Opinion: Entitlement Mentality, Love for Poverty and the Emergence of Buhari in 2015

By Simeon Nwakaudu

I want to say clearly, that Failed President Muhammadu Buhari emerged in 2015 because of the wave of entitlement mentality and the preference of poverty by a sweeping majority of Nigerians.

If you under-study the population, you understand that more people prefer to identify with failure than success. They prefer a man/woman who hardly makes progress to those that grow. Therefore, if any growth is seen around you, you are tagged a “looter “, criminal and a cheat.

It was on this premise that Buhari pretended to be poor, played the poverty card and deceived the poverty loving majority. He claimed he could not afford his form and had to borrow. But the truth remains that Buhari has always been a multi-millionaire with property in Abuja, Kaduna and Daura. He has always been chauffeured in armoured vehicles and remained on Presidential Payroll since 1984.

It is for this reason that a Tinubu who is quietly richer than Dangote through whatever means would claim to be criticising corruption.

This love for Poverty flows from the entitlement mentality of the average Nigerian. Rather than work to improve him/herself, the average Nigerian believes that his survival is tied to that of his more prosperous brother, relative or friend. He places crippling demands on such relatives and when certain expectations are not met, the man/woman is adjudged a wicked person.

Therefore, the man/woman with entitlement mentality passes judgements strictly on instant benefits. In this wise, they switch camps like prostitutes. They have no morals and respect no scruples. They are only governed by instant gratification and no other consideration.

It was for this reason that prominent politicians betrayed Goodluck Jonathan because they felt they were entitled to certain benefits. On this score, they were prepared to commune with a failure to the detriment of the nation.

Today, certain persons are up in arms against Pastor Enenche for building the largest auditorium in the world. To them, a Church lacks the right to embark on such a project because it is supposed to be enmeshed in poverty.

But in their criticisms, many failed to take into consideration, the economics of constructing the church. How much was pumped into the local economy? How many workers were employed whilst construction lasted? How many persons will be employed to maintain the building over the years? How many workers will work daily at the auditorium?

For those who criticise the church for her style of development, I dare say if other areas develop like the Church , Music and Nollywood , the pace of growth would have been outstanding. The Church develops universities, primary and secondary schools, hospitals, printing ventures, humanitarian services and transport businesses. Like every human engagement, there will be areas of deficiency, fraud and mistakes. This does not detract from the awesome contributions of the Church.

The mega church in Abuja is now a tourist destination. The same way they criticise the Church is how they pour scorn on nollywood. They fault every film, but forget the contributions made.

Rather than dwell on the perceived shortcoming of the Church or any organisation for that matter, excel in your area of strength.

We have too many fault finders in Nigeria. Men and women who suggest ways a successful man/woman ought to do things, but never do anything on the field. They tell the Church what it ought to do, but have no successful feats for themselves.

Wherever we find ourselves, we must begin to embark on productive ventures. We must contribute to the development process. I am yet to see a society that excels on the prevalence of high percentage of arm-chair critics.

Only the working class develops a country. Our percentage of critics is in excess of 75percent of the population. This accounts for the national stagnation . There must be a strategic shift.

When you think you are entitled to patronage from any source, remember you are under divine obligation to produce. When you pull down successful persons, remember, no society thrives in poverty. We landed ourselves in this trench of failure because of the lies that poverty is virtuous. We must pick ourselves up in 2019.