We all want a society where there is good infrastructure, functional public and private sectors, proper law enforcement, equity and justice. These and many more are all dividends of good governance.
In as much as we crave these things, and blame the government when they don't provide them, can we really do better than those in the government? Most of the time, we are co-conspirators, aiding and abetting the very things we complain about. A lot of us castigate and point fingers at everyone else but ourselves.
As a society, we tolerate our government's failings and excesses not because we do not know the truth or because we do not know they are bad and we bear the brunt of their actions and decisions or are incapable of speaking out against them but because we are complicit. We tolerate them because many of us are guilty or will be guilty if we find ourselves in positions of government.
In our own little ways, we are anarchists with a penchant for breaking laws and we excuse and encourage our leaders because of our own subliminal feelings of guilt.
If there's an altercation between two parties, one poor and the other of a higher financial standing or a power figure, the average Nigerian, will take sides with the latter. How many times have we seen this happen?
A few weeks back, while going out a scene played out right before me. While this handicap guy (those cripples who move around with the help of a skateboard 🛹) was trying to cross the road, a vehicle which had already passed, began to reverse right there on the road and hit this man. The handicap wasn't expecting a vehicle to come from that direction because it was a one way lane and so probably didn't bother to check that way before crossing. He was lucky not to have been crushed under the vehicle or sustain any injuries.
Following traffic rules, the driver was meant to go make a turn at the next u-turn if he had missed his stop and instead of us reprimanding the driver, who by the look of his car was well to do, for breaking a traffic rule, we all were just saying sorry to the handicap without as much as a word to the driver. As if that wasn't bad enough, one tout was rather blaming the handicap for not shouting when the car hit him. 🤦🏽♂️
Just yesterday, popular comedian Mr. Macaroni raised an alarm on twitter that his friend was manhandled and bundled off by policemen. His crime? He dared to ask them why they were driving against traffic, thereby making the extensive gridlock worse. I was appalled but the comment section had more in store for me. Instead of people to call out the police for breaking the laws it's meant to enforce, they rather blamed the victim for standing up to the policemen. For speaking the truth to power.
The government definitely owes a huge responsibility to the people but the people themselves cannot be absolved of blame. To the average Nigerian, a well-to-do or influential individual or a uniformed personnel is above the law and should be allowed to get away with almost anything, yet we want change and clamor for good governance. How can we as a society ask for these things when we shy away from accountability. How do we expect accountability from the government when the same government is selected from society?
The relationship between society and government is GIGO - Garbage In, Garbage Out. The society cannot ask for one thing while it inputs another. The GOVERNMENT IS A PRODUCT OF SOCIETY. Lion no dey born goat.
GOVERNMENT, A PRODUCT OF THE SOCIETY
By
Tari Ogbowei