By Tunji Olaopa
Nigeria clocked sixty-two years of independent statehood. And it is time for more sober reflections. We have indeed come a very long way since 1960 when all Nigerians were filled with a deep sense of expectations of what this new state could make of her independence and self-determination. However, in sixty-two years, the bubbles have burst on that euphoria. After fifteen administrations, from the first to the fourth republic, Nigeria still remains in the woods in terms of national integration and real development. Her biggest challenge remains not only socioeconomic listlessness, but the inability to convert the ethnic loyalty of her numerous ethno-nationalities into civic patriotism. And for sixty-two years, we are still struggling with the basics of nation-building – insecurity, bad governance, national value crisis, less than professional civil service, dysfunctional education system, and a gloomy infrastructural gap. At both the…
Source: Thisday Newspaper
