I Love Nigeria!; Just Because!

By Paul I. Adujie

New York, United States

Avidly, I read everything in print. Newspaper and magazine essays, internet commentaries and books etc. I learn from every writer and every written word, good and, even bad writings. The written word is our chance to learn from a million experiences, encapsulated

The written word, for me, has added meanings, when such are written by a Nigerian! I have said this in the past, I doing so again pointedly, Nigerians have dramatic effects on me. Nigerians are the bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh, yes, I am a Nigerian! It is usually of no significance whether I agree with point of view or not. Mr. Sonala Olumhense is a Nigerian writer, whose writings I have followed for decades, a great deal of his written work and deep feelings about Nigeria, I share. Some others, I wish that I could have persuaded him otherwise. Presently, I mention him, because I am about to copy and employ a style for which is noted, interactive journalism! Or shall we call it, empowered and democratic journalism? We learn from those who may agree, even those in disagreement!

Mr. Sonala Olumhense has this practice in which he features the reactions and comments to his public affairs commentaries, by his readers who, like me, agree and sometimes disagree with his expressed opinions on current public affairs Nigerian.

In mathematics, you cannot divide by zero and in logic, you cannot prove a negative! This is analogous to the attitude of Nigerians toward Nigeria. Some Nigerians say adamantly and repeatedly, that Nigeria is beyond redemption. Some say, Nigeria will disintegrate sooner than later. Some Nigerians actually admit to praying for Nigeria’s obliteration!

How can these Nigerians expect good outcome for an entity that they abuse, from cradle to grave? An entity that the curse at, from waking hours of the mornings until bedtime at night fall? How can some Nigerians expect good outcomes of an entity that they never commend but denigrate with the most eloquently severe and brutal words? How can?

These Nigerians seem to forget, that empires of old and modern nations of present day world, are made great and such greatness is maintained by citizens, who possess exultant and exuberant attitude toward their empires or nations. A Country becomes and remains powerful so long as her citizens rejoice in her! I need to emphasize the point that:

A Country Becomes & Remains Powerful So Long As Her Citizens Rejoice In Her!

I am a legitimate optimist, as Nigerian who is bashful, and enthusiastic about Nigeria, I have no choice, but compelled to be optimistic about my homeland. What else is there? Complacency about Nigeria is not a luxury that I can afford

What is the use of democracy without patriotism? What is the rule of law without patriotism what is the use of due process is there is not patriotism

Wrapped, encrusted, enclosed, enveloped and deep-fried in patriotism or it is not worth it

Events in the past moved me to write that some are self-loathing and self-critical, perhaps, more than any other group of citizens in the world. Now I realize that I have these compendium or pattern of expressed passions for Nigeria, and responses by those similarly inclined. Here are links to some of my past full length articles on the subject and a few comments by others that follows. I LOVE NIGERIA, here are the just because!

1. Some Nigerians Are Waiting To Be Patriotic! 

2. No Apologies For My Views Or Opinions! 

3. The Benefits of Nigerian Unity and The Perils of Disintegration

4. Nigeria’s National Interests: A Moratorium And Change Of Tactics

5. Some Nigerians Only Bite Effectively - When They Bite Nigeria?

6. Why Would Any Alien Become A Nigerian Citizen?

7.I Wish - My Many Wishes for Nigeria - Oh How I Wish!

8. Nigeria's National Colors; Our Flag! Our Symbol!

9. Are Some Nigerians' Psyche Damaged ?

10. CNN Attacks On Nigerians In Houston & Why Nigeria’s Image Matters

11. Patriotism Is Not A Dirty Word! !

12. Nigerian Arrested! Espionage- Spying!

13. NIGERIA My Love

14. Announcing Our Problems

15. Nigeria Is Worth Dying For!

16. America Means Well For Nigeria; Oh Really? 

It is quite common to find Nigerians agreeing with non-Nigerians who maul Nigeria and Nigerians with lopsided and mostly unwarranted criticisms. There are times as well, when Nigerians vehemently reject and refute false accusations against Nigerians and Nigeria

Commenting on one of my articles, a Nigerian known only as ILN Too, wrote these words “There are too many silly Nigerians out there who are all too willing to wax lyrical when it comes to giving Nigeria the flak. what those idi-ots do not seem to fathom is that they only expose their stupidity and intellectual laziness. true, those Nigerians might have emigrated because of the harsh economic realities back home. but aren't they cutting off their noses to spite their own faces?”

“Those Nigerians may acquire foreign citizenship or be living in relative comfort in their host countries (countries that they often seem all too willing to eulogize). However, in reality, those Nigerians are constantly reminded that their host countries are not where they actually belong. but these reminders often take very subtle dimensions and some of us are too dumb to notice them (the CNN documentary is probably just one of those reminders, only this time, it is patently blunt; the haters of Nigeria, as they should be called, drove home their points with undisguised venom)”

“There are a lot of Nigerians living abroad that take perverse pleasure in ridiculing Nigerians that have remained in the country. the reaction to that documentary would have been quite different if the criminals featured or the crimes had been perpetrated in Nigeria and not the United States. it would have given an excellent opportunity for the pessimists in our midst to start saying, 'well, yes we know nothing good would come out of that country and we said it!' Quite lucky that this time around, this category of idi-ots were not spared; the CNN insulted Nigerians in their entirety. a lot of 'pessimists in Diaspora' (no disrespect whatever to Nigerians in Diaspora) would probably reason that CNN has hit too close to home.”

“In that respect, there is a salutary lesson to be learnt from the offensive documentary; people that take sadistic pleasure in denigrating their backgrounds gain nothing in the exercise, rather, they stand to lose. After all, for most of us, Nigeria (warts and all) is, in the end, the only place we can call our own. so why cast unnecessary aspersions on it? this is one thing that beats me and i want to believe i am no nitwit. if my mum were mad (she is not, ok!) i would definitely not take pleasure in going to the market square and announcing to the public that she is! and i would also be deeply offended if any of 'my friends' tried to do the same.”

“Talking about friendship, i would like to ask villagers whether they consider the US as Nigeria's friend or enemy. there have been a series of events recently that make me seriously doubt the sincerity of America's friendship to Nigeria; not the least of these events is the 'intelligence report' that Nigeria will break up in fifteen years or less. not that i am overly concerned about any half baked American intelligence; the American intelligence has an uncanny habit of turning out to be rather unintelligent. seriously though, if i were American, i would be more concerned about how many years it will take Iraq, for example, to break up. if i had a friend that goes round telling people that i am likely to die of a particular ailment after a certain number of years, i would probably do my best to keep away from them (thank God, I don't have such a friend). with friends like the US, it is becoming increasingly clear that Nigeria doesn't need enemies (a food for thought for our compatriots striving hard to make America even greater”

Another Nigerian known only as Palamedes, contributed the following words: “A slander or participating in a slander against one's own country should be considered as joining the enemy to fight against one's own country, therefore the government should pass a law to make it a criminal offence for any Nigerian to slander or participate in a slander against the Federal Republic of Nigeria and its people.”

“I know that some will criticize and lecture me about freedom, human rights and what not. The British hanged Lord Haw Haw (real name William Joyce) for treason - for taking side with Nazi Germany. Treason in most Western countries is a criminal offence. These Nigerians have committed treason and must be punish when they return to Nigeria.”

“Hmmmmm, I am thinking: if there were such a law, some Nigerians would use it to their advantage such as knowingly committing treason and then claiming political asylum in the West. I better leave that to the lawyers to figure out. Whatever the outcome, these traitors must be punished for colluding with our enemies. That's all I have to say.”

An American, known only as Rose, who follows and participates in Nigerian debates stated the following very kind words in support of one of my article “Paul, I'm not Nigerian, but of African descent and want to commend you on your unwavering love and support of your country. From reading your essays, I'd say you are extremely proud, on point and correct on positions you've taken where Nigeria is concerned. You clearly see and feel the potential in your countrymen and women, and I know you're ready to work tirelessly to do your part and inspire the troops as well. Stay passionate and keep on keeping on!!”

A Nigerians whose commitment to Nigeria is demonstrated in and by his name, Naijaforlife, added these comments “I really enjoyed your post. I believe Nigerians who applaud foreigners who criticize us are Nigerians who have reconciled themselves to living in a land where their only reward in life can be material comfort and nothing else. They have decided to accept the lies and distortions from the media in a land whose culture they are unable to identify with, whose destiny they cannot influence, in short, a land in which all they can expect is to live as guests so long as they don't "rock the boat".

“Like you said, blacks are reminded of their second class status through subtle means, not the least of which is their systematic exclusion from the institutions of power, and their relegation to ceremonial, impotent roles like Mayors and the like”

“ To live as a black person in the Diaspora is to witness impieties such as seeing the culture of the middle east, (the terrorists breeding ground of the world) celebrated, while coverage of Africa is relegated to dehumanizing and loathsome pictures of Africans ravaged by disease or famine. To live in the Diaspora is to see people celebrate the mention of other countries of the world, but to squirm uncomfortably and try to change the subject to wars or disease when Africa is mentioned. I cannot tell you how many times I have personally been witness to what I described in the preceding sentence”

“Citizens of countries that have perpetrated the most atrocious crimes against humanity do not tolerate the corruption of their countries' image, and I don't see why Nigerians should. Nigeria might be infested with criminals in our ruling class, but the same countries that routinely assail our image are also bedeviled by their share of heartless criminals”

“And yes, ILN TOO, I believe you are quite right when you say that a country would never predict the death of another country she considered a friend. I can think of nothing more hateful than that”

I will only add as I have in the past, that the call to the service of Nigeria, is the greatest service of all. As I restate these words.

Robot  Villager

# 1 var sbtitle8941=encodeURIComponent(I Love Nige...Read the full article. Posted by Robot| 28.05.2007 22:12

nigeria we hail thee!  Villager

# 2 I hereby nominate Mr Paul Adujie to be awarded 'the most patriotic Nigerian on NVS'. Please can somebody second this motion? Posted by nigeria we hail thee!| 29.05.2007 03:33

Eja  Villager

# 3 One of your best write-ups ILN. No one can can fault you when you give the country its well-deserved support. Thank you. Posted by Eja| 29.05.2007 05:04

pappilo  Villager

# 4 I made up mind never to reply to any of your articles but i,ll do just this one last time Sometimes I think you are m.a.d and sometimes I think you do it for fun just to get a debate going. I just dont Know. Your article doesnt really say anything new as it is no diiferent from others you have written. You even quote ILN as a third person when it is an open secret that ILN and Paul Adujie are the same person. Nigerians are entitled to feel the way they want to feel about Nigeria and say what they want to say. If after 47 years of independence, the best Nigeria and its corrupt leaders, who you love to praise and worship can offer its citizens is what we have today then Nigerians have every right to be angry. What Kind of a patriot are you when you sit there in New York and write all these articles saying Nigeria is this and Obasanjo is the best thing to happen to Nigeria since blue band margarine. You tell people living in Nigeria and experiencing all the hardship what to do while you sit in relative comfort in the states. Your case is like that of the mordern day Generals in the US,(a country you reside in but despise) they sit in bahrain and give orders to troops on the frontline in Baghdad by radio. If you really want to participate in the progress of Nigeria and you want people to take you seriously you must adopt an admiral Nelson approach and return home to Nigeria and lead from the front. You must also stop your sycophant praise and worship of the PDP leaders of the day. However a leopard never chages its spots and I am sure in the coming days you will start your praise worship of Yar'adua. Posted by pappilo| 29.05.2007 06:08

Oghre  Villager

# 5 =pappilo;179052>I made up mind never to reply to any of your articles but i,ll do just this one last time Sometimes I think you are m.a.d and sometimes I think you do it for fun just to get a debate going. I just dont Know. Your article doesnt really say anything new as it is no diiferent from others you have written. You even quote ILN as a third person when it is an open secret that ILN and Paul Adujie are the same person. Nigerians are entitled to feel the way they want to feel about Nigeria and say what they want to say. If after 47 years of independence, the best Nigeria and its corrupt leaders, who you love to praise and worship can offer its citizens is what we have today then Nigerians have every right to be angry. What Kind of a patriot are you when you sit there in New York and write all these articles saying Nigeria is this and Obasanjo is the best thing to happen to Nigeria since blue band margarine. You tell people living in Nigeria and experiencing all the hardship what to do while you sit in relative comfort in the states. Your case is like that of the mordern day Generals in the US,(a country you reside in but despise) they sit in bahrain and give orders to troops on the frontline in Baghdad by radio. If you really want to participate in the progress of Nigeria and you want people to take you seriously you must adopt an admiral Nelson approach and return home to Nigeria and lead from the front. You must also stop your sycophant praise and worship of the PDP leaders of the day. However a leopard never chages its spots and I am sure in the coming days you will start your praise worship of Yar'adua. Paul Adujie is a great patriot of Nigeria; he has demonstrated it and continues to do so unflinchingly. The man has written well and we hope he continues to write such positive articles that give people like me not only a good read but a light at the end of the tunnel. I am not a believer in God myself but I hope this man health and well being remains protected. If we have more Nigerians like him we are well on our way to rejuvenating that Nigeria that we once had some decades ago. I read some negative articles and comments from Uncle Tom think-alike types, those who continue to talk in the language of the western media, and ignoramuses. These negative Nigerian individuals have sold their birth rights out of self pity and ignorance for a mess or porridge, let us not be deceived that the way some of these Nigerians think and act is one of the reasons non-Nigerians have the audacity to pick on us vigorously for crimes and actions committed by all and sundry in the international community. All Nigerians should embrace the ILN in Paul Adujie, they should embrace positivism, national enthusiasm and dynamism. Start refusing to accept the abuse, the bickering and the negative publicity. Posted by Oghre| 29.05.2007 07:21

Mikky jaga  Villager

# 6 Love for one's country should be reciprocal. There is no 70:30 love or 60:40 love or even 90:10 love that has worked anywhere. It must be 50:50. Nigeria must be able to reciprocate the love of its citizens if it would sustain their love for her. Apart from the few who are in the corridors of power, the rest of Nigerians have nothing to show for their Nigerianess. Conditions of living are deteriorating daily and the government does not care. Nigerians are discriminated against all over the world, and the government is doing nothing about it. A Nigerian was recently smuggled to a foreign country, raped, molested, abused and dumped. She cried out, but there was no government to come to her aid. How will such a one feel proud to be called a Nigerian. Our athletes are dumping Nigeria to compete for other countries. Why? It's because they have a country that does not care. While they are winning laurels, they are Nigerians, immediately they are injured or cannot win laurels again, they are on their own. No one cares for them again. Nigerian footballers play their best in their clubs than for their country. Why? The clubs care for them more than their country. To be a Nigerian is hard indeed!! If you are not a thief, a dubious politician, or a bootlicker you cannot be anything in Nigeria. You will only be existing on the fringe like millions of honest Nigerians. That is why the struggle for political appointments are high in Nigeria. Everyone wants to get near where the booties are being shared. "A Country becomes and remains powerful so long as her citizens rejoice in her!" How true that statement is! How do we rejoice in Nigeria when the only thing we benefit from being Nigerians is periodical, crunching fuel price increases in order to satisfy the insatiable hunger of the few among us. How do we expect the hordes of Nigerians fleeing the country everyday for greener pastures abroad without knowing whether they will survive the next day, rejoice in the country? When Nigeria begins to appreciate her citizens, put their interest above any other interests. Help her disadvantaged citizens to realize their potentials in life, allow the wealth of the Nation to be evenly shared among her citizens, Nigerians will then be proud to have a country they can call their own. But when the only time Nigerians are remembered is when they are called upon to tighten their belts (belts they will never be called to loose again) make sacrifices, and suffer more for their country, they will be willing to curse such country with every rising sun. I love Nigeria but let Nigeria show me that she loves me too. Posted by Mikky jaga| 29.05.2007 07:53

I Love Nigeria  Villager

# 7 Papillo, First, let us keep the records straight! I am I LOVE NIGERIA or ILN, aka Paul I. Adujie; I am separate and distinct from ILN TOO! ILN TOO! Is someone else and I do not know who it is or why she chose that name, I am flattered! You or anyone can confirm this verifiable fact (distinction between ILN and ILN TOO) contact NVS Admin or the Moderators/Publishers Please also note that I am quite comfortable with my ideas and views, and in particular, my ideas and views about Nigeria as well as America. It is easy to love America, a wealthy nation, I can figure you out! Look, I truly love my Nigeria. I know that Nigeria can surpass America. Think of old and dead empires, Roman, Greek, British, Turkish etc, just think! I am not like you, faceless and cavorting what America might do for you, it is easy to love rich and successful person, I am not a faceless abuser or fighter Your logic is sloppy You are a Nigerian who criticizes Nigeria without qualms, because you love Nigeria? Conversely, I am a Nigerian who criticizes America and in your opinion, that is only because I hate America? How do you manage to speak from both sides of your mouth? Your brain is obviously not coordinating your thoughts well? You love America, I LOVE NIGERIA, can you let me be? Truce? Deal? Posted by I Love Nigeria| 29.05.2007 08:00

I Love Nigeria  Villager

# 8 Mikky Jagga, I understand some of your feelings. Love is best when it is reciprocated. But do as the Bible tell Christians.... Put God FIRST and ALL other things will be added to you. So, I say to NIGERIANS, put NIGERIA FIRST, and Nigeria/ Nigerians will lack NOTHING! Posted by I Love Nigeria| 29.05.2007 08:18

Jah Guda  Villager

# 9 God help us. Contradiction, contradiction…confused! I love Nigeria too but I do not love the state she is in. My city is up in flames, hatred prowls the streets and for over a decade I have felt nothing but sadness when I think of my city. Lets put things in perspective, Loving Nigeria is one thing but loving the state she is in is another. Two entirely separate issues-the first comes straight from the heart and the other is man made. I have just now read Yar’s interview on NVS. I will pray that he succeeds in doing the things he listed as priority-God please guide him and give him strength. Is America a friend of Nigeria? Nope! Lets put it this way, America’s relationship with Nigeria is similar to the relationship a beautiful woman has with a womaniser, as soon as he gets what he wants he is off! The flavour of America’s relationship with Nigeria is no different. As far as Niajaforlife’s reference to the Middle East as a breeding ground for terrorist goes, you have in a sense taken a leaf out of the white mans book-castigating people by labelling them with something terribly bad. You are wrong to call the Middle East a breeding ground for terrorist. If you fight back the white man calls you a terrorist, he wants you to roll over like a dog. The whites are the most aggressive humans on earth, just take a quick tour of history and see how much violence they have brought upon the world. They only understand one word, violence, and always meet their match when they pick on the inhabitants of the Middle East. You wan fight? Come now make we fight. If Southern Africans stood up to the whites 400 years ago, resisted their invasion using all available means, they would have been a lot better off than they are today. The settlement reached with the whites made the blacks a laughing stock. The whites keep their beautiful stolen land and plush stolen houses, the majority of the owners of the land, the blacks, still live in abject poverty. That’s why whites prefer black people; “we are nice and do not cause them any trouble’, regardless. One blatantly obvious fact will always shine amongst others, the problems we have had in Nigeria for 47 years after independence is in the interest of the Western world. Posted by Jah Guda| 29.05.2007 10:32

Knightofdelta  Villager

# 10 I hereby award Paul Adujie as the most patriotic and optimistic Nigerian ever. He does not tolerate it when Nigerians or any other person atll go Nigeria-bashing. I like that about him. But we need a balance. We need people who will show us what is going wrong, their words may be harsh but we do not have to brush them aside as if there were mere wranglings by an imbecile. The truth be told, Nigerian leaders have failed Nigeria in too many ways to count. Nobody can dispute that. We have too many potentials not be the greatest country in the world. There is no land in Nigeria that is not fertile to grow one kind of crop or the other without fertilizer. There is no land that cannot grow palm trees except Niger Delta that has been polluted by these whites. We are sleeping giants and we are still waiting to wake up from slumber. Look at the way General Olusegun Okikiola Matthew Aremu Obasanjo (Rtd) GCFR slammed us with an increase in petrol price less than 24 hrs to go as a parting gift. He even went ahead to draft Yar'adua's inaugration speech for him. I can see his handwriting all over it. Empty promises that will never be fulfilled. I love Nigeria too ooo, I no go lie... but dammit! I dey go blow one or two pipeline jare. See you guys later. The KNight of Delta. Posted by Knightofdelta| 29.05.2007 15:04

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