Hey guys! Yeah, I have been MIA for several weeks now, and I apologize. Guess I have been getting used to being a husband, after marrying the love of my life in July 2018 (I’ll start the new year with a special feature on my beautiful wife, you don’t want to miss that). *wink* Well, a lot has been happening lately in Nigeria, and just some brief thoughts on something I think is fascinating. It’s not the first place you may have heard about it though.
On the 10th of August 2018, Folarin Falana Esq. (popularly known as FALZ) and Laila Johnson Salami released the Episode 1 and Season 1 of a YouTube channel dubbed ‘On the Couch with Falz and Laila’, and in that episode they had a very critical 33 minutes of interactions with Mr. Fela Durotoye; a renowned Entrepreneur and life coach who is running for President of Nigeria in 2019 under the Alliance for New Nigeria (ANN) party. Since August 10, ‘On the Couch with Falz and Laila’ have hosted 9 presidential aspirants... Here is what I think about setting up and being ‘On the Couch’!
Nigeria’s two decades of democracy (come May 2019) can be likened to... (I have a lot of things on my mind, you can imagine) a family where children are born to parent to whom they really have no choice in (in our case, PDP and APC), I’ll let you decide who the Dad and Mum is in the Nigerian case. *smile* This isn’t funny though, but somehow the children in my illustration (Nigerians) always find a way to lighten up the mood in the home (Nigeria). But you know what, at some point, the children (Nigerians) come of age and they get to deal with the real issues; and may even walk away from their parents (PDP and APC) if nothing seems to be changing. I think we are at that point; WE HAVE COME OF AGE!
Enough of the illustrations, back to ‘On the Couch’. Not only will Falz and Laila be voting for the first time as Nigerians in 2019 and represent another over 14million Nigerians who will also be voting for the first time in 2019, but having presidential aspirants in front of the camera to respond to several spontaneous questions is a move that I think is noble and provides insight into some of the very little things about those who wish to represent us. Presidential debates in Nigeria have arguably remained a facade, even in cases where they have been held, your guess is as good as mine on the logistics and protocol involved. Now, I know the presidential candidates of our ‘Dad’ and ‘Mum’ may never sit ‘On the Couch’, but that shouldn’t be a surprise; Nigerian children will traditionally not put their parents on the spot. I am trying as hard as possible to remain unbiased in this piece, and I pray I succeed.
What is your point Myk!? Nigerians are becoming ‘democratic adults’; ‘On the Couch’ is one of such evidences of demanding critical and accountable leaders for ourselves, but Falz and Laila can’t do this job alone. If we must make a statement and let ‘our parents’ know how we feel, then WE MUST DO IT TOGETHER! The young people (and even old) must determine to vote for a Nigeria that will not break down when we need it the most to be strong for us (our children and their children, and children’s children). I don’t feel like I let it all out in this one piece, but I think it’s a safe place to leave it and still be as critical as possible.
Here is a link to the most recent episode of ‘On the Couch’.
Kindly share your thoughts on the program and this write-up too. Let’s hear from you please!
