To Heal a Fractured Nation: Education and Leadership for a New Nigeria

The above quotation comes from Abraham Lincoln’s famous speech, known now as the House Divided Speech was delivered in Springfield, Illinois on June 16th, 1858. It was one of his greatest, moment defining speeches, delivered at a very critical period of the nation’s life. In a slightly different, less dramatic context, I believe it speaks […]

The above quotation comes from Abraham Lincoln’s famous speech, known now as the House Divided Speech was delivered in Springfield, Illinois on June 16th, 1858. It was one of his greatest, moment defining speeches, delivered at a very critical period of the nation’s life. In a slightly different, less dramatic context, I believe it speaks to our moment because it draws attention to the moral choices a society has to make. We may be physically free from slavery in Nigeria today, but we are in a form of bondage that requires that we respond with the same candour that drove Abraham Lincoln because I believe that our nation requires a balm of healing well beyond the silence of the guns.
Today, we are told that the Boko Haram insurgency is only a foretaste of what is still to come. We are told that Nigeria is likely to split into tiny pieces sooner than later. We have the words of a scapegoat or a prophet to prove this. Professors, politicians, traditional rulers, bishops, priests, market women are all talking about it in fear and trepidation: The red flag has been raised by the moral policeman of the world: The United States of America has predicted that Nigeria will collapse in 2015. We are only to prepare to take our place in the funeral parlour as we prepare to bury Nigeria. Moving home and returning home have become routine scarecrows that prey on our fears. This lecture is about exploring some the fractures that have produced these fears, anxieties and hopes.
In this lecture, I wish to address what I call the state of fracture of the Nigerian state and explore what steps we need to take to work towards some form of healing. We have developed different longstanding vocabularies for expressing the manifestation of these fractures in our daily lives: marginalization, Nigerian factor, ethnicity, national character, federal character, North and South, Christians and Muslims, Minorities and Majorities. These catch phrases continue to haunt almost every sphere of our national life.
This will be divided lecture in four sections. Firstly, I will try to identify the fractures in our nation and briefly look at the causes and their impact. Secondly, I will identify what I call the three ‘vehicles’ for healing the fractures of our nation. Here, I will choose Politics, Education and the Bureaucracy only to illustrate the point. Thirdly, I will specifically address the issues around the so called, impending collapse of Nigeria in 2015 as being predicted. Fourthly, and by way of conclusion, I will argue that our situation requires a particular typology of leadership to mend our fractures.
1: Nigeria’s Fracture: Colonialism and the wheels of human history
On a visit to Jordan in 1998, I was told of a place called Churchill’s hiccup. According to the anecdote, Churchill, who was Colonial Secretary for Colonies, boasted that he created Jordan by the stroke of a pen! Apparently, on the said day in 1921, Churchill had taken one drink too many at lunch and then went on to create what accounts for the sharp zig-zag that constitutes the strip of land on the Eastern border between Jordan and Saudi Arabia. Some people would say that Nigeria has just celebrated 100 years of its own Churchill’s hiccup! This therefore is the first fracture of what is today modern Nigeria.
It is largely a waste of time for us to continue to argue today about the pros and cons of colonialism and about whether colonial fractures were right or wrong. After all, had the British not come, we are not sure what our collective fates would have been in the face of the conquering and slave raiding armies of the Sokoto Caliphate, the empire builders of Benin, Kwararafa, or Oyo and Zamfara, among many others.
A lot of those who agonise about colonialism focus on its conquest and subjugation but pay little attention to the fact that this was in fact part of the turning of the wheel of human history. The disciplines of both history and anthropology have shown that colonialism is the universal process of movement of human civilization, it is part of the human experience with domination, control and oppression, and it is part and parcel of the struggle and negotiation for power among peoples. The story of colonialism is a vital part of the tapestry of the history of all nations of the world. The colonial state laid the foundation for the emergence of the modern state as we know it today in developing nations. The structure and forms of colonial governments were inherently unequal and inequalities lay at the roots of the system. Some nations seem to have been able to mend their colonial fractures with some success. Why has Nigeria been unable to make the transition? How have succeeding elites exacerbated the fractures and wounded the nation further?  It is to these that I now wish to turn my attention.
2: Nigeria’s Fracture: Its Causes and Consequences
At independence, Nigeria adopted the Westminster Parliamentary system of government. The historical development of those processes is the subject for another platform. However, the nation’s greatest achievement was sealed when the British flag was lowered and the Nigerian flag of green-white-green was hoisted. The Parliament was a galleon of colours filled with a paroxysm of voices.
To honour Nigeria and to show its promise, the very influential international TIME Magazine (December 5th, 1960 edition) took the historic decision of making Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa its cover person and Nigeria. It followed with a sub heading: The Other Africa: Independence Without Chaos. This pointed at the optimism about the prospects of Nigeria developing along the path of honour, non-violence and progress. In the lead story, the magazine noted: Along with its echoes of Britain’s Westminster, the legislature over which Sir Abubakar presided last week had some flavour of Pan African Congress. On its benches, tall, haughty Hausas, splendidly robed in green and scarlet, sat among volatile Ibos draped in white azure gowns. Across the aisle were Yoruba tribesmen wrapped in gold, yellow and orange with little porkpie beanies on their heads. Between them, they constituted the world’s noisiest Parliaments. Each Speaker was greeted with cries of “Heah, heah” from his friends and derisory shots of “Sit down, you wretched fool” from his foes. From the rostrum came the perennial plea for “Oda, Odah”. But somehow, through the din, the nation’s problems got discussed and decided.
The reporter was far more generous than these early lines suggested because he went on to raise a banner of hope for Nigeria. He continued: In the hurly burly of the 1960s African avalanche of freedom, Nigeria’s impressive demonstration of democracy’s workability in Africa is too often overlooked…Nigeria entered the world community without noisy birth pangs or ominous warnings of its determination to avenge ancient wrongs. Since moderation and common sense are not the stuff that headlines are made of, the world’s eyes slid past Nigeria to focus worriedly on the imperialistic elbowings of Ghana’s Nkrumah….In the long run, the most important and enduring face of Africa might well prove to be that (face) presented by Nigeria. Where so many of its neigbhbours have shaken off colonialism only to sink into strong man rule, Nigeria not only preaches but practices the dignity of the individual.
Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah is the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese. He delivered this  convocation lecture at the University of Uyo, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State on Thursday, November 20th,  2014.
To be continued next Sunday