Why Nigerians Romanticize Struggle and How It Weakens Accountability

When Struggle Is the Default Setting.

For a large segment of Nigerians, hardship is not episodic; it is constant. According to Nigeria’s National Bureau of Statistics, over 60 percent of Nigerians live in multidimensional poverty, facing overlapping deprivations in income, education, health, housing, and basic services. In practical terms, this means that even people who earn regularly still pay privately for what the state should provide: electricity, water, healthcare, security, and education. In a country where effort does not reliably produce reward, many Nigerians redefine struggle as persistence.

Cultural and Religious Reinforcement.

Nigeria’s cultural and religious narratives reinforce this mentality because most stories of suffering followed by reward dominate sermons, music, and everyday expressions. Our society commends patience, sacrifice, and long-suffering as virtues, while sometimes portraying complaint as weakness or lack of faith.

The Dangers of Normalizing Hardship.

Accepting hardship makes bad governance seem less critical. Citizens adapt instead of demanding accountability. Power outages become something to “work around.” Inflation becomes something to “survive.” Insecurity becomes something to “pray about.” Leaders are now judged in context and not by outcomes. Instead of asking, “Who is responsible?” We use phrases like “the country is hard.” This mindset unintentionally shields governments from pressure. A population trained to endure is easier to govern poorly than one trained to expect results.

Conclusion: Resilience Should Not Replace Responsibility.

Resilience has kept Nigerians alive in the absence of reliable systems. It has protected our dignity where institutions have failed. But good governance was never supposed to be replaced by resilience. A society should not require exceptional strength to function. The real question is not whether Nigerians can keep enduring hardship (we’ve done that), but for how long we’ll suffer while only our leaders benefit from the current system. It is time we demand competent leadership, effective governance, and structural reform.

By Esther O.