10 things that happened on December 8 which gives me hope that ultimately Nigeria will get it right

By Ayo Akinfe

(1) On this day in 1941, US President Franklin Roosevelt delivers his "Day of Infamy" speech to US Congress a day after the bombing of Pearl Harbour. Within a year, they had got their fleet back up to full strength. Human ingenuity is simply unbeatable

(2) On December 8 1854, Pope Pius IX proclaims Immaculate Conception, making Mary, free of the “original sin.” A lot of what we Africans consider the “irrevocable word of God” are man made proclamations. With time we will get round to realising that religious faith is just a form of mind control

(3) On December 8 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued his Amnesty Proclamation and plan for Reconstruction of the South. The US went through a more divisive war than any African nation but look at them today. Secession is not the solution to any of our problems

(4) On December 8 1864 The Clifton Suspension Bridge, designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, is finally opened in Bristol, England, five years after his death. Bridge construction has never been the same since. One day, we will build suspension bridges linking Bonny Island with Port Harcourt

(5) On December 8 1874 a notorious band of outlaws led by Jesse James takes train at Muncie, Kansas. Believe you me, the armed banditry we have seen in the US makes of Fulani herdsmen and kidnappers look like saints

(6) On December 8 1876, Surinam begins compulsory education for seven to 12 year olds. I have hope that one day, we will have 99% literacy in Nigeria

(7) On December 8 1895 at the Battle at Amba Alagi, Ethiopian Emperor Menelik II defeats Italian General Baratieri. If the Ethiopian Army can beat the Italians, the Nigerian Army can surely defeat a rag tag army of religious fanatics

(8) On December 8 1923 the Labour/Liberals form a majority in the British Parliament after a general election. The Conservatives could not believe that a party of ordinary workers could beat them, the party of landowning gentry and blue-blooded nobility. Nobody is unbeatable

(9) On December 8 1936, the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People in the US filed a suit to equalise salaries of black and white teachers. Back then, they had different rates for people with the same qualifications doing the same job. However, ultimately, they overcame this

(10) On December 8 1946, the US Army rocket plane XS-1 makes its first powered flight. I remain the most optimistic of 200m Nigerians that we will be the ones who eventually manufacture an aircraft that travels at the speed of light. This will enable us to visit other solar systems and link up with other terrestrial beings who inhabit these planets