Give me CHANGE!!!

On Monday the 26th September, the 1st presidential debate between the two major US candidates in the 2016 elections held and it was said to be the most watched US presidential debate of all time. People  all over the world tuned in to watch, and the reactions to the debate were as diverse as the viewers who tuned in to watch.

I didn't watch the debate live, but I spent some time watching, reading and listening to many commentators react to what was said or not said by the candidates.

In a nutshell, though the debate was entertaining, it fell short of expectations especially in the area of addressing key issues both on the national and global scale. The republican candidate Donald Trump spoke a lot of words but said little of import; while the democratic candidate glowed, not because she was any better, but because she didn't have a strong opposition to test her mettle.

One of the commentators on CNN, reacting to the debate had this to say. "Trump's attraction is that he has served up an offering of change to the Americans, but we need to be careful about the change that is on offer because not all change is good. Change can be positive or negative. We need to validate what type of change is being offered". 

Wise words indeed, words that a lot of Nigerians wished they had heard before they also voted for change and in doing so signed up the country for recession. 

Don't get me wrong, change is good. I may not be a fan but I have also come to understand that the only thing constant in life is change. However as much as we encourage one and all to embrace positive change, we must use the same vehemence to oppose negative change. 

So applying this to Nigeria, positive change is voting in and supporting a government who promised to tackle corruption and to focus on infrastructural development. On the other hand, negative change is supporting a government whose policies have reversed the growth of the economy. Negative change is when same government launches a 'Change begins with me' campaign for the populace while doing nothing themselves to actually show that 'Change begins with me'.

Negative change is having an electoral body put in place by a newly elected government that is incapable of conducting conclusive elections. Negative change is having new polio cases in Nigeria at the cusp of the country been declared polio free after no new cases for over two years. Negative change is when there is no change in the cost of running politicians (sorry government) while workers go unpaid because there is little or nothing left after the politicians have been paid.

Negative change is when your president has visited over 26 countries in less than a year since being sworn in under the guise of looted funds recovery only to come at the end of it all to declare that the country is broke. 

These are just a few live examples of what negative change looks like. 

So when next you hear change, be wise and ask what sort of change is being referred to. And if perchance you are not satisfied, please run in the opposite direction as fast as your legs can carry you. 

Enough said.