as 2009 with the baseless killings that took the guise of political or religious riots in Plateau State then. Little did I know that Nyanya bomb attacks and the Chibok school girls abduction would take place afterwards. After all these had occurred, I became weak, I had cried so much, I was speechless, I became numb. Hmmn!
Pain can become numbing, but I joined the fight in prayers and with my tweets, I mustered a little strength, drawing from those who were strong too. Trying hard not to imagine that evil has happened to any of those girls. This is my bit of the experience.
But something else happened, I wasn't the only one who felt this way or worse. A whole lot more Nigerians did too and decided 'the die was cast' this time. They were tired, ready, and they mustered strength from each other, removed the scale from each others eyes, revealing that what had befallen us was way beyond a single incident. Wailing with the pains we couldn't physically express on social media, we screamed to the whole world like women with birth pangs. It really feels like that even though I have never birthed, and many other Nigerians just like me feel these pains beyond physical experience. We recalled the days these abducted children may have been born and the pains their mothers may have felt, it could not compare to the pain of having to be silent and somehow watch them killed, be sold away, or any other hideous act that we pray will not occur. So we cried with pains more excruciating than birth pangs to anyone who cared to listen.
The tears were not just therapeutic, they opened our eyes because ta ba n sunkun a ma n riran. I don't know how to translate that, but our cries made us realize that words would never be enough. We needed actions, an action wouldn't do anymore. We needed to lead, our leaders wouldn't do anymore. We needed the world, our country wouldn't do anymore. We needed to walk, our stand wouldn't do anymore.
We knew that we lived in a weak and synonymous to a failed system that didn't value life or anything at all as far as it was attached to the faceless masses, but we suffered from learned helplessness, evasive approach towards our rights, fundamental attribution error, and complacent attitude towards the tragedies that could have been us. Please forgive the jargon.
But we have been revived, most of us by #BringBackOurGirls. Revived from the trance that has plagued us for years by this shock therapy #BringBackOurGirls. We would no longer watch from the sidelines. We would no longer give our silent consents. We no longer suffer and smile. We would no longer keep quiet. We would no longer sit on our butts when and where footprints are needed. We have gathered like unified ants determined to consume an elephant and yes it is possible. We got the whole world's attention and gave them a shock therapy too. :-b
Now I have more hope and more strength. Tears in my eyes and joy in my heart. That they would return and a lot of positive transformations would follow. This Country can be cleansed, things can get right. We would fight in the best way we can and work it become the world's desirable (pun intended). We would fight for what is right and our rights. An oppression to one would be an oppression to all. Aluta continua! Victoria ascerta!
Live.Learn.Love
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