by Ngozi Razak-Soyebi

G21 AFRICA Contributing Writer

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Ngozi
Razak-Soyebi

LAGOS, NIGERIA - Every man for himself; God for everbody.

Sounds like a slogan for a Bush campaign, huh? Well, this is a phrase that has caught on like wildfire in my homeland and has me greatly worried. It is no secret that the Western culture has impacted greatly on the African society -- the way we dress, the way we speak, our lingua franca, the programmes we watch on TV and the food we eat. We have even embraced the western form of 'transparency' in government, but I never thought the day would come when we would actually stop being our brother's keeper at the community level.

I do not consider myself a political writer. In fact, I prefer not to focus on political issues for two very simple reasons; it depresses me and I have reached the conclusion that our leaders and politicians are like recalcitrant juveniles out to drive their mama's crazy. However, I must state that it is extremely difficult for any writer in my country to distance himself from the politics of the land, especially when our problems are basically political, either directly or motivated by political considerations.

Only recently, the Human Development Report 2004 of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) ranked Nigeria 151st among 177 countries. We were ranked in the category of 'low human development.' According to the country representative of the UN agency in Nigeria, Dr. Tegegenework Gettu, some few individuals in the country were heavily rich, but the country's wealth did not penetrate to the majority of the people.

In addition, Nigeria is the world's sixth largest oil exporter, and yet, according to the CIA World Factbook, Dec. 2003, sixty percent of our population lie below the poverty line. See why I don't write politics?

Okay, so our leaders care for us about as much as they do the tissue they use to swipe their butts. Fine! But does that suggest that we as individuals should stop caring for each other at the community level?

Like I said earlier, I prefer not to focus on political issues. Indeed, I see myself more as a social commentator, whatever that means, and what has got my knickers in a twist is the unfortunate experience a friend had lately. Here's what happened... My friends goes shopping one bright, sunny afternoon at a very busy and popular market in the Lagos metropolis, finds the public parking lots fully occupied and decides to park her well-maintained car by the roadside. She is only gone about an hour or so, and by the time she returns, her indicator light (turn signal) and wing mirror (side mirror) on the driver's side has disappeared. Just like that!

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	When is the last time you talked politics with your dog' dogshatebush.com

In a state of shock, she looks round the vicinity and spots a makeshift barber's shop directly across. She approaches the barber, hoping to get some useful information and shed some light on the situation. Here's the con versation that ensues:

'Good afternoon, my brother,' she says to the barber. 'I just came out of the market and discovered the indicator light and side mirror of my car missing. Did you, by any chance, see anybody removing them?'

'I no see anything, madam,' he replies in the local vernacular.

'Okay. But did you see anybody loitering around the car,' my friend asks, rephrasing the question.

'I no see anybody, madam.'

'Are -- are you sure? Please think carefully,' she implores.

'I dey cut hair, madam. I no get eye for on top my head,' he says with sarcasm.

In frustration, my friend glances round the busy shop, which is no bigger than a shoe box, desperately hoping that someone in there might have seen something. 'Perhaps one of your customers saw someone by the car.'

'Dem no see anything,' the barber says quickly before any of his customers could speak. 'Dem come here come barb hair. Dem no come look motor.'

'But -- but somebody must have seen something,' my friends says, her voice rising.

He gives her a fierce look. 'Nobody see anything, madam. E better make you carry your motor go repair.'

Realizing the futility of her efforts, my friend turns to leave. Just then, one of the barber's customer decides to chip in on the conversation. 'Sorry-o-o, madam,' he says. 'Na so life be now -- every man for himself; God for everybody.'

Every man for himself; God for everybody?

My friend believes she was shabbily treated because of her gender. I doubt that very much. A man wouldn't have received any co-operation from those pack of 'consciousless' individuals.

I refuse to believe that none of those 'consciousless' individuals witnessed the theft. I do not profess to know much about cars, but I know enough to know that one requires a screwdriver or some equipment of sorts to lift an indicator light off a car. Someone had all the time in the world to dig out a screwdriver, work loose the indicator light and yank off the wing mirror as an added bonus and no one saw a thing. In broad daylight? I find that very difficult to swallow.

Every man for himself; God for everybody?

Now, I must state that this isn't about one missing indicator light and wing mirror. It is about our lack of consciousness as a people. Indicator lights and wing mirrors can be replaced at a cost, but there are certain other things that can't be replaced. Like human life, for instance.

I recall reading foreign magazines and newspapers about little girls snatched by unknown men while out playing in their neighbourhoods -- I still recall with anger and a great deal of distress the story of the six-year-old British girl, Sarah Payne -- and I would say to myself, 'No way can this happen in my community. Someone will see something. Perhaps even raise an alarm.' Now, though, I say, 'Yes way! It can happen here. Very much so.'

Every man for himself; God for everybody?

It is only right to assume that the other side of the coin to this distasteful phrase would be, Be your brother's keeper.

Have we as a people forgotten what it is like to be our brother's keeper? Have we lost our consciousness in the wake of civilization and modernization? The realization that we have saddens me even more when I recall that in Africa, unlike in the Western world, we have always embraced the extended family culture. Here, the proper care and upbringing of a child used to be the responsibility of the entire community and not just the parents.

Sadly, when I look around me now, I realize it isn't so anymore. We are all so caught up in our little sphere of life, minding our own business, that we have very little time, if any, to spare for each other. An indicator light and wing mirror disappears; a child is abducted; hit-and-run victims are left to bleed to death; children behaving badly aren't called to order.

Every man for himself; God for everybody?

A lot of people I spoke to while writing this article claimed that the reason why people are so reluctant to interfere or offer help these days is because they fear they might be accused of being the perpetrators of such bad deeds. I say hogwash! An innocent soul fears no accusation, right?

It is my strong belief that a nation without consciousness is a nation lost. The choice is ours.

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NGOZI RAZAK-SOYEBI - A full-time writer, Ngozi Razak-Soyebi's work has appeared on the internet website writershood.com and in the newsletter of the Women Writers of Nigeria (WRITA). More recently, her short story, The Passage, was chosen for publication in an anthology in the US. She lives in Lagos, Nigeria with her husband and seven-month-old daughter. This is her third article for The World's Magazine.