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The APC-Mandate: One Year Of Extreme Pain

/ Adeola / Leave a comment

What Nigerians have experienced in 2016 alone is by all measure the worst year of the Nigerian life (in a time of “peace”). This unitary system of government is so, so wrong! It is a product of intellectual deficiency that arose from lazy, corrupt and unproductive minds.

The APC-Mandate: One Year Of Extreme Pain

By Adeola Aderounmu

Adeola_June_2016

Adeola Aderounmu

One year after the official emergence of the APC mandate, the most unexpected scenarios are here. The current situation in Nigeria today was unimaginable 12 months ago when the expectations and stakes were raised through the emergence of the APC mandate.

Everyone including PDP addicts knew that the PDP years were totally messed up. But no one expected that as the clean-up started under the APC-Buhari mandate that the situation will deteriorate to a state that has now (also) made nonsense of the APC campaigns and promises.

Even my invented slogan that the 1999-2015 PDP years were the worst years of the Nigerian life had been beaten flat. What Nigerians have experienced in 2016 alone is by all measure the worst year of the Nigerian life (in a time of peace).

What led to these unexpected new lows of general sufferings is arguable. But the degradation of human life, extremely high cost of living and endless surges of joy-killers like the fuel-related problems are both sad and regrettable.

My opinion is that if there had been adequate proactive-ness, Nigerians would not be suffering more today than they already did under the wasteful 16 years of PDP. The APC-Buhari mandate was ill-equipped for the year that went by.  Therefore the mandate becomes a questionable one, I’m afraid.

My opinion is premised upon the fact that the APC-mandate and the rest of us had a clear understanding of what the challenges ahead were. We knew that Nigeria was in bad shape. Our collective expectation was that things should not get worse because they were already bad.

The APC-mandate failed to curb a bad situation. So it grew worse and it’s still going down the road to perdition in so many uncountable ways.

What enlightened and knowledgeable Nigerians must do now is to see the current situation in Nigeria as an opportunity to access the country right from 1960 to date. Why Nigeria got into the mess it is now is no longer rocket science.

Primarily, the country was misruled by almost all the regimes that have held sway at one time or the other after independence in 1960. As if the colonial drainage was not enough albeit side-a-side remarkable infrastructure development, the indigenes of Nigeria chose to simply loot the country to dryness.

As you read, Nigeria is being looted by some elements either directly by their positions in government or indirectly by the failure of the system to curb external appendages of looting.

The crime of looting is so grave that the recovered cash that was revealed recently by the APC government is a tip of the iceberg of what actually disappeared under both the APC- and the PDP-states in the last 17 years.

Politicians on both fronts practically emptied the states treasuries daily. At the parasitic center, the Jonathan-led central PDP government wasted and looted Nigeria’s monies in no manner that were different from his predecessors both civilians and military.

Everything that has a beginning will have an end. When the APC-Buhari mandate is over (because it will be), we will surely be informed of how much went down the drain daily. That, and what went down in the APC terrains whilst PDP held swayed are top secret today. We are looking the other way because the bulk of the latter brought Mr. Buhari to power.

In Nigeria, anybody who is elected or selected as the president can play god. It’s all thanks to the system. But I love the concept of time and truth. They outlive everyone and everything.

Apart from the fact that Nigeria was misruled and looted, there is the other factor of running a political system and constitution constructed by the military juntas.

Some people may still want to argue in favour of unitary government. This is a system that continues to feed the elites, the politicians and their accomplices. On the other hand the system puts hunger, death and sorrows at the doorsteps of the common people.

The strongest argument against unitary government cannot be missed: One man cannot rule Nigeria! The last one year provided the most visible evidence and the end of the first APC-mandate will nail it.

The one man show is not going to lead Nigeria further. He has ministers, yes, but they can’t do anything if that one man does not approve.

There are state governors, yes, but they cannot do anything if their begging plates are not filled by that one man.

This system is so, so wrong! It is a product of intellectual deficiency that arose from lazy, corrupt and unproductive minds.

This system is no longer acceptable and it is very unreasonable. It has not worked and it will not work. Nigerians have a way of hoping in the midst of hopelessness. The results? More than 100 m poor people, a disgraceful world record accumulation of poor people in Africa!

Summarily, the APC-mandate is doing worse than the PDP-mandate because of a system that promotes corruption, looting and incompetency. Again the unitary system of government is ridiculous and devoid of intellectual-problem solving approaches. It is so bad even the current minister of solid mineral resources cannot guarantee wealth production from solid minerals in the next 5 years!!!

For several years now, some people have suggested a change in the system of government but those calls fell on deaf ears. The politicians are not going to willingly change a system that makes them fat and rich.

In recent days some prominent Nigerians including those who have benefited from the fraudulent unitary system of government have joined us in singing: restructure Nigeria!

It took so long for the chorus to emerge and one wonders how long it will be before the actualisation.

The APC-mandate under Mr. Buhari must not act as if it is deaf because the music is too loud: change the system!

Of course we know it will not happen in one night. We know that it is a process. What is important at this stage is to ensure that the process is initiated using the right institutions and appropriate agencies.

There are so many options for Nigeria and they are far more preferable than the agitations in the different regions that have metamorphosed into wars (in form of terrorism in the North, the so-called militancy in the South and the unending secession in the East).

Under the current unitary system, the war/agitation/militancy have no end in sight. Even the re-structuring of Nigeria will not heal all wounds automatically. But restructuring is a necessity to avoid the final collapse of Nigeria in a way that is undesirable.  The road that leads back to regional autonomy will be rough, windy and long. Still, it is the better road if well managed.

Those familiar with medical science know the difference between controlled cell-death and uncontrollable cell-death/destruction. Nigeria and Nigerians need to make the choice whilst common sense can still prevail. When all hell is let loose, there will be no room for common sense and negotiations. Necrosis in any country is not desirable.

It is easy to say that corruption is fighting back in form of NDA-militancy. What was fighting in the name of Boko Haram? What had been agitating in the name of Biafra? We must not forget the words of wisdom. If the wall does not open its mouth, the lizard will not crawl in. These walls have been open for too long and a lot of lizards have crawled in. Now several of those lizards have stomach aches.

The benefits of regional autonomy outweigh those of unitary government. The different regions in Nigeria need to start producing wealth again. Nigeria needs to return to the days when 5-10% of regional wealth is sent to the capital for administrative purposes only. Today money is sent to Abuja for siphoning!

All the parasites and leeches in Abuja under this APC-mandate need to do one of their last jobs which is to initiate the re-negotiation of Nigeria and go back home in peace. A time may come when they will return compulsorily. Since there may not be peace at that time, they need not wait that long.

I stand always with the common Nigerians.

The fight for freedom itself is not a day’s job. It may take a few years, it may several years. But like l wrote in The Kings Are Mad, when the time for freedom comes, there will be no going back.

aderounmu@gmail.com

 

 

 

Reflections

/ Adeola / Leave a comment

When l was 8 years old, my class teacher Mrs. Nwaoha taught me the importance of merit in attaining positions whilst handing me my first experience of taking responsibilities outside my home. Her approach continues to influence my thinking to this day.

Reflections

By Adeola Aderounmu

Aadeola_March 2016

Usually l write my random reflections annually on July 12 to mark my birthday. In recent weeks l have written sporadically in this column (View from Scandinavian in the Nigeria Village Square).

I have not been able to keep to the schedule of publishing every Sunday.

There are explanations for this.

One is that sometimes one feels the urge to just take it easy during the weekend when the week days have been intensive and tiring.

Second is that sometimes l listen to the news from Nigeria or I read the newspaper and then l found out that what my friend told me is true: the more things change in Nigeria, the more they stay the same.

As a columnist it is becoming more demanding to write about Nigeria in order to keep the content fresh or valid. It is hard to do this.

The problems that Nigerian columnists wrote about in 1980 are still the same problems that we are writing about today.

Nigeria has failed to develop or evolve.

We have not been able to change or raised the standard of our discussions to issues that challenge our growth or development because Nigeria is not growing or developing in comparison to several countries with high standard of living and high life expectation.

We are stagnated on economic issues as the value of the Naira remains a disgrace to the country and the people.

In far away places including America, Nigerians have been placed in strategic positions to help the country remain progressive in various ramifications.

However in Nigeria, for more than 50 years, we convert our economic gurus and scientists to fellow political criminals as soon as they arrive on the political stage.

We don’t move forward.

In politics, at a time that the world is discussing migration politics and politics of job creation, we in Nigeria are still struggling with counting of ballot papers.

Nigeria is a disgrace to Africa when it comes to conducting elections.

Recently it was in Kogi State and last week it was in Rivers State where people in this century and age went about killing fellow human beings just because they were asked to cast their votes.

In 1980 whilst I was in primary 3 my class teacher thought it was time to appoint class representatives who would be good ambassadors of her class. She adopted the merit system.

She based her arguments on performances during classwork and related activities.

It was a peaceful exercise. l emerged as the class captain and Foluso Agboola emerged as the assistant class captain.

It probably wasn’t a democratic process but it is an integral part of democracy, that merit would be considered a factor in producing candidates.

We were rewarded with positions because we deserved it.

Before that process I had seen boys since l was 6 years old or less fighting for place and supremacy and l have no idea how or why they thought they had to fight to claim authority when they have not shown that they are responsible.

Mrs. Nwaoha cleared things in my head forever. Merit first.

In 2016 the Federal Republic of Nigeria cannot conduct elections that involve ordinary counting of votes.

The people of Rivers cannot conduct themselves orderly. They went about committing murders and arsons rather then fishing out men of character and integrity like civilised people.

I weep.

In several essays l have written of the times l wept for Nigeria in my private moment and it is not a joke or make believe. Sometimes l had cleaned tear drops from my laptops.

If an x-ray can reveal a bleeding heart, the beam light should come to my chest.

Nigeria makes me sad.

Stories like those associated with the beheading of politicians and the massacres of citizens in River States are devastating to my health status.

I think about where civilisation has brought mankind and what Nigerians are doing to themselves. I’ll been insensitive and inhuman to hold back my tears.

Stories from the north are not news. The traumas of my childhood just became incurable as l wrote in a previous essay.

I don’t think that Boko Haram or terrorists (individuals or government) anywhere in the world represent the true species of humans. I long for a new biological classification of the animal kingdom. The world needs a new Carl Linnaeus.

The fuel scarcity in Nigeria is still unbelievable. Nigeria is naturally endowed with this resource. I have no words to flog the curse of the black oil. Huge disappointment for the black race is an understatement.

Power supply does not trip off in many countries around the world. Nigerians are undoubtedly among the smartest and most creative people under the sun.

Hence, it is hard to find an answer to the question: why do Nigerians have almost no electricity at all in the country?

Femi, my smart friend in Stockholm, gave an insight, it may be an answer.

He said that even if Nigeria decides to provide electricity on 100% supply mode, the infrastructures are not there to sustain it. O dear!

If that be the case, what about spending the next 2-3 years putting the infrastructure in place and constant power supply for ever more? Is that rocket science too?

I called this essay reflection and my intention was to make it short.

One can be hard on self if the issues and problems with Nigerians are taken too hard/harsh.

Whatever, it will always make me sad to see all the possibilities for growth, for development and for making Nigeria a paradise yet that the useless political class and the thieving ruling class have decided that the status quo shall be sustained.

I could definitely go on to reflect or complain. They want us to be tired of doing this. If we get tired, things might even get worse for the voiceless and the downtrodden in Nigeria.

I wish that good roads, good schools, good hospitals and modern infrastructures will be developed in every local government and every state in Nigeria.

I wish that as many people as possible will know and experience quality life style before they bid the world goodbye.

It is sad to see people who have lived all of their lives in extreme poverty whilst the country Nigeria has the potential to be the best place in the world.

The people paid severely for bad governance and mismanagement.

They are still paying and when restructuring the political system and realigning the country regionally or on true federalism are not even mentioned as probable solutions, there is little hope that we will change the lines of discussions soonest.

aderounmu@gmail.com

 

The APC Mandate: So Far, So Bad!

/ Adeola / Leave a comment

 

Even if the APC mandate meant well, the realities on ground in Nigeria really hurt. In the daily lives of the ordinary citizens, things continue to fall apart. Some groups like the pensioners have even disappeared from the radar of the government.

The APC Mandate: So Far, So Bad!

By Adeola Aderounmu

Adeola2_march.jpg

In about 2 months from now it will be one year since the APC mandate won the elections that brought it to power in Nigeria.

Unexpectedly the story has been very, very sad. So far, so bad!

I know the major arguments in favour of the APC mandate. For example we are quickly reminded that the Jonathan administration looted the treasury.

We are constantly reminded that change is gradual. We are also watching as Buhari is fighting corruption (that so far has excluded the massively corrupt APC-chieftains)

Even my close friends want me to appreciate the war on corruption albeit not perfect. I do. Ese pupo

In previous articles with the banner The APC Mandate, l have stated that there was nothing that was wrong with the Jonathan administration that the APC mandate wasn’t aware of before it took over the mandate of governance.

I have also argued that the APC mandate was aware of these problems before it promised Nigerians change.

I went further to state that considering the backdrop of the APC campaign machinery, APC politicians and tacticians ought to have taken all the challenges that they were about to face into consideration before embarking on a campaign, that now seems to be propaganda.

Today-10 months after winning a major victory at the polls-the APC central government is still mainly without direction.

Summarily, so far, the APC mandate is still a failure. It is just the way it is even if this is not what was intended.

The realities on ground in Nigeria really hurt. In the daily lives of the ordinary citizens, things continue to fall apart.

President Buhari has probably spent more time outside Nigeria than inside of it since he was pronounced the winner of the 2015 presidential election. It is now time to sit down at home and fix Nigeria.

If there is a time in Nigeria’s history when the people need empathy from the number one citizen, it is no other time than now when majority of the citizens are angry and hungry.

The level of hunger and the feeling of insufficiency in Nigeria today are unprecedented in the annals of the country.

We know that change is gradual. We know that monies were looted by Jonathan and his cronies. Who does not know that the looting had been across board since 1960?

No, we were not expecting a miracle from the APC mandate. But no one told us that things will be worse than they were 10 months ago. What did we miss when the APC took to the campaign trails?

Nigerians need to buckle up.

Crime rate may surge in the coming days. People have reached the end of the ropes and tolerance levels have reached an all time low.

The ordinary people are going about with rage, anger and huge disappointment on their faces. They are asking: is this the change?

Frustrations have reached a new high in Nigeria.

By now, it is common knowledge that petrol disappeared from the gas stations. There are more pumps in the black market than at the petrol stations. It shows how bad the government has been in managing patriotism and citizens’ roles in nation building.

The supremacy of the black market in different economic interplay speaks volume of the citizens’ non-adoption of the APC anticorruption struggle. It reflects clearly the rejection of the change slogan. This is simply failure of institutions of governance.

A few weeks ago l wrote an essay titled: We Can’t Go On Like This. I can understand when APC loyalists were quick to run to the defence of their lords. Again reality is what matters to me and today the situation has gone from bad to worse regarding the prices/costs of goods and services.

What worries me is that things are getting worse and l am yet to encounter a national, clear, easy to understand blueprint, known to all citizens on how the APC mandate intends to get Nigerians out of this mess that it inherited and bloated.

Former president, Mr. Jonathan blamed his ineptitude on previous administration before him and wasted 6 years of our lives while he and his cronies emptied the treasure monthly.

The APC mandate is blaming Jonathan and already wasting the remaining days of our lives. Unacceptable! Nonsense and ingredients!

Meanwhile workers cannot go to work everyday. They have to select the days they go to work because of the cost and difficulties of getting to work.

Students of tertiary institutions have expended their pocket monies and have to adopt on-off formulas of attending schools.

What about power supply lately? How many times have we complained about blackout? It is now worse.

I don’t understand why NEPA will be allowed to increase the tariff for electricity when power supply has not improved? It is only in Nigeria that this type of indefensible criminality of government is perpetrated against the people.

How come the APC mandate did not know that there is a need to upgrade infrastructure in the power sector. Was that not already a common knowledge?

Some of us know that the upgrade of infrastructure will definitely take years and when that is done, power supply can be improved. It is at that point that the consumers can be asked to pay more.

Now Nigerians are paying more for darkness.

You don’t have a bakery in your house but you get a bill of N10000 and electricity is not even supplied! The APC mandate is definitely perpetrating citizen defrauding.

Whose plight is not worsened since the last 10 months? Is it the pensioners who have disappeared from the radar of the APC mandate? They are not even paid any longer. Is it the unemployed whose hopes of jobs have faded into oblivion with the mass emigration of companies from Nigeria?

Civil servants now receive salaries sporadically. The calender dates are inconsequential. Yet the government continues to devise several ways to tax and impoverish the people. It is shocking!

Politicians don’t feel the problems or they pretend not to see at all which is why a fool will conclude that those complaining about the problems in Nigeria are PDP loyalists.

The wahala that continued to brew at the Senate is a discussion for another day. But it is sad that criminals occupy such positions in government. Now they hide under imported religions to tell us that women are slaves in Nigeria and cannot be equal to men.

Whatever happens, the APC mandate owes Nigeria good governance and improvement in living conditions.

The APC mandate owes Nigeria a lasting political solution.

By all means, the APC must begin to discuss how to move the different states in the country away from their parasitic existences. We need a debate on how the country can move forward and regional government and self-determination must be on the table.

There were so many promises that came with the campaigns in terms of what ordinary people will benefit.

Days have turned to months and months will soon add up to a year. If things do not improve, the APC mandate should at least prevent them from getting worse. That much the APC-mandate owes Nigeria.

Nigeria is in dire need of leaders and leadership.

We cannot go on like this..!

aderounmu@gmail.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Echoes Of Idiaraba

/ Adeola / Leave a comment

I was born after the civil war.

When l was growing up and in my formative years there was no one-teachers, counsellors or psychologists-who told us the reasons for the things that happened in northern Nigeria. Many of those things were unheard of or forbidden in western Nigeria.

The massacres, the beheading and the bloodletting just happened and became part of my/our history.

The other stories from the north like getting married to children as young as 8 years old blew my mind away forever!

Echoes Of Idi-Araba

By Adeola Aderounmu

Adeola_March

Intro

When micro-ethnic wars break out in Nigeria, they are sometimes quickly subdued and swept under the carpet.

That (being swept under the carpet) is going to be the fate of the recent micro-ethnic war at Mile 12 in Ikorudu, Lagos.

The Nigerian government is a master of this game-pretending as if everything is alright at the surface until the next riot or violence breaks out. The response will be the same-quench it and sweep it under the carpet.

Nigeria remains a volatile country because successive government continues to push forward the days of reckoning-that-is when to actually sit down and discuss a viable and long-lasting political solution regarding the colonial debacle called Nigeria.

We have come to the realisation that Nigeria, though with the potentials of a giant, ironically remains an under-developed country as a result of several factors, not least the dearth of leadership at the center and across the states.

 

The Northern Syndrome

My phobia of the north (of Nigeria) developed when l was still in my early teenage years. Now, with the established terrorism in the north (that may soon spread to other places) and recent news of filtering in, in different forms and shades, my phobia may be incurable.

It’s sad but it’s true.

This is not the first time l’m expressing my fear and phobia of the north.

Sometimes people take your experiences and life stories with a pinch of salt. They even argue and bet that you’ll change your mind as if they are you.

The trauma of the teenage years lingers. I may go through my life cycle without ever steeping my foot on the northern part of Nigeria.

When l was growing up and in my formative years there was no one-teachers, counsellors or psychologists-who told us the reasons for the things that happened in northern Nigeria.

Many of those things were unheard of or forbidden in western Nigeria.

Did we even have counsellors or psychologists? Where were they?

The massacres, the beheading and the bloodletting just happened and became part of our history.

The other stories from the north like getting married to children as young as 8 years old blew my mind away forever!

 

The Echoes of Idiaraba

l learnt about the aberration in Yorubaland. I mean, I became more confused when several of the riots in western Nigeria were propelled by disagreements between the men from the north and local indigenes. The question of one Nigeria was laid to rest several decades ago.

So when l was studying at the postgraduate level at the College of Medicine in ldiaraba, there were some days I looked over my shoulders because of the tension between the indigenes and the men from the north or beyond the north. We found out later that Chad and Niger also invaded western Nigeria.

Sometimes l felt that the gods were with me because l’d been home when the massacres took place. But what about those whose lives were taken away just as if one was blowing up fumes from cigarettes?

The episodes have just been repeated at Mile 12, with precision!

When l served in lbadan, there were some places l never dared to disembark from the bus to even look around because my traumatic mind told me that l could be stabbed to death by the herdsmen or a collection of rioters with mixed identities.

Such was the height of my phobia.

For me, as a young boy, and then a young student, the echoes of Idiaraba are the echoes of northern Nigeria and they still make me sick.

I am aware of the pockets of violence even amongst indigenes or local gangs. They just added to the heap of confusion in the lives of an innocent teenage mind.

Sometimes l think about the post-civil war Nigeria and all the unhealed wounds. These thoughts diminish my hope for Nigeria. I am convinced that the ever-fresh Biafra struggles are closely tied to unfinished businesses.

Indeed in my adulthood l have learnt about the unusual constellation of Northern Nigeria but too sad that that the constellation won’t drive away the fears and trauma. It may be too late to help me. I don’t know.

In fairness, considering that the only place where l feel safe-western Nigeria-is under siege from time to time from herdsmen and the foreigners who have failed to respect, revere or reciprocate the hospitality of the locals/indigenes, my trauma can still be aggravated.

One can argue from now to eternity about the underlying factors that brought me to this dilemma. We can sweep issues under the carpets. We can take sides and apportion blame.

Aren’t we expert in these areas?

Our common vision reveals to us what is on the surface. They are mis-governance, poverty, ignorance, deprivation, lack of education and sometimes mis-education of the minds. The list can be grown.

Still reappearing below the surface is the complete failure of nearly all the regimes and governments of Nigeria. There also lie the fundamental questions of the political and physiological structures of Nigeria.

The failure of “governance and politics” in Nigeria is monumental!

What next?

The echoes of Idiaraba are not going to leave Nigeria soon. They reverberate with different tones along the landscape.

They resonate from Idiaraba, to Sabongarri, to Mile 12, to Sabo and everywhere across the country.

No. they won’t leave soon.

In some places these echoes are already the drums and sounds of terrorism and war.

With the drastic curtailing of the Mile 12 episode, the day of the next massacre just got pushed forward.

The usual politics may one day send Nigeria to her ultimate demise. It will be a sad day for Africa, for humanity.

The advocates of regional government or self-determination are not totally wrong. Nigeria needs a lasting and permanent political solution.

The other day, Nigeria’s almost foreign-based president, Mr. Buhari was rooting for the Palestinian agenda. I don’t know if that is contradiction or pragmatism.

One who does not propose a referendum for the Biafra state should not support the Palestinian agenda.

Anyway, there was a road Nigeria did not take. Hence we will never be able to evaluate the roles that proper governance and good leadership could have played in Nigeria as it is today.

We will not be able to answer the question: had Nigerian been governed by sensible people and responsible government, where would the country be today?

Could we have moved beyond ethnic massacres? Could we have moved beyond racial profiling within the country? Could we have relegated imported religious beliefs and local cultural differences to the background in favour of humanity and common sense?

We will never know the answers because up to this day in 2016 Nigeria is ruled by greedy, selfish, myopic and extremely wicked souls.

Nigeria is led by politicians who will acquire the latest cars in the middle of the worst economic situation in the country’s history.

Call them fools, call them idiots, call them what you like, they don’t care anymore. The redemption point got exited long, long time ago!

They’ll even loot more when you say stop. They’ll build more houses and tell you to live, fight one another and die on the streets, you wretched citizens!

I don’t know who to turn to.

But l’ll try the Lagos state government and the custodians of western Nigeria: please take major proactive steps to ensure the safety of lives and property of all the citizens of Nigeria living in your domain.

Some short films emanating from the recent micro-ethnic wars revealed a lot about the extremely low standard of living and poverty in that part of Lagos.

Please do what you can to provide more employment opportunities, basic education, basic housing, basic infrastructure, possibilities for sport and other extra-curricular activities. They are urgent steps that could avail much.

Don’t forget that the farm settlement schemes will be a big boost for western Nigeria! Please start and develop it in earnest, or boost the existing ones, both private and public.

Youth empowerment, community-based mentorship and leadership programs should not be overlooked.

In our hope and dream of a better Nigeria based on integrated regionalism and a greater Africa the peaceful coexistence of the people will play a pivotal role.

Maybe if the right leadership comes someday, the future generation will radiate the ancient glory of regionally integrated Africa.

aderounmu@gmail.com

 

Ambiguity And 65 Shades Of Crimes

/ Adeola / 1 Comment

Majority of Nigerians at home and abroad are good citizens of the world. Mr. Buhari must mind his language and steer clear of ambiguity

Ambiguity And 65 Shades Of Crime

By Adeola Aderounmu

Adeola_Jan 2016

Adeola Aderounmu

I just knew it. I knew that the next time president Buhari was going to talk to Nigerians will be from abroad. I really do not understand why he cannot speak to Nigerians in Nigeria.

In my most recent article-We Can’t Go On Like This– you probably didn’t miss these few lines:

Mr. Buhari will rather address Nigerians from abroad rather from his office in Abuja. For me this is one of the greatest mysteries with Buhari-APC mandate so far. I am now sure that something is wrong somewhere-Adeola Aderounmu, Jan 30 2016.

Since his emergence as the helmsman, it is hard to recollect when president Buhari had been behind a microphone to address issues or gave an impromptu interview to journalists at the Villa or an event within Nigeria.

Again, the organized “meet the press” does not count in this case.

Practise make perfect, we were taught since our primary school days.

Lack of practise means awkwardness and when it is about giving speeches or responding to simple questions, one’s hollowness can be exposed, just like that.

For as long as 100 % of what the presidency intends continues to come from Masters  Adesina and Shehu, president Buhari will not be competent to handle press situations when the need arise.

So it happened in faraway London.

I have read the counter-responses from the lovers of APC. Very predictable!

Let’s talk about the issues.

First, Buhari is wasting tax payers’ money. Why do we have a hospital at the Villa in Abuja? Have they converted the state house hospital to a veterinary center?

It is simply a bad example when the president of more than 150m people visits abroad to meet his doctors. What about us? Where should we go when we get sick?

That is not the change Nigerians were promised. That is business as usual! This government is a scam.

The time the Buhari-APC mandate has spent in office is enough for radical changes that would ensure that the first family does not visit London to buy panadol.

The Nigerian presidency and Nigeria (the sleeping and idle giant of Africa) have what it takes to lure Nigeria’s best doctors in Nigeria and abroad to the hospital in Abuja.

The inability to do that is a voluntary submission to slavery and colonial mentality.

Going back to the comment of president Buhari during his hospital visit/vacation in London, my take is that he probably did not use those words.

However the internet is so strong that the interpretation of gestures and unfinished/unrefined comments are too risky to leave to readers/listeners discretion.

There is no room for ambiguity when you are the spokesman for over 150 m people of diverse ethnicities, mentalities and religions.

In fairness, in every country of the world and among all nationalities, there are always a few people with criminal tendencies. There is no cure for that disease in the human race. The church, the mosque, laws and prisons have failed to deter the existence of criminals in any society.

Genetically it has also been shown that a certain genetic disorder (associated with an extra Y chromosome) predisposes certain males to criminal tendencies. That much l remember from one of Dr. Ayodele Edwards lectures’ from the University of Lagos in 1990.

Majority of Nigerians at home and abroad are good citizens of the world. It is unfortunate that the deeds of the minority of Nigerians with criminal tendencies at home and abroad have marred the contributions of Nigerians to the development of the world in Science, Art, Sport, History, Technology and Medicine.

Mr. Buhari must mind his language. He must be careful to choose his words. He should be talking to Nigerians at home regularly and train-up with charisma and social skills. It is never too late for anyone to learn.

Historically, Mr. Buhari is probably the most distant president in the memoirs of Nigeria.

The Buhari-APC mandate must start to clean up all the messes it had created in the last few months.

To save Nigeria from the type of embarrassment that has emerged in London, majority of Nigerians must also start to act for the good of all.

For too long, people have stayed on different sides of the divide supporting and encouraging crimes based on ethnicity and religion. Nigerians have a tendency to rank their politicians in order of their loots-instead of condemning all sorts of criminalities.

In Nigerian conversations, you hear comments like:

Buhari did not steal as much as Babangida.

Obj stole more that Jonathan.

Shagari stole more than Awolowo.

Tinubu used his loot to create jobs.

Abdulsalami was smart but he stole more than everybody and cleaned his mouth.

Amaechi stole more than Wike.

Fashola worked even if he stole for himself and Tinubu.

PDP politicians stole more than APC politicians. They will change when they come to APC.

I must do politics. Me too must steal my own, abi them get two heads.

Seriously?

For every Nigerian politician that has stolen from the treasury or enriched himself/herself through a few criminal activities, Nigerians have a comparative tale of someone who stole less or more. Then some people are waiting for their own turns to steal.

This is a national tragedy, a fundamental sickness!

For as long as the sun shines on me, l will never understand that aspect of the Nigerian mentality-the placement of criminal politicians on a scale and waiting in line to become a political thief.

That is not the way to go.

In the present government, it is not unknown that many of those ruling side-by-side with the president are alleged to have stolen several billions of dollars under previous administrations. One way to escape the ongoing probe of the Jonathan regime is to pledge allegiance to the APC by cross-carpeting.

The Nigerian government and the Nigerian people need to clean up a lot of messes.

Several issues are urgent and they cannot wait. The dignity attached to labour today is almost zero.

Patriotism got burnt up many years ago and the political system does not seem to bring forth any iota of hope in the days ahead.

In today’s Nigeria one of the greatest acts of criminalities is in the Nigerian National Assembly.  It is probably the biggest scandal because those who are supposed to be making laws are robbers and are facing criminal charges.

But the fact that they still go to the complex every day to represent 150 m other people says a lot about the conclusions from London.

If a criminal is my representative or my mouth piece at the Senate, what am l?

The audacity to conclude based on any ambiguity whatsoever that Nigerians are criminals either directly or indirectly is not far fetch from the fact that the Nigerian government always rank among the most corrupt in the world.

Having a National Assembly run by criminals is a stamp on all other criminal allegations.

The people of Nigeria have an image to portray and protect.

But it is obviously a dilemma because it is the people that also make up the government.  Who will cure who? Who has been fooling who?

Whatever be the case the good people of Nigeria have a history of being disconnected from governance to a great extent.

Some people must be able to lead and question for example the 65 shades of committees in the Senate. The Nigerian judiciary has a reputation for slowness and sometimes miscarriage of justice.

The people need to be outspoken to ensure that all the arms of government are upright, up and running.

It is the people’s power than can ensure that a democratic process is balance and fair.

In the hands of any ruling party alone, democracy is the same as autocracy. It can even transform to tyranny and there are bits of evidence in that direction.

It is not enough to show rage on twitter or Facebook.

A few years ago, l already stated that Nigeria is too big for Facebooking when Jonathan took to the platform to start fooling Nigerians.

There are many corrupt people in Buhari’s government. They, along with a few bad eggs amongst us are the reasons why the country was wrongly tagged a country of criminals.

It is so bad even a dumb and shallow thinker like Donald Trump could use our government in his campaign.

Nigerians, you must know that charity begins at home.

If you do not think that the bulk of the corruption tag now stops on president Buhari’s table, then you are in agreement with the London statement that resulted from his clumsiness.

If you think this-the need to clean the messes-is a distraction or a wailing, then let us continue to live together with the tag that we are all criminals. Be my guests!

In Nigeria, the truth must be said; there are more than 65 shades of criminalities. Ask your senators to go home while you clean the mess.

Yes, we can clean the mess at home and start to export freshness.

Soon, and very soon, let’s hope that Nigeria will get a new president or a repentant one who can talk to them face to face, in Nigeria. What we have now is not it at all !

aderounmu@gmail.com