Where Are The ‘Prophets’?
The outcome of this election is a testament that there are
prophets and there are Prophets. Rev. Fr. Ejike Mbaka in his New Year message, patently
told President Jonathan that his tenure was spent. He stood his ground even in
the face of intimidation and persecution. The same cannot be said of Guru
Maharaji and his ilk’s who assured President
Jonathan of victory. Quickly bring to mind that in 2013, Association of Witches and Wizards in Nigeria said, ‘’If Buhari contests 100 times, he
cannot rule this country again’’. The so-called National
Association of Nigerian Witches and Wizards a.k.a Inner Coven Society Worldwide
went as far as declaring President Goodluck Jonathan winner of the 2015
presidential elections, prior to Nigerians going to the poll to cast their
votes. Hear them: ‘’the
umbrella body of all the witches and wizards in the country, according to
their President-General, Dr. Omo Ebosele, has already decided who will win come
2015 and there will be no force that can ever change that’’. The Spiritual lesson here: ONLY God have the final say, not a
pastor, prophet/prophetess nor a seer. Repose your confidence and trust SOLELY
in God.
Lessons Learnt From The
Election:
It is evident that a streak of goodluck can catapult one to an
enviable position but it takes much more than being lucky to be effective. As a
leader or prospective leader, master the art of timing. If your time has not
come, wait for it, if your time is gone, forget it. Endeavor to leave when the
ovation is loudest. David Mark will transmute from been the President of the
Senate to a regular senator of an opposition party; obviously a humbling
experience. If there’s an afterlife, Ayo Fayose will detest arrogance and be an
epitome of humility. Lesson here: politicians have no permanent friends/enemies
but permanent interests. As a young man, don't ruin your life, your future by
doing the 'dirty jobs', thuggery for politicians otherwise you become a fool
when they make up. Orubebe’s
outburst during the collation of votes teaches
us that a good number of men can handle success but cannot handle
disappointment. Politics is and will no longer be business as usual in Nigeria.
Jump from one church or mosque to the other; share your rice, dollars etc. to
voters, they will collect them and vote for their preferred candidate. The
lesson of the 2015 election to politicians is: perform or be shown the way out.
Recall the United States and Britain issued a rare joint statement when the
presidential election results were trickling in, warning of dire consequences
if the process was manipulated at the point of collation. Was President
Jonathan threatened with the "Gbagbo treatment" before he buckled?
Looking forward to reading President Jonathan's memoir, especially his honest
account of events, intrigues leading up to the general election and him
accepting defeat.
Thanks to the Card Reader and other measures, votes are beginning
to count in Nigeria; multiple voting is eliminated and massive rigging curtailed.
Now, incumbency is not a guarantee for reelection. Voters are looking beyond
religious and tribal sentiments. Imagine Babangida Aliyu, sitting governor of
Niger State, been roundly defeated by a Christian - David Umar in a supposedly
Muslim environment. Gabriel Suswan, a governor who owed civil servants several
month’s salary had his Senatorial ambition thwarted by the electorate. Good
riddance!
To all folks out there desperate for short-cuts, General Buhari’s
victory reinforces the AUDACITY of HOPE; that tenacity, resilience and
integrity pays. Buhari realized his dream after losing in three previous
contests. When you try and fail, learn lessons, move on and keep pushing.
As they say, failure is an orphan while success has surplus
relatives. Many of President Jonathan’s hangers-on are speedily ‘porting’ to
where the action is. Mr. President or the PDP reportedly summoned a meeting after
the election and attendance was scanty. If the flurry of defections currently
trending in Nigeria persists, sooner than later the difference if any, between
the APC and the PDP will be akin to the difference between six and half a
dozen.
Ignore Social Medium
Opinion Poll At Your Peril:
Aftermath of this election, politicians will learn not to
underestimate the power of social media. Prior to the 2015 elections, Buhari
consistently maintained a lead over President Jonathan in opinion polls but
President Jonathan’s handlers said elections are not won on twitter, the
internet. If history is a good teacher,
Nigerian elections in the future will witness less mudslinging, character
assassinations but dwell more on serious issues. Millions of Nigerians are
hungry, frustrated, confused, unemployed, Boko Haram kills Nigerians randomly
and even carved out a Caliphate under President Jonathan’s nose, rather than
dwell on President Jonathan’s achievement and future plans, his spin-doctor
busied themselves ‘yabbing’ and inadvertently popularizing, campaigning for
Buhari with their paid documentaries on AIT etc. President Jonathan's handling
of the Boko Haram crises, abduction of the Chibok schools girls’ saga is
illustrates his Achilles’ heels. Many of us who offered constructive criticism
without minding whose ox is gored were derided for endorsing General Buhari
before the election. My article: "Dear President Jonathan, Please
Gracefully Absorb Your Merited 'F' Grade on Security, Economy etc." drew a lot of criticism and insult on my person. Driven
purely by sentiments, many folks from the South called me names for endorsing a
northerner (GMB) rather than a southerner (GEJ). I am not cut out to support a
candidate simply because he is one of ours or bears an Igbo appellation. Make
no mistake about it; nobody is saying General Buhari is the best this country
can parade. Notwithstanding other contestants, the presidential election was
essentially between Buhari and Jonathan hence the lackluster performance of
Jonathan boosted Buhari’s chances.
To Public Servants: Be
Dispassionate, Non-partisan:
Refrain from patent partisanship or been a certified stooge to
whoever appointed you. Be dispassionate in discharging your duties. Brigadier
General Momoh who was entangled in the infamous Ekiti election rigging scandal,
the current Inspector General of Police, Mr. Suleiman Abba who interpreted the
Constitution to Nigerians, blusteringly
insisting Aminu Tambuwal ceased to be Speaker of
the House of Representatives and the ilk’s of AIG Joseph Mbu will be clearing
their tables by now. As President Obama once remarked, ‘Africa needs strong
institutions not strong men’. Let’s strengthen our institutions.
Matters Arising From
The 2015 Elections:
Henceforth adequate measures must be put in place to forestall the
manner of irregularities, rigging in Rivers State etc. where result sheets were
supposedly filled elsewhere in connivance with allegedly compromised INEC
officials. What is the essence of the Card Reader if a corrupt INEC official is
at a liberty to allocate votes to the highest bidder? It will help if our
electoral law mandates INEC to subsequently show voters, result sheets meant
for elections to ascertain the result sheets have not been filled elsewhere.
INEC must also guard against the phenomenon of underage registration/voting
which was said to be rampart in the northern part of the country. Nigerians
must be allowed to vote from any part of the country during subsequent
elections irrespective of where they registered. A lot of people were
disfranchised because they moved or traveled out of their domain before the
elections. Nigerians in the diaspora must be allowed to vote too. Voting must
not take the whole day. As is the case in other climes, let’s have a system
where folks can walk into a Polling Unit, do their accreditation and voting
simultaneously and go about their business. There should also be provision for
journalists, security operatives, electoral officers and others that may be on
essential duties on election days to cast their votes in advance. Adequate
logistics arrangement for movement of election materials and staff must be put
in place especially for very remote areas.
Ndigbo, O Gini Na Eme?
(What is Happening?)
Power is not given but inter-alia taken through building strategic
alliances, positioning yourself, thinking and planning ahead. Sentiments alone
don’t win elections. Forty nine years after Major General Aguiyi-Ironsi’s
interregnum, no Igbo have been at the helm of affairs of this country! Ndigbo,
enough of playing second-fiddle! Get your acts together and get over the
Nigeria-Biafra civil war complex, hangover. Where are the self-acclaimed,
sagacious Igbo political strategists? APGA is in disarray, Ohanaeze was
outplayed because of the personal aggrandizement of so-called Igbo leaders. MASSOB (Movement For The Actualization of The Sovereign State of Biafra)
bastardized itself and lost the iota of regard it has left by orchestrating a
travesty, protest against Prof. Jega prior to the presidential election. You
are clamoring for Biafra, what business have you got with INEC? Remember the
political process starts with voter registration through to voting. The 1.9
million votes Buhari garnered from Kano alone eclipses votes from 3-4 South
East States combined. Don't say Ogbasaghim
(e no concern me) because it will surely concern, affect you. Ndigbo, even when
they deny us power, they cannot take away the indefatigable spirit in us. Our
people were given just 20 pounds after the civil war irrespective of how much
they had in the bank accounts prior to the civil war but they survived. It is
trite even in the London School of Economics that politics is superior to
economics. It takes just one economic policy for a politician to ruin your
multimillion dollar business.
So much for the mantra of ‘One Nigeria’, in a much publicized uncouth
speech unbecoming of a royal father, the Oba of Lagos - Rilwan Akiolu openly threatened Ndigbo resident in Lagos that they will drown, die in the Lagos
lagoon if they don’t vote for his anointed candidate – Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode.
The National Human Right Commission (NHRC) and relevant government agencies
must demonstrate that they are not mere paper-tigers; that nobody is above the
laws of Nigeria.
Now That CHANGE Is
Here:
Now that the much yearned CHANGE is here, what do we do with it?
We must not be carried away by the euphoria of the moment. Governance in
Nigeria must transcend celebrating pedestrian issues - rebasing (statistical
extrapolation) of an economy done from the comfort of an office, building
flyovers, building schools without qualified teachers, paying workers’
salaries. These are not achievements in advanced climes. General Buhari and the
incoming ‘governing party’ must hit the ground running and not spend the next
four years buck-passing and finger-pointing PDP's legacy for nonperformance.
The 2015 election polarized Nigerians, pitched churches, family members against
one another. A pregnant woman reportedly killed her husband at Ejigbo, Lagos
because her husband supported Jonathan. This is not the time for settling
scores; General Buhari must put in place, measures aimed at healing a
fragmented nation. Nigeria needs a vibrant and effective opposition; the PDP
must not metamorphose to PULL HIM DOWN PARTY (PHD-P). They should go back to
the drawing board and learn from their mistakes.
Urgent Tasks Before Buhari’s Administration:
Being a former Head of State, General Buhari substantially
appreciates the myriad challenges bedeviling Nigeria. Please let the best
brains, people with imagination and vision are appointed into leadership
positions. For instance, crude oil prices may further plummet if and when
sanctions on Iran are lifted anytime soon. The Buhari administration must begin
to divest Nigeria's reliance on crude oil. We need a Nigeria where every Nigerian will be as Nigerian
as every other Nigerian irrespective of his tribe, where s/he domiciles. Given
the ginormous resources channeled into seeking reelection, the brinkmanship
associated with it, for the sake of justice, ‘rotating’ the presidency between
at least the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria on a 6 year single tenure will
cut it for us.
#BabaNowThatYouAreThere, please let JUSTICE and EQUITY be your watchword. Launch an
unwavering, unrelenting war against CORRUPTION, TERRORISM/INSURGENCY (other
manifestations of insecurity) and UNEMPLYMENT. No sacred cows, and no granting
of Presidential pardon to certified, convicted treasury looters! Stop wanton
leakages and squander mania. You don't a need a dozen Presidential jets in your
pool; your British counterpart has no SINGLE ‘presidential’ jet attached to his
office. He flies British Airways, first class. If you want Nigerians to embrace
austerity, your cabinet and the incoming National Assembly must also
reciprocate by pruning their outrageous allowances. Provide an enabling environment
for the private sector to thrive. Tackle electricity. Sort out petroleum oil
block allocation/subsidy mess, build more refineries. Allow free press and
speech. Restructure Nigeria and devolve more powers to the federating units.
Rather than depend on incompetent ex-militants, strengthen the Navy, Police,
NSCDC etc. to protect petroleum pipelines, installations and to rein in the
unprecedented broad daylight stealing of 400,000 barrels of crude oil daily. The controversial disappearance and reappearance of your academic certificate
after you won the Presidential election has brought the Nigerian Military to
disrepute. This must be probed and punishment apportioned to masterminds of
this shameful act. Restore professionalism, pride, sanity to the military,
completely overhaul the military echelon and rigorously audit Nigeria’s Defence
inventory, spending. Dear Mr. President-elect, may I humbly refer you to a
masterpiece by Sonala Olumhense: "Let Us Probe Nigeria’s Defence Spending". Professionalism,
discipline is undermined when trained military personnel and police officers
become errand boys or bouncers for politicians and their concubines. Rein in
this anomaly and let our security personnel concentrate on their primary
assignments. Promptly and publicly declaring your
assets will boost your anti-corruption, transparency mantra. It is called
leadership by example. Please rein in the unaccounted for roughly N6 billion
annual “Security Vote” largesse to each State governor. While you are at it,
please don’t mortgage the posterity of Nigeria to some Western interests,
powers under whatever guise. A tall order indeed but doable if the political
will is there.
God bless Nigeria.
Written By:
© Don Okereke
(Security Analyst/Consultant, Writer/Blogger, Change Agent,
Ex-serviceman)
Email: donnuait(a)yahoo.com
Twitter: @DonOkereke
April, 2015
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