Where lasting change begins

This blog post breaks my silence on our nation’s political crisis.

I guess I’m disappointing some of you; it’s a topic most Nigerians have given up on. But for how long are we going to continue to run miles on a treadmill? The politicians are not just the problem. We all have a role in building the new Nigeria of our dreams (what is the Nigerian Dream? I guess you’re as clueless as I am).

Building with gemstones of character, integrity, justice, love for all, hardwork and peace in our daily activities won’t be a bad idea. Don’t you think so? The lyrics of the song by Beautiful Nubia below say it all:

Ohun oju nri [What the eyes have seen] by Beautiful Nubia

www.beautifulnubia.com

Ohun oju nri enu o ma ni le so o
Ohun oju ri omo o ma ni le so bo de’le o

[What the eyes have seen, the mouth cannot say in entirety]
They say we’re free and colonisation is a thing of the past
But look around you people
Time is going by and we still can’t get it right
They say our land is the home of poverty and disease
and we’re treated like second-class citizens of the world
Our leaders run around begging for help
When the solutions are right here at home with us
The future of this land is in the hands
Of every man and woman, young and old
Everyone of us has a share in the blame for the failure of this society
See, we‘re still slaves economically,
We‘re still slaves politically,
We‘re still slaves ideologically
But I’ve got a song to sing
Je a gbe’ra kuro o ninu ogbun aye, [Let’s come out of this conundrum]
Ore e so’ra, e dakun o, a ma njin si koto [Friends, we’re descending into a pit]
Je a gbe’ra kuro o ninu ogbun aye [Let’s come out of this conundrum]
A ni e mu’ra, e so’ra o, a ma njin si koto lo o [I say be careful, we’re continually falling into a pit]

We’re trying to fix things from the top to the ground
But the way to solve it is from the ground upwards
Lasting change begins at the individual level
Everyone dips in the pot but no one replenishes
Have you forgotten the rules?
Without love there can be no truth, justice and peace
We must turn our backs on selfishness and greed
Go back to our culture of community - all for one and one for all
Not just every man to his own
We must go back to the land
A nation that cannot feed itself
Will always remain subservient to others
We’re still slaves to material wealth,
We‘re still slaves to religion,
We‘re still slaves to foreign ideals
But I’ve got a song to sing

This land will be a great place one day
A place where dreams come true
Our hope is in the children
Teach them to love their fellow man
And never to judge anyone by the colour of their skin, religion or language
Teach them to be proud of our culture
And the values of hardwork and perseverance, honest and humility
Treat every child like your own
For every child, no matter the circumstances of his birth,
Is a beacon to this glorious future
Teach them to be strong in love
And never look down on themselves
Teach them to be strong
And learn to hold their heads up wherever they may go
Teach the children to sing this song of pride
And let them sing it loud and clear:
I’m not ashamed to be who I am
I’m not ashamed - I’m a proud African
I’m not afraid - I’m a child of The Most High
I’m not ashamed and I’ve got a song to sing