NIGERIANS LIVE IN HELL SAYS A.P.C CHIEFTAIN

Mr Ayoola Rilwan Lawal,Coordinator of the All Progressive Congress[A.P.C]is sad about the quality of leadership been provided in Nigeria by its current leadership.

NIGERIANS LIVE IN HELL SAYS A.P.C CHIEFTAIN

BY ABDULMUMINI ADEKU

Against the background of the leading party in opposition in Nigeria, the All Progressive Congress [A.P.C]to trade tackles with the ruling Peoples Democratic Party [P.D.P]in the forthcoming 2015,General elections ,Paedia Express Multimedia’s Managing Editor, Abdulmumini Adeku  examines political development among Nigerians in the Diaspora in an interview with A.P.C’S Scandinavian Coordinator: Mr Ayoola Lawal,excerpts

How is the situation with A.P.C in the Scandinavian region?

We have not  done the convention like over here in Nigeria but all our officials are involved in interim capacity, we put up all the structures  together to make sure that everything works out well.

How many members do you have ?

It is difficult to say  that in each of the Scandinavian nation  we have not less than  2,000 members each ,it is an on-going exercise  and we keep talking to potential members .

How do you get funding for your activities so far?

For now it is much of self funding ,basically an average Scandinavian will tell you that it is not about money but using politics to offer a selfless service to your country.

Here you see a lot of people  who want to vie for positions  and they are not contributing much in the terms of development except to take out of the system but out there things  are a lot very much different because of the systems in place.

The quality of life in the Scandinavians cannot be compared to anywhere around the world.in the top ten of the riches nations of the world they are rated,so also are they rated in the best nations to live in category.

What are the criteria’s for measuring this development in the Scandinavians?

You look at such criteria’s like Gross Domestic Product ,Human development  Index, revenues, rule of law, human rights ,infrastructural base education, socio-cultural aura and every other thing you can think of.

Can such things work here in Nigeria?

We all have what it takes except that we want to eat our cake and have it back always.

How do you cope with the weather?

In Sweden they say that there is no bad weather but bad clothing and a wrong mindset. so you just have to know what to wear at  each point ,getting Nigeria into top shape again will mean that you have to be ready to sacrifice and pay the price.

In every one of us can unite and work very hard  then we can get there as nobody can do it alone ,truth be told if there is a Hell ,then Nigerians live in Hell as I have to be candid about this.

When I travel around the world I meet a lot of fellow Africans and they give me a lot of hope as they say that I have the potentials that my nation, Nigeria needs in the future.

Why do you think people lay emphasis on cash rather than service in Nigeria?

It becomes emotional when I try to go into full details ,you will ask yourself a question, are we really cursed?

Some people are getting very rich at the expense of the masses while many are getting very poor.

How many companies will say that they are not exploiting  the masses and the leadership does not even care about any of this .we need a nation that can inspire us at all times.

We should stop using religion and tribal sentiments to fight each other ,when the military were in power what did they do for us .

People should  seat down and ask why is it that Nigerians when they travel abroad begin to do things that they could not do at home .It is high time that the government seat up to help the nation .

What is your opinion about the monarchy system in Europe?

They live on the state but they do a lot of humanitarian activities, there is no basis for comparison  at all as I have travelled around a lot.

Except you wish to do something about  the sorry state we live in Nigeria you tend to develop a morbid hatred for people who conspired to bring the nation on its knees.

If given opportunities can you replicate what you have seen in Europe in Nigeria?

I cannot do that alone ,I need others to help me ,people cannot understand what I say except if they have lived there .a nation cannot grow when you do not have good leadership in place while investing in quality education.

The day a leader takes the mantle of leadership he must have the mind of a soldier,in addition to this you must have a level of flexibility for the greater good of the people. anybody from the Scandinavians that gets involved in Nigerian politics is doing it from the bottom of the heart as things are pretty bad.

What is the nature of Tourism in Sweden,Finland,Denmark,Norway,Iceland like at the moment?

It is just as you will expect like any other place around the world as they have a lot of historical landmarks.

Can you give us an insight into the activities of your Non-governmental body,  the Nordic-African Association ?

It serves as a bridge between the Nordic nations and African countries ,it also help in the area of bridging the divide in socio-cultural values, economic and trade ties.

We have been doing a lot of things since we started ,Nigerian embassies abroad are not doing anything with our embassies and consulates  as we all believe that they are just like the leadership back at home ,very disappointing bunch.

When Nigerians tell you about their experience abroad with our embassies you will want to cry,we only have one Ambassador representing us in  the entire Scandinavians region .

The Scandinavian A.P.C.have come out with a road  map that will help the people to have a reason to live finally ,people are making lots of money in Nigeria because they profiting from the loopholes in the system.

What are the projects the kind of projects has your NGO handled so far?

We have a program called High talk, we invite intellectuals to deliver papers, organize  seminars, workshop that will generate ideas that will move the society forward.

At the back of my house in Gothenburg, Sweden ,we have 24 standard soccer pitches and this is a normal thing for us in Sweden,it really has nothing to do with luxury.

Been poor in the Scandinavians is not been able to buy an Apple laptop whenever a child needed it immediately and may be recent computer games ,though it is not impossible that the same parent can buy the products for his wards in two month time. You can be in a library and do any thing you want apart from sleeping on a bed

When can we get to be really industrialized?

It took some nations a very few years to become the Asian tigers that they are  but now we really need leaders that are seriously committed.

People always forget that leadership is transient but if things continue this way there may be some kind of revolution of some sort on the long run, In life it is not how beautiful the campfire is but it will definitely come as the unwanted visitor will come one day.