Independence Edition

Honestly guys, I ran out of caption for this write-up. I wouldn’t mind your help in suggesting captions (in the comment section). And I am keeping this one short and straight to the point.

Well, it’s another Independence anniversary week, and I guess we are all expected to be writing or saying ‘Happy Independence Day’ to Nigeria, but the truth is I do not know anymore. We are a long long way from a ‘happy’ independence guys! I have a million and one reasons for this conclusion and I am sure you may have more, but I’ll share one that is still very fresh.

So this past week, I went to undergo an eye examination for my drivers license at one of the state teaching hospitals in Nigeria (name withheld). I do not want to go on about the ‘road’ that led to the eye examination. So I walked into the room after asking close to a dozen people for direction from the gate, and these two women are sitting at the desk with bottles of soft drinks half empty on the tables and their eyes fixed on their phones, and it’s about 10.30am. I walk up to the desk and say ‘good morning ma’ thrice before one of the women looks up at me after almost 30 seconds after the third ‘good morning ma’ and asks me to take a seat after telling her why I was there. For another close to 30 minutes, these two women are still with their eyes on their phones while sipping on their bottles of soft drink intermittently, while myself and six other people in the room remained seated ‘awaiting our verdict’. After about 30 minutes, one of the women looks up and makes eye contact with me (already getting very irritated, although expression-less) and asks me to come, she then opens one of the files on the table and hands me a form, asks me to fill it and go make payment at the cash point. Luckily, I am back with the payment receipt in less than 10 minutes, and I am asked to ‘hold on’. After another 15 minutes of ‘holding on’, the form and receipt are taken from me, stapled and handed back to me to take to the eye clinic.

Eventually, I leave the room after almost an hour from my arrival with the form and receipt in my hand, and am wondering why it took me one hour to fill a form and obtain a receipt, but unfortunately, that’s all I could do ‘WONDER’!

I know I said this will be short and straight to the point, but unfortunately it’s difficult to make ‘short’ talks about Nigeria these days. I’ll be looking forward to your suggested captions in the comment section. Also feel free to share your own similar experiences (if you don’t mind). 

In the meantime, ‘keep your head above the water’ while we continue to seek solution to the terminal illness of our dear country.

#myrandomweeklythoughts

@dr_mykk

IN SEARCH OF PEACE!

Celebrating International Peace Day 2018 with my International Relations Students!

Imagine a world at peace! A world where everyone loved not just their neighbor but the stranger too. Imagine a world where states/nations interacted on the basis of love; no trade wars or military alliances or peacekeeping missions or strict immigration laws or terrorist or all that... a world indeed at peace! Far from reality right? Well, on the contrary, Bible believers will disagree and argue that the hope of the reality of such a world at peace is indeed their motivation for life. 

In the meantime though, away from ‘hope’ and back to reality. Our world is in desperate search for peace. The International Day of Peace (September 21st) is one of such dates set aside to re-emphasizes some of the very key issues that challenge our world. Since the last ‘Day of Peace’ many more thousands have died in ‘peaceful’ protests in Venezuela, HongKong, Egypt, Sudan, Zimbabwe, Nigeria, just to mention a few; brothers have risen up in arms against their fellow African brothers in South Africa, the trade war between China and the United States appears to have lasted 365 whole days (having repel effects on many other individual lives and homes in several other countries and continents). My point? The more in search of Peace we are, the further from us Peace appears. 

While international, regional and national commemorations and reminders are essential, the search for peace MUST begin on the inside, and not externally. Come to think of it, the situations that make peace appear evasive first originate on the inside. Violence and unrest and insecurity and death all originate from the inside; how we choose to act or react are what make or mar peace. So rather than externally, let’s all look inward and see how much of Ambassadors of peace or ‘war’ we are. Also, we must collectively begin to pay a lot more, or at least equal attention to peace as we do to war. How do I mean? Peace Education is an imperative! Defense and Strategic Studies, Art of War, Conflict Studies and Management are all essential, but Peace Studies, Science of Peace and any other related studies on Peace are more essential.

As we look forward to the next International Day of Peace (September 21st 2020) let’s all individually decide to actively reduce the casualties of violence nearest to us. Let’s also take a minute to say a prayer for the families of those we have lost in the last year and ask for courage on behalf of the families of those we are going to loose in the next 365 days, unfortunately.

Back to the perspective of Bible believers, real and lasting peace can only come from outside of this world, and am sorry, with all of these happenings, I agree with them! Until then, as much as possible, as far as it depends on you, live peaceably with EVERYONE!

#myrandomweeklythought

@dr_mykk

Yahoo-Yahoo Mentality

Last week, one of my students asked me; “why have you stopped posting on your blog sir”? For a few seconds, cat caught my tongue, I was lost for words. A number of things crossed my mind in those few seconds; so this student actually does read my blogposts, I really haven’t done any postings in a while... I don’t remember what answer I gave my student, but I’ll attempt some explanations here...

The last three months have been intense on my new job as Dad, and I guess I am enjoying every bit of it so much that I forget my weekly posts. Seriously though, consistency is a virtue I really am working hard at, please keep me in prayers. 

A lot has happened since my last post; RUGA, Fatoyinbo saga, Ministerial nomination and appointment (that one pepper me pass), just to mention a few. But I saw something two days ago, which awakened in my mind a stream of thoughts which I want to share with y’all! 

I have always felt uncomfortable with the internet scam (Yahoo-Yahoo) syndrome, not just because it is dubious and increasingly evil nature, but because of the boldness with which most perpetrators display their irresponsibility; untidy looks, sagging trousers, rough and mostly unruly behavior and very exotic lifestyles (one they couldn’t live in 20 or even 30 years if they earned an honest living). What baffles me, though, is that this ‘Yahoo-Yahoo mentality’ is the in-thing now, gradually society have accepted this ideology as well. Have you taken time to listen to some of the songs most young (and even old) people sing now? Let me just highlight two of them, I don’t know who sang them neither do I know the entire lyrics, but some lines stood out for me: “I wan make the kin money wey go make Dangote say who be this black skin boy...” and “Owo wa ni akpo yin, e je ka ba yin noo” (pardon my Yoruba typos)...

Photo credit: Wavy Naij

Don’t miss my point please, I am not saying it’s a crime to dream big and desire riches, and infact, many Nigerian musicians who do these songs, work soo hard (I hope) to make whatever income they are able to make. My worry though, is the listeners! How many young people these days believe in hard work, how many are concerned about the process that leads to getting wealth? Well, your guess is as good as mine. All the stories we hear of female sanitary pads and underwear's getting missing are more than enough evidence.

If you ask me, I’ll say we are headed towards disaster! I don’t even have a solution to proffer because this ‘Yahoo-Yahoo mentality’ has become a complex cell with even the high and might profiteering from it. Aside stricter rules and management in the music industry, I strongly suggest that everyone must take into their hands inculcating and emphasizing the dignity of hard work in every young person. The truth is, staying on this ‘fast lane’ will only guarantee a next generation of nuisance. People must learn and understand that ill-gotten wealth is like a loan from the bank, you always pay back with interest!

Let me know what you think! Leave a comment below ABEG!

#myrandomweeklythoughts

@dr_mykk