CONTINUED FROM YESTERDAY
Unfortunately, we are a very forgetful people, impervious to the lessons of our own troubled history. It is this collective amnesia that has contributed to diminishing us as a people. That is why we keep repeating the same mistakes of the past. As Wole Soyinka once wrote, “We are a nation of short memories.”

How can we make the tragedy of 1966 count? When tragedy happens, it should force upon us the burden of critical thinking. We must ask ourselves how we got where we are today. This should then lead us to start asking fundamental questions about how our country is organised and governed. Our questioning attitude must lead to demanding accountability from those who govern us. Tragedy is an opportunity to do things differently, to build a monument of good governance, inspired citizenry and bold actions. It is an opportunity to create better systems and conditions that ensure that such tragedy does not happen again. That is why memory is very important because it is a means of strengthening our collective resolve to move forward.

To find lasting solutions to the socio-political and economic problems we are currently facing, our country must give young people a voice in leadership, and a sense of direction for a prospective future. Policies to encourage inclusive economic growth, create jobs, promote innovation and entrepreneurial spirit, and build an inclusive political system that marginalises no one must be driven by political will. When young people are idle, disenchanted, and angry about the way and manner society is organised, they soon lend themselves as combustible materials for social explosion. We have a duty to learn from the past so that never again will there arise a set of factors capable of triggering such conflagration. Let us pray that from the ashes of our collective national immolation, a new Nigeria will arise.

• Ojeifo is a Catholic priest of the Archdiocese of Abuja ([email protected])/ 07066363913