The Morning after Independence: A Burden of Responsibility

As I reminisce on the history of Independence in various African states, the glamour and the euphoria of liberty, with particular interest in the experience of Nigeria – the land of my birth. I am reminded of the celebration that ensued upon the expulsion of Mr. Jones and his men from the Manor Farm in George Orwell’s Classic, 'Animal Farm’.

In a speech motivating the animals to fight for their freedom, Old Major painted on the minds of his fellow ‘comrades’ a picture of a new world, which they could only access and possess after their gaining Independence from the oppressive rule of Mr. Jones and his likes.

Oh how they relished the allure of freedom! Freedom from misery and slavery, which comes with an opportunity to own all they would ever produce without fear of external subjugation. Almost overnight every animal would become rich and free!

Little did they know, except for the ‘cleverer’ of the animals, that following the eviction of an imposed master and a declaration of independence will be a huge burden of responsibility to manage and advance the course of their now-free territory.

In like manner, people movements throughout Africa worked tirelessly, engaging body and soul to eject colonial governments; and they succeeded beyond their wildest imagination as did the animals on the Manor Farm.

However, even though most African countries gained Independence within a common decade and were all declared equal, some have invested more in developing their economic management skills and human capital than the rest of the pack.

Like Napoleon and Snowball, these countries naturally take the lead in sound institutional and development management because of their superior capabilities developed through deliberate investments of time, physical and mental resources. In Orwell’s sense, they have become more equal than the other animals.

Disparities in educational development across regions in Nigeria, for instance, accounts for earning disparities and competitiveness in access to formal labour market opportunities.

This goes without saying that every segment of the population has the potential to increase the quality of their contribution to the national purse through their respective activities; if they are not trapped in poverty that is.

I still wonder why there were no wild protests by the rest of the animals when Napoleon, Snowball and the rest of the pigs gained ascendancy over them all. They read their 'Animalism' creed over and again as newer twists were added to it without raising critical questions, surely they were fooled by propaganda.

While I vote for the adoption of a national creed which will both guide citizen expectations and create a sense of responsibility in leadership, my advocacy would be towards ensuring no deviations from the norm in the course of administering development priorities.

God bless Nigeria and give each of us the enabling to affix our individual and collective portions of the puzzle in the quest towards nation building!

The discussion continues…