NIGERIANS must have been pleasantly surprised by the rapid response of the Federal Government to the plight of their compatriots caught in the uprising in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya. Nigerians who were trapped in these countries received prompt response to their distressed call, as President Goodluck Jonathan ordered the National Emergency Management Authority (NEMA) to evacuate them from these troubled regions. NEMAs quick response to the presidents directive has brought relief to many families, as their members living in those countries have now returned to their fold.SINCE the people power struggle in Tunisia which has spread to other North African countries of Egypt and currently Libya, began in December last year, many Nigerians were apprehensive of the fate that would befall their compatriots in those troubled countries. They were worried that, as usual, the Federal Government would abandon Nigerians in those countries to their fate. And in such revolts as happened in Tunisia, Egypt and currently playing out in Libya, where even the nationals of those countries had been killed, foreigners caught in the crossfire could be expected to suffer a fate worse than death. There are, of course, justifiable reasons for the apprehension and apparent lack of faith of Nigerians in the government. Government had demonstrated in the past that it cared very little about the safety and general comfort of its citizens living abroad.MANY Nigerians working in foreign countries have had cause to complain about the lethargic indifference of their countrys missions and embassies to their plight. The missions hardly took up their cases, even when it was glaring that their fundamental human rights had been grossly violated. They were usually always left to their fate whenever they were subjected to unfair treatment by their host governments and they went to seek the intervention of the Nigerian representatives in those countries. Many Nigerians are languishing in foreign prisons over petty matters that could ordinarily have earned them only a rebuke if they had received the necessary support from the officials of their own government.NIGERIANS are often the targets of hate in many countries. Indeed, some foreigners believe that every Nigerian is a criminal and should be treated with scorn, especially whenever such a Nigerian lives in a foreign country. Many a Nigerian life has been lost to the frequent xenophobic attacks in South Africa and other countries in the Middle East with only feeble reactions coming from the Nigerian government in the form of protest. As a result, many Nigerians who lead honest lives in these foreign land have become victims of circumstances when they are refused help by their own government.IT is a fact that some of these Nigerians living in other lands are anything but honest. The desperation to get rich by all means that took them to the foreign country has sharpened the urge for crime in them. They engage in all sorts of criminality in these foreign countries and when they eventually get done for their crimes, they expect the government to come to their aid. However, since it is the bounden duty of government to protect the life and property of its citizens, this set of Nigerians, though they are criminals, certainly should not be left entirely at the mercy of their host governments.IT is, therefore, the serial failure of past governments to protect Nigerians living in other lands that caused the apprehension in many a Nigerian when the uprising in Tunisia began and spread to Egypt and later Libya. While other countries were making plans to evacuate their nationals, Nigerians had felt that with the legendary lethargy of their government to such situations in the past, the lives of their compatriots in those countries were in grave peril.BUT President Jonathan appears to have given Nigerians a reason to believe that government can be responsible and responsive. The swift manner he responded to the situations in the North African countries by ensuring that his compatriots were rescued has shown that it is possible to have a good government in Nigeria; a government that cherishes the well-being of its people irrespective of their location in the world, tribe and/or religion.PRESIDENT Jonathan has demonstrated that he cares for the well-being of Nigerians and is willing to stand up for them wherever they are. We commend the NEMA leadership for its proactive response to the presidents directive. It is one thing to give an order and it is another to follow such an order through, especially going by the usual tardiness of many a Nigerian agency. Besides, there had been instances where such orders by the presidency had been disregarded by agencies of government without any direct or indirect consequence for the defaulting agencies. Unfortunately, Nigerians were usually the losers in such instances.GOVERNMENT and its agencies must be responsible to the people. President Jonathan has shown that good and responsive leadership is indeed possible. It is all a function of the leaders style and ability to galvanise the citizenry to action.
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