The mind is perhaps one of the most intricate parts of the human anatomy. For laymen, the mind is sometimes used interchangeably with the heart. No thanks to often romantic depiction by artists of the latter vital blood pumping machine that sustains life. In putting this piece together, I sought the expert input of one of Nigeria’s leading Consultant Neurosurgeons, Dr Douglas Emeka Okor. My question to him was “Doc, talking Anatomy, where exactly can we say the human mind is located? Can it be labelled/arrowed like we do for cerebellum, medulla oblongata etc? In his usual polyglottic mien, his response was “Limbic System of the Brain”. I cleverly rested my enquiry. Enough ‘bookery’ from the erudite CNS right there! Over the centuries, medical scholars have been dazzled as to the exact identikit of the human mind within Neurobiology. They postulate the human mind is the seat of reasoning, but it is practically impossible to decipher what a person has in mind merely by looking or hearing them speak.
Sigmund Freud, a neurologist, and father of psychoanalysis is one of the most influential men of the 20th century. Freud founded psychoanalysis; a subject that explains why humans behave the way that they do. In addition, Freud birthed the theory that the mind is basically a complex energy system, the structural investigation of which is the proper province of psychology today. Freud also articulated the concepts of the unconscious and repression, to name just a few. Freud believed that the mind is responsible for both conscious and unconscious decisions that it makes on the basis of psychological drives. This is the very premise upon which we will attempt to dissect the conundrum that is Nigeria. What really is in the mind of the average Nigerian? What is on the mind of the Nigerian ruling class? What is it that drives them to say, act and do what they do? What is the intent and purpose of government for our ‘ruling’ political elites? How has the actions of the ruling political class damaged the moral fabric of the Nigerian society? Why is there a seeming lack of opportunity for the vast majority of our citizens? What is it that limits the latent potential of the Nigerian Youth within our stratosphere?
The mind of majority of politicians in the Nigerian space is certainly convoluted like the arms of the Aquarian Octopus. Their mind is also ‘nitrogenously’ polluted. Like hot burning lava in a volcanic eruption, these class of ‘mindless homosapiens’ are daily defying all logic of human reasoning and existence by their brazen, wicked appetite for filthy lucre. Ours is a country with an impoverished population of nearly 70%, while its luciferous ruling political class continues to leech our collective patrimony and live in their bubble of affluence. With the hardship facing the citizens, these dare-devil folks with fiat approved a humongous amount of N70 billion naira to ease their `working conditions`. Another colossal sum of N40 billion naira has been earmarked for the purchase of Sports Utility Vehicles (SUVs) - all these approvals ONLY for 109 Senators and 360 House of Representatives members. When translated, these are only less than 500 people from a population of over 200 million human beings. What effrontery! The height of impunity and callousness swarming from the pit of Hades by our `Horrorables`.
The fundamental base of any fledgling democracy is the independence of the tripod components of the Executive, Legislature and Judiciary. This is the age long principle of separation of power and buffer of checks and balances. Not in Nigeria! The legislature is an appendage of any `Emperor of Aso Rock`. The legislature is now just a rubber stamp. This important arm of government who are supposedly the true representatives of the people has become totally subservient to the Executive. Honestly speaking, does a country like Nigeria really need a bicameral (Senate + House of Reps) legislature at the Federal level? Do we also need full-time legislature? Cutting it to a unicameral legislature will be a huge cost saving measure for the nation that will stop the unending haemorrhage of our national reserves. The House of Assembly in the 36 states are not spared in this unending conduit pipe leaking our common patrimony. The House of Assembly in the different states are also under the armpit of State Governors. I stand to be corrected. A situation where a Senate President, Speaker of the House of Representatives, or House of Assembly, and other principal officers of the legislature are handpicked by the President and/or State Governors is quite undemocratic. It doesn’t feel like a Democracy but a Plutocracy or better put a Kakistocracy.
The Judiciary is often referred to as `the last hope of the common man`. Not so anymore as the Hallowed Temple of Justice has continuously been desecrated by the ‘evil-minded’ political class/elite. Justice has become a commodity for the highest bidder on the `stock exchange of political brigandage and patronage`. For these hawks, it is now a case of ‘who you know’ at the top echelon of the pyramid and you are sorted. Justice has shifted from the zone of equity and fairness to the spatial dimension of technicalities. We saw a dose of Judicial Pythagoras theorem in the case of former Senate President Ahmad Lawan and the incumbent, Godswill Akpabio. A major cause for worry for democratic-minded Nigerians is the `you rub my back; I rub your back` scenario playing out in the States and Federal level.
Another worrying trend in our democracy is the lack of opportunity across the spectrum. The first batch of ministerial appointments released by the ruling government of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu is another pointer to the denial of competence. Not unexpectedly, the list is headlined by recycled politicians. It is dominated by ex-governors, former members of the Senate and House of Representatives. The ex-governors - Dave Umahi (currently a serving Senator, Ebonyi), Nyesom Wike (Rivers), Mohammed Badaru Abubakar (Jigawa), Nasir El-Rufai (Kaduna) headlines the list. For a man that promised to hit the ground running from day one, to expend the maximum 60 days (required by law) to send such a list to the National Assembly is bad optics. All the trumpeting of how the new Sheriff been a talent hunter has been thrown under the bus. You mean we had to wait for 60 days for this ministerial list? Obviously the `Elephant has given birth to a rat`, in the words of Prof. Anthony Kila, Director, Commonwealth Institute of Advanced and Professional Studies. President Buhari took six months to appoint his ministers and elicited no buzz. This new administration is singing the same familiar old tune. At the moment, majority of Nigerians have no joy. The economy is biting hard, and many citizens are completely out of pocket. The blatant removal by fiat of the petrol subsidy without a contingency plan is tearing apart the lives of ordinary people – nearly 140 million or more are in multi-dimensional poverty.
On a final note, our democracy must be such that election riggers cannot impose their will on voters. Our vote must count, be counted, and collated without manipulation. The `moral damage` done to the `mind of the Nigeria state` since the `Heynecking` of the February 25th Presidential election is unquantifiable. What moral values are the political elites and their collaborators passing to our younger generations? A signal that `corrupt practices` is rewarding spells doom for our nation. The earlier this grave moral error is rectified, the better for everyone as no society can build its foundation upon nothing. As Sigmund Freud posited, “We are what we are because we have been what we have been”.
In the abstract of their article, I Want to Be a Billionaire: How Do Extrinsic and Intrinsic Values Influence Youngsters’ Well-Being? published in the Journal of The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science in 2019, Broeck et al. puts it succinctly; “Values guide our attitudes and behaviour….the type of values held by youngsters and the type of values prevailing in their environments account for significant variation in young peoples’ life satisfaction, happiness, and health. The pattern of evidence suggests that youngsters benefit from attaching greater importance to intrinsic values related to affiliation and community contribution rather than to extrinsic values that relate to financial success and accumulation of power”. As a country that failed the basic litmus test `electorally`, another chance beckons `judicially` to reposition our land. The average Nigerian is not asking for too much. Just a place where the rule of law is the standard operating procedure for both the high and the low. A place of opportunity for all. A place in our minds and hearts must evolve where we all project and then intentionally propel our nation to become the place where the son or daughter of a nobody can become a somebody and flowing with equity. God bless Nigeria! Amen.
Dr Agbons is Lead of the Institute of Leadership and Good Governance @www.twin2.org.