WHEN COMPASSION GOES MISSING

During a recent conversation, a friend pointed out that one of Nigeria's problems is a growing inability to appreciate and have compassion for others. She pointed out that some believe that if a person is deemed to be outside of one's immediate family, tribe, socioeconomic class or religion, then that person does not deserve to be treated well. This observation goes a long way in understanding the treatment of Nigeria's most vulnerable groups. From domestic help, to children who are sometimes mistreated and violently abused by their employers or those in a position of power over them.

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It is hard to pinpoint the source of this lack of compassion especially since there were times when being kind to strangers was the norm. The lack of compassion is also not unique to Nigerians alone, however, within the context of Nigerian society, its impact is unfortunately, easily observed from the treatment of children accused of being witches, to other incidents of depravity. One could blame the many years of military rule for whipping the humanity out of Nigerians who shout aggressively at each other to prove a point and who argue over everything during what should be the simplest of processes. Others might go as far back as colonialism, but doing so would require an analysis that is ill-suited for the current medium.

So where did compassion go? In Nigeria, it went the way of many a dead language as decadence and excess have become expected with the super rich living lavishly while the super poor suffer on less than scraps. While it is to be expected that some will be less well off than others, the fact that the gap continues to widen cannot continue for much longer without creating a inter-class friction that will lead to violence. Already, class warfare exists as evidenced by the wanton kidnapping of children and grandparents for money by young unemployed men who must earn money one way or another.


Despite these realities, there remains the fact that there are untold stories of individuals managing to hold onto their ability to be kind and caring. There are those who will go out of their way to help others, even those they do not know, when necessary. Unfortunately and depressingly, it seems that those individuals might be in the minority.

Now that compassion has gone missing, one wonders if it will come back. Most animals that go extinct have no chance and are lost forever. Thankfully, compassion within the Nigerian context, unlike a potentially extinct species, can make a comeback. It will take a lot of effort but such effort is always needed to find something important and worthwhile when it goes missing. Compassion for the underprivileged and a commitment to creating as fair a society as possible is an aspiration Nigeria cannot ignore. Because, it is the very essence of humanity and without it, Nigeria will completely lose itself.




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