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Blame! Blame! Blame! Blame Someone Else! – A Nigerian Political
Pastime
By Akintokunbo A Adejumo
Newsdiaryonline Sun Sep 18,2011
London, UK
akinadejum@aol.com
“Our
enemies are the political profiteers, the swindlers, the men in
high and low places that seek bribes and demand 10 percent;
those that seek to keep the country divided permanently so that
they can remain in office as ministers or VIPs at least, the
tribalists, the nepotists, those that make the country look big
for nothing before international circles, those that have
corrupted our society and put the Nigerian political calendar
back by their words and deeds. ”
Major Patrick Chukwuma Kaduna Nzeogwu, 15 January 1966
Thus said the late Major Kaduna Nzeogwu (one of the first
casualties of our descent into oblivion and desperation) 45
years ago, almost half a century ago, and my countrymen and
women,
everything he spoke about then
still happens today, in fact, has gotten worse and has eaten
deep into the fabrics of our nation Nigeria, the so-called Giant
of Africa. More like the “Corruption Cesspool of the World” to
me!
Politicians, especially the Nigerian species, are an intriguing
and confounding breed. I like to hope and think of them as a
breed that will soon become extinct, like the dinosaurs, but
unfortunately for the people the have chosen to visit their
irresponsibility and corruption on, these breed of
conscienceless charlatans seem to be breeding more and waxing
stronger, at the great expense of their people.. This is
probably due to some genetic aberration from their fathers, or
predecessors who have passed on to them the hardy genes of
survival. I hope not, or else, there will not be any hope left
for these battered and raped people called Nigerians.
It is tempting to think of these politicians and pseudo-leaders
as pathological liars and absolutely corrupt breed with an
appetite for destruction, not construction. As devious, scheming
minds, so desperate for power and personal aggrandisement that
they are willing to risk the reputations and livelihoods of all
around them, they are ready to kill and loot and rape. Of course
if you are liar, you will be corrupt, and if you are corrupt you
are likely to kill to cover up your corruption. But one thing,
which comes out of these corrupt, pathological and murderous
liars, is that they are mostly cowards. Yes, these people are
mostly COWARDS.
Perhaps there is also something appealing about these people,
almost always male, so seemingly daring that women flock to them
because of the power, wealth and devil-may care gung-ho they
seem to exude.
Compatriots, I have always maintained that the problem of
Nigeria is not that of religious or tribal diversities. We can
co-exist peacefully together in one nation, if only we have the
right, honest, sincere leaders, and followers of different
mind-set, too, mind you! Corruption is the main problem, and
corruption is usually fuelled and nurtured by bad leadership and
aided and abetted by an indifferent followership. So bad and
corrupt leaders will use every means, including religious and
tribal differences, to maintain their grip on wealth and power
At any rate, this article is written because a friend and
patriot, Comrade Ephraim Adinlofu, directed my attention to an
interview, granted the Sun Newspapers by a former Minister
during the military government of Babangida, Mr Tony Momoh.
This is an excerpt from the Interview with The Sun Newspaper
(Wednesday 14 Sept 2011)
“Sun:
But some people accuse ex-president Olusegun Obasanjo as the
problem of PDP
Tony Momoh:
No. Obasanjo is not the problem of PDP. I see Obasanjo
with due respect as a very strong leader, a strong leader, but
highly arbitrary. He was the problem of Nigeria, not just PDP. Obasanjo
had all the opportunities to grow this country, restructure this
country.
Because of the manipulated
support they had in the National Assembly and all the state
Assemblies, they would have changed the constitution to
decongest the political space, and then empower the regions, and
let people move at their own pace. In other words, go back to
the regional system because our presidential system does not
seem to be working. And working for Nigeria is more of a
business than service. Obasanjo was in a position to do it. I
even wrote to him to do it.
That, ought to be his mission.”
After reading this interview, I just sat down and started what I
call a deep intellectual and spiritual reflection on
Nigeria: the critical question is and has always been: What is
wrong with our leaders? Is there genetic dimension to their
inability to perform? Listening and reading Tony Momoh, I was
amused. Just as I laugh anytime I read about Atiku's
commentaries on Obasanjo. These people have no honour at
all. Even among thieves, there is honour, but in Nigeria, there
is none. Just hearing and reading Babangida, Atiku, Richard
Akinjide (another spoiler of Nigeria) Momoh and their ilk
moaning, I feel sick. Momoh was, once a Minister under Babangida.
I cannot remember him rebuking Babangida for annulling the June
12, 1993 election. I cannot really! Even if it means leaving the
country and making the condemnation from outside the shores of
Nigeria; he never did.
The fact is that if you escape
your responsibility by not doing the right thing when you are in
power, or be critical when you are a Minister, you should not
moan when your inactions begins to haunt you years after you
have left the scene and have blown away your opportunity to
make a big difference.. Tony Momoh, IBB, Atiku and OBJ, and even
Buhari, had every opportunity given to them on the platter of
sometimes gold to make our institutions and country strong,
but they never did. Today, they are all moaning, spewing out
nattering nabobs. If they had done that or help to do that,
today, they will not be shouting to high heavens that PDP rigged
the election or that Jonathan should not have been the
presidential candidate of the PDP. With the exception of the
June 12, 1993 election, all subsequent elections have always
been rigged.
So what effort did they make
whilst in power to make sure that the electoral, police and the
judicial institutions were made independent and strong before
they left the power scene, what effort? You see how people get
their recompense! They think they can - after they have left
office and from their bedroom - mould the future of Nigeria to
their fancy at any time. If IBB had allowed June 12 election to
stand, I have the strongest feeling that by now, Nigeria would
have overtaken South Africa. The West knew what Nigeria is
capable of, but does the West have the genuine progress and
interest of Nigeria at heart? No, they are after their interest
but, who do you blame? Comprador Nigerian bourgeoisies and their
military counterparts.
Another punch: during the "Save Nigeria March" of late Yar ‘Adua's
era, Pastor Tunde Bakare, the vice-presidential candidate to
Buhari, thundered, (and this was carried by virtually as front
page burner in most Nigerian daily papers): "I wish Nzeogwu’s
coup had succeeded"! I thought he was joking then. And had then
asked myself another question: Why did Pastor Bakare make that
declaration? What must have crossed his mind at that point in
Nigeria's history for him (Pastor Bakare) to make such a
sensitive deposition?
One of those who countered that coup, a celebrated "hero" in the
Nigeria contextual game of ethnic and religious chicanery, told
Nigerians to their face that he made a huge profit in the sale
of his crude oil bloc located in the Niger-Delta; that after
paying tax, - and perhaps sharing some of the huge gain to his
children, - he was still left with more than US$500 million!
You know who I am talking about, don't you? (In fact I wrote an
article about this –
“Pseudo-Leaders And Nigerian Politics” Nigeria Village
Square, 23 March 2008.
http://www.nigeriavillagesquare.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=8830&Itemid=154
)
We now know why he participated in that counter coup of July
1966. Opportunists and profiteers are never in short supply in
Nigeria! So, why should we still continue to blame the
international community, specifically Britain and the USA, in
the underdevelopment of Nigeria? Not at all! I no longer blame
them. We have got ourselves to blame after 51 years of
Independence.
That is another of our problems as a people. Instead of
accepting blames and mistakes and working collectively for
solutions, we dismiss the mistakes; pass the blame to others and
trying to find individual solutions to collective problems. A
very good example of this is the way we deal with electricity
problem in Nigeria. We all rush to but generators, but we never
confront the Federal Government of Nigeria, the Power Holding
Company of Nigeria, and their respective officials and take them
to task, and ask for their heads, for their failure to supply us
with electricity in this 21st Century.
To be frank, what Tony Momoh said is true, but considering he
was part of the problems of Nigeria, it should not be coming
from him, as explained above. There is yet to be a Nigerian
leader who had the ability, the strength, the resources, the
force, the power, etc to make Nigeria better than Obasanjo.
God was even on his side. I will never understand how he managed
to throw this chance to become a true Statesman in the mould of
Mandela and Kennedy away to become a much ridiculed man, accused
of corruption and vilified everywhere. He had the best chance
more than any other leader, military or civilian, but he blew
it. God will not forgive him, because God gave him two chances,
even three, such as He had hardly given to any man in the
history of the whole world.
But greed at his age made him throw it away. Yes, Tony Momoh was
right. But he was part of Nigeria’s problem, so it behoves him
to offer solutions.
And you know what? Another leader who could have done
Nigeria right was Babangida, although to a much lesser extent.
It would have given Babangida an opportunity to redeem
himself in the eyes of God and Man. He threw it away too, and
after so many years, he tried to seek redemption, but due to the
fact that a horse will always die a horse, and a leopard can
never change its spots, Babangida could not escape his fate and
his reputation for corruption, immorality, deceit and chicanery,
but unfortunately for him, he could not accept that fact, and
instead continued to ridicule himself while trying by all means
to outdo his former boss, Obasanjo by trying a comeback to power
every time. I think that has finally been laid to rest now,
having attained the age of 70. Or maybe not!
What a waste!
Acknowledgement:
I am ever so grateful to
my friend, brother, colleague and co-writer, Comrade Ephraim
Adinlofu for giving me almost 100% germ of the idea and
materials to write this article. Comrade, it is mostly your
ideas that always inspire me to write despite my sometimes
lethargy and pessimism about our country.
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