Heartbroken… yet again

Emotionally exhausted, mentally depleted, fucking sick of it all… probably doesn’t begin to depict how Nigerians are currently feeling. We’re in a toxic relationship with our own country.

If you read my blog post about the nationwide protests against police brutality in the country, you would most likely understand my anger and pain right now. I really hoped that the next time I came on here to write about this, things would be better. I’m afraid it hasn’t. It became a horror story.

If we thought the government was bad before, we know now that they are pure evil. The devil himself resides in the hearts of these lot rent- free. It’s the only logical explanation for why a government would tactfully ambush peaceful protesters and send its fucking army to murder them. SOLDIERS KILLING UNARMED CIVILANS ASKING FOR THEIR RIGHT TO LIVE.

Let that sink in.

It’s not just bad that they would hate us enough to do this, nobody is taking accountability for this genocide. The governor says its ‘forces beyond him”, the president won’t even acknowledge the deaths. He kept mute about the disarray in the country for so long, only to break his silence with fifteen minutes of tone deaf nonsense and zero empathy. So did the army just come of their own volition to kill people?

They said the live videos of the massacre were ‘photoshopped’, and there were no casualties, even though the world could see the evidence of it LIVE on the internet. Make it make sense, please. Do they really think they can gaslight a whole country?

It’s the same government sending thugs to hijack protests, killing off citizens in cold blood for daring to question their terrible governance and ah, the most ridiculous part, hoarding Covid-19 palliatives meant for the people while they starved.

The lockdown due to the pandemic was so rough. People lost their jobs. Food prices skyrocketed. Several families could barely afford to feed themselves thrice a day. Meanwhile, local governments were hoarding food meant for the people in warehouses, for months! Enough food to feed whole towns were rotting in there, why? What manner of greed and wickedness is this for heaven’s sake?

The President said SARS was dissolved and this very day, there were reports of them still being on the road harassing people. They seem to have no control over their Police Force, yet they pull out the big guns when it comes to unharmed protesters.

Sigh.

Nigeria is not for the weak, man. This country will break your spirit if you’re not strong enough. I’m so sick of it all.

And yet, as horrendous as the whole situation is, I’m still foolish enough to hope for better. This fight is far from over and now that the youth know the power they wield to make things change, we simply cannot give up. It’s our responsibility now to become actively involved in politics and gradually dethrone these greedy old men so we can build the government we deserve. It will be a long walk to freedom but we must get there no matter how hard they try to silence us.

If this post seems all over the place, I’m sorry I’m unable to properly convey the turmoil of the past week over one blog post. It’s just… too much right now.

For more details about the Lekki democide earlier this week, here’s the link on Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lekki_massacre

To my fellow Nigerians reading this, how are you coping this period? I really hope you’re safe and well. If like me, you just need to vent about it all, let’s do so together in the comments.

Please hang in there and stay strong, this madness shall pass too. May God see us through this and let the victory be ours at the end. Don’t forget to take time off to recharge and recoup when you need to. You don’t have to feel guilty for staying off social media for the sake of your mental health. Anything that can keep you sane is allowed this period, dear friends.

My heart goes out to all the families who lost a loved one in this fight. I know nothing I say can make it better. May God console your hearts and grant you the mental fortitude to pull through this. May the souls of the fighters we lost rest in power.