Nothingness: Fraternity Ladder Ambitions (UCGFs)
University Campus Grown Fraternities (UCGFs) in Nigeria are a usual ‘dead end’ for the human spirit. Yes, for those with benign ambitions and serious men. But for those gifted with niggardliness, low cunning, meanness with a heavy dose of unrealistic dreaming it is a fiesta; they are “El Dorado seekers,” exemplified. Hence, the main goal of the fraternity member who cannot make better than his job pay grade in real life but wants to be a mega-whatever is drenched in a fixation with fraternal power.
Getting to the top of the fraternity becomes “the” super-ambition and mega-achievement. The climb to the top of the fraternity ladder is thus a common desire within. But, What for? Please look at the former heads of UCGFs. Now show to yourselves the ones whoever became a mega-achiever in any sphere of life in recent decades. Or even worse, who became a mega-achiever by being the top fraternal helmsman all by its self. There is nothing like that, nothing.
Climbing the fraternal ladder to become the Uno Numero is a dream many within UCGFs harbour. It is a common ambition within. Any decent fellows whosoever wore the crown at the top of the fraternal ladder did so most reluctantly. Decent fellows do so without campaigning in elections for the spot, lobbying pernicious cliques that hold power. Or may not even do the job at all after he is sworn-in.
Those who sit at the top of the ladder through nefarious ambition would have certain qualities. An easy-to-prove long history of psychopathy, a reputation for personal intellectual confusion, and embody hopes of grandeur. Or, with consistency, display a deep-seated admiration/desire for ruthlessness. For in their own eyes, the evil of the UCGF is useful to society and humanity.
The man bent on becoming the Uno Numero of a UCGF is interesting to observe. He puts all his expendable thoughts and energies into fulfilling that dream. In fact, it is this very ambition of the fraternal ladder climbers that keeps the UCGF going and growing. The UCGFs do not grow through the bona fide or favourable but unconventional conditions of progress. They do it but through arbitrary agreement, dirty tricks and wanton expediency. Michael Corleone, who could kill his brother or friends to achieve absolute power. This becomes the prototype for the “brother” who wants to sit at the top of the fraternal ladder.
It is a great blessing to UCGFs in Nigeria that the Nigerian Police Force and its forensic capabilities are far behind the basic acceptable global standards. Their offences would be viral. Several controllers of UCGFs would swing from a rope or serve life sentences without parole for their sins. The handful of men that own the UCGFs by a perverse status quo, feed fat from its collective finances. This allows arbitrary governance and expediency to reign without restriction for menacing reasons. If UCGFs dedicate their time to sincere management by a thorough, decent internal ‘rule of law’, that would be in order. With the laws upheld and enforced would enable the general membership of the fraternities to prosper or at least be protected. And kick out any abusers and misusers of the system.
Even their “spiritual heads” and the conclaves that support them are crooked. They hold elections to vote in top dogs who then govern with autocratic certainty, another kind of one-party system with an un-elected patrimonial supreme head to answer to. Next, evil, ambitious men are more willing to break the rules in brazen ways. Unsurprisingly, they do this to protect the perverse status quo, as a condition of climbing to the top of the fraternal ladder.
Those who are ambitious to become the top shots of the UCGFs are a curiosity. Instead of being cunning and ruthless in their levels are slow-thinking upstarts. The few men who own the UCGFs with subtlety used them to do their filthy and obnoxious work. Poetic justice emerges in ways that the ambitious ladder-climbers only realise late. Their untold sacrifice and folly becomes obvious after sitting at the top of the fraternal ladder and left it. The “What do I have to show for it,” a never ending moment The realisation is harrowing for some.
Excellent and reliable friends betrayed, bright lights dismissed or derided, notable projects sabotaged, reason and common sense burnt to ashes for the ascendancy of folly. More so is the celebration of criminal activity, rape a show of genuine adulthood and so forth and so on. The pain is in the question, “Why did he enforce and support such despicable deeds?” Power!!!
Nevertheless, the perverse status quo grows more sinister and toxic with time. Because ever more, psychopathy and crookedness, are now the desirable requirements for initiation. A rookie with a personality disorder has a bright future. He starts his climb to the top from day one. The depth and scope of evil practices and manipulation by those few men who control UCGFs have evolved beyond their own wildest dreams. Moreover, the conventional wisdom is, if you want a bully, an assassin, a thug, a psychological abuser or a spy, then recruit one or many. The days when good grades and unqualified good character were the main criteria for initiation into UCGFs are prehistoric today.
Notwithstanding, as members of UCGFs rise to the top of the fraternal ladder, they see the mirage. They see the nothingness of their achievement. Then look at their counterparts. Counterparts who have climbed to the top of one of the many transparent social or professional ladders in society. Then they call such meritocrats ‘lucky’ with mind-numbing mimetic desire. The money they steal while in office from the UCGF and its members is no satisfying compensation or comfort. It is a derisory affair inheriting the wind or blue sky.
Whether being fortunate in this sense is climbing to the top of the ladder and getting something worthy and tangible for it. Or is not having to be so nasty to achieve almost nothing or anything at all? Who knows?
Being a ‘King of Nothing‘ is quite a feat, especially while destroying so many lives and social capital to achieve it.
What do you think?
Grimot Nane