October was a grey month for Nigeria as a nation and even for me personally. While End Sars protest and palliative discovery and looting rocked the nation, I had an emergency that rocked my family. Through the rocky times, it hits me more than ever before that Nigeria is way far behind in the rightness of things. In simple terms, it’s like nothing is working in this heck of a country. So, while I was dealing with my family emergency, I totally support the peaceful protest of End Sars with a demand for good governance.

So, today I’m gonna be sharing with you some of the lessons I gleaned from End Sars protest in Nigeria. First, it is important to always know that nothing happens by accident and definitely End Sars protest is not one of those things that happened by accident.  In every sense of the word, the protest was a powerful ignition of a divine agenda to reawaken Nigeria into greatness which is achievable through good governance.

The End Sars protest was a result of genuinely patriotic concerns and actions for a better Nigeria either through physical and online conversations such as ‘The Platform’ by Poju Oyemade amongst others or the prayers/groanings from hearts  that ceaselessly intercede for Nigeria. You may choose to deny it or not, but best believe there is always a supreme and unseen hand that guides the affairs of men.

I’m aware that some people do not even believe or support the prayer walk during the protest but wouldn’t you agree that all hands were on deck in the pursuit of a new Nigeria. This is not to discredit the physical conversations and effort across different platforms seeking for end to impunity and dawn of a good governance in Nigeria. The bane of this first lesson is to re-emphasize that each and every one of us needs to guard our part of the gate either physically or spiritually for the entire good of our dear nation, Nigeria. This leads to the second lesson which is unity.

Am I the only one that was amazed at the level of oneness, unity of thoughts and action that was genuinely reflected during the protest? How lost items were recovered with a gracious heart of kindness that you would not believe still exists in Nigeria. Wasn’t it beautiful to see young persons in their thousands come together for a common good cause without any talk of tribal or religion barriers.

We saw how Christians cleared and cleaned the space for Muslims to pray at Lekki toll gate and how food and drinks were heartily made available and shared without any form of prejudice. You know I realized that the so-called sense of division that actually exists in Nigeria is a plot of exploitation. The canny powers that be sold a façade of tribal and religious differences to the Nigerian people to get us divided because they realise that if we are truly united, they have little or no space to exploit us.

The third lesson I will like to bring to your attention is the high level of coordination that was genuinely at work during the protest.  You know before now, this present generation of young persons has always been tagged as unserious, lazy Nigerian youths and one wouldn’t have thought that these ill-tagged youths could have an enviable level of coordination, innovation and accountability.

Did you guys see the solar powered charging board that was created at Lekki toll gate protest ground?  This just tells us that there are incredible possibilities that can be birthed in Nigeria without the use of rocket science or ambiguous budgetary allocation.

Finally, it is important to note that co-ordinated knowledge, wisdom and pre-informed actions are required to actively and gainfully engage at the table of decision making for the good and advancement of your community, local government, state government even to the federal level. This is where I think Nigerian enlightened youths should do better.

 It is good that we have good ideas of how governance should be running in our head but it is better if we actively get involve in the grassroot activities that impacts your immediate community. Don’t assume you are too big or too busy for engagements with your community or you can’t relate with certain people in your community. Taking some insights from the politicians in the way they go all down-to-earth with every strata of the Nigerian society.

 My woke, soro soke people it does no harm to say ‘good morning’ or ‘Bros, I hail o’ to the guys, ‘agbero’ in your bus stop or spend 5 minutes chat with them on a Saturday morning to lightly educate them about the latest happening in your community. Truth is, you will be surprised at insights you’ll get from chatting with them. This is your time to stoop to conquer, don’t let it go.

Like I mentioned in the previous blog post, travails of a new Nigeria, this is that time no young Nigerian is allowed to do nothing especially if you are reading this post. I hope you enjoyed reading this post and gained some insights too. Please feel free to share some other lessons you gained from the recent End Sars protest. We’ ll be waiting for you in the comment section.

Cheers to a new Nigeria and do have a great weekend!

Je t’aime mon ami🤗🤗🤗