Happy Independence Day
Nigeria!
Wow, 54 years
already... and we're still standing. Against all the plenty talk about Nigeria
dividing, we're still together. Congrats my dear Nigerians!
I have this tradition
of thinking about reasons why I like Nigeria and why I'd rather stay Nigerian
every Independence day and today's no different. I'm proud to be Nigerian,
proud to be from
This great country.
Naija, 9ja... the word
that aptly captures the emotions I feel for my country, especially as it
celebrates its 54th year of independence.
We
Nigerians are confident people - proud of our culture and identity,
industrious, hard-working, ingenious and great survivors.Let's face it, we need
to be resilient - Nigeria can be extremely frustrating, annoying and
inefficient.
But an optimistic outlook on life makes it a place where
anything and everything is possible. No wonder a survey once found that
Nigerians are the happiest people in the world - we have a great capacity for
laughing at ourselves.
Naija, a word said to be coined by the Nigerian youths as a
means to distance themselves from the old guards who had caused the country's
woes has come to express everything we love about Nigeria.
Naija, says it all. It is about the food, the flamboyant
dressing, the mannerisms, the boisterous - some say loud - interaction among
complete strangers who on meeting immediately feel bonded by their
"Naija-ness".
Like your family, you love them and you hate them at the same
time.
You love them so much you would die for them, and yet you get so
exasperated at the way they drive you up the wall.
And for the young, the word has entered their slang - spreading
rapidly through social networking sites and through music.
A CHANGE IN NIGERIA
It is said that Naija was coined because Nigeria has a bad image
abroad but the youths want everyone to know that that is changing; Nigeria is
changing for the best!
Nai: the old Nigeria, Ja: a slang for disappear. Simply put,
Naija means the old Nigeria is disappearing and a new and better one is
emerging.
OUR NIGERIAN PRIDE
I'm proud to be Nigerian, I'd still be Nigerian even in my next
life. Everytime I think about how awesome this nation is, no matter how bad
things may seem presently, I feel bad for those who aren't Nigerians. They have
no idea what they've missed!
Much talk about every bad thing is Nigeria can be very
depressing but surely, not all belief in Nigeria is lost.
You need look no further than sports competitions - especially
football - for evidence of our patriotism. It is there that you will find
Nigerians, irrespective of age, tribe or creed, enthusiastically cheering on
the national team.
In fact, a growing trend in Nigeria's major cities is the
display of the country's flag on vehicles whenever Nigeria appears in a
tournament. That rare display of pride in something Nigerian is what many of
the country's leaders want to see in other areas.
While the comedians provoke mirth and laughter, it pains me to
see the way we sometimes denigrate our national institutions in the process. A
prime example is the army which, at the very least, has been making efforts to
serve its civilian authority democratically.
But I am always proud as a Nigerian when at a gathering,
everyone joins in rendering the national anthem without the aid of a recording.
And when you go abroad you can always tell the Nigerian from other Africans
judging by his self-confident, some would say cocky, way.
The biggest mistake a non-Nigerian can make is to try to
criticise the country or to even innocently join the Nigerian pastime of
self-condemnation. That is when you see that, in spite of all the negativity,
Nigerians care for their country and still believe that one day its much talked
about potential will be realised.
AND HERE WE ARE...
54 years. 54
years after the British kept us in their trap for a hundred years.
54 years after men
danced till dawn the day the Nigerian flag was hoisted.
54 years after
late Babatunde Jose sobbed as he watched late Tafewa Balewa and a British
soldier on the field as Nigerian was born.
It’s been 54
years of smiles and sorrow, but we’re still standing. And moving, no matter how
slow.
There is one
achievement, however, that may be worth elevating above all. In the context of
the myriad of problems faced by Nigeria over the past 50 years, somehow,
miraculously, we have succeeded in staying in one piece, as one nation.
I believe that in the next
50 years, Nigeria is likely to confound those who have been telling tales of
its fall. Better elections will help to strengthen democracy by producing
leaders who are more likely to inspire others who believe that it is possible
to have a Nigeria where differences in creed, tribe and tongue are no barrier
to nationhood.
Nigeria might be
bad, we might even be drenched in suffering, but if you can find one good
reason to smile today, then you should be proudly Nigerian.
