Nigerians have reacted to the voice message President Muhammadu Buhari released to Nigerians to celebrate Sallah recently.
President Muhammadu Buhari
For the first time since President Muhammadu Buhari left the
country for the United Kingdom 50 days ago, the Presidency, on Sunday,
released his voice message to Nigerians.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the voice message was
released to debunk reports that the President was suffering from speech
impairment.
The audio clip, which is the President’s voice message to Nigerians on the occasion of the Eid-el-Fitr, is in Hausa.
The Buhari’s Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity,
Mallam Garba Shehu, had, in a statement on Saturday conveyed the message
of the President to Nigerians.
On Sunday, the BBC aired a recorded audio version of Buhari’s message.
The message, which took the President about one minute and three
seconds to deliver, is the audio version of the statement released by
Shehu.
Buhari stated in the message, “I am immensely grateful to God
for his mercy in guiding us successfully to conclude another Ramadan. My
greetings to all Nigerian Muslims and our brother Christians on the
occasion of Eid-el-Fitr:
“May the lessons of Ramadan, namely piety, self-denial, prayers
and generosity to the poor and the needy, be with us for all time.
“I, again, appeal to all Nigerians to avoid reckless statements
or actions against our fellow countrymen. We should all resolve to live
in peace and unity in our great country, which is the envy of many
less-endowed nations.”
There have been reports in the social media claiming that the President is suffering from speech impairment and memory loss.
Some Nigerians however expressed mixed feelings about Buhari’s
message with some civil rights organisations and prominent individuals
berating the President for speaking to Nigerians in Hausa.
It’s propaganda, says Junaid Mohammed
A member of the House of Representatives during the Second
Republic, Dr. Junaid Mohammed, wondered what the President’s handlers
intended to achieve with the audio message.
He stated, “Other than propaganda, I wonder what they
(President’s handlers) intend to achieve by putting out such an audio
clip (message) at this time. The President needs our prayers and we
sincerely pray for his quick recovery and safe return.’’
Also, the pan-Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, said
Buhari’s statement failed to address the issues of concern in the
country, describing the audio message as flat.
Its spokesman, Yinka Odumakin, said he expected the President to
have cautioned Arewa youths against their ultimatum to the Igbo, noting
that instead, Buhari simply danced around the issue.
He said, “The statement is so flat; it did not address specific
issues on the ground. In view of what is going on in the country now, I
would have thought he would have appealed to those, who are issuing
notices to quit against some other tribes, to desist from doing such a
thing.
“He was talking about reckless speeches. What constitute
reckless speeches? I think he should have been more specific in terms of
what we are facing now because the country is under stress.”
Odumakin berated the President for speaking in Hausa in the recording, saying that was not good enough.’’
He contended that there were many non-Hausa Muslims.
“It’s like the Acting President (Yemi) Osinbajo addressing the nation in Yoruba because he is a Yoruba man.
“Addressing the nation at this time in Hausa does not bring
inclusiveness. I don’t think it’s good enough for the President of a
multi-ethnic nation to have made a national address in the language
spoken by a section of the country,” he said.
No difference between Buhari, Nnamdi Kanu –Jonathan’s ex-aide
Reacting to the President’s message, a former Special Assistant on
Social Media to former President Goodluck Jonathan, Mr. Reno Omokri, on
his Facebook page, condemned Buhari for addressing Muslims in Hausa.
Omokri stated, “In a country, whose official language is
English, President Muhammadu Buhari broadcasts his Sallah message in
Hausa! Would Trump (whose origin is German) address America in German?
So what about all those Nigerians who can’t speak Hausa?
“Ideally, the President should have spoken in English first;
then, if he feels like it, he may also speak in Hausa. The way he spoke
only in Hausa makes it seem as if he is only concerned with those who
gave him 97 per cent of the votes while those who gave him five per cent
can take a hike!
“How would the rest of the country have felt if President
Olusegun Obasanjo had released a Christmas broadcast to Nigerians in
Yoruba or if President Goodluck Jonathan had done so in Ogbia?
“How can a national leader address Nigerians in a sectional
language? Nigeria has never had a leader as divisive as Buhari! There is
no difference between President Buhari and Nnamdi Kanu.
“President Buhari is the President of all Nigeria; he is not
the President of only those who can speak Hausa! This is an outrage!
(The late) President Umaru Yar’Adua also spoke to the BBC News by
telephone. He is Fulani, like President Buhari; yet, he spoke in English
because he was President of all of us!”
President’s use of Hausa ill-advised, says CDHR
In its reaction, a civil society organisation, the Committee for
the Defence of Human Rights, said the President’s use of Hausa in his
salah message was discriminatory as more than half of the population
would not understand him.
The CDHR President, Malachy Ugwumadu, stated, “The lingua
franca of Nigeria is not Hausa, Igbo, Yoruba or Ibibio, but English.
Therefore, while we appreciate that the President is not in the best of
health condition, it is far-fetched that he would communicate on this
occasion in a language that is not understood by more than half of the
population. That was not well advised.
“This is a heterogeneous society, where we have over 200
indigenous languages. I think the President should focus on what unites
us rather than what divides us. If he mustered the energy to talk at
all, he should talk in a way everyone would understand. It is not
proper.’’
IYC surprised Buhari spoke Hausa
Also, the Ijaw Youth Council expressed surprise that Buhari, whom
it noted Nigerians had been eager to hear from, spoke in Hausa in his
sallah message.
IYC spokesman, Mr. Henry Iyalla, said, on Sunday, that it would be
difficult for Nigerians to agree that the President was actually the
person that spoke to Nigerians on the BCC.
He explained that the President should have spoken in English, the
official language of the country, adding that it was only English that
the entire Nigeria would be able to hear and understand if he was the
person who spoke.
Iyalla stated, “He is not only the President of the Hausa, he
is also the President of Yoruba, Igbo, Niger Delta and other ethic
nationalities.
“We are not really sure that he is the one who really spoke and this has not doused any tension about his health.”
Nigeria, now a Banana Republic, says Ohanaeze
The umbrella group for the Igbo, the Ohanaeze Ndigbo, declared that
Nigeria had descended to the level of a ‘Banana Republic’, if the
President could address Nigerians in Hausa.
The Deputy Publicity Secretary of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Mr. Chuks
Ibegbu, who spoke to one of our correspondents in Enugu on Sunday,
doubted the authenticity of the message.
Ibegbu noted that there was a big problem if the message was found to be authentic, saying the message should be investigated.
“First of all, we have to ascertain the veracity of the voice
because in these days of technology, a lot of things can be cloned,
including human voice,” the Ohanaeze spokesman.
“But if it is true that Mr. President addressed Nigerians in a local language, it means something is wrong somewhere.
“I want to believe that the voice is not real, but if it is Mr.
President that actually spoke, then, it means that we have descended to
the level of a Banana Republic.
“The Federal Government should tell Nigerians whether it is actually Mr. President’s voice, or not.”
Ibegbu noted that the address couldn’t have been meant for Nigerians if it was delivered in Hausa.
He said, “Which message; message to who; in what language? Is
Hausa our lingua franca? If Mr. President wants to address us, he should
talk to us in English, which is our lingua franca.”
Buhari’s Sallah message, a good development –ACF
But the Arewa Consultative Forum said Buhari’s Eid-el-Fitr message
was a good development in view of recent happenings in the country.
The National Publicity Secretary of the ACF, Muhammad Ibrahim, told
one of our correspondents in Kaduna on Sunday that Buhari’s appeal to
all Nigerians “goes to show the President’s belief in one and
indivisible entity (country).”
Also, the National Chairman of the Northern Elders Council, Alhaji Tanko Yakassai, prayed for the President’s quick recovery.
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Via Punch Metro
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