Nigeria: My Single Story.


     


"Doom to the land of flies and mosquitoes
    beyond the Ethiopian rivers,
Shipping emissaries all over the world,
    down rivers and across seas.


Go, swift messengers,
    go to this people tall and handsome,
This people held in respect everywhere,
    this people mighty and merciless,
    from the land crisscrossed with rivers..."

Isaiah 18 (MSG)

I've been wanting to talk about this for a while. It's a really controversial issue and I'm aware of that. However, here's my side of the story...

Now, the whole talk and clamor for Biafra by the Igbos is really becoming a major issue again (with the one day sit-at-home strike observed by the ‘Biafrans’ on the 30th of May, 2017). This is still up in our faces even after the Civil War (1967-1970) which left a mighty lot of people devastated and at zero-level along with millions of casualties.

Funny enough, some of my classmates in secondary school went abroad to study and started going all ‘pro-Biafra' on me. Like they didn’t know about it while they were here… see me see wahala!

My mum told me once that most people pushing for the realization of Biafra didn't experience the war, if they had, they wouldn't even be talking about it!

No offence, I’m an Igbo lady (and I grew up in the North) and I can relate with the situation; the bad blood and hate for Igbos by some other people, the marginalization and all what not. But I’m just saying, isn’t such evident within the Igbo community?

If you like, blame Lord Lugard or the Brits but God’s hand was and is still at work because He has a plan for Nigeria and He will use any means to fulfill it.

Nigeria ain’t hopeless!

It may look like it’s going to self-destruct but God still has a plan for His people and He loves us… I mean, look at Israel!

We are better together! There's beauty in the unity of our diversity!

We can keep focusing on our past or look ahead to a better future together… Though things may get really bad before they get really good, I just hope history won’t have to repeat itself.

There is no group devoid of hurt; once we have a division, what stops the rest? What’s the guarantee of peace in man’s plans?



"But seek the welfare of the city... and pray to the Lord on its behalf,
 for in its welfare you will find your welfare...

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord,
plans for welfare and not for evil, 
to give you a future and a hope."
(Jeremiah 29:7, 11)

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