As I’ve often said, I’m your friend if you’re still with me, even after all the tables I’ve scattered. But I’m not here to make friends or stroke egos; I’m here to speak the truth. Today, I want us to tackle something we as a society need to stop deceiving ourselves about: nation-building. Contrary to popular belief, nations are not built by prayers alone.
I first came across the power of knowledge in high school. A geography teacher of mine said something that changed my life: “Valuable as knowledge is, the power to acquire it independently is more valuable.” These words stayed with me and fueled my unending thirst for knowledge. It’s this understanding that has allowed me to build and succeed. Knowledge is power, but more importantly, the ability to acquire it independently is a life-changing tool.
Knowledge, Wisdom, and Understanding: The Foundations of Development
The Bible says, “By wisdom is a house built, by understanding it is established, and through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and precious ornaments.” This speaks to all areas of development—family, community, and, indeed, nations. But instead of striving for knowledge and wisdom, we substitute prayer for hard work and call it faith. As a society, we repeat “prayer is the master key,” and we wait for divine intervention where hard work and knowledge are the solutions we need.
God doesn’t clean a dirty toilet, nor does He build infrastructure or create jobs. Development is achieved through our understanding and application of knowledge, not by incessant fasting and prayer. Simple, day-to-day knowledge solves more problems than hours of prayer ever could. Faith certainly has a place, but it does not replace practical solutions. Instead of praying for development, why are we not using the God-given wisdom to build our nation?
The African Dilemma: Misplaced Faith in Place of Knowledge
It’s troubling that, despite our prayers, we’re still talking about the same issues in Nigeria as we were 40 years ago. We have become a society that prays to God for things that human knowledge can easily resolve. In developed nations, children don’t pray for electricity—they learn the science behind it. They don’t pray for roads; they learn the engineering that builds them. Knowledge liberates them from the ignorance that shackles many of us here.
Take a moment and think: why would any God answer the same prayer, repeated by generation after generation, while nothing changes? Because God has given us the mental tools to solve these problems ourselves. When we fail to exercise these tools, we trap ourselves in a cycle of dependency, expecting God to solve what we are capable of doing ourselves.
Leaders Without Knowledge Create Nations Without Progress
I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again: a lack of wisdom at the highest levels is the root of Nigeria’s stagnation. Across our leadership, people with limited knowledge sit at the helm of affairs while those with skills and wisdom are often relegated. When a nation’s leader declares, “Subsidy is gone forever!” without due consultation and planning, what results is chaos and hardship. Leadership requires knowledge, not empty statements.
Nations like Rwanda, Singapore, and Malaysia have developed themselves through knowledge, strategic planning, and hard work. Rwanda, a nation that suffered genocide not so long ago, now has a tourism slogan that proudly invites visitors. Singapore, under Lee Kuan Yew, transformed from a struggling city-state to a world-class economy. These leaders used knowledge and understanding, not just faith, to build nations that now serve as models for others.
We’ve had too many leaders without vision, substituting politics for competence and leaving real work to chance. Until we prioritize people with knowledge and a genuine interest in the nation’s welfare, no amount of prayer will change our situation.
The Urgent Need for Practical Knowledge
The sooner we understand that knowledge and wisdom are what Nigeria needs, the sooner we can start building a nation worthy of our aspirations. Knowledge teaches us how to turn resources into wealth, as Malaysia did with palm oil, a crop originally brought from West Africa. But here, we lack this insight. We give away what we have in exchange for goods we can produce ourselves and then pray for prosperity.
To truly change, we need to equip ourselves and our youth with the knowledge required to solve problems and innovate. It’s time to stop looking up and start looking within, where the wisdom to build lies.
Faith is necessary, but knowledge is essential. If we must pray, let’s pray for wisdom, for humility to accept knowledge, and for the courage to apply it where it matters. Only then can we build a nation that reflects the strength, potential, and values we hold dear. God bless you.
