How Stupidity Saved My Life

Okechukwu Ofili is the author of the inspiring memoir HOW STUPIDITY SAVED MY LIFE and has been featured in magazines and radio stations across the globe. His www.ofilispeaks.com "Monthly Success Tips" have been viewed and downloaded in over 30 different countries.

I was opportuned to meet him at the book reading session held at the Silverbird galleria, Abuja,which was also attended by other prominent writers.

Okechukwu Ofili is a charming young man with a witty way of crafting his words and inputing valuable moral lessons into his writing.

His book "How Stupidity Saved My Life" is a book I would recommend for young readers and young professionals. It is filled with motivational quotes,witty jokes and inspiring moral lessons.

I enjoyed reading every page of it.
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Lost Values

Why do Nigerian men and women come home to marry instead of marrying the women/men they’ve dated abroad. After all, most of the women/men who are already abroad are well-educated, well-read and well-traveled. These women/men know Nigeria and also understand the Western society. But in spite of their advantages,majority of these women/men are likely to lose their partners to women/men back home.

Maybe the reason is that Nigeria is still home to some of the most disciplined, well-behaved, well-schooled and well-brought up women/men. It is a shame that most of our young men and women who traveled abroad have lost their moral upbringing. The Women are believed to be loose while the men are believed not to be true Nigerian men.

These young men and women abroad are ambassadors of our great country, and the actions of every one of them plays a large role in forming the opinions that other members of the world would have of us. Nigerians complain about being put through rigorous checks and searches in international airports and public ridicule, we have been termed a Nation of Scam artists,and its because we painted ourselves in this light.

This lack of morality is seriously plaguing Nigerian youths in the diaspora and i believe it should be checked. A massive campaign on value re-orientation should be carried out for Nigerian youths. I have had the opportunity to interact with few of the ladies who spent their early life abroad and i was disappointed by some of the things that i noticed. This lack of values is now being emulated by young Nigerians within the country. In a bid to copy characters of the western world, we are fast losing our culture and heritage. We forget that character cannot be successfully copied. We must remain ourselves at all times, we must be original in our thinking and actions. We must never forget where we are coming from.

Its such a very sad experience that we are loosing young men and women to moral dearth. This should not be the case, the only way our generation can lead this country right is to be grounded in African principles of good moral upbringing. We must lead by example and prove that we are worthy leaders of our generation.

Kindly join me and lets build a generation of morally upright people, lets save our future and the future of our children.

THE NIGERIAN WEAKNESS

Sitting in my living room and listening to Olakunle Soriyan as he teaches about the concept of weakness and the way it cripples the mindset of people, I cannot help but agree with his theories.

As I continue to ponder on these principles,my mind is brought to the effect of how this folly as rubbed Nigeria of the capacity to fully attain its potential as a Nation.

Take for example the common belief that Nigeria's greatest weakness is the amalgamation of different tribes who share nothing in common and the forced marriage between the people of these different regions.

This factor has been the theme of various arguments,the results of which has led to a number of people proposing that the country be divided and each region should go its seperate way.

However I ask myself,is our union truly a weakness or is it actually opportunity and strength in disguise, Should we regard it as a disability or as a unique ability. Should our country be a salad bowl instead of a melting pot?

I believe there is no such thing as a weakness so I always look for the strength in all things. Doesn't our union bless our country with;
1. A beautiful landscape and a viable centre for tourist attractions

2.An opportunity to share cultures,food,languages and beliefs.

3.Hasn't our multiculturalism been a platform for social growth.

Kindly comment and share your views. What strengths and opportunities do you believe our union affords us as a people. Instead of looking at our perceived weaknesses,why don't we focus on our strengths.
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VISION 20 2020; A COLLECTIVE EFFORT

“By 2020 Nigeria will be one of the 20 largest economies in the world, able to consolidate its leadership role in Africa and establish itself as a significant player in the global economic and political arena.” NV2020

The Nigeria Vision 2020 economic transformation blueprint is a ten year plan for stimulating Nigeria’s economic growth and launching the country onto a path of sustained and rapid economic growth to become one of the top twenty economies by 2020.

The following critical priority areas were identified for immediate attention: Decentralisation of governance; sustainability; electoral reforms; land use/property reforms; public service reforms; national security; human capacity development and critical infrastructure (with particular emphasis on power and transportation).

According to NV 2020, the government intends to achieve the following goals by 20:20

GUARANTEE THE WELL BEING AND PRODUCTIVITY OF THE PEOPLE through the following;
• Eradicate extreme hunger and poverty
• Enhance access to quality and affordable healthcare
• Provide sustainable access to potable water and basic sanitation
• Provide accessible and affordable housing
• Build human capacity for sustainable livelihoods and national development
• Promote gender equality and empower women
• Improve access to micro credit
• Foster a culture of entertainment and recreation of enhanced productivity

OPTIMIZING THE KEY SOURCES OF ECONOMIC GROWTH through the following;
• Stimulate primary production to enhance the competitiveness of Nigeria’s real sector
• Significantly increase production of processed and manufactured goods for export
• Stimulate domestic and foreign trade in value- adding products and services.

FOSTERING SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT;
• Develop efficient accountable, transparent and participatory governance
• Establish a competitive private sector led business environment characterized by sustained macroeconomic stability
• Enhance national security and improve the administration of justice
• Promote unity in diversity, national pride and the conversation of the nation’s cultural heritage
• Develop sufficient and efficient infrastructure to support sustained economic growth
• Preserve the environment for sustainable socio- economic development
• Promote the development of geo-political regions into economic pole

In other for Nigeria to achieve these goals, not only must all hands be on deck but the Leadership in the person of President Goodluck Jonathan would have to fasten his belt. Countries like Singapore have achieved similar feats but not in a society where corruption reigns supreme, where Legislators are stealing national resources and where public offices in whose responsibility this drive is entrenched is given to politicians and not technocrats.

One mistake being made by the Federal Government is that it believes this project can be achieved solely by its agencies; the Nigerian people must be made to key into this dream and work together in achieving it. Nigerian youths most especially should see this focus as affecting them greatly because we would be around in the year 2020.

I would encourage everyone to download the mobile application of the VISION 2020 from this link; http://www.vision202020.mobi/app/ lets all study this document and find a way to make achieving it our collective goal.