As Black History Month gathers pace just bear in mind it is meaningless unless Nigeria assumes the same role among negroes as Russia does among the Slavs

Ayo Akinfe 

[1] We are into Black History Month but alas, what does it stand for? Surely the whole idea is to bring about equity and justice for the black man woman 

[2] When you look at our history and seen how we have been canon fodder for the rest of humanity, I can only shudder. Slavery, colonialism, raw material plunder, export dumping ground, etc 

[3] To make matters worse, we have been victims of foreign military intervention. When we have a progressive leader like say Sankara, Lumumba, Machel, etc, the former colonial masters step in and plan a coup against him 

[4] A lot of this has happened because Africa has had no “protector of the pride.” As we all know, only Nigeria can play that role and it is time for this giant to step up to the plate 

[5] Pan-Slavism, a movement which crystallized in the mid-19th century, is the political ideology concerned with the advancement of integrity and unity for the Slavic peoples. Its main impact occurred in the Balkans, where non-Slavic empires had ruled the South Slavs for centuries. Russia stepped in and said enough is enough 

[6] In 1823 the US did the same thing when  it opposed European colonialism in the Americas. It argued that any intervention in the politics of the Americas by foreign powers was a potentially hostile act against the US. President James Monroe published the Monroe Doctrine to this effect 

[7] What Nigeria simply needs to do is not only expend her influence but also her territory. Our current land mass is too small for us to defend the African continent effectively 

[8] A merger of Nigerian, Niger Republic, Cameroon and Benin Republic would make any colonialist think twice about coming to Africa. Mao Tse Tung once said: “China has been constantly colonised because of her weakness.” Look at China today 

[9] Do you know that during the apartheid era, China threatened to bomb South Africa if it’s citizens were not exempt from racial discrimination. Basically, China insisted that its people must be treated like Caucasians. I look forward to the day Nigeria will do that on behalf of all Africans 

[10] The irony is that Africa has many war-like people. We just need to tap into this energy and convert it from the current negativity into a positive force for change. Were I the president of a United Republic of Songhai, I would build an African Army made up mainly of the Fulani, Bagara, Zulu, Matabele, Tuareg, Kikuyu, etc. Would anyone mistreat Africa if we had 5m standing troops made up mainly of fierce-looking men from these ethnic groups