Nigeria at 55, need to revisit the baseline

Are you part of the bandwagon celebrating the 55th Independence anniversary? What’s there to celebrate? This was the muse of a friend in a phone conversation. But can we proudly celebrate the Nigeria brand after 55 years? Diverse views will mount here. But whatever view one takes, an answer will surely prevail – the need to revisit the baseline.

The Nigeria brand has known more crises than reputation, ironically driven into murky waters by its brand custodians. The brand’s perception is battered abroad and tattered at home. Poor leadership and resource management style, plundering of state resources, parochial interest result in offspring of poverty, terrorism, insecurity and other illicit siblings. Corruption has become a family name associated with the Nigeria brand.

Or does the brand reflect the vision of its founding fathers? STRUGGLE was an element used in grabbing the nation out of the hands of the British who joined various ethnic groups together for its own selfish reason. So must the nation continually STRUGGLE?But I know that when the country got her independence as a sovereign nation from British colonial rule in 1960, the expectations of our founding fathers were very high.

As we rolled out drums  celebrating Nigeria’s 55th Independence Anniversary on October 1st 2015, there is need to take a sober reflection and look at the baseline. The Nigeria brand is at its declining stage and its custodians must put aside parochial interest to make the nation take a befitting shape to greatness.Let’s spit at the grave of backwardness.

As Nigeria marked its independence, we need to redraft its story. We need to start a new conversation of a repositioned brand. There is a new leadership of change managing affairs now. The change needs to be positive and not doing same thing in different direction. Much is yet to be heard from the harbingers of change – now bearers of change. What has been seen so far is the sharing of ‘spoils of war’ in the name of meritocracy. War against the monster called corruption is yet to begin as the sledge hammer only hits those who deemed to have erred the ‘powers that be.’The economy is plunging into recession and government has been sleeping for about 120 days now – excuses and promises are the new hypes trending now.

So far for Nigeria, it has been much ado to nothing. It’s time to tell a new story interesting to all and eager to ask for a replay. The brand promise must match the brand experience hence.

Lazarus Ibeabuchi is a Public Relations Practitioner and works with Absolute PR, Lagos.

Lazarus Ibeabuchi