By Dakuku Peterside Listening to radio commentaries, watching television, reading newspapers and going through online sources, I...
By Dakuku Peterside
Listening to radio commentaries, watching television, reading newspapers and going through online
sources, I wonder if patriotism in Nigeria is a fable or just forgotten. I use patriotism here in its broad sense of
loyalty and devotion to country, pursuit of the common good, standing up for
truth and justice.
Growing up as a boy and later as a younger man, I heard
stories and read about the patriotic zeal and actions of our leaders. They took
on the colonialists with fervour and fought with pride for a new Nigeria free
from the shackles of colonialism. It seemed that the founding fathers and leaders of the independent Nigeria had
patriotism in their DNA. Whilst they may
have bickered or even fought each other, they had something stronger in common
– faith in the Nigerian project. These leaders sought for and defended the
common good and it was the basis for trust in governance and leadership. History is replete with courageous acts of
these leaders, leaving us proud inheritors of their hardwork and sacrifice.
One would have hoped that their descendants would have
imbibed these values with a feverish love for country. But rather we have seen
the patriotism wane and selfishness take centre stage. Loyalty to individuals,
political, etnic or religious group, social class or professional interest are
constantly placed above national interest.
There are
several indicators of declining
patriotism as well as reasons for it. I will highlight a few here. Listening to
our highly respected political elite,
who should be role models in matters of patriotism, their language promotes
selfish interest, ethnic
or regional agenda over and above
national interest. It is rare to find amongst them those whose words and
actions inspire love for country. There is for most of them one reason or the
other why the country has failed them, not acknowledging the fact that they had
an opportunity in the recent past to contribute to nation building. For the political class, there is
neither national ethos nor ideals so nothing acts as a bond between them and
national aspirations.
What of our youth? Apart from sporting competition involving
the country and lately on matters of ”showbiz “ they hardly take pride in their citizenship nor do they
speak proudly of this country. Singing the National anthem, displaying the
national flag and reciting the National pledge is either only for purposes of
passing examinations or job interviews. Few youth have any form of emotional
attachment to those national symbols nor do they have faith in the country.
Worse still schools no longer promote civic responsibility or patriotism. This
is in complete contrast to the Patriotic passion of our founding fathers most
of who fought for independence from the colonial masters at their youthful age .
The hallowed chambers of our National Assembly should be the
bastion of nationalism and melting pot
of patriots. Listening to debate daily , it is obvious to the least discerning
that apart from a few, Honourable and Distinguished members are champions
of personal interest , of constituency and primordial interest above
national aspiration and common good . The language of debate does not lift
one’s spirit nor inspire hope of a great country where every citizen will feel
a sense of pride and security. If the National Assembly, which typically should
be the most nationalistic institution, is not dominated by persons who display
unquestionable patriotic spirit I am afraid there is nowhere else to find role
models. I concede that the military
remains for today the beacon of patriotism.
The story is no different in workplaces, whether public or
private sector. Nigerians do not trust and respect each other. We do not take
deliberate steps at work to support the ideals or values that unite us as a
nation and promote equal opportunity for all regardless of ethnic or religious leaning.
Language of discussion in work places promotes nepotism and lack of faith in
Nigeria and her institutions. The average Nigerian worker do not believe the country
has been fair to him/ her. Citizens
encounter these workers daily, get suboptimal service and further lose faith in
the country.
Another indicator of waning patriotism is rise in abuse of
public trust and criminality. Between
2015 and 2019 the number of criminal cases being prosecuted by Independent
Corrupt Practices Commission ( ICPC) doubled from 142 in 2015 to 378 in
2019. It is also a similar pattern in
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). EFCC got 103 convictions in
2015 but the number of convictions grew exponentially to 1,286 by 2019. The
rise is clearly a function of public office holders placing their self-interest
above common good .The argument could be made that the two state institutions
became more effective but from what we know it is most unlikely. The truth is
that the incentive to commit crime against the state and public interest is
because nobody is held accountable nor punished for abuse of public trust or
appropriating resources belonging to all that would have been applied for
development purposes. There are several other indicators of declining patriotic
consciousness as there are reasons for it.
An attempt to interrogate the reason behind the decline of patriotic zeal amongst Nigerians has thrown up the question
of what will be the basis for patriotism. There is the contention that if the
country cannot provide them basic security; physical, economic and social
security then you as a citizen is not under obligation to love and respect your
country. It can be likened to an irresponsible parent who demands respect from a son or daughter he/
she did not nurture or care for . This school of thought contend that our
country has not lived up to its
obligation and it is the reason why
citizens are emotionally and biological loyal to family, ethnic group or religious
inclination where those security can be provided even if informally . This
partially explains the mass looting that has been going on in our society as a
form of economic security where the state has failed to provide it . Whether
this justifies the democratization of corruption and abuse of office is another
matter.
Failing or poor leadership is another reason often advanced
for declining patriotism. Citizens across
board feels disappointed with leadership perceived lack of vision,
inability to maintain law and order and most importantly insecurity in all
dimensions confronting us .
Corruption is another reason that has destroyed the basis
for patriotism. Corruption and patriotism are parallel concepts that do not
have anything in common. Corruption
disincentivizes patriotic consciousness. The inverse relationship between the
two concepts is made worse by the fact that young Nigerians watch a system which inadvertently supports
people to get away with proceeds of corrupt practices against the citizens.
Growing lack of patriotism for whatever reasons is not a
good omen or trend . It portends danger for nation building and signals
insecurity in the near future. It is high time we pay attention to national
values that are necessary to strengthen the foundation for a great nation.
Recent developments in the body politic are scary and more than any other
evidence is convincing that patriotic consciousness is either dead, lost or
abandoned. There is a near general consensus that we have lost this generation
of Nigerians and Nigerian leaders to selfishness, greed and ethnocentric
loyalty. It is time we make national reorientation a priority national project
even if it is to recover the next generation of Nigerians and Nigerian leaders
to put the country on the part of renaissance. After all , patriotism , like
nation building, is a continuing experiment in the power of ideas and shared
vision to bring diverse people together to share common aspiration.
Source
No comments