By Olabode Ayo Philips
It was Samuel Sutherland in his book “why revival tarry” who posited that pastors make the Pulpit famous, while prophets make the prison famous. This is essentially a truism as regards prophets of old because of their penchant for the truth, no matter whose horse is gored, anti-status quo and anti-establishment stances over a sin-infested religious and their political leadership of Israel.
Prophets are wired with atavistic tendencies which make them not just sue for structural change, but they also live far beyond the political, economic, socio-cultural ethos of their time. Today, some pastors also exude these traits. One can imagine the fate that would have befallen Elijah the prophet if he had been caught by King Ahab or Jezebel, needless to say that he would have ended up the way of John the Baptist who was beheaded because of the same posture.
Right from biblical history, it is common knowledge that God himself raises a prophet not man, specifically to address a teething problem of a nation. Prophet John the Baptist was raised not just to fore-run the coming of our lord Jesus Christ but also to save Israel that was already lost to ceremony, sacrifice and circumcision over a thousand years before the coming of Our lord Jesus Christ. This was the religious state of stupor, the nation state Israel was, hence the needs to reconcile the people of Israel back to God became the subject matter, the hallmark of the ministry of John the Baptist and the earthly ministry of our lord Jesus Christ. Just like Israel, Nigerian’s democracy though on course, is not without serious challenges.
Now, what is the specific problem of Nigeria that is begging to be addressed? Indeed, it is the malaise leadership challenge. Students and experts of political history could not agree more that successive governments from independence 1960 till date has turned out to be worse than their predecessors. Living standard continue to get worse daily for the vast majority of Nigerian’s till today and there seems to be no light at the end of the tunnel. This of course, Nigerian’s hills of Achilles. Our solution must necessarily come from a God inspired purposeful and puritanical leader who will dare query the hegemony of the existing order he may have been part of, just like Karl Marx who was born an aristocrat, succeeded in changing the rabid capitalist posture of his people.
Bola Ahmed Tinubu, right from the days of NADECO, the series of harassments, detentions and subsequent escape to the United States, had the audacity to continue the struggle even in the U.S, turned his house the rallying point, the launching pad of other activists in the struggle for our democracy. The menace of Abacha’s death squad even outside the country did not debar or deter him. Tinubu was clear in his resolve and total commitment like a prophet of God sent on an errand to the cause and mission he was more than ready to live and die for.
Bola Tinubu saw his mission beyond ethnic parochialism, the reason he opted out of Alliance of Democracy (A.D) for a more nationalistic, political adventurous, more productive platform A.C, A.C.N and then A.P.C. Which he tremendously and unarguably helped to nurture to its omnibus status.
When former President Olusegun Obasanjo tried and almost succeeded in colonizing the A.C.N state in 2003, Bola tinubu peeped into the future and saw ahead of his peers and time, warned other colleagues who would not listen to him, Tinubu was the only A.C.N Governor who stood against the greek gift of Obasanjo and against his expansionist acquisition of the A.C.N by P.D.P. other A.C.N state fell for it.
After the progressive era of the first civilian Governor of Lagos State, the late Lateef Jakande was cut short by the coup, the military unproductive interregnum in character and form threw Lagos and indeed the country into a state of political inertia, socio-cultural economic and political stupor, Lagos indeed and the entire country was back in the Stone Age. The advent and emergence of Bola tinubu administration once again brought the luster back to governance and development in Lagos even when Obasanjo swore to bring Tinubu to his knees seizing the revenue allocation accruing to Lagos state and Obasanjo alleging constitutional breech in the local government arbitrary increase. Tinubu the constitutional architect was able to meander through and succeeded in involving a visionary, sustainable developmental master plan, a template Tinubu and his successors have adopted in advancing the frontiers of good Governance in Lagos state.
Just as Tinubu was destined to lay the foundation for a greater Lagos, the cynosure of all eyes, the pride of Nigeria, Tinubu is destined to once again place Nigeria on the pedestal that Nigeria will soon be the pride of Africa, the prided giant of Africa and the entire world at large. Prophets on assignment do not die until they accomplish their God given mission on earth. The strength to achieve this is already given from above.
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Buhari came to fore-run for Bola Tinubu just as John the Baptist to Jesus. For the prophecy of becoming a Nigeria president to be fulfilled in the life of president Buhari after series of failed attempts, took God’s intervention through Bola Tinubu et al. It does seem and follows logically, as a matter of fact, not just by our political calculus, that Bola Tinubu would be the expected political messiah to deliver Nigeria from the aforesaid malaise – the discontinuous political leadership that has lead to inconsistency of government policies which has also bedeviled the fabrics of Nigerian polity. Tinubu brought continuity to governance in Lagos which has engendered transformation in all the critical and other sectors in Lagos. He is set to repeat same at the federal level. This is no praise singing but a prognostication.
If indeed Nigeria is going to make something meaningful of the present political socio-economic realignment and dynamics of the world order which the present Anglo/American, the sixth (6th ) world power and the perceived weakest of all former world powers (starting from Egypt, France, Prussia, Roman/Babylonian) so far, which has culminated the emergence of China et al and the emerging challenges posed, then Nigeria will need not just a leader ,but a pragmatist with the inkling of a prophet to refocus Nigerian’s foreign policy through its reappraisal of its domestic policies-Nigerian’s political socio-economic policies which has to be subjected to serious re-engineering to also contain strategies that will reduce if not completely decimate the activities of the terrorist Boko Haram ,Banditry ,the very cause of the general insecurity that has scared away and still scaring away investors and fast crippling our economy.
Bola Ahmed Tinubu has over the years distinguished himself as a dogged brave fighter, a brilliant constitutional architect and reformer, a capable administrator, a man of high intelligence and great intellectual ability. He certainly and indisputably deserve the place of honor and the esteemed office of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. It is on the strength of this elements and character trait that are very well mixed in him that we recommend Bola Tinubu as the next President of Nigeria, it is equally suggested that he stays recommended in the minds of the true progressives of our dear country Nigeria.
Olabode Ayo-Philips is the lead consultant, Philexstone Consult, a media communication organization in Lagos. The media /publicity Committee member of the defunct Babajide Olusola Sanwo-olu campaign organisation (B.O.S.C.O) wrote via 08091722343; ayophillipolabode@gmail.com
