As we gradually launch into an election season and the push-pull of campaign is throttling into a top gear among politicians-political aspirants and their supporters, it is critical to observe Nigerian electorates falling into major classes. These classes are not just created in this dispensation. They have always been present in a democratic Nigeria in the past. However, they have become better grown, nursed and well pronounced in this period because the factors that originally gave birth them have also been amplified over the 16 years of demonstration of craziness in leadership and governance.
Through these years, aspirations have been weakened, trusts have been abused, promises have been failed and several hopes have been dashed. Through these years, our common psyches have been badly damaged. We are in the interesting time that we prefer and hail ‘wealth with corruption’ than ‘hunger with integrity’. Nigerians are no longer the people who rejoice when ‘the righteous lead’ as it was posited in the Bible. The unrighteous with their dollars are confident of being crowned in our communities, became Godfathers in our politics and winning elections in our country.
Unfortunately, the situation has made it a time of equal competitions for both the performing and failures among the leaders. More apparently, the fear of the former is even no less unassuming compared to the pride of the latter!
Consequently, election year which is supposed to be a time for non-politician citizens to either collectively have passionate drives to electing or returning a good leader to power or an undivided vengeance to removing them from the seats of leadership has now left us working along different divides and classes as follows:
1. Selfish Nigerians: These are co-country men and women who vote for their own personality benefits. The collective interest of our country is none of their business. The attitudes, morality or sense of commitment to responsibility, diligence, honesty, sincerity of aspirants is immaterial to them. All they vote for is their closeness, relationship or connection with these people.
All they campaign and work for is the prospect of getting contracts for themselves, jobs for their children or family members or becoming richer at the instance of their appointments. Such people, when having no personal relationship with the politicians, would ask for promise notes. Otherwise, they do not get their votes. They commit politicians to signing agreement with them on what they would do for their own tribe, faith, community or group after winning election.
Their creed is: ‘it is not our concern that Nigeria is good for all. We only care that is good for us and our own people’. To this one, integrity, truth and accountability is no issue. Only their interest, prosperity and fortune matters.
They campaign ‘vote your own person or a person of your person alone. No matter who he/she is, he would not forget you’. They join their politician son or friend candidates to malign and assassinate the character of other candidates who are obviously of better moral quality. These category encourage the corrupt politicians. They make them feel like they are the most honourable on earth and kings in heaven.
I advise them. It is mischievous to place personal interest and gain over collective or national value. Vote people of conscience who also believe in God Almighty. I mean those who would lead, believing in the reality of that Day when they shall stand before the Creator to give account on their stewardship.
Think of it! A person with this quality and principle would naturally be good and dutiful to all without neglecting the interests of anyone let alone his own kinsmen or allies. Sincerity has been part of him, not just anything he has to assure by writing on a piece of paper. But as for a bad person who promises, you may not ever guarantee his sincerity. Have we not seen many of these men betraying their people? That serial betrayal attitudes led us to this jungle of a reckless nation.
2. Ignorant Nigerians: These are our country people who do not know what is good for them. They care not about who occupies which position. To them, all politicians are the same. They argue that politicians do not look backward as soon as they mount power until another election session comes around. The candidacy of integrity or corruption deserves no free vote from them. They must pay for it. Their PVC or thumb-printing is for the highest bidders. Unlike the selfish fellows, they do not believe in post-election promises. All they want is cool cash at hands before they come out to exercise their franchise. They sell their national rights for financial gratification, clothing materials, bicycles, motorcycles, bags of rice, casual mobile phones etc.
They use their hands to elect capitalist businessmen who had invested heavily into electioneering and still questioning these people while they are profiting heavily from the public treasury! They are demanding dividends when they had received it long before they voted! They are expecting service, accountability and responsibility from political leaders when those ones have paid for that service at the polls!
Dear country men! Politicians know this culture is in vogue. They are comfortable going around this cycle year after year by stealing and saving for the next one. This attitude of our people encourage leadership irresponsibility. They make cash the most important key to leadership rather than performance and integrity. They render our country a place where no poor freedom-fighting ones like Mandela can ever get to lead us even if he is the best of us in terms of the essential qualities of selflessness, trust and justice. We should be wise. It is our country. Why should it be for sale? We don’t leave poverty by selling the heritage. If we do, we are condemning our future generation to permanent poverty. We must preserve the heritage for the sake of posterity even if we may be poor today. Our heritage is Nigeria. It is the only thing bequeathed onto us. By selling it, what else do we have? I advise: do not sell out your vote. Vote out the buyers. Election is not a business matter. It is a matter of serious business.
3. Confused Nigerians: These country men and women have lost hopes of a prosperous nation. They are truly the frustrated or tired folks. Like every citizen of this country from the beginning, the majority of them used to have genuine concern and interest in Nigeria. Either due to religious or social belief, they are not or no longer participating in any election. They see no credible or electable person among the contestants. Because they are cultured, reserved and conscientious, they are not selling their votes too. They do not even have PVC or have refused to collect it. Those of them who have it had only collected and kept it because of their children. They are thinking it may possibly become a mandatory document for some national obligations in the future. To them, it serves no better purpose than a tax clearance or national ID!
I found most decent, reasonable and responsible people in this category. I advise these people to rescind their decision except it is ideologically religious-based. I am aware of lately that the Jehovah witnesses do not partake in election. Yes, voting is voluntary. Till date, a decision not to vote remains no crime. I do not see the reasons why it should be one in the future especially as some religious ideologies, even among the Muslims, do not buy into it.
However, were all of us in the categories of these confused and tired men, how do we put a stop to the cyclic culture of bad leadership in our dear country? How can we possibly reduce the networks of thieves and brigands who have held our motherland hostages for close to two decades now without sandwiching them with men of good wills? We cannot refuse voting and still complain about the people elected by others in order to serve their own evil and selfish motives. No nation exists without a leader. The deserters of polls would not be led in a vacuum. They have only left their leadership and of course, their fate, faith and fortune in the hands of every Tom, Dick and Harry.
When leaders are not ours but others’ how do we ask them for justice when they willingly violate our rights? Are they accountable to us? Should we expect portable water, religious freedom, good roads, stable electricity, employment, national security and decent governance from them? Had we any role in their emergence at the polling stations? It is time to rethink. Good men of this country, regardless of religious and tribe, must come together to support and sponsor people of enviable character to take the baton of leadership. This is the greatest revolution of this time. That movement of the good for the good is long overdue in Nigerian leadership restructuring.
When clean waters are introduced in the dirty one, the concentration gets reduced. The more the quantities of such pure water added, the clearer the mixtures. The coming of GMB in 2015 is one of the best things our country men has done. If he is not a clean water, I think he is different water all the same. Meanwhile, none of the political landlords have accused of ‘impurity’. They have only been accusing people around him. Every leader, even Jesus and Muhammad as prophets, had bad ones among their disciples but still their leadership was enviable templates for humanity. GMB has created the ripples. We are waiting to see how the waves propagate towards 2019.
*4. True Nigerians:* These are the most dogged and resilient citizens. They have suffered neglect and deprivations like others for years. Yet, they are committed to the brighter future of Nigeria. They are uniquely optimistic. They are not politicians but are politically active. They are informed about Nigerian politics and true profiles of Nigerian politicians. They have gotten their PVC passionately waiting to cast their votes for integrity, probity, selflessness, transparency and accountability.
They are desperately desirous to send to archives of Nigerian history the reigns of despots, criminals and selfish godfathers. They have sworn to end the political relevance of money bags that had been in charge of the udder of our country milking our national treasury for decades. God! These people have divided us with their religious and tribal sentiments? They have allowed bloods of Nigerians wasted in thousands along this line! Alas, they turn back to tell us to blame our own shadows.
Nigerian have been living and working together harmoniously until politics of hates, poverty and bloodbath turned our country to a jungle where there is no longer brotherhood. Nigerians now hold their neighbours in the jugular! They now slaughter themselves on the street like fowls. They kidnap their fellow countrymen for rituals and ransom! It was not this bad!! The leadership led us along this dangerous path. A hungry nation is a fury, furious and fiery nation. A justice too delayed is a peace too denied. Only with firm commitment of these true Nigerians can the change come.
I advise. Do not vote for parties but for personalities. The wise should have taken that decision long ago. The random defection across parties among these corrupt politicians without restriction or rejection by any party is enough to proof that all parties are the same. No party has a clear principle and ideology.
Please, look out for integrity. Hunger under integrity is better than cash flow under corruption. Otherwise, we would only be selfish to be eating the lots of the generation yet unborn today. That to me is a greater poverty. That was done in past; we are poor today.
If you are not among these four classes, you are indeed a dead Nigerian. You know nothing about what is going on. You are not moved by the noise and waves around you. You are inanimate and does not respond to stimulus. You do not know election comes up early next year and the leaders at national and state levels are to be changed or returned. You do not even know what PVC stands for! I am sure you cannot be reading this. I can only pray God gives you peace in your resting period.
Through these years, aspirations have been weakened, trusts have been abused, promises have been failed and several hopes have been dashed. Through these years, our common psyches have been badly damaged. We are in the interesting time that we prefer and hail ‘wealth with corruption’ than ‘hunger with integrity’. Nigerians are no longer the people who rejoice when ‘the righteous lead’ as it was posited in the Bible. The unrighteous with their dollars are confident of being crowned in our communities, became Godfathers in our politics and winning elections in our country.
Unfortunately, the situation has made it a time of equal competitions for both the performing and failures among the leaders. More apparently, the fear of the former is even no less unassuming compared to the pride of the latter!
Consequently, election year which is supposed to be a time for non-politician citizens to either collectively have passionate drives to electing or returning a good leader to power or an undivided vengeance to removing them from the seats of leadership has now left us working along different divides and classes as follows:
1. Selfish Nigerians: These are co-country men and women who vote for their own personality benefits. The collective interest of our country is none of their business. The attitudes, morality or sense of commitment to responsibility, diligence, honesty, sincerity of aspirants is immaterial to them. All they vote for is their closeness, relationship or connection with these people.
All they campaign and work for is the prospect of getting contracts for themselves, jobs for their children or family members or becoming richer at the instance of their appointments. Such people, when having no personal relationship with the politicians, would ask for promise notes. Otherwise, they do not get their votes. They commit politicians to signing agreement with them on what they would do for their own tribe, faith, community or group after winning election.
Their creed is: ‘it is not our concern that Nigeria is good for all. We only care that is good for us and our own people’. To this one, integrity, truth and accountability is no issue. Only their interest, prosperity and fortune matters.
They campaign ‘vote your own person or a person of your person alone. No matter who he/she is, he would not forget you’. They join their politician son or friend candidates to malign and assassinate the character of other candidates who are obviously of better moral quality. These category encourage the corrupt politicians. They make them feel like they are the most honourable on earth and kings in heaven.
I advise them. It is mischievous to place personal interest and gain over collective or national value. Vote people of conscience who also believe in God Almighty. I mean those who would lead, believing in the reality of that Day when they shall stand before the Creator to give account on their stewardship.
Think of it! A person with this quality and principle would naturally be good and dutiful to all without neglecting the interests of anyone let alone his own kinsmen or allies. Sincerity has been part of him, not just anything he has to assure by writing on a piece of paper. But as for a bad person who promises, you may not ever guarantee his sincerity. Have we not seen many of these men betraying their people? That serial betrayal attitudes led us to this jungle of a reckless nation.
2. Ignorant Nigerians: These are our country people who do not know what is good for them. They care not about who occupies which position. To them, all politicians are the same. They argue that politicians do not look backward as soon as they mount power until another election session comes around. The candidacy of integrity or corruption deserves no free vote from them. They must pay for it. Their PVC or thumb-printing is for the highest bidders. Unlike the selfish fellows, they do not believe in post-election promises. All they want is cool cash at hands before they come out to exercise their franchise. They sell their national rights for financial gratification, clothing materials, bicycles, motorcycles, bags of rice, casual mobile phones etc.
They use their hands to elect capitalist businessmen who had invested heavily into electioneering and still questioning these people while they are profiting heavily from the public treasury! They are demanding dividends when they had received it long before they voted! They are expecting service, accountability and responsibility from political leaders when those ones have paid for that service at the polls!
Dear country men! Politicians know this culture is in vogue. They are comfortable going around this cycle year after year by stealing and saving for the next one. This attitude of our people encourage leadership irresponsibility. They make cash the most important key to leadership rather than performance and integrity. They render our country a place where no poor freedom-fighting ones like Mandela can ever get to lead us even if he is the best of us in terms of the essential qualities of selflessness, trust and justice. We should be wise. It is our country. Why should it be for sale? We don’t leave poverty by selling the heritage. If we do, we are condemning our future generation to permanent poverty. We must preserve the heritage for the sake of posterity even if we may be poor today. Our heritage is Nigeria. It is the only thing bequeathed onto us. By selling it, what else do we have? I advise: do not sell out your vote. Vote out the buyers. Election is not a business matter. It is a matter of serious business.
3. Confused Nigerians: These country men and women have lost hopes of a prosperous nation. They are truly the frustrated or tired folks. Like every citizen of this country from the beginning, the majority of them used to have genuine concern and interest in Nigeria. Either due to religious or social belief, they are not or no longer participating in any election. They see no credible or electable person among the contestants. Because they are cultured, reserved and conscientious, they are not selling their votes too. They do not even have PVC or have refused to collect it. Those of them who have it had only collected and kept it because of their children. They are thinking it may possibly become a mandatory document for some national obligations in the future. To them, it serves no better purpose than a tax clearance or national ID!
I found most decent, reasonable and responsible people in this category. I advise these people to rescind their decision except it is ideologically religious-based. I am aware of lately that the Jehovah witnesses do not partake in election. Yes, voting is voluntary. Till date, a decision not to vote remains no crime. I do not see the reasons why it should be one in the future especially as some religious ideologies, even among the Muslims, do not buy into it.
However, were all of us in the categories of these confused and tired men, how do we put a stop to the cyclic culture of bad leadership in our dear country? How can we possibly reduce the networks of thieves and brigands who have held our motherland hostages for close to two decades now without sandwiching them with men of good wills? We cannot refuse voting and still complain about the people elected by others in order to serve their own evil and selfish motives. No nation exists without a leader. The deserters of polls would not be led in a vacuum. They have only left their leadership and of course, their fate, faith and fortune in the hands of every Tom, Dick and Harry.
When leaders are not ours but others’ how do we ask them for justice when they willingly violate our rights? Are they accountable to us? Should we expect portable water, religious freedom, good roads, stable electricity, employment, national security and decent governance from them? Had we any role in their emergence at the polling stations? It is time to rethink. Good men of this country, regardless of religious and tribe, must come together to support and sponsor people of enviable character to take the baton of leadership. This is the greatest revolution of this time. That movement of the good for the good is long overdue in Nigerian leadership restructuring.
When clean waters are introduced in the dirty one, the concentration gets reduced. The more the quantities of such pure water added, the clearer the mixtures. The coming of GMB in 2015 is one of the best things our country men has done. If he is not a clean water, I think he is different water all the same. Meanwhile, none of the political landlords have accused of ‘impurity’. They have only been accusing people around him. Every leader, even Jesus and Muhammad as prophets, had bad ones among their disciples but still their leadership was enviable templates for humanity. GMB has created the ripples. We are waiting to see how the waves propagate towards 2019.
*4. True Nigerians:* These are the most dogged and resilient citizens. They have suffered neglect and deprivations like others for years. Yet, they are committed to the brighter future of Nigeria. They are uniquely optimistic. They are not politicians but are politically active. They are informed about Nigerian politics and true profiles of Nigerian politicians. They have gotten their PVC passionately waiting to cast their votes for integrity, probity, selflessness, transparency and accountability.
They are desperately desirous to send to archives of Nigerian history the reigns of despots, criminals and selfish godfathers. They have sworn to end the political relevance of money bags that had been in charge of the udder of our country milking our national treasury for decades. God! These people have divided us with their religious and tribal sentiments? They have allowed bloods of Nigerians wasted in thousands along this line! Alas, they turn back to tell us to blame our own shadows.
Nigerian have been living and working together harmoniously until politics of hates, poverty and bloodbath turned our country to a jungle where there is no longer brotherhood. Nigerians now hold their neighbours in the jugular! They now slaughter themselves on the street like fowls. They kidnap their fellow countrymen for rituals and ransom! It was not this bad!! The leadership led us along this dangerous path. A hungry nation is a fury, furious and fiery nation. A justice too delayed is a peace too denied. Only with firm commitment of these true Nigerians can the change come.
I advise. Do not vote for parties but for personalities. The wise should have taken that decision long ago. The random defection across parties among these corrupt politicians without restriction or rejection by any party is enough to proof that all parties are the same. No party has a clear principle and ideology.
Please, look out for integrity. Hunger under integrity is better than cash flow under corruption. Otherwise, we would only be selfish to be eating the lots of the generation yet unborn today. That to me is a greater poverty. That was done in past; we are poor today.
If you are not among these four classes, you are indeed a dead Nigerian. You know nothing about what is going on. You are not moved by the noise and waves around you. You are inanimate and does not respond to stimulus. You do not know election comes up early next year and the leaders at national and state levels are to be changed or returned. You do not even know what PVC stands for! I am sure you cannot be reading this. I can only pray God gives you peace in your resting period.
Comments
Post a Comment
Hello!
kindly tell about your experience about our posts.
Thank you