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New Old Resolutions With the Same old Result By Abiola Falayajo
My people, here we go again…resolutions, resolutions, resolutions. It is this time of the year when we make all sorts of fantastic but delusional resolutions.
We get so excited as to all the fanciful, warm and wonderful things we are going to do for ourselves, friends, family, our community, the less privileged and others come new year. Equally relief is the fact that we will break most if not all of them within days.
Can you imagine the pressure and attendant effect of living up to all the nonsensical but inspirational things we dream while in a state of comatose over the festive period particular the yuletide? For example, spending more time with family and love ones- we can imagine them listening to this resolution with much excitement and then working out excuses as to why they are far too occupied to spend time with us- no thanks to the economy situation in Nigeria- abi no be after you shop belle full yu go dey dream of leisure?
Or being nicer to people. That is probably the one we will break the quickest. It lasts until we are cut off in go slow (sorry- traffic) or someone say some insane thing to us on the street or market place and then normal hostility resumes and our preference to old resolutions is renewed.
Now, we have all done the quit lying and other anti social behaviours bit. Sadly, after many years of these holier than though resolutions, we just have to give up …say the fight against corruption by sending its face back to school- ask Yar'Adua and Okiro. This reminds me, we often dream of making our elected representatives accountable to the people but as soon as we are “settled” by Hon. Jeun Koku (shop and quench) -all becomes history and the tune will becomes omo wa ni, e je ko se ( he is our son, let him do it). You can see how these resolutions get sillier and sillier.
We often think about becoming model so at a decent function we could impress people with resolutions like this: if we could have anything in Nigeria, we would want corrupt free leaders. Oh yea right… that is an oldie from all aspiring Abachas, IBBs, OBJs, Ya’duas, Atikus all rolled in to one- that lasts few minutes in to the new year. This brings us to love thy neighbour slogan. Have we noticed how much love there are few minutes before midnight on New Year’s Eve when everyone wants to hug, shake hands and even kiss and then hours latter, people are fighting over all sort of things? Why and where does the love go, perhaps we should ask Bob Marley.
So I think we are better off not making some lousy resolutions. Just do what you have got to do please.
We have got the chance to make history, such are the words uttered by MKO Abiola and coincidentally, Barrack Obama in their respective presidential campaign. We need to accept the fact that for our collective greed and cowardice…yes I really mean cowardice Nigeria would be the envious of the world in the same mould as the Emirates, Qataris and Australians of this world but sadly, the chance is passing us by. We would like Nuhu Ribadu or Dora Akinluyi to be Nigerian president, Gani Fawehinmi to be Aondoka (sorry Attorney General) and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as the Finance, Secretary to the Government and Foreign minister all rolled in to one. It is like wanting women to be less complicated…oh, well, it is the season of madness (I mean miracles).
Instead of tolerating idiots and morons as our leaders, we would just much prefer Rawlings or replica to ease them out-whatever that mean.
May be we should just have one resolution… yes ke, just one. No more Nigeria, an artificial country of the greed, own by the greedy few, and for the coward majority…why not, after all, this is the silly season…as if we are going to keep that one. Its almost as silly as giving up sex, oh, that is right, I mean sex… I almost did- next year perhaps!
According to surveys, only as little as 8 per cent of Americans achieve their resolutions, while over 45 per cent fail by the end of January- so really there is not much point to it. Well, we could give up greed and cowardice for a year- now that is one hell of a resolution we are not confident of keeping.
Hello New Year, welcome 2008.
Abiola Falayajo
Abiola Falayajo is the President of Yoruba Renaissance Group (world wide). He lives in Melbourne, Australia and maintains residence in Lagos & Ipetu-Ijesha, Osun State, Nigeria |