Dear Mr President

Dear Mr President,

The other day, doing what young people do, I picked up my phone and read a statement from you. The one in the above quote. Sadly, I wasn't surprised because I realized what most of the young people in Nigeria did not realize, that your main job is to appear more to the outside world than to us that you have tackled our issues and found us wanting because if you don't we obviously cannot get money out of them.

But as a curious cat that I am I have a few simple questions, please take your time to answer:

Which youth are you talking about exactly?

The ones who are queuing up in the streets every day looking for work?

The ones migrating from rural areas in search for a better life for their families?

Or is it the idealistic ones that return to this country with big dreams of making a better country and are told to chill “. Are you not Nigerian?"

The ones who seek an opportunity to get better and be entrepreneurs in the absence of gainful employment but are brought down by the mind-numbing mediocrity of red tape.

My dear sir, is it the ones that have thrown their hands up and gone back to the roots to farm and can't get fertilizer or a relief from taxes or is the ones that are told to pay their dues first before they can progress?

Which ones sir?

The ones that are bringing in out of this world ideas, taking cut neck loans from banks that are only out to bleed them to fund their dreams? I am really curious sir because since you are a leader of a free Nigeria I believe you know these things.

My mother always told me if you fight for something so hard you better be ready to accept the good with the bad and our darling Nigeria is not without its flaws. She also told me something about public and dirty linen, but I have also forgotten that but since you are an elder I believe the saying may still be clear in your mind Sir. 

I know Nigerians youth have their issues, but it’s these ones with an issue that politicians will flank themselves with when the election comes. It's these ones that will take ballot boxes and jump fences or carry machetes and guns to push an agenda of an older generation holding us in their grasps. It's these young ones that have to negotiate rounds of sex with old lecturers to pass through mediocre education, it’s still these one's Sir.

Commander in Chief Sir,

I can go on about security but I know you are busy and I don't want this letter to be too long. You said something about improved security but how are we to believe this when people are running away with Senate mace and religious sects and security apparatus are exchanging fire for fire on our streets in the Federal Capital. A threat the security agents saw coming for days but did nothing about?

Statistics mean nothing if the people who they are about have seen no difference, we will not act like we don't know that you people are all visible and loving the grassroots because you all want to get elected again,  you cannot condemn a culture that you and your peers have been part of perpetuating. Of course, we want a cut of the oil money, are we blind? People flew private jets on this money, but you don't want to build roads? People build self-sustaining mansions on this oil but you are upset that people want better health care and less angry public doctors.

Lol (this means laughing out loud), sir, you are very funny.

Anyway, I was raised very well by my parents and while they told me not to ask my elders' too many questions, they have stopped giving me pocket money, so now I can do as I please and ask everybody questions until I get answers.

I will be awaiting your reply, sir,

via GIPHY

Kindest regards

Curious Nigerian Cat