Tuesday, September 08, 2009

Nigeria: Is there not a curse?


I am Nigerian with a green passport FACT1
I do not apologise for it. FACT2
It makes immigration officers hair stand. FACT3
For the love of me does not care. FACT4



THE NATIONAL PLEDGE

I pledge to Nigeria my country

To be faithful, loyal and honest

To serve Nigeria with all my strength

To defend her unity and uphold her honor and glory

So help me God.


For those of us who studied in Nigeria we must have recited the pledge at least a million times through primary and secondary school. Apparently, it meant nothing if anything to us.
First it was district 9. The SA/Hollywood film that portrays Nigerians as 419’s prostitutes etc. I have not seen the movie but the reviews have told me all I need to know.

Now it’s the Sony advert. I think this is extremely cheap and irresponsible of SONY. For a whole team to come up with that, pass it through several people and still decide that the advert was perfect, then it’s a big big shame. Nigeria, a country where the product is sold in mass. But my grouse is not necessarily with SONY, it is more with Nigerians who don’t see anything wrong with it, and those who think that Dora has no right to ask that the advert be retraced and Sony offer a public apology.

When I read some of the comments on the issue, I almost gave up on Nigerians. How dare we say that it is okay for people to insult us? Yes, Nigeria has corrupt leaders, Yes Nigeria has yahoo, yahoo boys, Yes, Some Nigerians are stupid and foolish and docile and cowardly and just empty barrels but that does not justify another national calling us these names to our faces. If the security guy falls asleep on his post, does that justify the thief? Is a drunk driver justified because a pub was left open?

I don’t care that almost all our leaders are thieves giving us a bad name. Whenever I travel, I travel with my head held high. Yes, they scan and scan and rescan my passport but I don’t care, I will not apologise for being a Nigerian, they can’t never intimidate me. When they are done with their scanning, they hand me back my passport and I walk away, sometimes I can’t resist adding if they are sure they don’t want to scan some more. Being Nigerian is not a crime and one day, I swear, my child will stand proud that he is one.

My brother was initially refused a British study visa, they claimed that my mother, who sponsored him ,had forged her statement of account. My brother was livid. Being a journalist, he replied them immediately threatening fire and brimstone and demanding an apology. How dare them call his mother-who had served his fatherland in the civil service for thirty five years- a fraudster? If the embassy staff were not diligent enough to decipher what statement was false and which wasn’t, should he be made to pay for their irresponsibility. He raved and ranted and they called him up, apologised and granted him the visa.

What is my point?That it don’t matter that Nigeria is more bad than good(and that is debatable)It don’t give no one no right to insult us. And we have to learn to stand up for this country. If not for us, for our children. I believe that the older generation is lost and there is no saving them. Only us, the younger people can save this country, but how can we save a country, we have no passion for, we hold no respect for?

I don’t think anyone would pat another on the back for insulting our parents, our tribe or our religion, so why do we let them insult Nigeria?
It doesn’t matter if we become the best country in the world, if we have no self respect as a nation, no other nation will respect us.

Finally, to all those thieving leaders who have contributed in bringing shame upon our nation. MAY THE FULL WRATH OF GOD DESCEND UPON THEM!


9 comments:

LG said...
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LG said...
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LG said...

amennnnnnnnno
@sony: i hear say *dora don bash dem

Chiamaka said...

I love this blog. just the kind of stuff i like to hear. i too believe we have to be proud of who we i. Many times too i have felt like giving up on Nigeria. but if we give up, who would be there

Seyi said...

I'm totally with you on this issue. It saddens my mind also that some Nigerians don't see anything wrong with it.

I live in Australia, and I can tell you that there is an annual conference on "Advanced Fee Fraud" organised by a State Police Dept.This event attracts lots of international visitors. But do you know that the event is called "Nigerian 419 Scam"! Yes, there are Nigerians that engage in 419, yes our leaders are corrupt but it does not give any nation or corporation the audacity to rub it on our face. In fact the High Commissioner was invited to this conference, but he threatened not to attend except the name was changed - which they did! But can you believe that it's being going on for years, and EFCC officials have always been in attendance.

Such statement smacks of political correctness. Can SONY make similar remarks about "black americans" on a US channel?

Anyway, thanks for reading my blog.

Cheers

Seyi

For the love of me said...

@lg, Yesoo Dora has bashed them, they've replaced the Nigerian word with something else.
@Hyaw, We can't give up Nigeria, hope's about all we have left.
@healnigeria,you've got to be kidding me, the even is called Nigerian 419scam and EFCC attends with raising an eyebrow, wow,wonders will never end. Kudos to the ambassodor that wouldnt take it.

wellsbaba said...

MY FIRST TIME HERE N U JUST WON ME OVER BY TALKIN BOUT 9JA WITH SUCH PPASSION! sony calls jeers at you bcos o.1 percent of ur country are yahoo boys and you say leave them alone??? r u stupid! someone came to ur house called your younger bro a thief and wants to drag him off(thou he actually is a thief)you are just gonna let them? we dont even constitute d larger percentage of internet fraud! US does!!! are we better than the mafians at organised crimes and drug dealing??? mcheeeew

Afrobabe said...

It's really sad...they make things extremely difficult for those of us out here....but I really dont see why naija cannot also make a movie about south africa...afteral their country is worse than ours...rubbish...

Anonymous said...

I believe God knows Nigeria is a whole but it does not stop me from loving it. Contrary to what i rwad here, I thought Nigerians were livid anout the insult by the sony as

Oh well, you never know but i love that nation, thats the nation where i will be allowed to keep my billions without some moron govt taxing everthing