• •Nigerians in their New Year Resolutions
• •Say ‘no more unnecessary expenses’

Ola Ajayi, Chidi Nkwopara, Samuel Oyadongha, Olayinka Latona, Marie-Therese Nanlong and Emem Idio

On the last day of any given year, many people appear to be sober having taken stock of what they did or failed to do in the outgoing year. They examine their life in the past 12 months and recall their indulgences, their excesses, all the missed opportunities as a result of their carelessness and come to a realization that it has been a wasted year for them.

They therefore resolve to turn a new leaf from the first day of the new year and set about making what is regarded as New Year Resolutions. This has now become a yearly ritual among Nigerians. But amazingly, barely a month into the new year, a high percent of people who made resolutions or vows for the new year hardly live up to them.

Last year in particular was a tough one for majority of Nigerians because of the prevailing economic downturn in the country. It is a year of economic recession in the country or what many analysts refer to as stagflation. A cross section of Nigerians who made resolutions this year therefore said their resolutions were dictated by the economic recession in the country.

Recession brought us back to our senses

Many people who spoke with Saturday Vanguard said the current economic recession in the country has forced them to make some resolutions which they would not have made ordinarily.

Sola Arotiba, a reputable auto mechanic in Ibadan said, “if there is one advantage of this recession, it has brought people like me to our senses. My new year resolutions are many. I have made a decision not to womanize again; and no more partying like I used to do. I have even parted company with some of my friends who I know are not adding value to my life. This recession has taught me all these. Though, it is painful, I think this recession has done me some good”.

Chief Olowolayemo Sakiru, a community leader in Ido Local Government said, the current recession has compelled him to stop taking alcoholic drinks. He said, “I have been taking alcoholic drinks since I was a youth, but things are no longer the same. I am close to 60 years now, I cannot afford to drink again not because of my age but because I cannot afford it.

When I sat down on January 1, 2017, I examined my life and concluded that I have to cut down some expenses. I cannot estimate the huge amount I used to spend on buying beer. It had really drained me financially. That’s why I decided to stop it”.

Esther Atilola Adedayo a public servant said, “I have decided not to buy any ‘aso ebi’ (cloths chosen for ceremonies) again. I have a lot of them, they are more than 30 pairs of different colours. I bought some for N5,000; some for N4,500. If you now multiply this by 30, the result is terrifying. At times, I struggle hard to pay my children’s school fees. It is time to retrace my steps, no more unnecessary expenses. If people want to call me names, no qualms.”

Mr Elliot Igoni, a young man in his early thirties, in Bayelsa said he would love to make New Year resolutions but could not do so because of the present economic realities. Igoni who is a landlord said the recession was affecting him badly, lamenting that his tenants were finding it difficult to pay their rents, and with construction jobs hard to come by, he was running into debt. “From the look of things I don’t think I can conveniently make New Year resolutions this year because it is difficult to plan these days. I would love to achieve one or two things but the situation is unpredictable.

No more unnecessary expenses

Majority of the respondents in Imo State, hinged their New Year resolutions on the prevailing harsh economic environment and how they intend to structurally adjust their programmes to suit the times.

Miss Chinenye Ejiogu, a native of Owu, Amakohia, Ikeduru local government area of Imo State, said that her major resolution for 2017, is to drastically reduce her expenditure profile. “I have resolved to drastically reduce my expenses this year. The years of playing the father Christmas is over. I merely survived last year and I will not like a repeat experience of what I suffered last year, in this calendar year”, Ejiogu said.

For Miss Joy Okoroafor, a native of Umuiwa, Okposi, Ohozara local council area of Ebonyi State, and staff of one of the national newspaper houses in Owerri, “there are so many things I will get rid of this year. I will definitely abandon friends and discussions that will not positively impact on my life and living”, Okoroafor said.

Miss Faith Emeka, from Obegewe, Awarra in Ohaji/Egbema local council area of Imo State, resolved to look on God for every of her needs. “I have resolved to rely wholly and entirely on God for all my needs. I will curtail my expenses, especially the irrelevant ones like crazy fashion that leads to destruction. I will avoid people who will mislead me”.

Drastic reduction of expenses is the major resolution of Mr. Isaac Ufomba, a practising journalist in Owerri. “I will minimize my expenses this year. This decision stems from my experience in the past year and the prevailing economic climate in the country. I have also decided to go into full time farming to ensure that my family gets food to eat in these hard times”, Ufomba said.

The need to be closer to God

According to Miss Blessing Konboye “I want to get closer to God by devoting more time to church and spiritual activities. The recession will not affect my New Year resolutions because they are not quantified in monetary terms, mine are personal issues I need to work on to improve my life, “ she said.

In Jos Plateau state, Divine Joseph said despite the fact that hunger is in the land, his new year resolution was to improve in his spiritual life. His words, “Whatever the situation, I want my spiritual life to improve and I want to win more souls for God than what was obtained last year. I know it is not always easy keeping new year resolutions but I know God’s grace will see me through.”

Another respondent, Na’andi Hezekiah said, “my resolution is to serve God faithfully notwithstanding what the economic situation of the country is. The word of God says seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and other things will be added to you. I know if I am faithful to him, He will not disappoint me.”

Yet another respondent, Ikmat Akande added, “Everything is in the hands of God, even in times of plenty, some people still lack, in times of lack, some people still get. In this new year, I want to get more than last year so I have resolved to be more prayerful and hardworking so that my life will improve economically.”

To Victoria Ojonugba, she is not interested in any new year resolution because, “Every year I will set goals but I won’t be able to achieve them. I have decided that whatever God wants to do with me, so be it. I don’t have anything I am doing, nobody is ready to help so when I wake up, anyhow the day turns out to be, so be it, I’m even tired of everything but I cannot kill myself.”

Clerics who bared their minds on why people make resolutions agree that although it is a necessary venture to undertake but lamented that it has become a ritual for most people as they are making mockery of it

It helps to evaluate one’s life — Most Rev. Sunday Matilukuro

Primate of The First African Church Mission, Most Rev. Sunday Matilukuro argued that resolution is a necessary thing to do every day and not once in a year ritual saying it helps to re-evaluate and define one’s goal in life. He said: “In our various places of work, at the end of the year, we do what we call stock taking for inventory or appraisal, this is necessary to check an organisation’s performances in the outgoing year, look out for the area of strength and weaknesses, evaluate to know what to drop and what to take for better improvement in the following year.

But in the life of a man, it is important that periodically, it may not be the end of a year, it is important to evaluate oneself notwithstanding the economic situation of the country. Look at the way you live your life at a particular time frame, check the caliber of friends you keep, do they impact your life positively or negatively?

Are you making progress in life or stagnated with your relationship with God? However, I think most people make resolution at the beginning of the year because of their negative way of living. So many husbands promised God or whatever they believe in that they will be better husbands who will not beat or cheat on their wives. And likewise wives to be better wives and mothers this year. Sadly, many of them are going back to their past. The new year ought to be a new beginning with God because a man’s beginning is from God.

Resolution without strong determination will fail —Odesola

Assistant General Overseer to Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye, Pastor Johnson Odesola believed that resolutions often time, do not work because of the situation in which they are taken as they are particularly done on the last day of the year and when one is sober and full of expectations in the coming year. In his words: “People make resolution because they believe they have not been able to live up to the standard they set for the previous year and they do that in order to lay a very good foundation for the new year.

However, people are not able to keep up to it because the memory of human being is very short and sometimes we make it as a ritual and when it becomes ritual, we just want to do it in order to key into the immediate blessing. And aside that, every resolution that must work must come with strong decision and determination and if there is no strong determination backing a resolution, that resolution is bound to fail.

It no longer has meaning to most people—Very Rev. Stephen Adegbite

Bishop of Ikeja, Methodist Church of Nigeria, Very Rev. Stephen Adegbite said the inability to keep resolutions is an evidence of the imperfect nature of human stressing that most people are only making mockery of the act. According to him, “In making New Year resolution or what we ‘Meeting of Covenant with God’ at the beginning of the year, most people who have not been attending churches, will be at the place of worship to ask for God’s forgiveness and mercy and would promise to live better and holy life in the new year.

But before you know it, they will start doing what they promised not to do and this is because of the power of flesh which makes them to go to their old way of life. What we encourage people to do is to keep to their promises, no matter the state of the economy of the country, because God never fails, whatever He says will come to pass.