Things will not change overnight – Bishop Okonkwo speaks on the current Nigerian situation

Popular pastor and Presiding Bishop of The
Redeemed Evangelical Mission (TREM), Mike
Okonkwo, has faith in President Muhammadu
Buhari to fix Nigeria, saying that “it will be
foolhardy to say things will change
overnight”.
Okonkwo, who was a vocal supporter of
President Buhari during the 2015 election,
also said Nigerians are ‘naturally impatient’
and ‘once there is a little pressure we’ll say
we don’t want again’.
While expressing confidence in Buhari’s
ability to ‘change’ Nigeria, the Bishop said: “I
read somewhere in the social media a young
man who said we should go back to
corruption since things appear not to be
working out well. I said so we should go back
to the vicious cycle? I replied the young man
and said he was talking nonsense.”
“Yes, things are not too stable but that is to
tell you the rot the nation has degenerated
to. You see, we are not fighting corruption.
Nigeria is corruption. Everywhere you turn,
every sector you turn, you find corruption.”
“From the messenger to driver to the boss,
everyone is involved. Corruption has become
a second nature to us. The truth is you hardly
find anyone that has not been dragged into
the industry of corruption. It is as bad as
that. Corruption has become the biggest
industry in the nation.”
“Now that Buhari is there, it will be foolhardy
to say things will change overnight. Buhari
will not completely eradication corruption
because it’s been with us for decades. If
anyone is expecting Buhari to change this
even if he stays for 15 years, the person is
not being sincere. I believe the current
administration is fighting so hard to put
things in place. The things we are seeing is
corruption fighting back. We have saboteurs
in the system that will take time to be
detected and flushed out.”
“There are people enjoying where we were.
They were making it with the situation we had
then. They have a lot of money in their hands
so they can do anything; they can create
problems. But if we endure a lot, I believe
things will be better.”
“I believe the current crop of leaders will fix
this nation. That is why some people are
fighting them back. It is because they know
within themselves that they can deliver.”
“They have wonderful programmes. The
budget has just been passed. So, let’s watch
between now and end of the year for things
to start taking shape.”