Nigeria should approach Trump from a position of strength

Donald John Trump is finally the president of the United States of America. Expectedly, there is palpable tension around the world. Americans themselves have remained apprehensive. Countries in the East and the West are gripped by fervent fear. Even those in Africa are not left behind, all quivering as if they have never encountered an American horror movie before. Nigeria, however, must not expose itself to the flitting phobia.

Actually, Nigeria may as well gain more under Donald Trump than under any other American president before him.

The American president, remember, has begun his reign on a gratuitous promise of radical nationalism. The implication is that Trump may finally dump Nigeria’s oil for good and, of course, care less about our internal affairs. Moreover, America’s relationships with foreign countries, according to Trump, will be on mutually beneficial terms. These, to most, portend a troubling future for Nigeria-US relations.

Predicting Donald Trump, an enigma, has never been a cake walk. Though the man is well known, everything about him is largely unknown.

It may also interest you to know that I have been a Republican for three decades. Although I vigorously campaigned against Trump, the dissent did not stop me from penning a series of articles perfectly predicting his victory, including one with the title, “Why the Weird Trump Can Win”.

Of course, campaigning against the Republican, contrary to my gut instincts and conservative values, was a difficult decision. But any attempt to stop Trump was worth the effort. His labile character remains a threat to world peace. More relatively, his fiercest venoms were directed towards the people of colour and developing nations, Nigeria included.

Now that he is president, here is a strikingly different perspective rooted on the genius of the old saying: every disappointment is a blessing. To that end, the Trump’s doctrine might turn out to be the right tonic for Nigeria after all.

His style notwithstanding, the New Yorker believes that many nations are not doing their part to sustain global peace and stability. Donald Trump is of the opinion, and rightly so, that every country must demonstrate a true sense of independence by maximising the resources within its local environment for the good of its people.

Such concerns have every merit. In fact, one would think that Donald has Nigeria in mind in his idea of impenitent nations.

Mr. Trump also sees anything foreign as a bad omen for America, the nation of immigrants. Even the US NATO allies, the Pope, and the Queen have suddenly become suspects.

Now, under immense pressure to turn his quixotic world view into a reality, Trump is desirous to make any weak country the ultimate fall guy. His recent verbal salvo on Boko Haram is a preview. But Nigeria should not fall into the open trap.

Instead, here is the silver lining in the Trump horizon. Being a cavalier personality, who acts and talks anyhow, it is not difficult to grasp his open disdain for weak leaders, as well as beggarly nations. But the rationale is not exclusive. However, unlike other presidents before him, Trump is only being Trump to vouchsafe the obvious.

It is incumbent upon Nigeria, therefore, to present and demonstrate a can-do outlook moving forward. For instance, rather than grappling to visit the new American leader, as in the past, the first logical bold step would be to turn a blind eye to Mr. Trump—for now. Of course, there is the need to still maintain cordial relationships with the United States through the standard diplomatic missions, but it has become imperative to discard the type of master-servant mentality.

Further, at the opportune time, Nigeria has to be proactive and demand to renegotiate relations with the United States purely from a position of strength. The requisite strengths to compel Trump to see mutual benefits are not difficult to fathom.

Start with the latent truth that Nigeria is the African “super power”, whatever that means. Combine it with the fact that the seventh largest country in the world is not only the most powerful black nation on earth but also one endowed with overflowing resources well envied worldwide. Finally, demonstrate the If strategically presented, America will crave for Nigeria, instead of the other way round.

The name of the game is a new Nigerian independence. It entails maximising the abundant resources within our local environment for the public good, and promoting local goods.

Frankly, Trump’s xenophobic doctrine might have finally provided Nigeria a unique opportunity to critically look inward. The African nation has endured fifty six years of passive diplomatic relation with the United States but has nothing to show besides a façade of petty aids. The next four years under Trump will only be a pint in the ocean.

SKC Ogbonnia writes from Houston, Texas.