Nigeria: The president should keep his counsel

At Nero’s fiddle concerto

I find myself writing today not to praise President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan but to contemn certain of his views because at this point he stands accused of a naïveté that is unbecoming of a leader, talk less of a country like Nigeria.

As we all prepared for the Golden Jubilee celebrations of Nigerian Independence all the eyes of global news outlets were focused on the most populous country in Africa.

This offered a time for the elite of Nigeria to congregate in Abuja with invited “Excellencies, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen” the continual phrase that prefixed every sentence of the Masters of Ceremonies on the 1^st of October.

On the Internet, I found a live stream of the event and could not help but notice amongst the guests people who have no example to give like the First Hair of Cameroon Chantal Biya, Former President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa and King Mswati III of Swaziland who might have visited with any number of wives to keep his manhood fully occupied.

Fireworks of disruption

During the ceremony two car bombs went off hardly a kilometre from the festivities to which the militant and nominally terrorist brigandage called the Movement of the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) assumed responsibility having first warned important news outlets and then later apologised for the unfortunate loss of life.

Apparently, the government had been forewarned of this impending terrorist attack and the home of the heretofore mistaken leader of MEND, Henry Okah had been raided in South Africa the day before on Thursday.

In my view, the fully mobilised terrorist plan in Nigeria could not have been stopped within 24 hours from whatever would have been discovered in South Africa, the authorities were well behind the curve on this.

MEND in the frame

In essence, as the government began their investigations, their spotlight should have been beamed on MEND and its leadership with the view to capturing all the miscreants and bringing them to swift justice.

To any thinking person, MEND had purpose, opportunity, motive and means to perpetrate that attack even though it was the first time that an IRA-style car bomb had been deployed in a terrorist attack on Nigerian soil and also now, the fight had moved from the Niger Delta to the federal capital in Abuja.

Making amends for MEND

However, at an ECOWAS meeting of states celebrating their 50^th Independence anniversaries in 2010, the President made these statements [1].

“What happened yesterday was a terrorist act and MEND was just used as a straw; MEND is not a terrorist group. The Niger Delta people are aware of the government's noble efforts to assuage the suffering and deprivation in that region.”

“I am from the Niger Delta, my father's house is few metres from an oil-well, so nobody can claim to be a Niger Deltan than myself.”

He went on to say, “It is erroneous to think that my people who have been agitating for good living will deliberately blow up the opportunity they have now, I pray for the souls of those who died to attain peace and fervently pray for those who sustain injuries in the blast to be healed.”

He’s lost the plot

The Twitterverse and Facebook literally went into meltdown after this speech and not one of the comments and views I read were charitable.

I have always given President Jonathan the benefit of the doubt and suggested many a time that his PhD in zoology gives him an interesting insight into the behaviour of animals, organisms, primates or to put a finer point on it, simians.

In this case, I suggested he go back and dust his books and swot up on this because whilst he might know the difference between apes and monkeys, this was a different kind of monkey.

The straw man burns

If I were to take apart his statements of yesterday there are some interesting points to note about what he said.

+ We can all agree that the attack was a terrorist act.

+ He saying the MEND was being used as a straw is terminologically wrong, I presume he mean straw man and was deploying the straw man argument which involves ignoring the facts and offering fallacious claims.

+ MEND with its subversive and ruinous activities in the Niger Delta is at the minimum terrorist group though it might not yet have the outlay that Al Qaeda has.

+ Indeed, he is from the Niger Delta and though his father’s house is a few meters from an oil well, his properties were attacked twice in 2007 [2] when he was selected to be the running mate of late President Yar’Adua.

+ Whilst the acronym MEND suggests the agitation for good living standards for the people of the Niger Delta it is incredulous to suggest that the activities of MEND have really been about activism for social welfare, that view is both delusionary and dishonest.

The Aftermath

To buttress the points he made, the President has now suggested that the terrorist attack was launched by some foreign-based group [3] despite the fact that no other group has come forward to claim responsibility nor apologise for the carnage but MEND itself.

Meanwhile, two suspects have been named [4] as masterminds of the bomb plot whilst the President continues to plumb the depths of incredulity with fallacies begging the question about his reasoning.

This was for the global news

For all the attention the Golden Jubilee garnered in two car bombings the focus was snatched from the jollity of the elite to a festering problem that does not seem to have a solution or game plan in sight.

It can be said that the bombing was staged on that particular day to gain maximum publicity which is why the perpetrators sent out an IRA-style warning for Eagle Square to be evacuated but the way the president is handling this matter rather might well lead to an almighty bungle.

Handling the matter

This is not to say all lines of inquiry and investigation should be not tapped to their conclusive ends but taking the focus off the obvious, the deliberate and the facts serves to give the so-called masterminds a head-start with the possibility of that trail going cold.

The greater issue for all is this new development of car bombs in Nigeria and two in succession; the idea that foreign groups can come into our federal capital on an auspicious day to wreak havoc with bombs is concern.

The President is not helping the situation with these unverified and uncorroborated theories of casting blame elsewhere despite the telling lapse in our security and the seeming poor response to handling the disaster after it happened.

Keep your counsel

The information minister failed to capture the mood of the moment dismissing the attack in favour of the supposed success of the celebrations but before the whole world the party was marred by this.

If I had President Jonathan’s ear, I would say, keep your counsel, it is not compulsory to be seen to talk and then when you talk you are viewed with expressions that range from incredulity to derision the risk for an almighty bungle looms.

If foreigners terrorise you, you have a problem, if your people are the terrorists, suspend your disbelief and handle the catastrophe before some sarcastic security analyst says they had all the data and messed it up, so typically Nigerian.

Sources

[1] Jonathan says MEND not responsible for Abuja attacks | 234Next.com

[2] Is Goodluck suffering a run of bad luck? [akin.blog-city.com]

[3] Foreign-based group behind bomb attacks – President | 234Next.com

[4] Nigeria: Police Name Suspects in Dual Car Bombings - ABC News

Nigeria: Our Marie Antoinette says, "Let Them Eat Rice"

It’s a rice race

On the eve of Nigeria’s Independence Golden Jubilee, I find myself writing what I in my heart of hearts would never wanted to talk about, but then the whole purpose of my writing is to address things that are too concerning to ignore.

A picture [1] they say speaks louder than a thousand words but at this time I will try to describe a picture in a thousand words.

I came across this news item on the 234Next.com news website [1], one man in uniform with a big sack on his head apparently of rice and another one with a shoe in his hands being jostled, maybe nothing much to read into it but another good look reveals a very disturbing situation.

Rats to the cheese

In a quest for cheap, populist and derisible publicity the 1^st Lady of Nigeria, a designation that should be consigned to ignominy decided to do the charitable work of distributing 2 million bags of premium Brazilian rice to the residents of the Federal Capital Territory.

One can only wonder how the news or rumours spread but as the news reports it there was a fracas, probably a stampede, people were hurt and the security personnel found it impossible to control the crowd.

There are too many issues conflated in this incident and one was to deal with them in their minutiae.

Foreign luxuries for local bellies

Journey with me for a while and consider another head of state on a visit to Nigeria being presented with traditional Nigeria crafts like an Ife bronze statue but only for the recipient to look at the base and see the hallmark – Made in China – sacrilege would not begin to explain ones disdain, disappointment and disgrace.

Nigeria, with all its arable land and large agrarian economy was done a great disservice when nothing was done to promote Nigerian products but 2 million bags imported from Brazil of the best kind thrown like food parcels to victims of a natural disaster whose eyes are popping out with malnutrition and hunger.

This by the 1^st Lady of giving foreign good credence over Nigerian, though there might well be the case that we do not produce enough for ourselves and have to import rice.

Securing his bag of rice

For whatever reason, there is no doubt that this could have been better organised such that those lead by their bellies for the lack they suffer as citizens of Nigeria did not have to come to any harm and still get of this largesse paid for by the taxpayers or resources of the people.

Tis would have been where the security forces would have been able to introduce a sense of orderliness but they are just as hungry and as impoverished as the people they were supposed to control, so they also joined in the scramble and chaos no doubt ensured.

We can safely assume the honourable officer of the law in the picture got out his truncheon and whack a few people on his way to claim the golden bag of rice and having acquired one with his colleagues decided to make away with the loot.

Meanwhile his other colleague might just have accidentally found himself in the thicket of a marauding crowd, a stamp there and a kick there and suddenly he has to feel for his shoe on the ground and because he was thronged he had to hold his shoe until he got of out the press of the crowd.

Machiavellian it is

What does this say of Nigeria @ 50, an opportunist grab of the publicity of philanthropy whose main purpose is to hold vulnerable people in gratitude in order to exact payback in the not too distant future?

As one of the lucky bag-catchers volunteered, the 1^st Lady was commended for her kindness with other people’s money and property and taking the accolades under the guise of Food Outreach Programme of the First Lady.

If the rice had come from China, it would have been apt for a Chinese proverb which states by inference, “Give a man some rice you feed him a day, teach him how to farm and you feed him for his life.”

However that would be belabouring the point that our leadership have no ideas but shortcuts and gimmicks for instant gratification.

Abrogate African 1^st Ladies

As for the matter of 1^st Lady, it does make me wonder why political office is allowed this excess, like for instance, do I as a Systems Consultant at work sometimes have the opportunity to call in my girlfriend or boyfriend as 1^st Lady or 1^st Gentleman in my place to do my job, stand by me and represent me.

Indeed, to have a partner and confidant is good, but to accord the partner office, status and the opportunity to abuse to the point of lavish aggrandisement that could rival the 1^st Shopper of Zimbabwe is just plain bad conduct.

Dare I say, Nigeria’s Marie Antoinette has declared, “Let them eat rice.” As for the primitive populist ploy of gaining votes through the bellies of the hungry, I have seen no dame as despicable; I cannot even mention her name.

Let us not be blindsided by the obvious philanthropy masking some more sinister ploy because what happens when the bag of rice is exhausted, it is definitely not seed for planting.

Shame on you for bringing such disgrace on Nigeria at this auspicious time. Shame!

References

[1] 234Next.com | Commotion at Independence rice distribution venue

[2] The Nation - Scramble for First Lady’s rice

Nigeria: Rightfully pouring scorn on Nigeria @ 50

Not surprised at all

I was quite amused to read that foreign firms operating in Nigeria had not responded to requests [1] to sponsor the Nigeria @ 50 celebrations.

In what might well read as sour grapes the Director-General of the organising committee for the celebration of Nigeria’s Golden Jubilee celebration somewhat narrated his ordeal on the day that the so-called celebrations were to commence.

I for one would not blame the foreign firms in any way for refusing to put their face or money behind this jamboree for so many reasons that we have not honestly recognised about their reticence.

A failure of priorities and importance

A well organised setup would have had the preparations for such an auspicious occasion well underway, probably a year before regardless of the time of flux that accompanied the illness of President Umaru Yar’Adua; Nigeria was going to be 50 regardless.

If the ship of state had not been serving the intents and purposes of people who were out for their own gain rather than for the progress of the country, the plans the country had for these celebrations would probably have impressed the foreign firms enough to engage them to be interested and be willing to contribute to the events.

No change still

I wrote at the end of July [2] that there was a lack of preparedness for the celebrations and apart from the money that has been doled out by the government which might well end up in the pockets of rogues, everywhere else seems to be well into organising something apart from the government itself.

Just under 3 weeks to the celebrations, we still cannot find a web presence of the celebrations being organised by the government or its organs of publicity.

It is with utter shame that I recall that Ghana had their website up months before their celebrations in March 2007 and catalogued a complete year of events just to celebrate their coming of age.

Typically Nigerian

Nigeria however wallows in its penchant for bumbling and unpreparedness with some official crying foul when in fact they have nothing to show for their ability to manage, organised and persuade, expecting miracles to happen and fate to rain success on their parades.

I am glad the foreign firms have occupied themselves with other activities rather then read the beggarly missive they received in March, they should have gone further in pouring scorn on the whole project, if only to awaken a sense of urgency and responsibility.

It is a shame that the official does not seem to have realised that a clear message was being sent to his committee and the government that if they cannot see signs of organisation, professionalism, seriousness, determination and probity, not one cent would escape their grasp to that fiesta of the debauched.

Nothing to salvage but shame

One can only contemn the organisers who after realising their difficulty in raising funds did not raise this matter earlier and find ways to appeal to the better elements of our society to prevail on these firms but allowed for this to drag on until the very eve of the events at which time literally nothing can be salvaged of the generosity of the firms or the reputations of the organisers and the government.

Hopefully, Nigerians would see beyond the rueful cry and have in mind the very fundamental saying, “If you fail to prepare, you prepare to fail.”

They might just pull it off but it all could have been better done but in Nigeria of who little is expected, much less is desired – we would celebrate in spite of the government and their representatives.

Sources

[1] How foreign firms scorned Nigeria @ 50, by Kaigama « Vanguard (Nigeria)

[2] Akin: Nigeria: Utter unpreparedness for the golden jubilee

[3] Ghana@50 - Official Website For The 50th Independence Anniversary Celebration Of Ghana