Oh have we gone this far?
According to punch,Alfred Uzokwe’s new book, entitled Nigeria – Contemporary Commentaries and Essays, is a collection of some of his published and unpublished articles written over a period of 14
years. The content comprises various essays and commentaries on health, welfare, infrastructure, aviation, politics and other subjects.
The major concern of the US-based author, as enunciated in the 364-page book, is how Nigeria has fared in the past 15 years, where the country should be in the next 15 years and what should be done by the leadership and the governed to get there.
Like a prophet, Uzokwe appears to warn about the present – riddled by several challenges as it is – and how it could possibly affect the future of Nigeria.In one of the articles published in the book, he attempts to draw attention to the danger, which the reckless burning of tyres and plastics in residential areas poses to environmental health. Such acts, he argues, add greenhouse gases to the atmosphere and exposes residents what he calls Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary diseases.
The author urges the government to urgently check this dangerous practice, while noting that flooding and gully erosion are the biggest environmental challenges facing south-eastern Nigeria today. Indeed, his argument is reinforced by appalling evidence of the negative impact of gully erosion in the region, especially in villages where whole buildings have been swept away by heavy rainfall.
According to Uzokwe, the problem is partly due to uncontrolled construction of houses and an equally unbridled deforestation of the landscape in most of the affected areas. He addresses this issue in the book and suggests various ways to help mitigate the threat that it poses to the environment.
Uzokwe recalls his visit to the Police College in Ikeja, Lagos, some years ago and how, appalled by the condition of the institution, he was forced to voice his displeasure in an article. In the article, he argues that the police could never effectively fight crime or enforce order in the society as long as trainees were made to live in barracks unfit for human habitation.
Thankfully that article turned out to influence the 2013 television documentary that re-opened the issue and made it a national story.
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