Nigeria Is Immune To The Egyptian-Type Revolution, says Minister of Information, Labaran Maku (Labar

[SR]

The recent avowal by the Minister of Information, Labaran Maku that Nigeria is immune to the Egyptian-type revolution must certainly have been an assessment of an ex student activist now ballooning in puffy men's paradise. And one hopes that President Goodluck Jonathan was not listening to such goof by a praise-singing minister, which has no nexus with the realities of present day Nigeria.

In case the minister cares to know, angry unemployed educated youths are at the hub of the ferocious wind of change that is blowing across the Arab world and sweeping away brutal leaders who foisted misrule in that world. We could recall that it all started in Tunisia when a graduate vegetable seller set himself ablaze in protest against unemployment and hopelessness and not that deposed president Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali has ruled for too long.

If the honourable minister were a good student of history he would have known that discontent with the status-quo is always the trigger of all the revolutions the world has witnessed, with the French providing the first momentous experience with political ideology. Discontent could stem from diverse reasons – political, social cum economic oppression, lack of freedom, unemployment and not only limited to dictatorship which by the way also accompanied the economic problems that confronted the Arab youths.

Let it be known that Egypt is, in all ramifications, at least 50 years ahead of Nigeria, no thanks to bad leadership. In Egypt, there is at least light and water, good roads, security, relative food security and 95 percent of the families have a decent roof over their heads and not-too-bad employment ratio by African standards. Yet still, the people legitimately revolted for a better life. Therefore, if a revolution could take place in a country like Egypt that is comparatively better than Nigeria, especially in standard of living, how in hell then could an honourable minister say that Nigerians are too happy with governance to think of revolution?

By Charles Ofoji*
Source: Labaran Goof