As Nigeria marks yet another Independence anniversary, students in Delta State have expressed both pride in their nationality and frustration with the challenges confronting the nation.
The students said the annual independence rituals now feel hollow in the face of deteriorating infrastructure, bad roads, unemployment, insecurity, as well as a not-too-secure future for the youths, which remains largely a mirage.
For 13-year-old Anna Chinenye Ibonye, a young student at Women Affairs Secondary School, Asaba, Delta State, dreaming of becoming either a medical doctor or a musician, being Nigerian is a source of pride. She appealed to the government to tackle corruption, insecurity, and kidnapping. She also emphasised the need for better infrastructure in schools and improved road networks.
“My expectation to actualise my dreams is for the government to stop corruption and kidnapping, and provide adequate security for everyone, particularly in schools against kidnapping of students,” she said.
Also, Ojaka Joy, 16 years old and a Senior Secondary School (SSS 1) student at Zappa Secondary School, Asaba, Delta State, who aspires to become a nurse, said Nigeria’s natural endowments remain a source of pride.
She described the country as blessed with mineral and human resources and strategically located in Africa, but lamented that the failures of leaders were dashing the hopes of young people “like me” in the scheme of things in Nigeria.
“I’m happy to be a Nigerian because it’s blessed with minerals, human resources, and located in a good environment in Africa. But those in authority are killing my dreams, following the suffering in the land,” Joy said.
While calling on the government to urgently support students and the poor to overcome the current economic hardship, she expressed reservations about Nigeria, saying, “I’m not happy about the way the country is today. People are suffering in the midst of abundant resources.”
The students’ voices reflect the broader expectations of young Nigerians who remain hopeful for a better future but demand urgent reforms to ensure the nation’s potential is not wasted, after all.
