Retired Colonel Hameed Ali, the Comptroller General of the Nigerian
\nCustoms Service, is a proud and stubborn man. His disdain for others and
\ninsufferable arrogance is not only vexatious to the spirit but also
\ndownright nauseating.<\/p>\n
Someone should remind him that the Holy Bible says “the Lord resists the
\nproud and exalts the humble”. Another should tell him that, according to
\nGreek mythology, nemesis always follows hubris. If he doubts that he
\nshould find out what happened to a character called Icarus.<\/p>\n
Clearly this obnoxious and canterkerous little man needs to be brought
\ndown a peg or two and pulled off his high horse.<\/p>\n
I say this because I cannot but wonder how any reasonable, right-thinking
\nand responsible person can refuse to wear the uniform of an agency that he
\nheads and leads.<\/p>\n
This is especially so when the Nigerian Senate has, for the second time,
\nasked him to do so when appearing before them.<\/p>\n
The first time he apologised and promised to do so and the second time he
\nstubbornly refused and was consequently and appropiately thrown out of the
\nSenate Chamber.<\/p>\n
There may be no law in our statute books that constrains or compels him to
\nwear his uniform but humility, good manners, morality, wisdom, custom and
\ndecency most certainly do.<\/p>\n
How does he and those that support him expect those working under him in
\nthe Nigerian
\nCustoms Service to feel when he refuses to wear their uniform?<\/p>\n
Is he not indirectly telling them that he is superior to them and that he
\nis too good for them? This is a sevice that they have dedicated their
\nlives and careers to. I wonder how that affects their morale?<\/p>\n
And in any case what signal is he sending to the Nigerian people and to
\nthe rest of the world? Such a thing has never happened before and the
\ntruth is that such open and obvious contempt being displayed by a senior
\ngovernment official and the head of a paramilitary organisation and
\ngovernment parastatal towards his underlings and the agency that he heads
\nis rarely seen.<\/p>\n
Ali has contempt for his Minister who he is meant to report to. He has
\ncontempt for the government agency that he purportedly leads. He has
\ncontempt for the people that work under him in that agency.<\/p>\n
He has contempt for the Nigerian Senate. He has contempt for the
\ngovernment that he serves and finally he has contempt for the Nigerian
\npeople.<\/p>\n
By his open defiance what he is really saying is the following:<\/p>\n
“You people just don’t get it. I belong to the small circle of those\u00a0 who
\nOWN Nigeria and you people and your customs, rules, regulations,
\npractices, conventions and norms do not matter”.<\/p>\n
He is saying,<\/p>\n
“You are nothing before us and you can shout and scream as much as you
\nlike. At the end of the day, whether you like it or not, we are in power,
\nwe were born to rule and we OWN you all so just shut up and sit down!”<\/p>\n
That is his mindset and it is simply appauling. And with him this has
\nalways been the case. If anyone doubts that they should find out a little
\nmore about his antecedents and what he stands for. They should find out
\nabout his history and record in and outside of the military.<\/p>\n
They should do the research and find out what he did as Military Governor
\nof Kaduna state during the regime of General Sani Abacha and later Sec.
\nGen. of the Arewa Consultative Forum.<\/p>\n
They should read the derogatory and incendiary statements he made about
\nthe south, the Middle Belt and all those that opposed the agenda of the
\nACF at the time.<\/p>\n
To say that he was arrogant, overbearing, racist and tribalist and that he
\nis a bigot would be an understatement.<\/p>\n
And worst still he is a total and complete creation of President Muhammadu
\nBuhari. He was his Chief of Staff during numerous presidential campaigns
\nand the President loves him as if he were his own son.<\/p>\n
That, together with a streak of sadism, explains Ali’s sheer impudence and
\nsupreme confidence on this and so many other issue.<\/p>\n
He is reported to have said that he will not wear the customs uniform
\nbecause he is a retired officer of the Nigerian Army and the only uniform
\nhe will ever wear again is the military one.<\/p>\n
Does this man have a brain?
\nOne wonders what infantile nonsense this is? What misplaced arrogance and
\nchildish verbiage? What absurd and good old fashioned gobbledygook? I
\nreally don’t know whether to laugh or cry.<\/p>\n
If Ali was not prepared to honor and respect the conventions and norms of
\nthe Nigerian Customs Service why did he accept the job?<\/p>\n
Since when did things degenerate to this level in our country? Has Nigeria
\nturned into a land of misfits, comedians and Tolkien-like orcs and goblins
\nor are we still a nation of serious-minded and sensible human beings and
\nprecious souls?<\/p>\n
Are we a giant army barracks where only senior military officers and
\ncommanders are respected or a sovereign and independent nation-state where
\nthe will of the people holds\u00a0 sway at all times and in all matters.<\/p>\n
Are we a zoo that is populated by wild animals and ravenous beasts or a
\nland of honorable men and respected mortals?<\/p>\n
Does Ali not know that military rule ended in Nigeria 18 years ago in 1999
\nand that the Nigerian people are not interested in it EVER coming back or
\nof being reminded about its traumatising and barbaric excesses?<\/p>\n
Does he, like a small handful of other hard-line, ultra-conservative, core
\nnorthern retired army officers, see Nigeria as nothing but a vassal state
\nand subjugated colony that was conquered by his forefathers, elders,
\nleaders, mentors and seniors in the military after the “northern officers
\nrevenge coup” of January 29th 1966?<\/p>\n
If this is the case then he is still living in the distant past and he is
\ncertainly in urgent need of psychiatric attention. He also needs a series
\nof powerful all-night prayer sessions for deliverance from the malevolent
\ndemons that control him.<\/p>\n
His attitude and disposition certainly throws up a lot of questions?
\nAmongst them are as follows:<\/p>\n
Firstly does Nigeria live for the military or does the military live for
\nNigeria?<\/p>\n
Secondly if he had come from the southern or Middle Belt zone of the
\ncountry would he have dared to pull this stunt and, if so, would he have
\ngot away with it?<\/p>\n
If he had not been from the core north and a member of the President’s
\ninner circle of untouchables would Buhari have tolerated his irresponsible
\nbehaviour and his sheer indiscipline.<\/p>\n
If he had not been Buhari’s soul-mate and kinsman would the President have
\nendorsed his not so subtle refusal to bow before civilian institutions and
\nto submit to civilian authority.<\/p>\n
In any case who the hell does Ali really think he is? Does he believe that
\nhe is the reincarnation of Usman Dan Fodio of the Fulani Caliphate or the
\nliving manifestation of Salahudeen Yusuf of Egypt and Syria?<\/p>\n
He was retired as a colonel in the military many years ago and there was
\nnothing that was particularly distinguished about his career. He was
\ncertainly not a blue-blooded, swashbuckling, gallant, courageous,
\ngood-looking, principled and polo-playing Col. Abubakar ‘Dangiwa’ Umar.<\/p>\n
And neither can he compare himself to the great Major-General Hananiya who
\nretired as a Major-General in the Nigerian Army and yet who proudly wore
\nthe uniform of the Federal Road Safety Commision after being appointed as
\nthe head of that agency?<\/p>\n
Whatever misplaced, vain and inconceivable notions that he has ought to be
\nkept to himself and if I had been his Minister I would have insisted that
\nhe not only wore his uniform to all official functions and meetings but
\nalso during office hours.<\/p>\n
.<\/p>\n
The man is really very strange. He has what I would describe as the
\n“Cassius look”. Like the character Cassius in Shakespeare’s ‘Julius
\nCaesar’ he is lean, mean, spartan, silent,\u00a0 hungry and dangerous. This is
\na cold man with a dark soul: a man that is as hard as nails and who finds
\nit difficult to smile.<\/p>\n
He is what the British refer to as a “strange fish”. He is reticent,
\nreclusive, nocturnal, limited in knowledge, stunted in intelligence, very
\nthuggish and, worst of all, he sees and says “AREWA” before anything else.<\/p>\n
My friend and brother, Oloye Yinka Odumakin, the spokesman of Afenifere
\nand a leading columnist and writer in Nigeria, wrote the following as part
\nof his contribution to the debate. He said,<\/p>\n
“Ali answers to the Comptroller General of Customs title. He lives in the
\nofficial residence. He takes the pay. He uses the official cars and takes
\nALL the privileges of the office. But he rejects ONLY the uniform!”<\/p>\n
This is a pertinent observation. Odumakin has hit the nail on the head.<\/p>\n
In his own contribution Bashorun Akin Osuntokun, one of the most respected
\nand courageous columnists in the country and a formidable historian and
\nveteran politician, said:<\/p>\n
“One problem of our people is exasperating political naivety and lack of
\nstrategic thinking. This Ali man was the most truculent secretary of Arewa
\nConsultative Forum. His recent behavior is a typical manifestation of the
\nnorthern hegemony syndrome hence a strategic enemy of our vision of an
\negalitarian Nigeria. And here is an opportunity to advance this objective
\n– and what do we do with it?”<\/p>\n
How right Osuntokun is. And for the benefit of those that are defending
\nAli on the specious grounds that the law does not compel him to wear the
\nuniform he went on to ask:<\/p>\n
“Is there any law that says we must rise when the President enters a
\ngathering? Or is there any law that says we must play the National Anthem
\nat official functions?”<\/p>\n
Osuntokun’s point is well served and well taken. These are pertinent
\nquestions that he has asked. Both he and Odumakin have done justice to the
\nmatter.<\/p>\n
Their words appropiately and adequately reflect the sheer arrogance and
\nimpunity of Hameed Ali and the ignorance and naivety of those that are
\nencouraging, defending and supporting him.<\/p>\n
Osuntokun’s earlier point particularly reflects the fact that there is a
\nterrible weakness and a lack of fortitude and courage coupled with a deep
\nand grave affliction buried deep in the souls of those that truly crave
\nfor a just and egalitarian society in Nigeria yet who, when they see a man
\nlike Ali beating his chest like an alpha male gorilla, either openly
\nsupport him in his scandalous tomfoolery or they remain silent in awe and
\ntrepidation of him.<\/p>\n
Nothing is more shocking and disappointing than the disposition and
\nbehaviour of such people, many of whom ought to know better.<\/p>\n
Essentially the problem here is that many that have been turned into
\nslaves in our country do not even know that they are slaves anymore
\nbecause they have gotten used to it and they see it as the norm. This,
\nsurely, is the worse form of bondage and servitude.<\/p>\n
Permit me to share an example of such a twisted and warped mindset and
\ndisposition with you here.<\/p>\n
During the American civil war you actually had some black slaves fighting
\nfor the southern Confederate forces of Dixie despite the fact that those
\nsame forces were fighting to perpetuate the institution of slavery.<\/p>\n
That is how I view those that constantly support and encourage the
\narrogant hegemonist monsters that live amongst us and those who cannot
\ncomprehend the damage that they are doing to our collective cause and
\npysche by doing so.<\/p>\n
That is how I see those that are quick to endorse and applaud the shameful
\nchallenge and affront of Hameed Ali to the Senate and to the Nigerian
\npeople.<\/p>\n
They are the tragedy of Nigeria and without their support conflicted
\npersonalities like Ali would not get away with the kind of things that
\nthey are getting away with.<\/p>\n
May the Lord deliver us from power-mad and\u00a0 arrogant men who attempt to
\nplay God, whose time is short and whose clock is ticking fast. Shalom.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Retired Colonel Hameed Ali, the Comptroller General of the Nigerian Customs Service, is a proud and stubborn man. His disdain for others and insufferable arrogance is not only vexatious to…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":56862,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-56861","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles-opinions"],"yoast_head":"\n