Pensive, lost in thought and drinking a bottle of chilled
Fayrouz; music in my ear, and a song is playing...'Don't give up, it's not
over, when you give up, then it's over!' Wiping the last remnant of
tears...picking my pen...writing...
Welcome friends. These are my thoughts, my musings, my
convictions. I have always been an optimist and I still am. I have always been
positive minded and courageous and today that has not changed. But on the 15th
of March, 2014, I was given a new reason to ponder; to think on what has become
of us as a nation. It is no longer news that about 23 persons lost their lives
in different states of Nigeria while attending an interview organized by the
Nigeria Immigration Service on 15th of March 2014. Before that day,
I had allayed my deep fears on the organization of the exam when I heard that
the venue would be a stadium. I did not necessarily want to work for the
immigration service but I wanted to have a firsthand experience of the Nigerian
situation because I applied for the job before getting my present job. I
prepared and went, the time was 7a.m, 15th March, 2014. When I reached National
Stadium Abuja, the crowd I saw there, to say the least was unprecedented. It
was much more than I had imagined. I observed that everybody wore white and
white with white shoes that was supposedly for a fitness test. Many people also
had medical fitness certificates or paper ; whatever you may choose to call it.
I began to ask myself, why a medical fitness certificate for
just a job test? Who gave the information that white and white should be worn?
What would be the modalities for the physical fitness? I bottled up my fears
and observed carefully, deeply aware of the confusion and cluelessness of the
person currently serving as the Director of Immigration and many other leaders
holding critical positions in Nigeria. While the moment lasted, I remembered
vividly the encounter I had while trying to get an International passport
earlier in the year. I remember scolding a senior immigration officer at the
Immigration head office in Soka, Abuja for trying to extort money from me for a
passport and how he asked some gun wielding officers to send me out of the
premises just because I dared to challenge his corrupt practices.
Let me spare you the details of that encounter for I later
got my passport at a different location, at their Gwagwalada office, Abuja.
Back to the event of 15th March; mind you, I was wearing my
own white and white, oblivious of who actually authorized the dress code and
the medical certificate within the short time of notification for the test.
Once in a while, an ambulance will pass with siren blasting. I never knew some
people had already died in an earlier stampede. I was there from 7 a.m till
2pm. It was at about 2pm that I saw young people like me that came for
interview, gathering nylon bags and stuffing it into each other to create a sort of nylon
ball...and started playing it like a football, chasing very excitedly in the
field at the national stadium...people that came for a test. Some people
started having different forms of display, obviously trying to entertain others
that came for same interview. At this point, I wept. Is it that we do not know
what to do with ourselves or the government does not know what to do with us?
Who is to blame? Qui est Coupable? An exam that was scheduled for 7a.m and until
2p.m, nothing had happened, not the fitness test, not the test, nothing. This
means that whoever authorized the gathering thought everyone that came around as
stupid folks who can be made idle from morning till night and then attend to
them at any time they feel like. I became annoyed and my adventure ended. It
was not a joke to me anymore. I knew that things could be done differently; I
knew that we could do better than this, I know that we could be the greatest
country in the world if we channeled the energies of the young people I saw on
March 15 together.
When I left, I assured myself that I did not belong to that
group and would not be fulfilled if offered the job; so not minding anyone or
anybody, I left the venue, sad, depressed and very disturbed; that was by
3.30pm and the exam had not started.
I sympathize with the families of those that died in the
course of the interview. Please take heart, please wipe your tears, may God
console you.
To my fellow young people who held on to write the test, I
salute your strong will and courage and faithfully hope you will make the
successful list without lobbying but I think we have more work in our hands
than we could imagine. We can't trust our future on the government; we must
chart a new course for ourselves, for our children and unborn children. Our
people say that he who has been rejected does not reject himself. We need
entrepreneurs to drive development, we need creative leaders and politicians,
honest civil servants, competent professionals who would know exactly what to
do in nation building.
This resolution starts from within; what can you do, what can
I do? What can we do to make something good out of our lives? Do not say there
is nothing you can do, build networks, develop yourself, build your vision. It
may take time but stay committed and together we shall create a better future.
Nigeria, oh Nigeria! May your children rise to deliver you
from leaders befuddled by mediocrity and cluelessness.
Friends, no matter what happens, Nigeria is still ours to
plough, not to plunder!
Stay Positive.
D-Motivator.
(A note written on 17th of March, 2014, after the immigration recruitment exercise that caused a great stampede, resulting to the death of over 23 people across Nigeria.)
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