The universe smiles on the kindhearted and frowns at the wicked. The men of old took a journey to the unknown, without fear, for man was designed to dominate, rather than dominated. It was a beautiful site from the beginning, as the sun smiled on the earth on the twilight of a beautiful morning. The trees waved on the men in their innocence as controlled by the morning wind coming from the turbulence ocean. It’s time to know the unknown, see the unseen, touch the untouched and wallow in the beauty of a new adventure. But the question is: which direction are they heading, by what means of transport, to meet who and to stay where? This is the adventure of the first men that set out to see a new place called Nigeria.
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Coming as traders, the men landed in the South-West region, richly dominated by the Yorubas. Their first destination in Nigeria is not unconnected with their medium of transportation (boat), for the region is surrounded by seas. We knew them as visitors, but never knew they came to govern, dominate and enslave. We only knew how to dominate animals, but the visitors showed us the route to dominate fellow men and women. With gifts as enticement, we allowed them stay. With teachings, they swept us away from our values. With persuasion, they made us learn their language. With friendship, they influenced our lifestyles. With tricks, they turned us against our leaders. With authority, they ruled us, even against our wish. But we were naïve to think it’s only for a while.
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Our kings were nice, but the strangers had a motive: one that only they can nurture, causing it to mature into the future. A motive to deprive the owner and dominate the citizens of their new abode. A motive to enslave the uncivilized, no matter their age. A motive to be in charge, at the expense of the good of all. A motive to turn the subjects against the monarchy. A motive to change the culture and make theirs stand. A motive to take over the leadership of the strange land. A motive to make us one, but one towards them. A motive to give us their religion and influence our minds to think like them and be under their laws. A motive to take our children and turn them to slaves. A motive to take our lands and build their structures. A motive to give us a name that will change our identity to theirs. A motive to make us worship their God.
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Some of the motives yielded and still yield good results. Now we have good roads because they made us believe in wide routes, rather than bush tracks. They brought bicycles and cars, making us believe it’s easier to ride and drive, rather than run or trek. They brought us airplanes, making us believe it’s not only birds that can fly. They built houses with concretes, saving us the embarrassments of storms on rainy days. They formed a central government, saving us the fights between villages, regions and kingdoms. They gave us money, putting an end to waiting in the market squares to look for who to exchange goods with through trade-by-Bata. They showed us new fashion and a way to look more decent. They brought education, the ability to read and write other people languages. They brought us their songs, helping us understand the feelings of other cultures. They brought us medicine, building hospitals to reduce mortality rate in our lands. They showed us how to farm with machines, making us advanced, though causing laziness in our locality.
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This is the journey so far, from the known to the unknown and now to the known. It’s a journey that continues, never to end till the end of man.