Banky W was one of the attendees at the 5th Annual Bola Tinubu Colloquium, which held this week at the Shell Hall, Muson Centre, Onikan, Lagos Island – and he delivered a wonderful, moving speech that brought out the Martin
Luther in him and is meant to activate the Obama in you. It’s a bit long but POWERFUL…enjoy!
CHANGE… and how to be a part of it
I recently celebrated my
birthday… I was fortunate enough to go to Dubai to attend my friend
Tuface Idibia’s wedding… and I want to start off my speech by showing
you a couple of pictures of Dubai, because what I saw there inspired me.
Ladies and gentlemen, it is the same oil that was discovered there in
the 1960’s that they used to transform that society. The very same oil
that was discovered here. But what have our leaders done with it?
Benjamin Franklin once said “when you’re finished changing, you’re
finished”. I’d like to take that a step further by saying “we must be a
part of the change we seek, or risk being changed ourselves”.
The
question is no longer “will Nigeria change”… but rather, it’s “will it
change for the better or worse” and “who will lead that change”.
History
is rife with instances of regimes, institutions and societies seeming
stable and unshakeable… but young people being fed up with the status
quo, became the catalysts of Change in their societies. In recent times
we’ve seen young people all over the world clothe themselves with the
“change” mantle and become a part of the movement. We’ve seen that no
matter the society, and no matter the circumstances of oppression and
corruption, change is possible if the people decide that enough is
enough. From Tunisia, to America, to Egypt… young people are changing
the world every day. Nigeria should be no different.
They say
“insanity” is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a
different result. We cannot continue the same behaviours, year in, year
out and expect better results. Except for prayer, you can’t do the same
thing over and over again and expect things to be better. And even with
prayer, you actually have to get up and do something after all they say
heaven helps those who help themselves.
Things young people can do:
1) Be involved in the political process:
1.Register to vote
2.Actually Vote for the right candidates.
3.Or Sit back and let someone else steal your voice.
2) Peacefully protest
1.Media: Old & New
i.
Twitter, Facebook etc – I believe that even though the internet
accessibility in Nigeria is still low, we cannot ignore the importance
of such platforms. They serve as tools that can help in the movement.
And things are changing everyday… many phones today have some internet
capability or the other.
1.Efforts like Occupy Nigeria, Light Up Nigeria, Enough is Enough, etc.
2.Newspapers, blogs, etc.
3) Become fully involved in the Political process.
1.It’s
easier to talk about and/or criticize people that are working than to
do the work yourself. Join a party and try to help influence policy. We
can level the playing field if we all get involved in this Movement for
Change. And it’s not just at the federal level. Young people need to
start getting involved even from the local and state levels in order to
properly influence policy and society.
4) Use whatever voice
or platform you have… constructively. I’m a musician and so you’ve seen
me singing and speaking publicly about the need for the change in our
country… but you can use whatever sphere of influence you have… be it
with family, friends, school, neighborhood, church or mosque. Everyone
has a voice and a role to play.
I’m here because I’m a dreamer.
Everything I have now, that God blessed me with… was born out of my
dreams. I dreamt of becoming a singer; dreamt of owning my own Record
Label company, and other businesses. Dreamt of being able to influence
my surroundings, my city, my state and my country through my work. But
Some people stop at dreaming while others actually wake up and set about
trying to make those dreams come true.
I dream of a changed
Nigeria where each child, no matter the background has a dream of
his/her own, and is given access to education, healthcare, and basic
amenities in life to make those dreams come true.
I dream of a
changed Nigeria where the opportunities abound for anyone willing to
work for them; where every man, woman and child is given a fair shot to
avoid poverty and become a success at whatever they set their minds to
do.
I dream of the day in Nigeria where we finally live up to our potential – as citizens, leaders, countries, and as a Continent.
If
our children and future generations witness Nigeria in the same
conditions we have her today, then we would have failed them. That’s why
I’d rather be here, speaking with like minds and putting my hands to
the plow, than sitting at home being an arm chair critic.
We’re
all here because we want to be a part of Changing Nigeria for the
better. That’s why we are getting involved. Whether or not each person’s
intentions are pure… only God would know… only Time will tell and only
History will judge.
However I’d rather be a part of the movement
for change, than be one of those that are content to sit back and
criticize. I’d rather be a player on the field, or a coach, or a worker
on the team, than be a fan in the stands, or home watching on tv.
One
of my favorite sayings is “the best way to predict your future is to
create it”. We can extend that to say that we must create the Nigeria
that we want to live in. We must all speak up. We must all work for it.
We must all stand up and be counted, if our dreams are to become
reality.
I’m Banky W, and I stand for change. Do you?