Destroyers Of Nigeria
By
Emmanuel Esiemokhai
culled from GUARDIAN, November
12, 2006
The Leon Sullivan Show, with Sir
Andrew Young featuring prominently, was an apt diplomatic response to the St
Petersburg G-8 summit of July 2006. We should have been organising our own
summits instead of waiting for white men to send disrespectful invitations
which summon our leaders to far away destinations for idle talk on AIDS,
hunger, and poverty, only to be served with tea and biscuits for an arduous
return journey to Mother Africa. The Leon Sullivan outing received a shot in
the arm after President Bill Clinton spoke on the familiar topic of Africa's
under-development.
Bill Clinton and Tony Blair
seem never tired of discussing African problems. Shortly before the Leon
Sullivan meeting, President Olusegun Obasanjo highlighted one of the
most important reasons for Nigeria's problems. He spoke about those who
destroyed Nigeria. Who were they? Who are they now? Those of us who have
an insurable interest in the Federal Republic of Nigeria, must continue
to use strong language until those political destroyers of Nigeria take
their boarding passes into political oblivion.
We have been hurt deeply
by untutored praetorian guards and political under-achievers.
Consequently, we have had to waltz through the nightmarish cabaret
of broken dreams. What is pathetic about the whole experience is
that they have been insisting on further destruction of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria. Those of them who have braids of Naira, pounds
sterling, and dollars have been living carnival life-styles and so,
they insist on playing billiards with Nigeria's well-being by
bowling with our resources. They regularly meet on the golf course,
and in casinos where they gamble away the surplus and drink
themselves silly. Reeking of alcohol every morning, they have Aso
Rock on their minds until they hear Ribadu's alarm-bell. Nigerians
must prevent all destroyers of the Federal Republic from getting
near to centres of power, in our own interest. The cobwebs of
corruption must be cleared even if the heavens fall. We can no
longer wait for a Redeemer. He came many years ago, and he is not
likely to come soon unless we become worthy.
Conscientious and
courageous compatriots must arise. We can do it. We also welcome
decaffeinated leaders, but because witchcraft and mystical
powers are part of their lives, they need exorcists. As from
now, we must separate leader from dealers. The Federal Republic
of Nigeria was flawed from the start when that watcher Lord
Lugard lumped people with no identical national characteristics
under a canopy in order to enhance colonial administration. His
hare-brained project has taken root and has been sustained
through tolerance and fear of the unknown. Nigerian politics,
law and economics have remained products of ingenious patch-
works, which tear apart shortly after they have been mended.
During military
rule, measures were put in place, which have now polarized
the polity. There was unequal development and neglect of the
land that laid the golden eggs. Those who been cheated have
now resorted to revolutionary resistance with unsettling
consequences. Those who became well-to-do, were the ones who
served in governments. Others were those who served foreign
interests or represented foreign interests in Nigeria. Some
people benefited depending on their association with or
collaboration with the above personages, governments or
states. The conditions of service rules, the laws, edicts,
enactments and the suffocating bureaucracy put in place by
Lord Lugard, his able lieutenants Sir Ralph Moore, Sir
Macgregor, the Chief Executive of the Crown Colony of Lagos
have remained since 1914.
Occasionally,
some ingenious Nigerians in the academia, the civil
service or in the private sector have initiated reforms,
which are often discarded as the order returns to status
quo ante. In making appointments to political,
administrative and other posts, the tragedy has always
been that specialists and the best do not feature in
governance. Even when round pegs are in round holes, the
square pegs do not fit. The result is that such people
do their best but their best is simply not good for
Nigeria. Please close your eyes and run through most
appointments to important government posts since 1960.
You will see what I mean.
Under
our military governments, decisions were made in
haste, decrees were promulgated in haste, and
policies were implemented in haste, in tune with
military marching orders and the drill system.
Policies were hardly debated, since the
prevailing military ethos of "command and obey"
dominated the governmental system. It took a
decade after the last military pullout to
restore normalcy and start in the direction of
democratic governance. This is why it is very
painful to see those who served in military
administrations insisting on coming back to
repeat their drill in civilian clothes. These
are those President Obasanjo called "the
destroyers of Nigeria."
We have been on the wrong road and we seem
to insist that we must keep running along
it. Formal logic, predicate calculus, modal
logic, all have taught us that we must make
a clear distinction between belief and
knowledge. In our case, this distinction
appears blurred. Some Nigerians, whose
wealth is being investigated, are the ones
that believe that they will rule Nigeria
again. Our people must ensure that all our
political aspirants are free from fraud and
have nothing in common with secular rogues
and ancient thieves. If any of those get to
Aso Rock, the nation will be sentenced to
hard labour, kept in solitary confinement
and in the Chamber of Lamentations.
We have heard a lot of cries at the Red
Sea. We do not want any more
lamentations. If we donot sanitize the
political process before the 2007
elections, and if power does not shift
to the South-South, I will repeat what
Jesus, the Christ told the "Women of
Jerusalem: "weep not for me but weep for
yourselves and your children."
Time was in this country, when an
urchin could become a millionaire by
selling LPOs at rock bottom price
only to collect more from the same
source. Time was in this country,
when a big company corrupted
princes, kings, emirs, obas, obis
and itinerant noblemen by just
paying out money to them. Time was
in this country, when civil servants
who can barely spell well became
"Permanent Secretaries." Time was in
this nation when wayward women got
contracts from military governors
and administrators and became "cash
madam." Ken Saro Wiwa portrayed this
decadence in his satires, "It is
only a matter of cash," the
philandering lady would always say.
Time was not distant in this
Republic when decisions that
favoured parts of Nigeria
and some ignoramuses were
national policies. There was
a time, when ministers were
appointed not because of
their credentials, which
made them manipulable.
Policies that suited a
section of Nigeria were
adopted as the will of God.
Phenomenalism was relegated
to the background since you
cannot question the will of
God. Unfortunately, our
philosophy of religion has
not successfully addressed
evil mongering, injustice
and wickedness. It has not
helped us to overcome some
people's laziness in going
to the office when they like
and leaving when they like.
This is a nation where
tribalism, irredentism,
ethnic and religious
affiliations make bedfellows
of strange elements. This is
a nation where capable
persons are hunted down so
that mediocrity can thrive.
This is a nation where, for
years, men and women have
reaped where they did not
sow, and in fact never cared
to sow! A chaplet counted
ten thousand times cannot
perform the duties of a
knife and a hoe. Indolence,
whore-mongering,
soft-living, garrulous
parlour talk, have been some
people's birthright until
now when revolutionary
resistance is questioning
the concept of "monkey de
work, baboon de chop."
All these and others
have had the result that
arrogance,
power-drunkenness and
I-do-not-care attitude
by the privileged few
has led to envy,
powerlessness and
despair of the majority.
The Nigerian psyche
seems vehemently
opposed to learning
from its history. We
should have by now,
accepted that only
the best is good
enough for Nigeria.
It is baffling that
a nation where our
citizens have played
in the world's best
teams academically,
in sports and
culture, we have
only succeeded in
parading half-baked,
half-literate and
hare-brained
leaders, who see
their calling as an
open invitation to
become wealthy. They
shamelessly tell us
how much of our
public wealth they
have embezzled
directly or through
proxies. The stolen
wealth is displayed
for our numb
citizens to applaud
with journalists
cutting pet names
for ancient thieves.
The point is
that all those
who have
destroyed the
Nigerian nation
have destroyed
themselves. They
will be shown no
mercy and if you
do not join in
this national
war of
liberation from
your heart, then
you are not fit
to be called a
Nigerian or a
human being for
that matter.
The days of reckoning are ahead. No leader past or present will move forward without an x-ray. There will be no more government in Nigeria, infested with Destroyers of the Republic, (DOR). The Era of the Gentiles has come. The chips are down. The Ribadu Movement for social change is on. Support all the agencies that are poised to fight for the survival of Nigeria. If you, as a result of inaction, indifference, siddon-look, hand the nation over into the hands of black magicians, ancient thieves, currency traffickers, contract inflators, over-invoicers and LPO manipulators, I will say in unison with JESUS, the CHRIST, "People of Nigeria weep not for me, weep for yourselves and your children." The seeds of the wicked who wrecked our Republic and are now eager for a repeat performance must be crushed. "For God is not mocked, whatever nations and people sow, they shall reap."
In Nigeria, the interplay between the various political parties must be based on elements of constitutionalism, on what is fair and just. Political debate must necessarily be controversial but civilized; even when political privileges are the subject of struggle. The system must have a mechanism for reconciling divergent opinion between the political parties. Criticism is not always insult. Our nation should use the "zone of twilight" between now and March next year to fashion out a durable societal arrangement before rushing into ill prepared elections and the emergence of a new "government."
Destroyers of Nigeria are not only located in the political parties, but also in the universities, in the judiciary, in the market place, in corporate entities where they front for governors who do not keep straight. As a result, "great things remain unaccomplished" as Confucius would say. The destroyers of Nigeria use clever talk, promises, proposals and pretensions. Nothing good can come out of these acts. Our "dealers" and "leaders" are enmeshed in a desperate plight of fancy; confusion has turned full circle in statecraft. A wise man learns from others. A fool has it all.
Honestly, what we have in Nigeria is more of spiritual crisis. Molock, Diabolo, and fallen angels are in full control demanding for blood each time to fuel their Luciferian power.
Our pastors, priests, spiritual overseers have long been recruited through "harmless" association into the Luciferian hierarchy in Nigeria. Tangled with the spiritual forces they were ordained to fight, their powers of exorcism have waned. So, the Luciferians are having a field day sucking blood, pelting the citizens with fear, want and desperation. In order to prevent any remedy, they influence the exclusion of people of superior capability.
*Professor Esiemokhai teaches International Law, School of Law, Shandong University of Science & Technology, Qingdao, China.
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