Adjusting to the ‘change’ paradigm
No society has ever developed without dynamic mindset of the people. The people proffer solutions to trending issues and look beyond present phenomenon to ensuring better future through attitudinal changes; positive mindset towards development; putting theories into practice; and establishment of mutual respect and recognition. Any nation or society that falls short of acknowledging the […]
No society has ever developed without dynamic mindset of the people. The people proffer solutions to trending issues and look beyond present phenomenon to ensuring better future through attitudinal changes; positive mindset towards development; putting theories into practice; and establishment of mutual respect and recognition. Any nation or society that falls short of acknowledging the realities of change amidst a new social economic challenge, is bound to face developmental setbacks. The current state of the Nigerian economy is not one to be proud of and it seems to be getting worse as time passes by. It is safe to say every Nigerian is waiting for a miracle to happen as the economy is being diversified to areas that have been abandoned before; agriculture.
As a result of the exploration of crude oil, the agricultural sector had been abandoned, hence reducing the exportation of cash crops such as cocoa, coffee, rubber etc. Nigerians have over the years been living on imported items; even those readily available are not patronized as citizens have put value on items imported more than products made in Nigeria. We prefer foreign rice, clothes, bags, shoes etc. Even foreign furniture has raced up to apex on the scale of preference in Nigeria now despite having abundance of timber to make ours. We expect a miracle to happen through diversification of the economy into agriculture and other areas when many of us don’t want to patronize Nigerian made products, don’t want to eat rice grown in Nigeria and so on. What could be more disheartening than refusing to consume what we produce? If we don’t appreciate our own efforts and products, who do we expect to do that for us? It is disturbing that the rich in Nigeria only think about wearing foreign designer clothing from abroad, such as; printed wax from Holland popularly known as “Hollandaise” and super wax. Some go shopping in other countries like Dubai and the UK, enriching the economy of our counterparts to our detriment.
The love for foreign products are causing negative effects on us as our traditional values are gradually being eroded. Today, most Nigerian youths, who are the future of the nation, neither dress like Nigerians nor like Africans. They prefer to dress like the whites. As proud blacks, we don’t have to emulate every single step the whites take; we should be ourselves and do our own things. We keep chanting change and how Nigeria should change for the better when we; the individuals in the society have not changed our personal behaviours on how we conduct ourselves, how we treat people around us and how we relate with friends and the larger society. We need to embrace changes in our homes, work places, communities, traffic junction, traffic lights, change in our attitude to government property and infrastructure, and also change our attitudes towards Nigerian made products since change does not only apply to economic progress but also social progress.
There is the need for all of us in Nigeria to have a positive attitude and become positive in order to save the nation, rebuild its economy so that more jobs can be created for the youths to tackle the problem of unemployment and hunger.
This is true in view of the fact that for every made in Nigeria goods we patronize, those involved in the sourcing of raw materials, production and distribution will also benefit since it is a chain of activities involving members of the larger society. When we buy made in Nigeria goods we are directly providing employment opportunities for Nigerians whilst our failure to buy worsens the rate of unemployment. By the patronization of homemade products and services, Nigeria will save up to 50-60% of its foreign exchange in the next five years and our manufacturing industries will be able to improve. Development is a gradual process and with individual and collective strides, set goals will be attained. Growth and development does not happen in one day as it is a gradual process that requires patience and perseverance.
Abdulrahman Nafisat Sanni, IBBU, Lapai, Niger State.