By Chief Malcolm Omirhobo .
LAGOS JANUARY 9TH (NEWSRANGERS)-Bayo Oluwasanmi’s recent opinion, “Nigeria: A Divided Country, Time for Velvet Divorce,” captures the deep frustration, grief, and anger many Nigerians feel in the face of insecurity, injustice, and persistent state failure. On these realities, there is little disagreement. Where I respectfully disagree with the author is in his conclusion that Nigeria’s current condition logically or morally demands separation.
I believe in One Nigeria indissoluble, yet not a do-or-die affair. Nigeria must never be held together by force or bloodshed. But neither should it be abandoned simply because its leaders have failed to govern it properly.
It is historically true that Nigeria was created by the United Kingdom from several nationalities for colonial economic advantage. But history alone does not determine destiny. Many modern states were forged from diverse peoples; what distinguishes success from failure is not homogeneity, but constitutionalism, justice, and accountable leadership.
Nigeria’s tragedy did not begin with its creation; it deepened after independence, when political and military elites failed to deploy the country’s vast human and mineral resources for the benefit of ordinary citizens. Ironically, Nigeria today commands far more known wealth and capacity than Britain ever exploited during colonial rule. The problem, therefore, is not Nigeria’s diversity but elite failure and institutional decay.
The author cites terrorism, mass killings, and state impotence as evidence that Nigeria has collapsed beyond repair. These horrors are undeniable and must be confronted without denial or euphemism. Yet insecurity is not proof that coexistence is impossible; it is proof that the Nigerian state has abandoned constitutional duty, failed to protect lives equally, and replaced the rule of law with selective governance.
When a pot of soup gets sour, wisdom does not demand throwing away the pot; it demands washing it and cooking again. Nigeria is that pot. Diversity did not spoil the soup; corruption, impunity, and injustice did.
Those calling for separation must also confront an inconvenient truth: even if any ethnic group is granted independence today, agitators will still arise tomorrow. If the same attitudes corruption, intolerance, abuse of power, and disregard for law are exported into new states, those states will fail as well.
Geography does not create good governance; character and institutions do.
Indeed, many who call for separation may ultimately remain where they are and later discover that they miss Nigeria not the Nigeria of predatory elites, but the Nigeria of shared struggle, interdependence, and unrealized potential.
Nigeria’s crisis is therefore not evidence that unity is impossible. It is evidence that Nigerians leaders and citizens alike have failed to obey the Constitution, choosing whims, fear, and suspicion over law, justice, and accountability.
The answer is not One Nigeria by force, and not Nigeria at all costs.
The answer is One Nigeria by law, equity, and constitutional discipline.
Nigeria does not need a “velvet divorce.”
Nigeria needs leaders who obey the law and citizens who insist on it.
A human right activist, Barr Malcolm Omirhobo writes from Lagos
For media advert placement, events coverage, media consultancy, placement of publications and further inquiries please WhatsApp 2348023773039 or email: labakevwe@yahoo.com
