TheCable

There is no denying the fact that our security agencies are over stretched and needs a new thinking to arrest the dark clouds hovering over country. Indeed, discussing domestic tourism under this very unfriendly atmosphere should be done in measured tone, considering the fact the lives of Nigerians and friends of Nigeria are of most important.

At the last count, Nigeria has become the largest and biggest factory of armed robbery, kidnapping, cultism, terrorism and many other dangerous seeds of social dislocations in West Africa. Lagos State, Nigeria former federal capital and fastest growing economy on the west coast has being brought to its knees by blood sucking demons in human flesh, while Edo, Ondo, Kogi and Kaduna highways have become dangerous den of robbers and kidnappers.

These hounds kill for pleasure and if Odua Peoples Congress (OPC) leader, Gani Adams must be taken serious, blood soaked handkerchiefs are sold for millions of naira by these jackals in witchcraft night markets. Our roads are not only death traps due to deliberate neglects, poor construction and repairs, trips to any part of the country could land any road user into kidnappers forest den.

From Kaduna to Abuja, Calabar to Benin, Nigerians and foreigners who dare the wolves on our highways have plenty ordeals to recount, that is, if they live to share their pains and regrettable adventure into the devils terrain that Nigeria has become.

It is sad to hear Nigerians cancel trips to most part of the country on account of these negative developments and worrisome to the mind, is what appears as helpless acceptance of this scenario by government security agencies and our traumatized people as part of our new way of life.

Except for the Nigerian Army that has taken it upon itself to fight this growing culture of satanic manifestation, the Nigerian police seems over burdened by the daily occurrence of robberies in city centres, the highways, kidnappings of all shades and kinds and growing population of cultists that no longer hide in dark places and now operates openly with impunity.

In Nigeria today, our deliverers’ needs deliverance as each man is for himself and family alone. Significantly, our leaders who go around with police protection or army escorts are no longer safe. We are now forced to wear identification badges or in order words, bear the devils mark and keep machetes in our homes for protection.

The world is watching us and may not come our way soon even Nigerians are not deceived. When last did we see any of our frontline political leaders travel our highways? When last did they holiday at our obudu ranch or take a weekend rest in Ghashaka national park or boat on our waterways?

When last did our latter day tourism apostles do a train round trip of the country or visit the Enugu milking hill? Our leaders find pleasure in police escort from our local airports to their city destinations and parade the best security architecture around their homes where they pay lip service to tour Nigeria and pretentiously console victims of the vipers on our highways.

Obviously, the missing gap lies in the absence of a strong bridge that can factor our needs into a solution frontier. The Minister of Culture and Tourism is waiting for the official inauguration of a Presidential Council on Tourism (PCT) to drive an initiative to which the government has ignored and responded with approved platform for ease of doing business that should be engineered to speak and address the fears of robberies on our highways and the depopulation of kidnappers in Nigeria.

In our tourism world, pride rules the roadmap of our supposed domestic tourism efforts, which may lead to our projected failings as all hands are not the deck. The Nigerian tourism authorities are on their own; rolling out blueprints cleverly designed to fail but projected as a solution to reinvent tourism culture and its attendant benefits.

If Nigerians must visit Nigeria, are our minds must be primed to accept and find solution to the listed negative challenges facing the nation. Except for soccer, is there any event or national celebration that brings us together as a people? Are we proudly Nigerian in fashion, gastronomy, dance and songs? There is no denying that we are divided on so many lines and one wonders at the very poor attempt to clean us up and bring us together.

Infact, there is no holistic national movement presently that is worth a buy in by Nigerians. The Nigerian tourism products are in shambles and beg for a touch of renewal and repackaging that are predicted on lines of our famed hospitality and celebration of the very essence of mankind.

We do not mock the poor in our midst neither do true Nigerians blackmail those who comes to them for help or task their best for the collective good. Our culture abhors crime and criminality and sits in judgment in the market place of our communal moonlight dance to stamp out brigands, acts inimical to our growth, discussions on tribal lines that fuels poisons of separation and disunity.

The winning ways of consensus and deliberate sensitiveness to the thin lines in our diverse cultural attributes are not a night club affair that intoxicates patrons to juvenile pronouncements but a clear dosage of medicinal reality that opens the mind, soul and body of Nigerians to the various gifts to binds us together as a nation.

It will be Uhuru therefore to see well thought out tourism initiatives and policies and not slogans that cannot generate jobs, pay bills and develop our rural communities. There must be sincere efforts to harmonize the various segments of the octopus tourism and culture sectors to breath back seamless travels across Nigeria on sea, land and air.

The drum beat of the moment is so feeble, lacking rhythm to generate the powerful vibrations that could gladden the hearts of depressed Nigerians from the fear of a nation once so proudly loved but now swimming in blood and sorrow.

What we desire now is a deliberate campaign to bring back the Nigerian spirit of love for the strength and respect of the weaknesses of our diverse culture and our great sense of hospitality so rich in expressions and to which the minds of humanity is so at ease to propagate.

To therefore rebrand Nigeria is to bring all stakeholders together to redefine the process of our new tourism engagements and red mark milestones that will flourish the delivery. Attempts in whatever disguise to drive a one man train in this quest will crash our dreams and leave behind orphans in delusion and apostles of tourism haters.

Nigerians, particularly the Nigerian tourism press must wake up and challenge our leaders in public and private endeavours to live-up to expectation and make Nigeria a proud destination. We must resist leaders who cannot measure up and be bold to call for their removal. Those who sponsor divisions among the tourism press will ever live to regret their foolish action.