Nigeria - by Samuel Ibok

Yesterday, I witnessed a miracle. For the first time in a long time, unity in diversity appeared feasible. After spending 2 hours in Lagos traffic and missing the first half of Nigeria's game against Angola, I finally got close to home. I noticed a large gathering with everyone looking in the same direction. As a guy man with street OT, I paused to check warrisgoingon! My first thought was that it was an accident scene or people were fighting. The moment of clarity came when everyone shouted, goallllllll... I smiled hard! The second goal was cancelled shaa. I'm so sure that moment will stay with me for life. I saw people who didn't know themselves—men, women, fathers, mothers, and children—standing side by side, some embracing themselves, and lit up with unbreakable hope that the Super Eagles of Nigeria would soar higher than the Black Sable Antelopes of Angola. "At that roadside viewing centre yesterday, our tribes, accents, status, political inclinations, and religion didn't matter. Only Nigeria mattered." LASMA officials, bus drivers, business managers, agberos, clergymen, electricians, skit makers, landlords, tenants, and Elon Musk boys stood as one-as Nigeria. I saw Nigerians who are experiencing difficulty in different spheres of life, full of hope because of the singularity of purpose. If football can unite us for 90+ minutes, then we must create something to keep us united for the long term. Like post-nut clarity, we all resume the reality of being Nigerian after the match. What do we look forward to within the few days before our next match? Most people will get back to depression and some vices, and some may not make it to the next match day. Who did this to us? Are we them? By them, I mean those who oppress us. Are we not part of the perpetrators? Did we unconsciously or ignorantly birth a plague? There's no new normal in Nigeria; we're just experiencing deeper dimensions of...(you name it). It seems there's a concerted effort to make Japa out of sight and out of mind through difficulty. "Cost of living don cost pass the living and urgent 2k go soon be 1 dollar!" It'll be unwise to rant without offering possible solutions. You could even argue that's the Nigerian thing to do. We must first define what it means to be Nigerian. I honestly don't know if we know, and is what we know the same? Our progress rests on the decision "we" take. We must forge a system our children will be proud of. I want to be an "ancestor" my people will be proud of. Yes, I may not live in the bright future Nigeria will become, but I will be part of its foundation. Do not underestimate the power inherent in a good choice and a unified people. I am Nigeria, you are Nigeria, and we are Nigeria. No gree for anybody wey wan divide Nigeria -even if it's you!

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