The weaponisation of yesterday, By Umar Yakubu
If Nigeria is to break this destructive cycle, we must transition from what Nietzsche termed “reactive” history to a critical history — a deliberate practice that scrutinises past structural failures, disarms historical grievances, and prioritises civic nation-building over score-settling… Until we stop using yesterday as a weapon to fight today’s political battles, we will remain trapped in Hegel’s grim reality: a nation that speaks of its history incessantly, yet learns absolutely nothing from it.
If Nigeria is to break this destructive cycle, we must transition from what Nietzsche termed “reactive” history to a critical history — a deliberate practice that scrutinises past structural failures, disarms historical grievances, and prioritises civic nation-building over score-settling.
When examined through the lens of political philosophy, Nigeria’s fraught relationship with its past reveals a tragic paradox: historical knowledge, rather than serving as a lamp for national building and institutional enlightenment, has too often been transformed into a flame for social division.
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