‘’And beware of a calamity that will afflict not only the transgressors amongst you to the exclusion of others and know that Allah’s retribution is severe’’.
Q. 8:25
Preamble
Writing a drama is like conceiving a pregnancy. For the drama to be practically actable the writer must take into consideration not only the theme, the setting, the characters and the complications that may build up spirally to the climax in such a drama. He must also think of the anti-climax of the drama as well as its possible denouement.
Nothing shows the ingenuousness of a playwright as vividly as the crew of actors who put into action the script that gives birth to the drama in question. It is like delivering a pregnant woman of her pregnancy. If the delivery process is not carefully handled, the deliverer may end up becoming an undertaker. And that is when a drama is said to be tragic.
The entire world today is a paradoxical theatre in which about seven billion human beings including Nigerians are watching a drama. Whether for ecstasy or dismay the viewers may randomly roar into controversies as the drama progresses. But the main concern of each viewer is what may become of his favoured character.
In the ongoing global drama against which we had been admonished in the Qur’an as quoted above, the concern of this columnist is the ‘colony’ called Nigeria. This is not just because the colony is my immediate constituency it is also because Nigeria is the heart of Africa. And if anything negative happens to her the whole of Africa will cease to be at rest.
Hidden Agenda
A clandestine script was unveiled in respect of Nigeria in 1995. Its contents revealed that this heart of Africa called Nigeria was heading for a break up by year 2015. The designers of this devilish agenda had set a timeframe of 20 years for its execution without suggesting any solution. And to portray their dream as a realisable one they kept hammering the probability of the success of that obnoxious project using some hazardous occurrences in the land as evidence.
For students of International Relations, such a prediction cannot be strange. It is part of the strategies often used by the imperialists either to re-colonize some old colonies by other means or to scoop and dominate their economies in a typical capitalist style. They have done it successfully in some other countries none of which is now firmly on her feet. Vietnam, Korea, Yemen, China, Iran, Syria, Iraq, Pakistan, Yugoslavia, Somalia, Sudan, Palestine and lately the entire Arab nations all of which have had their bitter share of the pillage can testify to this assertion. It is a modern day equivalence of the 1884/1885 partition of Africa carried out in Berlin, Germany, by the European imperialists, which led to the colonization of the black continent. If any of the above countries had resisted the project and stood their ground perhaps the world would have been spared of the throat-cutting threat posed today by the United States and her allies against what they perceive as lesser nations.
Cult of Capitalism
Incidentally, the US had also been a victim of this same imperialists’ guillotine especially in the hands of Britain. Yet, the cult of capitalism which has become their common bound would not allow the duo which had been mutually antagonistic to dwell differently because it is only in such a collaboration that the gains of their common interest can be accomplished. Unfortunately, Nigeria doesn’t seem to have learned any lesson from countries that had toed the imperialists’ path hook, line and sinker.
Rather than looking inwards for solution to our domestic problems as the US does, our governments do not only look up to Uncle Sam for solution even to a minor problem but also cry out to the President of America for help. It is just like the situation of a baby who has adapted to being spoon-fed at all times even while asleep. Today, Nigerian government can hardly think on anything without reference to America.
Whereas some progressive countries like Japan, China, India, Brazil and even the United States in their days of search for growth and development shut their doors to the world and made do with whatever they could produce internally which was why their sudden zoom into the limelight came to the world as a surprise. This has never taught Nigeria any lesson. Rather, all that matters here is empty and monotonous noise about becoming one of the biggest economies in year 2020. No truly progressive country (even Ghana) has ever indulged in such empty and senseless propaganda before. What would have ordinarily justified such propaganda is a surprise zooming into the global economic stage as the listed countries had done.
Propaganda
It can only take a shameless country with so much wealth and without any visible progress in place to show for it to embark on such hopeless propaganda. What our government ought to have told us is how about $16 billion allegedly voted for revamping our electricity was spent on without any resultant availability of power. On the other hand, the government ought to have shown Nigerians the blueprint that qualifies us for such empty propaganda about year 2020 since it is a Nigerian project.
In the 1980s, under the self-style military President Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida, the slogan was that of ‘Housing for all, education for all and jobs for all in year 2000’. It ended up in sheer deception. In the 1990s, under the maximum despot called General Sani Abacha, the slogan was that of ‘VISION 2010’. It ended up in mere fiasco.
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Then came a former military Head of State, General now Chief Mathew Aremu Okikiolakan Olusegun Obasanjo the man on whom Nigeria’s premium was hopefully placed because of his military experience and prison antecedent. His own invented slogan was that of hitting the top echelon of global economy in 2020. And the slogan is continually being re-echoed even less than a decade away from the target mark, when Nigeria is without electricity, drinkable water, pliable roads, responsible airline, functional refineries and standard education programme that can propel any possible hope in the slogan. As an OPEC member nation, Nigeria remains the only country that exports crude oil only to import refined fuel for domestic consumption. Petrochemical industries are the major hope for most OPEC countries as a possible replacement for oil in future. In these industries, thousands of their trained youths are employed. But this has no place in the economic dream of Nigeria.
Yet our government does not deem it fit to invite foreigners to solve such social problems. Rather, what it perceives as problem is the backlash of its ineptitude arising from misrule, hence the invitation to imperialists to suppress agitators and potential agitators.
Implications
Now, by inviting foreigners including the US and Israel to help resolve the problem of insecurity in the land Nigerian government has not only admitted its incompetence to protect the citizenry thereby surrendering its authority to the invited countries it has also begun to compound the existing problems by externalising the country’s internal affairs. After all, these same invited countries are the manufacturers of the instruments of insecurity in our land. Security of a country is like the heart in human body. Handing it over to someone else is like paving way for one’s death. No serious government will ever trivialize the existence of its nation to that extent. We all know that whoever pays the piper must surely dictate the tune. And in diplomacy, a friend today may become an enemy tomorrow.
Yes, in the name of solving Nigeria’s problem even when they have been unable to solve theirs, the invited countries may bring their arsenal to subdue some government’s perceived and imaginary enemies. But what is likely to happen thereafter is the question which many generations of Nigerians may not be able to answer for decades in future. This has happened in most of the countries which had solicited for military intervention of the imperialist countries. Today, those countries are regretting their thoughtless actions. Yet, Nigeria wants to join their league.
A government is said to be in control and of essence only if it is believed to be capable of protecting its citizenry and defending the territorial integrity of the concerned nation. Any government that is incapable of doing this and rather decides to throw the gate of the nation’s security open to foreigners for whatever reason is unfit to be called a government.
Partners in Crime
Globally, the US and Israel are known for their belligerence and implacable transgression against nations that refuse to comply with their imperialist policies. And it is probably in reference to such imperialist powers that Allah had warned mankind over a millennium and a half ago thus: “…When imperialists enter a territory they audaciously pillage and brutally destroy it even as they subjugate the juggernauts therein to the level of servitude”. Q. 12: 22
The real problem of Nigeria is to serve as an incubator of problems and yet rely on foreigner for solution to those problems even when such foreigners cannot solve their own domestic problems. In a logical poetic stanza, an Arab poet once opined thus:
“We all blame time for our misdemeanour; when the misdemeanour blamed on time is actually in us; We smear time with all types of iniquities and yet expect time to cleans us of any blame; Were time endowed with mouth to comment on us, it would have blamed us for generating all crimes; Certainly no dog eats fellow dog; it is only men that eat fellow men’’.
The truth of the matter is that the roots of the multi-dimensional problems staring Nigeria on the face are traceable mostly to the corridors of our government. Of all the vices that constitute seemingly insuperable problems for Nigeria today particularly corruption, none originated from a source other than that of the government. Even where such corruption happens in the private sector, it will be discovered to be a derivative of the public sector. How, on earth, can we classify the case of immunity clause entrenched in our constitution to protect stealing public funds (in the name of President or Governor) in a country where overwhelming majority of people are so wretched that they can hardly afford even one meal per day despite the enormous wealth with which we are naturally endowed. And this so-called constitution was never subjected to any referendum to assess its acceptability.
Immunity Clause
The absurdity in that immunity clause is that some of such protected thieves who may have fallen out of favour are chased around for questioning in the name of fighting corruption. And that happens only after they might have vacated the office. For God’s sake if a person aids a thief in the casting away of his property has he not become an accomplice in the stealing business? What justification will such a person have in prosecuting the thief thereafter for the reason of stealing? The similitude of the above scenario is like that of what obtains in Nigeria concerning corruption. Those who injected immunity clause in our constitution as well as those who are in position to remove it but rather chose to retain it are together accomplices in the entrenchment and spread of corruption in the land. Such people will have no logical reason to talk of fighting corruption because they are its creator and sustainers.
Another evidence of audacious governmental corruption in Nigeria is manifest in the position of the so-called FIRST LADY. Here is a position which has no provision in the country’s constitution but which is given such prominence that classifies the occupier over and above the elected Vice-President at the federal level and Deputy Governor at the State level. This illegal position has no official budget but it is flamboyantly provided with such paraphernalia of office that compete almost favourably with that of the President or the Governor at the expense of the public. With this kind of illegal operation how can any Nigerian President or Governor morally question any stealing by any public officer? And now, the same federal government has mobilized its instrumentality of office to destabilise the judiciary which is generally acknowledged as the last bastion of ordinary people’s hope.
We are our own Problem
We are our own problem. We know the sources of what we call problems. We advertently or inadvertently incubate such problems. And we know how to proffer solution to them. But, like ‘lotus eaters’, we are so much drunk with illegality that it has become so difficult if not impossible for us to part with it. Thus, like the pot that calls the kettle black, we continue to deceive ourselves by mischievously passing the bulk anytime the die is cast.
For how long shall we invite foreigners to solve our problems for us when the causes of those problems continue to swell in our bellies as we incubate them? Now, having invited mercenaries into Nigeria as problem solvers, has the government thought of the social and financial implications of such action? Have we really diagnosed and identified the origin of insecurity in our country before inviting foreigners? Or do we expect those foreigners to diagnose our diseases for us and prescribe medicine?
Once we start importing imperial mercenaries into the country to solve immediate problem we must not forget that those mercenaries will like to find a permanent seat here even if they will have to invent new problems for us in order to justify their stay.
This admonition may taste bitter to those who have hidden agenda. But Allah’s words will never look for relevance. He warns in Qur’an 13:11 thus: “Surely, Allah will not change the situation of a nation or community until they themselves have resolved to change it through their attitude”. Whoever calls for equity must come with clean hands. Those in government must show example of what they want Nigerians to be as citizens. Acting the imperialists’ evil script will do no one any good in Nigeria. Think before you act.