JUST BEFORE THE TURN

As Nigerians and Africans, we are currently at a bend in the journey of our nation and by extension our individual lives. The current wave blowing across the length and breadth of the nation and even beyond the shores of this continent bears only one burden, that of change. From motivational writers like Myles Munroe and Fela Durotoye to frontline pastors like Pastor Matthew Ashimolowo and Pastor Chris Okotie without leaving out leaders like Presidents John Atta Mills of Ghana and Barack Obama of the USA, the grand essence of their messages revolve around the imminent change in the fortunes of Nigeria, Africa and indeed the whole world. It has been repeatedly and convincingly reiterated that from Africa will arise men(and women) who will change the fortunes of the world and an acceptable example of that is the recent change in the political calculations of the most powerful country in the world, the United States of America where a charismatic black man of African descent rose from the shackles of relative oblivion and overcame the daunting odds of racial discrimination to rise to the exalted position of the dignified occupant of the hallowed White House, the greatest power house in the world. This might sound inspiring but there is definitely more to come.
The kind of change being anticipated for the Nigerian nation and the African continent is an obviously visible and powerful turnaround in the conduct of things orchestrated by seasoned professionals with righteous and godly minds. What is expected is a new situation where faces will wear smiles and not frowns; mouths will belch after filling meals and not wail of hunger; hands will work happily and not substitute idleness with wrecking havoc; pockets will swell with plenty and not flatten out in lack; industries will daily hire more to boost production and not pack up due to rising costs; facilities will work and hearts will not fail but jump up for joy.
The scenario painted might be fantastic to some but might even be an understatement to some who already got their minds fired up for the expected change. Whichever way, it is undeniably clear that Nigerians nay Africans are tired of living with the many disheartening issues they daily cope with. They are fed up with the potholes-ridden and impassable highways that daily constitute a life-threatening menace. They are equally fed up with the comatose health system where misdiagnosis, lack of equipment, inefficiency, mismanagement among other ills act as bloodthirsty agents daily conspiring to dispatch them to their untimely deaths. They are fed up with unpaid salaries and monetisation fees while their smooth-talking leaders feed fat and stash surfeit amounts in abetting counties. Promises of potable water have caressed their ears ad nauseam and no longer appeal to them. They no longer find sweetness in the company of the constantly absent power supply. They are no more comfortable with crowded classrooms and overflowing sewages. They are tired, fed up and tired of these and many more. However, they are not just tired like docile souls being treated to an ad hominem speech but from within, they earnestly desire something different from what they have always experienced. They want new experiences and also want to tell new stories.
To be continued…