|
Dem No Wan Take Am: State of Emergency in Plateau By Prince Charles Dickson Dem
no wan take am, but dem take am. Who go wan take
coffin. This chorus falls within Late afro beat king
Fela Anikulapo Kuti's greatest. It depicts the then
Obasanjo-Yar adua regime refusing to accept the
allegedly consequence of their action, his mother's
copse in a coffin.
That was then. 2004 a new millennium so much has
happened and changed too. but this song depicts the
battle today. this is the music being played between Obasanjo on one hand, Mr. Dariye and the people Plateau
state on the other hand. At the moment everyone
involved has to dance to this chorus
I have read several national dailies and in it
commentaries, analysis, features, interviews and least
of all the Oyinboman's juju called Internet from
niajarians in Diaspora also stating their views, there
are two camps: those who can't take it and those who
have taken it.
Lets start with those who can't take it with the
Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) their response
indicate their camp. In a letter addressed to the
President titled "a proclamation of evil" it sounded
as the President was headed for no other place than Armageddon. In a screaming headline trust Nigerian
reportage it read "CAN blast Obasanjo'. Mr. President
was accused of being biased, they postulated that if a
state of emergency was the solution in Plateau, what
happens to Kano state, how about cases even worse in
the Niger-delta region. that when Christians were
killed no publicity was given and no visits to calm
frayed nerves. Some also claimed the governor or is it
the then governor was in the process of restoring order. what was the rational of declaring a state of
emergency because of an upheaval in less than5 % of a
state, why the 'letter of warning' to the Kano state
governor when it was established that more people were
killed.
While in less than a week of the black Tuesday in
Plateau's history the Anaphora's, Olu Falae, Balarabe
Musa's of this world refused to take it, under the
umbrella of the Nigerians United for Democracy (NUD). They not only refused but, condemned it and put
in place plans for a mass protest rally for the 29th
of May 2004
Constituents of Plateau Central Senatorial District
which boost of the Deputy Senate President Ibrahim
Mantu may have started moves to recall him from the
senate for his failure to stop the action and his
alleged participation
Legal luminary Timi the law condemned the action
stating the President lacked the constitutional right
and power. off course the ever erratic Senior Advocate
of the Masses Gani Fawehinmi also said it shows the
failure at the top to provide security for lives and
property for the electorate by Baba's administration,
while he also praised Oga Tinubu who has the
misFORTUNE of being the only CEO of a state to
disagree with Mr. President on this one.
'Federal fiat' 'arrogant display and abuse of power'
'a contradiction of all known principle of true
federation operating in a democratic society'. for those that cant take it, the dance has just commenced.
However like Fela sang on, Dem must take am. That what
happened in Plateau is not an isolated case is a
statement of fact, off course ask people in Kano,
Kaduna, Delta where people from time to time decide
that there is a need for them to decimate their
population by killing themselves, is not an excuse.
For a long time the man Obasanjo has been accused of
being weakling and an armchair ruler and now he seems
to have won new fellowership and support from a new
fan base.
The President in his 10.00am speech that memorable
Tuesday claimed he was pained to take the decision. well whether he was or not is a topic for
another day. In an interview with CNN he said the
reason for sparing Kano was the fact that the crisis
there was a spillover of the Plateau mayhem, well the
fact that he not only was pained but also virtually
killed Mr. Dariye's political career by calling all
sorts of name is no longer news as the man's
inactivity, incapability, highhandedness was part of
the problem and his love for journeying out of town
without permission of the class prefect Baba Sege and
the fact that Plateau happens to be one of the states
without a deputy governor oh! I meant a docile
peace-loving deputy, this in all further enraged the
class prefect. It became obvious that dem must take
am.
But dem take am, Wada Nas an unrepentant
critic of OBASANJO whom I have personally come to
appreciate said ''it is a painful decision, but it is
for the overall interest of the country. I believe
President Obasanjo made the right choice in this
circumstance'' from Wada this is unbelievable.
The amusing fact that there were no protest rallies,
march or whatever further seems to have justified the
action. In fact what burst into the atmosphere was
celebration from civil servants who had long drawn
battle with the then governor. the governor's political
opponents and surprisingly the ruling People
Democratic Party (PDP) all danced while accepting the
verdict.
I am not a lawyer but it amazes me how everyone
interprets the constitution to suit his or her
benefit. I think Nigeria is a case study in
constitutional breaches and manipulation, why? I will
tell you the same constitution the Gani's and Timi's
used as their benchmark the attorney general and
Minister of Justice Olujimi who is the custodian of
the law in the land says the President acted within
the confines of the law.
90 siting, 5 standing, this best describe the support
that the President got from members of the senate in
accenting to the already Gazetted emergency rule
declared on our beloved Plateau.
Rising from a meeting the other governors with (off
course the exception of Tinubu) supported the
President.
In what appeared to be a dance of convenience from the
now former governor (at least for the next 6 months)
He was claimed to have appealed to people of the state
to eschew violence in protesting his removal and the
state of emergency imposed on the state.
The last set of people that took this right from the
very beginning for reasons better discussed on
another day are the elders or leaders of thought in
the state, it is seemingly clear as to what tone of
chorus they are dancing to. the Solomon Lars, Gowons,
Shagaya, Jereboy, Jang, Tapgun et al.
Well well well, whether dem take am or dem no take am
the sole administrator has started working and has
also stated that he is not a chief (I hope not
referring to the Ex-governor Chief Dariye) but a
general of over 30years.the ethno-religious cum
political undertones notwithstanding. Ethnic jingoist
will always have their say but like the old man put it: History repeats itself because of
fools |