Monday, November 7, 2011

Amazing Conspiracy!

Of course we all know that whenever you see a “white” man in any part of the country, his/her job position is a superior one compared to many nationals. They are called expatriates. Even Romanians, Indians, Chinese, Lebanese, South Africans, as long as their skin colour is white. I think the simple definition of these people to a lay man is “a superior being” (I had a debate about the name “Oguntoyinbo” with some Yoruba people over this topic sometime back.). But then again when you do see some behaviours of some of our people, then that definition will not be so far-fetched – it’s like a self-fulfilling prophecy. When people lack decorum, behave like animals (dog eat dog), when leaders see themselves as lords and taskmasters... the definition is just not so far-fetched sometimes.

It’s one thing for someone to have earlier exposure to equipment, machineries, knowledge, education but it’s another thing for another to feel inferior to such a person simply for being’s sake. Having worked in very diverse organizations, I observed that many “white” men come in with the mindsets that every Nigerian or black man they come across must be a fool but alas some of us know a thing or two about mindset and readily make it clear that being black doesn’t mean being stupid. The skin is just a colour, it doesn’t depict content. What however amazes me is the agreement by Nigerians with the “white” man’s definition of black.


How easy does it make it when an oyinbo comes into an organization to meet mediocrity of our system? They will just help to encourage us in it and get highly paid for just being there. Very few of them have made a difference to me in that regard. Many times they laugh about our system, the blackouts, the people, the noise, the leaders, the system yet the people who work directly with them do not understand the role they play in standing as a role model to contradict such notions through diligence, leadership, responsibility and decorum. Once the man brings chocolates, perfumes, shirts and gifts, my people lose themselves and will refuse to speak about the over-exactness of the man. The black man will “organize” babes (their own sisters (indirectly)) for the oyibo man. Many are too afraid of their jobs that they will rather die than report any shadiness or unfairness of such man. The only complain these my people will talk about is the salary – how the oyibo man earns in a day what they earn in a month. That is not the main issue for me but rather the apprehension of the necessary skills and knowledge of those people? I told a Nigerian colleague one day after one of our regular “showdown” of this mind game that I am looking forward to the day when positions will be swapped and it came from deep within my soul. It might seem farfetched but who says I am not allowed to dream. I try to ensure that I am daily empowering myself through study, interactions and taking responsibilities and I challenge others to do same. It’s a big picture many of our people can’t see.

I have heard stories of Nigerian safety personnel who sweep incidences (which happened to their own people) under the carpet because they have been handed some foreign currencies. That’s like colluding with a third party to rob your own house. It’s a sad thing that we can’t still see far enough but will rather sell our souls for “mirrors”, “cigars”, wines, dough just like our forefathers did back then. How long more people of rich humus colour? How long more will we continue to remain foolish?  

Many job positions are defined with complex words so as to deceive the immigration officers that no Nigerian has the requisite certification, knowledge or experience to carry out the job. The truth is that many private companies who use them actually do this so that they can present these “white” men to the black mentalities some of which are still darkened and choked with many different kinds of complexes. The government officials also who are very well known for their inefficiencies will take the smallest amount of money to kill the system (and their entire nation) where they work and provide for their family from. They forget that if the system collapses altogether, that means they themselves will be adversely affected.  This accounts for why a mere handshake with a “white” man is enough for a black leader to acknowledge that all is well within his jurisdiction even though the dailies fill up with the bombings and killings of his people on an almost daily basis.


I recently read that Shell Oil Nigeria was accused of funding armed militants who kill and torture residents in the oil-rich Niger Delta.


It doesn’t come to me as a surprise and I do not doubt the story one bit because for fewer benefits many have killed off their brothers and sisters. This can be an action of a people who have lost their identities and who want to identify with another race and think that only by amassing things on the outside like the oyinbo man can he compare with him. Michael Jackson was so talented but he bought into the lie that he was still an inferior being as long as his skin colour remained dark. Eventually the lies destroyed him and we lost him. How many more black man have we lost in that wise and how many more are we losing on a daily basis. Boko Haram members are wreaking havoc on helpless people all in the name of religion forgetting that they share same link in history – common brotherhood - with the same people they are attacking.


Many oil companies (Shell, Chevron, Total) in Nigeria have a high level of this conspiracy at play. A black leader on a platform will want his subordinates to lick his butt and not ask any questions. If you do not follow them to play the game, you will remain on the lowest rank when it comes to promotion. They will tell you that “you think you are the only one who knows something eh?” At that level, the oyibo man knows nothing of the neo-racism which goes on but as long as his own account (and that of his nation's company) is being updated as the production is kept on, who cares? Meanwhile, all the oil is in effect being produced for the “white” man. Much of the oil is bunkered while the remaining is used to service the corrupt leaders’ excesses. When will the black man see beyond his nose?


What does it take to get us out of this jungle and are we willing as a people to do all that it takes? Someone said we are all stakeholders in this entity called Nigeria and I could not agree more. The cleaner in an office must understand it and the manager must understand it. The woman must understand it and the man must understand it. The young must understand it and the old must understand it. No one must be left out. The one who understands it better must teach it to the ones who are still grappling with ignorance. Everyone must begin to gain the understanding that the black man is not inferior but if he doesn’t acknowledge the strengths and gifts which lie within him, he will easily fall prey to any lie sold to discredit him.

2 comments:

  1. Agreed with you my sister. This is a worldview problem.It is both ideological and cultural wars. It has been on for a long time.We have to engage in a lot of education to correct the anomalies and the notion. I have balanced my own view with biblical worldview that all human beings are created equal. So both white and black are the same and have tendencies to kill, cheat, lie and bad in equal proportion and there is no singular superior race or tribe. All the blacks need to do is to transplant their own cultural values through robust and versatile engagement. Civilization is not spontaneous but transplantational
    Stephen Enada

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  2. Thanks Mr. Enada. Indeed we shall not be quiet but continue to enlighten our peers, our relatives, our subordinates, our bosses and our neighbours till everyone gains a good understanding of this healthy self-image and live by it.

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