This is the story of a young boy whose parents were murdered during the 2002
riots in Kaduna. He was aged 11 yrs at the time. His father, was a Pastor and
his mother, supported his father in the ministry. One day he went out to play
football on the street as usual but returned home to see that all his parents
ever laboured for had been razed down and his parents murdered in cold blood.
Apart from the shock, he was notified that he was to be the next target, so his
friends smuggled him to a hiding place in order to calm the
situation.
Somewhere in there, he found the solution: to emigrate and
seek for asylum in England. A family from South London accepted the
responsibility to take care of him. At age 11, he arrived in England, in a place
completely unknown to him, away from his home, in a place that he knew
absolutely no one.
While in London, he began deploying his football
skills. Though his parents were murdered, his passion for football was never
killed. He attended Stanley Technical High School (now known as the Harris
Academy) in South Norwood during which he was scouted playing football in the
local Tandridge League where scouts from Crystal Palace FC approached
him.
From that point, his career progressed in leaps and bounds. This
young man played for England's under 16, 17, 19 and 21 teams between 2005 and
2010 scoring 11 goals for England during this period. He later moved to Wigan
Athletic and now plays for Chelsea FC.
This is the young man known as
VICTOR MOSES! His story is indeed a touching one, I share his pains really. I
also admire his courage. He had a choice never to step into Nigeria again but he
chose otherwise.
When the call to serve his fatherland came, Moses dumped
England and embraced Nigeria... That is PATRIOTISM!
Today, we see a
Victor Moses bringing joy to every Nigerian including those who may have
inspired his parent's death... That is LOVE!
On Sunday, Moses would stand
to sing the National Anthem and pledge allegiance to a country that couldn't
defend his parents... That is COURAGE!
Same day, Moses would deliver the
"Africa Cup of Nations" trophy to Nigeria not minding the trauma and pain this
Nation caused him but rather choosing to put the past behind him......That is
FORGIVENESS!
Moses rose through pain, bitterness and despair and in its
place embraced the limelight of hope, courage and determination . He never gave
up on himself &his fatherland. He persevered, He held on& He
Triumphed!!!... That is DETERMINATION!
Moses was twice denied his international
debut for Nigeria. A friendly against Guatemala in February 2011 was cancelled,
and attempts to play for the country the following month were thwarted as FIFA
did not receive his application to switch nationalities in time. His debut
finally came in November. All that while, he retained his resolve to fly the
green and white colour, that is PURPOSE!
If someone like Victor
Moses, despite his painful past, never gave up on Nigeria, then why should you
and I? Let us unite and make this country great again...... We are ONE
NIGERIA!!!
Spread if you are inspired.........Cos I AM!
