Many
Nigerians of all faiths will gather this night in many formal and informal
places worship in what in local parlance is called “crossover” service to usher
in the New Year. During this service, Satan gets a national beating from all
Nigerians. This has been the case since Christianity came in the company of
Commerce and Civilization to Nigeria more than a hundred years ago and Islam
came about two hundred years ago.
At
this annual ritual, fingers are pointed at the arch-enemy - the ubiquitous
force that disrupts and destroys, and which therefore must be slayed. Nigerians
dislike the company of Satan and wish to banish him forever from Nigerian soil.
They pray hard, they stump and dance and when it appears that English and the
local languages are not enough to maim or kill Satan, Muslims veer off in
Arabic while their Christian brothers speak in tongues. No one wants Satan to
follow them into the New Year.
But
despite the annual slaying ritual by the faithful, it appears Satan has taken
permanent residence in Nigeria – Nigeria is regally among countries that leads
the world in maternal and child deaths, debilitating poverty, rudimentary human
development, chaotic infrastructure (bad roads, absence of electricity, unheard-of
clean and potable water) mediocre education as well as deadly health
infrastructure, violence and corruption.
Faced
with hopelessness of the Nigerian situation and collectively accepting that
Satan is permanently resident in the country and holds a Nigerian passport, the
annual ritual of Satan slaying focuses on self. Although gathered as a group,
each individual fights Satan and banishes him from his life. Nigeria as a
country is left to somehow sort itself out without the involvement of
Nigerians. But this won’t work. Nigeria cannot sort itself out without
Nigerians from leadership to followership changing their ways of life. Nigeria
is Nigeria because of its peoples. It is not an abstract concept to refer to in
the second or third person. We are Nigeria.
Where
the devil in Nigeria is Satan hiding that our religious and secular
intelligence services cannot find it, flush it out and send it back to hell?
Who is harboring Satan in Nigeria? No Nigerian will own up to harboring Satan in
their houses, minds, words and actions. “God forbid” or “I reject it”, they
would say. But Nigeria is what it is because of what we have made it.
Nigeria
is skewed because of abuses at all levels. Everyone abuses something or someone.
And sometimes, Nigerians attribute the gains of their abuses to God! Satan resides
in abuses committed this country.
Below
is an alphabetical list (maybe not exhaustive) of abuses that Nigerians commit
on a daily basis. Combined, these abuses have made Nigeria one of the most
hostile and dangerous countries in the world to live in – hell on earth.
1.
Child
abuse
2.
Corporate
abuse
3.
Democracy
abuse
4.
Drug abuse
5.
Environment
abuse
6.
Food abuse
7.
Freedom
abuse
8.
God abuse
9.
Governance
abuse
10.
Husband
abuse
11.
Intellect abuse
12.
Justice
abuse
13.
Leadership
abuse
14.
Management
abuse
15.
Media
abuse
16.
Minority
abuse
17.
Neighbour
abuse
18.
Position
abuse
19.
Power
abuse
20.
Privilege
abuse
21.
Religion
abuse
22.
Responsibility
abuse
23.
Rights
abuse
24.
Self-abuse
25.
Sexual
abuse
26.
Social
media abuse
27.
Time abuse
28.
Trust
abuse
29.
Wife abuse
30.
Wealth
abuse
As
you slay the Satan this night, make a resolution not to commit any of these
abuses in 2019.
Make 2019 an abuse-free year.
Happy New Year !
