This is not a sanctimonious attempt to earthen the drooling failings of Nigeria. The Nigeria I know is as clumsily and nebulously unwieldy as its problems. From the patrician orbit of leadership to the thrashed stratum of followership Nigeria is an anti-climactic nightmare. Nigeria’s notoriety in classical nay fabulous malfeasance precedes it no doubt; its disease, however, is from a degenerative virus all Nigerians carry.

The virus that Nigerians carry is hypocrisy. Nigerians put a copious gob of spittle on fact or truth when it does not serve their corporeal ends, but become “pious” activists of it when they are certain that their bellies will be fed to corpulence.

Again, cynic patriotism, just like hypocrisy, is the capricious beverage Nigerians quaff defiant of mitigation and restraint; from which they belch arrogance, indiscipline, and irresponsibility.

In the same thread, a mélange of Nigerians abroad who have arrogated to themselves the authority of cutting down Nigeria with stoic vehemence fall largely into the unchallenged remit of hypocrites and cynic patriots. Some of the Nigerians abroad in this abashing category are Okey Ndibe, Pius Adesanmi, Rudolf Ogoo Okonkwo and Peregrimo Brimah. These Nigerians sit in their luxurious cubicles abroad and spread poison in the name of seminally engaging the minds of Nigerians. They prod Nigerians to revolt and extirpate the government, yet they cannot take the frontline in their anarchist struggle.

The essays of this infamous quartet are all doom and gloom. They seem to have a predilection for announcing only negative realities, and not that they care about the harrowing plights of Nigerians but because it gives them schad-en freude; a feeling of pleasure that they are far removed from the woes of the country.

Another thing about this quartet of hypocrites is arrogance. They assume that they have a firm grasp of Nigeria and its teething troubles even more than Nigerians living in Nigeria. Their analyses of the country are always outlandish, groggy and rebarbative.

This pretentious quartet cry louder than Nigerians living in Nigeria whenever there is a tragic occurrence in the country. They immediately claim vicarious liability, and stick out their claws to maul the government. Not that “the kernel of the gun-ho” means anything to them, but it satisfies their “megalomanic” hankerings. It gives them a feeling of importance that an army of uninformed and unsuspecting Nigerians is cheering them on in their vile campaign of bringing Nigeria down.

Apart from this gang, there are other Nigerians abroad whose job – owing to their joblessness and frustration – is to vituperatively mow down the government. Not that they know the ABC of governance, but they assume that because they are abroad it confers on them some intellectual stuff to speak about subjects they are patently blind to.

This article is not written to malign anybody, but to draw the attention of those mentioned here to the disaster of their pens. Writing is a great art which has subliminal effects; we must write responsibly and not incite readers to take the treacherous path of doom.

Nigeria stinks, we know that, but we do not need our brothers and sisters abroad to scream it into our ears all the time for that is sheer skulduggery. We can take more constructive paths in discussing the litany of issues in Nigeria. Let’s be more feeling and involved for we show ourselves hypocrites when we are physically divorced from a cause that we claim to fight for.

•Fredrick Nwabufo, whose photo appears alongside this piece, is a writer and a poet. He writes from Abuja and can be reached via e-mail: fredricknwabufo@yahoo.com, or by sms to 08167992075.

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