By Chudi Onwuka, staff writer, Benin-city
Let your mind race towards the year 2032 which is less than 10 years from now, and imagine what the nation would look like, if the current spate of disastrous leadership continues. The horror show that occurred along Lokoja-Abuja highway, last week, where floods literally submerged the roads trapping motorists and passengers for upwards of 3 excruciating days, without any intervention from government and the deep gullies that has destroyed , creating wedges in almost all of Delta state roads, rendering them impassable; the lamentations from the grief stricken passengers, the torture and screams from babies travelling with their mothers; this is nothing to melt the minds of those who call the shots.
In that very Kogi State, Yahaya Bello who has just made an attempt to challenge Dangote over ownership of his Obajana Cement Company is spending his second term in office as governor but has yet to make any meaningful impact—even to fix temporarily the life threatening portion of the highway; he is more concerned spending billions trying to clinch the APC presidential ticket, saying it was time for youths to rule; In Delta State, Ifeanyi Okowa, also in his second term as governor, is more focused on being the vice-presidential nominee of his party rather than tackle frontally the threats from erosion; Okowa was first to host a well-publicized meeting of South South Governors with the theme: Power must return to the south! He was also the first to jettison the idea when the die was cast!
That exposed him as a man without scruples—no surprise that under his leadership Delta State is grounded by gullies and erosion; but his protégé, now governorship candidate for the PDP secured N150 billion for him to “purchase” his way into the national level claiming it was for development! It has always been about “self” nothing else to expect from the so-called leaders: The rape of the land is too much and if given the opportunity to speak would have cried out for mercy! If only attempts would be made to cut down on celebrating personalities over and above public institutions.
And there, far, in the seat of the Federal Government the man whose responsibility is to handle road repairs, Babatunde Fashola, also serving his second term as minister in that same position, sits comfortably; they are not perturbed; the sufferings, agony and frustration of the people makes no difference to them; even demons sometimes had mercy on their prey; but not these so called leaders in whose hearts are stones instead of the normal; for every opportunity to save the suffering masses, they see it as another avenue to exploit, steal as much as they can; they know that under this administration, no one is punished for any crime except perhaps Yahoo Boys!
Fashola has the responsibility to fix Nigerian roads, but under his tutelage, Nigerians have experienced the worst administration of leadership; he has left no one in doubt about his incompetence, crass understanding of the demands of his office; it will come as a great relief for Nigerians to see his back six months from now when his time knocks. Do not be surprised to see him jostling for position in the next dispensation because they have no shame; fast track to a London court, where one of them was being indicted for stashing away 2 million pounds! And right here in Nigeria, a former first lady, was contesting ownership of $8.5 million said to be proceeds from bribery.
How many can you count? Now, with critical sectors of the economy in shambles the talk now should arguably be what becomes the future of Nigeria—not about some Atiku Abubakar or Bola Ahmed Tinubu. This is the time for Nigerians to come to their senses—and confront squarely the cankerworm tearing the nation apart. At this point, it is calamitous to continue with the ugly situation where a few people are “eating” while the large majority are wallowing in abject poverty. It simply cannot be business as usual. We should be asking ourselves: “what type of society do we want instead of constantly creating divisions through ethno-religious sentiments—the same old tricks.
Should we begin to tolerate the bestial state where innocent citizens are butchered and insecurity rife? Children born overseas cannot venture back to their fatherland for fear of being kidnapped and held in the forest; returnees cannot move around without bullet proof cars and even then are still not safe, in the country we have today. In the same time and place the so-called “leaders” are celebrated driving limousines with escorts and flying in private jets; are we still asking where is Nigeria Airways? A time comes when we have to ask: what do we want? Only recently, one of the presidential aspirants was being touted as the one who actually built modern Lagos! Astonished, those who heard it popped the question what role did former governors like Lateef Jakande, Mobolaji Johnson, Admiral Akhigbe, Raji Rasaki and Buba Marwa play?
Maybe they were ghost and never existed. The propagandists behind these ridiculous claims are simply cheap and only after their crooked pockets; they are unmindful of the repercussions ahead of their hypocrisy. To them, there should be no end to corruption; they believe heavens will not fall. More than ever, the damage this administration has wrought is incalculable in every sense; they came with their preposterous nepotism, destroying the very fabric of our society while lying openly about almost everything.
Today, Nigerians who are above 50 years are looking back with nostalgia and wondering what happened to Volkswagen Assembly plant in Ojo, Lagos, PAN in Kaduna; the Delta and Ajaokuta Steel paradise; the Oshogbo, Katsina, Itakpe steel Rolling Mills; the Textile Manufacturing companies that abound in Kaduna and environs; Apapa that used to be the hub of industrial complexes now a ghost town, the exodus that claimed giants like Leventis, Kingsway stores, Mitsubishi, Daihatsu motor companies and what else? Remarkably, it is now on record that all 150 companies that make up the Odua Conglomerate are dead—plundered by greedy and selfish leaders!
Is this the Lagos they say Bola Ahmed Tinubu built? What role did Atiku play in this? People like Dino Meleye and Festus Keyamo, only believe in what goes into their pockets. Kola Ologbodiyan who has just been “imported” and installed as spokesman, is nothing but a serial “paid” defender. He has no visible job although a free-lance journalists. Mistakenly, they think Nigerians lack wisdom and understanding; they are all opportunist of the highest pedigree. They believe they are smart and brave. imagine “leaders” who cannot fathom that more roads should be built to accommodate the geometric increase in population; they sit in their offices scheming of how to strip poor Nigerians of the little they have and investing the loot in places like Dubai.
The result is the unprecedented economic and financial woes that has befallen the nation. That’s what resulted in the hellish Lokoja-Abuja highway fiasco! How can anyone explain the neglect of that strategic artery for all of 8 years of this administration? It seems inconceivable, but it is true! The nation is gasping for breath at the moment almost becoming lifeless, yet the same set of people wish to continue the jamboree; somebody should tell them it is pipedream! The bazaar has to be stopped—via the ballot. Atiku or Tinubu, they should call it quits and save the younger generation the headache of doing it. The survival of this country should be paramount; not with these gang of soulless, callous, tin-gods, who think it is their right to rule. 2032 is only few years away but it is enough to make visionary leaders turn Nigeria into a paradise.
