Opinion
Do Buhari, Malami know a man called Tafawa Balewa?|By Festus Adedayo
Apparently a young officer of the Nigerian Army at the time Abubakar Tafawa Balewa was the Nigerian Prime Minister from 1957-1966, it goes without saying that President Muhammadu Buhari must know of Balewa, even if he didn’t know him. Conversely however, if his official birthday of April 17, 1967 is indeed real, Abubakar Malami probably encountered Balewa as a historical piece. For both however, the life of Balewa and his disposition to Western Nigeria, especially during the crisis that seized the region from 1962 to 1966, should be a reference point if both men do not want the fate that befell Nigeria as a result of Balewa’s self-imposed deafness to the turmoil that began like a minor crisis in the West, to take another shuttle back to Nigeria.
Western Nigeria, aftermath the fiasco of the 1963 national census and the 1964 Federal Elections, was literally a bedlam. The census provoked a narrative of divisionism as results claimed that the whole of Southern Nigeria was less than the North. Commentators were riled by what was perceived as fictitious figures “concocted from harem curtains.”
The allegation was that the North hid behind the purdah system of ba siga, gidan aore ne (no entrance, it’s a house of married women) to stuff figures in the headcount under the conspiratorial goggles of Balewa. In the same vein came allegation that foreigners were being imported into Northern Nigeria. Commentators after commentators pilloried the idea of women in purdah not being physically counted by the census inspectors, relying on verbal figures handed them by family heads. They warned that if a doctored figure was imposed on the people, Nigeria was a few meters from Golgotha. As Buhari does today, 56 years after, Balewa’s silence to this tinder that was primed to burn Nigeria was palpably bothersome.
Balewa advertised this silence when the Federal Elections of 1964 became an orgy of killings in the Western Region. Acrimonious and vengeful campaigns, preparatory to the elections, especially in the West, became the order of the day. Deputy Premier, Victor Babaremilekun Adetokunboh Fani-Kayode, Richard Akinjide and Bayo Olowofoyeku formed the Nigerian National Democratic Party (NNDP), comprising Akintola’s United Peoples Party (UPP), the rump of fragmented National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons (NCNC) leaders and the Northern Peoples Congress (NPC), to form the Nigerian National Alliance (NNA). The rump of the Action Group (AG) that was left also went into an alliance with the NCNC, Northern Elements Progressive Union (NEPU) and United Middle Belt Congress (UMBC), to form an alliance it called the United Progressive Ground Alliance (UPGA). At the end of the day, the election was so farcical that it brimmed with violence. UPGA then announced a boycott. In the 1965 regional election, there was It was a repeat of this gangsterism with both Akintola’s NNA and UPGA’s Dauda Soroye Adegbenro laying claim to having won the election. Sworn in for another term, the Akintola government met serious resistance by the populace, including decisions of the people not to pay tax, which forced government to review cocoa price from £110 per ton to £60. This eventually led to the Weti e upheaval.
While on a tour of Benin in June, 1964, still feigning ignorance of the crisis, Balewa was quoted to have said that he could not judge the intensity of lawlessness in the West on account of newspaper report of the brigandage. Balewa, who projected the image of an “unworried” and “unconcerned” Prime Minister with his “ominous silence,” was pummeled by the Western Region media. He still advertised a façade of insulation from the worsening fate of the West and someone who didn’t read newspapers. Worse still, as Balewa departed Nigeria for Accra to attend an OAU meeting in October, 1965, he was quoted to have alleged that the violence in the region was contrived. While at the Ikeja Airport, he was asked by journalists what he was going to do about the fire raging in Western Nigeria. Successfully tucking his bother inside his flowing babanriga, Tafawa Balewa reportedly looked round and cynically declared; “Ikeja is part of the West and I cannot see any fire burning.” That same fire consumed him on January 15, 1966. It was a case of a disease that would kill one which is always pampered and treated with kid gloves. The pillory of Balewa that resulted from this peremptory treatment of the western crisis was accentuated by his perceived shield of his party man and “fast drowning political friend” – a la the Nigerian press – Premier S. L. Akintola and Balewa’s refusal to invoke the Emergency powers as he did in 1962. This led to an editorial comment by the Nigerian Tribune saying that: “Whether Abubakar (Balewa) intervenes or not, (we are) convinced that this is a war the people are bound to win.” This was the situation on the morning of January 15, 1966 when the fire that Balewa ignored successfully gave birth to the first military coup in Nigeria which effectively ended the lives of Balewa, Akintola and others.
This writer went into this long-winding retelling of a long Nigerian history so as to situate Buhari’s Balewa-like ominous personal silence on the fire burning from the flanks of the Western part of Nigeria which is manifesting as a slide in its security affairs. Call it tribal arrogance or needless over-hype, history tells us that the Western Region is always where the Nigerian crisis snowballs from. Apart from the consequential crash of Nigerian first democratic practice of the First Republic, the seed of which was sown in the West, military rule also crumbled in Nigeria on account of the West’s united civil resistance against autocracy, with the martyrdom of its son, MKO Abiola, in 1998. With these, a charge of unnecessary revisionism cannot be sustained against my claim that there is another ominous fire that is burning in the country from the Western flank, as well as my projection that any Nigerian leader with a heady or natural laid-back disposition that manifests as resistance to peace in the West can be said to be peering at the grave of Balewa.
If you collate the anger of the people of Western Nigeria today against the Buhari government’s attempt to stop the Western Nigeria Security Network (WNSN) called Operation Amotekun and their pleasantly strange unity of purpose on Amotekun, you would arrive at a juncture that makes the current situation a throwback to Nigeria’s Western region’s palpable animosity and brimming angst against the government of Balewa. These are the offshoot of a press release issued by the office of Abubakar Malami, Attorney General and Minister of Justice, offering legalistic arguments against the security outfit. In the release, Malami also made a Balewa-like statement, to wit that Southwest could not inform him of Amotekun from the pages of newspapers. Such arrogance!
If Buhari’s DSS would give him truthful report of current situation in the west today, he would find out that, for the first time in a very long while, Southwest Nigeria is throwing away her constant variables of politics and religion to damn the Federal Government on its apparently self-centered stand on Amotekun. It is worsened by Buhari’s baffling taciturnity to the crisis.
While Balewa at least showed his patent disregard for the escalating violence, Buhari’s embarrassing absence of a personal opinion on the matter, leading to the projection of his government’s voice by surrogates like Malami make the belief that Nigerians are being ruled by unelected triumvirates to gain notoriety.
Malami’s press release has been subjected to a forensic post-mortem by very knowledgeable Nigerians which makes a repeat of the damning verdict on him irrelevant here. The greatest way to put a lie to Malami’s legalistic argument is to scan it for abidance by the principle of natural justice. This resultant query will emanate from the scan: Is man made for law or laws are made for man?
When South-westerners were being killed, kidnapped and ransomed like pawned necklace by rampaging Fulani herdsmen from the North or wherever, with a Federal Government that was either too inept to counter them or too complicit in the plot to lift a finger, should the letter of the law or its spirit rescue the people from the bind that the Malamis conscripted them?
The frenetic pace with which Northern Nigeria demanded the surrender of Southwest’s desire to secure herself, against the backdrop of the Federal Government’s inability or incapability to ensure peace in Nigeria as a whole, is not only suspicious but smacks of an ulterior motive. Only a few days ago, Miyetti Allah, the umbrella body of a group said to be one of the most deadly terrorist groups in the world and whose reckless public utterances are festering by the day, audaciously asked Southwest to drop the idea of Amotekun if it wants the presidency in 2023. It was also reported to have asked that governors behind Amotekun should be arrested. What arrant nonsense and magisterial belief in entitlement to power!
All these seem to confirm earlier tissues of rumour that the banditry of the Fulani felons, the attempt by the Buhari government to get settlements for them in all parts of Nigeria, the defence of herdsmen’s bloodletting by no less a person than Buhari himself with all manner of ill-logics at his disposal, as well as by top officers of his government, the RUGA plot and other shenanigans by government that were largely targeted at getting the people’s tormentors-in-chief soft landing in all the nooks and crannies of Nigeria, are all parts of a larger plot to Fulanize the rest of Nigeria. If you lay the premises like this: Fulnai herdsmen are tormenting Southwest Nigeria; Buhari and his government are defending Fulani herdsmen; Southwest Nigeria plans security outfit to combat Fulani herdsmen and other criminals; Buhari government wants to stop Southwest Nigeria, that conclusion will naturally flow from the premises. Amotekun and the resistance of its coming to life are a palpable indication that the satanic plot to inflict Fulani herdsmen on Southern Nigeria was real after all.
The coincidence of the 40th anniversary of the end of the Nigerian Civil War with this current governmental bigotry must have made the world realize that the about one million Nigerians killed in the war may have been martyred needlessly. This is because the Nigerian Hausa-Fulani leaders have not purged themselves of the rank, narrow-minded and selfish leadership that rankled Emeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu and which was the major impetus for the civil war. Yakubu Gowon was recently quoted to have said that he didn’t regret his actions in the war, which included the killings of multiple of thousands Igbo and thousands of soldiers on both sides. Except he is fascinated with untruth, Gowon should know that it is very glaring from the experiences of other ethnic groups in Nigeria under this government that going through the 30-month war only to have a Nigerian leadership consumed by this government’s kind of thinking makes the death of our heroes past a vainglorious exercise. It is obvious that resistance to Amotekun is fired by a narrow-minded protection of the President’s ethnicity while other ethnicities are left naked and at the mercy of violent murderers.
Just like Balewa, Buhari has turned a deaf ear to solicitations not to set Nigeria alight by this ominous silence on Amotekun. He is egged on to a destructive stiff-neckedness by his ostensible obsession with the defence of his Fulani kin. I cite a prophetic Nigerian Tribune editorial of November 18, 1965 where the newspaper had written, inter alia: “Whether Abubakar (Balewa) intervenes or not, (we are) convinced that this is a war the people are bound to win…with all (his) cunning of a fox and all the trickery of a monkey…”
Buhari should learn from Balewa’s fall and not take the silly silence of self-styled Yoruba leaders who Yakubu Danjuma called Fifth columnists, as approximating a bendable will of the Southwest people. Southwest Nigeria has always been the graveyards of the Balewas and their recalcitrant offspring in federal office.
Nigeria stands as a paradox, endowed with immense natural wealth yet grappling with staggering poverty levels among its populace. The country is blessed with an abundance of resources, including diverse agricultural products, vast oil reserves, and a burgeoning tourism and entertainment industry, all of which hold immense potential for national prosperity. Despite this richness, many Nigerians endure dire economic conditions, raising questions about the effective management and equitable distribution of wealth generated from these resources.
The agricultural sector in Nigeria is a significant contributor to both the economy and food security. With favourable climatic conditions and arable land, Nigeria has the potential to become an important player in global agriculture. However, inefficiencies in farming techniques, lack of access to modern equipment, inadequate infrastructure, and insecurity impede growth, leaving many farmers in subsistence conditions. By addressing these challenges, Nigeria could harness its agricultural wealth to reduce poverty and strengthen its economy.
Similarly, oil and gas remain at the forefront of Nigeria’s natural resources, providing a substantial share of government revenue. Unfortunately, the oil riches have also been a source of conflict and corruption, leading to environmental degradation and social unrest in oil-producing regions. Although the sector can foster economic growth, the mismanagement of resources has prevented the country from fully benefiting from its wealth. Furthermore, the fluctuating oil prices on the global market create vulnerability, emphasizing the need for economic diversification.
The entertainment industry, particularly Nollywood, represents another facet of Nigeria’s wealth. This sector showcases rich cultural heritage, offers employment opportunities, and generates income. Despite its success, it has not yet been leveraged to bring about far-reaching economic change across the country. Without addressing existing systemic challenges, Nigeria’s abundant resources might continue to dance precariously on the edge of opportunity, further complicating the narrative of its natural wealth.
Leadership Challenges and Political Corruption
Significant leadership issues and pervasive political corruption have plagued Nigeria’s history. Since gaining independence in 1960, the nation has witnessed a succession of leaders, many of whom have failed to prioritize the welfare of their citizens. Ineffective governance has not only hampered Nigeria’s growth but has also led to a persistent cycle of political instability. This crisis of leadership has contributed significantly to the erosion of public trust in governmental institutions, weakening the social fabric of the country.
The impact of political corruption is deeply entrenched in Nigeria’s socio-economic landscape. Corruption permeates various layers of governance, leading to the misallocation of resources intended for public welfare. Essential services such as healthcare, education, and infrastructure development suffer as funds are diverted for personal gain. The consequences of such malfeasance are evident in the rise of poverty rates, inadequate healthcare systems, and a significant lack of access to quality education. Consequently, these socio-economic challenges create a vicious cycle that further exacerbates the leadership crisis.
Historically, Nigeria has experienced a range of leadership styles, from military rule to civilian governments, yet the recurring theme remains the same: a failure to eradicate corrupt practices. Each new leadership regime often promises reform and better governance, but these assurances rarely translate into meaningful change. The lessons from past experiences underscore the importance of accountability and transparency in rebuilding trust between the government and the populace. As the nation grapples with its leadership crisis, the intersection of governance and corruption demands critical attention to chart a new course towards sustainable development and empowerment.
The Hardships Under the Current Administration
The current administration of Nigeria, under President Bola Tinubu, has ushered in an array of policies that have sparked significant public discourse due to their profound impact on the lives of ordinary Nigerians. Notably, the removal of fuel subsidies has been a pivotal move that has reverberated through the economy, leading to steep increases in fuel prices. This sudden change has not only made transportation costs soar but has also led to a ripple effect, dramatically affecting the prices of basic goods and services. Citizens are now grappling with the daily realities of inflated living costs, often on already strained budgets.
Furthermore, the naira floating, aimed at addressing exchange rate discrepancies, has instead resulted in further devaluation. The naira’s instability has posed challenges for local businesses and individual consumers, making it increasingly difficult to afford essential products. This monetary policy highlights the delicate balancing act required in governance, reflecting the complexity of addressing economic issues while ensuring the welfare of the populace. Many Nigerians report feelings of uncertainty and anxiety regarding their financial futures, emphasizing a general sentiment of disillusionment with the direction of government policy under the Tinubu administration.
A Path Forward: Hope or Despair?
Nigeria’s current circumstances present a dichotomy of hope and despair. Despite the numerous challenges confronting the country, including political instability, economic hardships, and social unrest, there is a glimmer of hope that reform is possible through concerted efforts by the populace and leadership. As the country reaches a crossroads, systemic reforms have the potential to catalyze change. These reforms must prioritize institutional strengthening, increase transparency, and promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth.
Public participation is critical in this endeavour. Citizens must reclaim their agency by actively participating in democratic processes, advocating for accountability from their leaders, and demanding that their voices be heard. Civic education should be promoted to ensure that the electorate is informed and empowered to make decisions that affect their future. Furthermore, civil society organizations can play a pivotal role in mobilizing resources and providing platforms for dialogue, where citizens can articulate their needs and aspirations.
Accountability from leadership is another cornerstone for progress in Nigeria. As the people seek a path forward, leaders must prioritize the needs of their constituents over personal interests. Regular assessments of governmental performance, transparency in budgeting and spending, and anti-corruption measures can help to restore public trust. Leaders who demonstrate commitment to these principles may inspire hope and foster collective action aimed at the common good.
Ultimately, the question remains: Who holds the key to Nigeria’s promised future? The answer lies within the collaboration between the government and its citizens, whereby both parties work towards common objectives. The road to prosperity for Nigeria is not easy, but through systemic reforms, public engagement, and accountability, there exists an opportunity to transform hope into reality, steering the nation towards a brighter tomorrow.
Mimiola, an Award-Winning journalist, sent in this piece.
The Presidency addressed several issues last Wednesday as the Special Adviser to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Information and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga picked the microphone to give perspectives to certain developments. One of the issues he addressed was the lingering feud between the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) and Dangote Refineries Limited.
Onanuga said that President Tinubu would not intervene in the feud because the two entities “operate independently in a deregulated market.”
According to Onanuga, the Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) field has been deregulated, just as Dangote is a private company. The NNPCL is a limited liability company, he said. In the loaded statement, the presidential adviser was hinting Nigerians why the President cannot dabble into the huge but confusing feud between Dangote Refineries and NNPCL, over the pricing of petroleum products in the country.
The presidential adviser and Nigerians are not oblivious to the implications of his statement. First, a lot of hope had been invested in the Dangote Refineries by Nigerians, who had concluded that its coming on stream would yield them cheaper fuel and help end the perennial fuel scarcity that kept the pumps at the filling stations dry for most of the months. But as the refinery was about to fag off its full operations, officials of the refinery, the NNPC and its subsidiaries started singing some music with disparaging tunes. Accusations upon accusations were rampaging in the air, while some name calling and tagging were being spread openly and under the table. It became obvious that elements in the administration of President Tinubu were opposed to the operation of the local refinery. Such insinuations must have prompted the President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote to speak out in some tones not easily attributable to him hitherto. He alleged that officials of the NNPC were running a blending plant in Malta, where fuel is imported into Nigeria. He equally offered to hand off the Lagos-based refinery if the government would buy him out.
As tension rose, between Dangote and NNPCL, the corporation was having the last laugh, as it chose the same time to unleash some violent strokes of koboko whips on the back of the Nigerian citizen. It galloped fuel prices at will and at the same time locked the products away from their reach. Queues got unwinding at filling stations and the agony was unending. The hunger and thirst for Dangote fuel grew, but the NNPC chose to remain the stumbling block. I guess that the cries of Nigerian citizens at one point got across the Aso Rock Villa, in Abuja and the presidency had to order a temporary ceasefire. NNPCL was directed to create avenues for the supply of crude oil to Dangote in Naira while the refinery too was to agree to a pricing model to be fashioned by the Federal Executive Council. Even at that, the two combatants have continued to throw jabs at each other, especially over what should constitute the exact price of Dangote petrol. While Dangote had claimed that fuel from its refineries would be far cheaper than imported ones, the NNPC had given a conflicting indication. The NNPC/Dangote tango has been a ding-dong and a topsy-turvy affair.
That was the situation as the October 1 date fixed for the start of crude supply to Dangote draws close. And Mr. Onanuga was speaking against that backdrop. If that stands, it would amount to classifying Tinubu in the mould of the biblical Pontius Pilate, as seen in the book of John 18:37-49 and 19:1-19. In that biblical encounter, leading to the final crucifixion of Jesus Christ, the Jews had brought Jesus to Pilate’s court for an indictment that would enable them to crucify him. Pilate asked questions of Jesus and even though Jesus answered in the spirit, the judge was still able to conclude that he found no fault in Jesus. And that was despite the mounting pressure from the multitude of Jews, seeking to crucify Jesus.
As we read in John 19:6; “When the chief priests therefore and officers saw him, they cried out, saying, Crucify him, Crucify him. Pilate saith unto them, Take ye him, and crucify him: for I find no fault in him.”
I believe that President Tinubu should not throw Nigerians at the NNPC, like sheep to wolves. If the declaration of his office is allowed to stand, he would be doing otherwise. To play the Pilate in this needless NNPCL and Dangote feud, he would have endorsed all the punishment his compatriots are suffering at the hands of the NNPCL. He would have said, even though I found no merit in the push to whip the population, I leave you to crucify them’ That would tell us that the President is not only shirking his responsibility as the Minister of Petroleum but also his overriding power as the President and Commander-in-chief.
Much as the officials of the NNPCL and other subsidiaries owned by the Nigerian people want to play the master by believing that they are independent limited liability companies, we will be hiding behind one finger if we believe any inch of that claim. And besides, which limited liability company would not be accountable to its shareholders or the chairman of its board?
If we don’t want to use agidi to light a gas cylinder, we have to agree that the matter of fuel supply in Nigeria is a basic unmistakable assignment President Tinubu must handle for his employers-the Nigerian people. He must be in a position to find answers to the puzzles. Why is fuel supply such a pain in the neck under his administration so far? Why is the locally imported fuel threatening to get more expensive under the watch of the NNPC he supervises? And why is the same NNPC seeking to suffer headaches for another person? When will NNPC’s refineries come alive after the several deadlines?
President Tinubu needs to intervene decisively too, by helping his employers find solutions to the endless hike in fuel prices, and why citizens of other oil-producing countries derive benefits from oil while the Nigerian situation is perpetually in the negative. The Daily Trust on September 23, published a report by Global Petrol Prices, a platform that tracks petrol prices across various countries, which claimed that four countries in Africa sell fuel cheaper than Nigeria. They include Libya which sells at $0.032 (approximately N52/litre), Egypt ($0.279), Algeria($0.342) and Angola, another oil-producing country, at $0.351 per litre.
Besides the above, Tribune columnist and renowned writer, Professor Farook Kperogi quoted data by some oil industry experts who claimed that the landing cost of imported petrol in Nigeria should stand at N1,107 per litre and that several cost components are not inclusive of locally imported fuel.
According to him, when such cost components are removed, Dangote’s fuel should not sell higher than N518.35 per litre. Indeed, investigations have revealed that Dangote fuel costs far cheaper than the amount quoted by him and the NNPC. You could see the fire in the eyes of the spokesperson of Dangote when he refuted the claim that NNPC got fuel at N890 per litre from the refinery.
President Tinubu should not play the ostrich, he cannot afford to play the Pontius Pilate in this case, if he wants a reversal of the oil curse in his tenure.
The trend of Nigerian youths relocating abroad, commonly called “Japa,” has reached alarming levels, driven by many pressing factors. Chief among these is the dire economic situation in the country, characterized by high unemployment rates, inflation, and widespread poverty.
Many young Nigerians find themselves grappling with the harsh realities of a stagnant job market where opportunities are limited, leading to a pervasive sense of hopelessness about their futures. In a society where ambition is often met with barriers, the desire for a better life has become a powerful motivator for japa (migration).
In addition to the economic challenges, high levels of insecurity further exacerbate this trend. The persistent threat of violence, crime, and social unrest makes everyday life precarious for many. Young people often feel vulnerable and unsafe, prompting them to consider relocation as a viable solution to secure their well-being. This atmosphere of fear and instability not only impacts their psyche but also diminishes their prospects for career growth and personal development.
Moreover, the desperation felt by many of these youths leads to significant personal sacrifices. It is not uncommon for individuals to sell their properties, deplete their savings, and even acquire loans in the hopes of financing their migration plans. These choices reflect a profound commitment to change their circumstances despite the inherent risks of leaving their homeland. Pursuing better educational prospects, career opportunities, and improved living conditions fuels the great exodus, as many believe that the benefits of migrating outweigh the costs of remaining in a challenging environment.
Ultimately, the convergence of economic instability, insecurity, and a lack of hope in the current environment drives this trend of migration among Nigerian youths. Each individual’s journey represents a search for a brighter future, underscoring the critical challenges facing young Nigerians today.
The Call for Action: Political Responses and Policies
The migration of Nigerian professionals, particularly within the healthcare sector, has elicited varied political responses. As the phenomenon of ‘Japa’—the colloquial term for seeking greener pastures abroad—grows increasingly prevalent, the Nigerian government has been compelled to confront the ramifications of this brain drain. Efforts have been made to formulate policies designed to retain healthcare workers, reflecting a recognition of these professionals’ pivotal role in national development. Initiatives such as improved salaries, better working conditions, and enhanced career advancement opportunities have been introduced to stem the tide of emigration.
A Lagos lawmaker representing Oshodi Isolo II Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Hon. Ganiyu Johnson, in 2023, sponsored “A bill for an Act to Amend the Medical and Dental Practitioners Act, Cap. M379, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, to mandate any Nigeria-trained medical or dental practitioner to practice in Nigeria for a minimum of five before being granted a full license by the council to make quality health services available to Nigeria.”
He argued that “the government has invested so much money in training these medical doctors, on average. Recently, the United Kingdom opened healthcare visas to people; who were all going to the UK, USA, and Canada. So should we fold our hands?”
President Bola Tinubu recently approved a National Policy on Health Workforce Migration to manage the exodus abroad of skilled Nigerian healthcare professionals. According to Muhammad Pate, the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, the 56-page document outlines the national strategy for addressing the dynamics of health workers’ migration while ensuring that it does not jeopardize the requirements of the nation’s healthcare system.
However, the efficacy of such policies remains a subject of intense debate. Critics often point to the disparity between these governmental measures and the observed behaviour of political elites, who were based abroad before returning home to occupy political posts, frequently seek medical attention for themselves and educational and professional opportunities for their children overseas, and are even quick to return abroad almost immediately they are out of political offices. This disconnect has raised questions about the commitment of leaders to create a conducive environment for graduates and professionals in Nigeria. Many citizens view these actions as a manifestation of hypocrisy, breeding further disillusionment and fueling the desire to ‘Japa’.
The persistent crisis in the healthcare system, characterized by inadequate infrastructure, insufficient funding, and a lack of essential resources, undermines these retention efforts. As the government formulates strategies, a more holistic approach is necessary to tackle the issues underlying healthcare workers’ dissatisfaction. This includes addressing systemic problems such as corruption and the lack of equitable resource distribution. A truly effective solution must encompass policies aimed at retaining talent and a broader commitment to reforming the conditions that compel professionals and youths to look abroad.
Ultimately, the Nigerian government faces a critical juncture in addressing the migration of skilled workers. A renewed focus on policy effectiveness and political accountability is essential to reverse the brain drain trend and retain valuable talent within the country.
The Ethical Dilemma: Is Japa Justified?
The decision of many Nigerian youths to japa, seeking opportunities abroad, stirs a profound ethical discourse regarding migration. At the heart of this phenomenon lies the debate over human rights to freedom of movement and the ethical implications of seeking better prospects in foreign lands. From one point of view, migration is a valid option for people who want to advance socioeconomically, supported by the fundamental human right to seek out a better life. This viewpoint emphasizes that individuals should have the autonomy to explore opportunities that enhance their quality of life, especially when local conditions are less than conducive to personal and professional development.
Conversely, critics often label this exodus as brain drain, equating it to a collective abandonment of responsibilities towards a nation grappling with myriad challenges. This characterization raises questions regarding the role and responsibility of political leaders in nurturing an environment that fosters growth, stability, and opportunities within the country. Are they not, partly, accountable for the growing desire among youths to leave? When governments fail to create adequate conditions for human capital development, they inadvertently precipitate a flight of talent, which may severely hinder national progress.
The ethical implications become even more complex when we consider the motivations behind migration. If the pursuit of knowledge and global exposure drives these individuals to relocate, does that not warrant a more nuanced conversation about the potential benefits of such a movement? Rather than framing this trend exclusively as a detrimental outflow of talent, exploring how these experiences, when leveraged effectively, could eventually contribute to national development upon their return may be more productive. Thus, understanding these ethical dilemmas necessitates a balanced perspective, recognizing the individual’s rights and the collective responsibilities inherent within the societal framework.
From Brain Drain to Brain Gain: The Way Forward
The current trend of brain drain among Nigerian youths poses a significant challenge to the nation’s development. However, this brain drain can be transformed into a brain gain by implementing strategic initiatives. It begins with fostering a conducive environment that encourages talented individuals to return home after acquiring international experience. The government and private sector must collaborate to create job opportunities that match the skills of returning emigrants and offer competitive salaries and benefits. Establishing policies that support entrepreneurship can also incentivize returnees to contribute to the economy, fostering innovation and local development.
In addition to encouraging returnees, it is essential to educate Nigerian youths on the motivations behind their relocation. Instead of following trends or peer pressure, young individuals must be empowered to make informed decisions about their futures. This can be achieved through comprehensive career counselling programmes in schools and universities, which will help students understand their options and the potential impacts of their choices. Encouraging critical thinking and strategic planning can lead to more purposeful migrations—individuals seeking international exposure while still retaining a commitment to their homeland.
Furthermore, cultivating a culture of engagement within Nigeria will encourage both citizens and expatriates to invest in the country’s future. This can be accomplished through initiatives promoting community building, networking, and professional collaboration. By emphasizing the skills and experiences that returning Nigerians bring, the nation can foster an environment where intellectual capital is valued. Hosting forums and symposiums where returnees share their experiences can inspire others and create a cohesive community centred around progress.
In conclusion, Nigeria can combat the brain drain phenomenon by actively promoting brain gain strategies and educating youths on purposeful migrations. This approach not only mitigates the loss of talent but also cultivates a dedicated populace invested in the nation’s development, ultimately benefiting both the individuals and the broader society.
Mimiola, an award-winning journalist sent in this piece.
