and unity into our nation. Even though it's our motto, it's the core thing we lack, and I hope all of these can be a reality in the near future.
All photos are taken and edited on canva.