The ‘japa’ Syndrome For Naija
Japa’ don become contagious to everybody wey no wan suffer again in the hand of our politicians Dem 
If you dey hear ‘japa’ na Yoruba word for escaping or fleeing away to look for better ground.
E dey common to hear ‘japa’on social media these days, as many young professionals Dem from Nigeria dey commot the country to seek greener pastures in tUK, US, Canada, Dubai, and some other countries dem wey the pay dey better, And them get excellent security, light 24/7, with system wey dey structured .
It’s not just medical doctors and nurses who’re caught in this web. Dentists and pharmacists are also relocating in droves!
He also said the doctors are poorly paid as the government has not done acomprehensive review of health workers’ salaries since 2009 despite inflation.
And that security of their lives was a concern to these doctors as they had suddenly become victims of kidnapping and other attacks. So, they’re relocating in order to be safe.
Teachers are also relocating seriously.
He also said the United Nations had hinted of its intention to embark on mass recruitment of teachers from Nigeria.
“So many of our very experienced talents, especially in the area of Software Engineering, are either leaving the industry or leaving the country,”
The first ‘Japa’ incident occurred when President Muhammadu Buhari first came to power.
This was about three decades ago!
At the time, popular Nigerian musicians, both gospel and secular singers, stormed the recording studios to communicate the situation to the government and discourage emigration, reassuring their fellow citizens that Nigeria would be great again.
The wave of mass emigration was over dissatisfaction with the state of the nation and popular songs like Veno Marioghae’s “Nigeria go survive, Africa go survive, my people go survive ooo, Nigeria go survive”, which was released in 1986, with the title ‘Nigeria Go Survive’, came to be.
The song aimed to raise the hope of the hopeless and discourage the prevailing ‘japa’, the slang now given to mass emigration.
Since then, doctors and other skilled professionals have been moving out of the country and the government is not concern about the situation.
“Not only the youth, but older generation of Nigerians exhibit interest to leave the country. This is creating a worrisome phenomenon which has come to be popularly known in local parlance as ‘japa’
Na for by fire by force, everyday our international airport dey receive different-different from all over the State as people dey ‘japa’
Se you don hear say plenty young people dey crazy about leaving Nigeria for a better life.
We even hear say one young Nigerian, wey just ‘japa’ land for Canada, dey praise baba God say him don finally japa from Nigeria suffering and smiling to freedom dey. He thanked God for No more hunger, killings and hardship under President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.
The people wey leave dis country say na big testimony say they are delivered from Buhari govt. Thank You God poverty don do sege for many Nigeria young people, He say Nigeria is like a slave nation.
Presidential media spoke man the ogbonge journalist, Femi Adesina yan say the President no worry
anybody wey wan comot for Nigeria can go, afteral Nigeria still dey kanpe.
“The average Nigerian had always wanted to leave. And it is not just in Nigeria. It is in most countries of the world, particularly in the third world,” he said during the show. “They always believe that it is greener on the other side.”
“You see, the truth is that if you have an opportunity to better yourself in any part of the world, there is nothing wrong with it. If you think migrating legally is good for you, all well and good. By all means, go!” he added.
“But you cannot now say that because people are leaving, then it is a sign that something is fundamentally wrong.”
As far as he is concerned, “There are Nigerians who would never leave the country no matter how things are”.
Unfortunately, majority of Nigerians would disagree with Mr. Adesina as they see no future in the country. It is sad to to note that 36 years after the first ‘japa’ incident, the hope of a better Nigeria is still a mirage for citizens while the country faces challenges of senseless killings of innocent citizens, hunger, unemployment, lack of vibrant justice system, infrastructural deficits, brain drain among medical doctors, nurses and other professionals, and lack of political will to deal with the remote and immediate causes of the various crises in the country.
“The general summation of the situation of the country is that we are inching towards a failed state. I’m not saying that Nigeria is already a failed state, but we are inching towards that. Therefore, it is our responsibility to collectively work together towards rescuing our country, retrieving it from the All Progressives Congress (APC) before the deed is done,” Tambuwal said.
In an interview with the Guardian in September 2022, Charles Okolie, in his mid-40s, said he was set to join the league of Nigerians leaving for greener pastures abroad.
You can’t compare life in Nigeria and abroad. They are two parallel lines that can’t meet.
“A domestic servant in the US is richer than a professor in Nigeria. I will rather serve jail terms in the US than stay in Nigeria and die of hunger or get killed by criminals. Very soon, bandits will force everybody out of this country to become refugees in foreign land. The hope in Nigeria is getting darker every day yet the government is treating it with kid’s gloves.”
While they get greener pastures, a working system, and better opportunities for their children, life is not always rosy for these professionals who relocate abroad.
- That’s just one case of regret. Several more abound!
To japa is not easy
Some of them even lose their lives while trying to relocate!
