TheCable

In Nigeria, it is one day, one drama. One thing that can never be exhausted in Nigeria is drama of all shades. It was thespian and confusing some hours ago when leadership of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) and other religious leaders—went to greet President Buhari on his victory at the last polls. I do have no problems with other religious leaders, visiting with PMB to congratulate him for his victory in the last presidential election, but I was confused and bewildered to read that leadership of CAN was in Aso Rock, too! Going to Aso Rock to congratulate a President (for his victory at the last polls) they consistently tell us that he’s trying to Islamize Nigeria leaves a lot to be desired about the current leadership of the CAN.

I do not want to speak beyond this phase, because when it comes to religion in Nigeria, most of us always do suspend our brains. We are so religious in Nigeria, but we do not know the God we vainly claim to be worshipping. This is why some folks would shout the name of someone they do not know before blowing off some human beings like them into pieces. Also, this is why some folks would lift up ‘holy’ hands on the inside of places of worship and still defraud you in business transactions and dealings. Nigeria is a very religious country, but we are so God-less!

After President Buhari came up with lopsided appointments—six months after he got to power about four (4) years ago and some of us stood against it that he was wrong, a few folks who are partisan and whose survival depend on some crumbs that fall from the Aso Rock’s table—came against us that we hated PMB. In Nigeria, once you do not see eye to eye with a president on an issue, those who do not know anything about how the nations are built would say you hate him.

On the condition that every part of Nigeria is impartially represented in the allocation of political offices in PMB’s first-term that is about giving up its ghost in the month of May, 2019, Buhari wouldn’t have promised a change (impartial allocation of political offices) to those religious leaders, who visited with him, to congratulate him for his victory in the last presidential election.

Also, if his focus was on merit before birthing the current team of bland and jaded politicians he is working with, he wouldn’t have said that going forward that his focus would be on merit. The yardstick and benchmark for choosing some of the current Federal Ministers couldn’t have been merit. They undoubtedly and noticeably lack excellence and productivity, and are as a round peg in a square hole!

While I would forever fight for every part of Nigeria to be evenly and uniformly represented in the allocation of political offices, but the truth is, this is not the real sense of belonging that our people are daily yearning for. In 2015, when Mr. President was filling virtually every major office in Nigeria with his people, I and others made it public that he was shooting himself in the leg, though those who are daily worshipping him said we were wrong that we said so because we hated him. The only thing I owe PMB as an informed citizen of Nigeria is the truth, not falsehood because of what I would eat, wear and drive. What to eat, where to sleep, what to wear and where to sleep are what make some of our people to lie to those in the corridors of power. When PMB leaves the office for Daura tomorrow, most of those who are worshipping him now would take him to the cleaners.

It is imperative that every part of Nigeria hugs and cuddles justice when it comes to the allocation of political offices, because if this does not happen, our being together as a people would be severely and brutally threatened and endangered in the days to come. In a nation where every part of the country is not justly represented in the allocation of political offices, it is injustice for a man to be given three (3) major Ministerial offices. Folks who are more competent than Babatunde Raji Fashola (BRF) are in every tribe of our country. And it is very wrong for key offices—within the context of security to be occupied by Northerners. This makes other tribes’ corporate believe in the country to wobble. Remember, sectarianism is evil. And every well meaning Nigerian needs to rise against it.

For the umpteenth time, while it is very important for every part of Nigeria to be evenly represented in the allocation of political public offices, I make bold to say that the issue before our people is much more than that. How do I mean? It is possible for a President to come from my village, but that does not mean the lives of my people would become better than that of other parts of Nigeria. Buhari is from Daura, but I do not think Daura is more secured and protected that the rest of Nigeria. His Excellency, Dr. Aremu Olusegun Okikiolu Matthew Obasanjo was in power for eight (8) years, but that did not make the quality of life of Yoruba people to become better than it was before he got to power.

What precisely is the sense of belonging that Nigerians truly want? Nigerians want justice to be seen to be done. Nigerians do not want someone from a tribe to terrorize and oppress someone from another tribe, because the Commissioner of Police (CP) is from his tribe. Nigerians want politicians to respect the constitution of Nigeria, because it is impossible for the citizens to respect what those in the corridors of power openly and daily disrespect. Nigerians want to be able to get good and high-finances-attracting jobs without knowing anyone in the corridors of power. Nigerians are tired of the shame of seeing their President traveling abroad each time he takes ill, because we can afford to build world-class hospitals in here. Nigerians want true constant supply of electricity, not the one recently weaved around falsehood by the Minister of power. Nigerians want good roads, because it does not make sense for a nation that has crude oil not to have good roads. Lastly, Nigerians are tired our education being ignorant of the kind of education that is available in saner climes.