Nigeria:Nigerians and the Japa Reality

In the late hours of October 21, 2020, A young Nigerian man identified as Oke Obi-Enadhuze was shot dead by the police in Lagos State. Oke, a product designer, was reportedly hit by a police stray bullet in his house. This happened three hours after tweeting "Nigeria will not end me." A viral social media video showed the moment Oke’s mother held the lifeless body of her son, in the pool of his blood while she wailed. Almost two years after and Oke's prayer is still every Nigerian's prayer. Many Nigerians have shifted from prayers and have finally taken matters into their own hands in the event of Japa.

A major addition to Nigeria’s glossary is the word ‘Japa’. The word which finds root in the Yoruba word of the same name which means "to run" has been adopted by Nigerians as a national word to signify "leaving Nigeria, for good." Its prominence under the Buhari administration is not unconnected with people’s continued disappointment with the state of affairs of the nation. The violence and mayhem that attended the protest against the Special Anti-robbery Squad (SARS) in October 2020 further gave the word life. Perhaps this was the last straw in the bowl of chaos that has long been feathering. Disappointed at the sheer lack of grace and regard for the lives of citizens portrayed by the government during this period,  citizens began to talk about the need to ‘Japa’ (leave) the country for good before they become the next victim of Nigeria's notoriety. 

The movement of human populations across the planet has characterized human societies throughout history. Migration is a constant, it is a whirl that keeps roving. It is in man's nature to be itinerant—to move from one place to the other. People will always move whether it's in search of opportunities, adventure, education, health, security or for whatever reason that serves their needs at the moment in question. It's life, it's an indisputable fact that's as clear as night and day. Often, when the issue of Migration comes up, one is forced to weigh the effect in respect to the departed country. When the effects are then considered, human capital flight or brain drain comes up and what it means for the economies involved. Rarely is the mental, social and psychological effect of this phenomenon weighed.  People are leaving the country, day in and day out, families are breaking up, and a chain of disintegration is feathering. Nigeria, every day, with its consistent depravity, corruption, insecurity, and poverty is forcing her citizens to take flight and seek refuge elsewhere.

Every day on social media is a day one person or the other is celebrating their departure from Nigeria. 2021 saw the "Japa" trend take on a life of its own as many people announced their departure from Nigeria with a meme from the Nigerian Netflix series King Of Boys; The Return of the King. The meme which features a scene where Eniola Salim the film's protagonist is seen raising a glass to a new dispensation soon became the most revered way to announce the victory that is leaving Nigeria. Leaving Nigeria has gradually become a victory to celebrate. This is what happens when home hunts you, when home is all of the things that make you want to run from it. 

The nuanced state of the country has plunged many citizens into a search for greener pastures. The Nigerian dream for a better Nigeria has descended into an apathetic show, an indifference and a new craze to take flight—the Nigeria dream has sadly become a consistent wish and need to leave the country. Almost Sixty-two years after independence, the Giant of Africa seems to be running on the fuel it has long been paddling with—Hope, but even with this, it fails to keep hope alive. It's hard to have faith in something that constantly disappoints you and it's on this premise that many have taken flight, refusing to participate in a game of chance. Some few weeks ago, Roy, the bodyguard and head of security of Afrobeats superstar, Ayodeji Balogun popularly called Wizkid took to his Instagram story to disclose that his goal presently is to stay abroad and pray for Nigeria. Many Nigerians corroborated the verismo of this goal weighing the present state of the country as a candid reason to want this for oneself. In a report published in 2021 by the Africa Polling Institute, Seven out of 10 Nigerians are willing to leave their country if given the opportunity. Back in 2019, this same poll showed that only 32% of Nigerians wanted to leave.

Nigeria continues to witness a wave of incessant migration and in foresight, a drain of some of its brightest minds. The World Health Organisation (WHO) puts the doctor:patient ratio at 1:600 standard. However, Nigeria's doctors to patients ratio currently sits at 4:10,000 falling drastically below the global recommendation. Unlike in times past, when most people desperate to leave Nigeria were the suffering masses with no jobs, times have changed. The majority of those taking off now appear to be from among the “comfortable” middle class. Nigeria is seeing a spike in the number of people migrating from the country both legally and otherwise. People are dying and desperate to leave no matter the risk involved. 

With the spike in the number of people leaving the country, We are looking at migrations that will eventually leave many families scattered across various continents and cities of the world, migrations that would improve the lives of many members of a family but might sadly break them apart as well.  Wives that might never see their husbands for a long time, children that may never grow under the care of both parents, siblings that may not see each other for a long time, cousins that may never play together. We would see more families break up, and disintegrate, and many family systems collapse in the traditional sense of the word family. Japa Compatibility seems to be the new wave in the dating scene today. Leaving one’s home has never been an easy thing. Home is that word that is supposed to mean so much because it should be a place of rest but, what happens when you have a home that is everything to you but a home? You are forced to adopt a new home and find succour in a “home away from home”.