In Nigeria things keep getting awful every second which if it continues, the life of a poor man is at a very big risk because no scale can presently weigh the kind of killings and abductions Nigerians are going through.
We have nothing to be proud of as Nigerians even with the so called fundamental human rights enshrined in the constitution. The only hope left for a poor man is school for him to be educated and perhaps be able to contribute to the development of the nation.
Unfortunately, the activities of bandits, Boko Haram and kidnappers are about to put an end to education in Nigeria, considering the decisions of Zamfara state Governor Bello Matawalle and his Kano state counterpart Abdullahi Umar Ganduje to shutdown all boarding secondary schools in their states.
The abductors have indeed accomplished their mission of not only sowing fear in the minds of the populace but government too, I understand this following the shutdown of the boarding schools in Zamfara and Kano states over the incessant kidnappings which they think is beyond their power.
Nothing is beyond government’s power unless if the government wants it to continue like this.
My question now is, will the government keep folding its hands and continue looking at these people to continue kidnapping students in their dormitories? The decision taken by some governors is very discouraging, I mean if government itself is losing hope over the security situation of the nation, then what about us who are not in authority and have no personal security to guard our affairs?
This is very unfortunate and to some extent disappointment to Nigerians, the fact that government will surrender and order school closure due to kidnapping issue then government has failed Nigerians woefully; it is an indication that Nigerian government has failed in its primary responsibility of protecting the lives and property of the citizens.
It’s very shame for Nigerian government saying they are in a better position to handle these people (abductors) yet failed to address kidnapping, Boko Haram and armed banditry.
I am talking on behalf of poor people in Nigeria not the elite; I thought it’s because they (government and the various stakeholders) have the means of protecting themselves that is why they are not concerned enough in addressing insecurity. If not, why should they close schools because of insecurity when they are responsible in providing security by every means?
The hope of a poor person keeps vanishing considering the deviation from the good education, health care facility, infrastructure, agriculture, among other social aspects of life.
The number is countless in the sense that we are deprived from enjoying any form of the so called dividend of democracy apart from suffering.
I will like to let government understand that for lives to be secure, lives must be lost. Therefore, if truly what President Buhari said that the bandits are not powerful than his government, then something must be done quickly to ensure the security of lives and property. Failure to do so, government is compromising the lives of its citizens.
We are very ready to sacrifice our lives to the upcoming generation since ours is on the spot line; the future of the upcoming generation is at stake whereby they will grow up without having a specific direction and what to do as Nigerians.
No adequate health facilities, potable water supply, standard electricity, education, among others, then what else is left for Nigerians to be benefit from? Therefore, I suggest that schools shouldn’t be closed no matter the situation because doing so is a threat to future of younger generation, because the moment schools are closed, then what is our hope? So, government should immediately do something before the menace will be uncontrollable.
Lawal Ibrahim,
Department of Mass Communication,
University of Maiduguri
