Attitudinal change is probably our most needed requirement right now

[1] I am sure that by now you have all seen this picture of the flooding at the Sam Mbakwe International Cargo Airport in Owerri. I must admit, it is the first time I have seen an airport flooded

[2] Earlier today, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) urged the public to totally disregard the online video, saying that the images were from an in incident in 2014. Let us assume that this is correct and the incident is three years old, we all know that nothing has changed significantly in our mindset to prevent such a flooding happening again

[3] Nigerians are quick to blame the government for all our woes but I sometimes ask if buck passing is not actually responsible for a majority of our woes? Is it the job of the president or the aviation minister in Abuja to fix the drainage at the Owerri Airport?

[4] Every airport in the world has a facilities management team, that will include a works and maintenance division. This will include mechanics, builders, carpenters, etc. Surely, there will be such a team on the ground at the Owerri airport. When an emergency like that occurs, surely, the maintenance team should swing into action immediately but knowing us, they were probably waiting for "oga at the top" to come and give them instructions

[5] Owerri airport has a maintenance department and it has a budget. Once it was noticed that there was a drainage problem, the staff on the ground should have moved into action. The duty manager at the time should have accepted full responsibility for the situation

[6] I recall an instance of Fulani herdsmen planning to carry out an attack in Enugu State last year and the local police and army commanders said they cannot move until they got clearance from the presidency

[8] Too often, this "big man" syndrome, which inhibits local initiative, acting in response to the issue on the ground causes a lot of avoidable calamities in Nigeria. Our gerontocratic culture is a huge impediment to our progress as a people as out combination of status and age join forces to stifle initiative

[9] Do you know that some of the instances of baggage being delivered to wrong locations is because one "big man" comes along to the airport and says he wants to use the Airbus instead of the 737. This means that a plan already loaded with luggage ends up going to a different location than the one it was scheduled to

[10] As a people, we need to jettison this "oga at the top" culture and this "I senior you" attitude if we are to progress. Do you know that during World War Two when there was rationing in the UK, children were given priority when it came to food? Yes, kids had to eat first and then what was left went to adults. Can you ever imagine that happening in an African country? I have always said that attitudinal change is probably the most important change required in our daily lives.