Photo credit: the Guardian
We, Nigerians, should fear ourselves.
We should, because we have this rather interesting ability to pretend that all is well, even when we are in the well.
And in most cases, what we say is: All is well!
We’ve been having cases of terrorists killing, maiming, and abducting our people quite often in what seems to be ages.
Yet, our system has yet to find a solution to it
That’s if we do have a system.
Is it the Chibok girls case, or the one in which a terrorist killed a police officer and wore his uniform to a so-called peace meeting?
If I were to start mentioning the havoc those undesirables have committed and still commit, there would be no time left for other things.
But one thing that befuddles me is the fact that our disturbingly placid attitude is something else.
We have chosen to go on a course of unabashed jollification when our roof is burning.
Let me state three instances:
Between 25 and 26 of December 2025, the United States, ‘helped” by Nigerian troops, launched airstrikes against ISIS-linked militias in Sokoto.
Come 27 December 2025, Lagos was agog with the celebration of Eyo festival.
While Lagos was preparing for one of the most visible celebrations of Yoruba cultural heritage, international headlines were focused on a foreign military power conducting airstrikes on targets in northern Nigeria.
In March 2026, police in Edo state announced the arrest of 65 suspected kidnappers linked to kidnapping operations and ransom networks.
Egbaliganza was held between March 27 and 28. There, the Egba and Lisabi legacies were celebrated.
A mass kidnapping of school children and teachers happened on May 15, 2026. It led to the killing of two teachers. The children and their teachers are yet to be released.
Ojude Oba was celebrated between May 29 and 30, 2026. There, people rode horses and orders walked majestically.
It was even said that 2,500 police men were on duty for the Ojude Oba festival.
May I ask if those in captivity were remembered during these events?
What has happened to our sense of communality?
What happened to our value system?
Could we interpret our actions through the poem: First They Came by Martin Niemoller, or can it be a case of na one death man go die?
Or could we have committed our lives to the terrorists’ hands?
Let’s bring out the omoluwabi in us!
