By Okolo Chimennma
In 1960 October 1st to be exact, the Nigerian State got independent from Great Britain, her erstwhile colonial masters.
There was so much hope for the new nation in the main occasioned by the abundant mineral/natural resources God had seen fit to safeguard in her bowels. The teeming human resources added to that optimism.
However, 57 years after, the Nigerian state has never risen from the status of a “potentially great nation” in the main caused by a very kleptomaniac military (with their civilian collaborators) ruling elite which have held and still holds the nation on the jugular.
In 1966 the nation witnessed its first coup by idealist young military officers who believed they were on a rescue mission against a corrupt political class.
The coup truncated the political development of the nation and introduced military dictatorships to our political landscape, the effect of which we have never recovered from.
It’s ironical that despite the touted corruption of the then political class, Nigeria has never witnessed the kind of systematic and enduring development strides and direction it witnessed in what has become known in Nigerian parlance as the first Republic.
Severally successive coups later, we had another interregnum of civilian rule, this time fashioned after the American Presidential Model by the retreating khaki men. This again was aborted barely 4 years after by the same military claiming corruption as the reason for the interruption.
Again an opportunity to develop our political culture was missed.
After several coups and power maneuvering we got ourselves back to a seeming democratic system in 1999 with a constitution foisted on the people and fraudulently proclaimed “we the people”.
Before the advent of the civilian rule in 1999, the military incursions into our national politics had destroyed and severely damaged the collective psyche of the people and most still suffer that damage till date and it shows in the way we have reacted to Issues.
Let me state that the corruption in Nigeria today was engendered, nurtured to maturity by the same rapacious military who claimed they were our saviours from corrupt politicians!
These military men have mastered the act of manipulating the people’s emotions, they are so entrenched they determine the direction of any government and woe betide any government that goes against their will – ask Jonathan!
They possess enormous resources they can rely on and contacts in all fields both within (they made them) and without they can call on whenever they want!
But the most telling and successful gambit of their rapacious rule is the success in making the Nigerian people a cowed and docile lot!
It’s difficult even after 17 years of democracy to see any protest succeed or have the desired impact if they don’t sanction it! They or their cohorts lead it or at the least sponsor it!
Look around you despite the hunger in the land and the destruction of a once buoyant economy, the people still can’t come out in great numbers to protest their unfortunate lot! Did you not see how they rubbished the Tuface protest?
Truly in 1960 October 1st; Nigeria got her independence from the British colonisers but have remained in perpetual slavery to the internal colonialists.
We now have to fight for our independence from these internal colonialists!
Otherwise the future of a unified Nigeria is not guaranteed no matter how we paper over the deep schisms that do exist!
It is now left for the Nigerian people to fight for their independence if they have had enough! We must realise we have a common enemy – the ruling elite!
Okolo Chimennma is a lawyer, political commentator and environmental rights campaigner.
