society
FAILURE IS A CHOICE: We Must Stop Treating Crisis as Normal
FAILURE IS A CHOICE: We Must Stop Treating Crisis as Normal.
By George Omagbemi Sylvester | Published by SaharaWeeklyNG.com
“Enough excuses; SURVIVAL-BY-SCRAMBLE is a policy of defeat. We rebuild or we perish.”
We Nigerians (and Africans in general) have perfected the art of normalizing chaos. We wake up to crises and go to bed with dysfunction, yet we call it “RESILIENCE.” We take pride in surviving under the worst possible conditions and label it strength. Though survival is not success; it is a symptom of systemic failure. And failure, no matter how common, is not culture, it is a choice.
From Nigeria to Sudan, from Congo to Zimbabwe, we have allowed incompetence to masquerade as destiny. Every collapsed building, every unlit street, every unpaid teacher, every unstaffed hospital is not fate but a decision MADE BY PEOPLE in POWER and TOLERATED BY CITIZENS who have grown numb to pain. As long as we treat crisis as normal, progress will remain abnormal.
Nigeria, the supposed “GIANT of AFRICA,” is a tragic case study of how nations die slowly, not from war, but from the silent acceptance of mediocrity. With over 220 million people, vast arable land and abundant natural resources, Nigeria should be a global success story. Instead, it has become a living contradiction, a rich nation of poor people.
The World Bank reports that over 63% of Nigerians live in multidimensional poverty, lacking access to health care, education and decent living conditions. That is nearly 133 million Nigerians struggling daily in a country blessed with oil, gas and human capital. In 2024 alone, inflation climbed above 30% and the naira depreciated to over ₦1,500 per dollar, eroding wages and crushing small businesses.
Electricity generation, the heartbeat of modern development, remains a national embarrassment. As of mid-2024, Nigeria generated barely 5,000 megawatts for a population exceeding 200 million and a figure lower than what South Africa, with just 60 million people, produced even at its lowest point of energy crisis. A single state in the United States, Texas, generates more than 80,000 megawatts, yet we continue to claim “GOD WILL DO IT.” God has done His part and it is our leadership that has failed to do theirs.
As Chinua Achebe once wrote in The Trouble with Nigeria: “The trouble with Nigeria is simply and squarely a failure of leadership.” Four decades later, nothing has changed. We have replaced bad leaders with worse ones and mistake RECYCLING for REFORM.
Leadership Without Accountability. The African condition today is not primarily a lack of intelligence or resources but a deficit of integrity. Leaders who should be custodians of national progress have become custodians of personal wealth. Nigeria ranks among the bottom 25% of countries on Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index, where billions vanish yearly under dubious projects.
Corruption is not merely an economic issue; it is a moral cancer that kills national ambition. It diverts funds from hospitals to foreign bank accounts, from classrooms to convoys and from industries to individual greed. The late South African leader Nelson Mandela warned: “Overcoming poverty is not a gesture of charity; it is an act of justice.” Justice cannot prevail in a society where the CORRUPT are celebrated and the honest are silenced.
The Myth of “RESILIENCE”. Africans often boast of being resilient people. Resilience without results is SELF-DECEPTION. When a people adapt to hunger, power failure, unemployment, insecurity and bad governance, they are not being resilient, they are being conditioned. We have learned to survive what we should have rebelled against.
Look at our neighbors who refused to normalize their pain. South Africa in 1994 said “NEVER AGAIN” to apartheid and began the journey toward equality. Ghana in 1981 stood up to military decay and embraced democracy that has since stabilized its economy. Rwanda, after a genocide that killed nearly a million people in 1994, rebuilt itself into one of Africa’s cleanest, safest and most disciplined nations.
Each of these countries made a collective choice to stop romanticizing failure. Meanwhile, Nigerians are told to “ENDURE.” We have endured for too long. Endurance without accountability is slow suicide.
The Cost of Accepting Crisis. When a nation normalizes dysfunction, it loses its moral compass. Today, insecurity has become the new normal; from Boko Haram in the northeast to banditry in the northwest and kidnapping in the south.
Over 80,000 lives have been lost to terrorism and related violence since 2009, according to the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR). Yet our leaders treat it as routine.
Education is collapsing before our eyes. The UNESCO data shows that Nigeria has the world’s highest number of OUT-OF-SCHOOL CHILDREN, over 20 million. Hospitals have turned into mortuaries and brain drain has stripped the nation of skilled professionals. More than 15,000 Nigerian doctors now practice abroad, particularly in the U.K. and Canada (this 2025 alone). Even universities that once stood as pillars of excellence now stagger under strikes and underfunding.
As the late Prof. Claude Ake, Nigeria’s foremost political economist, warned “Development is not possible in a country where POLITICS is everything and PRODUCTIVITY is nothing.” We cannot talk our way out of failure; we must work our way out.
The Culture of Excuses. The saddest phrase in Nigeria’s vocabulary is “NA SO WE SEE AM OO.” It is the anthem of surrender, the acceptance that nothing will change. We blame colonialism, global capitalism and bad luck, but never our own refusal to act. While colonialism left scars, it has been over 60 years since independence.
Nations like Singapore, Malaysia and South Korea gained independence around the same time, today they are economic giants. Why? Because they chose COMPETENCE over CORRUPTION, PLANNING over POLITICS and ACCOUNTABILITY over APATHY. Nigeria chose the opposite.
As long as public office remains a retirement plan for the corrupt, no divine intervention will save us.
Choosing Change. We must realize that DEVELOPMENT is a DECISION. It begins with leadership that understands that governance is not about sharing spoils but building systems. It requires citizens who demand performance not peanuts; who vote with their conscience not their stomach.
To quote Lee Kuan Yew, the founding father of modern Singapore: “A nation is great not by its size alone. It is the will, the cohesion, the intellectual and moral quality of its people that makes it great.”
Nigeria has the people; what we lack is the will.
It is time to reject the politics of TRIBE and RELIGION, the two tools that have kept us divided and distracted. Progress has no ETHNIC IDENTITY. Light, jobs, schools and security do not belong to one tribe. They are national rights not regional privileges.
The Path Forward. To rise again, Nigeria must take five urgent steps:
Fix Power: Electricity is not a luxury; it is the lifeblood of modern civilization. Without it, industries will continue to die and unemployment will worsen.
Educate for Innovation: Quality education must replace political education. Nations that invest in human capital do not beg for aid.
Fight Corruption with Consequence: Until politicians and civil servants fear the law, theft will continue to be profitable.
Reward Productivity: Celebrate builders, inventors and reformers, not thieves and sycophants.
Unite for a Common Goal: Stop treating governance as ethnic conquest. Unity is not a slogan; it is a survival strategy.
The Final Word.
We are not cursed, we are careless. We are not doomed, we are distracted. We are not victims, we are volunteers in our own destruction.
As George Omagbemi Sylvester writes:
“Failure is not inherited; it is repeated. And repetition of wrong choices is the surest path to ruin.”
Nigeria’s salvation lies not in prayers alone, but in policies, principles and people ready to reject mediocrity. We must stop applauding survival and start demanding success. The time to choose progress is now, because nations that normalize crisis eventually vanish under it.
Let it be said that this generation refused to adapt to failure. Let it be written that we rose, not because it was easy, but because we were tired of excuses. And let it be remembered that we finally understood: FAILURE is not CULTURE, it is a CHOICE.
COMR. YUSUF TOBI JAMIU ANNOUNCES SCHEDULE FOR SUG WEEK 2026, CALLS FOR MASS PARTICIPATION
University of Abuja SUG President Unveils 6-Day Programme Focused on Leadership, Innovation, Culture, and Student Unity
ABUJA, NIGERIA — The President of the Students’ Union Government, University of Abuja, Comr. Yusuf Tobi Jamiu (JAMO) has officially unveiled the schedule of activities for SUG WEEK 2026, scheduled to hold from 18th to 23rd May, 2026, at the University of Abuja.
In an official release to the general public, Comr. Yusuf Tobi Jamiu stated that this year’s edition is designed as a comprehensive student engagement and development programme aimed at promoting leadership, innovation, entrepreneurship, culture, intellectual interaction, entertainment, sportsmanship, and social integration within the university community.
“SUG Week 2026 is not merely a celebration, but a reflection of purposeful student leadership and the collective spirit of the University of Abuja student community, ”Comr. Yusuf Tobi Jamiu said. “I encourage every student to participate actively, represent their faculties and departments positively, and make the most of this platform for growth and unity.”
Building on a Record of Student-Centred Governance
Under the leadership of Comr. Yusuf Tobi Jamiu, the current administration, has introduced several initiatives to improve student engagement and institutional representation. These include the unveiling of the official SUG Website, presentation of SUG Buses, development of strategic partnerships, presentation of the SUG Magazine, and various welfare and empowerment-driven programmes.
With the approval and support of University Management led by the Vice-Chancellor, *Prof. Abdulhakeem Fawehinmi Babatunde*, SUG Week 2026 has been structured to provide students with opportunities for networking, creativity, intellectual participation, relaxation, and campus-wide unity.
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SUG WEEK 2026 Schedule of Activities
Day 1 – Monday, 18th May: Corporate Day
Official Launch & Unveiling
1. Official Unveiling of the SUG Website
2. Presentation and Commissioning of the SUG Buses
3. Presentation of the SUG Magazine
4. Award Presentation Ceremony
5. Leadership and Innovation Summit
6. Networking Session
The opening ceremony will feature distinguished personalities, public office holders, institutional stakeholders, business leaders, and guests from across the country.
Day 2 – Tuesday, 19th May: Old School Day
Inter-Faculty Debate Competition
A day dedicated to celebrating culture, creativity, and intellectual engagement through vintage-themed appearances and an inter-faculty debate competition.
Day 3 – Wednesday, 20th May: Jersey Day
Sports & Health Awareness
Focus on fitness, wellness, sportsmanship, and health awareness through sporting activities, recreational engagements, and sensitisation programmes.
Day 4 – Thursday, 21st May: Denim Day
Career & Entrepreneurship Day
Empowering students with career development opportunities, entrepreneurship knowledge, mentorship, networking, and innovation-driven discussions.
Day 5 – Friday, 22nd May: Fashion Show Day
Fashion Display & Runway Experience
Students will showcase creativity, talent, fashion expression, and entertainment through runway displays and coordinated fashion activities.
Day 6 – Saturday, 23rd May: Fake Wedding / Owambe Finale
Grand Finale
The grand social and cultural finale brings students together through music, culture, fashion, food, entertainment, and social interaction.
Call to Action
Comr. Yusuf Tobi Jamiu and the Students’ Union Government encourage all students to take part in the week’s activities and uphold the spirit of unity and excellence that defines the University of Abuja.
Students interested in volunteering, participating, partnering, sponsoring, modelling, or engaging in any activity are advised to send a direct message to the Union through the provided contacts.
For Sponsorship and Partnership: +234 810 593 0335
Signed:
Comr. Yusuf Tobi Jamiu (JAMO)
President, Students’ Union Government (SUG)
University of Abuja
REJOINDER: SECURITY AGENCIES ARE NOT TOOLS OF INTIMIDATION BUT INSTITUTIONS OF JUSTICE.
The recent publication titled “Enugu Nursing College Faces Backlash for Using DSS, Police to Intimidate Student Nurse for Exposing Oppression” is a clear attempt to sensationalize a matter that is already before lawful authorities and to deliberately further tarnish the image of Ezzy International College of Nursing Sciences through emotional propaganda, half-truths, and social media trial.
For the avoidance of
doubt, the Department of State Services (DSS), the Nigeria Police Force, and other security agencies are constitutional institutions established by law to investigate complaints, establish facts, preserve public order, and ensure justice. Their involvement in any matter does not amount to intimidation. Rather, it reflects the lawful pathway for resolving allegations, especially where there are claims of cyber-bullying, defamation, unauthorized recordings, false publications, and dissemination of misleading information capable of damaging institutional reputation and public confidence.
It is therefore surprising that intellectually poor bloggers and such individuals who continuously make public allegations on social media suddenly describe lawful invitations by security agencies as “oppression.” One cannot publish accusations, circulate inflammatory contents online, mobilize public outrage, and then reject legal scrutiny when called upon to substantiate those claims before competent authorities.
Mr. Francis Nwapa and those behind these coordinated media attacks should understand that social media is not a courtroom, and activism requires truths and fairness that must not place anyone above the law. If allegations have been made publicly against Ezzy International College of Nursing Sciences and its leadership, then the proper and civilized response is to appear before the relevant authorities and provide evidence to substantiate such claims instead of resorting to media blackmail and emotional manipulation.
The attempt to portray every lawful investigation as victimisation is both irresponsible and dangerous. Security agencies are not established to entertain sentiments or online noise; they are empowered to determine truth from falsehood through a due process.
Or could it be that Mr.Francis Nwapa and his cohorts assume themselves untouchable and above the law, even when they churn out lies and deceits against legally established institutions on social media? If Nwapa claims to be the coordinator of Youth Rights Campaign (YRC), legal or illegitimate as it seems, should be able to know the duties of the DSS and the Police and accord them same respect. The group should know the law and its process. The group should have a learned legal profiled counsel to respond or educate their ignorance of the law. Needless to say that Mr. Francis Nwapa’s strategy of Cyber-bullying is a game the DSS and the police are so familiar with and cannot be cowed thereof.
The insinuation Mr. Nwapa made about transferring the case to Lagos for his convenience is baseless. He should have defined his jurisdiction before he went uncontrolled on social media space to write what he didnt understand. He should have asked questions on the location of the crime alleged. But, No. He went viral to disburse unfounded information which he claimed happened at a location he never knew. Now, he is being invited to Enugu where the alleged crime was committed, instead of yielding to the state of law, Francis is calling for public sympathy. He insinuates in the writing that investigation procedure be shifted to Lagos to accommodate his reporting ineptitude, rather than at Enugu where the petition and incidents took place. What a myopic view of the procedure! It is pertinent to note that the law does not recognize convenience.
Therefore, if invitations were extended by the DSS or Police, it is only proper for those involved to honour such invitations and clarify the numerous statements and allegations which they already circulated online.
Furthermore, it is important to remind the public that institutions have rules, ethical codes, and disciplinary procedures designed to protect professionalism, patient confidentiality, institutional integrity, and public trust. Unauthorized recording of patients, hospital environments, administrators, or internal communications and broadcasting them online without clearance may raise serious ethical and legal concerns, especially in professional healthcare training institutions.
It is also intellectually dishonest for certain groups to weaponize the current security challenges in Nigeria as an excuse to discredit lawful investigations.
The DSS and Police are capable of handling multiple responsibilities simultaneously, including investigating complaints relating to cyber harassment, defamation, false information, and conduct capable of inciting unrest. Mr. Francis, writing on his blog “Francis Nwapa Watch” on 15th of April called for proper investigation into the matter. The security agents yielded to that call and lunched investigations to establish the truth. Why is Mr. Nwapa afraid to dance the music he started beating its drums? Journalism is an age long profession practiced by men of seasoned value, honesty and integrity to uphold public truths. It is unfortune that Mr. Francis whose only known job is pest control and fumigation dabbled into a noble profession as journalism, untrained and unequipped to investigate truth before misinforming the public. More disheartening is that Francis might not know the huge negative impact he would be making to institutions and the public just because he afforded a cheap phone and data to post unverified information on blogs.
Dr. Gloria C. Bertram-Okoli and the management of Ezzy International College of Nursing Sciences have consistently demonstrated commitment to healthcare education, discipline, and institutional excellence. The college cannot and will not surrender its integrity to orchestrated campaigns of calumny or mob pressure driven by social media theatrics.
The public is therefore urged to disregard attempts to distort facts and to allow lawful authorities to carry out their constitutional duties without intimidation from activist groups seeking publicity. Justice is not established on Facebook posts, WhatsApp broadcasts, or media headlines, but through lawful investigation and evidence.
Meanwhile it is also contempt of the legal process as Mr. Nwapa continues to bully online and misinform the public about a matter which is already under investigation. The police had advised that all parties be invited to respond to questions.
The matter is being followed legally. Mr. Francis will do well to submit to legal procedure.
Those who have made allegations should courageously present their evidence before the appropriate authorities instead of portraying legitimate legal procedures as persecution. Truth does not fear investigation.
—Opinion—
ONDO EAST-WEST FEDERAL CONSTITUENCY APC ADOPTS OTUNBA BOLA FISAYO
Ahead of APC House of Representatives Election scheduled for Saturday 16th of May 2026, Ondo EAST-WEST Federal Constituency stakeholders have adopted Otunba Bola Olawafisayo as its flagbearer.
Rising from the stakeholders’ meeting held at Harmony Estate in Ondo city, a source close to Otunba Bola Olawafisayo disclosed that arrangements have been perfect and party members will formally adopt Otunba Bola Olawafisayo on Saturday the very day slated very for the primary.
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- Merck Foundation advances Healthcare Capacity through 2600+ Medical Scholarships across 52 Countries with African and Asian First Ladies May 16, 2026
- West African Development Bank (BOAD) and International Finance Corporation (IFC) Announce Landmark Reciprocal Euro and West African CFA franc (EUR-XOF) Facilities to Boost Local Currency Financing in West Africa May 15, 2026
- Eritrea: Seminar for female members of the Defense Forces May 15, 2026
- Guinea-Bissau takes another step toward a polio-free future May 15, 2026
- International Monetary Fund (IMF) Staff Completes the 2026 Article IV Consultation and Reaches Staff-Level Agreement with Ghana on the Sixth Review under the Extended Credit Facility Arrangement and on a 36-month Policy Coordination Instrument Request May 15, 2026
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