I
grew up to learn from my darling mum that the best way and manner to express
your feelings towards someone was to write him or her. The amazon would invariably
back-up the theory by saying, ‘if you intend to make your words seem stronger,
present the letter in a hand-written form’. It appears, nowadays, open letters
have inadvertently replaced the hand-written mode.
I woke
up in the early morning of Wednesday, 24th January 2018 to see an
open epistle to President Muhammadu Buhari painstakingly written by erstwhile
president, Olusegun obasanjo. It’s noteworthy that such an attitude has
ostensibly become synonymous with the latter who perhaps comprehends that
writing a sitting president is more powerful than engaging him on a one-on-one
meeting.
I
didn’t waste time to digest the 23-paragraph letter, which bore a matter of
deep concern. The epistle was in summary mainly targeted to advise Mr.
President not to seek re-election come 2019, having in a lengthy statement
expressed that the Buhari-led administration and the All Progressives Congress
(APC) had failed Nigerians.
The
second paragraph of the epistle captioned that ‘lack of national cohesion and
poor management of internal political dynamics and widening inequality are very
much with us today’. I could explicitly agree that there’s an element of fact
in this clause even though it appears a bit contradictory.
Of
course, proscribing the existence of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) but
harbouring the activities of the so-called herdsmen across the lengths and breadth
of the federation is arguably enough reason for anyone to assert that this
administration is an advocate of inequality; read my lips.
What
could better be described as an inequality than a situation where some people
were being massacred on a daily basis by their fellow citizens, yet the
Presidency never considered it consequential to address the state of the
nation; than a situation whereby the North-East rehabilitation is ongoing
whilst that of Ogoni land, or Nimbo of Enugu, is yet to know its fate?
The fourth paragraph wholly stated that
‘our situation in the last decade or so had shown that we are not good enough
at home’. This is equally true. Over the years, particularly in recent times,
Nigeria has proven to the global community that she is always good in playing a
leading role toward settling any socio-political crisis occurring in the
Diaspora. But pathetically, she seems usually weak when it calls for handling
issues happening within her territory. This is unequivocally an aberration.
The sixth paragraph of the letter
opined that ‘the situation that made Nigerians to vote massively to get my
brother Jonathan off the horse is playing itself out again’. I partly disagree
with this perception. To the best of my knowledge, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan was
whisked out as the president of Nigeria mainly owing to his seeming weak
approach towards tackling some prevailing societal issues like terrorism and
corruption that were then the order of the day in the country.
I thus beg to disabuse Chief Obasanjo
of the notion that terrorism and corruption had not been fought headlong since
President Buhari assumed duty. The aforementioned cankerworms may have not been
completely defeated by the present administration, it’s worth noting that a lot
has really been achieved thus far.
For instance, initiation cum sustenance
of the Treasury Single Account (TSA) and the Bank Verification Number (BVN), to
check excesses among public servants as well as the lingered impunity of money
lauders and fraudsters, respectively, are good reasons to fete cap for Buhari
in the area of fighting corruption.
The open epistle also accused President
Buhari of patronizing nepotism. I wholeheartedly concur. Mr. President’s
appointments so far were clear indications of his excess love for a certain set
of individuals or groups in the country, which is contrary to what is expected
of a man meant to be a true nationalist.
Chief Obasanjo rounded off by appealing
to the president to consider ‘a deserved rest at this point in time and at this
age’ having reminded him of his current health status. Without mincing words,
it is only a sycophant or selfish-minded individual that would encourage Buhari
to seek for re-election. He needn’t be reminded that he truly deserves a
holistic rest after May 29, 2019 to enable him function aptly as a statesman
and patriotic Nigerian.
However, Nigerians – I in particular –
expected the writer to commence such an epistle with an apology over his
failure to tactically address the country’s economy while he was riding the
horse. It’s only an insane person that would believe that power inability,
substandard education and poor health services aren’t Nigeria’s major economic
plight, yet the Obasanjo-led government never solved any of these despite the
whooping funds expended on the menace. Isn’t it then ideal to tell Chief
Obasanjo that the porous foundation he laid remains the prime reason the
structure has refused to be solid?
Funnily enough, the Federal Government
(FG) has reacted to the letter via the Information Minister Alhaji Lai
Mohammed, saying the former president may not have noticed the ‘numerous
achievements’ of the current administration as a result of his tight schedule.
One may wonder what kind of busy time would make a rational being not realize
when his country is progressing socio-economically. Think about it!
Comrade FDN Nwaozor
Executive Director, Docfred Resource Hub -
Owerri
__________________________________
Twitter: @mediambassador
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