by Wilson Iyorah

Ever since the emergence of President Muhamadu Buhari as the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, so much glimmers of hope have been in the air.  so many Nigerians especially the masses anticipated a permanent relief from the scourge many believed the past administration have caused to the nation. Great expectations kept flowing from the heart of the people who strongly believed that ‘change’ has finally come and the Nation has been delivered.

However, the recent happenings in the country have left so many people disappointed and discouraged to the extent that many people have lost faith in the government and all that it stood for.
The government is not helping matters as they keep blaming the opposition for the woes bedeviling the nation. The opposition in turn is blaming the government for being clueless and incompetent. The government keep waging endless war on corruption as the economy is suffering setbacks.

To so many people, things have never been so terrible as it is today. The economy is downturn, the prices of goods and services has skyrocketed that the poor can no longer afford. Eating and feeding has been so difficult as most people can’t boast of three square meals. Poverty have become so severe and recession has taken over the country.

Under this administration, Nigerians have witnessed so many occurrence that is strange. One is the drastic fall of Naira like packs of card and the fall of the prices of oil which is our economy mainstay, in the World market.
Also, the strong agitation for the sovereign state of Biafra like never before and so many are calling for the division of the nation. The emergence of the Niger Delta Avengers who have been wreaking havoc to the nation by destroying and bombing oil pipelines and facilities thereby destroying the economy.
The nation is no longer turning out enough barrels of oil as it used to as a result of these.

Now the question; THE GOING IS GETTING TOUGH, SHOULD THE TOUGH GET GOING?

No doubts, the current predicaments of the nation has left so many Nigerians hopeless and depressed and many people refused to see any solution in sight.
However, we should never give up on our dear country and we should keep moving until the coast is clear, until things get better.

So many nations have suffered similar fate like that of Nigeria yet they emerged victorious in the end. America is one of such countries, they suffered and survived the Great Depression of the 1930s and the terrible recession of 1982. They stood up and surmounted it and also learnt from it. Today they are one of the most prosperous nation in the world.

Yes! We can also learn from our shortcomings and still attain our objectives and surmount our challenges.
The opposition should stop trading blames with the government and the government should start taking measures to curb the problems rocking the nation and revive the economy.
Special appeal to the Niger Delta Avengers to stop crippling the economy and the growth of the nation by destroying oil pipelines and facilities. They should stop! This shouldn’t be seen by them as a means of fighting for their rights as it will eventually bring devastation to the nation in whole, not only that, it will bring pollution and degradation to their environment which will affect their region.

Finally, just as the saying ” Tough times never last but tough people do”
We should never be wearied ,   we should never be feel depressed and we should keep our hopes alive believing we will overcome our difficulty. “At the end of the dark tunnel, there is always a light.
We should contribute positive measures to the growth of the nation as THE CHANGE BEGINS WITH US.

Special thanks to YNaija.com  for encouraging and bringing out the voices of the youth of the nation and their writing potential. And happy independence to our great Country. We will surely triumph over our challenges!

This entry was submitted as part of the Nigerian Voices competition organized by YNaija.com.

We publish, un-edited, Nigerians telling the stories of their everyday lives. Read all the narratives daily on the Nigerian Voices vertical. You can also contribute your own story titled ‘Nigerian Voices’ to [email protected].

Op-ed Editor