3.6K
In months to come, a Toyota Camry would be offered for N50,000 just to feed family.
In 1984, just months after the military takeover by General Buhari, the
country ground to a halt; just like today! He came with the same
song-and-dance: THEY ARE CORRUPT!!
In a matter of months, mothers were selling their jewellery to send their
children to school. Thieves were stealing food at gun point, just like
today. Within months, there simply was NO FOOD. The government gathered
the little there was and restricted purchases. Whether you were 100 or
ONE in your family, every household had a card with which they went to
military manned cooperatives to purchase rationed, “essential
commodities”. These included Rice, Beans, Yam, Bread, Milk, Sugar, and so
on. Everything was rationed. It was war-time in peace-time!! Nigeria
became like Somalia. We lived like refugees. And of course, a lot of
children were simply pulled out of schools because feeding was priority
number ONE! Going to school became a luxury, even for middle class
families. And ANDREWS & JANES started checking out. People suddenly
remembered they had British and American passports, and simply left the
country!
Those who are not aware of all these, ask anyone who was born on or
before 1974. They should be old enough to remember. It was that
harrowing.
The most baffling aspect of all this was that, the people he said were
corrupt and stealing, were presiding over an economy where the Naira was
1:1 with the US Dollar, and N2 to £1 Sterling! An economy where we were
buying Volkswagen Beetle at N400 from Volkswagen of Nigeria. An economy
where my entire family, all 7 of us, travelled for summer hols on tickets
purchased for N280 and BTA of N400 (official – we managed to sneak more
out for shopping naaa). An economy where everything was robust and
vibrant and growing.
Then a man comes in and says he took over because people were corrupt and
he needed to sanitise things. In a matter of months, the Dollar was N15
and the Sterling was N40. A VW Beetle sold for N8,000 (up from N400) and
that N8,000 simply was not available anywhere! Children dropped out of
school, businesses closed, parents became destitute, food was NOT
available and we queued for rations at cooperatives like refugees in a
warring country!!!
Fast forward to 2015!! The same man comes with the same song-and-dance.
We tried to remind our peers and elders of those days, and we tried to
educate the younger ones. However, the wind of change, that wind that
always tells us that the grass is greener on the other side, deafened
them all!
And once again, within months, everything that happened in 1984 and 1985
– EVERYTHING – is all being repeated. I have just come from a home where
my friends have owed 2 terms’ school fees. They have just made the
difficult decision to leave Abuja, relocate back to their village and
take the two younger children out of school, at least temporarily. The
older boy will stay with friends and they will use the savings on rent
and the likes to try and get him across the line (WAEC).
Feeding is now a major task. Infact, people are complaining of their
kitchens and farms being raided for food – DAILY!!
Yet again, this is happening just months after Buhari takes over with
screams of corruption and stealing. Corruption and stealing, yet that my
family friend who was not corrupt, not stealing and not anywhere close to
the corridors of power was paying his rent, feeding his family and
sending all three children to school. Corruption and stealing yet
businesses were opening daily, economy was vibrant, people were healthy,
GDP was growing and so on!
In 1985, we were rescued by IBB and Dogonyaro. Immediately, people
experienced a reversal. Within a very short time, the cooperatives
closed, food became abundant again, the Naira stabilised, mothers stopped
selling their jewellery, and so on. It makes one wonder!
If there were no reference points, Buharists may claim that “if only he
had been president”, but the mid-80s proved that the worst period in
Nigeria’s history were the 20-odd months he was in power, sandwiched
between two periods of plenty and growth.
Therefore, they cannot bring the argument that today’s sufferings and
impoverishment were the fault of the past regime – because we will
counter with “TAKE HIM OUT NOW LIKE IBB DID IN 1985 AND SEE IF BY THIS
CHRISTMAS, YOU WILL NOT BE SMILING AGAIN.
Someone told me today that he predicts that by this Xmas or next Easter
at the latest, a person will come and offer a Toyota Camry in exchange
for N50,000, just so that his family can eat and make merry over the
holidays!!
Nigerians simply don’t refer to history! And I have run out of every
single drop of sympathy in my body.
SO, LIKE I SAID BEFORE, KEEP STEWING IN YOUR BROTH. MAYBE NEXT TIME YOU
WILL SHELVE PARTISANSHIP, TRIBALISM, ETHNICISM, RELIGIOUS BIGOTRY,
HATRED, INTEREST AND ALL THAT
In 1984, just months after the military takeover by General Buhari, the
country ground to a halt; just like today! He came with the same
song-and-dance: THEY ARE CORRUPT!!
In a matter of months, mothers were selling their jewellery to send their
children to school. Thieves were stealing food at gun point, just like
today. Within months, there simply was NO FOOD. The government gathered
the little there was and restricted purchases. Whether you were 100 or
ONE in your family, every household had a card with which they went to
military manned cooperatives to purchase rationed, “essential
commodities”. These included Rice, Beans, Yam, Bread, Milk, Sugar, and so
on. Everything was rationed. It was war-time in peace-time!! Nigeria
became like Somalia. We lived like refugees. And of course, a lot of
children were simply pulled out of schools because feeding was priority
number ONE! Going to school became a luxury, even for middle class
families. And ANDREWS & JANES started checking out. People suddenly
remembered they had British and American passports, and simply left the
country!
Those who are not aware of all these, ask anyone who was born on or
before 1974. They should be old enough to remember. It was that
harrowing.
The most baffling aspect of all this was that, the people he said were
corrupt and stealing, were presiding over an economy where the Naira was
1:1 with the US Dollar, and N2 to £1 Sterling! An economy where we were
buying Volkswagen Beetle at N400 from Volkswagen of Nigeria. An economy
where my entire family, all 7 of us, travelled for summer hols on tickets
purchased for N280 and BTA of N400 (official – we managed to sneak more
out for shopping naaa). An economy where everything was robust and
vibrant and growing.
Then a man comes in and says he took over because people were corrupt and
he needed to sanitise things. In a matter of months, the Dollar was N15
and the Sterling was N40. A VW Beetle sold for N8,000 (up from N400) and
that N8,000 simply was not available anywhere! Children dropped out of
school, businesses closed, parents became destitute, food was NOT
available and we queued for rations at cooperatives like refugees in a
warring country!!!
Fast forward to 2015!! The same man comes with the same song-and-dance.
We tried to remind our peers and elders of those days, and we tried to
educate the younger ones. However, the wind of change, that wind that
always tells us that the grass is greener on the other side, deafened
them all!
And once again, within months, everything that happened in 1984 and 1985
– EVERYTHING – is all being repeated. I have just come from a home where
my friends have owed 2 terms’ school fees. They have just made the
difficult decision to leave Abuja, relocate back to their village and
take the two younger children out of school, at least temporarily. The
older boy will stay with friends and they will use the savings on rent
and the likes to try and get him across the line (WAEC).
Feeding is now a major task. Infact, people are complaining of their
kitchens and farms being raided for food – DAILY!!
Yet again, this is happening just months after Buhari takes over with
screams of corruption and stealing. Corruption and stealing, yet that my
family friend who was not corrupt, not stealing and not anywhere close to
the corridors of power was paying his rent, feeding his family and
sending all three children to school. Corruption and stealing yet
businesses were opening daily, economy was vibrant, people were healthy,
GDP was growing and so on!
In 1985, we were rescued by IBB and Dogonyaro. Immediately, people
experienced a reversal. Within a very short time, the cooperatives
closed, food became abundant again, the Naira stabilised, mothers stopped
selling their jewellery, and so on. It makes one wonder!
If there were no reference points, Buharists may claim that “if only he
had been president”, but the mid-80s proved that the worst period in
Nigeria’s history were the 20-odd months he was in power, sandwiched
between two periods of plenty and growth.
Therefore, they cannot bring the argument that today’s sufferings and
impoverishment were the fault of the past regime – because we will
counter with “TAKE HIM OUT NOW LIKE IBB DID IN 1985 AND SEE IF BY THIS
CHRISTMAS, YOU WILL NOT BE SMILING AGAIN.
Someone told me today that he predicts that by this Xmas or next Easter
at the latest, a person will come and offer a Toyota Camry in exchange
for N50,000, just so that his family can eat and make merry over the
holidays!!
Nigerians simply don’t refer to history! And I have run out of every
single drop of sympathy in my body.
SO, LIKE I SAID BEFORE, KEEP STEWING IN YOUR BROTH. MAYBE NEXT TIME YOU
WILL SHELVE PARTISANSHIP, TRIBALISM, ETHNICISM, RELIGIOUS BIGOTRY,
HATRED, INTEREST AND ALL THAT
Copied from UNN 96 Business Class
Author: Unknown
Author: Unknown