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The case of Nigeria
is like the proverbial table of thieves, where there is no honour. The
new threat facing every Nigerian lies in the Eastern parts where one
stands the risk of being kidnapped once one is ‘perceived’ to be doing
well.

The government’s
response has been, to put it mildly, worrisome. Government officials
have inadvertently ‘settled’ these hostage takers in what might seem
like an attempt to appease those that are angered by their pilferage of
our resources and their high level of corruption.

The four
journalists that were kidnapped recently have enraged the public. The
President has read a riot act to the Inspector General to get to the
root of the matter but that for me is simply grandstanding. The issue
of kidnappings in Nigeria is actually a morality issue and nothing more.

From the first time
it came to public knowledge in the Niger-Delta, where expatriates and
foreigners were being kidnapped, government’s reaction to the mishaps
was pathetic. While in well-developed Nations, you hear government
officials saying things like, “We do not negotiate with hostage takers
or kidnappers,” in Nigeria the case is different.

And the reason is simple: Among thieves, there is no honour.

How can a man (the
principal thief), who has looted and stolen billions of money by any
means necessary, ask another (the subordinate thief) who has done what
he can within his power, not to steal by any other means? In this case
all the principal thief will be able to do is tell the subordinate not
to get caught.

So when the first
incident about the kidnapped expatriates was widely reported in the
media both locally and internationally, government officials felt
obliged to give the kidnappers what they demanded under the flimsy
excuse that they wanted to preserve Nigeria’s already bashed image.

So now the
Niger-Delta goons have set the pace and opened the warped eye of the
youngsters and desperate fast-lane money seekers to the gains of
kidnapping, only that this time around they no longer kidnap
foreigners, who now move amidst heavy security, but have turned their
gaze to their fellow brothers and sisters in the absence of the
white-skinned walking gold mines.

And what will the government officials do about this? Settle every single one of them!

And as time goes
on, more and more youths will resolve to the fast paced, money making
trade of taking hostages and kidnapping, after all they too are staking
a claim to their portion of the National cake

Little wonder why
so many people are trooping out of the country, even though many are
leaving for the façade they call ‘greener pastures’, there are also
some leaving because they perceive genuinely the danger ahead – but
they have the means. And that leaves the helpless innocents that don’t
have anywhere else to call home except here. The entire Nigerian
society is in grave danger.

Some might say I am
being unnecessarily paranoid but let me give those people a little
illustration of what I am talking about. Let’s go back to 1999 after
the triumphant death of the late dictator Sani Abacha and the
successful transition to civil rule. Where the AD held sway in the West
and through such factors as a track record and simplicity, a certain
former school principal was elected governor in one of the southwest
states.

Prior to that time,
this man used to drive a rickety old Peugeot 504 Salon car and was
often assisted by his neighbours every morning to jump-start his car.
But after about six months of being governor, this man had moved from
grass to grace. He bought a fleet of new luxury cars, built houses in
prime areas in the state and as well as in neighbouring states and sent
all his children abroad, forgetting the school he once headed as
principal.

I am sure this
story is not new to many Nigerians as this has been the case with many
top government officials. But here, a picture is being painted; a way
of life is been carved. Where are our values?

Though the
ex-governor in question is an old man now, what do you think he has
taught his children? What do you think he has taught his children’s
friends? It’s all a ripple effect.

Let’s all be honest
with each other. The armed robber or kidnapper is a man with a dual
personality. Firstly, he is your neighbour you see on your street as
you drive out to work. He is the man you see pushing his broken down
vehicle along the road. He could be the school principal going to
school early in the morning. He could be anyone. We must all be
responsible for each other. We must be responsible for our dear country.

I am sure so many
people that will read this piece also know a similar story of a man
that became a politician. They are the ones that set the precedent;
they are the ones that first kidnapped public funds, taxpayers’ money.
Every other event is a ripple effect that we caused when we kept quiet
and watched, waiting for a time we too would be in government.

I for one am not
disillusioned about government doing a thing, after all they are the
same: the man who steals with a pen, the man who steals with a gun is
what we call a thief and there is no honour amongst thieves.

I believe Nigeria will survive and the truth will prevail above all
things but I enjoin Nigerians to take responsibility and start to look
inwards – that’s the only way. If everyone changes, Nigeria will change
as a whole.