I love Naija

The titles of the books written and produced locally that i saw on a trip to the Tejuosho Market area, made me think about the way in which we are socialized in this country. It is often said that our behaviour is driven by our large population. I have heard the analogy that we are reacting like rats packed in cages, and therefore it is no wonder we are so aggresive as a default. The rats in various experiments, apparently turned on each other, and started a canibalistic feeding frenzy out of the sheer pressure created by their cramped living quarters. Their hostility to one another became a means of ensuring the survival of the fittest. The results of research into the behaviour of new born male rats and how high levels of testostorone drive them to start trying to eat each other when they are barely out of their mother's womb, is a topic for another day.
My own conclusions from the various experiments and how they relate to Nigerians is that we are very 'dog eat dog' in our approach to life and our actions are akin to the high testostorone induced behaviour of the new born 'male ratties' regardless of our gender.
Even our words of endearment will crack up the most stern faced individual.
'Look at your head like coconut', could be as much an insult as an expression of undying love.
A translation of a yoruba phrase that literally means ' if i slap you, you will instantly have a craving to eat all kinds of foods at once' tells me very clearly that we are graphic and dramatic in our speech and behaviour.
All the foregoing did not prepare me for the book titles i saw at a roadside bookshop, you know; the kind that has winnie the pooh sticker books nestled in any number of cheap, ghastly plastic toys, and all kinds of frightening looking text books targetted at children . The novels didnt inspire confidence either. There were titles like;
'Weep not mother'
'The ugly ones refuse to die'
' Amaka and the sacred fish'
All with suitably hideous illustrations on the book cover. It is food for thought, and fodder for great mirth as well. Ultimately, i can see that these inputs mesh together to unleash a great deal of innovation and entrepreuneural spirit in our country. There are many local champions, and pockets of excellence in almost every shpere of endeavour you can think of. My hope is that eventually, the pockets will spread, and there will be overlaps, and the remaining spaces inbetween will be infinitessimal, and we will have an upsurge of quality standards in this great nation.
So help us God!