Nigeria Content Online

Nigerians imitate
so much from Americans that we resemble a US colony on the 50th
anniversary of our independence from the UK. All the same, I look
forward to that American tradition of moderated debates by presidential
candidates – this time, in Nigeria. Early days yet, maybe; but Jonathan
says it’s all God’s doing, Babaginda declares: the older the better,
and Saraki states it’s the turn of a new breed.

Slogans apart, a
would-be-president of Nigeria should confront and convince millions
within this country, as well as investors from outside, instantaneously
with an agenda of how he will pull the country out of the deep, dirty
hole we have lived in for 50 years. What plans, for example, do our
presidential aspirants have to combat the negative impacts of climate
change? What will they do about food insecurity? Some Nigerian
politicians are calling for a return to coal-mining to solve the energy
crisis. What is the opinion of Jonathan, or Saraki, Babangida, or
anyone else? Atiku, too. And if Nigerian coal miners got trapped 700
metres beneath the surface, what contingency plans would they have in
place to rescue them?

We often repeat all
those familiar statistics about Nigeria – forests gone, hundreds of
species endangered, rivers, lakes, coastal areas over-polluted and
over-fished, threats of erosion, floods, drought, the worst maternal
and infant mortality, the highest reported cases of snake bites in
Africa, thanks to Kaltungo Local Government in Gombe State. Do we have
someone who can turn things around, someone who will make a difference?

We need moving
rhetoric, ideas, plans and promises that will be kept, not patronizing
visits to re-assure the Igbo that they’ll give birth to the next
president, courtesy of a midwife called Babangida. Igbo people, like
other Nigerians, are more interested in when there will be light and
water, and jobs and health care, and no hankypanky and fraud in paying
pensions to the aged; no muggers and kidnappers, no policemen killing
drivers at checkpoints.

Babangida is sadly
out of touch with the recent realities of public affairs in Nigeria. We
are now in civilian times and marching to a different music of debate
and innovative thought processes, not commands and decrees. Long
retirement and hibernation has taken its toll on a once dashing General
of the Nigerian army. If it is correct, and I don’t still believe it,
that he picked Peter Odili to run with him, then IBB is very likely to
be frozen on the starting blocks once more. It appears that he has not
seen the handwriting on the wall, and I don’t think he will hear the
starter’s gun either. A great pity, but then soldiers are no strangers
to hara-kiri! I still would like the young Saraki to tell us what
lessons he learnt about farming from those white Zimbabweans. Has any
agricultural knowledge or technology been transferred to Kwarans? Why
did Mr Saraki approve land so rapidly for the Zimbabweans when many of
us are not able to own a plot to farm in our states of origin, talk
less of doing so in another state within the country? Is that what the
Land Use Decree is all about? That a state governor can hand over
productive land to foreigners with such ease?

If Mr Saraki was
enterprising enough to start a football academy in Ilorin, why hadn’t
he thought of a college of agriculture at which his Zimbabwean pals
would be lecturing?

Yet on Monday, Bukola Saraki wrote that we need young Nigerians to fix things. Yes, I agree, but not old Zimbaweans!