The rate at which some Nigerians undermine fellow citizens in a bid to impress expatriates is sickening and appalling. Nigerians are harassed, ridiculed and even intimated by their own just to curry favour from expatriates. Sadly, this ugly trend doesn't seem to take a kamikaze plunge any soon. Expatriates are seen as semi-gods and are literally worshipped. Let me say "it's like we have been jazzed by some fiendish demons" Feed up with this show of inferiority, the question,"why do Nigerians feel inferior to foreigners"popped up.
I was walking along Oron Road when I spotted an eye-catching SUV "blame my taste"it was packed in front of one of the biggest supermarkets in town, I was wondering who could have such balls "except some elite politicians" to navigate the streets of Uyo without a number plate, I was still looking out for the owner of the vehicle, when a middle aged Lady who I guess was Indian strolled lazily towards the car to drop the goodies she bought, at first I tried to recollect if the day was a public holiday, no it wasn't, then how did she traverse the length and breadth of uyo without her vehicle not seized? what excuse did she give for her car not carrying a number plate? The same FRSC who perpetually lay siege on our roads in wait for drivers to flout traffic rules and won't hesiatate billing you a fine the money equivalent of a hectare of land in Victoria Island suddenly went blind when clearly a traffic law was contravened. Would a Nigerian drive through the streets of Mumbai without a number plate? Your guess is good as mine.
Lest we forget, two Lebanese were caught stockpiling arms and ammunitions somewhere in Abuja, I was expecting the Federal government to press charges against the duo. Like it's the norm here, the case died a natural death, a direct contrast to what Nigerians would have been subjected to if caught in such web(s). What about the expatriates who walk freely through the streets of the country without paying taxes. Nigerians can't try that abroad.Let me remind us of the few Nigerians who have scars from wilfully flung horse whips because our security agents wanted to create an in existing passage for some high profile expatriate. Which U.S police officer will inflict bodily injuries on his fellow citizens because of a black?
Nigerians who own private businesses or even personnel managers in multinationals will prefer an expatriate employee to a Nigerian because they believe an expatriate is always ahead of his black compatriot,
Some days back, images of a white lady on the streets of Lagos flooded our social media platforms, I initially thought she has just unravelled the mystery behind the mysterious disappearances of ships and airplanes at the Bermuda triangle or maybe she postulated a new scientific theory, lo and behold, all the goodwill she had was just because she hawked sachet water. I wondered what made her hawking sachet water special when thousands of Nigerians have been hawking sachet water on a daily basis..Its like some of us have accepted Nigerians were wired to suffer while the whites have everything at their beck and call even when they don't make efforts. In the middle of the frenzy, I guess some journalists probably went to inquire of her name, don't be surprise when you see an answer to this question "who was the first European/American to hawk pure water in Nigeria"
The travails of Nigerians abroad is summed up in Sophie Okonedo's movie "The Undercover", we are battered abroad and bruised at home.