THERE are great nations and there are mediocre ones. There are also run-of-the-mill nations as well as outright failed states. Echoing the inimitable language of the English playwright William Shakespeare, we could say that some nations are born great; some achieve greatness; while yet others have greatness thrust upon them. It might not be that easy defining what constitutes a great nation. But we know it when we see it.

A FEW days ago, I found myself hinking of Elephant. Elephant was a friend and senior at my old missionary boarding school in the defunct Benue-Plateau State. Elephant was not his real name. He was so nick-named because he was a rather fat lad with a reputation for being the school clown. Although I was by far his junior, we were best of friends. What united us was the fact that we both represented the school in inter-school quiz tournaments.

ULTIMATELY, it is the people that rule. That’s bad news for tyrants, demagogues, authoritarians, oligarchs, plutocrats and crooks. Sooner or later, the people will rise and demand accountability. The history of freedom is a long and brutal one. History teaches that freedom is never given; it is almost always taken by force.  

SOMEONE recently circulated his thoughts about his personal philosophy of politics and the state of the nation in general. His name shall remain anonymous. His views are sadly typical of the cynical approach in which young people define the structure of our politics today. We quote him in full:

WHERE do mothers come from? I have always pondered this question. All humans come from planet earth, of course. But, what of mothers? They have this uniqueness about them that makes me wonder if they could only have come from earth like everybody else. For one thing, everybody that breathes on earth came out of a mother. Even the Pope, the President and the most powerful men and women on earth – all those men and women of pomp and pageantry.