“The USA, the country which we often used as a model.....” — that was and remains a major source of our national challenge as a country.

The USA has no experience whatsoever in colonisation and colonial administration.

They were themselves a colony of those that colonised the country later known as Nigeria.

America has an interesting checkered history, no doubt, but I am strongly persuaded by the turn of events over the years that, we suddenly jumped into a bandwagon of what worked for others than what works and worked very well for our country Nigeria in adopting American governance model, instead of following through what we inherited from our colonial masters and the founding leaders of Nigeria.

Yes, America could serve as a role model in some aspects of our national life, but adopting the American governance model, hook line and sinker, without thorough introspection - without proper evaluation and synthesis of the system bequeathed to us by both our colonial masters and the founding fathers of Nigeria at independence in 1960, and by skewed military imposition following the unfortunate coups of 1966 - has somehow proved to be a grave mistake and a major undoing of our country’s governance experiments.

America could have just remained as an icon of self-determination, liberty and, eventually, a world power for us and no more while we followed our own path to greatness.

Elucidating more on this school of thought would require writing books of several volumes, which time and space wouldn’t permit here.

A few examples may just do for now.

As late as I970s, majority of Nigerians who were travelling to America for greener pastures were mainly those who may be likened to at best, 3rd 11 of good football teams. Many of the students in this category were mainly school drop-outs who couldn't fit into the good operating systems of Nigeria. Though, arguably, this wasn't applicable in all circumstances, neither superiority nor inferiority syndrome are intended here please.

Just simply mark my datum!

Those qualified Nigerians that went to America then, gained admissions to recognised institutions of higher learning and were variously sponsored by families, communities, government scholarships, bonded study leaves, and so on, and returned to Nigeria soon after their studies.

Not a few Nigerians then and those married to Nigerians preferred the Nigerian citizenship than what the American Green Card could afford.

Then, American Dollar was “inferior” to Nigeria’s Naira.

Then, the naira was preferred to the British pounds (Sterling) even on the streets of London.

Then, we had so much money that the military junta then naively exclaimed that they didn't know what to do with it.

Then, the recognised American Bachelor’s degrees were equated to Nigeria's Higher School Certificate (HSC) while degrees from Eastern Europe, Asian countries and their allies weren't even recognised for anything in Nigeria.

Then, the few institutions of higher learning in Nigeria were centres of academic excellence and role models in academic tourism.

Nigeria showed early signs of greatness with very high potentials, given our human and natural resources which our governance model at independence facilitated, despite her toothing challenges.

Yet, our skew military usurpers of government, for very selfish reasons, plunged Nigeria into the deep sh*t we now find ourselves. Again, please, mark my datum!

For instance, India, with over a billion citizens after the breakaways, that was colonised by same colonial master that colonised Nigeria, which followed through the governance model bequeathed to them, is not just a world power today but, far ahead in various areas of science and technology, among others, despite their numerous challenges at nationhood.

So, in a way, what Nigeria lost as a country, for instance, on her governance pathway, India gained as a nation.

Had Nigeria followed through the governance model bequeathed to her at independence in 1960, it is arguable that the “Asian Tigers” and their affiliates wouldn’t be a match to the giant strides Nigeria had started recording then in virtually all spheres of human endeavour.

Truly, the resistance “to federal system reforms is wearing thin, under the weight of its illogicality” but, it would amount to wasted aspiration if nothing is done now to quickly translate same to generate a workable governance model for Nigeria as envisaged by our founding leaders.

With the benefit of hindsight, those clamouring now for a return to the 1963 Constitution as a template for a new governance model for Nigeria effective from 2023, as being championed by “Eminent Elders Forum,” have “common sense”, which, only a few that are called into the deep know, is not common.

Perhaps, the time is now long overdue for us to use our tongues to count our teeth as a country.

Let me pause here!

•Echefuna’ R. G. Onyebeadi writes from FCT Abuja.