A retired Nigerian military personnel said it: “This is a good day to die” in viral video of protest for their pensions.
Let that sink in.
This is not a movie line. This is a man who wore the uniform, who stood at the border, who fought insurgency, who buried his colleagues. Today he is retired, forgotten, and angry.
When a soldier says “this is a good day to die,” it means life has become worse than death. It means pensions are not paid. It means hospitals reject them. It means promises made in khaki have turned to dust in agbada.
We clap for soldiers during Independence Day parades. We post “thank you for your service.” But after service, we abandon them to queues at the Ministry of Defence, to unpaid gratuity, to children who drop out of school.
What message are we sending to those still in the barracks? That your sacrifice ends the day you retire? That the nation you defended will not defend you?
A country that makes its veterans say “this is a good day to die” is a country in moral crisis.
Government must act now. Pay pensions. Fix military hospitals. Treat retired officers with dignity.
Because if we cannot care for those who said “I will die for Nigeria,” then who will say “I will live for Nigeria” tomorrow?
A soldier’s last fight should not be with his own country.
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bcradle@ymail.com