Change begins with me, and you

The tour round the paradise in the desert was really a fascinating one. It was both a drive through and walk through. The date was 15th day of December, 2006. We set out as early as 9:00 am because we have been told the plethora of things to experience.

Except for the few minutes of walking from the hotel to the car and from the car to the malls, the sun with all its venom was unable to bear its fangs on us. The cooling system in the car and the malls combined to do an excellent job of shielding us from the burning heat of the sun. Dubai’s control of the heat confirms my observation that nations with fierce weather extremities always manage to have a functional and efficient energy system that makes life comfortable for the people. It’s much unlike in my own country where keeping the lights on is as hard as going to the moon on a bicycle for over four decades.

The driver of the rental car conveying us around is an excellent driver and a wonderful tour guide. Though an Indian, he knows the City of Dubai like the palm of his hands. As he sauntered through the beautiful city ferrying us from one memorable landmark to iconic shopping malls, he continued to stress the point that 90% of this fascinating city was built right under his very eyes. “How can that be?” I wondered in my mind.

“You must have been living here for up to four decades. Or were you born here?” I asked curiously.
“No, I have only been here fourteen years. Most of this city was desert when I arrived.” He responded proudly.

We found his statement too hard to believe, yet, we knew it couldn’t be a lie.
The issue of Dubai and UAE’s meteoric rise to prominence became our sole subject of discussion until we arrived Jabelali Shopping Mall.

“Can a nation be built in less than two decades?” I kept wondering all through the two hours tour of the sprawling shopping mall the kind of which I have never seen before. That thought possessed my mind till it became an obsession. My mind was so engrossed with the issue of how the City of Dubai was born within two decades that I hardly could concentrate on the tour again.

After four hours of touring the city and spending half of the time exploring just a quarter of the JabelAli mall, we decided to commence our homeward trip back to our hotel in Deira. We agreed with the driver to stop at Emirates Mall and one or two other places of interest in the area on our way home before calling it a date.

Along the way, I decided to abort the idea of going with them to the other places. I was forced to change my mind because I became too grieved in my spirit to continue the city tour. The level of transformation and development I already saw in the course of the tour was too overwhelming for me. “Where were the leaders of my country when the leaders of this country were conceiving this kind of city?” I kept ruminating as I was returning to my room.

CAN CHANGE BEGIN WITH ME?

Learning that Dubai’s advancement is less than a story of two decades was very unsettling for me.

Right from the moment we landed at the airport, four days ago, I have been thinking aloud about how the leaders of the United Arabs Emirates managed to inspire themselves and their citizens to turn a desert country into the amazing spectacle that the whole world is flocking to see.

“Oh God! What is the problem with Nigeria” I yelled out in pain as soon as I shut the hotel room’s door behind me. “What is wrong with Nigeria’s leaders? What is wrong with Nigeria?” “Why is development so difficult for us in my country?” I cried out pacing up and down angrily in the room. Like a gushing spring, tears began to build up and flow down from my eyes. Uncontrollably, I burst into tears and began to sob intensely. My nose soon start dripping water as if I had caught flu for a week. I fell on my knees on the bed and began to beat the pillow angrily. “What is the problem with Nigeria?” I continued to cry on an on until I was tired, and the anger in me was spent. In that moment of exhaustion I heard a small still voice very distinctively in my ear saying “the change you seek, starts with you”.

“Am already the change! Am already living the Change!” I fought back yelling.
“What can only one man do? I am just one person doing so much already!” I protested, mumbling my lack of capacity to single handedly turn Nigeria to Dubai.
“How can I start the change when I am not an elected politician? I am only one man living my simple life in total devotion to God and Nigeria in my various triangular roles of a public servant, ecclesia and social entrepreneur. I have been using my little salaries to organize road safety events and do other interventions for social impact all these years. I don’t have the means to change Nigeria alone and I can’t do more than I am already doing.” I continued my protestations, talking to the voice in my room.

Though the encounter will look strange to another, it wasn’t to me. That still small voice is not an alien to me. I have recognized it for over two decades. It was the brain behind my foray into road safety crusade that has gulped most of my life savings and hundreds of man hours of sacrificial service for a better Nigeria.

Hard as I protested, that Dubai Hotel room’s encounter became a burden I have never been able to take off my shoulder. I finally accepted the inspiration that the change I seek starts with me and I began to ponder on how better to bring transformation to Nigeria from my space and sphere of influence.

Driven by an unrelenting desire for positive change and the passion to do more in my nation building efforts, I decided to embark on another transformative journey totally different from what I have done in road safety and other areas. I embraced a higher purpose of nurturing the next generation of leaders, fostering patriotic citizenship, and catalyzing sustainable development ideas through Inspire Nigeria Initiative, the second NGO I co-founded to help me become the change.

Since that epiphany, my passion to motivate and inspire Nigeria has continued to intensify every single day. Undeterred by the numerous challenges, I have poured myself into empowering youth with leadership skills and values;
igniting patriotism and national pride in my own little way and stimulating innovative solutions for sustainable development.

WILL YOU LET CHANGE BEGIN WITH YOU?

Like my old self before my first and second epiphany, not many Nigerians believe in the Power of One to transform Nigeria. Most of us see only the political leaders as the ones who can fix our Nation. That still small voice reshaped my orientation and made me see how formidable the Power of One is in birthing a new nation.

How can we as individual citizens become the change our country needs to experience true change?

There are several ways this can be done.

1). We must acknowledge that great nations are not built only by great leaders, they are also built by great citizens. The leaders are only a handful of the citizens who gained the opportunity to move to the upper class of national service. Leaders who didn’t see themselves as the catalyst of change as citizens would hardly ever be able to perform any spectacular magic as leaders. In most corridors of power, the leaders showcase who and what they were as citizens whenever leadership opportunity fall on their laps.

If not all, Nigeria needs as many of her citizens as possible to become the change she needs for transformation to happen. Sadly, the service learning element needed to produce compassionate change agents is conspicuously missing in our nation’s formal education’s architecture. Discerning citizens must therefore do their best at self – development / improvement to become change catalyst in the nation’s interest.

2). To incubate and grow the change movement in Nigeria, everyone of us must in the interest of a building a better society spare some time intentionally to immerse ourselves in true community service which is the foundation of sustainable nation service.
We can do this through any of the various ways of promoting social change.

a). Volunteer with local charities, community groups, or environmental organizations.
b). Join advocacy groups that align with their values and passions, such as human rights, education, or healthcare.
c). Participate in local community events, such as clean-up initiatives, fundraising campaigns, or cultural festivals.

IF CHANGE MUST BEGIN WITH YOU

Citizens who are ready to become the change have to intentionally invest in self development.

1). An ignorant citizen can’t be the right change the country needs to be transformed. You will therefore have to educate yourself and others around you to become an effective agent of change.

You have to stay informed and be up-to-date on current events, politics, and social issues; develop critical thinking skills to analyze information and make informed decisions; share your knowledge with others through social media, blogging, or public speaking.

2). The concept of practicing active citizenship is another way to become the change.
Practicing active citizenship begins with registering to vote and actually voting during elections.
It stretches further to not going to sleep after voting. It means reaching out to your elected representatives to express your opinions and concerns about how they are governing. Doing this will keep elected officials on their toes and force them to up their leadership game.

The end of the rope in practicing active citizenship is participating in public consultations and providing feedback on policies and projects.

3). All politics is local. All development is situated in a community. Fostering Community inclusiveness is a way to build a nation from the ground up. A change agent citizen must be hugely involved in promoting the building of relationships with people from diverse backgrounds and cultures in the polity, promote advocacy for inclusivity and social justice in the community and support the welfare of marginalized groups groups through volunteering, donating, or amplifying their voices.

4). The finest arena for becoming the change our country needs is in embodying positive values necessary for building an orderly society where the rule of law is respected. Every citizen who is a change catalyst must subscribe totally to a life of integrity by living with integrity, honesty, and transparency; be empathetic by practicing kindness and compassion towards others; and embracing respect by treating others with respect, kindness, and dignity.

5). Leading by example is the hallmark of every genuine agent of change. Living by example requires good citizens to model positive behavior that promotes a decent and orderly society. Modelling positive behavior, such as reducing waste, conserving energy, or promoting social justice is highly beneficial to the society at large.

Living by example includes inspiring others to take action and make a positive impact.
The icing on the cake of living by example is by being sure of yourself enough to celebrate the successes of others as you celebrate your successes. This helps in creating positive change in the polity and deepening the bond of unity.

In bringing change to a nation, every small action counts, and collective efforts can ultimately lead to significant positive change.

Embracing these principles, can help every citizen to become the change they wish to see in the country. It starts with building the personal philosophy that “change begins with me”. No nation can change easily if the citizens don’t see their roles in making the needed change to happen. You and I are the change we have been waiting for. How long can we afford to fail? How long can we afford to hide?

Osho, a development advocate and change strategist was the SDP Senatorial Candidate for Senate in FCT during 2023 elections. [email protected].