Celebrating our second independence

“Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!”These are the words of an old Negro spiritual song of the same title by J.W. Work.  It was made famous by the legendary American Civil Rights leader, Martin Luther King, Jr. in his “I have a Dream” speech delivered on 28 […]

“Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!”
These are the words of an old Negro spiritual song of the same title by J.W. Work.  It was made famous by the legendary American Civil Rights leader, Martin Luther King, Jr. in his “I have a Dream” speech delivered on 28 August 1963 at the Lincoln Memorial, Washington D.C.  It was a dream of hope that one day all American Blacks who were formerly slaves will finally be free. But to his disappointment, all hopes were dashed and the lot of the Negro remained lamentable one hundred years after. Dr. King said he stepped forward to dramatize the despair.
So is the story of Nigeria.  We became Independent on 1st October 1960 to be free of colonial domination.  All hopes were for the emergence of a vibrant, prosperous leading African nation proceeding at full speed.  The dream began on a skeptical but impressive note in the hands of our first generation politicians to whom power was transferred.  Unfortunately the hope was short-lived and truncated in 1966.  Nigeria’s unity was threatened 1966-1970 and we had to fight a civil war during the period for the nation to survive.
The civil war ended in 1970 with no victor and no vanquished, a most befitting slogan of hope for a brand new Nigeria, ready for democracy in a renewed freedom and independence.  We all know that freedom is about the power to administer our affairs without interference as permitted by democratic norms whose hallmark is to freely elect leaders and representatives of our choice.  You must first be free and independent to practice democracy, which we lost to colonialists, regained it in 1960 but lost it again between 1966-1970 through political crisis and civil war.
At the end of the civil war, Nigeria had an excellent chance of becoming whatever it wanted with the sky as its limit and to even surpass its equals at the time, such as the Asian Tigers, Brazil and India. Recall that we once boasted that money was not our problem but how to spend it.  But the chance offered between that time and today was squandered.  The independence we thought we had attained turned out a wishful thinking.  The colonial method of domination was replaced by a homegrown brand that seized power and became our new Masters, denying us the freedom and the independence we had. Never mind that there were several governments that existed through military coups or flawed elections. They were run by the same privileged few we have been talking about several times over, who perfected the art of recycling power among themselves.  They determined winners of elections before casting of ballots and announcement of results. We were held captive and our votes never counted. As often mentioned  our misfortune all this while was about leadership. All sets of leaders that we had were of the selfish disposition. There were two military regimes that stood out as distinct exceptions and performed by exemplary leadership and with all sense of seriousness. Nigerians were highly impressed.  They were the General Murtala R. Muhammed regime of July 76 – February 77 and that of its offshoot led by General Muhammadu Buhari of December 83 – August 85.
We have no one to blame but ourselves as we have shown that we are not a serious lot.  We are all waiting for the chance to be invited to come and eat, and there have been endless examples.  We look for example at one time PRP stalwarts who were talakawa hopefuls during the Shagari era but now PDP diehards.  To acquire power, fame and wealth they had to surrender and pay allegiance to Obasanjo in his heydays.  Having fallen into line genuflecting and dubaleing, he made them Governors, Ministers and rose to power thereafter, and of course they became wealthy.  They defended the system ever since and business has continued as usual, leaving the talakawa in the cold.  Nigeria and Nigerians mattered least.  Their ambition is not to see Nigeria rise to greatness but themselves to rise and personally succeed in life.
But they have a point.  Nigerians have no respect except for those with power and wealth.  We are shameless beggars as we relate and revere only the rich and the well-placed and look down upon our less fortunate folks. For what he made them to be, Obasanjo can today stand and throw insults in all directions, without challenge from any quarters, fear of being shouted down.  It is only a Buhari and few of his likes that will not brook that nonsense.  Obasanjo will not even dare to approach Buhari  and speak recklessly.
Still talking about our tormentors.  They played god, arrogating to themselves the power to determine for example whether Buhari should be granted permission to win or not having the right connections under their control. They dominated our political space and held us captives. This had been our dilemma.  It was in the midst of this hopelessness that Nigerians went spiritual and fervently prayed to God to send forth a David to destroy Goliath and set us free.  We know it takes no more than one man to achieve a great feat as we saw the examples of Lee Kuam Yew of Singapore, Muhammed Mahathir of Malaysia and Dang Xiaoping of China among others.  These great men
singlehandedly changed the history of their countries forever.
Because the Lord, God Almighty is a listening God, He allowed 28 March 2015 to be.  It was on that day Nigerians elected General Muhammadu Buhari (GMB) as the next President of Nigeria. It was a double joy and relief for Nigerians, first being saved from PDP dictatorship and arrogance and second, delivering us safely to the right man for the job, GMB.  If 1st October 1960 was our first day of Independence, then 28 March, 2015 is our second day of Independence.  On that day, the voters came out, the card reader worked and achieved what riots failed to achieve, which was make our votes count.  There was instead peace, even nationwide jubilation across the nation.  The attention of the whole world was focused on Nigeria and the role of the International community was decisive in seeing the elections through to a credible conclusion.
GMB was otherwise written off by the pessimists, and dismissed as unserious, a dreamer to even think of ever ruling over Nigeria again.
He endured taunts, jeers, catcalls etc, but remained steadfast with his mind set on the fate and destiny of Nigeria.  This concern for the nation made him shed tears in 2007 as he stood watching helplessly while Nigeria was being wrecked.  As GMB wept, others, unlike him, simply stood by watching Nigeria being ruined and did not give a damn, even partaking in the act.  Like the true General in the real sense of the rank, from day one that he dared tread the unfamiliar political terrain, he remained focused in order to fulfill a mission he believes he must accomplish. There are other Generals dying to have a go, but the fear of the unknown invited their attention and they developed cold feet.  Not so for GMB.  All Generals are equal but the difference is clear.  GMB dared the challenge three times and was pulled down three times. In fact each defeat made his resolve even stronger than the last one.  He believes he has a mission to accomplish which is to salvage Nigeria.
Yes, the same GMB by the Grace and Mercy of God is the President-elect waiting to resume office. GMB’s victory must be a huge embarrassment to many and personal humiliation to a few.  They never wished him well.  He succeeded against their will and desire. Clearly God is on the side of Nigeria as one of His most favored nations. Buhari’s victory has exposed the hypocrisy of our leaders who have been sending him half – hearted congratulatory messages.
The freedom we acquired was despite ourselves.  It was a special favour from God, Almighty.  We are all traitors, cowards and hypocrites.  We are selfish and not thinking about Nigeria and future generations.  We are never serious about dealing with issues, but serious only when it comes to sharing of money and positions.  For all of these our leaders held us in utter contempt and disdain.
Mercifully, Nigeria is now in a new era of Buhari phenomenon set to change the history of Nigeria forever.  Never again will Nigeria return back to the old ways of doing things very much similar to the feudal ways.  We must overcome the misnomer we describe as Nigerian factor and replace it with the Buhari factor.  Nigerian factor, as I understand it is of course to confuse the facts such that one cannot understand what to do. The Buhari factor is to clarify the facts such that one can understand what to do.  It is time for us all to appreciate that a silent resolution has indeed taken place and that the Nigerian political current has changed course.  The breath of fresh air we were promised four years ago suddenly descended upon the land but ironically from an unexpected quarter.  The impact of GMB’s victory on PDP and its sympathizers is equal to a nuclear explosion.
The silent but powerful revolution prepares the ground for GMB to build a new Nigeria, with the help of God.