“True independence and freedom can only exist in doing what’s right.” — Brigham Young (1801-1877)
On Thursday, October 1, Nigeria, a land of great human and natural resource endowments whose potential has been avoidably mismanaged by successive leaders, turned 66. Right-thinking Nigerians and politically conscious observers around the world are wondering why this touted Giant of Africa is yet to assume its rightful stature in the comity of nations.
The search for an answer to the foregoing belies the understanding that Nigeria is not a poor nation but a poorly governed country. This was aptly captured by President Bola Tinubu, GCFR, while speaking in India on September 7, 2023. He said: “We are not poor in knowledge. We are not poor in human resources. We are only poor in management and leadership…” 
No admission could better capture Nigeria’s plight at 66 than this presidential affirmation: For a country so endowed with mineral and human resources, the search for good leadership remains a work in progress.
The regressive traits inherent in the Nigerian system have made it impossible in 66 years to attain the freedom that makes independence truly about self-discovery, self-worth and self-realisation. Sadly, in 66 years, the Nigerian system has produced leaders and groomed a cult-like followership that treats every opportunity to serve as an avenue to brazenly steal public funds and undermine state institutions for personal aggrandizement. This being one of the reasons why institutions of state are very weak.
Curiously, they rationalise this kleptomania by mischaracterising such a criminal assault on public welfare as ‘blessings’ from Almighty God. What a warped thinking because stealing from the public till can never be divinely sanctioned. This avaricious approach to governance has made a mockery of the true meaning of our sovereign independence. This may explain why we continue to wander in the wilderness of misdirection, and giving credence to David Ben-Gurion’s apt observation that “without moral and intellectual independence, there is no anchor for national independence.”
In 2026, we cannot continue to blame our motion without movement on the 1914 amalgamation by the British colonial authorities that merged the Northern and Southern Protectorates and placed more than 250 ethnic groups under a single roof called Nigeria. The colonial authorities introduced several constitutional reforms which our foremost educated nationalists seeking our much-desired independence, condemned.
The British introduced the Clifford Constitution of 1922, the Richards Constitution of 1946, the Macpherson Constitution of 1951 and the Lyttleton Constitution of 1954, which preceded the Independence Constitution of 1960 and the Republican Constitution of 1963. If these pre-independence constitutions were criticised for allowing minimal input from Nigerians, what of our post-independence constitutions in 66 years? To what extent were Nigerians truly involved in their making or actual amendments?
Since the British Union Jack was lowered and the Green-White-Green flag was hoisted at the then Race Course (now Tafawa Balewa Square) in Lagos on October 1, 1960, the nation’s journey has been marked by avoidable socio-economic and political afflictions.
This relatively young country faced severe political upheaval from inception. The military first seized power on January 15, 1966, followed by a counter-coup in July 1966, and further coups in July 1975 and February 1976. There were also military takeovers in December 1983, August 1985 and November 1993. In total, when the military handed over power to civilians in 1999, it had ruled for 29 of the country’s 39 years of existence as at that time in history.
The military has now been out of power for 27 years, the same length as the current democratic dispensation, yet things do not seem to be getting better. From Olusegun Obasanjo’s militarised democracy to the regrettable illness-ridden administration of Umaru Musa Yar’Adua and the timid administration of Goodluck Jonathan, and then the economically corrosive administration of Muhammadu Buhari, whose severe repercussions President Tinubu has been battling to resolve since assuming office in 2023.
How far has Tinubu fared? I know this question at this point will be on the minds and lips of readers of this column, but one thing is clear; today’s piece is not meant to evaluate the current administration of Tinubu. Rather, it is intended, by yours truly, to outline how far the country has progressed in 66 years. Otherwise, one would have to comprehensively dwell on issues such as the massive road projects that have turned many federal highways into construction sites, the appropriateness or otherwise of his reforms, and the empirical economic hardship that Nigerians daily complain about, among others. Those are matters for another day, not for this 66th independence anniversary piece.
On an independence occasion like this, there is a need to celebrate the accompanying ‘freedom’ and to honour the sacrifices of our late foremost nationalists such as Herbert Macaulay, Obafemi Awolowo, Anthony Enahoro, Nnamdi Azikiwe and Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, among others, whose names have become synonymous with the pre-independence struggles.
What these great nationalists would feel, in their graves, about the state of the country today deserves reflection. Would they be happy with the pathetic state of affairs? Can it be said that their hopes and projections for the country at independence have been met? Would they be disappointed by the roles played by a few of their surviving mentees in the country’s wobbling state as it marks 66 years of sovereign existence?
The rat race among those that have had the privilege of holding public office, or still hold public positions, to outdo one another in stealing public funds, to the detriment of our collective well-being, would not be a source of pride to these nationalists.
The mindless insecurity, the uncurbed illegal mining of solid minerals and theft of crude oil by powerful elements within and outside government, the attendant degradation of our environment, the distasteful connivance of traditional rulers in affected communities, and the utter impoverishment of the people living around these resource endowments would not have made these heroes of Nigeria’s liberation history proud.
The abundance of solid minerals and crude oil beneath Nigerian soil, from north to south, if well harnessed, is more than enough to make the country the Dubai or China of Africa, notwithstanding our burgeoning population, which was about 45 million at independence but is over 220 million today. Nigerians, especially the middle class and the poor, now pay the price for the system’s dereliction of duty and failure to curb graft.
Nigeria can do better and become a place of pride on earth. But to achieve this lofty desire, the system must find solutions to the endemic corruption that has sadly become a way of life among the privileged class and is now emulated by virtually everyone as if it were normal.
A quote on symptoms of a failing society widely attributed to Socrates over 2,400 years ago, aptly captures the degenerative situation in the country at 66. Such degenerative symptoms include where: the stupid are louder than the wise; the lazy have more than the industrious; the unscrupulous are respected more than the honest; character counts less than reputation; perpetrators are more protected than victims; madness is glorified as “normal”; and politicians live not for the people, but off the people. Unfortunately, this characterisation is what successive governments have inflicted on the country, and getting out of the current morass demands extraordinary leadership determination… Hopefully, Nigeria will get to the promised land, soonest.
Here’s wishing my readers across the globe a happy Nigeria’s Independence Day weekend while l hereby rest my case for this week.
Sanusi, former MD/CEO of Lagos State Signage and Advertisement Agency, is currently Managing Partner at AMS Relibale Solicitors. (WhatsApp only: 07011117777).
Views expressed by contributors are strictly personal and not of TheCable.
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