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Rising Social Ills in the Nigerian Political Space
04.06.2022
Rising social ills affecting the political space of Nigeria, the most populous African nation, are a serious concern. It is disheartening that Nigeria is facing such nightmares. From banditry to a staggering murder rate, and kidnappings, the country is navigating in the direction of a very- perturbing anomaly.
Nigeria has become a thorough depiction of social unrest over the years. The once-peaceful “giant of Africa” has become one of the world’s largest breeding grounds of terrorism.
Compounding matters is Nigeria’s failing social infrastructure. Poor healthcare facilities, bad roads, high cost of living, lack of healthy foods, expensive housing, the emergence of terrorism, ritual killings, and kidnappings have added more salt to the injuries it has already sustained.
Nigerian youth are the most affected. They were born and raised in a nation that already suffered from endemic levels of poverty. Perhaps they have read history books or have been told by their elders how great Nigeria used to be. However, they are faced with apparently insurmountable challenges of infrastructural decay, coupled with insecurity. Growing up, they were always told “children are the leaders of tomorrow.” Now as adults, they can barely eke out a living.
Consequently, given the lack of economic and social opportunities, some have decided to turn to a life of crime. Sadly, fraud through the use of the Internet has proven to be too tempting for some. Others have turned to the lucrative scheme of kidnappings to make ends meet.
The media is flooded with stories of incessant kidnappings in the southern part of the country (even in the northern part), banditry or terrorism ravaging the northern territories, and Internet fraud (popularly known as “Yahoo Yahoo” in Nigeria) sweeping through the entire Southern region. One cannot help but wonder if Nigeria has a future. Words cannot explain how bitter it is to witness Nigeria’s decay. A simple Google search of “insecurity in Nigeria” or a peep-through of the Nigerian social media news space would suffice to act as conspicuous instances to underscore the asserted facts.
Nigeria is one of the most corrupt and unsafe countries in the world. Because of this, foreign direct investments are dwindling in favor of neighbouring countries, sapping the country of much-needed funds. Therefore, this is a clarion call for the central government to critically investigate the issues invading the social and political spaces of the country. Nigerians are fed up with economic and social insecurity.
Chimezie Benedict Ihekuna is a published writer, poet, essayist, playwright, and spoken word artist. Chimezie is based in Lagos, Nigeria, and finds delight in reading, traveling, and meeting people.