THE JEGANIAN THEORY

With great joy, I express my heartfelt gratitude to God who granted Nigeria, to a large extent, a free and fair electoral process. With deep sorrow, I mourn with the number of persons who lost their lives or were battered in the process of actively participating in the creation of history may your souls rest in perfect peace. I pray your deaths will not be in vain. I personally congratulate four persons who in my personal opinion, helped to create this present Nigerian history.
One, the incumbent Nigerian President; President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan for his sportsmanship
and character on the day of election. He calmly relaxed the nerves of millions of Nigerians who were already at wits end because of the card readers that refused to work. His call to the incoming President is definitely another act of sportsmanship because that simple congratulatory message nibbled to the bud whatever form of violence that may want to arise as a result of the output of the elections.

Two, I congratulate General Muhammadu Buhari/ Professor Yemi Osinbajo for their success in the present Presidential elections. What we need is a change in the Nigerian system, a flushed out, well cleaned system will definitely create the Nigeria my generation and those after me would like to govern and I believe I am speaking the minds of millions of Nigerian youths.
Three, Professor Attahiru Jega, the INEC Chairman who tirelessly stood his grounds and gave us a transparency that hitherto, can hardly be found amongst our Nigerian Elites.
Four, I, with a standing ovation, celebrate the Nigerian people who made sure their votes counted. Under the rain and in the sun, they stood their grounds thus emphasizing the fact that the voice of the people is indeed the voice of God. Just like Anyaka Chibundu said, "it is most exciting to know that people followed up these elections and are so excited not primarily because General Muhammadu Buhari won but because, for once, the votes of the Nigerian people counted". It was a case of the Nigerian masses versus the political class, and guess who won? For the first time in Nigerian history, the Nigerian masses won and, that indeed is the beginning of change. I was so excited seeing Nigerians become journalists overnight. They suddenly loved the mathematics they once hated while in school and almost everyone was glued to the media ensuring that change was birthed. Even Nigerians in diaspora were not left out, the likes of Olumuyiwa Ayokunle and Ebi who made it a point of duty to encourage, follow up and support the electoral process. The media must not be left out of this appreciation, they have done a great job in making the electorate as informed as they were. One of my best quotes in the course of these elections is this “we vote you out. Not because there is a better alternative but so that incompetent leaders will know and fear the people’s ability to elect, select and deselect. Why should we endure another 4 years simply because we fear the unknown? If the unknown comes in and performs at the same level or worse, we vote them out as well. And so on until our leaders start to lead” – Anonymous. There is a paradigm shift in the mental and intellectual disposition of an average Nigerian and that is the beginning of a change that no man can take away.

 The Jeganian theory is what I have titled today’s blog post and you will soon know why. The prefix of the word "Jeganian" comes from the root word "Jega" which is the name of the present INEC Chairman who was in charge of the electoral process. Attahiru Jega, is in my opinion the man of the year. Something happened in the course of the announcement of the election results. Former Minister of Niger Delta affairs, Elder Godsay Orubebe who represented the People’s Democratic Party openly accused the INEC chairman of being biased, tribalistic and partial. Throwing decorum in the air, the elder statesman practically disrupted the proceedings at the INEC collation center and literally poured dirt on the INEC Chairman. Well by the time the response came, it was the most calm and unexpected response ever. Prof Jega simply and calmly explained his own side of the story it they unfolded thus resolving what could have resulted in not just a pandemonium, but a national disaster.

Photo Credit: elendureports.com

The Jeganian theory simply states that you don’t play the devils game. Like the game of chess, there is a way an opponent wants you to play in order to control you and make you lose. You must choose your game carefully. I learnt a very big lesson from the scenario above. You have the capacity to choose the way you want to respond to life’s issues. The INEC Chairman could have walked out of the center in anger, and he would have honestly been justified if he did that, he could have insulted Elder Godsay using a fire for fire approach, but he chose not to. Instead, he took the longer and more profitable way. Put yourself in Prof Jega’s shoes and sincerely answer this question; What would you have done if someone publicly humiliated you and accused you of wrongdoing? Would you flair up and react in anger or you would maturedly express yourself and save the day? Would you play the devil’s game or you will let your standards and value speak for you? Hmmm, I will leave you to answer that yourself. The Jeganian theory is a theory we all should embrace. But it doesn’t come by accident, instead it is a process that we must go through. Before you act, think about the consequences of your actions, don’t be driven by an "orubebecious"(root word, Elder Orubebe) furnace of anger. You can choose to control your anger. The Holy Scripture says that anger lies in the bosom of fools, this simply means that operating in anger will only make you foolish. The whole world applauds Prof Jega because he proved to be wise. Wisdom is the hallmark of Maturity. Choose to be wise! Let the Jeganian theory be a model for your actions.

Also, deeply seated in the Jeganian theory is a man of integrity. I very much understand the fact that a book is not to be judged by its cover but in this case, I think Prof Jega’s response is enough insight into the fact that he is a man of integrity. If not so, his body language, tone, language structure would have betrayed him. When you know you have nothing to hide, transparency becomes your watchword. How many of we youths are transparent? A lot of us have so many things to hide that even the skeletons are beginning to complain of overcrowding. To have a calm spirit is a choice but to be a man of integrity is a must. Integrity is you been upright in a place where no one is watching and that brings me to another question, what is your value system. The change we desire is not going to come from the government, the change we desire starts with us. It starts with our value system, our stand on honesty, truthfulness, integrity, loyalty and so on. We all clamor for change, let me remind you of what an anonymous scholar once said “when I was a young man, I wanted to change the world. I found it was difficult to change the world, so I tried to change my nation. When I found I couldn’t change my nation, I began to focus on my town. I couldn’t change the town and as an older man, I tried to change my family. Now, as an old man, I realize the only thing I can change is myself, and suddenly I realise that if long ago I had changed myself, I could have made an impact on my family. My family and I could have made an impact on our town. Their impact could have changed the nation and I could indeed have changed the world”. IF YOU WANT A BETTER NIGERIA, CREATE IT YOURSELF. WHILE THE GOVERNMENT WORK ON CREATING A COUNTRY FIT TO LIVE IN, YOU WORK ON BEING A PERSON FIT TO LIVE WITH.
On this note I drop my pen, and I leave you with these words, becoming a leader is not a function of your position, it is a function of your character. Work on your character and value system and nature would naturally create a high platform for your nature.

 TWG HUB wishes you a happy prosperous new month. Welcome to the month of April. Welcome to the beginning of change.We celebrate the creative you!
BAMILOSHIN ESTHER