Sir: I believe it is time for us to face the building of our dear nation squarely. We should not fold arms and watch things happen. We should make things happen and build a nation that will be the envy of the world. I wonder what our nation would be like if each of us would be totally committed to nation building every day. What would our cities be like' What would our public institutions be like' What would our schools be like if we made it a priority to double education funding' We need to be proactive in our quest for a better Nigeria. We need to have the mindset of, 'How can I make a-difference''To be candid, Nigerians now have an enormous capacity to demonstrate hatred and animosity. We can't develop our country through selfish living. Our leaders have to be sensitive and pay adequate attention to the plight of the entire citizenry. Government needs to listen to what the people are saying. Those in authority shouldn't miss opportunities to deliver quality leadership and be willing to make a difference.They have the opportunity to leave a mark that cannot be erased. The only way our leaders can win the confidence of the entire citizenry of this great nation is to rise up to the challenges that confront us as a nation and tackle them head on with a deep sense of responsibility and urgency.Nigeria has found it difficult making satisfactory progress as a nation because of our greed. Given the state of the economy and the unemployment rate, it's easy to be self-centered. Don't let greed have any room in your heart and actions again. It is our collective responsibility to act decisively before our country is turned into a failed state. Today, we are blessed to have a country we can still call Nigeria, after all the terrible tragedies we have escaped.We are all leaving a legacy, either intentional or unintentional. It's high time we made a total commitment to making things work in our nation. We don't just have to be interested in developing Nigeria. There are people around us; all over this country who are hurting; people now find it easy to commit suicide over lack of basic necessities of life.The cost of living is rising higher every day. Everyone has to fight for his or her own survival. People are trying to save themselves from a difficult situation without trying to help anyone else. The Spanish Proverb, 'Every man for himself and God for us all' is now the order of the day in a country that is blessed with both human and natural resources. Each of us should do what is best for the good of others and our country.Government officials should always back up their words with concrete actions. People are watching, and one of the best witnesses we could have is simply being good to people. Our leaders should get up every day and focus on how to make our country a better place. We need to serve our fatherland with love and strength and faith. It is time to put the words in our national anthem to practice. It is time to put them to action and cause positive change to this great Nation. Government should ensure that Nigerians are provided with good roads, better health infrastructure, stable electricity, functional schools and give the citizenry a sense of security. These are the duties of any responsible government.We must not allow the past to affect our present, and more importantly the way we go about issues today must not in any way ruin our tomorrow. We just have to keep moving forward as a nation. There is always room for continuous improvement no matter one's level of success. Nigeria still has a very long way to go. We, as government and people must do things better and more consistently.Whether you're a northerner, southerner or a westerner, this country belongs to all of us. We own it, and we can all determine the direction we want Nigeria to go. These are critical times to get involved in the affairs of our beloved country. We need each other to survive. We must realise that God who brought us together, did that for a purpose and whether this country is divided into four places, we will still be each other's neighbour and we must interact with each other. Why have we found it difficult to stay together and live in peace'For instance, On Friday, August 26, 2011 when the Boko Haram sect bombed the United Nations House in Abuja, Nigerians demonstrated once again that we remain our brothers' keepers, given the way people rose up to support the victims of the blast by rushing to the hospital to donate blood. Happenings like that always give hope that even in the midst of all our challenges, we will neither surrender to the threat of terrorism nor be defeated by the entrepreneurs of violence.Like the 35th President of the United States of America, John Fitzgerald Kennedy, once said, 'Let us think of education as the means of developing our greatest abilities, because in each of us, there is a private hope and dream which fulfilled, can be translated into benefit for everyone and greater strength for our nation, one person can make a difference and everyone should try.' No nation has ever made progress without an intellectual base. What we are witnessing is the expensive price we have to pay for our lack of vision. Ignorance is a disease and it is already spreading like virus among the populace. We must make every effort to stop the spread. We must plead with our leaders to revamp our schools without any further delay. Education is a major weapon against most of our challenges.Arise, O Compatriots! Nigeria has to make some fundamental changes. We should begin to make sense of our democratic cum electoral process. It is time to take the bull by the horn. We now have to reach out for what is ours, the solution to good governance is rule of law, participation, transparency, responsiveness, consensus, consultation, efficiency, inclusiveness and accountability. Our leaders should seek ways of inspiring confidence among Nigerians. Let's write our own destiny It is within our power to write it now. Let's get to work. One of the highest goals that every Nigerian should have is to strive to keep the country united. God bless Nigeria!Oluwalere wrote in from Lagos.
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