Friday, 30 August 2013

Add this to your knowledge


I should probably adduce by letting you know that there has been no country that went to civil war two times and survived it, Sudan and Korea are examples. Okay, maybe it is not even about whether Nigeria divide or not, maybe it is what follows the war. In 1970, it was estimated that about 3million people died, a country which was said to be about 60 million in 1960, after independence. We might say 1967 is a long time. In Rwanda, the fight between Hutus and Tutsis is an example; that was in 1994. I read a book, titled “left to tell”, by Immaculee Ilibagiza, one of those who survived the Rwandan genocide. She was Tutsi, the minority group in Rwanda. She narrated how she watched her brothers and father murdered in front of her eyes.
What precipitated the Nigerian war? In 1967, after the 1966 military pogrom where a lot of igbos were murdered in the north, Colonel Emeka Odumegu Ojukwu advocated for the secession of the Eastern Region of the country from Nigeria, but it did not come with ease, rather, it came with war. You might have heard that the militants in the Niger Delta are stealing oil and using the money realized from it to buy arms or weapons, in any way you will understand it, those were the words of the governor of Bayelsa, Seriake Dickson.The one who says he is not a militant leader, Alhaji Mujahid Asari Dokubo, was recently interviewed and he said he is from Ijaw, he is not a Nigerian, and this is the same tribe of our president, or am I missing anything? He once said that if President Jonathan do not win in 2015, there will be no Nigeria. Some groups broke up from PDP and formed another party, some merged and became APC. What is that telling you? 2015 is going to be a do or die affair. Now, this is it, everyone seems not to be concerned right now. Let me reiterate at this juncture, that my specialization at Masters Level was criminology and penology, so I didn’t seek out to know everything, its inconsequential, neither did I seek out to compete with anyone in what I do, that is why I will give you dates and references, so you can check. Please note that when we pray for Nigeria, it is a wrong approach, Nigeria is not sick, but individuals that make of Nigeria, I will come to that in a minute.
2011 election was plagued with cataclysm. I am not telling you what I read on the pages of papers, I am telling you what I saw in the North, because I was fully involved in the election at that time. Those who were not concerned did not see it as anything, but saw it as normal things that could happen in an election. Corp members were murdered, churches were burnt, a lot of them, at least the ones I saw with my eyes in Potiskum and Damaturu in Yobe, and Sabo in Kaduna, maybe the media exaggerated, but they were burnt nonetheless.
It is high time we changed our focus from being greedy to people with knowledge. Let me tell you what knowledge will do. Knowledge will tell you that if you made so much money in an environment that is not conducive, you will not spend it. In the east during the civil war, what Nigeria did was to make a blockade of food from going to Biafra, many of them were starved to death, how can you buy what you don’t see? Knowledge will tell you no tribe is superior to the other(s). General Murtala Muhammed was extremely knowledgeable. His government was the best we have had. The reason is this: Nigeria became neutral in international affairs. He reappraised foreign policy, in line with OPEC, stressing Nigeria first. Other African countries were not happy. Nigeria backed the Soviet Union for the People’s Movement for the Liberation of Angola, against the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola, which United States and South Africa were backing at the time, which was the 1975 war in Angola. He delivered a speech in 1976, before he was murdered. I read the speech and I concluded that only one person can make the difference in this country, just like General Rawlings did in Ghana in 1979, where those who were wealthy and could not account for their possessions were executed. There is no way a country will not depend on another, but General Muhammed made them depend on Nigeria, no wonder he was murdered.
The International Bank of Reconstruction and development, which is also called the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund were not created or established to help African countries; as a matter of fact, African countries were not even in their agenda. They were created in 1944 to give loans to European countries that suffered losses in the Second World War that ended in 1945. So why do we go to them to borrow money? Does is mean Okonjo-Iweala does not know the stiff and unfavourable terms of agreements in borrowing money from these people? Definitely, they will know, they are just not concerned about the outcome because we can never finish paying, and we still keep borrowing, despite the fact that we make so much money daily.
Nothing is meant to favour the masses, except the few, that is why the summary of Marx’ position in law is that the law is made for the weak. In the constitution of Nigeria, section 180 (1) it says and I quote: “when more charges than one are made against a person and a conviction had been had on one or more of them the prosecutor may, with the consent of the court, withdraw the remaining charge or charges or the court, of its own motion, may stay the trial of such charge or charges”. Let me interpret it in a lay man way. When someone is brought to court on a 156-count charge, the court has the legal right to dismiss 155 and leave it to 1-count charge. How about the poor man who is brought to the court with a 1-count charge?
Maybe you will understand with this. In section 14 (2) of the EFCC Act, it states: “Subject to the provision of section 174 of the constitution of the Federal republic of Nigeria 1999 (which relates to the power of the Attorney-General of the Federation to institute, continue or discontinue criminal proceedings against any persons in any court of law), the commission may compound any offence punishable under this Act by accepting such sums of money as it thinks fit, not exceeding the amount of the maximum fine  to which that person would have been liable if he had been convicted of that offence”. Do not mind that law jargon, what they are saying is that if you stole N100 million, the court can collect N80 million and set you free. Or what do you think happened in Ibori’s case? Please enlighten me. If you however stole a goat, since there is no fine to pay, you are going to prison for two years. This is not to incite you against the government, but that you should be knowledgeable on this. Some have already said they are not Nigerians, which means they are ready for anything, even war. I can hear you say God forbid. Well, I have seen those words as a mere phrase, which is borne out of a religious act, what we have been known for as Nigerians.
I should at this point recap that no one is justified by any religion, but by the way they live. For example, I heard that Nigeria is the second most religious country, and at the same time second most corrupt, how is that? No wonder, you know someone has won election with fraud and you still pray for them. Would our Lord and savior Jesus Christ have done that? Our religious leaders say God institute every government, I do not believe, don’t confuse the people, God is not the author of confusion (1Corinthians 14:33). God does not have part in any corrupt acts and practices. These religious acts have so much permeated everywhere to the extent that someone who is doing fraud and embezzling money will think God will accept tithe from them. It is either they are fooling themselves or someone is fooling them. Or do you think there is any justification for bad actions because you go to church?
Now, this is where I am going, in the philosophy of Karl Max, he posited that the superstructures are contingent on the economic structure. Let me rephrase, the economic structure is what the superstructure depends on. It is different here, the religious structure seems to be the most important, that is why we are religious, but not godly. In the Child-not-bride hullabaloo, I didn’t make any comment because I know some other things in the constitution that an average Nigerian does not know. This thing has been in the constitution, I really didn’t know why there was so much uproar. However, they said “act like you are dead and know who your lovers are”. It was disheartening that it was only the voices of Pastor Tunde Bakare and Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor that I heard, maybe others were not called to save Nigeria.
In 1973, Gustavo GutiĆ©rrez, the Peruvian priest used the pulpit to liberate the poor from the wicked and greedy government. On 28th of August, 1963, Martin Luther King Jnr in his I “have a dream” speech was concerned about how blacks only assumed subservient positions in the United States of America and were being treated with so much disdain. His dream has come to pass, and he was a Reverend too. In Matthew 14:15, the disciples came to Jesus asking that the multitude be sent away, Jesus could have easily done that, he could have said he was called to preach to them, but He replied immediately, “they don’t have to go, give them something to eat”. That was compassionate. 5000 people, apart from men and women could have gone home hungry. That was not fallacy, where people are only told to be blessed, not speaking of the need to live a Holy life. Proliferation of religious institutions is a bane to development. Everyone God called in the past were doing something, He didn’t call the idle, maybe that is why there are so many churches doing nothing. Peter and his brother were professional fishermen (Mattew 4:18), Apostle Paul was not only educated, but learned, because he studied law.
Someone said I am a critic, and I said maybe it is because the word has 70 other words that can replace it, so it depends on the context you are seeing it. Our houses are not set in order, “your church”, “our church”, “their church” as we use them are the worst things in Christianity. There is no church representd in the world that I haven’t been to, not for miracles, but I just walk in wherever I want. I was born into Anglican, grew up in ECWA, attended Praise Assembly as a result of relocation, and now Rhema Chapel. I attended Deeper life in Adeniji Adele, CAC in Ojota and Marine beach, Lagos, RCCG Damagum, Living Faith Potiskum, and Living Faith Damaturu, all in Yobe state, and Living Faith SABO, Kaduna. So I don’t criticize churches. In Acts 14:36(b) “Paul and Barnabas waxed bold and said, it was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the gentiles”. How can we talk about the gospel when our houses are not in order? Jesus didn’t come to establish any religion, but to introduce a way of life. In a woman’s testimony, the words “do not judge” and “God is not wicked” are right and correct words, but have been hijacked and used by those from hell. When someone tells you those words, what they simply mean is that you keep quiet even when someone has done wrong. The whole of Matthew 23 was used to reprove the Pharisees, because Jesus saw their hypocrisy.
The crux of the matter is, if our problem is only prayer, then the occurrences in 1929, 1966, 1967, 1976, 1983, 1985, and even 1993 wouldn’t have happened. Maybe what is happening now, had happened earlier, but what was the result? On the 2nd of July, 1982, Chief Obafemi Awolowo wrote a letter to Alhaji shehu shagari, telling him about so much corruption in the system, in his exact words “It is generally agreed that Nigeria is seriously ill. The economy ails critically, and the body-polity aches in every part of its organism. Everywhere there is hunger, depression and discontent”. I can’t possibly read everything. However, Alhaji shehu Shagari replied, telling Awolowo he knew the kind of person he was, instead of acknowledging what he said and proffer solutions. Few weeks after, in a confidential letter to 19 governors, the president acknowledged that what Awolowo said was true, but couldn’t admit it. Well, in 1983 there was another coup, whose main reason was that the economy was sick and corruption has permeated everywhere. There are so many oppositions speaking, maybe we are not concerned, until something happens. We need genuine prayers, not selfish one where a single individual will ask for N100 Billion, and do what with it? Our prayers should be directed to individuals, not the country, one politician once said, for Nigeria to go forward, He and few others must die, this is not a rhetoric. There are a lot to say, but I have to put a halt to it here.

2 comments:

  1. Hmmm! Well said, I can't but reply starting with a sigh o f relief cos I believe dere r so much to b z Bt d little z here r almost like a preamble. Nigeria as a country has seen alot, given birth to different human nature ND what hav u, it is with mixd feeling dat am using to express myself in dis comment cos whatever concerns d country concerns its citizens like me, unfortunately it seems like my voice or d voice of other ordinary citizens like me can't not b heard so in dis case we act like onlookers. What do u call a government that focuses on only a set of pple in d country ND forget others exit this is wat Karl Marx calls class in itself, how long r we goin to b in dis scene wen will d masses rise ND fight for demselves ND stop being too religious in wat dey do. Nigeria has gan beyond being religious wat we nid is action NT just mere words even the Holy Bible says the violent take it by force NT by words. I rest my case

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  2. Wow! K, point hit and was hit square. I've wondered if these oppositions and so many threats for the upcoming elections are not heard by people in authority and if it does not ring a bell that if the situation is not nipped in the bud the country may experience an irreparable damage. just like you noted they don't care. Probably just as usually we are waiting to see if the threats would pull through and then star looking for solutions. the fire brigade approach has eaten so deep into citizens. I just hope our fears for 2015 dont come true. Nice article you got there

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