By Abdulqudus Abdulmumini Amoto
It is said that to understand Nigeria, you need to appreciate where it came from, In 1900, Britain officially assumed responsibility for the Administration of the whole of what we Now know as Nigeria from the Niger Company And then, gradually over the years British protectorates were established throughout the territory In 1914, the protectorates were amalgamated into one Nigeria. Actually, there’s one additional detail that bears mentioning In order to take over the territories from the Niger Company, the British Government paid 865, 000 pounds A huge amount in 1900.
So let’s establish a simple truth The British didn’t travel halfway Across the world just to spread democracy Nigeria started off as a business deal For them, between a company and a government Incidentally, the Niger Company is still around today only it is known by a different name, Unilever. It didn’t end there still during the British administration a lot of the ancestral artifacts and cultural exhibits they came across they took with them, to show how deeper the pain goes the British made Benin a coded slave coast where by lots of blacks were moved overseas forcefully without return.
Then came independence in 1960, A freedom from the British in which many important lives were lost for Nigeria to stand strong on its own, Nationalist such as Obafemi Awolowo, Alhaji Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, Nnamdi Azikiwe ( the zik of Africa) and others had to fight their way through to make sure Nigeria got her independence. But has Nigeria been any better since then till now?
For the past few years it’s been a whole different story in Nigeria, a country where the leaders put their interest before those who gave them the power, a country where the politician are the leaders of today and tomorrow, a country where the youths are all unemployed graduates, youths that struggle their way through federal schools that even the average man can’t afford to send their kids to anymore. A country that is blessed with different mineral resources but the leaders channel it towards their own way so they could all benefit from it. A country where another country’s currency is way valuable than theirs.
A country that is one of the worlds crude oil producing state but all not been enjoyed by their citizen with the removal of the fuel subsidy making it all difficult for the people to move about their daily activities, a country whose future is unpredictable as so many event keep unfolding, while those who have the means to leave the country do not waste their time to japa. This is a country that could have been one of the best in the world if the leaders we voted into power could be a little bit lenient and considerable.
Abdulqudus Abdulmumini Amoto
Department of Mass communication
University of Maiduguri
