NIGERIA BEYOND OIL: By Elkabeer Mafara

Until oil dries up our leaders will not sit up to do the needful. I am conversant with South Korea and other South East Asian countries. They do not have any single deposit of natural resources in their countries, and yet they are doing very well. The Korean Chaaebols started by coping Japanese technologies tactically supported by their governments. They embarked on massive export drive because they received incentives or rebates from the government.

Today more than 80% of our petrochemicals are imported from South Korea, although they don't have a single deposit of crude in their soil. Even brake oil and engine oil too. Very soon if care is not taken, they would supply us both PMS and AGo.

Oil is insignificant when compared with numerous deposits of natural resources that are scattered around the country. Why can't we develop a sustained road map around them. Or is it agriculture? We have talents in Nigeria, among youths that no other individuals on the world possess... We are gifted with brains and ability to innovate in Nigeria...but what happened?

The moment an individual with extraordinary ability is discovered, government will :

1. Fails to recognise such ability
2. recognises & fail to develop on it in the individual

3. Plan to link such talent within the individual

4. Even plan to kill the individual himself!
They believe that such innovations will dit their jíjẹ mímú.

I don't think our leaders will nurture an individual or groups who can produce an electricity generator?

They will plan to kill them before actualisation, only because they are the ones in charge of importing generators and collection of loots from companies like CAT and Mikano, they allow them ignite heavy plants and structures in here while doing nothing about Nigerians who can actualize these things.

As for oil... Let it dry up! For if oil does not dry up, Nigeria is going nowhere. They have been talking of diversifying the economy, improving agriculture and bla bla bla... YET they are still planting drills in the ground and harvesting crude oil.

By Elkabeer Mafara
01/11/2017