Nigeria is a land of plenty where the majority of her citizens live in
sheer inadequacy. This incongruity is traceable to the activities of her
visionless and rudderless leaders over the years. And in about four
months from now, the nation will have yet another opportunity to elect a
new set of leaders at both the federal and state levels.
Given the strange kind of federalism that we practice, which
concentrates too much powers and money at the center, it is certain that
titanic battles will be fought, by the opposing political parties, to
capture it. And at the moment, that battle has already begun. The PDP,
the party that currently controls the center, and by extension our
national wealth, is fighting tooth and nail to ensure it does not lose
its hold on power.
In doing so, the party is employing ethnicity and religion as tools of
mind control in order to ensure victory, even when it is clear that the
party and the crop of leaders it produced in 2011 have remained
incapable of delivering democratic dividends to millions of Nigerians
who voted them into power.
Take, for instance, the electricity catastrophe in the nation. In May,
2010, when President Goodluck Jonathan assumed office, he promised that
his priority would be to confront Nigeria’s age long electricity
conundrum. On August 26 of the same year, the President came out with
his elaborate power sector roadmap and assured Nigerians that noticeable
improvements would be achieved in power supply across the nation.
In 2013, about three years after he assumed office, power generation,
according to Prof. Chinedu Nebo, the regime’s Minister of Power, dropped
from 4,350mw to 2,628.4mw. As of today, power outages have become the
norm rather than the exception in most parts of the country, and
uninterrupted power supply has turned into a mere wishful thinking of
most city dwellers across the country.
Bear in mind that this situation is despite billions of naira that has
been spent, and still being spent, by this administration in this
sector, including the recently (September, 2014?) approved N213,
000,000,000.00 (two hundred and thirteen billion naira) facility as
bailout for the power sector. You are compelled to ask: just where is
the money going to? And this is just one of the many sectors that are
receiving billions for resuscitation, but which have remained comatose.
I find it rather strange that some Nigerians don’t see any reason to ask
important questions as long as their own slices of bread are buttered;
or, as long as the President is their ethnic son or brother. The other
day, Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria (TAN) (whatever that really
means) were practically falling over one another, in frenzy, trying to
publicize all the transformational strides of this administration.
Everything was as jocular as it was ridiculous. I think a leader that
can’t give me an item that he promised me, even when all the resources –
human and financial – are readily within his reach, is not worth being
given another four years.
Don’t misunderstand me, I consider Mr. President a good man. His humble
disposition when he was being pummeled by late President Umaru Musa
Yar’adua’s men has not been forgotten. However, being a good man does
not make him a good president. He appears totally overwhelmed by the
enormous responsibilities of his office, such that delivering on his
promises has become a difficult thing.
In this situation, looking for an alternative to President Goodluck
Jonathan becomes obligatory. One of the persons that have made
themselves available for the service of the fatherland is General
Muhammadu Buhari (GMB). Since his declaration in Abuja weeks back, a lot
of venomous invectives have been spat at him by PDP apologists. It has
been claimed by those who are not comfortable with him that he is both,
at the same time, an ethnic jingoist and a religious fundamentalist.
This is untrue.
The first lie being bandied about is the notion that GMB is not
acceptable to the electorates, outside of the northern states where he
commands a cult-like followership. The impression that voters, across
South-West, South-East and South-South states will find him repulsive,
being an ethnic jingoist is nothing but a dirty lie. I am Yoruba, and if
GMB stands for election today, I’ll vote for him. And I know in person a
couple of individuals from other parts of this country that hold this
view. Yes, I know he is Hausa, and yes, I know he is Fulani. You may
disagree with me on this, but this remains my conviction, until that
time when a more credible person than him emerges. Ethnic chauvinism
therefore becomes the last consideration when choosing my leader.
The second lie is that GMB is a religious fundamentalist and that as a
Muslim, Christians in Nigeria will not vote for him. I need to confess
here that the PDP, to an extent, has recorded some measure of success
with this divisive tool. The reality however, is that there is nothing
to suggest that if GMB becomes Nigeria’s president tomorrow, Christians
will run out of the country. Nothing suggests or supports that. He might
not be a Christian, but he possesses what we need in a genuine leader
at this point in our national life.
Let us, even for a moment, assume that we – from the point of view of
the Holy Scriptures, the Bible – subject GMB to a critical analysis and
then come to the conclusion that he does not know God, that he is not
born again, and that he is not a Christian; does that mean he is not
qualified to be used by God for God’s purpose? I dare say that he is
still qualified to be used by God to achieve His own purpose. I will
expatiate on this point shortly.
You see, we need to understand that God does not employ human sentiments
and religious bigotry in executing His own plans here on earth. And God
is still actively busy in His world, whether one believes this or not.
His standards are unique and sure in all circumstances. He loves
Christians and non-Christians alike. His love does not discriminate.
That is the truth of the Holy Scriptures.
It is unfortunate that those who should propagate this distinctive and
distinguishing disposition of God – His love for all men, and help to
deepen our peace in the nation, are the ones helping to fritter away
what little harmony that the nation currently enjoys. It is not right to
utilize cheap religiosity to hoodwink gullible and unsuspecting souls,
and make slaves out of them.
Unfortunately, this is what those opposed to GMB’s ambition are
currently doing; trying to portray GMB as a dangerous religious zealot, a
hater of Christians, and a plague that should be avoided by those who
profess Christianity. But this approach by the PDP – the wielding of
religious swords to further divide a nation that is already on the
precipice – is not only failing, it is equally falling apart.
In the Bible, when God led and dealt with the Israelites, the enterprise
of leadership was a very important thing to Him, and He used several
persons to bring about the realisation of His purpose per time. One of
those used was the King called Cyrus, a man who had nothing to do with
the Covenant God made with Israel. In the Book of Isaiah 45: 1-5 (GNB),
we read:
Isa 45:1 The LORD has chosen Cyrus to be king. He has appointed him to
conquer nations; he sends him to strip kings of their power; the LORD
will open the gates of cities for him. To Cyrus the LORD says.
Isa 45:2 I myself will prepare your way, leveling mountains and hills. I will break down bronze gates and smash their iron bars.
Isa 45:3 I will give you treasures from dark, secret places; then you
will know that I am the LORD and that the God of Israel has called you
by name.
Isa 45:4 I appoint you to help my servant Israel, the people that I have
chosen. I have given you great honor, although you do not know me.
(Emphasis mine).
Isa 45:5 I am the LORD; there is no other god. I will give you the
strength you need, although you do not know me. (Emphasis mine).
Please observe that in verses 4 and 5, God specifically mentioned that
King Cyrus did not know Him; meaning that he was not an Israelite (and
if we stretch this further, it would mean he was not a Christian). Yet,
God, the Supreme One, made use of King Cyrus to achieve His
predetermined aim. Now, has God told anyone that He is not interested in
using GMB to halt our nation’s free fall into decay?
For the good of our country, it is important that we dismantle the
mountains of lies being built by those employing ethnicity and religion
as a discordant, and by extension, an election winning strategy. After
that, it then becomes needful to look closely at the man GMB with a view
to finding out what he really possesses which ranks him higher than
other contestants.
The single greatest malady threatening to strangulate this nation is
corruption. It is both the nucleus and the lifeblood of all other
disorder imperiling us as a people, and casting us in the mould of an
unserious nation in the eyes of the world. It is from corruption that
all other obvious backward-pulling forces derive their strength. To
simply say it the way it is, most of our leaders are barefaced thieves.
They are totally undisguised in their business of stealing the nation to
stupor.
As a result, politics has suddenly become a rather alluring undertaking
for every Tom, Dick and Harry, not because of the desire to serve the
people, but because it is now the most profitable venture in the nation.
It is common knowledge that millions, and even billions, of naira is
being stolen quite unashamedly by these crooks who the nation is
unfortunate to have as leaders.
It is in his ability to wrestle the monster of corruption to the ground
and pull out the nation from its destructive grip that GMB shines
brighter than all his opponents, whether within his own political party,
the APC, or in the ruling party, the PDP. That Buhari is honest,
scrupulous, and totally trustworthy is beyond disputation. There are
those who hold the view that GMB, having held several positions at the
highest levels of government in the nation, cannot be divorced from the
widespread venality that has become our lot; but the view remains a mere
speculation.
All along, while his enemies and detractors mouth this, not a single
shred of evidence has been brought forward to put the parsimoniously
reliable general to shame. And come to think of it, if the PDP is in
possession of any such substantiation, why would PDP not have it
released? It would have at least put the tough politician to permanent
political oblivion. In GMB, we are blessed with one man that we can look
at, among many that are currently eyeing the presidency, and rest
assured that our national till will not be broken.
In addition to his admirable credibility, GMB is equally a man of
resolve; a man with firmness of purpose who eschews frivolity,
superficiality and silliness. And such a man is the one we need at this
time. Why? Because it will take a man possessing inner strength, as GMB
does, to refocus our drifting brigantine. Just take a look at the
Nigerian political space, and you will see a lot of talkers who have not
the slightest idea about how the nation should run. Being credible
therefore is one thing, possessing the unyielding, well-founded
determination to do what is right and walk your talk is another thing.
Now, it is possible that some people, particularly those wishing to
profit from their romance with the ruling party, still hold certain
grudges against GMB for whatever sins they think he committed years ago.
They are free to do so; it is their choice. They can continue to stare
at the back while attempting to go forward. But what is sure is that
those sins do not include being a thief; they do not include being given
to fickleness when the demands of your office require that you be manly
and reliable.
In recent time, listening to our current crop of leaders tells me that
they are tired. Tired, not in the sense of not willing to “rule” any
further, for they enjoy that; but tired in the sense of being wholly
drained of ideas as to how to move the nation forward.
Nigeria is destined to be greater than what she currently represents;
her leaders, over the years, have been her drawbacks. Electing GMB into
office is certain to put the nation on the right tract. Let’s hope the
APC gives him the much needed ticket.
Pastor Gabriel Olalekan Popoola
a former University of Port Harcourt Students’ Union Leader,
worships with Living Faith Church and can be reached at gabrolap@gmail.com