By Olu Fasan
How fragile is Nigeria? That is one question Nigerian leaders don’t want to confront. Indeed, it irks them when anyone says that Nigeria is a fragile state. What’s more, some Nigerians, out of sheer romantic or sentimental patriotism hate it when the word “fragility” is used to describe Nigeria.
It is unpatriotic, they reckon, for anyone to suggest that Nigeria is a fragile state. But this is not a subjective matter, rather it is an objective reality, based on rigorous assessment of key political, economic and social indicators. Nigeria may choose to be the judge and the jury in its own matter and declare itself strong and stable, the world simply does not see it that way, and the evidence points to a deeply fragile state.
