FEATURE ARTICLE

Felix AmadiMonday, September 12, 2016
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Maputo, Mozambique

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Forwarded by: TEMPLE CHIMA UBOCHI

IF NIGERIA BREAKS UP, BLAME IT ON BUHARI

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"I would urge the US to withhold its security assistance to the nation until President Buhari demonstrates a commitment to inclusive government and the most basic tenets of democracy: freedom to assemble and freedom of speech" (Tom Marino (US Congressman))

f public opinion and political commentaries were all that decide how long a president stays in power, I bet you, President Muhammadu Buhari would have been long gone from office. If the plight of the masses of Nigeria is of pivotal importance and a determinant factor in the rating of the performance of the government in power, then President Buhari administration could best be described as colossal failure. If political leaders were to be judged based on their campaign promises and delivery, then President Buhari would have been canonized as the Patron Saint of Liars. But thanks to Nigeria and her relative democracy, he is still allowed to continue to pilot the affairs of governance in Nigeria, even when it is evidently clear that the man has ran out of ideas.

Many people have written me, accusing me of being 'a bitter Igbo man who is anti-Buhari'. This is an observation I find amusing, because I can confidently pride myself as a non-sentimental writer, who tries to present issues as objective as I can. But I have no problem being labeled an anti-Buhari writer, if that will help alert Nigerians and the International Community as to the wrong course Nigeria is on under President Buhari. I have no problem being called an anti-Buhari writer, if that will help stir up public opinion and interest in Nigerians to hold their leaders accountable and position Nigeria on the path of greatness.

For example, President Buhari's recent comment, on BBC Hausa Service, on why the Igbos hate him, is one I view as being misleading, immature and unbecoming of a leader of multi-ethnic country like Nigeria. According to President Buhari, the Igbos hate him because he fought against them during the civil war. To this he said thus, "I don't have any regret and at such do not owe any apology to them. In fact if there is a repeat of the civil war again, I will kill more Igbos to save the country". This statement is undeserving of a president of One Nigeria.

First, Mr. Buhari was not the only high ranking military officer who fought against the Igbos during the civil war that has ruled Nigeria. So the question is; why should the Igbos single him out for hatred when he wasn't the only high ranking officer that participated in the war that has ruled Nigeria in recent times? It sounds most strange to me that Mr. Buhari should be singled out for persecution by the Igbos, when the main architect of that war, Gen. Yakubu Gowon (rtd), is still alive and has not publicly professed this point of view. Generals (rtd) Ibrahim Babangida and Olusegun Obasanjo were commanding officers during the war that later ruled Nigeria but for all I know, none has said publicly that the Igbos hate them because of what happened during the Nigeria/Biafra War. So what informed President Buhari to come up with this distasteful conclusion?

The truth is that the Igbos dislike President Muhammadu Buhari not because he fought against them during the civil war, but because he is one of the most divisive Nigerian leaders of all time. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo, with all his shortcomings, cannot be said to be sectarian and divisive leader. During his reign, he carried the whole Nigeria along. In as much as OBJ could be called a "bad man" of Nigeria's politics, he went for the best minds in his appointments, irrespective of ethnicity and creed. Was it not OBJ that brought the likes of Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo and Mallam Nuhu Ribadu to political limelight in Nigeria?

But tell me what is happening today in Nigeria under President Buhari's leadership? Nigerians are being forced to accept that only one part of the country (north) has the required qualification and capacity to lead Nigeria today. Little wonder did the Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, refer to President Buhari as the "president of the north, for the north and by the north". And in my view, President Buhari is the Prince of the North who is on a mission to reinforce the Caliphate dominance in Nigeria. Then tell me who in his right senses will love such a sectarian and divisive leader, unless such a person hasn't the interest of Nigeria at heart. Was this not the same Buhari who after the coup that brought him to power as a military dictator in 1983 sent the former Vice President of Nigeria, Dr. Alex Ekwueme (a Southerner and Christian) to Kirikiri Maximum prison, while the then President, Alhaji Shehu Shagari (a Northerner and Moslem), was placed under an air-conditioned house arrest for the same "crime"? It is this kind of divisive disposition of President Buhari that has given momentum to the many voices calling for the breakup of Nigeria today.

Under President Buhari, the Nigeria economy has lost its status to South Africa as the number one in Africa, and is now in recession, thanks to the ill-informed policies of Buhari's administration. No one expects President Buhari to be a jack of all trades and master of all. But in your areas of weakness, it is a mark of intelligence for one to surround oneself with the best minds, especially if one is leading a diversified country like Nigeria with abundant human resources in virtually all spheres of life. But what we have in Buhari's administration is mostly job placements of cabinet ministers in ministries where they are novices. For example, how would anyone expect much from Dr. Chris Ngige, a medical doctor by profession, leading the sensitive Ministry of Labour and Employment? It is the same as calling upon a political scientist to carry out a neurosurgery on a patient. The outcome will be an absolute disaster.

Somebody posted a worrying breakdown of some ministerial appointments under Buhari's regime on Facebook. It reads thus:

"This is Nigeria of 2016.

The Minister of Agriculture studied French.

The Minister of Education studied Accounting.

The Minister of Solid Minerals studied International Relations.

The Minister of Power studied Law.

The Minister of Transport studied English.

The Minister of Labour and Employment studied Surgery.

The Minister of Budget and National Planning studied Law.

The Minister of Petroleum studied Law.

Now you understand why there is so much rubbish and blame game going on.

What a bunch of Political Jobbers".

With this kind of ministerial placements, tell me how President Buhari expects to deliver the dividends of democracy to expectant Nigerians? Most of these Ministers are not there on account of their capability to perform, but as a way of gratitude to them for the role they played in bringing the president to power.

The high-handed and obstinate posture of President Buhari has made it very difficult for him to see his weaknesses and seek advice and tutelage on how to handle some sensitive State matters. He is confusing his days of dictatorship with governance in a democratic setting. In a dictatorship, the words of a dictator are law, for he or she governs with decrees, but in a democracy, executive postulations are subjected to debates and voting. And when a leader in a democratic government tries to import dictatorial style of leadership into democratic arena, there is bound to be trouble, because the basic tenets of democracy will be undermined. And it is this dictatorial disposition of President Buhari that has fertilized the ground for the menace of Avengers, IPOB and other voices calling for the breakup of Nigeria. E.O. Eke lamented about President Buhari's style of leadership in his article 'Buhari Changes Change" thus, "The arrogance of his administration, his conceit, deceit and unscrupulous and intolerant attitude to the problems of Nigeria is too obvious to be ignored".

It is because of Mr. Buhari's mentality of 'I know it all' that Nigeria's economy is comatose. Why can't the man humble himself and subscribe to Prof. Wole Soyinka's suggestion by seeking expert advice and input for the way forward rather than surround himself with 'O Yes Ministers and Advisers' who are more interested in their political survival and relevance than the wellbeing of the Nigerian masses. I am very sure that there are qualified men and women in APC who have the good will of Nigeria at heart but are today relegated to the background because they didn't campaign 'visibly' for President Buhari's election. Most of these committed Nigerians may not have the same financial muscle as some of today's cabinet ministers who helped finance Buhari's campaign, and as a result are relegated to political obscurity in this present dispensation.

If the past civilian administrations in Nigeria were patterned in the model of President Buhari's administration, Nigeria would have long ceased to exist. If the regimes of Obasanjo, Yar'Adua, and Jonathan were as sectarian as Buhari's regime is today, I bet you that Nigeria would have long been engaged in an all-out religious war that will make the Nigeria/Biafra War a moon light play. But thanks to the moderate disposition and informed flexibility of our past leaders, Nigeria is still one country. But this unity is threatened to the maximum today by President Buhari's draconic style of leadership and insensitivity to crucial matters of national interest.

I Rest My Case.

TIT BITS

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SaquE61Ou34

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TAYNFx3GF48

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HV8oJyyrz2A

THE THANX IS ALL YOURS!!!

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