The Nigerian Story

Nigeria: Great Nation

Nigeria like many other nations of the world has had her fair share of challenges spanning politics, religion, economic and social issues. After 56 years of nationhood it has become instructive to identify trends that stand us out.
Questions more than answers. How did we get here? Aren't we better than this? Between 1960 and 2016 what haven't we learnt? What has changed?

Of the myriad of concerns for me is how we manage these issues. In a world where people and countries are quick to impose negative stereotypes on others, we must learn to call ourselves who we really are.
Again questions. What does it means to be Nigerian? What are we known for? What is our brand?

The Single Story

Chimamanda makes this easy for me. "The Single Story" - one that has been deliberately structured (not necessarily altered) to project the preferred notion or interest of the teller. People are quick to define Nigeria and Nigerians in derogatory and contemptible terms. They would rather show you images of gloom and despair. One foreign tabloid called Lagos State "a motley bunch of untamed people". A former Prime Minister called us " fantastically corrupt". When Mark Zukerberg came to Nigeria, it seemed too much for the glory to come to Nigeria so we were subtley referred to as "sub saharan Africa". We are being projected as a people of corrupt, untoward and sinister tendencies.

There is a popular saying in international circles that only about 5% of a nation's population is responsible for the negative projection it gets. In simple terms, the actions of about 5% of the population is what the rest are likely to be profiled on. This means that not all Nigerians are "fantastically corrupt". This means that not all Nigerians are involved in Advanced Fee Fraud. Not all Nigerians are cyber-criminals. It is a fallacy of composition to assume that because one out of a million was caught stealing yams that the remaining are automatically culpable.

I think it was at the Platform 7.0, about 5 years ago that the CEO of Sahara Group, Mr. Tonye Cole said that people define Nigeria and Nigerians by who they are - and unfortunately most do this from a stereotype standpoint.

Our Real Faces

Foreign media won't tell you that there is an 11 year old Tayo whose coding of games got the attention and subsequent endorsement of Mark Zukerberg. They won't tell you that White House hopeful, Hillary Clinton's chief physician is a Nigerian. They won't tell you that Mr. Sam Nwanze, the Chief Investment Officer for Heirs Holdings set a record at Cranfield University since 2007 that is still unmatched. They won't tell you that The Experience™ which holds in Lagos, Nigeria is the largest single music concert in the world with over 700,000 attendees. There won't tell you about the heroism and patriotism of Dr. Adadevoh and the medical staff at First Consultants who kept their Hippocratic Oath at the expense of their lives. They won't tell you how Nigeria contained Ebola in 93 days such that top nations of the world sent their emissaries to understudy our strategies.

We need to tell our own stories. You don't need to be a writer or speaker to do this. Just represent the Green Passport to the best of your ability.
We are all we have!
We still believe in Nigeria!
We are a GREAT NATION!!!



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