For those who are gifted with the spirit of sight and those who are not, it is unmistakable that hardship, extreme hardship is certain to descend upon our land. There will be food shortages and money will be hard to come by for a majority of the citizens of Nigeria. You do not need to be a prophet to see this. It is visible and you can see through the clouds.
Right now we are in the time of harvest so food sufficiency is papering, covering over the impending doom. Even now that we are supposed to be in a season of plenty, food is not cheap at all. Everything has gone up and many families are barely striving to survive. I am operating now in the village and I can see the desperation among families to make ends meet.
Last week I was among the crème de la crème of Nigerian editors in Uyo, capital of Akwa-Ibom for our annual All Nigerian Editors Conference which lasted four days and I was able to discern from my colleagues the tough times we are in in our country and the forces that are gathering to challenge all of us in the weeks and months ahead.
I prophesy that beginning from late February or early March, reaching a peak in the months of May and late June when nothing will be left in our yam bans and grains silos, the state of Nigeria is going to be severely shaken unless President Bola Tinubu does what no other Nigerian leader has been able to do namely, preparing for the hard times certain to come. The truth about our situation is that our leaders hardly plan for any emergency. We are in a rudderless ship, tossed from east to west and from south to the north. Were it not for the steady hands of the Lord over our affairs, Nigeria would have gone under since. God’s mercy is reaching a breaking point. God wants us to sit up and shape up.
Beginning from today or any other day soon when his attention is drawn to this and in the next three months, Tinubu should release money for beans, rice, processed cassava chips, palm oil, well processed garri, yams and water yam to be gathered to fill our grains silos and yam bans. These essential food items should be bought from within Nigeria and the whole of West Africa, Europe and Asia for storage or else doom shall descend upon us.
The era of the oil boom when Nigerians were living in paradise, insulated from the hardship that was the story of most of our neighbours, is gone. Over a year ago and especially last year, many Togolese, Beninoise, who dominated the artisan trade in our country, said that life was becoming more difficult for them in Nigeria and that they will start going back. Many have gone back home if you have business to do with them and you have noticed.
This was before the removal of fuel subsidy came upon our country. Now that the citizens are reeling in hardship, the visitors will not be fairing any better so if there are a remnant of them in our midst, no one will tell them to pack and go home.
This is the time that people should get strong hold of the God or the gods they serve and cry to him or them to avert the hardship and great deprivation that is sure to come. That is why I am happy that the Living Faith Church where I worship, the theme of their annual gathering of the saints called Shiloh billed to hold from 5th December to 12th December is billed ‘’Redeemed to Flourish in Hard Times’’. During it, secrets of how to flourish when many are gnashing their teeth will be revealed to all participants. Others in other faiths and men and women in whatever engagements they are in must look for ways to survive the hard times that all can see now.
Because of the residue of the oil boom many Nigerians have not been diligent in the work they do to earn their living. Many sit idly by expecting manna to come to them. Many have taken to earning a living through violence and deception. An end has come. The lesson we all must learn is that we must wear our thinking caps fast and see what honest and strait forward ways we must take to to be able to fulfill our destinies. May God help all of us not only to be able to survive but to get a notch on how we too can contribute to development and growth of humanity.
