Only a very select few will agree that they found the series
‘Spartacus’ distasteful, particularly people who abhor nudity onscreen and
uninhibited violence. However, very few will dish the plot of the series the
same treatment for it tells the story of long-suffering and hopelessness, of
freedom in chains and want, amidst plenty. (Nigerians can relate).
The splendor of the rich and the nobility was infuriatingly
aggravating…you almost wanted to ... (let me just hold that thought). If you
were born poor, it was your destiny. You couldn’t, shouldn’t fight it. And if
you were among the servile class, the only thing that made you human were your
thoughts, you couldn’t, shouldn’t feel. (I guess some Nigerians can still
relate).
Nigerians have everything except the will to resist
encroachment of their rightful space. The average Nigerian mindset is always “I
can always climb the wall if I’ve previously been hugging it”. Hence, we all
continue in fasting even when the problems do not require people on “diet”.
Perception and orientation goes a long way in determining how we express
ourselves or why do you think Americans are different from Arabs or Arabs from
Nigerians? It lies not in the fact that Nigerians are “the happiest people on
Earth” (shouldn’t God be the one to give this label? (Just saying!) But in the
fact that when policies are inimical, Americans use their ‘democracy’ to get
their desired results and the Arabs turn rainmakers and bring ‘Spring’ in
‘Fall’ while Nigerians hug their labels and cheer on by the sidelines.
‘Prayer is the key’ was a nice hymn I enjoyed as a kid but I
think Nigerians took it too serious. But I think I glimpsed a verse that
mentioned faith going along with works…maybe I’m wrong. So, I think Nigerians
should ask themselves which God they’re praying to; the one who does all the
laundry or the one who shines the Sun you spread your done laundry under.
As at 2010, Nigerian public officers (Legislators) were the
highest paid in the world. I doubt any other country has equalled this “national”
achievement presently. NASS members were earning =N=240 million annually while
House of Reps members were “barely surviving” with =N=214 million annually
then. Need I mention that, the first citizen of the world was going home with
=N=77 million yearly… (And no, he hasn’t asked for a raise yet!). Figures drive
Nigerians crazy, but all we do is rant until memory fails us. I don’t fault
Nigerian Legislators for getting that much for a closer look reveals that it’s
systemic. They give so much before they get in that they have to grab so much
before they get out.
Anti-same sex marriages, tenure elongation, deliberations on
prostitution etc how do these put food on the table for the common Nigerian?
I’ll answer you… (They don’t!). Matters of security lapses abound, education is
fast turning to chaos, unemployment and poverty are virtually competing in
intensity, and entrepreneurship is not a funny joke anymore. And we are still
on gay marriages? Homeland Security’s Subcommittee on Counterterrorism and
Intelligence in the US held a sitting on November 30 where they deliberated on
Boko Haram…shouldn’t we pay them for legislative services too?
I’ve studied Nigerian history to a point that all the
textbook factors accounting for underdevelopment (Corruption, bad leadership
etc) seem not to be the problems at all and I’m close to agreeing with a friend
who says ‘Nigeria is cursed’ but that would mean we need more prayers, wouldn’t
it?
We can raise colossal religious structures within months yet
we complain of no industries and unemployment. We can’t afford to send our
children to schools we helped to build in our churches and mosques but it’s
alright, “heaven” is assured when you pay tithes and give offerings, I guess.
We can fast and pray and do the same thing again till vision 2020 is replaced
by vision 2030 or 2040 and we would still be getting the same results (I’m not
clairvoyant, at all!).
I don’t claim to have any solutions but I think a way to
start would be to alter our general view/orientation and to remunerate those
who would impart such knowledge the highest (Teachers) not the legislators. What
good can become of a nation without an enlightened mass? (Slavery, at most).
Spartacus is a classic series any day but the lessons therein
are timeless. Now, fuel subsidy removal looms and it is not surprising that ASUU
strike is here again, both which will have far reaching effects on our economy,
socio-political history and perseverance as a people. Based on so many
variables considered (Which I can’t go into now), I’ve concluded there will not
be a “Spring” in Nigeria any time soon. Therefore, I won’t be surprised if
Nigerians just watch the movie again, pray and fast for a happy ending, cry
when required, laugh for the most part and let amnesia do the rest…after all;
it’s just a movie, isn’t it?
