Do Nigerians still have emotional attachment to their ethnic communities? Have they not all become neutral or forgotten about their ethnic communities due to the One-Nigeria love? Is there still a need for social organization based on ethnic communities in Nigeria giving the call for national integration?
How important are the small wheel nuts in a car compared to the size of a car? How important are the tiny cables, the circuit breakers, the screws and covers in a car? How important are the eyes and ears to the whole human body? As it is, if any part of the body is suffering, the whole body will be in pains. If the human being wants to be free of pain, he treats each part of the body distinctly with care and caution.
If peoples of different nations agree to unite under a single government and thus become a country, each part must be well structured in a healthy state.
Nigeria is confused on where to draw the lines of accepting our different ethnic influences and proclaiming the one-Nigerian song. A member of a family pledge allegiance to one-Nigeria, while his younger brother pledges to his ethnic community. There is not yet any agreement among Nigerians about what Nigeria is. But he who pledges to one-Nigeria sooner favours his kinsmen over another more qualified Nigerian from another ethnic community. On the other hand, the one who pledge allegiance to his ethnic community treats a member of another ethnic community with justice over his kinsmen.
One Nigeria is a proclamation of confusion. No one understands or truly defines one Nigeria. It becomes one Nigeria when it suits my mood and interpretation of events. There may be no one Nigeria, if there is no distinction and eventual agreement between the Ogbomoso Yoruba, Oyo Yoruba, Ijebu Yoruba, etcetera. Nor can there be without a distinction and agreement united Abakaliki Igbo, Delta-Igbo, Rivers Igbo and Mbaise Igbo. This principle of distinction and eventual agreement is also necessary between all the ethnic communities that constitute tribes and nations in Nigeria. Without this distinction and eventual agreement between the ethnic communities in Nigeria, their relationship will remain oppressive and unproductive.
The more we continue to pretend and deny the effects of our ethnic communities in the national politics, the more we drift from defining the problem with Nigeria. These ethnic influences arise when it is time to obtain political and economic benefits, which are the most important elements of friction or unity in a society.
How important are the governing structures of the ethnic communities to rebirth and restart of Nigeria? They are as important as the steering of a car. Without organization of the ethnic communities, members of different ethnic communities remain attitudinal vagabonds. They continue to live without moral bearing, foundational identity, ethnic values and cultural guidance.
The present Nigerian does not know who he is, where he is from, and the values of his people. The present Nigerian is a fatherless and cultureless being, doing whatever he sees for survival in this chaos. He just does whatever he sees others doing, goes where others are going, says what others are saying, and forgets where his value came from.
The country will rise again from the families and villages to the ethnic communities. They will rise from the communities to tribes, to nations and finally to agree to relate with others communities under one government.
