Opinion

Failure of Nigeria state

 

By Christue Doyin

The times are really perilous, or how else would one describe
happenings across the country. For quite a long time now, I have
decided to keep ‘mute’, blind and be deaf to events, especially in the
political arena and resorted only to prayers and soliloquies for my
sanity.
However, the decision to be dumb, blind and deaf seems to be more
negative than I thought. As bona fide citizen of this former great
country, I, just like all of us are duty bound to react, condemn or
encourage whatever is affecting or going to affect the Nigeria state.
We just cannot afford to fold our arms, sit on the arm chair,
stretching our either long or short legs while hoping things will go
back to shape.
I read somewhere that someone, a member of the ruling All Progressive
Congress, APC in the country is asking Kogites and Bayelsians to ‘move
on’ after the botched election that was allegedly terribly marred by
violence, vote buying and general rigging. I just wondered if
politicians have taken Nigerians for fools or perhaps Nigerians on
their own have become so foolish and senseless (sorry if this is
hard), or rudderless that we allowed ourselves to become pawns in the
hands of few desperate and conscienceless leaders and so called
representatives at various levels of governance.
It is indeed perilous time in Nigeria, else it wouldn’t have been like
this. There is hunger and anger in the land, there is indiscriminate
and needless blood letting and bleak future, of course, so much sorrow
and borrowing and all these seem to be harbinger of the desperation of
Nigerians to effect changes whenever they could and politicians’
desperation to continue to exploit and enslave the ordinary citizen.
It became such that if you are not in power, you must be at the
corridor of power or else, you join the biblical Jeremiah in the act
of lamentations.
The elections recently held in two states of Nigeria, Bayelsa and
Kogi, not forgetting the not too distance  Ekiti and Osun states’
elections, need no prophet or soothsayers to tell anyone still in his
or her right senses that the country is hooded by anarchy of the
highest order and that it will take only divine intervention for
another civil war not to reoccur.
This is because apart from dissatisfactions about the conduct of the
elections and results, wanton killings, thuggery and arson are allowed
free reign. Or how else would you described the alleged burning of an
opposition woman leader right inside her house by thugs of the alleged
winner of Kogi election that feel declaration of their principal is a
free ticket to notoriety and time to unleash terror on the state. So,
so sad I would say. The next thing that came to mind is who will Yahya
Bello rule over (deliberately avoided using govern) if the citizens
are killed or maimed all in the desperation to cling to power by all
means? There is a video going viral showing the governor’s supporters
letting in on what to expect in terms of violence.
How can Nigeria move on when the citizens cannot freely choose who to
govern them, how can we move on when impunity, wanton killings,
destruction of properties and crass irresponsibility are the other of
the day? How? Perhaps the how would be answered by those who know but
I am at a loss as to how.
Selective trials and persecution of those not aligned to the ruling
government’s party and policies pervaded the system and for one to be
free you have to ‘move in or on’ by joining the party in power. Is to
move on is to become part of impunity and recklessness of the power
drunk cabals here and there in power and corridors of power? So many
questions yet unanswered. I don’t belong to any political party but I
have an active conscience that knows when something is wrong and
against the will of God. I know Nigeria is meant to be greater than
this but we have erred and so much innocent blood have been shed,
obviously for nothing.
Tapping into The APC national chairman, Adams Oshimhole’s singsong,
join APC and your ‘sins’ are forgiven, no matter your folly and extent
of criminality, once you join the Oshiomhole led party you are given
the standard pass mark!
Integrity bankruptcy, corruption, criminality as well as flagrant
abuse of power and deliberate gagging of those who could talk,
especially the press are just it, so to say.
Interestingly, everyone is more concerned about where his or her bread
would be more buttered. When the immediate past president Goodluck
Jonathan visited Aso Rock recently, the joke was ‘even Jonathan has
moved on’ and has now become a saint.
The judiciary that was hitherto known as the last resort for the
ordinary Nigerian has since the immediate past and retired Chief
Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Ononghen’s removal become ready
pawn in the hand of the ruling class, the security, who are meant to
protect the territorial integrity of the nation, protect lives and
properties of all citizens and residents are a sorry case, indeed,
majority of Nigerians are now compromised and are either afraid of
saying the truth and face reality or are bent on ‘having and taking
their bites of the national cake’. Rather very unfortunate!
The questions now are, what do we mean by ‘moving on’ in this
instance? How do we move on? And what does moving on entails? These
are questions begging for answers but then, who will provide the
answer when all the institutions have seemingly failed?
I opined that it is about time we collectively focus on how to rescue
the country from the precipice of destruction and contribute our
quotas towards redeeming her and  making Nigeria great again. Say no
to violence in all ramifications, say no to pre, election, post
election violence maybe then the looming evil would be averted.
*Doyin is the former editor of National Pilot and writes via e-Mail:
[email protected]

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