By Yinka Ogunsanya
A couple of days ago possibly running to weeks, a Nigerian man in diaspora (somewhere in Europe) was trying to educate both the critical mass of our populace and selective demographics of our government workforce, about modern day methods of cattle rearing and domestication with a video of best practices and modules/models of international intelligence standards.
Also, quite recently, TVC reported on Business Week a case study of best practices, empirically proven to be a successful domestication of cattle been practiced in Ilorin, Kwara State Nigeria by Rosedale Farm. According to this report, the Zimbabwean farm MD-Irvine Reid, explains the considerable success they have been able to make on cattle domestication and went on to say they were building a factory to produce dairy products.
Having been furnished with all these internationally and locally practiced efficient modules/models, any cognitively active mind will be riddled with the following questions:
- Should Rugalities and the insecurities attached to it ever be a point of National discourse?
- Why can’t we adopt these credible modules/models and make lives decent for us all through fostering unity and adopting reasonable lasting solutions to satisfy all parties of our heterogeneous National identity?
- Why are some people consciously clamoring and agitating for a detour from what seems to be a 21st century normality?
- Why are people just afraid to evolve?
The free-range module/model of cattle rearing is probably good, only but at two lifetimes in our medieval past and not for the present clime and level of universal development. Summative, this model is susceptible to a lot of dangers including difficulty in containing epidemic (either from the host or normading demographics), communal clashes which often leads to loss of lives and properties, essentially negating the whole essence of live stocking. The precipitating effects of the these clashes are the kidnappings, banditry, robberies, ethnic decimation and/ or even war. Invariably these actions tend to desecrate the socio-economic and moral fiber of our National psychology.
As much as we do understand the right of free movement of Nigerian Citizens but miles above that is the free gift and right to life, which the state swore to protect. Non indigenes shouldn’t infringe on the freedom of movements and rights of indigenous occupiers of a particular settlement in the name of “one Nigeria”.
We are one Nigeria, only and when we accommodate yet respect our individualities and sacred sentiments. As much as the cattle are important to the herders, the crops are lifelines of the farmers, the cash crops are also economic sustenance for the business population and all these are empirically evident in the National GDP.
As my dad will say… owo kin fun owo lorun (business is live and let’s live). Our demographic diversity is meant to be an instrument of showcasing our strength and collective resolve to co-exist peacefully, productively and functionally as one Nigeria (as in similar cases with Canada and India) and not a display of diversity mismanagement capabilities through utter ignorance or arrogance to universal standards of normality.
Closely stifling the nation’s stability are other estuaries of the “diversity abuse” – which includes drug abuse, education and the ever-threatening demographic explosion. These issues are all connected and only a genuinely inclusive governance with the nation’s unity (the people) at the center of it can rid us of the impending consequences.
I am convinced that our policy making arms of government and policy prescribing arms of the society are not completely devoided of credible and true Nationalists; that been said, I will implore these relevant arms to handle these issues within the extant of our constitution, taking leads from world class, evidence based modern day practices.
I make bold to say we do not have too much peace, lest we cull some.
Yinka Ogunsanya is a “retired Commissioned Officer in the United States Army and a Concerned Citizen from Ijebu-Ode.
