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ibnaija@yahoo.com Political Scientist USA

NAIJA ROONEY COMMENTARY:
ONCE AGAIN, THE OCTOBER 1ST NIGERIANS AND OUR "indeSPENDence"

love the Nigerians in my neighborhood. They are a great bunch, very politically engaged on matters concerning their native country. They are very funny, very casual, laid back for the most part and very community oriented. Part of their problem is the unmistakable fact that they care to a fault. For example, if I was not seen at major events, and there are plenty of those here, I will get multiple phone calls from many of them genuinely inquiring about my wellbeing. And if the reason for my absence is sickness, my home will instantaneously become a restaurant with assorted dishes brought by the various Nigerian families, to last for weeks. This love and care is so selflessly extended to all who are part of the Nigerian family here without regards to gender, ethnicity, level of education, occupation or religion. Wouldn’t it be nice if the larger Nigerian society operat! ed in such a neighborly manner?

An even more interesting point about these Nigerians is the fact that a weekend never goes by without a member, a family or a group of Nigerians, not having a social function. Heaven forbid. I am telling you that the Nigerians here will live and die by social functions and even so, they will turn heaven into one big disco hall with their very own DJ spinning the vinyl. Every little event is cause to celebrate. They celebrate at the flimsiest of excuses. Just the other weekend, I was invited to a party. Hey, I don’t turn down such invitations, especially, when there is a promise of good food. When I asked what the occasion was, he stated ever so confidently that his teenage daughter, after three long years of wearing teeth braces, finally had her dentist's permission to take them off permanently. Come again? Is that at reason to throw a party?

Two weeks ago, another gentleman threw a party to celebrate his wife's pregnancy. Needless to say this was their fifth child. Hey, what the heck, we partied, fifth or first, it really did not matter. The party was so grand that at the end of it, we all prayed for more pregnancies which will mean more parties. The most interesting one of all, in my opinion, was a party that was thrown last year by a member to celebrate the graduation of his son. I know you are thinking that he graduated from the university or high school. NO! He graduated from kindergarten to elementary school. Na wow! But I shouldn't be the one talking, I had a good warm meal at this graduation party where the main celebrant went to bed even before the invited guests started to grace the occasion.

And the women here, God bless each one of them. They are simply the best cooks anyone can find anywhere on this planet in addition to their intelligence and professional prowess. Many of them are doctors, lawyers, nurses, businesswomen, and professors, to mention but a few. But in spite of their profession, when they get into the kitchen, they become professionals in the singular act of culinary inventions. I draw particular attention to the peppersoup these women make for the various occasions we have every so often. Those bowls of peppersoup, I am telling you, can clear one's sinus once and for all with a guarantee that one would not suffer such again. Who needs a doctor when there are simmering bowls of peppersoup prepared by our finest? Whatever it is that they put in those bowls of peppersoup is making grown men beg for more like mere children. And when they a! re told that there is no more peppersoup, the grown men, in the presence of their children, throw tantrums in protest.

My Hausa friends would say - "Kai".

But in spite of my fondness for this bunch, every year, I see myself disagreeing amply with them on the way they celebrate the independence of our dearly beloved country. In fact, what they end up celebrating is “indeSPENDence” and not independence, because all they do is to spend and spend until they are spent out. I must not hesitate to add that this is not peculiar to these Nigerians in my neighborhood, but to most Nigerians in the Diaspora who see October 1st, as yet another occasion to indulge irresponsibly, lavishing money to have a good “owembe” party. Is this really necessary? It is good to celebrate our political independence even though we all know that there is nothing to celebrate from Port-Harcourt to Kastina and from Ogun to Adamawa. It is good to reckon that on this day, forty-three years ago, we became an independent country. It is good to acknowledge the fact that on this day, forty-three years ago, we assumed the mantle of self-determination and became the captain of our ship.

But it seems rather evident that Nigerians have not heard of the word "moderation". What does it mean to the Nigerian? None of us were born with a moderate bone in our bodies. Only recently, the president of Botswana, admonished Nigerian leaders for their extravagance. He noted that Nigeria is lagging in many respects because our leaders have misplaced their priorities. Is he wrong? Ours is a country where moderation is the exception rather than the norm. Everything about us is in excess. We know how to show off and do it well. Our "agbada" is nicknamed "One thousand five hundred". Why that much? Why not "one hundred?" This spirit of extravagance is manifest in our daily life and often leads to greed and avarice. When Nigerians steal government funds, we do it in excess. Umaru Dikko allegedly stole $2 billion. Dr. Joseph Wayas, the former Senate president of the second repub! lic, allegedly stole $800 million.

The IG of Police, Tafa Balogun, was accused of misappropriating billions of naira from the police fund. The Abachas stole in excess of $5 billion. Babangida also stole in the billions. When our Senators bribe or are bribed as is often the case, the bribes are usually huge. When our lawmakers decided to award themselves furniture allowance, they allocated N3.5 million and N5 million, respectively. When Dr. Chuba Okadigbo, the former Senate president, requested official cars, he had thirty-two in all. When there is an allegation that a certain amount of money is missing, it is usually in the millions and billions. Nigerians do not steal pennies anymore. Have you had of any politician or minister who stole just N20,000? When our president travels overseas, his entourage is bigger than my village. It was no wonder one of those countries turned away his huge entou! rage claiming they are too cumbersome to maintain.

Moderation, is not in our lexicon. We have earned ourselves the dubious reputation of being show offs even when we do not have the means. We buy big and expensive cars and go home to soak "garri" everyday. We buy big houses with no money left to maintain them. The houses on those Nigerians movies are perfect examples. They are all big, virtual villas, impressing upon non-Nigerians that we are vain and ever so materialistic. These October 1st Nigerians are not helping this image. They are seeking to pay thousands of dollars to rent fancy party halls in five-star hotels when their communities in Nigeria have no libraries. They are spending thousands of dollars to pay guest speakers who only come to tell us that Nigeria is bad. Do we have to pay anyone to tell us that? Don't we all know that?

A few years ago, the keynote speaker at one of the independence events I attended, simply came and read Internet jokes to us without inspiring or motivating us to get involved economically or politically in our country. What use? Do we not all have access to the Internet to read those jokes? We pay huge sums to buy wine and Champaign to toast to a country that is in coma. We should ask ourselves this question - at the end of the day, what have we celebrated? A country run by thieves? A country run by a bunch of visionless leaders? A country where life is nothing but a vapor? A country where your opinion counts for nothing?

Ironically, those who are lavishly celebrating the independence of Nigeria are the same ones who will not tell anyone that they are visiting Nigeria because they are afraid of their lives. They are the same ones who will sleep in ten different locations in ten days for fear of harm while visiting their home country. They are the same ones who will disguise themselves so that they are not noticed by anyone. Is this the country they are spending thousands of dollars celebrating its independence? Celebrating Nigeria's independence for some in the US has become a ritual. They have their Nigerian "suit" which they wear once a year. After October 1st, they are no longer Nigerians, they become whatever they please. But come the next October 1st, they pull their Nigerian "suit" from the closet, give it a good shine and go and indulge freely.

At this moment, just a few days to October 1st., many local merchants and chain stores like Wal-Mart are making big business. Most of these businesses have come to expect this windfall at this time of the year because of Nigeria's independence. Our women for one, cannot be left out of this craze as they have already cleared the counters of all major chain stores of every available starch to starch their headgears. What is it with our women and sharp objects? One of these days, a poor, innocent and unsuspecting gentleman will bring a lawsuit against one of our women for blinding him with the sharp tip of her headgear

I could remember vividly last year, during the October 1st celebrations, how the women here fell into a competition of headgears, or so it seemed. One after the other, they arrived with their tall and assorted headgears like the tower of Babel. At some point during the occasion, some of them filed out to dance a beautiful traditional dance. They formed a tight neat circle and that proved to be their undoing. As the music gained tempo and adrenalin pumped, some of them bend down to do justice to the music, but in the process, unknowingly, bumped heads or should I say, headgears with one another bringing their headgears [and in one case a wig] crumbling to the floor. A lesson, indeed.

It is good to celebrate our political independence, but we should endeavor to do so in moderation. We should celebrate responsibly through dialogues and actionable plans that would lift our country from the abyss of denigration and utter neglect. We should celebrate with the intention of truly educating others of what our rich culture presents and why we are proud of it. We should celebrate by reckoning our diversity and how we can use it to our advantage for the betterment of our country. We can do all this without the pump, arrogance and aimless pageantry that have become the hallmark of our independence celebrations in the US.

By the way, happy birthday, Nigeria.