The veteran who was born on October 1, 1944, however, said he is optimistic that “Nigeria will be great again.
Dr. Farounbi clocks exactly 80 years old on Tuesday, October 1, 2024.
With a career spanning over five decades in media and diplomacy, Farounbi has been a steadfast advocate for effective communication and representation on both national and international stages.
Speaking in an interview, Dr. Farounbi said Nigeria itself is no longer proud of October 1st.
“In 1960, I was so excited when they chose October 1. I remember then they gave us jollof rice and mirinda to commemorate independence. They gave us one medal like this. I was so happy.
“But today, Nigeria is not even proud of October 1. So, they don’t celebrate it. Today, we celebrate May 29 or June 12 more than we celebrate October 1. And it’s because we have forgotten what the Yoruba say that when you forget your source, you dry up.
“When Nigeria abandoned October 1 in favour of May 29, that was symbolic of the pogrom. We lost touch with our source. Yes, there is always holiday on October 1, but that’s all. October 1 is not even a symbol of democracy. October 1 is not a symbol of independence.
October 1 is not a symbol of liberty. October 1 has still been a symbol of freedom from poverty, from war, from terror and from fear. It has stopped.
October 1 has just become something. October 1 was something that children looked forward to. We were going to do a march pass in the stadium, to get a speech on the state of the nation from the state governor or the president.
“All of that had gone. We are ashamed of October 1 and I’m ashamed that they’re sharing the day with me, imposing their own suffering on me. I used to be very proud of it.
“But I want to say something. I’m ever a proud Nigerian. And I say this categorically. Whether we Nigerians love it or not, Nigeria is going to change. There’s something called the Force of Inertia. What is the Force of Inertia?
“There are 237 million Nigerians. That’s all we bother about. But the 237 million Nigerians have interactions. A interacts with B. B interacts with A. A interacts with C. C interacts with D. So when you do the calculation of the interaction that the 237 million people make, it goes into billions.
“And because of the enormity of that interaction, Nigeria must change whether we like it or not.
“Now let me explain my thesis. When you park a trailer, a fully loaded trailer, as a trailer driver, you put it in gear, you put it in handbrake, you put a shock to it. Go back after one hour, that trailer would have moved because it’s so big. Nigeria is too big for it not to move forward.
“We are 20 times the size of Togo. We are 10 times the size of Ghana. In land area, we are the same size as France and Britain. It is not possible to peg Nigeria to this incompetent level.
“Nigeria, by force, will move. There is going to be a coalition of forces within the 237 million people that will create a force that will move Nigeria forward. Nigeria is not going to remain backward looking as it is.
“This situation gets complicated by social media. They see what is happening in US. They see Ghana. They see South Africa. At my time, we didn’t see that. We relied on newspapers and television.
“Today, we get it immediately. It exposes us to new skills, new dimensions, new horizons, new wisdom, new science, new knowledge, new literature, new music. Today, Nigerian music is ruling the world, not because we are that big, but because of this global structure of the world.
“If anybody believes that Nigeria will continue like this, tell him I, Yemi Farounbi, says no; Nigeria has a better future.
“But we only want to accelerate that by having good government, good structure, good system, good processes, so that it can be fast. But if it is not fast, it will move on its own. God help those that that huge structure of Nigeria will crush. Be ready for a good Nigeria. A better, authoritative Nigeria. It’s my hope.
“While I’m still on this side of the divide, I know Nigeria will be better. And it’s not just mouth. It doesn’t matter whether the government becomes more incompetent. It doesn’t matter whether Nigeria becomes more pauperised.
“I know that the sheer force inherent in this intellectual vibration that I see among Nigerians. See what Nigerians are doing with ICT. That’s why the owner of Facebook keeps on coming here. Why are they attracted by Nigeria? Our youths are great people. Our youths are creative people. Nigeria, whether we like it, will arise as compatriots. He said.