What you need to know about Nigeria´s potential and the #EndSARS protests
“There is no heavier burden than an unfulfilled potential.” - Charles Schulz
A couple of weeks ago, a former colleague invited me to a local bar in Munich, Germany for some evening drinks. For several months now, in our bid to adhere to the local corona regulations and guidelines, we had for a long time denied ourselves such an opportunity to physically meet and interact outside our households. So, when this offer came calling, I just couldn't resist.
At the bar, was me, our host and two other gentlemen. One was a new guest who was joining us for the first time. Although ethnically German, he had grown up in the UK and Belgium before moving over to Germany for work. We introduced ourselves, and as soon as he heard I was Nigerian, his eyes lit up.
Nigerian? What a coincidence! you know, I work for an oil production company, and my company is currently working on a gas project in your country. Guess what? I am part of that project, and I have to travel to Nigeria soon. I love Nigeria, I have worked with several people from there. There is so much potentials in Nigeria.
As a Nigerian in the diaspora, I am always happy to meet and interact with people who know about the country. But while I am always excited about such encounters, I soon become disappointed whenever I get reminded of Nigeria´s potentials. To provide some context, my disappointment has a historical undertone which stems from the experience of my father. In the 1960´s while my father was a young boy growing up in the country, an expatriate (probably in a local bar) had said to him,
"This country will be great, it has so much potentials."
But in 2007, my father died with the country still yet to fulfil its potentials. So you might understand my disappointment in 2020, being told thesame several decades later in a Munich bar.
When will Nigeria fulfil its potentials? #ENDSARSNOW!
"Young Nigerians finally get angry, and it’s been inspiring to watch" - Jude Egbas
For weeks, a lot of Nigerians have been protesting the violent conduct and treatment from the tactical units of the Nigerian Police Force known as SARS. Locally and internationally, there have been several calls for justice for many victims of police brutality, sustainable police reform and police accountability.
Although the #ENDSARS protest in Nigeria started with a focus on The Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) of the Nigerian Police, it soon became a rallying point for all that has been wrong in the country since independence in 1960. It is now an expression of the frustrations of the younger generation of Nigerians towards a system that has held us back from achieving our potentials.
The Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) of the Nigerian Police Force became a representation of the public officials and political leadership in Nigeria who are ever ready to profile, extort and brutalize young Nigerians. For a long time in the country, the status quo has been, if you want to get anything out of the system, you need to know someone or be able to bribe someone. As the local saying in Nigerian pidgin English goes,
"If you nor open your pocket, nothing go happen for you."
As many Nigerian experts who have over the years left the country can attest, if you are a talented Nigerian, with potentials or want to get ahead in this world, you might need to get out of the country because the system is built to frustrate you or hold you down. This is why many of the country´s best talents have continued to migrate out of the country by any means to anywhere possible to achieve their dreams and aspirations.
But at the end of the day, we realize that not everyone can run abroad. And now tired and frustrated of the systemic failure, Nigerian youths have collectively decided to wake up to protest and negotiate a right to live and work in peace in the country. As Jude Egbas wrote;
"Young Nigerians finally get angry"
And for me, it was inspiring to watch and be part of the protest in Munich, Germany!
Photo credit: Ibukun Badejo