A Good Name is Better than Riches

Taking a look at the trend of things in my country Nigeria, it’s amazing to see how things are turning around in just 3 months of new government in power. Is this not the same country where other politicians had ruled and left, yet things deteriorate year after year? We then became object of ridicule to the outside world, even countries that knows how intelligent Nigerians are and would have love to hire them into top position won’t do so because of the level of corruption and indiscipline we reflect as Nigeria citizen.

I told a friend some weeks back that though we don’t have scapegoat yet, nor did any of the past government officials jailed, but many politicians, ministries and government agencies are adjusting drastically. My friend jokingly replied, “The fear of Buhari is the beginning of wisdom” We laughed but deep in my heart a lot of thoughts were going on. So the influence of a leader can so turn things around, no wonder is commonly said that “when the head is sick the whole body is sick”.

I still can’t say how far President Buhari will go in his fight against corruption and indiscipline in the land, but I’m sure with the help of God and well-meaning Nigerians a lot will turn around positively.

I therefore like to pass across a message to all our politicians and leaders, as well top officials in diverse ministries and agencies that a good name is better than riches. It doesn’t matter how much wealth you acquire (legally or illegally) the best you get is that your name may be written in Guinness book of record trust me. But the number of people your life affected positively will never be forgotten even in generations to come and the nation at large will call you a good man and a hero.

I like to challenge every Nigerians that there is something that is fighting our land as much as corruption does and it’s just like pestilence in the land. This is something I think should be one of the focus of this present administration and every single Nigerian to fight against, and this is what I call "INDISCIPLINE". It obvious we all know this is a problem in Nigeria but many didn't pay attention to it like we pay attention to corruption and often time just label our politicians alone as the bad eggs.

Let’s discuss this in common terms and different scenarios. If your resumption time to work is 8am and you perpetually resume office at 10am, or you use the official hours to carry out your own personal business, that is indiscipline. If you are driving on two lanes rather than driving in one lane or you driving on a wrong way, it’s simply indiscipline. If everyone stays on a queue to be attended to for a service and you came from nowhere trying to lobby your way into the front, its mere indiscipline, and the list can go on and on. The government won’t do everything for us we just have to start from our small families, groups, communities and race to promote decent and positive behaviours. Let us veto wrong doings even in our homes, offices and more importantly in our places of worship.

I think it’s high time for Nigerians to stand against indiscipline in any form and stop supporting wrong doing in the name of tribalism or race. Let us promote good behaviours and condemn any form of unruly habit instantly irrespective of who may be involved. I see a lot of error going on in our society today, some in the name of “his is my brother”, others in the name of what I will eat and we sometimes forget that what we eat will finish someday but the good deeds we do will go on for years. Hausa man will see his fellow Hausa fighting without knowing the cause of the fight and just start defending the Hausa man even to the extent of killing the other tribe if possible. An Ibo man will see a man of his tribe in politics and start defending him to the core (sentiment) even when he knows what is happening is so wrong. A Yoruba man will support anyone or anybody once he knows there is something for him in it.

We can’t afford to sit on gunpowder as a nation, we need to unite and promote the right things, things that will make other nations of the earth to envy us instead rather than sympathy. Things that will make nations to troop into our land and seek solace, and many more things that will make other countries to depend on us and our economy. We are blessed with everything to make this happen, we just need good political will as government and discipline as citizens. Let our politicians start fighting for the good of the masses and not just gathering ill-gotten wealth. Take note that all the wealth you accrued in this manner will end up sending you into early grave with all kinds of ailments and diseases while the common man you deprived of comfort will strived, survived and leave in peace.

Nigeria Arise! Let’s us join this current government and fight against all form of corruption and indiscipline irrespective of who is affected or not, let us unite and together we will stand tall.

God Bless Federal Republic of Nigeria!

Steve Kay

Ford Magician

Good news for Ford Owners in Abuja and it’s environ.

Today I finally found a Ford Specialist in Abuja, yaay! This guy told me he will only repair my car if I promise not to sell off the car like I intended. It sounded funny but I told him, I never enjoy my Ford Escape for almost two months I bought it as a “tokunbo” car and two different mechanics had worked on it to no avail, yet a lot of money wasted.

Anyway if you want to hear my testimony we can discuss after this guy have fixed your car and you can just reply to this post with a thank you message, shikena!

Trust me, the guy didn't ask me to do this but I told him it might sound like I'm promoting his business but my main goal is to help a lot of Nigerians like me who bought Ford Vehicle and mechanics who doesn't have experience with Ford product had turn them to their money making machine.

Contact Jude (Kpokirikpo) on 08066637279 for any of your Ford product whether mechanical or electrical fault I can guarantee you will smile home. He is honest and professional to the best of my knowledge.

Kindly spread the news around, you might just save a family or friend from devourer.

Steve Kay

LEADERS AND NOT RULERS

Sometimes I wonder if we actually appoint people to be our leaders and serve us or to rule over the citizens like master to slaves. Because from the trend of politics in Nigeria for several years it’s obvious our politicians only understood and practice ruling not leading. I wonder if we are in some kind of rural community that one person just colonize people as slaves. A typical way of looking at this is what we refer to as ruling party where some bunch of heartless human beings put themselves together to oppress the citizens,people who are desperate for power at all cost after ruling for 16 years.

Nigeria is been under the cabal of some Godfathers for many years. People who dictate what happens in the country and sad enough, can even dictate to the so called President. I sometimes wonder if we appoint some figurehead individuals into the presidency, I mean people who can’t use their heads to make their own decisions; so pathetic.. Oops!

In my understanding, leaders are meant to serve the people and not rule like they are some kind of gods. Often times the needs of their people should be more important to them than their personal needs, they would rather not eat until everyone around them has been fed. I don’t know if I'm the only one grieved about the style of political leaders in Nigeria because you just sometimes wonder if some of them got their own hearts from another superior being and not the same God we all know.

How do you stay comfortably at your hilltop mansion, built with billions of Naira from the Nigeria’s resources that should have been used for the well-being of every citizens? How can a politician be happy to watch thousands of homeless lives without food in the same territory where they are? Seriously God needs to wipe out some people just like he wiped out some terrible rulers of the old who had forgotten that there is a God who rules in the affairs of men. What pleasure is there that you drive the most expensive cars that no one else can? In my opinion; I call it illiteracy to feel it’s only you that should or can possess the most expensive things or that you are in some kind of class some people can’t be, this is not just pride in my view.

Someone should correct me, how are these so called political leaders better than average citizens? Do they have two heads that others don’t? Is it that they are more educated than average citizens? In fact some of these people are stack illiterates and I must confess it’s that same illiteracy that is affecting their sense of reasoning. In Dubai where I lived for some years, no leader is sad that one subordinate or average citizen can walk into automobile dealer shop and drive out a brand new Range Sport for instance, rather they take delight in building a society of world class people unlike our so called giant of Africa where Tokunbo (used) cars is what you mostly see on the streets.

Take a look at this two scenarios for God sake: I was driving through Palm Jumeriah in Dubai one evening with a friend, then we sighted His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Prime Minister of Dubai on the street having conversation with a taxi driver. We observe that it was only one Police vehicle that was with him. We slowed down, waived him and greeted “As-Salaam-Alaikum”, he looked at us and responded “Wa-Alaikum-Salaam" and we drove on. It is the contrast of this as I came back to Nigeria where many times on the street of Abuja and the highways, road will be closed and thousands of vehicles been held down just because our able President is driving to the airport with his huge entourage and the whole world has to be on standstill. Oh God!

I remember one of the days I didn’t drive to work, as I alighted from the cab at the junction to my house on the Abuja airport road and I sighted some military men on the road chasing pedestrians into the bush with guns in their hands. At first I thought there must have been a security alert and they want to clear people of the street, only to hear that President Goodluck Jonathan was returning from the airport, oops! So sad. Where is our honour and dignity in this country, our so called political leaders? This just confirms how they classified themselves as some gods. I couldn't even count the number of vehicles in the Presidential entourage that day and I wonder if the man have to sit in more than one vehicle or their evil work hunt after them that they can’t move alone? What a waste!

Good news is that I see Nigerians waking up now to say no to corrupt leaders who are just power drunk and will want to get back to political office at any cost. It’s so sad that this isn't just in Nigeria but so common among African Countries, no wonder the whites tends to give us all sort of names. Take for instance the current situation in Burundi where the serving President is desperate for a 3^rd time even when it’s obvious the citizens want him out. Where is the honour in imposing yourself on people who don’t want you? Is it not honourable to just step aside, let the people have their choice and have things done differently for everyone to be happy.

I therefore crave the indulgence of Nigerians, let us continue to remind ourselves that no leaders should take us for granted anymore. We appoint them to serve us and not to rule on us by just enriching themselves both monetarily and materially with our resources. Enough of lazy leaders who can’t even invest and make wealth in any other enterprises than to run back to governance and politics anytime they are broke. This is sad but true, just like some other ones just crave for power to oppress the average citizen. Henceforth, if they can’t deliver on their promises, it’s our right to vote them out and let them not use ethnicity, tribe or religion to becloud our judgement please.

Finally, I plead with every Nigerian and African leaders to promote the spirit of true democracy and good governance. Let us serve the nation and those who put their trust in us to appoint us leaders. Become an individual with integrity and honour, serve with the fear of God in your hearts because if you fear God you will have compassion for the suffering masses. Enough of the western world turning our societies into dumping ground where all sort of used materials are found. We can as well donate to the less privileged in the western communities and not them turning us to beggars all the time in the name of grants and aids.

We need true leaders and not rulers, and before you think of any political ambition please think of the act of kindness first, because a kind heart will never allow the masses to suffer in any way.

Note: This write up was composed 5 months ago, and my hope is that the current leadership in power will be different. So I plead with all Nigerians to patiently follow through with the change in the air.

God bless Nigeria!

Steve Kay