Nigeria, March 17 -- A few years ago, I had the chance to visit a retired civil servant in his cozy home in Lagos. Stepping into his study felt like traveling back in time. One wall was adorned with a wooden shelf, packed with books and hefty government files tied up with worn-out ribbons. These were mementos and relics from his years in public service during the late 1980s.

He took one file down and grinned.

"You know," he said, "back then, things didn't happen at breakneck speed. A memo would be drafted, typed up by a secretary, passed to a supervisor, reviewed again, and sometimes even looked over once more before it finally left the office. It could take weeks before a decision was made."

He paused, as if he were reliving those mom...