Nigerian Lifestyle – Nigerian Patriot

33. The Strength Of Visualizing A Goal And The Precision Effect Of Goal-Setting.

Deciding on a destination, Visualization and Planning are the foundation steps that should define the beginning of any journey.
© 2019 Nigerian Patriot

Definitive Intro

For the purpose of this summary blog episode, a Goal can be defined as the designated end of a task or project. It is the target destination of all resources expended in any endeavor. For contextual relevance, goal in this paragraph could refer to the desired global expectation of an entire project. Examples: earning a degree at school, embarking on a holiday, building a house, etc. For the sake of distinction, it is tagged macro-goal through the rest of this post. A goal could also mean the designated end of a phase of a project; this definition is tagged micro-goal through the rest of this post. Examples: passing a semester exam toward earning a degree at school, booking a hotel toward embarking on a holiday, acquiring a structural plan toward building a house.

Visualizing a (macro or micro) goal involves creating a strong mental multidimensional impression of the destination. A person should be able to observe, feel, taste, smell, and wholly interact with this mental picture as if they are actually at that end point. It is this powerful mental impression that will provide the motivational drive required to pursue the goal-setting process as well as every other task involved in the journey toward pursuing a macro-goal to a logical conclusion. This means that a person must select a macro-goal which is driven by personal passion.

Goal-setting is the process of developing a map of smaller (micro) goals that will guide the journey toward the destination predefined in the first paragraph as the macro-goal. As we all know, without a map, the journey of a thousand miles, might transform into a perilous nightmare of a million miles. Goal-setting provides focus and direction. The footsteps of a person who is armed with such a map is always informed by the wisdom and advantages of the Precision effect.

The Precision effect is a phrase coined for the purpose of this blog episode and defined by four strengths highlighted below:

The Precision effect would birth an innate independent and deep rooted feeling of success in a person on a journey toward a goal. This guarantee of victory cannot be shaken by the doubt of people who may not share the vision of the gainful rewards of completing the journey, or phases of it.
The Precision effect develops a renewable and invincible spirit within a person who embarks on a goal bound journey. This indomitable spirit would feed and sustain the motivation, courage, faith and hope required to deal with the challenges encountered along the journey. Yes, this spirit of tireless boldness would always keep the eyes focused on the destination, and constantly propel the feet effortlessly toward the goal, regardless the odds.
The Precision effect generates a deep measure of reassuring self confidence that any resource expended along the journey would translate to a successful end.
The Precision effect enables a person to gain traction and improve momentum as a journey progresses toward the goal.

Attributes Of A Smart Goal-Setting Process

An effective goal-setting process must be guided by established standards of success. The acronym S.M.A.R.T defines a popular and globally accepted set of attributes for a successful goal-setting process. They are briefly highlighted below.

(S) Specific: The macro-goal and micro-goals must be specific and clearly defined in order to provide direction, and a fix on the destination.

(M) Measurable: The macro-goal and micro-goals must be measurable values in order to track preset milestones, stay focused and remain motivated.

(A) Achievable: The macro-goal and micro-goals could be challenging, but must be achievable within your realm of effort and ability. Setting goals beyond the borders of our capacity could lead to disappointments and discouragement.

(R) Relevant/Realistic: The macro-goal and micro goals must be relevant and realistic with your circumstance, means, and aptitude. This would develop the resilience and stability required to gain traction and win the race.

(T) Time-bound: The macro-goal and micro-goals must be time-bound to start and end moments. This will imbibe the discipline required for consistent milestone achievements which are usually accompanied by well deserved self treats.

Documentation

The procedure of deciding on the macro-goal (final destination), visualization, and goal-setting process must be documented in great detail. This documentation is the Master plan. It would form the basis of a daily reminder and an easy reference point of audit on the progress, zeal, and any adjustments required to stay focused on the finish line that marks the end of the journey.

Sustainable Action

The journey to any destination can never be achieved by wishful thinking. It requires the consistent action of motion for success. This logic of wisdom applies in gaining any meaningful result from the contents of this summary post. There are no short-cuts to bypass this understanding of truth.

Closing Remarks

This post has been designed to inspire the noble citizens of Nigeria on the basic skills required to inform a positive mindset capable of attaining success with any endeavor of life. It is the sincere wish of the author, that these endeavors include renewing our spirit of Patriotism and Love for each other. This feat would significantly assist our collective effort at lifting our country Nigeria back to greatness.

This post is in honor of the inspirational encouragement of the ‘Sweet Believer’: a profound blogger that knows how to bring out the bloom beneath any gloom. Great thanks S.B.

Arise O Compatriots….

32. Comparing The Graceful Finesse Of Patriotism Against The Brute Naïveté Of Nationalism

The spirit of Nationalism does not bear the decency to tow the moral lines of Patriotism
© 2019 Nigerian Patriot

Intro

There are broad and controversial definitions for the terms Patriotism and Nationalism. This summary blog episode highlights the distinctive differences in the attitude and mindset of a Patriot in comparison to a Nationalist. It is a personal, albeit informed opinion of the author and is designed as a guiding standard which must not be necessarily accepted by all readers.

Definitions

Patriotism is a love for one’s own country and countrymen. It is a love for the inherent goodness of the values that guide the system of Government and its people. It is a love that accommodates criticisms from other nations which can inform improvements to its value system. Patriotism understands the concept of collaboration and coexistence with other nations in order to solve shared problems and develop shared interests. Patriotism is informed by an objective knowledge of decent moral values.

Nationalism is a blind loyalty for one’s own country. It is an irrational belief system of a citizen that their country is superior to all others. It is a stubborn devotion to the values that guide the system of Government and its people regardless of the moral deficiencies of these values. Nationalism does not accommodate criticisms from other nations, nor tolerate coexistence with other nations.

Distinctive Features

A Patriot and a Nationalist can make the ultimate sacrifice on the parallel ideologies defined above; however it is crystal clear that they are not working in synergy toward a common goal.

History can bear witness, that it was the nationalistic mindset of Adolf Hitler and his infamous Nazi regime which was driven by the concept of racial supremacy that triggered the Second World War. History also bears witness that the nationalistic profile of the defunct apartheid regime of South Africa was a grave issue of global concern in the wake of the chaos and tragedy which trailed the existence of the ideology.

It is pertinent for a person to make a clear distinction between Patriotism and Nationalism in order to be morally informed in attitude when relating with others (whether compatriots or foreigners) and in the refinement of aptitude.

The vision of a Patriot is driven by a sense of responsibility which understands that even though their roots of origin maybe tied to a particular country, they are an intricate part of a larger global community. It is this realization that stirs the passion of a Patriot to ensure a collective positive and peaceful collaboration of the Human race toward ensuring the survival of the planet Earth.

The vision of a Patriot understands that the survival of the planet Earth would always guarantee a platform of existence and continuity of life for the Human Race: the generations they would leave behind.

This vision ultimately understands that though each of us may bear passports identifying us as citizens of different countries, every member of the human race is a bona fide citizen and Patriot of the planet Earth.

The perspective of the vision of a Nationalist is limited strictly to the boundaries of the ideals that define their country.

Closing Remarks

A deep reflection on the paragraphs above would avail all Nigerian citizens, and indeed any reader the knowledge that imbibing the character of Patriotism would greatly assist our effort toward building a peaceful and productive Nigerian nation. The character of Patriotism would also assist us in fostering better relations with neighboring Nations and the World at large.

On these truths and more, I rest my case on comparing the graceful finesse of Patriotism against the brute naïveté of Nationalism.

Arise O Compatriots…

26. Self Education In Nigeria: The Process of ‘DIY’ Learning

Education can be defined as acquiring Knowledge through a process of Learning. The learning process can be done within the walls of a school or outside an academic environment. In both instances, the process can be imparted through an Instructor or directly by the Learner via exposure of self to the relevant learning process concerning the desired skill.

This summary blog episode is focused on highlighting the process of Self education or ‘Do It Yourself’ (DIY) learning which does not require a dedicated Instructor. Success with Self education is purely based on the motivation of a person to know and understand a subject.

This episode is also designed to encourage an understanding that the ability to learn is an inherent attribute deposited in the DNA of every person from birth. Hopefully this realization would help to change the view point of certain individuals that learning is a formal privilege reserved for those who are fortunate to get the experience in a school environment.

It is important to boldly state that a society of mostly educated persons, would naturally thrive better than a society where the educated are in a minority. This fact is also applicable to wellbeing and development of a nation as highlighted in blog episode 3: ‘Ignorance: the Achilles Heels of National Development’.

Education makes a loud difference between an enlightened mind and the ignorant mind. It is Education that has kept the achievements of the Learned person, light years ahead of achievements of the Unlearned mind.

It is important to realize that education is an essential tool for the survival and meaningful existence of any Human being. Therefore everyone should be encouraged through the process of learning with an understanding that this is the only vehicle to the destination point called Knowledge.

On a primitive level, learning is a major function of communication, listening, observation and action.

It is a fact that no child is ever really taught the baby walk which is predominantly learned by repeated observation of adults and action from the child. The same applies to early speech.

This fact about early learning applies to all the creations of the earth and may be better appreciated by observing the animal kingdom and the interaction between the adult and infants of the animal world. None of the adult animals ever summoned a training session to teach an offspring any skill of survival, they were learned by a measure of communication, observation, listening and action.

Illustrations abound and can be briefly sighted: the baby goat never got a bleating training session by the Billy goats; the lion cub never got a roaring training session from the adult lions, and the young birds were never tutored on the art of flying. They all engaged in a process of self learning to acquire these skills.

The principles of learning are slightly different with Human beings, but basically the same. As adults, we rarely subscribe to any dancing school to learn a trending dance move. It’s an ability that comes mostly with observation and action of practice.

Language is also a feature of human learning and the words of a chosen language must be clearly understood either in written or spoken format. It is the understanding of words that conveys the clear meaning of any sentence of a chosen language.

The action of practice is also an essential aspect of Self learning as it helps to engrave the action of the concept helping the person to perfect the art which has been learned. This is the reason the proverbial saying that ‘practice makes perfect’ still finds relevance in the Divine court of Wisdom till date.

A person in the process of Self learning must also realize that it requires time and patience as cited in blog episodes 20 and 21 ‘The Wisdom Of Patience With Processes Of life’.

From the highlights of the paragraphs above, it should be clear that self learning is something within the reach of any serious minded person determined to acquire basic knowledge on most subjects of human existence.

At this juncture, it should be obvious to most of our unemployed citizens in Nigeria who lack the skills to find relevance in any segment of the productive chain due to the lack of formal education that all hope is not lost.

It may be pertinent to also make it clear that there is no system of government that can provide education and jobs for all its citizens. This is a very unrealistic expectation.

Hopefully the highlights of this summary blog episode may open the endless window of the potentials which comes with the ease of self learning and in addition motivate the Will for action on this knowledge.

In conclusion, if a majority of the citizens of our noble country Nigeria were fundamentally learned in any chosen skill of life, then our drive toward national development would have a more realistic bite. For now, Ignorance is a huge threat on our collective aspiration toward a dream Nigeria.

For our sake and the sake of our coming generations, it is our national and patriotic responsibility to always remember that a stitch in time saves nine.

Arise O Compatriots…

25. Patriot Alert 18: A Plea Against Dishonest Communication – The Empty Use Of Words In Nigeria.

The words of any language are utilized to make sentences for the purpose of decent communication. This is typically the only medium which can convey the invisible and unknown thoughts or intentions from a person to another. The truth behind this statement cuts across the entire Human race regardless of ethnicity or nationality. There is no way the intention of a person, or group can be absolutely determined if there is no window of verbal, written, or sign communication.

Without the process of communication, we would be living in a world of assumptions, and as the saying rightly goes, this is the foundation of all mistakes.

On face value, it is presumed that a person would use the right words to convey an intention or thought in order not to mislead the target audience. With the activities of a group, the impact of sincere communication is the direct consequence of the success or failure of any endeavor embarked upon by the group. Bad communication or insincere communication would have a negative effect on the ability of the group to synchronize their actions and effort toward a common objective.

In progressive nations of the world, people mostly say what they mean, and mostly mean what they say. Everyone is mostly sincere in communicating their thoughts. This is one of the reasons the citizens of such nations can easily synchronize with each other on the goal of success with most of their endeavors.

There is also a penal code for communication which is not sincere and which can flatly be labeled a lie. This ensures a great measure of accountability with the use of words and upholds societal sanity with regards to human interactions. Productivity with such nations are typically high because energies are conserved for the task at hand and not dissipated in figuring out the real intent behind a probably deceptive conversation. The blood pressure and general stress of daily living is not mostly dependent on prayers for divine intervention at every stage of Human interaction, but on an efficient system which is mostly driven by sincerity.

In Nigeria, taking most people by the sincerity of the meaning of their words is a risk which can come with very expensive consequences. This is simply because most interactions are guided toward self interest and social security of self. Most people aim to speak remarkably well but the action of delivery is mostly a deviation from the agreed end and this normally comes with a heavy dose of explanations. These explanations were never made in the beginning, and are designed to justify the reason a distorted end result must be accepted.

An agreement to a time of appointment with most Nigerians cannot work because someone who had agreed to be punctual is definitely going to be late. Someone who says on the phone: ‘see me, I’m around the corner’ may actually be several miles away and perhaps may not even have commenced on the journey yet.

With Politicians of nefarious repute, most mouth watering campaign promises made to people prior to being elected into a position of governance, mostly never translates into any meaningful action throughout their duration in office if elected.

If statistics were compiled, the most abused word which is frequently interjected within the context of lame and deceptive sentences on the lips of Nigerians is the name of the Almighty God. This is a highly revered name that should be used with the greatest respect, dignity and restraint, as directed in the Holy books, yet it is a prominently recurrent feature in most conversations with most Nigerians. It is seen as a means to deceptively earn the conviction of another person, rather than a symbol of commitment to action.

This careless use of words has found a comfortable space in our psyche to the extent we also hardly respect written documentation on any agreement. On a national scale, our leadership and certain privileged individuals blatantly disregard the constitution and other written agreements within the context of presiding over the nation, while the Judiciary simply sits with a load of excuses for its inaction.

A glaring and frequent example is with high profile court cases where a Surety agrees to the consequences of allowing someone to go on bail, however, when the person jumps bail, everyone responsible to enforce accountability just sits, while the Surety swaggers around the society as an untouchable.

With this attitude of insincerity boldly engrained in our subconscious, it is no surprise that very few Nigerians can connect with the profound meaning and inspirational effect behind the words of the National Pledge and Anthem of our great country.

The illustrations continue; on the road and indeed anywhere, simple board signs are mostly ignored; at work, operational policies are loosely implemented and a ‘must happen’ on paper, can easily turn to a ‘could happen’ in practice. This unhealthy habit of compromise has become common place in our clime. There is always a protest whenever any attempt is made at correcting anyone found liable of being insincere with communicated intent. Some people would even have the audacity to sue such attempts at enforcing accountability.

With this level of dishonest communication within our clime, it is neither a trick of fate nor curse of divine proportions, that we are unable to synchronize our collective strength at forging meaningful national development for our Country.

This painful hindrance is massively as a result of our selfish commitment to dishonest communication where projected milestones are compromised to a point that achievable results are watered down to mean nothing.

It is most worrisome that most people do not appear bothered by the fact that we are mostly communicating what we do not mean in Nigeria. This is a very mediocre attribute of life which we are successfully implanting into our children from birth; a trend with dreadful future consequences for our nation and citizens.

There is a need for each of us within the context of our noble country Nigeria to realize that every human being has a daily routine which mostly depends on the execution of honest actions for success. We need to learn and understand that group interactions involving any scope of number of people require a synchronization of honest individual actions for which success is hinged on the sincerity of intent regarding communicated information.

The absence of sincere communication in any segment of society simply breeds room for confusion and this truth is obtainable in the smallest family cell or a larger group of national magnitude.

It is imperative for every single citizen of this great nation to relearn the dignifying principles of honor behind the sincere use of words in all dealings with others.

This message of honesty is resoundingly echoed in the spirit of the National pledge as a daily reminder. Our desperate attempt at twisting this fact of life has left our nation in shambles and this is a reality we cannot deny with the current state of our dear country.

On these truths and more, I rest my plea on the case against our dishonest use of words.

Arise O Compatriots…

23. Patriot Alert 17: The Citizens of Nigeria – A People Of Diverse Strength In Colors And Numbers

The Nigerian nation is currently estimated at a population of 190,000,000.

Over 500 languages have been spoken within the demarcation of Nigeria, and this translates into diverse clusters of Ethnic groups.

If the Nigerian nation were an instrument of painting, it would be much easier to discern that this strength in diversity and numbers would translate into a rich toolbox that can bring to bear a nearly infinite count of inspirational designs assuming this toolbox were in the hands of a Master Painter.

It is dishearteningly sad, that we have collectively remained blind to this great gift of fact for the simple reason that we mostly believe that the 500 languages should translate to 500 countries and 190,000,000 citizens should translate into individual states of equivalent numbers.

53 years since the first major national altercation in the 1966 failed coup attempt, we are yet to forgive each other and move on with progressive development rather than continue to tirelessly spin the windmill of disunity.

It would help every single citizen of this nation of any Religious affiliation that believes in the Almighty God, to refresh our consciousness and soothe our bitterness with the prayer below on a daily basis:

This is the only hope of collectively achieving a Win as a people of diverse strength in colors and numbers.

Arise O Compatriots…

22. Patriot Alert 16: The Negative Influence of Inappropriate Mass Media Content In Nigeria.

‘The fact that it is trending, does not make it right or decent and the fact that it is not trending does not make it wrong or indecent’
© 2019 Nigerian Patriot

The Media is popularly referred to as the Mass Communication Industry, esp. Newspaper, Television and Radio. In the modern digital age, this industry includes the global world of the Internet. Dissemination is the distribution of information or content over an area. The summary post highlights the dearth of societal ethics due to the negative influence of inappropriate content disseminated by mass media channels available to us in Nigeria.

It is a Scientific fact that the human Eyes and Ears are two very sensitive and prominent windows into the Human Mind. The foundation of learning strongly revolves on these two senses and finds relevance with a law of nature which states that ‘Learning is a consequence of constant observation and listening’.

The concept of understanding and emulating a trait gains traction and develops form with varying cycles of observation and listening. The speed of assimilation depends on the retentive ability of a person to the audio and visual information they have experienced and varies with different individuals.

The paragraphs above should provide the awareness required to connect with the reason addressed below as a primary contributing factor that is responsible for the sharp decline of simple moral values in our country.

Previously in Nigeria, this was not the case as attested by the very inspiring stories of old times narrated by our elders on their experience with the country in their younger days. They are pleasant stories of a respectful and morally endowed nation across all ages and boundaries.

Something has terribly gone wrong and the questionable moral undertone of the information we experience from the mass communication channels available to us in Nigeria today is mostly responsible for promoting and nurturing this trend.

Currently in Nigeria, from the waking moment of a person until the next sleeping moment, the human mind is constantly assaulted by varying tones of vulgarity with a majority of presentations across the media platforms available to us, especially from the Internet. This presumably trending lifestyle of violence, drugs, sex and disrespect, could become engrained in the subconscious mind over time, and inform the development of inappropriate habits.

Societies are driven by human beings, and it is our attitude and behavior that feeds the moral fabric of the society. Consequently it is very clear that the tragicomic state of reasoning displayed by a majority of individuals in our country can be attributed to the type of media content which their minds have assimilated over time.

The older generation can attest to the fact that the reason they had a far more sane society, was not necessarily due to the absence of immoral tendencies, but the absence of platforms to disseminate such messages of negative influence at the speed and spread obtainable today.

A pause in deep thought would reveal that the social moral fabric of our country has witnessed a steady decline since the introduction of the GSM technology in 2001.

It has become very easy for people to manipulate very deceptive impressions with their locations and activities, a clearly nefarious and deceitful behavior which most Nigerians view as a display of ‘intelligence’.

The decline in our societal ethics gathered super momentum with the advent of the android phone which made it very easy for any ignorant mind to become trapped in a whirlpool of moral decadence at the swipe of a finger.

A majority of the people who walk around with these digital mobile ‘Oracles’ which they virtually worship all day long are very ignorant on the deeper psychological effect of exposure to the wrong content on their innate process of reasoning.

For the sake of appearing trendy, Parents often ignorantly arm their little children with these very volatile gadgets without caring to activate the child protection features inbuilt into such devices.

This problem is not limited to the internet because the story with the content transmitted through our televisions, radios and newspapers is no different.

The progressive countries of the world whose culture of life we desperately aim to emulate have developed a seasoned sense of responsibility and accountability in their citizens which helps such nations to regulate the excesses of the modern lifestyle of digital gadgets.

The literacy levels in those countries have a spread and depth that cannot be compared to what is obtainable in our country. Regulatory institutions are on top of their game and law enforcement is far more effective.

In such progressive nations, media innovations are introduced after a careful analysis of its summary effect on societal development and citizen Psyche. Intelligent and dynamic policies are developed and enforced to guide the use of such gadgets.

In conclusion, there is an imperative need to change our mediocre mindset toward media disseminations within our national space. We are part of a global system of development and cannot shy away from the fact that while we ought to continue to model the technology of our media industry in line with accepted industry standards, it must be done with a determined sense of responsibility, and a sound strategic plan to enable a healthy integration with the peculiarities of our own national circumstance.

Our media space should be dotted with programs designed to inspire, inform and imbibe a decent character of moral principles on the audience. This would hopefully mitigate the diminishing effect of the so-called ‘trendy’ media disseminations currently decimating the moral fabric of our great nation Nigeria.

Arise O Compatriots….

18. Patriot Alert 13: The Concept Of African Time – A National Embarrassment

An Embarrassment is the shame a person feels when their inadequacy or guilt is made public. On a national scale, the concept of African time is a national embarrassment of grievous proportions on our noble nation Nigeria. It is a concept brought to bear by the collective decision of a majority of our citizens to be neither sincere nor accountable for their statements most of the time.

It is a concept with the mutual understanding that simply means ‘we all know we are not going to keep to the schedule of this task’.

Most of us seem quick to forget the reason behind keeping to the agreed schedule of the designated task. If it is an appointment scheduled by 12 noon as an instance, you will definitely not see anyone at the venue at the scheduled time. Everyone will deliberately choose to make a casual arrival at varying intervals of lateness. This is the height of frivolity among adults endowed with sound reasoning abilities.

This strange character of immaturity bears several frustrating twists with negative consequences of under achievement in any group endeavor. This fact is very clear in the Courts of Common Opinion therefore we ought to know better. In addition, it completely defeats the essence of the invention of individual time keeping instruments aka watches, clocks, calendars, etc.

The invention and application of time keeping instruments is designed to enable everyone synchronize to any schedule of appointment. It also means that a scheduled arrangement which has been planned in theory can be realized in practice within the time-line scheduled for it.

Our attitude always guarantees that any series of dependent schedules which forms a part of a whole project can never be achieved as planned right from the blast of the starting whistle since no one is ready to keep to time. From the start, the outcome of the task hangs on the uncertain balance of a mediocre attitude we proudly refer to as African time.

Another unfortunate and heart rending reality of this strange decision by a majority of Nigerians to simply be tragically funny is that the younger generation are learning this art from us right from birth; so much so that it has become second nature in their lives.

It is incredibly amazing and sad to often see a group of esteemed Nigerian citizens presiding a meeting which might run into marathon hours; engage themselves through the pains of documenting such meetings; only to deliberately throw each other into a planless state of chaos for the sake of ‘African time’. I often ponder the name ‘African time’ because this behavior seems to be mostly peculiar with the Nigerian nation so we might as well tag it ‘Nigerian time’.

We should not feign ignorance on the reason our index of achievements is very low considering the resources we have collectively expended on various projects in Nigeria through the years. This grave attribute of hypocrisy has taught our subconscious minds that the efficacy of the meaning of words no longer matters.

Little wonder the profoundly rich words of the National pledge has no consequence in our daily lives. Little wonder the melodious call of the National anthem has consistently fallen on deaf ears. Little wonder the words of our prayers carry no meanings with our actions. Little wonder it is becoming more difficult to find a Nigerian who can pledge accountability for their statements. Little wonder we have almost become the most unserious nation on the planet.

The notorious concept of ‘African time’ has evolved into a national embarrassment and must be unlearned by every single Citizen of this country as a matter of great priority. The plain truth is that there is no Nation on this planet where development can survive on such a terrain of hypocrisy and planlessness. This is one of the monsters which has retarded national development with our country in a very subtle manner. Until we choose a collective will to act on changing our current narrative of ‘African time’, the future of our dream Nigerian nation remains very bleak.

Arise O Compatriots….

17. Patriot Alert 12: Productivity & The Non-Diligence Of A Majority Of Nigerians. Part II Of II

The narrative of a diligent approach to life within the demarcation that defines our dear country Nigeria is simply tear-jerking.

Before delving into this disconcerting issue, there is every need to acknowledge the citizens who have chosen to commit a diligent approach with their contributions to the development of our country regardless the dispiriting lifestyle of the majority.

Top on this list are the citizens of honor who are the members of the Nigerian Armed Forces defined in blog episode 4 ‘A Proud Symbol of Unrelenting Patriotism’. Others include citizens whose picture illustrations were proudly utilized to buttress the points of blog episode 5 ‘Giving A Face To Our Noble Country Nigeria’, blog episode 12 ‘The Nearly Infinite Potentials of The Nigerian Nation‘ Indeed there are several Nigerians who define their contribution to daily life on the platform of diligence however, the numbers are very marginal for a country with an estimate population of 190 million.

It must be stated in unequivocal and clear terms that the reason behind the popular cliché of most Nigerians that ‘the system does not work’ is simply due to a lack of diligence by the majority of us. It is not due to a curse of divine fate or any remote manipulation by any person of cultist tendencies. In the court of Divine Wisdom, both reasons are simply laughable and ignorantly primitive.

There is no diligence with the Teachers in our schools; half baked graduates are routinely pumped out into the workforce. There is no diligence with our law makers; policies of no relevance are utilized to address serious national issues. There is no diligence with our financial institutions; high denominations and dirty currency notes are what we find in circulation. There is no diligence with our health workers; hospitals are grave yards rather than institutions of health rejuvenation. There is no diligence with our judiciary; serious crimes of corruption are ignored for petty issues of no comparison. Inefficiency is the order of the day, and the entire nation spends its financial resources on mediocrity. The list is endless and gravely disheartening.

A pause in thought would agree with the conclusion that this lack of diligence is the reason for the low national productivity of our nation. There is nothing more or less.

The truth remains that until there is a change in this philosophy of neglect and callousness, there can be no hope of real positive change. An uncountable number of investments have been run aground by this unproductive philosophy of nonchalance and negligence.

Our nation Nigeria is blessed with untold resources which can be likened to the fortunes of the Treasure Island. Our nation Nigeria is also blessed with the support of friendly nations and institutions who have tirelessly committed funds to resuscitate the dwindling fortunes of productivity from time immemorial; however, our lack of diligence has made this dream a bridge too far from reality.

Several fruitless experiments ought to have revealed to all of us that there is no shortcut to the application of diligence in all we do. These experiments which can be termed an aimless exercise in the waste of financial resources ought to have taught us the hard lesson that life is not about an aimless scramble for money, but on the fulfilling principles of diligent productivity.

Productivity we have learned in this blog episode is a function of diligence.

It is time for us to collectively revolt against this philosophy of selfish negligence in our daily chores of existence. It is time for the patriotic minded citizens of our great nation to collectively stand strong and influence the thoughts of the majority on the right attitude. It is only this change in our character of reasoning which can guarantee that our vision of a dream Nigerian nation remains in realistic view.

On these truths and more, I rest my case.

16. Patriot Alert 12: Productivity & The Non-Diligence Of A Majority Of Nigerians. Part I Of II

Productivity is the ratio of the quantity and quality of units produced to the labor per unit of time. It can also be defined as having the power to create. Diligence is the persevering determination to perform a task or carefulness in paying proper attention to a task, giving the degree of care required in a given situation.

A careful observation of the developed nations of the world would reveal that a majority of the citizens are diligent with any task they engage in. In these countries; the citizens dedicate a careful attitude of paying proper attention and getting the best results with any task.

From the citizen occupying the official position of the President, through to the citizens in the legislative houses, or the judiciary, down to the policeman on the streets, the personnel at the power station, the gardener mowing the lawn at public parks, right through to the refuse disposal personnel, at every turn of life; conscientious diligence is on display with the majority. It is no rocket science that such nations are always progressive advances on the productive axis of life.

With such countries, a healthy quantity of products and services utilized on a daily basis within the nation are locally sourced and produced: clothing, consumables, furniture items, building materials, electronics, and more serious hardware.

Such countries may engage in the importation of certain items of necessity, however, they also export their own high quality locally manufactured goods and services. This helps them to earn a healthy income and maintain an economic balance that ensures that issues relating to a recession can only be experienced as a result of an extreme miscalculation of ignorance.

With great pride, such nations of the world are quick to refuse the delivery of substandard products into their country. A heavy frown and penalty would greet any organization or individual who attempts to make such unacceptable introductions.

Diligence of the majority ensures that lifeless systems which are driven by human beings work efficiently. Diligence of the majority encourages the bloom of an attractive flora of national development on all frontiers. Diligence of the majority guarantees easy connect by the citizens with the patriotic ethics required to sustain the progressive vision statement of such nations.

Diligence of the majority would discourage a desperate mind from nursing thoughts of braving unthinkable odds in a bid to find the comfort of a better life in a foreign land. Everyone understands very clearly, that the grass is never greener on any other side except for where they are standing.

An illustration of this truth can be found with the Afro-American, some of whom may have complaints relating to racist behaviors within their country; however, they can never trade the American nation for another. They have proudly adorned the national flag of their great nation with several global achievements. Mostly, our case in Nigeria is different, and our justification simply ridiculous.

13. Patriot Alert 9: Nigerian Elections – The Priceless Value Of A Single Human Life.

Your vote counts, but your life matters more…
© 2019 Nigerian Patriot

The summary dictionary meaning of the word Priceless refers: ‘Having incalculable monetary, intellectual, or spiritual worth’.

In truth, a single human life is of incalculable monetary, intellectual and spiritual worth regardless of the social status of the individual.

Unfortunately, in our beloved country Nigeria, human lives are the fodder which is used to fuel election chaos. Human lives are wasted through the consequence of each election in our great country in a recurrent manner that is mind blowing. It is very clear that an unhealthy percentage of us do not appreciate the value of the breath of life in each of us.

The process of an election is a fairly simple exercise which is nothing close to Rocket science. The process summarily requires citizens to cast their votes; thereafter an election Umpire will count and announce this result. This is a very simple arrangement which works relatively much better in the progressive countries of the world.

This arrangement has recorded consistent and dismal failures as it relates to the recurrent loss of lives with each election of any magnitude in our great country Nigeria.

The priceless nature of a human life and deep thinking ought to avail us with a resolution on the dire need to bring this senseless absurdity to a permanent halt. The process is not worth the life of any single human being. For anyone who is not in agreement, the question would be to find out if such a person would sacrifice their life in the process rather than some other person who might not know any better. The answer with most normal humans would be an emphatic ‘No!!’

Ironically, it is on record that the citizens who have lost their lives at different instances of elections in Nigeria mostly do not have a firsthand relationship with the Politician they have committed to sacrifice their lives for. This is akin to madness of the first order.

The politicians on the other hand have parked their Wings of escape through airports across the country, ready to scamper to safety in foreign countries at the slightest sign of trouble in the even that their nefarious exploitation does not go as planned. Armed with this intent, they proceed to charge the polity with brazen audacity through the campaign period by throwing tantrums, war cries and blows. This ploy is fueled by the very dramatic and sensational media industry of our great nation.

In progressive countries of the world, their political contemporaries highlight their intentions aimed at providing good governance for their citizens with intelligent comportment. Our case in Nigeria is an illustrative example of the art of deceptive wickedness at its best.

We all need to realize that the very large population of this country is simply a humongous and diversely endowed family cell called Nigeria. We all drive through the same roads, shop at the same markets, send our children to the same schools, worship in the same churches and mosques etc. Blows, tantrums and war cries should not be exchanged during periods of elections.

It is very safe to conclude that if the process of an election which will involve the same set of people who share roads, schools, hospitals etc will become a threat to the coexistence of these people, then something must be terribly wrong with either the process, or the people. Frankly the reason for this twist rests with the latter since the process of an election is given life of effect by the people.

Either ways, we would desperately need to do things differently henceforth for a variety of cogent reasons. Top on the list is the quest by the Nigerian Patriots for a Dream Nigeria. The next reason on the list is the priceless nature of a human life. This list of healthy reasons is actually limitless.

It is agreeable that disagreements are bound to arise on national issues or indeed issues of the likes of elections; however this is a normal trend with any family and should not result in the loss of a single Nigerian citizen.

It is an unthinkable act of patriotic treachery to see two citizens trading blows with each other regardless the reason. It is unimaginable to conceive this scenario can be instigated by another citizen; the politician who is aiming to pilot the affairs of a democratic section of government for reasons which have nothing to do with the development of the citizens that are trading blows.

As mentioned in episode 5: Nigeria Vs Corruption, the battle for a Dream Nigeria is a war of concepts; Patriotic concepts Vs unpatriotic concepts, with each divide of the concept wearing the face of a Nigerian citizen. A simple litmus test with the national pledge on the action of each participant on this stage play would effectively reveal the patriots and non-patriots in this act.

A critical examination of the campaign profile, utterances, actions, body language etc will reveal which side of the patriotic divide our politicians belong. Rest assured, Religious affiliation, ethnic origin, political bias, and any subjective sentiment will not expose the culprits of our predicament. Therefore we need to approach the process with undiluted political objectivity.

This can only be achieved by a true Nigerian Patriot who lives by the code of the National Pledge clear and simple.

Going forward, The Court of Wise Jurisprudence recommends that all Patriots of Nigerian decent lock hands in a tight union to ensure that no single life is lost through any election process henceforth. If we can achieve this, everything else regarding our quest for good governance would fall into place seamlessly.

Arise O Compatriots…