Date Published: 12/02/09

Yar’adua: The Mouth of the Lord By D. Akinsanya Juliuson

Is it not to loose the bonds of wickedness and to undo the heavy burdens; to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and that you bring to your house the poor who are cast out; When you see the naked, that you cover him, and not hide yourself from your own flesh? Then that your light shall break forth like the morning, your HEALING shall spring forth speedily, and your righteousness shall go before you; that the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call, and I the Lord will answer; you shall cry, and I whose name is YAH will say, ’Here I am.’ 

If you take away the yoke from your midst, the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness, if you extend your soul to the hungry and satisfy the afflicted soul, then your light shall dawn in the darkness, and your darkness shall be as the noonday. I the Most High will guide you continually and satisfy your soul in drought, and strengthen your bones; you shall be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.

- The Mouth of the Lord 

Chasing rainbows and flirting with disaster

Are we Nigerians finding it hard to manifest the patience of a saint? If it's any consolation, genuine saints tend to find it just as difficult. When we look closely at the historic tales of people who have clearly lived exceptionally kind, wise lives, we are able to see that they all had their dark times, their testing experiences and their moments of nearly giving up - or in - to the wrong kind of temptation. Perhaps we Nigerians are saints after all. We're certainly human - and we're certainly doing all we can. And that's certainly enough. Question! Do we Nigerians really exist? It’s just a question, please! A whole school of philosophical thought is dedicated to this question. It is called, appropriately enough, existentialism. It argues that perhaps you and I don't exist. There are certainly billions of people on earth who have never heard of you or me! But, then, their opinions don't necessarily count. For their existence is questionable too. While you and I ponder that, here's a more relevant question: why do some ungodly purse proud now seem to be acting as if we Nigerians don't exist? Why bother caring when the unelected errors are being so careless and vain glorious? Why let the buck rest with you and I when everyone else is happy to keep passing it on? Why play the saint when everyone else is playing the fool? If you and I are hoping to get recognition and appreciation for our efforts in making Nigeria a better nation, we must give up now. If our diligence makes a difference, nobody will notice. If it doesn't, we'll get no more or less blame than if we had been totally irresponsible. OUR CONSCIENCE, though, will always know what we did. We must allow that to be motivation enough.  

The Most Urgent Change

The changes need to be rung. The old rules need to be rewritten. Some arrangements in our world and our country are growing stale. We may feel fairly comfortable with the way things are, but it's not a healthy comfort, I must confess. Even though, we are not going to go back and hunt the past, however, it's the kind of comfort that you and I feel when we recognize an old, familiar source of pain. You and I 'know it' but we surely do not feel glad to encounter it – well not any more. Something surely has become too easy, too obvious and too established in this piece of land surrounded by vultures. Trust me when I say, the boat might be rocked sooner before it sails out, once more, into the middle of the ocean as it did in 1983. Something surely needs to be said, something needs to be done, and something needs to be sorted out. This much, at least, is clear. The question is, though, what precisely IS that something? It has to be a something not just an anything. Our next move has to be an intelligent one, not an impulsive or a rash one. We are better off doing nothing than doing the wrong thing. We are, though, ten or even a hundred times better off doing the right thing. If we can't yet see what that is, we the citizens of this Nigeria of a country must expect much sooner rather than later a clear REVELATION and EVOLUTION. 

Something that is Positive

What difference can any of us really make to the state of the world, most especially, our beloved country? How, as helpless individuals, can we make any impact on all that harshness, darkness, coldness and heartlessness? The answer is very simple. We surely can if we are willing and able to co-operate - with each other... and with fate. We must allow that force, which is far greater than you and I understand to guide us now towards that ideal destination. If we sincerely believe that something seems to be so obviously wrong, let’s look for the one thing that could just be perfect within it. And when we see this, let’s trust it. 'I say this once again. This is our moment! We must make our commitment. And then do our duty to the destiny of not just our nation, but our children too'. I know one thing for sure, one day it surely will all be over. Much sooner rather than later, that final whistle will be blown, the final curtain will be dropped, the last alarm will sound, many will stumble and many will fall  And then? What will matter? We will not let a simple matter like, the end of the world rob us of a good cause for complaint. We will take the outstanding issue to our grave. We will...well... actually we won't. We're not really as stubborn as we Nigerians pretend to be. So let’s forget it, please. And if we're wise now, we will leave our fury behind. Put our energy, this now, only into something that's positive.  

Electoral Reform

Imagine following a rainbow for 49 good years and finding, at its end, a magical wand that can turn lead to gold. Attached to it, though, is a note, explaining that it can only remain in your possession for a limited time. In your excitement you forget this. You test the implement, satisfy yourself that it works and then, some unelected errors discover that, that lead is expensive. They decide to wait till it is more affordable. God bless you with strength, energy, hope and the wisdom….to at least wait for as long as you wish or they are willing to exert their influence by messing with your patience. Then, just as you are about to make your purchase after the dangerous delay, the wand dematerializes. We Nigerians have an opportunity now. It may not be perfect, but Justice Uwais ERC report is a real chance. 

'If at first, you do not succeed, give up. Just assume it wasn't meant to be. See it as a sign that you ought to be doing something else. Let it go, put it down, move on. 'That IS how the old saying goes isn't it? Right now, we Nigerians are looking at a possibility, a remote chance, a just about feasible option. There are many good reasons to assume that we're wasting our time. Something inside of us, though, wants to keep on trying. We must give the much needed Electoral Reform that careful, concerted, clever shot that it deserves. I'm not making a categorical promise... however, We Nigerians sincerely believe in the greatness of that worthy country, and our hearts are set on the damn good thing for the damn good reason. One thing is guaranteed, though, when imbecility are laid low, something good must and will surely come of Justice Uwais ERC report.  

The truth we find difficult to handle

How much more talking do we want to do? How many more conversations can we bear to hold, with the up to no good egos? Aren't We Nigerians tired of plans, strategies, options and alternatives, maybes, could-bes, would-bes and should-bes? We are beginning to feel very tempted by the notion of making some bold, brave, dramatic move. Some irrevocable decision. Some irreversible action. Some choice that will lead to change, even if that change is less than fully desirable. Anything, we figure, is better than an exasperating status quo. I say we must resist this urge if we can. With Electoral Reform backed by War Against Indiscipline, trust me, we are closer to a natural breakthrough than we think. However, something obviously has to happen. We Nigerians are sure of this. We know too, that it must happen quite quickly. There's no time for contemplation and wasted debate. Our sleeves must be rolled up. Noses must be pressed to grindstones. There's no time to lose, but there's much that may be lost if an urgent schedule of decisive action is not followed. That's how we feel. And to some extent, we are damn right to feel this way. However we can and should slow down a bit. There's not as much of a rush - or a need to control everything, as we fear. Let’s never mind what some purse proud and vain glorious say is going on. Or what is generally believed by the sailors in the sinking ship. Let’s look with our own eyes and whatever we see is THE TRUTH we find so very difficult to handle.  

Individuals with mental retardation

I believe we can all dream. That's very easy, isn’t it? But can we all make our dreams come true? Did someone just say that depends on whom we are listening to? Thank you! This holy green world of ours is full of some experts who are disturbingly purse proud, and who love to tell us where the boundaries lie. 'This cannot be done.' 'That's impossible.' 'This might be feasible, but only if we make superhuman effort.' On top of which, you and I have our own 'inner expert' to again contend with. We are forever standing in our own way, keeping ourselves stuck in a rut, because WE NEVER LEARN. More often than not, we look for the nail that stands out and hammer it down. So, can our dream of a better, brighter and enviable NIGERIA come true this now? I sincerely believe deep in my soul, that, it can begin to - provided we Nigerians are willing to make some real changes. We must be prepared to be the miracle and change we want to see. The real individuals with mental retardation in our country today are those triple-geminis who can not lead and or teach by example and passion what exactly it means to live an integrity driven life of love, hope and genuine service to others.  

Idiagbon WILL rise again!

Is there any more that we can do? Are we missing a trick or failing to see something crucial and obvious? No. Not any more. We Nigerians may have overlooked a few things in the past and we may now be paying a price for this. But we are alert and aware now. And we are working very diligently and conscientiously. We have few unique leaders now and we know who to trust. We will surely achieve what we need to achieve - though we may also find that some coming events set we Nigerians off along a new road - and that this soon requires a different set of priorities to be established, however, WE ARE UP TO IT. For some while now we have been dodging and ducking. We Nigerians have been striving to avoid an undesirable development, worrying about a threat or a possible problem. Now, we can stand still, calm down and relax. Things, as we all know have moved on. Key decisions have been reached, thanks to great leaders with conscience, who have refused to give up on our beloved country and her citizens. Dramas have been played out by the plunderers and builders of the spider’s web. Guess what! The world has not ended. The sky has not fallen. Nor will it. We Nigerians no longer need to expel our energy on techniques of evasion, do-or-die or avoidance. We just need to face what we fear and watch it back away, and guess what? It did in 1983 and surely it will much sooner rather than later. 

Some changes that ought to be made

True freedom has nothing to do with physical space. It is a frame of mind. Let’s think for example, of the people whose lives are not restricted in anyway. They can go wherever they please without being criminalized because they are Nigerians and even do almost anything. Yet, how often do they explore their imagination? How rarely do they leave their well trodden paths? And then there are prisoners of circumstance or limitation….who write books, dream dreams and even make the wildest journeys in their hearts, minds and souls. Let’s think again of the moon as a spotlight. Each month it shines on a different area of the great stage of life. Every year, it illuminates the part of life that we human beings generally prefer to keep hidden. It obliges us to look at our image in the eyes of others. How we are seen. What is expected of you and me.  What kind of a reputation we have. What friends, unique foes, cheap flatterers and loved ones truly feel about the way their lives interact with ours…..Bad news? I don’t think it is a bad news! It shows we are much loved, admired and appreciated. However, there are some hot rod truths that need to be acknowledged and some changes that ought to be made.  

Electoral Fraud, Budget Scam, Corporate Prostitution by Banks, Niger Delta Disaster Corruption, National Awards Scam, PAN Grand Fraud, Political claptrap like Vision 20.20 20 etc. These are not excellent achievements for any worthy country. Why? They will never make Nigeria a great country but a SPIDERS WEB. 

D. Akinsanya Juliuson