What drives you? What's your passion? For most people, the answer to these questions fuels them on the journey of life. The things we are passionate about literally shape us, and moulds just how we are perceived by the people around us. In the age of the internet and social media, activism has evolved like most areas of life these days to take on new meanings.
In the face of the recent #ENDSARS protests in Nigeria, I like a lot of others have had to revisit my thoughts on activism and what it means in this day and age. Like the vast majority of Nigerian youths, I am angry. Angry at a national mindset that feeds nepotism, and encourages corruption. A mindset that prioritises “respect” (where it hasn’t been earned), and kissing the hairy bottoms of a thieving mostly elderly political class. I am angry that just this past month, I lost a good friend to a largely unavoidable death. Was she killed by the police? you might ask, no, she wasn’t. But ultimately, it was the same inept and insensitive government that instituted and still maintains SARS, that accredited the private hospital she died trying to give birth in, a hospital that ran out of cotton swabs mid-surgery!
I digress, but can you blame me? Odds are most people reading this in Nigeria have a similar story to share about government inadequacies leading to avoidable tragedies and loss of life. Whether its pipelines exploding beside schools, or police officers requesting money from robbery victims before filing an investigation. The Nigerian condition, especially in recent years, has followed a pattern; gross exploitation and insensitivity by the rulers on the ruled. The patriot in you might read this and think; “Now hold on just one second, Nigeria isn’t that bad…..it could be worse, we have Wizkid, Jollof rice, Giants of Africa and all that bants, things aren’t as bad as you make them out to be”. For a while, something along those lines would have sprung to my head anytime someone got overly critical about my country, and rightfully so, after all in searching for that which is perfect, we should not discard that which is good. But the situation at hand sadly isn’t good. Calling it critical even is a massive understatement. There’s a massive brain drain in Nigeria, a mindset that has citizens excited to jettison their homeland in their search for the basics; stable infrastructure, and enforced rights. As a hostess, if you have a gathering and all your guests are excited to jump on the first opportunity to get out of your event you know you’re not doing some things right (if any). Young people be they fresh graduates or skilled and experienced, professionals are actively looking for ways out of this country. So much so that a human-trafficking cartel has evolved to specialize in preying on that need. With the results being Nigerian youth wasting away in perilous journeys across the Sahara, or ending up in forced prostitution in Italy and other parts of Europe.
Now don’t get me wrong while the government should be scrutinised and held accountable for their handling of a lot of the issues facing the country, they are only a symptom of the larger illness; our mentality. The government is a construct of the people, we make the government, we decide who represents and misrepresents us. We decide the things we allow, and the things we don’t. For so long as a people we have prided ourselves on adaptability. No matter the situation, a Nigerian will find a way through, it may be uncomfortable, but somehow, someway we make it happen. This adaptability considered an attribute to be proud of in normal situations has now become a hobble to us. We have become somewhat indifferent and passive to actions and policies where we shouldn’t because we've gotten good at maximising and making do with the scraps handed down. It’s the reason the government can afford to be indifferent and insensitive to the plights of its citizens. Why a head of state is more concerned with foreign posturing and would rather tweet greetings at a foreign colleague than actively engage his citizens on the eve of a nationwide protest against police brutality.
Attention is a currency, it is power, and as a collective, we decide how we generate it, and the things we spend it on. When people are more interested in the outcome of a reality tv show than they are with most elections in their country, it is as if they are begging to be taken advantage of. Every year, hundreds of millions of votes are placed on the show Big brother Naija, with participants becoming household names relatively overnight, and Nigerians spellbound to their television sets watching twelve strangers in a house for months. I don’t mean to come across as a mood dampener or spoilsport unfairly targeting the BBNaija brand, cause I’m not. I completely understand that as a business its all about keeping shareholders happy and they’re just taking advantage of a tendency for Nigerians (like everyone else) to prioritise certain things over others. I also understand the viewer’s perspective of emotional attachments, camaraderie, and deriving other value from the show. My use of BBNaija is simply because it is the easiest, most effective, and widely known example. It is in some way, the gift that keeps on giving. The week I write this, the governor of Ogun state has decided to honour the winner of this year’s version of the show with five million naira, a house, and an appointment as an ambassador. Laycon seems like a great guy, I don’t know him personally, I have nothing against him. I am not a hater, nevertheless, I must point out that it is a big misplacement of priorities by the governor of a state where public workers are routinely owed salaries for months, and the best graduating students in the state universities go home empty-handed. In saner climes, the gift by the governor to Laycon would have demanded more scrutiny. Actions like that should not be taken on the taxpayer’s funds. That mentality issue I touched on earlier rears its head again here because when observant people make the point about the governor’s gift to Laycon like I just did they are tagged as "haters", or “working against grace”. It is possible and perfectly reasonable to like Laycon and dislike the governor’s actions.
That we have come to despise critical inquiry and questioning so much amazes me. It is one of the key issues to our travails as a nation. It is the problem, but it is also our solution. Our minds inherently subject to flaws and cognitive biases as they are can change. We can change how we approach and think about things, how much attention we pay to what, how serious we take issues like voting, accountability by public officials, following the money trail on projects, and using the little power we have at the individual level to raise awareness, but also realising that our powers magnify as a collective. As has just been driven home recently by the lack of coverage of the #ENDSARS protests by any of Nigeria's major traditional media outlets, the powers that be would prefer we keep quiet and not congregate en masse to voice our discontent. They want to dampen the voices of the people and have no problems shooting live rounds at peaceful protesters when they think cameras are turned away. If not for social media the world wouldn't even know nationwide protests are happening, they wouldn't be able to see repeated footage of citizens being robbed, tortured, and killed by a police force that has a toxic culture of rewarding, letting offenders slide, and in numerous cases even promotes them. A culture that glorifies aggression to youth based on how they dress, the phones they use, and the cars they drive.
It’s up to you reading this to decide to take a stand and shine a light on these issues. Whether it’s about ending rape and sexual harassment or ending police brutality there are too many issues to be silent about, and us being silent plays into the hands of our oppressors. Use that platform, have those uncomfortable conversations about the touchy subjects that matter with the people around you, tweet at that international watchdog, or news service, or celebrity. Stop suffering in silence, get active about your rights, don’t adapt to crap anymore, demand for your share of what is yours, and take responsibility for it. Become as knowledgable about the house of senate’s proceedings as you already are with the intimate details of your favourite celebrities’ lives. That’s the gist of this piece. Whoever you are, wherever you are (especially if its Nigeria), switch that mentality up, get active about your rights.
Image credits - Pulse.ng
Beautiful, just so