GHOST-MODE Nigerian public office holders typically operate in ghost-mode. Like ghost workers, they are on the payroll and earn obscene remuneration for invisible work done. This manifests in the crippling levels of poverty, unemployment, corruption, dysfunctional institutions, insecurity of lives and property, inadequate power supply, and lack of basic infrastructures. When elected, selected or rigged-into-office leaders operate in ghost-mode, citizens often resort to self-help or reach out to celestial beings. The World Bank currently puts youth unemployment in Nigeria at 38%. Over time, the average Nigerian has developed low expectations from decades of mediocre performances of ghost-mode leaders. Except for a handful of result-oriented leaders, the three tiers of government largely operate under a cloak of invisibility. Citizens have therefore turned to the divine for succour and survival. The proliferation of places of worship and our tag as the most religious people on earth is no accident. Unfortunately, charlatans masquerading as religious priests take advantage of the situation and profit from self-serving teachings that do not profit the congregation. The average MAN (Musa, Adekunle or Nnamdi) depending on his religious inclination, has a Bible, Quran, prayer bead or amulet permanently in his office drawer. He has another in his car and one strategically placed under his pillow at night when he sleeps with only one eye closed. He trusts that the divine will ensure his promotion at the work place, save him from bad roads and protect him from marauding kidnappers, armed robbers and blood-thirsty insurgents despite the huge budgetary allocation for security. The average (NAG) Ngozi, Amina or Gbemisola quotes apt religious verses from the Holy Books or a wise adage from her ancestors to comfort her in the daily struggle. "It is well" resonates everywhere. This motivational chant is vital in the daily grind of eking out a living. Popular phone ring tones are "Everybody shout hallelujah!" by Pastor Enoch Adeboye, "I have a dream!" by Martin Luther King, inspiring church bells, or the Muslim call to prayer. The ring tones give hope of a better tomorrow (even if not here and now but possibly in the life hereafter) in the absence of visionary and committed leaders. The irony is that until Nigerians raise the bar of their expectations and hold their leaders accountable for their action and inaction, nothing much would change in the daily grind.
Posted on: Wed, 18 Sep 2013 07:47:22 +0000
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