For the text review assignment, I decided to go back and trace another important text by Chinua Achebe that addresses systemic injustices within Nigeria. The book is named ‘The Trouble with Nigeria’.
It analyzes social and political challenges that the country faced since the 1980’s. The ironic concept is that the same challenges addressed still exist in Nigeria today including corruption, social inequality and ethnocentrism. The book presents the shortcomings of the Nigerian government past independence. To most Nigerians, they haven’t really achieved independence for their masters, those in power are looting from them ad lack patriotism.
Political injustice is the most common form of injustice presented by Achebe. She states that it is not that Nigerian citizens are fundamentally different from the others but it is the political system that have allowed and given a chance for the rich and those in the throne to be corrupt, molest the poor, and hike on taxes for their own personal benefits.
Social injustices are presented where Achebe writes on there not having public policies that will be of benefit to all citizens including the poor. It is ironic and an act of injustice that leaders cannot send their children to Nigerian universities or take them for treatment in Nigerian health centers because they have not improved on them but yet they want other Nigerians to attend them. To the they are the ‘one’ and those from low class are ‘others’ who got no one to look after their needs.
I feel that Chinua Achebe aimed at educating Nigeria and Africa at large to avoid political injustices as a step towards ending underdevelopment. It is only possible if those in position of power are able to treat others equally. This relates to the Master-Slave dialect learnt in class where those in power are the masters and the citizens are the slaves.