Thinking the Unthinkable
Chidi Anyaeche

If the mind is not challenged beyond the ordinary, not much will be achieved by mankind. If intellectual and other boundaries have not been pushed and stretched, mankind will have remained ignorant, uneducated, underdeveloped and primitive. Mankind as defined by the developed world has always imagined and thought beyond the ordinary from onset of time to get where they are today.  

The Universal Law of Gravitation pioneered by Sir Isaac Newton with its attendant benefits to mankind e.g. Aeroplanes, Rockets, Spacecrafts, Satellites and other allied technologies emanated because the great Sir Isaac Newton was ‘Thinking the Unthinkable’ It all started when he observed an apple fall from a tree and wondered why the movement was downwards rather than upwards and from this thought process, The Universal Law of Gravitation was born. It is very easy and indeed lazy to assume that a fallen apple should automatically gravitate downwards. But if the mind is stretched a little bit like that of Sir Isaac Newton, new and imagined opportunities will and should open up. 

In Nigeria, from independence to date, failure of leadership has been our bane. The ethnic game has been played, the democratic rigmarole has been displayed, the military option has been tried, the gender issue has been preyed upon, ageism has been employed and yet no progress in all aspects of development, be it human, spiritual, infrastructural or what have you. Rather the country is continuously decaying, decade by decade, year by year, month by month, week by week, day by day, hour by hour, minute by minute and second by second. Tafawa Balewa’ s era was better than Gowon’s, as Murtala Mohammed was better than Shehu Shagari and Sanni Abacha better than Ibrahim Babangida. Olusegun Obasanjo’s government will be better than Musa Yar’Adua, period.  

For Nigerian’s to attain that level of development, that state of fulfilment as a nation and as individuals that has eluded us since independence, should we not like Sir Isaac Newton and the Apple start stretching our thought process beyond the ordinary, beyond tribalism, beyond Niger Delta Militant’s, beyond MASSOB, beyond OPC, beyond Sharia Law, beyond failed banks, beyond NAFDAC, beyond NEPA, beyond Benin – Ore road or Onitsha – Owerri road, beyond Transcorp, beyond BPE, beyond JAMB, beyond armed and pen robbers, beyond Professor IWU and INEC, beyond PDP, AC, ANPP, beyond NDDC, beyond EFCC, beyond ICPC and ‘Think the Unthinkable’ that Unthinkable being that we are not capable of leading ourselves, not capable of ruling ourselves, not equipped to look after ourselves for the time-being, that we got our independence prematurely and have not got what it takes to run the affairs of a modern state.  

Rather than passing the buck from one corner to the other, the stark reality is that the answer to the Nigerian question is to bring back the White man to govern us. Some people may scream to high heavens about this suggestion but if we do not ‘Think that Unthinkable’ now and go for it, five, ten, fifteen years from now, the same problems that bedevil us today will still be there and worse; no roads, no electricity, no pipe borne water, massive unemployment, rigged elections, ethnic militancy, religious intolerance, HIV epidemic, armed robbery, female and child trafficking, you name it. 

First republic politicians could not address our problems neither did second, third or the military boys and what make us think that this bunch of unelected reprobates currently parading themselves in Abuja and other state capitals, can? 

Going back memory lane, can we compare the calibre of first republic politicians with what we have now? Can we compare Obafemi Awolowo as Premier with Alao Akala or Fayose as Governor nor Sarduana of Sokoto with Taliban Ahmed Sani? Can we compare M.I. Okpara with Orji Kalu or Dennis Osadebe with James Ibori and yet it is assumed that these first republic politicians ‘failed’ They did not fail, rather they were ill-equipped for the challenges of leadership at that time and this challenge is getting tougher by the day and our so called later day leaders pathetically ill-equipped, severely handicapped academically, morally, humanely to even recognize let alone address it. The beat goes on. 

It will be foolhardy and naïve for Nigerians to think that Yar’Adua’s government with principal actors like Olusegun Obasanjo as Chairman, PDP Board of Trustees, David Mark as Senate President (who told Nigerians as Communication Minister that telephone is the preserve of the rich) and Ojo Maduekwe (that does even have an international passport) as Foreign Minister to name a few will deliver democratic goals. Obasanjo’s government with serious players like Okonjo-Iweala, Oby Ezekwesili could not deliver and we expect the minnows in Yar’Adua’s cabinet to deliver. What a joke? 

Having studied the Nigerian dynamics, it is glaringly obvious that we as a nation have not got the leadership manpower at present to solve our problems, we need to look beyond our shores for help, we need to ‘Think the Unthinkable’ and bring back the White man to manage our affairs for us, to hold our hands whilst we learn to walk, to navigate us through developmental darkness until we are ready, which should take at least three generations from now, to be set free. Failure to do this will be deceiving ourselves and unfair to posterity. Failure to do this, five, ten, fifteen years from now (if we still survive as one country) the songs of yesteryears, of today will still be sung; no roads, no electricity, massive unemployment, HIV ravaged, massively devalued currency, society terrorised by armed and pen robbers, no pipe borne water, poorly educated workforce, country ruled by election riggers, the beat goes on and on. 

Lets ‘Think the Unthinkable’ now and bring back the White man for everybody’s sake. 

Here I stand as they say. 

Chidi Anyaeche, London