By the President, Association of Nigerian Students and Scholars, Ankara (ANSSA)
Nigeria today stands at a turning point. Across our nation, rising insecurity, economic hardship, and social tensions have placed immense pressure on communities from the north to the south, from the cities to the rural heartlands. These challenges ranging from religious polarization, ethnic mistrust, youth unemployment, banditry, and political fragmentation have created a climate in which fear and division easily spread. But this moment is also an opportunity. It is a call for Nigerians, at home and abroad, to reaffirm what binds us together rather than what pulls us apart.
As Nigerian students and scholars in Ankara, we occupy a unique position. We are far from home, yet deeply connected to its realities through our families, our communities, and our shared identity. This gives us both the clarity to reflect and the responsibility to act as voices of unity.
For many years, our national discourse has been dominated by narratives centered on religion and ethnicity. While these identities form part of our social fabric, they have increasingly been used as tools for political mobilization, manipulation, and even misinformation. Religion becomes an instrument rather than a source of moral guidance; ethnicity becomes a boundary rather than a heritage.
While Nigeria’s cultural diversity is a strength, lack of inter-regional trust and limited national integration policies have made it easier for conflicts to be framed along ethnic or religious lines, even when their root causes are economic or ecological.
Understanding these factors helps us avoid simplistic explanations and encourages us to advocate for solutions based on evidence and long-term peace building.
As a community of students and scholars, we represent one of the most educated and globally exposed segments of the Nigerian population. Our responsibility is not only to succeed academically but also to use our knowledge to reshape narratives and foster unity.
We must:
• avoid spreading unverified information,
• counter divisive rhetoric in our conversations and online spaces,
• support one another emotionally and academically,
• and uphold the image of Nigeria with dignity wherever we go.
Our conduct abroad reflects our country at home. In moments of crisis, our voices carry extra weight.
To overcome this period of national tension, we must shift our focus from identity politics to shared values and collective citizenship. Unity does not mean ignoring our diversity; it means channeling it toward a greater national purpose.
We must stand together not as northerners or southerners, not as Christians or Muslims, not as Yoruba, Hausa, Igbo, Tiv, Ibibio, Fulani, or any of our countless ethnic groups, but as Nigerians, defined by hope, resilience, creativity, and an unwavering belief in a better future. This way, we can collectively tackle the challenges we have at hand and contribute to bringing peace and justice to our dear country.
Patriotism begins with how we treat one another. It begins with the stories we choose to uplift, the language we choose to use, and the solidarity we choose to express.
In this time of crisis, unity is not optional, it is essential. It is the only path through which we can build security, restore trust, and create opportunities for future generations.
Let us, as ANSSA, commit to being a community that:
• promotes dialogue over division,
• compassion over suspicion,
• and truth over sensationalism.
Let our association be an example of what Nigeria can become: a nation strengthened, not weakened, by its diversity, guided not by fear, but by shared values and a shared destiny.
Nigeria belongs to all of us. Our future depends on how we choose to act today.
United, we stand not only as students abroad but as patriots determined to see a peaceful, prosperous, and united Nigeria.
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