YOUTHS – USEFUL INSTRUMENTS FOR NATION-BUILDING.
By Ignatius Ibanga
(Development Worker, Motivational Speaker/Writer on Contemporary Issues)
A paper presented at the Provincial Conference Meeting of the Catholic Youth Organisation of Nigeria -CYON of Uyo, Calabar, Ogoja, Ikot Ekpene & Port-Harcourt Dioceses in South-South Nigeria. Held on Saturday June 18th, 2011 at CWO Hall, Pastoral Centre, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria.
INTRODUCTION
I am delighted to be considered suitable to present this talk to non other than great Nigerian youths of Catholic extraction from the South-South zone of Nigeria. Whenever youths gather, dreams and aspiration express itself. Whenever youths meet, talents and creativity is born. Today you meet perhaps not only to discuss issues within the framework of CYON activity but to stimulate intellectual discourse on a couple of generative national issues, reason why you consider a topic on nation building too good to be ignored in your quest to contribute to strengthening various democratic and economic structures in Nigeria for good governance.
Nation-building is a normative concept that means different things to different people. The latest conceptualization is essentially that nation-building programmes are those in which dysfunctional or unstable or "failed states" or economies are given significant attention in the development of governmental infrastructure, civil society, dispute resolution mechanisms, as well as economic assistance, in order to increase stability. Nation-building generally assumes that someone or something is doing the building work intentionally.
Many people believe that nation-building is evolutionary rather than revolutionary, that it takes a long time and is a social process that cannot be jump-started from outside. The evolution of the Greek city states into a nation, the Italian city-states into a nation, the German city-states into the Zollverein customs union and later a nation, the multiple languages and cultural groups in France into the nation of France, the metaphorical evolution of Nigeria from separate independent kingdoms and later protectorates to colony then into regions into a nation, the development of China from the warring kingdoms, took a very long time, and were the result, not only of political leadership, but of changes in technology and economic processes (the agricultural and then industrial revolutions), as well as communication, culture and civil society, and many other factors.
According to Seymour Martin Lipset, this is called The First New Nation, the United States, at first 13 colonies with diverse origins, came together to form a new nation and state. That state, like so many in contemporary times, faced the prospect of secession and disintegration in 1865, and it took another 100 years for the integration of black and white, North and South, East and West. This was a new type of nation-state, because its people were not all of the same ethnicity, culture, and language, as had been thought to be the case in the early defining of the concept of nation-state.
A study by Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University in 2001 defined Nation-building as: "Equipping First Nations with the institutional foundation necessary to increase their capacity to effectively assert self-governing powers on behalf of their own economic, social and cultural objectives." The study identified four core elements of a nation building model: 1) genuine self rule (First Nations making decisions about resource allocations, project funding and development strategy), 2) creating effective governing institutions (non-politicized dispute resolution mechanisms and getting rid of corruption), 3) cultural match (giving first nations institutions legitimacy in the eyes of their citizens), and the need for a strategic orientation (long-term planning).
One of the reasons for the difficulties of what many consider "failed states" is that some peoples who had been integrated were taken apart by European colonialism; while others who were separate peoples were integrated together in new states not based in common identities like the case of Nigeria when the north and south were merged together.
However, many new states were plagued by "tribalism", rivalry between ethnic groups within the nation as was the case in Nigeria. This sometimes resulted in their near-disintegration, such as the attempt by Biafra to secede from Nigeria in 1970, or the continuing demand of the Somali people in the Ogaden region of Ethiopia for complete independence. In Asia, the disintegration of India into Pakistan and Bangladesh is another example where ethnic differences, aided by geographic distance, tore apart a post-colonial state. The Rwandan genocide as well as the recurrent problems experienced by the Sudan can also be related to a lack of ethnic, religious, or racial cohesion within the nation.
WHAT THEN IS NATION-BUILDING?
Nation-building refers to the process of constructing or structuring a national identity using the power of the state. This process aims at the unification of the people within the state so that it remains politically stable and viable in the long run. Nation-building can involve the use of propaganda or major infrastructure development to foster social harmony and economic growth.
Originally, nation-building referred to the efforts of newly-independent nations, notably the nations of Africa, to reshape colonial territories that had been carved out by colonial powers without regard to ethnic or other boundaries.[1][2] These reformed states would then become viable and coherent national entities.
Nation building according to Ikwumelo (1975) involves actions, behaviours and thoughts or feelings aimed at sustaining the attributes of a nation. The problem of nation building is more critical in the third world country generally and more particularly in Nigeria where there are peoples with different cultures, languages, religion and a diversity of inclinations who have been forced together into one geo-political entity (Ezegbe:1994). Eboh and Ukpong, (1993) defined nation building as a process, whereby the leaders of a country strive to achieve unity and progress for their nation through various programmes. It is aimed at promoting peace and harmony, reducing conflicts, laying good foundations for economic, social and political development and above all to create conditions for progress.
DOES NATION-BUILDING REALLY MATTER TO US?
Absolutely yes! Nation-building matters to intractable conflict because of the theory that a strong state is necessary in order to provide security, that the building of an integrated national community is important in the building of a state, and that there may be social and economic prerequisites or co-requisites to the building of an integrated national community.
Furthermore, when nation-building implies democratization, there is the further hypothesis known as the democratic peace hypothesis. Originally advanced by Immanuel Kant in the 17th century, the democratic peace hypothesis says that perpetual peace can be achieved by developing a federation or league of free republican nations. Representative democracies, organized in an international organization, would bring peace (UN). Political scientists who have explored this hypothesis have focused on one or two versions: democracies don't make war against each other, or democracies don't initiate war at all. There is certainly evidence of the former, and some evidence of the latter.
Let me put it differently that, nation-building may sometimes be another name for external intervention and extension of spheres of influence and economic dominance. Sometimes nation-building may simply be used as a justification for the expansion of imperial control (like what Africans experienced in the hands of Europeans). So nation-building matters, but what is meant by nation-building matters even more.
The first major question that needs to be asked is whether nation-building should be done at all. In the context of intractable conflict, is nation-building an appropriate method of providing stable peace and a secure community, which can meet the needs of the people within it?
There is disagreement among current theorists of nation-building as to the relationships between the development of a free market economy and the development of democratic participation, as well as over the necessity of building a civil society as a prerequisite for the development of state institutions for democratic participation. Different theories of nation-building emphasize different parts of the arguments. Different versions of nation-building benefit different groups. Some appear to benefit more the outside countries, and/or the international governmental and nongovernmental organizations which are involved. Some benefit elites in the nation being built or rebuilt. Some spread benefits widely in the society; some do not.
YOUTHS AND NATION BUILDING
The questions to ask about a country's development are therefore: what has been happening to poverty? What has been happening to unemployment? What has been happening to inequality? What has been happening to security and many others?
In the 1990s the UN Development Programme brought out the Human Development Report and the Human Development Index to focus on those aspects of development other than economic, including in the index both health and education. Many UN programmes, as well as NGO efforts, focus on these aspects, and the World Bank since began to focus on poverty, but to date there seems no significant effort by Nigeria and successive governments to sincerely and practically include poverty, unemployment, or inequality in nation-building programmes other than lofty ideas, sweet talks and theoretical framework that justify no meaningful efforts.
Where do people – you and me – fit into this complicated web? Youths – useful instrument of nation building. It is said that for any society to obtain true reform, two groups should be targeted: women, and the youth. Sincerely speaking, how can youths be instrument of nation building amidst this level of corruption in the country? How can youths be instrument of nation building when there is high level of unemployment? How can youths be instrument of nation building when the government run a system of lies upon lies over life’s basic essentials (energy-electricity, security, food/shelter). How can youths be instrument of nation building when there is no genuine resource allocation to first nations in a heterogeneous society like ours? How can youths be instrument of nation building where there is no political culture & ideology, where people are either coerced to vote or disenfranchise by the system?
Wherever the beat and pulse of the nation is, there the youth is also. The generation of the young has always played a tremendous role in breaking and building nations. It is from this rank that arise idealism; the desire to change the world; the raw passion to push forward; the energy to execute these dreams and ideas.
There are many examples in the Bible of young people rising as leaders who built great nations – David, Joseph, and of course Jesus himself. In contemporary times, we can think of youth leaders who have struggled and fought for a cause they truly believed in – Sophie Scholl, member of the White Rose non-violent resistance movement in Nazi Germany who was executed, Obama who is the youngest American President ever, and the countless youths around the world speaking their minds firmly about the truths they believe in and the issues they condemn such as institutions of social injustice.
Whenever I think of the role that a youth can play in nation-building, I am reminded of the youth people of East Timor, with whom I have great admiration for. This beautiful group of people fought long and hard for independence from Indonesia, and eventually gained it. There are many other such stories, stories of youth who courageously stood for what they believed their nations to stand for – and these should be your character and resolve in order to impact significantly on your beloved nation Nigeria.
Do Christian youths have a role to play in nation building? Absolutely yes! At times, this may seem an overwhelming task as there are numerous issues to tackle with. This is so when the system seems like an overwhelming barrier, but these should then be broken down into bite-sizes that can be strategically targeted. For example, looking at the institutions that make up society and targeting which of these are of most priority: Parliament? Corruption? Building up national identity through enhanced religious conversations? There are multiple ways in which a youth can get involved in charting a direction for his/her own future.
Youth leaders should see it within their reach, their ability to impact society and make a tremendous difference in their country rather than form cohorts of political thugs, kidnappers and pipeline of corrupt practices for few elites who feed fat on the wealth of the nation to the detriments of many as is witnessed today across board in Nigeria. You can start with the small community that is close to your hearts first, (it may not necessarily be yours) and it must based on Christians values and true virtues that can clearly be seen.
The usefulness of youths in nation building cannot be over-emphasised. Though in Nigeria, it is seemly being downplayed. The lesser fair attitude or syndrome, and the do-or-die phenomenon that characterise Nigerian politics, (monopolize by our older generation), seem to be an eloquent testimony of this.
To say that building a nation is an enormous task is to confess the fundamental truth. A nation cannot be built overnight as Rome was not built in a day. Building a nation requires time and concerted efforts. Like Barack Obama puts it in his acceptance speech delivered: "The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year..." It is a continuous adventure and one generation passes away with another generation taking its place, but the task of building a nation goes on. It, therefore, behooves each generation to give the next its best by leaving the nation better than it met it. Or, of what use is it to be "a wasted generation", apologies to the Nobel laureate, Prof Wole Soyinka.
In his autobiography, "Building A Nation", the first premier of Midwestern Nigeria, a barrister-at-law Chief Dennis C. Osadebay said: "Building a nation is not an easy task anywhere and there is no short-cut to nationhood just as there is no short-cut by which a baby can attain childhood... no country can leap over the teething period of nationhood or change human nature."
In building a nation, all hands must be on deck. Be that as it may, the role of youths is of crucial importance. Nigerian youths are spread all over the country. They are endowed with great talents, gifts and potential, most of which are yet to be fully tapped. They are intelligent, knowledgeable and skilful in various fields.
Undoubtedly, the future of any nation rests on the shoulders of the youth. The values they inculcate and the qualities they possess today will inevitably be brought to bear on the nation tomorrow. The knowledge, skills and principles which they have acquired over the years would be used as tools for the development or otherwise of the nation. They are the ones who will meet the specific manpower needs of the nation. Indeed, the youths are the movers and shapers of the nation. Without them, the nation has no future and is heading for extinction.
Nigerian youths are the incubators of the change this nation needs. Nigeria needs the youths to champion the long-awaited change - economically, politically, socio-culturally and technologically. The developed and powerful nations in the world today would not have attained that status without the indispensable role of the youth. They ensure that the education of their youths is on the front burner. Since nation-building is a continuous task, the youths will forever be the hope of the nation and the hub of the nation’s development.
As youths, we have a vital role to play in building this nation. We are the catalysts that will jumpstart Nigeria’s economic greatness and propel national progress. Is it not true that as a nation if we must become the true giant of Africa that we claim to be, the welfare and wellbeing of Nigeria youths must be and remain paramount in the minds of our leaders?
In the words of Benjamin Disraeli, the British statesman, the youth of a nation are the trustees of prosperity. We must be prepared to produce the change we desire to see in this country. We must stop running away with the long-peddled notion that we are leaders of "tomorrow". Perish the thought! The future is NOW! We are indeed the leaders of today.
It is said that if a person is in his twenties and not an idealist, he has no heart. If he is in his fifties and is still an idealist, he has no head. Jokes aside, idealism is the one trait that sparks all initiative for change and ingenuity in a nation. Let the youth take full grasp of its idealist nature, and seek to heal wounds, lay the ground for social justice and bring to reality our dream nation God promised “thy kingdom come on earth”.
BUILDING WHAT KIND OF NATION?
Aside from what we can explore based on the Scripture, there are fundamental principles that we can refer to when exploring the need for social justice-the cornerstone of nation building. The Catholic Church has been working at issues of social justice for many years, (though within the Church’s life and institutions, justice is questionable), the Jesuit order specifically tasked with this very responsibility and role. In 1963, Pope John the 23rd issued one of the most famous encyclicals called Pacem In Terris, or in English, “On Establishing Universal Peace in Truth, Justice, Charity, and Liberty”.
This document clearly sets the basis upon which justice is grounded, laying the premises that God created all men equal, and as such he has rights and duties that are universal, inviolable and inalienable. Therefore, man has economic, political, cultural, and moral rights and duties. In detail, “man has the right to live, to bodily integrity, to the means necessary for development of life, to be respected, to worship God according to one’s conscience, to choose freely one’s state in life, (and) to freely meet and associate.”
It further states, “All men are equal in natural dignity, and … no form of approval is being given to racial discrimination… and the possession of rights involves recognition and respect by other people”. Many of such statements ring similar to those contained within present international human rights law, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other legal Human Rights instruments. We believe therefore, that mankind has been bestowed these rights to life by God through the moral order through which He has created the world. It is hence when individuals part of this refined order fall through the cracks of the system, failing to be duly recognised as equal citizens whose natural rights are consequently violated, that we say justice has not been sufficiently provided for. A rights-based approach to building a nation is one that is grounded on the dignity and worth given to us by God.
Jesus came for the purpose of reconciliation, to reconcile man with man, man with God and man with the world around him. Extrapolate this to our current scenarios and we can imagine practicing true Christian values by creating a world of greater harmony between different ethnicities, religions and people groups. Our purpose should also be in reconciling man with the environment that is steadily being destroyed today – hence, efforts at sustainable development and alternative energy to combat current climate change crises are all in line with God’s ultimate will on earth – in the here and now.
CONCLUSION
If we believe that Christian principles are holistic, then they should also inform our ideas about public life. Faith in the public square is very different from imposing strict religious values; rather, it is putting to practice those “kingdom values” espoused by Jesus. This means tuning our senses into a frequency that sees the world as a landscape that God can transform. This transformation is one that is prescribed in the Bible: turning society away from dominance, hypocrisy, pomp, pride, “greed, malice, deceit, envy, slander, arrogance and folly” (Mark 7: 22-23) and towards kingdom values of justice, peace, sacrificial love, compassion and goodness.
In the process of nation-building, we most set out to do precisely that: to build our nations based on very concrete values already articulated for us. This is “His kingdom come on earth” as we say in the Lord’s Prayer. It is important to hold true a vision we desire for our nations, or nation-building effort comes to naught. The cause fought against corruption is a cause fought for social justice. The cause fought against systemic evil is a cause fought for what we believe in through Christ. Sacrificial love also includes having the grace to speak the truth with love, without prejudice of the other.
If nation-building in the 21st century is to be successful, it most looks at some of its early theorists. The importance of democratic values, of the civic culture and civil society that develop and sustain them, the importance of increasing social, political, and economic equality, and of human development, rather than just economic development or state-building, are key in any successful strategy for long-term democratic nation-building. Nation-building is more than just state-building. To be a sustainable force for peace building, it must incorporate more than just the Western appendages of democracy.
Every Nigerian youth has a role to play in the development and in the body politic of the nation. The nation at 50 is bedeviled by so many problems. These problems are corruption, economic and financial crimes, bribery, low political culture, lack of patriotism and discipline among Nigerians, mismanagement, tribal and religious intolerance and so many other negative things. But all hope is not yet lost, as Nigeria still has a bright future. It’s up to me and you to strive towards strong advocacy in these areas to re-sanitize the nation and bring about the much needed positive development.
Thank you.