TheCable

On the condition that I were President Muhammadu Buhari, I would listen more to those who daily criticize me constructively and hold me accountable—out of their pledge to Nigeria and consciously keep far away from me (as East is far from the West) those who are vainly praising me because of both their bellies and pockets. They deceptively praised those who were before Mr. President, but today, they brand fools, those who they once praised to high heaven. When you are still calling the shots, they’d praise you, but immediately power slips out of your hand, you’d get to know who they truly are. They are not loyal to you; they are only loyal to what they can get through you while you are still in power. 

Mr. President, the choice is still yours to either make history or become history. You are an old man who has lived his life. God has granted you a good health and a long life for a reason. I do not think that at your age you should be afraid of dying for what you stand for. While you are still breathing and in power, do not use your office to serve those who are close to you at the expense of the whole nation. You were elected to father the whole nation, not a part of the country. You were elected to truly change Nigeria, not to maintain the status-quo of favoritism and thoughtlessness in leadership.

My own allegiance is to the nation of Nigeria, not to any man, either dead or alive. Till this moment that I am sitting before my writing device, I make bold to say to you that most of our people in Nigeria are daily suffering. I write for neither the APC nor PDP, but I write for the voiceless, powerless, oppressed, father-less, widows, widowers and orphans of our promising nation. They have waited for too long for you to start doing all you said you would do while asking for their votes above two years ago. The trust they have in you and your capacity to turn Nigeria around for good is daily vanishing.

In recent times, I went back to one of the books I bought years back: “this house has fallen,” written by Karl Maier. Seventeen years after he published the book, every smoldering issue he raised is yet to be attended to. Karl said and I quote literally: “…political and military leaders were corrupt, crime was seen by many as a legitimate avenue for advancement, and people in search of solutions were turning inwards to ethnic prejudice and religious bigotry. There is a complete split between power and moral right, and unless you have access to power, you have nothing. Everyone is seeking instant gratification. No one is prepared to think of the future…” There is still a complete split between power and moral right and everyone who does not have access to power is a second-class citizen of Nigeria. No sane and sincere citizens of our dear country would dare to explain this veracity away.

Reading through the biography of the man who created our beautiful flag, I was able to see that in 1959—a year before our independence as a nation, a 23-year-old student helped color the country’s identity. Sixty-two years after a British Journalist first suggested the name “Nigeria,” a young Ibadan-born student gave the new country its national flag. At that time, Michael Taiwo Akinkunmi was studying engineering at

Reading through the biography of the man who created our beautiful flag, I was able to see that in 1959—a year before our independence as a nation, a 23-year-old student helped color the country’s identity. Sixty-two years after a British Journalist first suggested the name “Nigeria,” a young Ibadan-born student gave the new country its national flag. At that time, Michael Taiwo Akinkunmi was studying engineering at Nortwood Technical College in London when he saw a newspaper advert calling on people to enter a competition to design the Nigerian flag.

He mailed his submission to Lagos a short time later, and in October of the following year, he received a letter—inviting him to the London office of the Commissioner for Nigeria in the United Kingdom—where he was told that his green and white design had been selected. He had won 100 pounds ($281 in 1959) as well as a place in Nigeria’s history books without having any romance with political power. It was October 1959, exactly a year before Nigeria’s independence.

He mailed his submission to Lagos a short time later, and in October of the following year, he received a letter—inviting him to the London office of the Commissioner for Nigeria in the United Kingdom—where he was told that his green and white design had been selected. He had won 100 pounds ($281 in 1959) as well as a place in Nigeria’s history books without having any romance with political power. It was October 1959, exactly a year before Nigeria’s independence.

He mailed his submission to Lagos a short time later, and in October of the following year, he received a letter—inviting him to the London office of the Commissioner for Nigeria in the United Kingdom—where he was told that his green and white design had been selected. He had won 100 pounds ($281 in 1959) as well as a place in Nigeria’s history books without having any romance with political power. It was October 1959, exactly a year before Nigeria’s independence.

Fifty-eight years ago, the young Akinkunmi’s work was chosen, without having any romance with political power. Fifty-eight years after, his design could not have been chosen without knowing someone who knows someone who knows someone in the corridors of power. In Nigeria today, it is not about what you can do, it is about who is recommending you. Merit has been thrown into the river of political power,

Fifty-eight years ago, the young Akinkunmi’s work was chosen, without having any romance with political power. Fifty-eight years after, his design could not have been chosen without knowing someone who knows someone who knows someone in the corridors of power. In Nigeria today, it is not about what you can do, it is about who is recommending you. Merit has been thrown into the river of political power,

Fifty-eight years ago, the young Akinkunmi’s work was chosen, without having any romance with political power. Fifty-eight years after, his design could not have been chosen without knowing someone who knows someone who knows someone in the corridors of power. In Nigeria today, it is not about what you can do, it is about who is recommending you. Merit has been thrown into the river of political power, tribalism and religion. To truly move forward as a nation, we would need to return to the kind of people we used to be and we would need to equally create a level playing ground for every citizen of Nigeria to rise to the highest height without having an access to power. This is one of the major reasons you were elected, Mr. President.

As a civic analyst with conscience, it is safe to call Nigeria the land of no tomorrow as Karl called it seventeen (17) years ago. Currently, we cannot cater to those who are alive let alone have a centenary plan as United Arab Emirates (UAE) just rolled out. Many people are alighting from the bus of Nigeria, because a nation without a crystal clear vision, credible leadership and strategic plans to birth a great tomorrow is not worth journeying with. There is an ongoing massive exodus from our dear country to where our people believe they are going to be treated with dignity and honor. Mr. President, are you the one to come or we should expect another person?