By Emmanuel Godswill
SOME weeks ago, Emeritus Archbishop of Lagos, Cardinal Olubunmi Okojie, wrote a passionate letter, raising serious concerns over your administration and style of leadership. Many other notable Nigerians have expressed similar views at several fora. The anxiety over the nation’s rapid decline in virtually all sectors is reverberating across the country and beyond. Mr. President, under your watch, Nigeria is in dire straits. This is the cry of most Nigerians in high and low places. This is my cry too. Nigeria is bleeding on all sides and you cannot continue to feign ignorance and insist that the change has come.
For most Nigerians, your persistent argument that change has come and that citizens must embrace your so-called change is balderdash. Perhaps that is why your recent launch of ‘Change Begins With Me’ in Abuja has been greeted with criticisms, with many describing it as ‘another bogus, hypocritical and wasteful misadventure.’ Nigerian people are simply saying that the change should begin with you and the political class. The change should start with your discriminatory appointments and cabinet. This change should also embrace fiscal federalism and jettison an unjust unitary system that has continued to plague the country.
Today, Nigeria is in recession, no thanks to your dismal economic policies and divisive leadership that have characterized your government. Nigeria’s tsunami slide into full-blown economic recession, accompanied by ethnic hostilities, religious tensions and abject poverty, since you came into office last May is mind-boggling. It is obvious that you were not really prepared for democratic leadership, despite your desperate but failed attempts.
Most Nigerians believe that your ambition was largely driven by a personal vendetta against real and imaginary enemies. Obviously your government, in its pursuit of anti-corruption crusade, neglected other critical socio-economic needs of the country. Or how else can one explain the misjudgment in not naming your cabinet, till after six months, a misstep that precipitated nothing but a tirade of economic uncertainties and crass planlessness.
To say the least, it is very sad that your change agenda has brought nothing but untold hardship and misery to the country and citizens. It is even more saddening that your policies and your much-touted body language have failed to offer any hope or succour. All the indices for measuring good governance and development are in the negative, thus reeking of poor leadership, policy ineptitude as well as paucity of ideas for economic and social growth. Poverty is on the increase, while social tension has become the norm. It is rather difficult to understand the enormity of the woes confronting Nigerians, since the inception of your administration, as most of your appointments and policies seem skewed, due to allegations of favouritism and inequities.
The current squalid state of Nigeria and its hapless citizens is unprecedented. Under your watch, the society has become more restive and polarized, while incidences of diseases and death have worsened. At the Royal Institute of International Affairs, Chatham House, London, last year, you delivered a paper tagged: ‘Prospects for Democratic Consolidation in Africa: Nigeria’s Transition.’ announcing highfalutin promises to the cheer of your audience in the Diaspora and at home. Sadly they have remained largely empty promises, as most citizens have been driven further down into abject poverty, deprivation and despair. It is painful recalling some of these bogus promises in this discourse. First, you stated your preference for being Nigeria’s public and marketing officer, by extolling her virtues possibly to attract investments and tourists. However, the opposite is the case, as on several occasions you have taken the country to the cleaners. Many citizens believe you seize every opportunity to scandalize Nigerians in your numerous foreign engagements. John Bercow, the Speaker of the House of Commons, United Kingdom (UK) once expressed hope that your visit to the UK was at your own expense. He subtly implied that you consider curtailing most of these unprofitable trips.
Your foreign policy has been mired by much public criticism because it seems quite surreptitious and hypocritical, according to many. For instance, on assumption of office, you wasted little or no time in calling for the self-determination of Palestine and Western Sahara, without necessarily factoring in other contentious issues. Meanwhile you have severally hounded Biafrans, Shiites and other protesters agitating for true federalism. Security forces have attacked these unarmed citizens, allegedly killing many in their zeal to satiate your brazen distaste for every dissent and opposition. Even the foreign media, which you seem to prefer to the local media, has on several occasions confronted you on the extra-judicial killings by security operatives and your dictatorial tendencies.
Many watchers argue that in less than two years, your government has virtually eroded the political accomplishments of late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua in promoting free and fair elections devoid of bloodshed.
The fact is that no amount of threat can obliterate a peoples’ demand for freedom from oppression and repression. It is an inalienable right fully guaranteed by the United Nations (UN) and other regional resolutions on human rights.
In addition, you have clearly failed the country by your inability to check the excesses and mindless killings perpetuated by the Fulani herders across the country.
Godswill writes from the United States