“We must shun short-cuts and be prepared to meet the obligations as far as the arduous task of organizing the masses to challenge house to house, street by street and profession by profession… This is the only way we can be in tune with the tenets of democracy that the majority of our people can exercise the machinery of ‘one person one vote’ to capture the instruments of governance to further our collective wellbeing”- Quoted in WHERE WE ARE (Page 179).
Pebbles with Igbotako Nowinta
I want to formally welcome readers of this column to the year 2015; the year (2015), that many Nigerians see as magic or enchanting because of the February 14th Presidential election in Nigeria.
Many issues of national significance indeed came up in the year 2014, but because of space constraint, I have decided to dwell on very few but equally intriguing matters that touched the very soul of our country.
Nigeria’s former president, General Olusegun Obasanjo became a constant recurring decimal in the year 2014.
Most of us knew how ex-president Olusegun Obasanjo manipulated the political scene in 2007, by ensuring that ex-president Umaru Musa Yaradua and Dr. Goodluck Jonathan emerged as Nigeria’s number one and two citizens respectively.
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But because of parochial and other remote reasons best known to the General from Ota, he became an activist of some sort for the most part of 2014.
His famous ‘open’ letter to President Goodluck Jonathan somehow opened a political can of worms which President Jonathan and his garrulous aides tried frantically to douse.
Despite General Obasanjo’s tainted antecedents when he was military Head of State and civilian president, credit must be given to him for helping Nigerians to keep President Jonathan on his toes.
Even, by throwing pebbles at the Aso Rock Presidential Villa, General Obasanjo went too far to demonstrate his insincerity and parochial instinct when he came out with the book: MY WATCH.
A glimpse at the book shows clearly that General Obasanjo merely tried to describe himself as the greatest master political chess player in Nigeria’s contemporary history, by resorting to blatant lies extreme falsehood and outright distortion of facts.
More annoying is his position about the Third Term Agenda, under his presidency. I still remember that Obasanjo’s second and third coming as president of the Republic of Nigeria was sustained by policies of duplicity and double standard contradictions which were treacherous, dehumanizing and counterproductive.
I want to quickly leave Obasanjo here now, but I must state categorically that, if we have had a country with strong institutions, a character like Obasanjo would have been languishing in jail right now.
That is why we must choose wisely on Valentine Day in February 2015.
Another issue that tore my heart to ribbons in 2014 is that of the 260bn yearly payment by the Federal Government on kerosene subsidy.
Yet, a liter of kerosene is being sold in the region of 100/150 naira on the streets of Nigeria. But, how long will these hideous crimes continue in our country?
Who or what will stop these enemies of the people; this satanic cartel or cabal that seems to be mightier than the occupants of Aso Rock Presidential Palace?
What of the alleged misappropriations of 873bn Solid Mineral Funds, which was discovered by the Senate in the last quarter of 2014?
A sordid development, which Senate President, David Mark, only resigned himself to fate and passed collective judgment against himself and fellow senators, for not living up to their oversight functions which the Constitution of the Federal Republic placed on their hands.
Now, the Solid Mineral Fund, already depleted by those who have access to it, is more or less going down the drain. What a country! The tragic fact is that the 873bn is gone forever!
I have never seen a country like Nigeria, where politicians and some public officials engage in the most profligate and unaccountable devices and nothing is happening to them.
With federal law makers demonstrating a niggling lack of interest and capacity to help the nation who says our economy is not like a fish out of the river panting and gasping for breath?
With the free fall in the global oil price, we are in for another round of austerity measures. Certainty, it is only the hopelessly poor and mercilessly abandoned citizens battling to eke a living that will still bear the brunt.
Already a 70 percent increase on tax duty on Tokunbo (second hand cars) has been introduced from January 1st 2015. This is a critical issue in the news that started starring at us unblinkingly in the face in 2014.
In spite of what we have written, and still being canvased the Federal Government of Nigeria has cruelly refused to diversify our economy from oil-based.
Today, the United States that has been steadily buying our oil has decided to stop, because they have succeeded in storing enough for their domestic use and have been working ceaselessly on alternate sources of energy.
When will sanity move into our oil sector? If our Solid Mineral Fund meant to develop that sector is being stolen with impunity, the omens are really bad for us.
With Valentine Day, around the corner Nigerians must choose a leader that will steer the country out of the ominously choppy water. Even, as the Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Okonjo Iweala continues to roll out a raft of feeble economic measures.
The 37bn compensation ordered by a competent Court of jurisdiction to be paid by the Federal Government to the people of Odi, because of the criminal invasion authorized by General Obasanjo, is an issue in the news of 2014.
It is indeed a landmark judgment. I am sure; this development will go a long way, in checking excesses of any government in power.
In 2014 ragtag outlaws became more brazen in their campaign of machine guns and cannon and succeeded incredibly in disturbing the peace of the country, most especially at the north eastern part of Nigeria. How long will this idea of suicide bombings and dialogue of the bullets continue?
The Chibok girls abducted in most unexplainable manner from their hostels remains an issue in the news. In this 2015, I hope we will witness scintillating news of national rebirth.
Nowinta wrote WHERE WE ARE – A CALL FOR DEMOCRATIC REVOLUTION IN NIGERIA
