The people have a right to a compassionate government.
But does the government too, have a right to an empathetic people, particularly when things are tough?
This thoughtful newspaper cartoon, which, by the way, Ripples stumbled on, on Facebook; so is unable to make a fuller credit, inspired these twin-questions.
By it, President Goodluck Jonathan handed President Muhammadu Buhari a Nigeria as once-upon-a-car; not even fit for a decent junkyard.
One year after, Buhari is hard at work, fixing that car. Sure, it is nothing close to zooming around. But given the original junk that it was, you would admit a lot of work had been done.
That more or less captures the reality on ground, this last one year.
Yet ambush, from a seeming unfeeling people, about captures opposition tactics against the Buhari Presidency, in its first year.
But it is instructive that the chief partisan driver of this ambuscade, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), just crashed, like a miserable, whining dog — with all fours up!
From one ‘M’, two others have stormed the bastille, in a fierce turf wrestle, to corral a crashing castle: Modu, Mantu, Makarfi! It is the fearsome fire of M raised to power three!
One party, three helmsmen! Marvelous in the eyes of those PDP’s impunity has beggared for too long, isn’t it?
But that tactic is hardly illegitimate — politicians, after all, would play politics.
Still, ambush as opposition has been most potent from seeming non-partisan players, who ought to be natural partners of a reform-minded government, in times of dire moral abyss.
Take Catholic Bishop, Matthew Hassan Kukah, who had built a reputation, over the years, as some conscience of the nation.
When the issue became unearthing Jonathan-era sleaze, however, the priest’s pious advice: forget the graft and move on! Jonathan had, after all, lost at the polls and promptly given way! Should he have stayed on, Your Lordship?
Another Catholic high priest, Anthony Cardinal Olubunmi Okogie, former Archbishop of Lagos and people’s hero during military rule, thundered in holy rage — not against those who had stolen the commonwealth blind, but against those who were sweating to bring them to heel!
What had changed: was corruption bad under military rule, but tolerable under democracy? Perhaps because a Christian brother headed the regime under fire?
That moral ambush, for whatever motivation, gave the ancien regime the false hope they could pull off their diversionary tactics. A much raped people were the worse for it.
Then came another ambush: from media corruption champions. Sure, this ensemble would insist they never endorsed corruption — and they wouldn’t be wrong, per se.
Still, while the criminal elements went on an over-drive to arrogantly subvert the courts to escape justice, this lobby went on an overdrive to push a most grotesque crusade for “human rights”.
The long and short of that campaign: the state should self-castrate, under a weird “due process”, while these rogues rigged and raped the judiciary to escape with their loot!
Yet, this same lobby shrieked loudest, almost to the point of manic celebration, that the Buhari government, to echo their preferred cliché, could boast “no single conviction.”
This loud orchestra would also boom loudest, claiming the government has not delivered on its promises, mostly on the economy — which, in truth, given the level of pains in the land, it has not.
But pray: how do you secure convictions when putative felons subvert the judicial process; or rev up the economy when rogues had cleaned out the public till, of otherwise investible funds?
It is this blanket criticism, with scant institutional memory, a wilful disregard of the shambles the Jonathan government left behind — even after a year — that passes Nigerians as unfeeling; and not able to appreciate the epochal chaos that Buhari and his government are battling with; from which they hope to rebuild the commonwealth.
This moral-neuter zone, where the clergy and the media heavily descend on those trying to fix things but gift the execrable crooks fresh life, would appear the most unflattering portraiture of the Nigerian, during the first year of the Buhari Presidency.
However, many a Nigerian, appreciative and empathetic, appear miles ahead of these rarefied institutions, which alas ought to be the true mirror of society.
That, perhaps would be the ultimate redemption, when the worst is over, and history of this putative iron-to-gold era is written.
That is a distinct possibility, if the Buhari government remakes this economy as a productive hub; and purges public service of its ruinous greed.
Meanwhile, back to the present, old decadence would embolden a Bukola Saraki and his APC rebels to play Judas with PDP ambushers, to push the PDP agenda of past ruin, as some new pseudo-salvation.
That decadence would push an Olisa Metuh to preen and strut in court, as if being docked for alleged sleaze deserved some gold medal. Even after being cut to size, his family would wilfully dub a duly constituted court process as “persecution”, not prosecution. Well, the joke is on them!
This last year, Buhari has not exactly come out flying. But it is doubtful if anyone in his circumstance would.
Ambode’s Lagos? Sure. But that is because, since 1999, Lagos has become more and more settled. Compare that to Jonathan’s central rubble, and the difference is clear. Even then, Ambode suffered some opening months of utter demonization!
President Buhari has his job cut out for him; for in this second year, he would rise or fall.
But to get the best, Nigerians must learn to understand and appreciate little gains. Such guided praise motivates a conscientious government to feel treasured, challenge itself, and do more.
NATION
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