By Hope O’Rukevbe EGHAGHA
Bimpe: Congratulations to Nigeria on its 66th anniversary!
Esievo: Congratulations to Nigerians, I must say! It’s been sixty-six years of a mixed bag of hope and sorrows!
Prof: That is life. Hope and sorrows. Sadness and joy. It’s okay if sadness doesn’t outweigh our joy as a people. it’s okay to congratulate ourselves for sticking together in an unhealthy marriage!
Okafor: Congratulations? Why? Is there anything to celebrate?
Bimpe: Yes. That we are still together in spite of distractions and the silly actions of the political class. Besides, we survived a civil war!
Okafor: Some are still being punished for the war!
Prof: Hmmm! You always return to this war issue. I will take you up on this matter in the near future.
Okafor: Why not do that today?
Prof: Because we are looking at Nigeria at 66!
Okafor: Are the years 1967 to 1970 not a part of the sixty-six years of independence?
Prof: They are a dent, a blight on our history!
Esievo: Gentlemen, if you don’t mind, let us return to Nigeria at 66! Nigerians must be congratulated for their resilience, their faith, and their ability to hope even when the situation appears bleak.
Okafor: Do they have a choice but to remain yoked together in this unholy union?
Prof: I pitch my tent with you, Esievo. The Nigerian spirit has kept the nation going. If we were to judge by the actions and inactions of the political class, Nigeria would have gone to the dogs by now. The way ordinary Nigerians carry on, interact, and socialize despite the hostile climate of politics deserves commendation. It’s the political elite who stoke the embers of disunity.
Musa: But that spirit of sticking together despite fundamental differences is also a drawback to development. Independence means nothing to the man on the streets who is struggling to make ends meet. It means nothing to a young graduate who cannot find a job. Sixty-six years of what? Of wandering the desert like the biblical Jews?
Prof: If I may extend that analogy, it means we shall reach the promised land someday!
Musa: There is no light in the tunnel as far as I am concerned.
Prof: Man cheer up. Don’t be so pessimistic! Life is made up of ups and downs!
Okafor: Where are the ups in our national history? Life thirty years ago was better than what it is today!
Musa: You are asking me to cheer up. Did the President’s speech offer any cheer to you, to Nigerians?
Okafor: I was baffled by how distant from reality the president was in his speech. Come on! How do you say things have improved when the price of fuel has driven up all other costs?
Prof: That was his own way of offering hope in a bleak environment.
Musa: By denying objective reality?
Okafor: Little wonder one opportunistic presidential candidate is offering to restore fuel subsidy!
Prof: It’s the season of politics. Anything can be said or promised to get the attention of the people. So, let us consider that a political statement.
Bimpe: But it addresses one of the main problems in the economy. The hardship is unparalleled in our history. The seller is crying. The buyer is crying. Workers are crying foul over the poor wages which they earn.
Prof: The President says it’s a necessary sacrifice which we must make to salvage the nation from the doldrums.
Okafor: Sacrifice you say? What sacrifice is he making with such a long convoy of cars? Tell me, what sacrifice? See the way Lagosians reacted to the convoy?
Bimpe: Ole! Thief! Filled the air if that viral video is to be believed.
Esievo: In politics, that means nothing really. The last time Nigerians cheered politicians was in the 2nd Republic. Chief Awolowo and Dr, Azikiwe had ready crowds of loyalists.
Okafor: That is not completely true. Are you missing out on the mass action going on around and about Mr. Peter Obi? The youths simply idolize him. He is popular on social media. He gets the attention of people without any effort.
Prof: You are right. When he stepped into the last NBA conference the hall erupted into cheers and ululation. The energy was simply amazing.
Bimpe: Can he translate this apparent popularity into votes?
Esievo: The question is: will the powers-that-be allow the votes to count?
Prof: The people should defend their votes as they did in Osun State.
Bimpe: Easier said than done! How can an impoverished people defend their votes against state forces? Those who lost their lives in Osun state are gone forever. No inquiry. No compensation.
Esievo: What baffles me is the apathy of the ruling party towards making the people happy by going out of their way to do things. It seems that they have a sinister plan. Food. The price of petrol. And many more…
Musa: Sometimes I wonder why God us yoked us together…
Okafor: God did not yoke us together. The wily British did.
Musa: Whatever! The British stood in God’s place and blessed the union. As I was saying, life could have been better, but it also could have been worse. Could have been worse if we declined into a state of anomie like the once-beautiful Libya. See the Sudan and Somalia for example. Our educational system is strong. It has its challenges, yes, but it has produced excellent graduates for the world economy. Food may be expensive, but it is available. What about religion?
Prof: That is a rather weird way of judging our history. How about referencing Malaysia? South Africa? Singapore? We could, and we ought to have been better. The equivalent of natural disaster in our land is poor and dedicated leadership. How can we continually have leaders who loot the treasury and become billionaires while the state is impoverished? Which model of leadership do we have?
Bimpe: As for me, I am waiting to have my opportunity in office. I sall not loot; but I will never be poor again!
Okafor: That is exactly the problem!
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