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A Nation That
Disrespects Her National Anthem (II)
Prince Charles Dickson
pcdbooks @yahoo.com
Jos, Plateau Nigeria
Oct 15, 2006
Arise O Compatriots, Nigeria call obey
To serve our fatherland
With love and strength and faith
The labour of our heroes past
Shall never be in vain
To serve with heart and might
One nation bound in freedom, peace and
unity.
O God of creation, direct our noble cause
Guide thou our leaders right
Help our youth the truth to know
In love and honesty to grow
And living just and true
Great lofty heights attain
To build a nation where peace and justice
shall reign.
This is the concluding part of my two part
take on the National Anthem, the first part I had dwelt on the National
Pledge which is an integral part of the National Anthem, in this
concluding part I will crave the indulgence of us all as Nigerians to ask
questions, some of which include can this project called Nigeria work, is
it working, are we willing to make it work? I personally have an
irrevocable belief in this nation but then collectively as a people and as
a nation are we respecting the symbol of our nationhood.
I will start from a very unlikely end...in the
United States, Congressman Mark Foley was forced to resign over sexual
suggestive e-mails he sent to young interns on his staff, when announcing
his resignation he apologized, through his lawyer he equally said he as
receiving treatment for alcoholism. Away from all other factors of the
entire episode, I bring out the following questions, would any Nigerian
Senator resign...? Would anyone of them in the National Assembly accept
that he had a problem that required treatment? Are we ready to accept that
we need to take a break and reflect, reappraise and, address issues that
are mundane like the National Anthem yet unavoidably the instrument of
nationhood?
Is it not a fact that between our leaders
and the led, there is an abnormal level of greed, vengeance and
unattainable ambition, and a psycho quest for power that requires medical
attention? The problems of this nation is not because citizenry has
refused to arise to obey the Nigeria call, we have allowed politicians to
obey their insatiable lust for money and power, greed and gluttonous
living?
Question is, are we really out to serve
Nigeria, lets ask, in the last one week, what one thing have we done for
the benefit of Nigeria, despite the fact that the nation has not done much
for us? In our experimental democracy, is it not true that leadership has
only served themselves? It is safe to conclude from the actions of our
leaders and we that are led that the driving force is hate for ourselves,
weakness at taking the right decision, weakness at moving towards the
opposite direction and it cannot be really argued that we have lost faith.
Our heroes past, yes, our heroes, is it not
true that we today have very few if any heroes to look up to, let me
continue...would Nigeria any time soon replace Wole Soyinka, who is the
new and young Chike Obi? Politically the present breed of politicians who
are better described as jobmen. The labours of our heroes are they not in
vain now.
Nigeria today is one which no one serves with
his/her heart for fear that when you need her most she would let you down,
are we not bothered with the increasing number of Nigerian Ibo-Americans,
Yoruba-British, Ijaw/Urohbo-Italians and Germans...Arabian-Nigerians, do
we really care about Nigerians that today serve Argentina, Brazil,
Portugal, Japan, Gabon, Ethiopia and Ghana with their heart and might only
to send Western Union Money transfer to those they left behind and this is
when they remember God of creation.
I shake my head sadly and hold my cheeks
reflectively because our nation is not bound by freedom, hardly any state
in the federation that has not witnessed a skirmish or two, all manner of
freedom is alien, we fight for freedom of movement, freedom to know how we
are led, freedom to life is deprived us, everything happens like magic,
peace has eluded us, that is why we are shamelessly talking of passing a
terrorist bill, who is terrorizing who, if need be it should be citizens
passing that bill against leadership.
Unity is a far cry, so the nation is certainly
not one, we have many nations, which by my own reckoning is not bad at all
if they were bound together by the common values of freedom, peace and
unity, rather our diversity is destroying us, we fill forms, rather than
our capability and merit, it is our local government, our state of origin
that counts most, so the partition is one aided and abetted consciously or
otherwise by us and no one else.
The National Anthem that some of us recite,
was written by five persons, I mean the words were a collation from the
first five in a national competition, and those five persons then were
picked as the best on merit, the National item is not a Muslim or
Christian song, neither is an ethnic group chant of Egbe Omo Oduduwa or
Igbo Kwenu, it was written as a bond of unity. Do we know that the Police
so ridiculed and now messed up, the same Police that produced Tafa Balogun,
the same Police whose ID card today is N20 gave the musical composition of
the National Anthem through its Police Band.
The second stanza is of importance because of
the mention of our youths, sadly we see what has become of our youths, the
often touted leaders of tomorrow. They suffer unemployment, they see as
government render their parents redundant, the government and leadership
treats them in a lazaire faire manner, the only driving force for them is
poverty and this is either positive or negative, in many cases negative.
They grow up and are living witness that truth is bad investment, and
negative capital in their nation.
They grow up in hate, lies and see injustice
as a normal norm of their society, lofty heights can only be attained by
theft, corruption, and so the y scheme their way to that top by all and
any means necessary, a really sad future because leadership under the
guise of elders and politics use them in destroying peace, and creating
injustice blindly.
Is it surprising that people mock the National
Anthem through the Pledge...I pledge to Nigeria my Country, to serve her
is not by force, is it not true that if our flag is torn in our presence
we would just walk on, Is it not shameful that most so-called big
corporate players have dirty and torn flags of the Nation flying at dead
mast in their headquarters? Will we be shocked that half the Police, a
quarter of the National Assembly, a tenth of Ministers and 25% of literate
Nigerians cannot recite the National Anthem?
Do we blame Obasanjo', is it PDP or PTDF’s
fault, is it because of Fayose, Dariye or Alams, sure it cannot be Buhari,
nor Atiku's fault; we cannot blame Wabara and Osuji for this flaw on our
part. It is our collective failure and until we can go back to the point
we lost these lines, in them a lot is embedded.
I leave us with the predecessor of the
National Anthem written by a British expatriate, "Nigeria We Hail Thee".
It is rich and often one has wondered why it was thrown away. the last
paragraph is my summary: Almighty Allah Grant this our one request, help
us to build a nation where no man is oppressed and so, with peace and
plenty Nigeria may be blessed.
Nigeria, we hail thee,
Our own dear native land,
Though tribe and tongue may differ,
In brotherhood we stand,
Nigerians all, and proud to serve
our sovereign motherland.
Our flag shall be a symbol,
That truth and justice reign,
In peace or battle honoured,
And this we count as gain
To hand on to our children
A banner without stain
O Lord of all creation,
Grant this our one request
Help us to build a nation
Where no man is oppressed
And so, with peace and plenty,
Nigeria may be blessed
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