Veteran entertainer and activist, Charles Oputa, popularly known as Charly Boy, has said he wants his country back.

Charly Boy said this in a post on his verified X account, where he wrote about insecurity, healthcare, migration and leadership in Nigeria.

“I WANT MY COUNTRY BACK,” he wrote. He said he wanted to love Nigeria the way he did before the civil war, but wondered how that would be possible when the country continues to hurt its citizens. “I want to love my country as I once did before the civil war. How do I love my country when it keeps hurting me?” he asked.

Charly Boy also questioned how far patriotism should go when citizens are faced with problems that affect their everyday lives. “At what point does patriotism begin to look like a spouse saying, ‘I love my abuser?’” he wrote.

He said he wants a Nigeria where human lives are not treated as numbers. “I want a Nigeria where human lives are not reduced to statistics,” he wrote.

He also spoke about healthcare, saying Nigerians should not have to worry about whether they can afford treatment when they need it.

On government policies, Charly Boy said ordinary Nigerians often end up paying the price for decisions made by those in power. “I want a Nigeria where government no dey make decisions wey turn ordinary people into casualties,” he wrote.

He also spoke about insecurity, saying Nigerians should not have to run from the people and institutions that are meant to protect them.

The entertainer mentioned young Nigerians leaving the country in search of better opportunities. “I want a Nigeria where families no dey wake up to empty chairs at the dining table,” he wrote.

He said he wants young Nigerians to have a reason to stay and build their lives in the country. Charly Boy also said leadership should be about serving the people. “I want a country where leadership means service, not oppression, not mediocrity,” he wrote.

He said the Nigeria he wants is not the country politicians describe from podiums, but the one Nigerians imagine for themselves and their children. “Biko, I want my country back,” he wrote.

“Not the Nigeria wey politicians describe from podiums. The Nigeria wey live inside our dreams. The Nigeria wey our parents believed in. The Nigeria wey our children deserve.”