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A Government Of Lies: Charlie The Tailor, Truth And Nigerians By Prince Charles Dickson Jos, Plateau Nigeria
There is little or nothing to add to the entire Charles Taylor Saga besides his my namesake and he has since been a disgrace to that name, the whole disappearance saga barely lasted 24 hours. Let me start from the very mundane to the very serious depending on which side of the divide we find ourselves. First, the present leadership is one that has lost all the sense of truth. It is a disappearing and a reappearing government, it is a government that has rigged elections, rigged census like somebody put it to reduce what sense is left of us, they “sense us”, now just to return a war crime suspect but for the intervention of President Georgy of the world and scathing remarks by the world community we almost rigged that exercise.
I did not study Geography but I have travelled the distance between Calabar in South – South Nigeria to Borno in North – East Nigeria by road, air, train to know enough of the map to categorically state that if I intended to leave for Cameroon, it would suit my purpose to do so via Calabar then to go through Borno especially in the event that I am a fugitive.
Charlie the Tailor, Obasanjo the third termer and the politics of Liberia, a nation whose leaders have lost all sense of shame. When Taylor was given asylum in Nigeria even after it was public knowledge, that this man was guilty as charged. Why some of us took a siddon look approach to the whole drama was that very few could notice the diamond and business politics end to it all. Even now the few people that recalled this is the same Tailor that the USA used when the wanted a different design on the fabric of the Liberian people that was controlled by Sgt Samuel Doe who had become uncompromising.
I will leave this analysis for some other time or better still to scholars of the international politics with emphasis on the continued ‘’If it suits us’’ styled democracy and diplomacy of the Western world.
My emphasis on this take is basically, on matters arising from the ‘almost’ great escape. Charles Taylor was said to have been sighted re-fuelling his vehicle at a black market spot in Maiduguri Township (a testimony to the fact that he knows how the system works). Despite all the achievement this government prides itself as having scored, for most people in Borno buying fuel in a dealer station in somewhat of a miracle.
A government of lies, how did Taylor Drive through the several States there is before one gets Borno, did he at anytime break his journey via a flight. No and we are told he was picked up somewhere by a fisherman by the name Alhaji Abba Gana, at Gamboru where he raised alarm as Taylor was trying to slip into Cameroon. How did this local fisherman recognise Charles Taylor, where were the immigration, customs, police and all the paramilitary operatives that guard our borders that it so happened that it was a fisherman guarding the Nigerian – Cameroon border. No wonder the usual raids by mercenaries from our neighbours and the ease at which Tokunbo cars enter the Country, costing the nation loss in earnings.
A government of lies, it had barely set up a panel of inquiry, one which when it was announced I wondered what it was to inquire about, even its terms of reference was very laughable and it was given two weeks to give its report, sure enough Charlie the Tailor would have sewn his way to Zululand. A government that has since disassociated itself from the truth wants us to belief that Taylor and barely five aides embarked on the escape from Calabar.
All the while the disappearance lasted, Taylor's daughter maintained, "dad was at home", speaking further "there was a party last night". This must have been the escape party being organized by the security detail before they leave the man OYO On Your Own at Gamboru.
Is it that Calabar girls had be of immense hospitality to Charlie the Tailor that he lost all he had learnt on the rudiments of how to escape the enemy. The great Taylor and warlord that was arrested did not look worn out, did not look different from that which was claimed to have escaped.
Maybe Taylor should have known better than to trust Obasanjo whom I believe was not ignorant of the whole episode. Despite his well timed U.S. journey, the lines must have been already tailored let us see how it goes when I leave to go and see Bush…my brother tefi as in waka…go, but slowly, let us see the reaction and indeed Baba saw the reaction…so his boys wired Oga Tailor, this cannot work, mission aborted.
After all the arrest of the man, few hours after he escaped is seen as a mark of excellence on the government’s part especially regarding our security system. Taylor should have simply negotiated a safe passage with Tinubu who would do anything to get back at Obj. Seme is a better option than somewhere out of the map called Gamboru to be caught by a fisherman that was not even counted in the rigged census, that barely has access to energy, and that is more concerned with his fish. With Dollars said to be on his person, haba someone should muster a better tale.
Has it occurred to us that quickly even before the board of question could ask any they had been closed and put aside, what that simply implies is that we never may know how Tailor sewed his way to Gamboru, this once more will go away as on of those episodes and this government keeps lying to the masses. They do not owe us any explanation, the residence of the warlord in Calabar was deserted by the Liberian warlord just like that and like hurricane Katrina, he eclipsed in Borno State. Almighty of Calabar and Maiduguri save us from ourselves. I end by asking what will happen to those choice properties Taylor bought in Calabar, as 2007 approaches may Almight Allah grant us a government that will not lie to us
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