Attention! Calling a Reforming Generation!

Copyright © Ifueko Ogbomo 2009

Four fellows sit tensely, on the edges of their sofa seats, watching the television screen. Each one exclaims randomly and gesticulates wildly, occasionally glancing at the on-screen timer. As the seconds tick, the suspense in the air mounts, until it is almost unbearable. The home team is down by one point. Countdown is five minutes on the clock. Fortunately, the ball falls into the play of the home team. As the home players dribble their opponents, and draw closer to the opposition’s goal post, our four fellows find themselves on their feet, pacing, panting, puffing, and otherwise making a spectacle of themselves. The fellows exclaim with passion: ‘Oh, pass the ball’ ... ‘take the shot, man’ ‘look at that rubbish - my grandmother can dribble better than that’ .... Indeed, it’s soccer fever at its finest. And then, a passionate unanimous shout ‘YEI! NEPA!’ – There’s been a black out, power is gone, and the fellows are left hanging. Ouch.
One of them turns to the host and says: “My guy, what about your generator?”
“Generator?” the host replies, “the game will be over before we can turn it on! Besides, there’s no fuel in it, what with the fuel scarcity for the past two weeks, it’s all I can to do keep my car running.”
And then the murmuring begins ...
“Haaa, Nigeeeria! Meeen, when will the government do something about this?”
“Government? do you think government officials suffer power failure in their houses, please. You are even talking - at least you have ‘light’ a few hours a day, if not for your place where would I watch the match? In my area we haven’t had power at all for three WEEKS, in fact water hasn’t come at all for 4 months and they have come to present the utility bills, every month as usual, can you beat that? ...”
“Hmm! May God help us oh – no light, no water, fuel scarcity, no jobs ... in short this country is just getting worse everyday! Kai! Man, the best thing is to make plans to check out oh, otherwise how will one raise children here? ... “
Hmm. A typical conversation amongst typical Nigerians today: expressions of frustration, hopelessness, and weariness, undergirded by a longing for a change. But will there ever truly be a change? And what will it take to see one? A Change, more specifically a Reformation – this is the subject of my meditation.

There is a demand, a gross demand for catalysts of change in our great nation. But who will supply that demand? History demonstrates that a few have tried and sporadically wrought change in one sector or another, but such changes have been short-lived. It appears that some people make attempts to bring about change, but they end up giving up, giving in to pressures, and conforming to the status quo. Many say they wish for change, but they do nothing, resolved to the notion that one man can do nothing against millions. Motivational speaker and Pastor, Rev. Goodheart Ekwueme shared that many years ago he asked his father what difference his father thought just one man can make; one man swimming upstream, refusing to conform to the status quo, standing up for justice and equity and fair-play – what can just one man do? and his father answered him thus: ‘one tree on its own will not make a forest, but one tree can begin the process of making a forest.’ Wise words indeed and as I listened to him talk, I took them to heart – if you have any desire to see change in your nation, you would do well to also take those words to heart.

My belief is thus: What our country needs is reformation!
What is reformation? It is a RE-forming, or the process of being RE-formed. Webster’s Dictionary states that to REFORM something is to improve it by removing faults and weaknesses OR by strengthening its good qualities. It also states that to reform is to ‘put an end to evil, abuse, etc.’ The natural conclusion then would be that in order for reformation to occur in our nation, there must be an end to evil, a cessation of abuse in all its forms; our faults and weaknesses must be removed AND our good qualities must be strengthened.
What are these evils, these faults, these weaknesses? Selfishness, Greed and Injustice are the deep-rooted evil trees in our nation that bear fruits of corruption, fraud, bribery, oppression. There is mass poverty with the exception of a few obscenely wealthy persons, who occupy themselves with the sole task of amassing even more wealth, while the masses spiral further down into abject poverty – it is an evil indeed. Some of our weaknesses include nepotism, tribalism – My good friend, your brother is not just the man who speaks your language; your sister is not only the lady who hails from the same state as you; we must learn to embrace each other as Nigerians, as ONE people, with one cause - otherwise we will not need any external enemies to destroy us, for we will slowly and surely destroy ourselves. Admitting our faults and facing them head on is a step we must take in order to correct them. We’ve swept these evils, faults and weaknesses under the carpet for so long, anyone glancing at the carpet can see the tell-tale bulge of our dirt beneath. The only way the reformation of our nation will occur is to raise a new breed – a breed void of greed, only a greed-free breed will succeed at the herculean task of national reformation.

It is often said that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. I daresay a nation is only as strong as its weakest person - its most unsavoury character. In order for a nation to become strong, great, a force to be reckoned with – its people, each person must strive to become strong and great, not necessarily in wealth and position, but strong in character and great in compassion. Indeed, the reformation, the change you desire must begin IN you, FROM you, right where you are. To reform a person, is defined as ‘changing the person’s ways for the better.’ My friend, there is no better person to reform you than yourself, because no one knows your ‘ways’ – your character, your attitudes, your motives and thoughts, better than yourself. You must become that first ‘tree’ that grows in the would-be forest of reformers. If you can become strong in godly principles and character, and refuse to conform to the status quo, then the change has begun: first you - then your family - your neighbourhood - your city - your region and before you know it, the righteous outnumber the evil, and the nation is exalted. Our nation will then become the envy of other nations; taking her rightful place, Nigeria will then become a catalyst of positive change in Africa and the world. IT IS POSSIBLE, YES, but it starts with YOU.

Do you know who you are? You are the salt of the earth. Now we are all aware that salt on its own is of no use, and is unpleasant to the taste. However, when just a little bit of salt is added to an entire pot of food, the food that was once bland, unappetizing, unsatisfying, and therefore almost useless, becomes seasoned, edible, even delicious. The appropriately salted food can then achieve its intended purpose – satisfaction of hunger - effectively. That’s what you are called to be, salt of the earth. Like salt you may seem small, the minority, but if you stay true to yourself, if you ensure that you do not loose your ‘savour,’ if you do not loose sight of godly principles like integrity, righteousness, justice, no matter how strong the opposition or the majority might be, then you will be effective as a much-needed catalyst of change in this nation.

You are also the light of the world! Indeed. As the light of the world, you cannot and should not be hidden. Darkness, no matter how thick, inevitably gives way to light, no matter how dull. And the brighter the light, the less the darkness. Light can also be seen from a long ways off. Think about a ship tossed and turned at sea, it has lost its bearings, until way off in the distance, it spots the LIGHT-house – a beacon of hope indeed. What happens then? The captain and crew climb out of their pits of despair, as the ship makes its way directly for the lighthouse – it has found safety again, why? because it has seen the LIGHT. That’s what you and I are called to be: LIGHT in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation. Remember, light NEVER bows to darkness, it’s the other way around, every time. You are meant to bring hope, bring comfort, bring joy, everywhere you find yourself. Be the defender of the defenceless, be the voice of the poor, be father or mother to the orphan. Be SALT, with a strong savour, to season your environment. Be LIGHT, shining brighter and brighter, to light up your world! You CAN do it!

At this point I must tell you quite frankly that if you intend to successfully effect CHANGE, you must be ready to rock the boat of the status quo. In other words must be ready to refuse to engage in what presently seen as ‘typical Nigerian behaviour.’ Refuse to make derogatory remarks about our country, instead say what you desire to see; eventually what you keep saying is what will BE. Refuse to be disorderly; refuse to throw trash out of your vehicle onto the streets; refuse to jump queues; refuse to falsify documents, cheat and scheme to get contracts; refuse to make illegal connections to get electricity, refuse to steal your company’s property, no matter how small or insignificant; refuse to conform to the status quo! Irish philosopher and politician, Edmund Burke aptly said ‘all that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing!’ Don’t sit down and do nothing – STAND UP, my friend; stand up for right-living, right-speaking, right-thinking, right-doing, stand up for righteousness! Reform your attitude toward our Nation, your words about our country; reform your character and conduct as a New Breed Nigerian!

It doesn’t matter if ‘everyone else’ conforms - never give in! Remember that God sees your actions at ALL times, when you think no one is watching, He is; even more – He sees the secret motives and thoughts behind your every action. God sees, and God will judge. It matters not who you please or displease, what matters bottom-line is this: is the Almighty God pleased?

In addition, you must of necessity take time and make time to pray for Nigeria. Instead of complaining, murmuring, or planning to ‘check-out’ at the earliest possibility - PRAY! If you don’t pray for change, then don’t expect to see change. If you don’t pray for change, you have no right to complain when things remain the same. If you don’t pray for YOUR country, please tell me, who will?

So my good friend, YOU CAN become a mighty oak tree in the forest of a reforming generation. No, it will not be a walk in the park or a bed of roses, because you will be going against the grain and guess what? it requires significantly more strength to swim upstream than it does to go with the flow. It takes guts, real courage, to stand up against prevailing unrighteousness. Yes, it will take time, determination, consistency, effort and sacrifice. Indeed, you may loose some instant gratifications, and certain present advantages you may be enjoying; you may loose friends, and you may never be popular. It may be a lonely road you will tread, but it will be a walk to remember. For your present sacrifice is a small price to pay to obtain the great prize of a positive and permanent change in this nation.

Nigeria is in dire need of catalysts of change: Reformers. Men and women determined to not only bring an end to evil and abuse, not only remove our faults and weaknesses but also strengthen our good qualities. Men and Women who will celebrate our diversity without tribalism. Exploit the full potential of ALL of our resources, natural and human. Build the creativity and intelligence of our youth, moulding them to be selfless leaders from a tender age. Stand out as determined patriots and worthy ambassadors of this great country. Men and women who are ready to forget their personal agendas and strive for one goal – the good of our nation.

This IS a call for a reforming generation; catalysts of change; a breed without greed.

It is a clarion call, to a noble goal, and it’s sounding YOUR name.

The only question is this: will YOU answer this call?

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Get inspired, Go inspire!

Lady I. - Proudly Nigerian