The biggest problem among Africans and indeed Nigerians in making sound political decision is "Crass Ignorance" and lack of effort to learn. More than 90% of those who went to school are not truly educated. To be educated is not only about going to school. The truth is that you may be educated enough without seeing the walls of any educational institution. On the other hand,you can go to school, get school knowledge and still be a liability to your immediate environment. According to Steve Denning, a Senior contributor to the Forbes Magazine; "Education is a demonstrated ability to listen carefully, to think critically, to evaluate facts rigorously, to reason analytically, to imagine creatively, to articulate interesting questions, to explore alternative viewpoints, to maintain intellectual curiosity and to speak and write persuasively" I see it also as the capacity to study your environment to be able to make an informed decision. It's a conscious effort a person should embark on. Our thinking is always based on the ability to survive than to solve problems. The same with our front line political leaders. The highly ignorance masses are quick to accept the lies that the politician who are fighting for their personal political survival are fighting for their social and economic emancipation.
Africa has become a continent that are in love with their oppressors and detest their liberators. We make the wrong choices and shift the blame to the wrong choices we made. It is even more painful when you engage a crass ignorant person in any discussion. It takes grace and maturity to hold back. In as much as no single individual knows it all,but have you made any significant effort to improve yourself. How many books and article have you read in the last few months. Someone rightly say that to hide the truth, write it in a book and African's will never get to find it. That is absolute truth. Give an African man an invitation card, he will first put it in his back pocket and turn to ask you the date and venue.
Africa is the only continent where meat sellers are invited on national television to discuss very deep economics principles and policies, and at the same time asked to proffer solutions. Those who cannot differentiate between a Dane gun and a Machine gun are experts on security issues on radio. On one of the local radio station in Lagos, Star FM to be precise, their main analyst on political and social economics issues is a Sunday school teacher who teaches in his Local church.Very sound in moral instruction, but lack basic analysis of contemporary political issues. On social media, as long as you can type, you are an expert in every area. We challenge those who are knowledgeable in sensitive areas of human endeavor, insult and call them names. You automatically become an enemy when you are not on board their political train. What a continent!!! In the US,majority of people make their voting decisions after the US national presidential debate. But here, we already make up our mind and know where the next president will come from before they declare their intentions to context. To many Nigerians, their only prayer point is to see the current administration out of power without any consideration of who comes after that and that's one way thinking. That was the same critical error in 2015 where the only agenda is to remove PDP. We fight from every angle, and lose on all fronts because there is no focus and purposeful pursuit. A university graduate once told me that he wouldn't mind voting a goat as president as far as the present administration is kicked out. What an error. Have you seen that the problem is not about going to school. It's about critical thinking and analytic capabilities.
We have just refused to engage our intellectual minds critically. That you know the definition of democracy as the government of the people, by the people and for the people is not enough to claim mastery in politics. That's an inert information and it exist in the mind of every child who went to school. We must put our minds to work and understated that it's impossible to discuss issues without using some set of verifiable facts, data and may be experience. We must care about the trustworthiness of the sources of information we internalize. That your father told you a story of the past does not make the story true. You must reject emotions and sentiments to be able to make informed decision. We must avoid those who uses false information to drive home their points. We are not robots and therefore able to check every information to know if they are true or false. We can correct this first by asking questions and becoming teachable. If an ignorant person does not inquire; his ignorance will stay with him. But if he has a questioning mind, some knowledgeable person will answer him, and he will no longer remain ignorant. I have made up my mind from today to seek for Knowledge and ask questions when and where necessary.
Nnaemeka Ikerionwu
Email: meganaija12@gmail.com
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