Open Letter to President Olusegun Obasanjo By Owoeye Stephen Tayo Writers Collective Forum Bayero University Kano
Mr President,
Permit me to introduce myself, since this is a rather usual piece of letter; you don’t know me, but I know you well. This must not be strange to you, a man of international reputation who must often be beset with importunities of strangers. But my claim is more compelling than that. I am, in political term, your grandson’s friend and more importantly your fellow citizen on this latter status, I write.
Sir my great cause of concern is on this ‘third term’ which has continued to throw the nation into furore, although you remain studiously stating your intentions.
The almighty God to whom you swore a renew allegiance after your release from incarceration has been so good to you. You did not directly participate in the military coup of July 1975, led by Murtala Muhammed but you was named as Murtala’s deputy. When Murtala was assassinated in coup d’etat on Feb13,1976, You replaced him as head of state. You played a valiant role in bringing an end to civil war by effectively command the federal division that took Owerri:
In the 1999 elections, the first in 16 years, you render invalid the golden adage that says ‘ charity begins at home’, without the majority support of your home base (South-West ): you ran for president and you won with 62.6 percent of the vote. In 2003, you captured 61.8 percent of the vote defeating the runner-up by more than 11million votes!
You have every cause to thank your creator perhaps the only ‘political failure’ you have had was the bid to become UN Secretary General in 1991, interestingly 15 years after, you have led the 53 –nation Africa Union, the Commonwealth in council, you was in charge of G77, I will not forget your home town where you are the Balogun- the kingmaker.
To be sincere you have tried a lot for this nation. Although Nigeria’s debt galloped up from and 9 billion 1n 1980 to 33 billion by 1999, you are highly instrumental to our debt relief dose. We have now cleared ourselves of the debt owned to Paris clubs.
A dramatic growth of ownership of phone lines from barely 500 thousand to nearly 16 million in just 3 years has placed our country as the foremost growing telecom market in the world! Bravo!
Bank recapitalisation, though initially rejected like most of your reform pills have now been proven to be right after all, we now have 25 healthy banks; The capital market receive a boost with a total of N406 billion, including foreign capital inflow of 654 million dollars and 161, 993 pounds!
Your anti-corruption crusade is at least above average, through people like me are yet to be convinced that you are doing this without favour or prejudice.
Achieving universal primary Education, Infrastructure development, Giant strides in Agriculture, among other achievements have really proven you to be a good leader. I can not forget your immeasurable efforts in restoring democracy in sao Tome and hope in Liberia after 14 years of war- you have performed creditably well.
Sir, hope it will not be very catastrophically to conclude that one man can finish that job of Nigeria alone. You have made changes and you have done your best for Nigeria. Is it not time to rest? The harvest of old age” one great man wrote, “is the recollection and abundance of blessing previously secured”
All your good works, if we have to forget: the sectarian violence, police inhumanity to man, Odi massacre, Zaki Biam Killings, rigged polls, disobedience of court orders Anambra ‘show of glory’ etc are not enough for somebody to remain in office beyond 2007. If you did not finish after 3 terms, what will you do? It is sweet sorrow to discover that no man stand at the centre of everything but every man only at the circumference of few things.
Mr. president, we are confronted with a situation in which we set goals for our society which, when reached, appear to create new problems. You as the captain of this ship need to be extra vigilance to ensure this third term issue do not break this fragile entity-You are a statesman, you have to think deeply about the next generation of mine. For this is the only country we have got. Oh!; what fine thought we had because we though that the worst rogues and rascals have ‘died out’.
Who am I to dictate to you what must do? Who am I to insinuate? I am a thin voice crying along the streets urging you to be extra careful. Sir, you once said “ there comes a time in the life of a patriot when abdication would amount to a betrayal if not outright treachery” Don’t you think this ‘sitting on the fence’ is too dangerous?
However, more than you did before 2003, please weigh every piece of advice, appeal and caution very coolly, calmly and carefully. Reflect, meditate and pray to God before you take the final decision.
My feelings, lnner pains, anger and sorrow might not be affair of yours. You must do what you think is right. But they explain why I wrote, not an article, polemic, epistle or poem, but this open letter.
Marcus Cicero once wrote, “if you pursued good with labour, the labour passes away but the good remains, if you pursue evil with pleasure, the pleasure passed away and the evil remains”
Your Excellency, may you live long! May good God help you!! All the best!!!
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