Whether they like it or not Nigerians have to get ready to storm the Bastille one day

By Ayo Akinfe

(1) Today is August 10. On this day in 1792 a large scale insurrection against the French monarchy occurred in Paris, following on from the original uprising in 1789. It later led to the French Revolution and that epitome of liberty, equality and fraternity known as the Paris Commune formed in 1871

(2) In 18th century France, corruption was more rife than it is in Nigeria today, the leaders were more uncaring and the life of the French peasant was sheer hell

(3) George Orwell captured the plight of the European peasant perfectly in Animal Farm when he said: “Our lives are laborious, miserable and short.”

(4) Not content to keep living like animals, the French rose up, overthrew their oppressors and subjected the ruling glass to that wonderful contraption La Guillotine. In Nigeria today, my people are living like 18th century European peasants but alas, they are scared of the word revolution

(5) Nigeria is the poverty capital of the world, the polio capital of the world, the out-of-school-kids capital of the world and now the open defecation capital of the world. Yet, the people are afraid of revolting and overthrowing their oppressors. In the history of mankind, there is no incidence of such national cowardice on record

(6) Globally, the French Revolution accelerated the rise of republics and democracies. It became the focal point for the development of most modern political ideologies, leading to the spread of liberalism, radicalism, nationalism, and secularism, among many others. Nigeria is a beneficiary of many of these rights today

(7) For me, probably the most lasting legacy of the French Revolution were some of its central documents, such as the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen. They gave humanity things like the right of association, free speech, liberty, etc

(8) Revolutionary women’s groups demanded vigorous price controls to keep bread from becoming too expensive but alas, they were confronted by market women, former servants and religious women who adamantly opposed price controls and resented attacks on the aristocracy and on religion. Fist fights broke out in the streets between the two factions of women. You see, the house negro syndrome has always been with us. Those French women acting like house negroes are no different from the Nigerians eating crumbs from the oppressors table today

(9) Omoyele Sowore has asked my people to waken up to the reality that if they want a better society, they must be prepared to fight for it but hey, my people are too scared to lay down their lives for a better future. They keep hoping that a messiah will fall out of the sky and land in Aso Rock and solve all their problems for them

(10) The way I see the Nigerian revolution happening is that one day, someone like Sowore will win elections and terrified of such a government the Nigerian ruling class will refuse to accept the outcome. We should all be prepared for that day because cometh the hour, we will all have to storm the Bastille!

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