hat does a nation do when its citizens go well beyond the call of duty, and excel in their fields of endeavor? In most nations, they get rewarded. Parades are organized in their honor and confetti is thrown at them as a grateful nation demonstrates its gratitude, hopeful that the honor meted out to the honoree will encourage others, and spur them on to greatness. Apparently in Nigeria, those who honor their nation, who serve her selflessly, get punished. They are humiliated, their work - honored by the rest of the world - is stripped bare and rubbished, and where they have died in the service of their nation, their memories are exhumed and desecrated with posthumous demotions and slanders.
We celebrate Obama's political success in America, yet we fail to see the parallels between how America has handled his meteoric rise and the Ribadu case. Until the democratic convention 4 years ago Obama was a lowly State Senator unknown outside his home state of Illinois. This is a man who is yet to finish his first term in office as a US senator. Yet, the American electorate recognized the ability that he possessed and nominated him as the first Black candidate of any major political party in America. There were more experienced politicians in the race, yet, it was not longevity, but ability that was used in selecting Obama over his more decorated peers. In the warped logic of the geniuses of the Nigerian Police Service Commission and their puppeteers in the Nigerian government, a man like Obama would never have emerged. His ascendancy would have been determined to be too upsetting to the status quo, and in order to assuage the "dissent" within the ranks, his potential would have been stifled, his brightly burning flame, snuffed out by a culture that erects altars to mediocrity and pays homage to the pernicious doctrine of the law of averages.
Before going further, let us lay to rest the comical argument that Ribadu's "double promotion" was out of order. The idea that a person could excel to an extent that makes it appropriate to promote him above his peers is so basic that even in primary schools around the world - Nigeria inclusive - it is not uncommon for some extraordinarily gifted children to get moved a couple of classes ahead of their mates. This notion being promoted by our government that the mediocre and the extremely capable, the simple and the gifted, should merely be lumped together and processed similarly sums up our problem as a nation. There is a name for this syndrome: reversion to the mean. In practical terms, it is similar to the idea that ultimately, all nails that stand out get hammered down and is widely accepted as a reason for the failure of institutions. In the absurdity that is being perpetuated by Nigeria's leaders, Ribadu, El-Rufai, Iwendi, and everyone else who has attempted to raise their heads above the morass is being hammered right back down.
A nation that fails to reward excellence dooms itself to mediocrity. Now it is obvious that all it takes to be a successful policeman in Nigeria is to stand still, do the shuffle, and wait until processing time when that individual and everyone else who came in at the same time gets moved forward. It does not matter if you ignored the calls of citizens who were being attacked by robbers, or if you spent your entire career collecting road taxes at roadblocks. You will be treated in exactly the same fashion as a man who risked his life by taking on some of the wealthiest crooks the world has ever known, and risked his career by taking on his own boss - all because he believed the lie that we told him: that the Nigerian nation was now ready to stare down the dragon called corruption!
The more Okiro's excuses for Ribadu's mistreatment are contemplated, the stranger they seem. His primary excuse was that Ribadu's promotion caused dissent in the ranks. Dissent by whom, I wonder? How many of these faceless complainers would have tackled the task at the EFCC with half the heart and commitment that Ribadu gave to the assignment? How many would have laid their lives on the line to prosecute the heartless and criminally minded rogues that bled Nigeria dry? Was there no dissent when Okiro became IG? Was Okiro himself not promoted from CP to DIG - skipping the post of AIG - thus violating the very rule that he and his accomplices in the Police Service Commission now accuse Ribadu of? As a lawyer, Okiro ought to know that his own experiences and his case provide precedence that supports Ribadu's promotion. But then the illogicality and sheer hypocrisy inherent in the positions taken by our leaders has never been a deterrent to them in the past and it obviously isn't going to be anytime soon.
What is clear to all well meaning Nigerians is that there is more to Ribadu's treatment that meets the eye. That young lion has caused unease in too many quarters, and there is a burning desire to see him tamed.
Trying as this period might be for Malam Ribadu, I have a message for him: he should retire from the force and run for office. Not just any office, but the highest office in the land - the Presidency of the Republic. What is the point in returning to an institution that has demonstrated its lack of heart and soul? One argument might be that he can better fight the system from the inside. That is childish talk. There is no way to fight any system in Nigeria from the inside, especially not the Nigerian police. Ribadu was effective when he was head of the EFCC only because Obasanjo gave him free rein. Much as Obasanjo's regime has been pilloried and harangued, this much is true, the man allowed his officials - Iweala, Rufai, Soludo, Ribadu, Ezekwesili, Akunyili - free rein. It is obvious that the Yaradua government is not interested in any cleaning of the Augean stables. Long before Osayande and his band of usurping commissioners came out with their latest gimmick, the nation's Attorney General had also come up with an elaborate legal concoction that was aimed at neutering Ribadu's effectiveness at the EFCC. When that didn't work as well as they hoped, they manufactured the Kuru excuse. The latest is the final act in their trifurcated game plan to stifle one man's zeal and passion for his nation.
So, as with all clouds, there might be a silver lining in Ribadu's current travails. Nigerians want a leader they can believe in. They want a man (or woman) who has shown unwavering commitment and dedication to the Nigerian cause. They want a leader they can trust. In my lifetime, I can think of few men who can lay claim to possessing all of these qualities and who are widely recognized across the nation as truly qualified to stake that claim. Nuhu Ribadu is one of such men. Look at how widespread the outrage was at Ribadu's persecution. Nigerians of all ethnic, religious and political persuasions were unanimous in their condemnation of the treatment meted out to this heroic Nigerian.
I can assure Malam Ribadu of one fact: he has a healthy chance of winning a presidential election. Where will the money come from? Nigerians will donate money in their droves. If an ill advised fundraising effort for Obama could raise N100 m in one night, then surely, we can get the Nigerian people to financially support a Ribadu candidacy. What party platform will be used? Definitely not the PDP in its current incarnation. The Labor Party appears to be a viable option - it is closest to having a semblance of ideology, and its antecedents are salutary. What about the doctrine of power shift - will Nigerians vote another northerner into office? We will never know unless we try.
However, if we want to know how Nigerians truly feel about ethnic balancing, we only need to look at our football team at the Olympics. We understand that to win gold, we must stack our decks with the right cards. The trophy at stake here is the awakening of our nation from its slumber and enabling its ascendancy into the realm of performing nations that its potential demands that it occupies. To achieve that goal, Nigerians will do whatever is necessary and right - even if that means electing another Northerner to office as President. This is not naivet� - for after all, who would have believed that Nigerians would support a Muslim - Muslim ticket in the June 12 1993 elections (Abiola - Kingibe), which despite what the pundits had said about religious balancing romped to an electoral route of the more "balanced" Tofa - Ugoh ticket.
So, I admonish Malam Nuhu Ribadu not to worry for too long. The government might not officially recognize your services to the nation, but we the people do. There might be no confetti parades to salute your bravery, but be sure of this: each and every one of us says a prayer for you in our hearts. Was Gani Fawehinmi not a Senior Advocate of the Masses (SAM) long before the establishment eventually recognized him as a Senior Advocate of the Nation (SAN)? It is the people's verdict that counts. Even if Ribadu were to be reinstated, it is clear that that sacred bond of trust between the government and its officers has been lost forever in the Ribadu case. It is time for Ribadu to move on, and to contemplate that next task that fate has in store for him. Should he decide to heed the call, he will find an army waiting in the wings. An army of citizens soldiers, desirous of change and ready to be put to work.
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