It will amount to a waste of time discussing Nigerians’ hunger for development. An average Nigerian looks at a developed country and wonders when some of the social amenities that are at the beck and call of their citizens will become available in Nigeria. In fact, access to some basic social amenities is an utmost reason for Nigerians migrating to places we call “saner climes” or “working societies”.
What will, however, not amount to a waste of time is discussing what we do can turn Nigeria’s fortunes to become one of those countries we refer to as “saner climes” or “working societies”. At any fora where the problems of Nigeria are discussed, everyone will make a minced mint of identifying and enumerating all the problems. They will point to how one politician had embezzled billions of naira and how another policeman had collected bribes to pervert justice. The most recent recipients of the backlash is the Nigerian Judiciary. in the Nigerian courts of public opinion, the judiciary is the headquarters of corruption in Nigeria. This cause of this opinion is not far-fetched following the outcome of judgements in last year’s general elections.
The table only becomes scanty at the point when you begin to seek for solutions to the mirage of problems facing the country – while some will advocate for restructuring which, in fact, means different things to different people, others will go for one extreme solution or the other including asking that “all corrupt and old politicians be dragged into a single venue” and killed. Even when you raise an eyebrow over such approach and point out that in societies where such had been applied before, they still went back, neck deep into corruption.
Regrettably, an average Nigerian will never accept to contributing to the country’s underdevelopment. They will never agree that one single action they took can take the country ten steps right into underdevelopment. For them, it is the next person, tribe, gender, generation or any other groupings that they do not belong to.
This is why it is important that to consider what can be termed as the “corruption of immediate convenience”. This term can generally describe any illegal action taken by
a citizen because the Law made in that regard seem implausible or will not serve their immediate need at the moment. For instance a tricycle rider popularly known as “Keke” in Awka, Anambra State recently was to ride into one of the parks allocated to them by government in the city. His commuters kicked against it and insisted he dropped them on the road. This is even after the Keke rider had calmly explained to them that it was now against the law for him to park along the road. One of his passengers, visibly angry, told him that he had goods that he will need to carry to his next destination and obeying the laws at that time will not be convenient for him.
Another instance was the arrest of some sand miners in parts of Anambra State by the State government through the Operation Clean and Healthy Anambra, OCHA Brigade. While this action attracted commendations in some quarters, some perpetual critics gave their thumbs down. While some of them said that the government was “overdoing it” by arresting the illegal sand miners, another person said that since the sand miners were earning a living through the proceeds and were not engaged in any form of armed robbery, then they should not have been arrested.
The danger of this form of thinking is that this same person will tomorrow see an erosion site somewhere in Anambra state and wonder what the government was doing to save the situation. He would go on to call the government unprintable names for being irresponsible. He would forget that only recently he had described a man who was engaging in a sand mining activity as doing an honest work. He would have forgotten, so quickly, that illegal sand mining in a place without a properly conducted “environmental impact assessment” is a major and long-term contributor to the erosion site he was seeing.
The corruption of immediate convenience – that is satisfying your immediate needs against the laws of the land without thinking of its long term impact on the well being and development of Nigeria is the worst type of self sabotage you can put your country through. You may not be arrested for the act yet but remember that that singular action can delay Nigeria’s attainment of greatness. It is still very early to make a decision to advance your motherland by every action you take this New Year and going forward.
Written by DAVID OKPOKWASILI
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