NIGERIA @52: The ideals of our founding fathers – by Minabere Ibelema
On our 52nd independence anniversary, we can’t do much better than to reflect on the ideals of our founding fathers, those who crusaded for and shepherded Nigeria to political independence in 1960.
Reading through the excerpts below, it is tempting to dismiss them all as political rhetoric, and that is understandable. We have fallen considerably short of what the founding fathers projected. In some respects, such as inter-religious violence, we are doing much worse.
Even then, one has to be reminded that the value of an ideal is not to be measured merely by the yardstick of its full realisation. It should also be measured by its potential to guide future action.
This piece of wisdom was imparted to me rather indirectly quite early in life, specifically when I was in secondary school. It came from a philosophical essay in one of those fine English readers, an essay ironically entitled: ‘Armchair Philosophy.’
The writer, Robert Lynd, summarised the ideals of stoicism as enunciated by the ancient Greek philosopher Epictetus. In essence, he counseled that we shouldn’t be perturbed by things over which we have no control, be it the threat of earthquakes or the aggravation of bodily pain.
Lynd agreed with Epictetus, but added: “Though I held the same opinions for purposes of theory, I could not entertain them for a moment for purposes of conduct… Sound though I am as an armchair philosopher, at a crisis I find that both the spirit and the flesh are weak.”
Lynd’s frank admission readily explains the gap between principles and practice in Nigeria, why so many lofty-sounding people end up compromised in leadership.
I have kept Lynd’s essay and read it periodically since my secondary school days because it provided an early lesson on an important challenge of life: matching action with principles. I like the essay for the same reasons that I like the Biblical beatitudes. Both present ideals to strive for.
And though Lynd suggests otherwise, perhaps out of a sense of self-deprecation, there is little doubt that regularly reminding oneself of one’s commitments, in theory, is bound to have some effects in practice, at least over a period of time.
It is with that conviction that I reproduce the following excerpts from speeches by our independence-era leaders. They all envisioned a great country that would lead others through example and action.
Let’s begin with the inaugural speech of our first prime minister, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, on the first Independence Day on October 1, 1960.
“At the time when our constitutional development entered upon its final phase, the emphasis was largely upon self-government. However, we were not to be allowed the selfish luxury of focusing our own interest on our own homes.
“This great country, which has now emerged without bitterness or bloodshed, finds that she must at once be ready to deal with grave international issues.”
The grave international issues Balewa referred to was the Congo crisis, for which Nigeria sent in a peace-keeping force. Of greater interest is his emphasis on how Nigeria attained independence “without bitterness and bloodshed.” This was Nigerians’ political ideal, a nation that resolved its problems democratically.
A little over two weeks after Balewa’s speech, Nnamdi Azikiwe, our first indigenous governor-general and subsequent president, expressed comparable lofty goals for Nigeria on the occasion of his inauguration.
“The challenge of Nigeria as a free state in the twentieth century Africa is the need to revive the stature of man in Africa and restore the dignity of man in the world. Under no circumstances shall we accept that the black race is inferior to any other race.”
Imagine the ovation these assertions – quite audacious at the time – must have received from inspired Nigerians.
We could say that in a large measure, Nigeria has backed up Zik’s assertions in this regard. Nigerians’ accomplishments all over the world stand proof to racial equality. And Nigeria played an admirable role in ending racist regimes in Zimbabwe, South Africa, Mozambique and a number of other countries.
But consider this earlier premise in Zik’s speech. Referring to the pre-independence years of semi-self-rule, Zik said: “Representative democracy has been tried in Nigeria and it has worked successfully. Parliamentary government has been attempted in Nigeria and we have proved more than equal to the task.”
That was 52 years ago, and we are still groping politically as a nation.
This may be dispiriting, but Zik’s words may also be a source of reassurance that if Nigerians felt that way then, we can recapture that sense of national pride and do what is right for the country.
Of all our independence-era leaders, Obafemi Awolowo was probably the most idealistic and visionary. Although he was known at the time primarily as a leader of the Yoruba, Awo had nationalistic aspirations.
When he led the founding of the Action Group, one of Nigeria’s top three political parties of the time, he made no pretences as to whose interests the party was established to pursue.
It was “To bring and organise within its fold nationalists in the Western Region, so that they may work together as a united group, and submit themselves to party loyalty and discipline,” Awo said in April 1951, while formally launching the party.
However, he was quick to add that the regional base of the Action Group was strategic in nature, not provincial.
“It must, therefore, be our hope and our endeavour that as soon as we have duly consolidated and strengthened our position throughout the Western Region, we should, in cooperation with nationalists in other regions, influence the formation of a country-wide organisation on the same realistic and scientific lines as the Action Group,” Awo said.
The goals the party set to accomplish in the region and, ultimately, nationally, included the education of all school-age children and illiterate adults, provision of health care services for all, and the abolition of poverty.
These are still ideals that the Nigerian polity can ill afford to lose sight of.
by Minabere Ibelema via mibelema@bellsouth.net
via Punch
