Agile people Beautiful brotherhood
Cheerful people Delightsome
land
Educated elites Fulfilled
people & fertile land
Good people and great nation Happy
home
Industrious youths Jolly fellows
Knowledgeable kindred Loving
land
Merciful masters New Nigeria
Opportunity-filled nation Priestly people
Queen Olive Radiant citizens
Savvy souls Tolerant toddlers
Unwavering commitment to growth Vagile labour
As my country approaches her
centenary birthday, history bequeaths on me; a watchman of my beloved country
to become active in the actualisation of her national philosophy, which are:
· Live in
unity and harmony as one indivisible, indissoluble, democratic and sovereign
nation founded on the principles of freedom, equality and justice.
· Promote
inter-African solidarity and world peace through understanding
I have decided to act and
refrain from all the voices that calls for passivity and the endless lies of ‘it
has been like this and will always be like this’ ‘time will heal the mess’ ‘don’t
get involve’ ‘destructive criticism’ etc. It is high time I leave this level
and join the team of constructive labourers in the building of a better
Nigeria.
My recent discourses with some
older people who witnessed the beauty of this land in her early days and their
sorrowful regret about the present happenings have awakened some questions in
me. These elders talk of the days when everyone has plenty and enough to share,
the days when you could walk the street in the twilight and not be afraid of
danger, the days of beauty and pageantry, the days ... And some of these elders
never foresaw the transition from good to bad and still bewail the present
situation we now experience in a land that is barely five decades old. They put
blame on different factors as causes, but mine is not to cast blame but to seek
how I and posterity can once again enjoy the beauty our parents once
experienced in their own days. I want to see the glory of my fatherland yet
again. As we traverse the road of rebuilding a beautiful Nigeria, the word of
A.B. Fafunwa ‘A nation that forgets her history will grapple in the dark.’
comes to mind.
Could the present situation be
a happenstance?
Could it have been caused by delusions of grandeur?
Should I
join the past hero and give my labour to the building of a country that has
been castigated as irreparable by some bodies?
What will become of my country
if I wait too long?
What will I answer to posterity, when asked of what I did
for the growth of my country?
Will I look back with regret that I never got
enlisted, when I have the strength or will I rejoice with tears that I joined
the team of builders and now have the country we fight for?
My desire for a better country
has led to the study of different countries and the evergreen decisions that
make them endearing. I researched and find the words of a wise King, whose
wisdom was adjudged the best in his own days. His kingdom was ruled beautifully
and it also puzzling that the country was divided during the time of the
immediate king that ruled after him. He must have ruled with wisdom a divided
people that constantly call for secession.
Nigeria, a country with many clans and tongues with constant call for
secession can only be rule by a wise man. Though we can’t go to the grave to
bring up the wise man but his book of wisdom can be of great help to us all.
The king gave so many startling
statements and few are highlighted below, perhaps they can be a guide to the
path of prosperity we all wished for:
· Do to
others you as you want them to do unto you
· Be
tolerance with others and give a little help
· Divinity
has a way of transferring the wealth of the wicked to the righteous
· Divinity
is real and will request how you spent your life (there is accountability in
life)
· Laziness,
idleness and procrastination will lead to decay and death
· More
will not bring joy, but rather a heart of gratitude and contentment
· Partnership
is better than criticism
· There
are problems you cannot solve in life
· There
is a time for everything in life and there is nothing new in this world
· There
is dignity in labour
· Seek an
opportunity to serve and not be served
· Communal
good is better than individual good
· When
you die, do you know what shall become of all you have left?
· When
you die, who will gain all you have left?
· Wisdom,
integrity and education save in the time of trouble
As we all ponder on this, I
hope time could stop but it won’t because it continuously winds us into the
grave. I therefore encourage all to get enlisted in the battle for a better
country while you can before the grave becomes our eternal home.
God bless the federal republic
of Nigeria
Long live the federal republic
of Nigeria
