MUSA-ODODO ABDULRAHAMAN
A Crucial Message to the Nigerian Elite
I. DEFINING THE TRUE ELITE
A True Elite is not merely someone occupying a high office or possessing wealth, power, or educational qualifications. Rather, a true elite is defined by:
Conscious Leadership: The ability to understand the deeper needs of society and act selflessly in service of the common good.
Visionary Thinking: Seeing beyond personal or group interest, and working toward national and civilizational purpose.
Moral Responsibility: The inner discipline to uphold justice, truth, and integrity, even at great personal cost.
Transformational Impact: Using one’s influence and privilege to effect genuine change that uplifts the people and secures a better future.
“Elites are meant to be torchbearers – those who see the road ahead, light it for others, and walk boldly into the unknown for the sake of the whole.”
II. THE FAILURE OF THE NIGERIAN ELITE: AN EMPIRICAL DIAGNOSIS
Nigeria has, for over six decades, produced political, intellectual, economic, religious, cultural, military, and media elites. However, by every empirical and moral measure, these elites have largely failed in their historical duty to midwife the emergence of a just, prosperous, and united nation.
Empirical Facts of Elite Failure:
- Mass Poverty amid Wealth
Nigeria is Africa’s largest economy by GDP, yet over 133 million Nigerians live in multidimensional poverty (NBS, 2022).
Elite capture of public resources and systemic corruption have denied the majority access to basic needs.
- Education Collapse
Despite many elites being foreign-educated, Nigeria has over 20 million out-of-school children, the highest in the world.
The education system has been neglected, underfunded, and politicized.
- Security Breakdown
Insecurity is now national: Boko Haram in the Northeast, Bandits in the Northwest, Unknown Gunmen in the Southeast, Oil bunkering in the South-South.
Elite refusal to reform the security architecture or address root causes is evident.
- Healthcare Neglect
Nigerian elites travel abroad for healthcare while over 90% of citizens rely on broken public hospitals.
Infant and maternal mortality remain among the highest globally.
- Nationhood Crisis
Elites have weaponized ethnicity and religion for personal and political gain.
National unity remains weak, with secessionist agitations rising.
- Institutional Decay
Rule of law is routinely subverted.
Institutions are politicized and serve elite interest, not public good.
The elite class – across all sectors – has pursued power without purpose, wealth without wisdom, and education without enlightenment. That is not elite leadership; it is elite failure.
III. WHY REFORMS WILL NEVER SAVE NIGERIA
Reforms are like patching a leaking ship in a storm. They might slow the sinking temporarily but cannot guarantee survival. Nigeria’s challenges are not administrative; they are existential.
Empirical Proof That Reforms Have Failed:
- Anti-Corruption Reforms
From ICPC, EFCC, to TSA and BVN – yet Nigeria ranks 154th out of 180 on Transparency International’s Corruption Index (2024).
Corruption is more systemic and institutional than ever.
- Electoral Reforms
Electoral laws have been amended multiple times, yet elections remain rigged, monetized, and violent.
- Constitutional Reforms
Over six constitutional conferences and various amendments since 1999, yet the 1999 Constitution remains unfit, lacking legitimacy, and deeply disconnected from the people.
- Economic Reforms
Deregulation, SAP, privatization – yet Nigeria remains import-dependent, debt-ridden, and jobless.
The Naira has collapsed from ₦21/$ in 1991 to over ₦1600/$ in 2025.
Conclusion: The system is not malfunctioning; it is fundamentally misdesigned. No amount of reform can revive a dead organism. It Must be Reborn.
IV. THE NEED FOR NATIONAL REBIRTH: THE COSMIC ORDER OF DEATH AND BIRTH
Every true civilization goes through a cycle: Birth and Rise, Crisis and Collapse and Rebirth.
Historical Examples of National Rebirth:
Germany post-WWII – From Nazi collapse to democratic rebirth.
Japan after Hiroshima/Nagasaki – From imperial militarism to pacifist innovation.
Rwanda after Genocide (1994) – From ethnic ruin to a united, forward-looking society.
South Africa post-Apartheid – From racial oppression to a democratic rainbow nation.
Nigeria’s Current Reality:
Nigeria is dying, not in a poetic sense, but in a measurable one:
Trust is dead.
Institutions are comatose.
Unity is fractured.
Vision is absent.
Hope is fading.
A True Rebirth is no longer optional. It is an existential imperative.
V. WHAT IS NATIONAL REBIRTH?
National rebirth is a spiritual, institutional, psychological, and systemic renewal of a nation. It is a re-founding.
It is not a change of rulers; it is a change of purpose.
It is not a reshuffling of power; it is a redefinition of the State.
It is not an update of policies; it is an upgrade of the collective consciousness.
VI. THE PATHWAY TO NIGERIA’S NATIONAL REBIRTH
- National Reflection & Honest Diagnosis
We must ask: Who are we as a People? Where is our Unifying Purpose? What is the Nigeria Dream?
A National Truth Commission must be created to uncover the wounds we have buried.
- National Consciousness Movement
Build a mass movement to awaken national identity, unity of purpose, and shared destiny.
Youth, intellectuals, civil society, and patriots must lead the charge.
- Convening a Broad-Based National Dialogue
A Sovereign National Dialogue, not a politically controlled conference, must be held.
Ethnic nationalities, youth, women, religious bodies, traditional institutions, diaspora, and more must participate.
- Adoption of a New Constitution
Draft a People’s Constitution that reflects our diversity, shared ideals, and future aspirations.
This must include restructuring, true federalism, and social justice.
- Establishment of Rebirth Institutions
Create a National Rebirth Commission and a School of National Consciousness to educate a new generation of patriotic Nigerians.
- Enshrine a Nigeria Dream
A clearly defined national aspiration – a nation of justice, peace, a space where human ingenuity thrives, innovation, and global excellence.
- Leadership by Higher Politics
A new leadership class must emerge – driven by wisdom, compassion, and universal principles.
We need Philosopher-Statesmen, not ethnic champions or billionaire hustlers.
VII. A FINAL MESSAGE TO THE NIGERIAN ELITE
You were born in a generation that holds the destiny of a continent. If you fail to rise now, posterity will not forgive you – and history will not forget you.
This is not the time for more reforms. It is the time for a New Nigeria – consciously created, deeply rooted in eternal principles, and globally relevant.
Nigeria is not too poor to be great; she is too unconscious to rise.
She doesn’t need more policies; she needs purpose.
She doesn’t need cosmetic change; she needs a cosmic rebirth.
Let the Rebirth Begin!
Let the True Elite Arise!
Yours for Nigeria as a Global Leader
Musa-Ododo Abdulrahaman
Founder, Initiative for Discovery of Nigeria Heritage and Endowment (IDNHE)
Chairman, National Policy Dialogue.
www.nationalpolicydialogue.org