It is my prayer that our newly elected Nigerian government would heed to this voice of conscience and start a massive crusade and movement to establish truth, honesty and other virtues in our society.
The truth, therefore, is that nations become great not because of the amounts of wealth and natural resources they have. Nations become great due to their wealth of truth, honesty and other virtues. Wealth will always find a way of escaping from societies without established systems of truth and honesty, into societies that are well established in truth and honesty.
One of the greatest indicators of how much truth and honesty is in a country, is easily obvious in observing how people drive around the city. What are their attitudes to the rules of road safety? What are their attitudes to other commuters? Do they try to beat the system by all means? Do they try to get their ways by hook or by crook, or they follow the rules? That is also part of corruption!
Yet, most Nigerian drivers and commuters would not admit to the fact that they are part of the corruption in the country. They would fight against the idea that they are corrupt. In the real sense, they are corrupt because they don’t live by the principles of honesty and truth.
On the other hand, let me show you a picture of another country. In Switzerland and generally all over Europe, there is nothing to celebrate when a man brings to the police a purse or a bag of money that does not belong to him, which he found in a restaurant, store or in a café. That is regarded as the normal duty of a normal citizen.
The difference? Simple! Honesty and truth is part of the fabric of the European society. In most European countries, if you are offered money, bags of food or things like that in exchange for your vote, that is regarded as corruption of the highest order. In which case, both the giver and the taker would end up in prison. The difference? The culture of honesty and truth that is prevalent in the society.
If we in Nigeria and Africa generally are to experience true transformation, we must purposefully begin campaigns for national and continental reorientation. There must be numerous movements championing the cause for truth and honesty in every aspect of our daily affairs.
“Justice is turned back, and righteousness stands afar off; for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter. So truth fails, and he who departs from evil makes himself a prey.” – Isa. 59: 14-15
A lot of our people like to talk about how Singapore went from the Third World to the First World. At the bottom of Singapore’s miracle lays the principle of truth and honesty. Let’s examine some examples of how the Singaporean government enforced the principles of truth and honesty in their society.
…it is not the amount of money or natural resources a nation has that determines how civilised it would be. Singapore, Switzerland, Austria, and many of the European countries that we all admire today don’t have one tenth of the natural resources that African countries have. Yet, because of the principles of truth and honesty, they have been able to build some of the most civilised societies in the modern world.
For example, in Singapore there is punishment for all kinds of things:
If you are caught chewing gum, you are penalised. You pay an amount of $1,000 or stay a year in prison;
If you cross the road in the wrong place, you are going to be penalised because you did not act by the truth. You will pay a fine of $200;
If you are found littering the public place by throwing bottles or paper on the ground, you are either imprisoned or heavily fined $800;
If you are caught spitting or defecating in public, you are heavily penalised by being sent to prison or paying a heavy fine;
If you are caught throwing out a cigarette butt in public, you would be penalised through a similar punishment – a $1,000 fine for a first offender and $5,000 for a repeat offender;
If you are caught with illegal drugs, you are sentenced to death;
Eating in public transportation or smoking at an outdoor bus stop incurs fines ranging from $500 – $1,000;
If you are caught vandalising public property, like making a graffiti, you are given a maximum of 24 strokes of cane on your bare buttocks;
If you use the toilet and do not flush it thereafter, you will be caned;
If you walk about undressed or nude, even in your own house, you would be heavily penalised. If you give a hug in public without permission, you would be penalised;
If you criticise the religion of others, you would be sent to prison;
If you tell lies; for example, introducing a stranger as your friend, it is considered deception and you would be sent to jail;
If you log into an internet connection that you have not paid for, It is considered hacking and you have to pay a fine of $5,000 for this;
If you are caught in an unlawful sexual relationship, you are sentenced to two years imprisonment;
Mutiny, the discharge of firearm, treason and murder are punishable by death;
Robbery is punishable by caning and imprisonment;
Driving under the influence is punishable by hefty fines and a prison term;
Piracy is punishable by a fine of $1,000;
Theft and shoplifting are punishable by heavy fines;
Racism attracts heavy penalties.
From all these points above, we can clearly see that the Singapore government believes solidly in the principle of truth and honesty. They do not hold back, but go all the way in enforcing these in their society. I believe that without this kind of strict enforcement of penalties for any offence that violates the principles of truth and honesty, Nigeria and Africa will not be able to move from our present state of underdevelopment into civilisation.
Let me submit here that it is not the amount of money or natural resources a nation has that determines how civilised it would be. Singapore, Switzerland, Austria, and many of the European countries that we all admire today don’t have one tenth of the natural resources that African countries have. Yet, because of the principles of truth and honesty, they have been able to build some of the most civilised societies in the modern world.
I hope that mine would not remain an unheeded voice of one crying in the wilderness. It is my prayer that our newly elected Nigerian government would heed to this voice of conscience and start a massive crusade and movement to establish truth, honesty and other virtues in our society.
Let’s take Switzerland as an example. It is a country without much natural resources, but is well reputed for truth and integrity. As a result, it is now known as a country of banks. Why? Because, as I said earlier, if anybody loses his suitcase full of money anywhere in the country, everybody knows that the level of truth and honesty in the nation is so high that you would not lose your money. It would be returned unto you. That reputation has gone before them for hundreds of years. As a result, even people who steal money from other countries wish to keep them in a safe place. Where? Switzerland!
Nigeria is a good testimony in that regard. A country with an abundance of wealth, but because of the lack of truth and integrity, the wealth is stolen. But the paradox of the whole thing is that this stolen wealth always finds its way to nations with no apparent natural wealth, but with high degrees of truth and honesty. The conclusion, therefore, is that wealth will always find their way out of societies where truth and honesty are not established.
Almost on a weekly basis, we hear about Sani Abacha’s looted funds that are continuously discovered either in Switzerland or Belgium or some other Western country. There are constant reports of foreign bank accounts of our politicians having stolen money in foreign countries. The story of Umaru Diko has become a reference point in our nation’s history.
Singapore is like an oasis in the desert of South East Asia. It is without apparent natural resources, but a huge deposit of wealth in form of truth and honesty. The result is that most of the wealth in the neighbouring rich countries always end up in Singapore. Why? Because wealth will always find its way out of rich societies where there is no truth and honesty, into societies with high degrees of truth and honesty.
The truth, therefore, is that nations become great not because of the amounts of wealth and natural resources they have. Nations become great due to their wealth of truth, honesty and other virtues. Wealth will always find a way of escaping from societies without established systems of truth and honesty, into societies that are well established in truth and honesty.
I hope that mine would not remain an unheeded voice of one crying in the wilderness. It is my prayer that our newly elected Nigerian government would heed to this voice of conscience and start a massive crusade and movement to establish truth, honesty and other virtues in our society.
I also pray that other nations in the African continent and in other developing parts of the world would hear this cry and give their people gifts of development and civilisation through the establishment of principles of truth and honesty.
Sunday Adelaja is a Nigeria born leader, transformation strategist, pastor and innovator. He was based in Kiev, Ukraine.
