Do Nigerians Know It Is Christmas? By Charles Ofoji*

Malawian President, Joyce Banda, speaking at Mandela’s funeral in the deceased former South Africa’s president homestead Qunu, put it succinctly when she said that leadership is all about loving the people and the people loving the leader back.

Essentially, there is nothing wrong with Nigeria as a nation. The trouble with the country is lack of leaders who love the people. Banda hinted how she was inspired in life by the story of Nelson Mandela. “Tata’s (Mandela’s) courage, determination, love and passion for his people inspired me on my journey to becoming the first elected woman president in my country.”

In Africa that seems cursed with bad leadership, her presidency is exemplary of what leadership ought to be. On assuming office, she sold off the presidential jet and fleet of 60 Mercedes limousines stockpiled by her predecessor, who served himself rather than the people. Banda also announced that she will fly with commercial airlines. And true to the words of the second woman to become president in Africa, on her first trip out of Malawi, she hopped into a British Airways plane when in 2012 she attended Queen Elizabeth’s golden jubilee celebration. This is quintessential leadership at its apogee. Till date, she uses a beetle as official car and flies with ordinary people when travelling, just as all British Prime Ministers do.

Our country, Nigeria is in the state it is today because none of our former leaders since the Biafran war and those parading themselves now as leaders have shown love for Nigerians. And since it takes two to tango, the people can not love the leaders because the latter has not given the former any reason to.

Leadership in Nigeria is brutal and self-serving. Nobody cares about the ordinary man. Most times, I spent time thinking about the failed dreams of the Nigerian youth, especially the people I grew up with. When we were young, we had dreams. Unfortunately, a greedy elite made sure those dreams died. Life for many Nigerians is that of standing and watching the world go by. Millions of Nigerians had lived and died without getting a taste of what life is. Theirs was simply a life of just passing through.

Majority of Nigerians, particularly those in the rural areas go to bed on an empty stomach, while a few feast on the national cake. So at Christmas, do they know it is Christmas? Certainly no.

The sad thing is that they are citizens of a country that makes about $ 229 million dollars daily from oil, in spite of the hefty oil theft going on off shore. That is $80 billion yearly income as a big exporter of crude oil. Apart from oil, Nigeria is also a major producer of gas. The country earans roughly $23.1 million dollars daily from gas sales, notwithstanding the fact that it loses about $5 million dollars every day due to gas flaring. This translates to a revenue of $8.45 billion dollars per year.

Where does these monies go when Nigerians are suffering and the children are dying due to hunger and preventable and curable diseases? They end up in the pockets of those who are supposed to care for the people as leaders and that of civil servants and businessmen who act as their proxies and accomplices.

At this Christmas, due to cruel leadership, majority of Nigerian children will not have a decent meal; neither will their parents be able to buy them clothes and gifts – things that are taken for granted in other countries that are poorer than Nigeria. At this Christmas, they will continue to stare at a bottle of coke or fanta as a strange object. At this Christmas, most of the children will scavenge for scrums at the homes of those who are feeding fat on the commonwealth.

At Christmas, there will not be light in Nigeria’s townships and villages because the government of former president Olusegun Obasanjo squandered the $16 billion dollars, which would have put to an end the problem of electricity in the country.

At Christmas, there would be insecurity. The danger of a Boko Haram attack will be lurking, apart from the risk of being kidnapped. These are because due to corruption, industries were not built, which would have employed the over 80% unemployed youths. They are now easily attracted to terrorism and kidnapping as a result of hopelessness.

As I have said in this column before, ironically Nigeria is the oil major oil exporter in the world whose citizens are forced to live abroad due to economic reasons.

Corruption is wrecking the Nigerian dream. As I write, the NNPC is yet to remit to the Central Bank $48.9 billion dollars, the apex bank’s governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi said was diverted from the national treasury. It is only in a mad country that such money would be declared missing by the Central Bank’s governor and nothing is being done.

In any case, Nigerians are not blameless for not getting the feel that it is Christmas. Nigerians are a feckless people. Their “sidon look” attitude towards their destiny facilitates and encourages corruption. Until they start to hold their leaders accountable, they will never know it is Christmas.

*First published in my Blueprint Column, 25 Dec. 2013