Motivational Monday: Order in Nigeria Starts With Us

What do Nigerians do when we see our ex-President on a queue at an airport? We shout in jubilation, with camera flashes appearing across the room, along with snarky remarks from a few in the crowd. This madness and more recently unfolded before my eyes at Amsterdam’s Schipol airport, in reaction to a surprise spotting of Olusegun Obasanjo. My former President looked ever so fly while on a KLM boarding queue, dressed in his brown agbada and fila cap. He calmly waved back to the crowd in response to his loud audience, before striding off to the plane with his two mute escorts shuffling behind. “So you mean he can queue too?” This comment from the crowd echoed through, reflecting the thoughts of men and women present whose society has taught them otherwise. How many times have blaring sirens diverted traffic on our busy roads for an Oba’s car to cruise through? How many times have we witnessed a dignified personality unashamedly jump a visa queue at an embassy? Even in secondary school, our senior prefects and their friends always found their way to the front of the long cafeteria line while the rest of us in grumbled in silence at the injustice of it all. The brave ones among us who managed to speak up were usually tongue-lashed for “misbehaviour”, or even more mind-boggling, punished for disrespect. That morning’s sighting of my former President reminded me of something significantly worth noting. At the end of the day, we are all human beings with ten fingers and ten toes, all things remaining equal. The so-called “untouchables” are treated that way by a mechanism created by fellow humans, one that is turned off the minute they vacate their seats of power. This is why as leaders, in whatever sphere of influence we find ourselves in, we must never let power and influence get to our heads. We must instill order and decency through our actions, and have respect for the people that have been put in our custody to direct and serve. And what’s a follower to do while the others lead, you might ask. Well, the untouchables may serve as the head of the body, but guess what determines its movement? The neck. A person is technically still alive if he’s brain dead, but becomes non-existent once his neck is severely damaged. I was told that my country’s current President has been spotted on queues too. Earlier this year, he once refused to jump the line at Nnamdi Azikiwe airport, to the praise of those present. If this is true, I applaud my leader’s example and can only urge Nigerians, myself included, to apply such restraints in all areas of our life to promote the harmony that we deserve to experience in our nation. From traffic queues to bank hall lines, let’s maintain order. After all, we make up Nigeria, and can only serve our country by serving ourselves.  

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This article was first published on 29th June 2015

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