Education, Religion and our Oil-Money, the Truth, By Tobenna Obiano

Somehow, many may insist that safe for the advancement in science and technology, the progress in ICT and the wonders that rose from today's digital age of social media and online capacities, the world might have all along, actually been in the dark.

Often times, persons of younger generation, in what has become nearly a ritual do query, "what the heck have grandparents and those born, and who lived in the olden days been doing with their lives". It is believed widely by persons of this age, that the olden days must have been so boring, a time. Well, things change, people change and the tide changes as well.

Science and technology has been a global lead in the progress of the world today. The litanies of successes in various forms and ways that has been recorded from the advancement in science and technology may never be equated or quantified.

Today, one can conduct a live meeting with persons and representatives from the five continents of the world all at thesame time, there is live streaming or conference call. In this age, someone can eat breakfast in Abuja, Nigeria at 7am and do lunch in London, Britain at 1pm, drop by in Paris, France for two to three hours meeting and still meet up to be served dinner in Rome, Italy at 8pm. Many thanks to airplane.

Years past, it takes time to disseminate information. Infact, even as a secondary school boy, we often wrote letters home to our parents and to our friends in other schools through post offices. Today, email, SMS with our phones, inbox messages on various social media platforms, phone calls and many more has since made life a lot easier.

In the progress and growth in life, even those often looked upon that they are, or may become failures, somehow because of their decision to take greatly calculated risks, and persistently trying so hard with focus, make headways and excel. The word "impossible" means absolutely nothing to a determined and serious-minded person, all it takes is the willspirit, the perseverance and the energy, and every other thing simply falls into line.

The two Harvard University's most successful "dropouts" are Bill Gates and Mark Zukerberg. In what has become unprecedented, they rose from ordinary dropouts to becoming resoudningily successful with the former founding and owning Microsoft, while the later cofounded and Chairs FaceBook. Today, Gates has topped the list of world wealthiest for nearly two decades, while Zukerberg is now 5th world richest even with his relatively young age.

If you want to find the monies and wealth of today's world, look deeper and just within. In times past, all eyes were on oil and gas, ofcourse it used to be the global determinant of wealth, but no, not today, not anymore. France is planning on banning all machineries and vehicles that runs on diesel or petrol, so also is Germany. Nations of the world are worried by global warming and climate change, everyone is going green to clean up the atmosphere for health sustenance of the people of the world.

It is true that many nations who were richly endowed with natural resources particurly crude oil strived to make progress, but then, some of such nations have failed to truly move forward, while a few are progressives. The beautiful nation of Dubai, United Arabia Emirates was built with oil money. It is one of the most beautiful nations on earth. A few others are making progress too including Canada, Russia, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia et al.

Other nations like Nigeria, Syria, Angola, Iran and Iraq et al who are also rich in oil and gas deposit in their land have failed to make serious progress, for where they do, its only relative. The people are hungry, jobless and hopeless where they fight and kill themselves for oil monies, while their political leaders and their allies in a seemingly connivance with the Western world, remain their truest enemies. In Nigeria, individuals own oil wells, political office holders loot the nation's resources from windfall of oil money, while some of the Nationals go into oil bunkering. It's an all-round disaster and it's most unfortunate.

What went wrong? Why would some nations be progressing, while the others aren’t, yet they are all gainers from oil wealth. Patriotism is the problem. Corruption is a lead. Misleadership is the starting point. Nigeria and particularly many African nations and other nations in the Middle East have consistently been saddled with a crop of hopeless leadership. Our class of "misleaders" seems worse off, even when a subtle comparison is made between them and their counterparts globally.

In Nigeria for instance, those who position themselves as "Saints" during electioneering and campaigns are all wolves in sheep clothing, for once they get hold of power and authority, they show their true selves, for who they are.

It is on record that even India, a multi-religious, multi-ethnic and very populous nation of nearly 1.3billion people have said quite clearly that by 2019, every family and house in India will be powered. They declared to power all houses in India with electricity and they are to spend a maximum of USD2.5billion. Yet in Nigeria, under former President Olusegun Obasanjo alone, Nigeria with a population of about 180million people, less than a quarter of Indian population, yet Obasanjo spent or stole about USD16billion with nearly nothing to show for it.

As if the hopes on natural resources alone isn't enough for Nigeria, today, even in what has remained startling to the whole world, they have resorted to religion as the basis of their wonders even without works. While the world pushes and encourages their own to think, innovate, expand and excel, Nigerians are in different prayer houses, praying and fasting, whilst also, singing and dancing.

In Nigeria, we are continually enjoined to keep paying tithes for God loves a cheerful giver, even as our religious heads use our tithes to build more business establishments, including universities which the actual payers of tithe may not afford to send their kids to. While other nations are building more business establishments, hospitals, roads and universities, more churches and mosques are being built.

If one chooses to review the progress of other nations of the world, and placing a comparison to where we are now, one may be heartbroken. Infact, one should be. Nations have continued to work on making progress, but we as a people have continued to work on prayers. It's work and pray, not pray and work or pray and pray, for prayer without hardwork turns to nothing, for even heaven helps those who help themselves, but we always feign ignorant to this very ageless reality.

Singapores used to import sand from other nations to build what has today become an envy to other nations of the world, Lee Kuan Yew  with an unequalled zeal, dedication to service and patriotism from a relatively youthful age built what is today, the Singapores of dreams to reality. A nation which has had for years, the busiest seaport in the world, only recently overtaken by Shanghai, China. This is not of deep-rooted religiosity or prayers, it is the reward of ages of hardwork!

China with it's intimidating population of over a billion people, is multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, multi-religious and all other diversities that the nation is known for, yet not hanging all her hopes on prayers or deep religiosity, but with dedication and hardwork, the massive industrialization of China has remained an worrisome and intimidating match for America, the free world. Well, many know that somehow, indirectly, China now is more like the world power.

What of India? Another populous nation of over a billion people with its own unmatched diversity in ethnic differences, religion, culture, norms and value system, yet while they pray, they remained resolute with hardwork and knowing quite clearly that it pays big time. Today, India is making remarkable progress in Information, Communication and Technology, ICT.

Brazil is best known for the tactfulness of her people, majorly the youthful population. A nation which its population is nearly 210million, yet they have been matching. Today, aside the beautiful round leather game of football, a reuniting factor of the world and the huge resources that pumps from it, Brazil is making progress in Agriculture. There hopes and persistent were so unmatched that even Nigeria's ministry of Agriculture in what has become a show of shame, dared to import as little as grass for grazing purposes from Brazil. While we pray in Nigeria, they work in their farmlands!

Think of Asia, think of Malaysia. Today, in a quest to get all the monies from oil, we abandoned farming. Palm oil may continually be neglected on the African continent and particularly in Nigeria, but it's a common fact that it remains the primary cooking oil used allover Asia. Do we talk about their hospitality, their amazing island beaches numbering about ninety-nine and their wildlife, all bringing loads of tourists and their visiting gaining revenue for the nation . While we fast and pray, they work and do so harder!

Now, Japan and South Korea have all gone farther in their push to excel and by the best standard in the interest of all their people. Their technological know-how and the pace with which they rose remains a stunning yet worthwhile surprise to the world. Japanese cars are household names, while South Korea even intelligently subsidized the cost of production, yet making super-fantastic cars, the Hyundai and Kia motors are pointers. None of those nations have achieved those progress by praying alone, they actually work the most times and if need be, they pray!

Even North Korea which the world often laughs at, is not anywhere less stagnated or unprogressive as Nigeria. Even if we write them off in so many fronts, not for prayers, but through dint of hardwork, they have a strong military that can atleast protect themselves and their allies in case of any external forces. Atleast, till this day, they remain the greatest nightmare to the American Government, and maybe also, a threat to the world by their Nuclear missile capability.

The story of Dubai, the United Arab Emirate often sounds like a fairy tale, but perhaps, it's true as it is told. In an unprecedented move, pushed by dedication and vision to achieve, what was formerly a desert became an amazing domain. Yes, it lies within the Arabian desert and surrounded by water body. It is the largest and most populous nation in the United Arab Emirate, it was built wholly from down to where it is now with oil money, no much, no less. Today, thousands of people head to Dubai as a vacation destination. This was never achieved by wishful thinking, singing and dancing or fasting and prayer, it all was begotten by dint of hardwork.

Australia has made remarkable progress in excellent health care delivery, that the world takes them very serious now. They prosper, not because of prayers solely, but majorly of hardwork.

The nations of the Caribbean island may not have it all yet, but they are matching. The world will continually take the beautiful Caribbean nations as choice destination of tourism, vacation and getaway. The beauty of their beaches, the serenity, the atmosphere, the hospitality, their food, the people, their rich cultural heritage of Creole and their unique style plus music is a delight. All these aren't just by prayers as it where, it's still hardwork!

Britain, France, Germany, Denmark, Austria, Switzerland and Italy are all choice destinations for various activities ranging from hospitality to business, to shopping, to medicals, to invest and many more.

In Nigeria, while we value and take care of our political leaders, religious leaders and community leaders, gifting them our tax-payers monies which some of them might even be using to service their litanies of girlfriends and bedwarmers, these other nations invest heavily in the education of their youth, where faculties or teachers are well taken care of, there are workable institutions, e-libraries, and science laboratories are all functional. All these nations, including Rome, Italy, they work more and pray less.

In Nigeria, we have many production Engineers, yet we can't even produce as little as toothpick. We have Mechanicals, yet we can't produce stone crushers. We have many qualified Doctors, yet the President himself jets to London to treat common cold or eardrum problem. We have many Lawyers, yet our justice system is ridiculously, a huge joke. Our security is often adjourned the best in Africa, yet it is on record that the deadly sect, Boko Haram has ravaged this nation looting, maiming, raping murdering and bombing places. In the last count, it's over 21,000 people between 2010 till date. The Fulani herdsmen have since taken over and even committing more deadlier crime against humanity.

In the Biblical record, Moses while leading the Israelites out of Egypt with God's divine authority and grace, raised his staff and divided the Red Sea for the Israelites to cross over, yet today, even as we have many "self-made" religious leaders, a huge percentage cannot even divide as little as a gutter for water way. All they care about is opening more churches and branches, casting and binding, praying and fasting, singing and dancing, while at thesame time, reminding the congregation of how God loves a cheerful giver and how He would multiply according to how much we give, yet the monies recovered from these tithes go into private pockets, for they are the church!

The word is making huge progress and Africa, particularly Nigeria is dragging the word backwards. Nigeria and all Nigerians are entirely consumers, we produce absolutely nothing and sadly, we don't care. Mosques and churches in Nigeria continually mount top speakers, polluting the environment with their noise, while other serious-minding nations expand their frontiers and dare for more in technological know-how, where bodies of metal and engines are coupled together to fly high havens as airplanes, yet ignorantly, our Religious leaders own them as private jets.

Even in infrastructural development, amidst our oil monies, our major cities of Abuja, Port Harcourt and Lagos is no match when compared to skyscrapers scattered all over Europe, America and on the streets of London. What of maintenance culture? Ours as a people and a nation is a shameful one. What of continuity in Governance? That's a far cry that may never be met. Political office holders don't care of what progress that has been made by their predecessors, everyone wants a self-conceived signature project, while abandoning started ones scattered all over. Nothing seems to be working, safe for the fact that Nigerian Pastors are ranked the wealthiest in the world.

Nigeria and all Nigerians must be honest to themselves atleast, while it's fine to pray if it works wonders for you, we must rechannel our energy and rededicate our time and self to what truly matters, no nation ever progresses by prayers and prayers alone, only a fool takes the sick and dying to the church or mosque where their are hospitals, anyways we don't even have hospitals. Our religiosity thought us that God is everywhere and so, even from sick beds, while medical experts do their job, God can still work wonders through them, not dumping people in prayer grounds to die there.

Education has remained the truest path to success. Nations that have remained progressive and prosperous understand the role of education in development, from Canada to America to Britain to Singapores and more, sound and qualitative education coupled with hardwork and honesty on the parts of the leaders and the led have remained the bedrock that has done the magic, not necessarily prayers!

Nigeria is consistently dragging the world backward and to the dark ages. As a nation, we must rise to the herculean task and rigorous challenge of standing out and making the world proud. We must contribute our quota in international discourse and input, by making headways within our own domain. We must be a truly African giant in order to be remarked as a worthy global leader. It shouldn't end in wishes and aspirations, talk and more talk, it's time for action.

The first role to making a truly prosperous nation and a happy people is electing persons who are sane, sound, seasoned, fine and refined. Election of true and serious-minded leaders with quality education and dedication to service, who are also ready to encourage and reward hardwork alone would remain the truest path to the glory of Nigeria, not huge oil deposits or monetary rewards that follows same, not tribal sentiments, and obviously not our deep-rooted religiosity, not prayers!

The world looks at us, and hope someday, we shall overcome. A truly great Nigeria is possible, believe, work and act.