Stories Of Resilience Mark Yuletide Celebration In Southwest Nigeria

Millions of Nigerians living in Southwest Nigeria defied the odds and celebrated this year’s Yuletide despite the country’s harsh economic realities.

Their stories of resilience and adaptation reflected the hope, strength, and ingenuity that underline the never-say-die spirit of an average Nigerian in the face of adversity.

Prompting the adaptation were the crucial economic reforms embarked upon by the administration of President Bola Tinubu to reposition the country and put it on a stronger, surer footing.

The reforms necessitated tightening of belts and austerity measures across homes and various sectors of the nation’s economy, making citizens think outside the box.

Prior to the yuletide, many had expressed fear as to how households, particularly those at the lower rung of the ladder, would finance their end-of-the-year plans, with some almost giving up on the idea of ever having a joyous celebration.

However, stories of hope and resilience are never in short supply in the country, as Nigerians have always been known to find ingenious ways of surviving the harshest of situations.

Many residents of states in Southwest Nigeria interviewed by our correspondents expressed delight that despite the harsh economic situation, they were still able to have a joyous end-of-year celebration.

That much was true for the family of Sunday Oguntola, a printer and book publisher in Osun State, who, despite having very low customer patronage during the year, still managed to have a fun-filled yuletide with his family.

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He said his family had to improvise and adapt to the harsh economic reality, which he believed was not peculiar to Nigeria but global in its reach.

He said: “Though the prevailing economic situation has affected us adversely in terms of customer patronage which in turn affected money in the purse, we nonetheless found a way to make ourselves happy.

“In terms of how we celebrated, where we could not buy live chicken, we bought frozen chicken and where we could not afford half a bag of rice as we used to, we bought four measures. 

“My children understood when I told them I would not be able to get them new clothes but that they would have to wear their good old ones. The celebration wasn’t the best, but it was not bad.

“However, I must say that the situation is not peculiar to our country alone. It’s a global thing, and we hope 2025 will be a better year for our country.”

For Agboola Olubunmi, a fashion designer residing in Ondo state, the story was not much different as she also narrated how the economic situation forced her to become ingenious and adaptive to the economic crunch.

She said rather than engage in any extravagant spending during her yuletide shopping, she prioritized moderation and pragmatism in order to give her family the best.

“Things are very expensive and we could not buy all we used to buy to celebrate Christmas and the New Year. We could not buy new clothes for the children. They had to wear what they had already.

“Rather than buy carbonated soft drinks as we used to do, we prepared home made zobo drink and took it with joy. We thank God all the same for our lives. Things are hard but we still celebrated nonetheless and had a really good time,” Olubunmi stated.

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According to Pastor Olusoji Ojo of the Baptish Convention, Ogbomoso, in Oyo State, despite the economic reality, the financial crunch did not diminish the spirit of love and giving that the season was all about.

“The economic situation is indeed harsh this year, but God has been good to us. No doubt, Christmas this year was different. Yet we were able to celebrate with our loved ones and our neighbours. As missionaries, during that period, God helped us, we were able to share the love-Christmas is known for. 

“We shared gifts and food items in particular with loved ones. On Christmas morning, we visited an orphanage home to give them some gifts and food items to celebrate Christmas 2024. Not that it was easy, but God still made a way for us. So we appreciate what God did for us this year,” he said.

Olubusola Daramola’s story in Lagos State resonated with the Diaspora remittance. As a mother of two and a civil servant, whose husband works abroad, she had money sent to her to do all her Christmas and new year shopping.

She said: “Thankfully, my husband sent us money and we were able to get all we needed for the yuletide. We didn’t get all we wanted actually, but we got a substantial part. We were also able to share to a few people that really needed help as the spirit of the season demands. We thank God for His help.”

Mr. Silas Onyemaechi, a petty trader in Ondo town, thanked God for the little sales he made. According to him, the culture of resilience and hope in the people still made them buy essential materials for themselves and family members.

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This, he said, kept him in business, the proceeds of which he also used to provide for himself and the family during the festivities.

“I couldn’t take my family out to eateries and travel far distance, but we were still able to enjoy ourselves at home, rejoice with friends and exchange visitations and pleasantries within the neighbourhood. Friends and relatives that couldn’t be visited were called on phones, some via conference call, others via video call. It was really fun despite the austerity measures. We thank God for everything,” Onyemaechi said.

The survival of Mrs. Juliana Ariyayo, a retired nurse in Ibadan, Oyo State, during the yuletide was not unconnected to the communal living of Africans, which saw her children sending money and provisions to her to celebrate Christmas and the New Year.

While urging the governor to remember the retirees just as he did for the regular civil servants in the state, she expressed hope that next year will be better with the signals of economic recovery.

“We have seen the price of fuel, especially petrol, dropping, and we also hope that the price of food will drop accordingly,” she said.

It is true that the country is facing a cost of living crisis, but Nigerians all over the country and especially in the Southwest did not allow the harsh economic realities to define their celebration and mar their end-of-year festivities.

Joining their counterparts across the world, Nigerians celebrated Christmas and the New Year with hope in their hearts, amidst economic hardship and financial difficulties, relying on their ingenuity and very adaptive spirit.