Opinion

Marabout: Nigerian Politicians’ eccentric means

 

Being secured always looks small until you let it go and you will learn instantly how big, precious, valuable and expensive it can be, if you doubt this statement ask Nigerian politicians. While some of them put their trust and confidence in iron, steel and lead others prefer to have their faiths in Babalawos, Marabouts and other forms of Juju other than in conventional security officers and men and its architectures. Their reasons are not clear to many, but as it was stated by one of the law enforcement chiefs of our land.
When politicians only provide all the appliances of pleasure for themselves and families alone, situations in most states, as it is happening in beehive everything revolves around Nigerian politicians. No wonder they achieve little or nothing at all, what good performance can come from politicians that prefers human sacrifice; wining election at all cost in pretence to serve human race but severe human beings instead, what a calamity.
“Politicians trust the marabouts and babalawos more”, Yusuf Bichi, the director-general of the Department of State Services (DSS) said politicians have more confidence in marabouts than in security operatives is rather a serious call for concern in our polity. Speaking at a retreat for incoming governors organised by the Nigerian Governors Forum, he said, many politicians prefer to invest their trust and money in marabouts and babalawos in order to tackle their highly prized insecurity.
As it is happening now, before the last echoes of the chime had utterly sunk into silence mode, the revel went whirling on, until at the length there commenced the sounding of midnight upon the clock, and now what they are afraid of had indeed came for them like a thief in the night, insecurity. When men made enemies for themselves, they grew constantly afraid and even paranoid, though, they seem to have conquered, yet most live in constant terror and apprehension of destruction. Remember the story of one Mr Raufu Akano, a Kwara APC Chieftain caught in Police net over alleged ritual attempt on a 6-year-old boy. One cannot but imagine what on earth can a politician like this want to achieve when he put a human like himself through bloodiest agony and pain. Just because of vanity, Mr Akano dismembered a fellow human alive. Retreat into a fortress and lose contact with the source of your power, a lesson he must have learnt by now, instead of being safer, he cut himself off from essence of which his life depends.
This I am troubled, we the rest how should take care of our self, Bichi further said that many politicians now invest their trust in marabouts and babalawos to tackle insecurity in the country. “Once someone tells you (politicians) that nothing will happen to your seat and it happens you just trust that person in all crisis”, Bichi added.
Truly, if you ask me, solitary mortal may seem to be luxurious, probably superstitious but possibly mad; the secret service boss further said there is a disconnect at the grassroots in intelligence gathering due to the disconnect between the formal and traditional leadership structures. At the end, most of these men are our leaders in name only.
As Bichi went further, he narrated that there was no lack of intelligence in the country but rather lack of the will to act to combat the security challenges. Indeed, solitude is very dangerous for any reason, without being favourable to virtue. Living double life will get you nowhere twice as fast, a man with one watch knows what time it is, but a man with two or more is never quite sure, so is the case of Nigerian politicians, public and private officeholders, they claimed to be religious to the outside world but in their inner minds they are devil’s incarnate, doing more than necessary, all just because of vanity.
Bichi also accused Local Government Chairmen of not paying adequate attention to security.
He said most of them do not hold security meetings to know what is happening in their localities.
Your failure or success depends on many things, but mostly on you. Though, a broken clock is right and correct but just twice a day that is how my teacher described a person who really on juju. When you stand for what is right, then you win, even if you lose.
The absence of social amenities and good standard of living, has been witnessed in many northern states like Borno, Zamfara, Kaduna, Nassarawa and Adamawa, even in other parts of the country, conspiracies will sure spring up like mushrooms after rain, animosities will crystallise into factions and militancy rebellion will break out before the government has the time to react. Insecurity is really a thing of the mind, most politicians failed in the knowledge of this. Putting their trusts in juju rather than God, their creator, our politicians unknowingly set their lives ablaze in order to save if from the plague, what a rhetoric and no better place for the low pursuits than beneath the ground, I concluded in my mind.
Using juju is like a lion who had tasted human flesh, nothing never tastes so sweet again. Even those who don’t worship and do juju are still serving his course. Most Nigerian politicians are better brewed in this type; the enemies they don’t know may be coming to take them, may be that is why they chose Babalawos and Marabouts plus Juju.
The world of power has the dynamics of the jungle: there are people who live by hunting and killing others and there are also vast numbers of creatures (hyenas and vultures) who live off the hunting of others. Everyone’s actions and our lives were interdependent, as nothing the politicians acquired passed unnoticed. To combat this, sociability and openness must not only be encouraged, they must be formally organised and channelled, well equipped security forces will no doubt guarantee a secure nation where not a pin dropped without hearing it aloud.

*Ayobrown, Senior System Analyst, National Pilot Newspaper, writes via aayobrown@gmail.com

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