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Alhaji Shehu Shagari; How Not To Be A Statesman By Abdu Isa Kofarmata 23rd September, 2005
My parental off bringing and my religious belief have all enjoined and taught me to respect elders regardless of their social, economic and political status. However, as I grow into adulthood, my conscience dictates to me that respect should be reciprocal. The young should respect the elder and the later should love and protect the young in return.
Recently, former president of Nigeria, Alhaji Shehu Aliyu Shagari seems to come out of retirement from politics and must have already register his membership with the ruling PDP (president Obasanjo’s faction). His recent move and sponsored initiation to reconcile president Obasanjo and his Vice, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, are not only unfair to the young people of Nigeria but an abuse on the psyche of the entire Nigerian masses.
This is not the first time the former president and his counterpart General Yakubu Gowon are interfering in our system with a view to spoiling our chances of having good governance. This has ensures a continuous enslavement of our people and destruction of our hard earned democracy.
It is still fresh in our memories how these elder statesmen intervened in 2002 to stop and scuttle the impeachment of president Obasanjo by the Ayim/Ghali Na’Abba led National Assembly. The result of their action now can be seen in the pain, hunger and multiple deaths of our people. It is believed religiously that if these elders did not interfere, a lot of atrocities and destructions of lives and property would have been avoided. For instance, all the lives lost during the 2003 election could have been saved. Illustrious personalities such as Chuba Okadigbo, Harry Marshal, Dekibo and lot of other victims of political assassination and violence could have been saved. Similarly, destruction of public property in Annambra and Plateau states would not have occurred. One would not wonder the re-appointment of Muktar Shagari as minister, of course, a sibling of Shehu Shagari in this second and dubious term of president Obasanjo. Student of political science referred to it as “political patronage”.
All the monumental fraud in our petroleum industry as well as incessant increases in the pump price of refined oil could not have been our problem if these elders had restrained themselves from this unwanted interference. The most painful and annoying part of it all is that for six years of Obasanjo’s misrule, Nigerian masses have been subjected to severe economic pain, anguish, hunger and all forms of deprivations but the former president did not find them worthy of commenting or interfering on behalf of the Nigerian masses to advise the president.
Again, the absence of good roads, constant electricity supply, good facilities in our educational institutions as well as complete absence of drugs and other medical facilities in our hospitals did not matter at all to Turakin Sokoto. One wonders what people like him and General Gowon are doing or advising at the council of state meetings. None of them has ever come out to beg for policies that will soften and cushion the hard economic situation our people are exposed to by this wicked and tyrannical regime of Obasanjo.
The duos have ample time and energy to travel wide and far to organize reconciliatory meeting in order to settle Obasanjo and Atiku feud. I hope that selfish and unwarranted expenditure is not financed from the nation’s treasury. One wonders who even sent them in the first place. I am pretty sure that they are representing themselves and their families’ not Nigerian masses.
It beats everyone’s imagination that people from the president’s party such as Senator Uche Chukwumerije, Governor George Akume, Governor Donald Duke in addition to the respected religious bodies such as the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) could have all the courage to describe the incessant fuel hike as in-human and smack of wickedness, but our elder statesman, the Turakin Sokoto is only concern with Obasanjo/Atiku feud.
As a president elected under liberal democracy, the former president should have advised and guided our civilian dictator of the simple tenet of democracy, he should have advised the president to stop over-heating our polity by super imposing his people such as Ali must chop of the PDP. Similarly, he should have taught him how to manage opposition within and outside his party for democracy to endure in the country.
President Shagari should know that every move of this government ends up multiplying our pain, thus it has become imperative to let him know that the little respect some of us have for him is gradually diminishing and if care is not taken it will be eroded completely. It is time these two men should stop abusing our intelligent and also time for Nigerian masses to start ignoring whatever comes from their direction.
Nigerians should be ready and prepared to take their destiny in their hands without regard to those old schools that always place their interest and that of their families above national interest. It is also important to note that I did not take pleasure or pride in joining issues with elderly persons, however, the elder should learn to respect our feelings and strive to respect themselves, thereby guarding their actions and utterances.
I pray and hope earnestly that Almighty God would help Nigerians to avoid this statesmanship. And for the former president, I wish to add that, that is not how to be a statesman, please.
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