I
have read the rumours of the death of President Muhammadu Buhari at an
unknown hospital and the reactions that have trailed those rumours with a
growing sense of dismay. While the rumours have since been dispelled,
it is very disconcerting to watch many Nigerians wish President Buhari
ill health & death.
It is a well known fact that I am not a
fan of President Buhari or his administration. It is also very well
publicised that I do not feel he has the capacity to deliver the
socio-economic and political growth and development Nigeria desperately
needs.
However, I believe we must draw the line
somewhere. And the appropriate place to draw the line must be when we
wish death and ill health on our President. I do not believe that such
wishes are in keeping with our traditions – regardless of the ethnic
groups to which we belong – or in keeping with our faiths – regardless
of the gods to whom we pray.
It is not sufficient to say that members
of President Buhari’s party resorted to similar antics while they were
in the opposition. As true as this may be, those antics were despicable
then and laid foundation for the deep seated divisions that pervade
Nigeria today. It is my belief that to set Nigeria on the path to
healing, we have to deviate from that negative trajectory – even when we
disagree.
I have noticed that many people have
wished President Buhari ill in the name of playing opposition politics. I
believe that this course of action is erroneous. Opposition politics
should be about proffering credible alternatives; critiquing government
policies and showing Nigerians how we can do better with similar
resources; how our plans, policies and projections will improve the
quality of life of the average Nigerian citizen from Sokoto to Port
Harcourt, Kano to Lagos and Calabar to Maiduguri.
Only then can we convince Nigerians that
we deserve much better than this government is giving us at the moment.
If we say we are better, we must be better.
I urge Nigerians to remember the ethnic
and religious tensions that the death of the late President Umaru Musa
Yar’adua (of blessed memory) threw Nigeria into, tensions that I do not
think we have recovered from. As unpleasant as it might be to say this,
the sad reality of our geo-political construct is that the death of
President Buhari may return Nigeria to those days.
Do not get me wrong. I am very unhappy
with President Buhari’s stewardship of Nigeria. I am unhappy that there
is a 100% rise in the price of food, drugs and other necessary day to
day items. I am unhappy that we have to pay N145 per litre of fuel. I am
unhappy that there is an absolute disregard for the rule of law. I am
unhappy that our government sends our military out to kill protesters,
no matter how misguided their protests may be. I am unhappy that our
exchange rate is N499-$1. I am unhappy that we barely generate 2000mw of
power. I can go on and on.
All I am saying is that instead of being
motivated by our unhappiness to wish President Buhari death, let us put
that unhappiness to good use by registering to vote, explaining to as
many people as possible how his policies are impoverishing millions of
Nigerians and ensuring that we vote him out in 2019.
That is the ideal to which we must aim.
God bless Nigeria.
Deji Adeyanju is the Convener of the
Concerned Nigerians Movement, a Civil Advocacy Group aimed at promoting
accountability and transparency in government in Nigeria. He tweets
from @adeyanjudeji.
The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author.
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