They couldn’t have been talking nonsense. Not because they are priests. But, also because they are patriots. They were right and apt in their appraisals.
You couldn’t fault their honest assessments. They did it with strict precision. Their outpourings flowed from deep inside of them. It wasn’t make-believe. They didn’t fake their feelings.
They came out with a clear understanding of our predicament. And the best way to address it. They were grieved to the marrow. They poured out their hearts profusely.
You would marvel at their sense of humour: Intense and powerful. The priests deployed it appropriately.
One feared: “Nigeria is gradually becoming a national morgue.” Can you beat that? The other fixed his gaze on President Bola Tinubu. And patently accused him of disdainfully playing “motor park politics.”
It’s frightening and frightful. For one single nation to have the combination of the two alarming attributes. But Nigeria is it! And that’s where we sail and roll.
How despicable will you want Nigeria to be labelled and identified? You can’t find our kind in anywhere else. Far or near!
We asked for it. That is our poor pick at the polls. That’s the queer and weird way we chose to be wired. It is our eerie choice. It hurts. Yet, we pretend not to bother a hoot. We fake everything in sight and cite.
But two priests opted to be different. It was the wisest option. Theirs are no-holds-barred. You dare not stop them. They showcased the hard, tough stuff they are made of.
Bishop Matthew Kukah holds sway as the Catholic Bishop, Sokoto. He meticulously penned his letter to Tinubu on Saturday. On the resurrection Sunday, Pastor Tunde Bakare took over. He spoke in his Citadel Global Community Church (CGCC), Lagos. He too had Tinubu in mind and focused on him accordingly.
The two priests cried and shouted. One wrote, the other spoke. Their messages were the same and in one accord. They didn’t mince, mix or miss words. They held the bull by its horns. And spoke truth to the throne.
They have a common target in Tinubu. And for a very good reason. Even though they literally “preyed” on him. They genuinely wanted him to succeed and succeed well. They equally sought the best for the rest of us.
Their concern is deep and legendary. They have always displayed it without fear. That is why their voices stood out during Easter. No one else spoke like they did.
Every word they pronounced counts. They were skilfully woven together. To produce the expected effects and results. And they did it graphically.
Kukah detests frivolity like a pandemic. The fiery priest knows his onions. He put those traits to test that Saturday. He couldn’t have done it less. He was blunt, bold and brave.
He confronted Tinubu headlong: “Mr. President, please bring us down from this cross. Bring Nigerians down from the evil cross.” His was a wake-up call was timely.
Kukah would not hide his grief. He agonised: “Nigerians have been dangling and bleeding on this cross of pain and mindless suffering for too long. These sufferings have been marked by a culture of brutality and savagery never witnessed in the history of our dear country.”
With excruciating pain, the cleric recounted: “Some years back, some of our public officers confessed that they brought our current killers into our country as a strategy for upstaging the government of the day and to gain power.
“Strange as it may sound, today, we have watched as the cancer of insecurity and violence has metastasized. Now, this cancer threatens the very foundation of our common humanity. We now hang on the cross at the mercy of these forces of darkness.”
Since the dark days of Muhammadu Buhari, nobody has been bold enough to deny, disprove, refute or rebut this grave assertion. They pretend as if it never happened. It did. And the result is this our unending plight.
Anger, angst, vexation, bitterness, depression, anxiety have been our lots. Kukah put it more succinctly: “Right now, frustration has penetrated every spectrum of our society, especially as the government and its security agencies seem to have largely become spectators in the dance of death that has overtaken our country.” Sad!
“We are in a dilemma now and the question is simple: Is the persistence of insecurity a statement of the lack of capacity of our men and women in uniform? Or is it evidence that those at the top are reaping the fruits of funding their own war machine?”
On spot! It’s not unlikely. Through connivance and collaboration. They have turned insecurity into a lucrative sub-sector of our dangling and wobbling economy. Tragic.
Kukah called out: “Mr. President, step up, get to the finishing line and bring us down from this cross of shame.”
Tinubu needs to be decisive of what he wants to do with this thriving insecurity. The slaughter, massacre, butchery, carnage, holocaust, bloodbath, etc, must come to an end. And forthwith too!
More so. Time is not in his favour. It’s hostile to him. Quite unfortunate. It’s ticking with the speed of light. That demand “immediate urgency.” National interest is it. It should subdue and becloud parochial personal ambition.
What’s required is sincerity of action. And honesty of purpose. That’s the way real heroes, leaders and sages emerge. There must be sacrifice on the part of our leaders too.
You have to go all out against these deadly agents of the devil. They don’t deserve to live a second more than necessary. We strongly believe the President knows what to do. And how to do it.
Showcase your uncanny guts and resilience. These terrorists can be defeated. They can be sent out the way they were brought in.
The Central African Republic (CAR) was once in this strait. They trod this path before us. But they turned the table against the evil beings. And they are best for it today.
They routed the killer Fulani out of their country. Theirs was even more hopeless than ours. The tiny Fulani population in that country had dominated the top echelon of its leadership.
The Fulani were in firm control, well rooted. They were holding CAR by the jugular until its citizens decided otherwise. The citizens fought back with determination. They devised layers of defence: From bottom to the top.
It was a well-organised and co-ordinated defence network. It worked wonders for them. In no time, the deed was done. CAR is enjoying uninterrupted peace now.
Ghana did it at a very early stage too. Her leaders didn’t give Fulani herdsmen a breathing space. Video clips of herders. And their cattle being herded out of Ghana went viral. They gave the Fulani samples of what they were capable of doing. And they fled that country forever.
This happened in Ghana jus at the inception of the Buhari regime. But here, they pampered and urged them on. It was our greatest undoing. We insist: If Buhari had acted honourably. We wouldn’t have been in this deep shit presently.
So, as Bakare took over from Kukah on Easter Sunday. He was intentionally hot on Tinubu right from start to finish. The President’s handling of the National Assembly (NASS) got him pissed off:
“At the centre of this political banditry is the motor park brand of politics nurtured by the old brigade politicians, and in recent times, by President Tinubu.” He pointed accusing finger on Tinubu:
“Mr. President, it is through your influence that the NASS has become a haven for legislative rascality. It is under your watch that the NASS has become an extension of the executive, grossly violating the principles of separation of powers and rubber-stamping the whims and caprices of your office, while singing the international anthem of sycophants, ‘On your mandate we shall stand.’”
Isn’t disgusting for elected legislators to be beating their chests like kindergarten pupils? Singing: “On your mandate we shall stand.” And they were elected just like the President! It’s the highest height of sycophancy and bootlicking. It’s the trait of small-minded humans.
Bakare was damned right: “Mr. President, thanks to your political machinations, Nigeria is now bedevilled by a captured NASS, the most ineffective in its checks-and-balances role since the start of the Fourth Republic.”
He was speaking from a strong position of knowledge: “In 2006, the Fourth NASS had the audacity to reject the tenure extension bid of a sitting President. In 2010, the Sixth NASS summoned the courage to stand against a power-hijacking cabal and restore Nigeria to the path of constitutionality by invoking the Doctrine of Necessity.
“In 2011, the House of Representatives of the Seventh NASS had the courage to elect its leaders, as did the Senate of the Eighth NASS in 2015, defying executive interference.”
Infuriated, he spit fire: “This NASS has by its unconstitutional endorsement of the President’s abuse of powers proven to be the most spineless in our recent history. Through its actions and inactions, it has, in effect, become the 48th member of the President’s cabinet.”
Kukah and Bakare belled the cat. The sound resonated throughout the land. Piercing through the darkness of the night and the light of the day.
They were thorough and eloquent. They spoke to our plight. It was a sober reflection. And their messages weren’t lost on us. We are speedily slipping into one huge national morgue. And our “(mis)rulers” are soaked deep in “agbero” (motor park) politics.
The practitioners of this brand of politics cannot deny it. They know it’s true and the truth. The reason they are ashamed to dispute Bakare. What they said might not be entirely new. But the emphatic emphasis is the newness in the messages. And they did not tell a single lie.
That the priests align in spirit should be a huge concern for our rulers. The essence of their voices shouldn’t be treated with utter levity. Or totally ignored. The fact that they are saying them all over again calls for a rethink. It depicts that the issues are not yet properly addressed. Or not addressed at all.
Seriously. We urgently need a determined review of our strategies. Whatever has a beginning must have an end. Don’t let us make an exception out of our security challenges. All state actors, stakeholders, et cetera, must summon courage to surmount the challenges.
As things stand now, it’s glaring that we’re not doing enough. Measures are being implemented half-heartedly. For clear-cut selfish, ulterior motives. This is evident in our rulers’ actions and inactions. They will not want to injure their individual aspirations. But they can easily jettison national goals. Just to have their egocentric way. And meet hideous personal needs.
Politicians are eternally ruthless. Tinubu needs this intervention. It’s a rare warning. And very important. He mustn’t allow himself to be ill-advised. These dual Easter messages mean a lot. They could be the game-changer he’s earnestly waiting for.
He should fall on his discerning heart. And apply it discreetly and diligently. He should be convinced in his heart. He should thank his stars that these priests poured out their minds.
For all he cares. He may blot out the names of the “troublesome” priests from their epistles. If that will assuage his ego and give him a respite. Then, subject their presentations to rigorous scrutiny.
He can then explore and exploit the essentials of their pronouncements. And he will be better off for it. The duo means no evil. They are driven by their sincere love for the only country they are privileged to call their own.
That’s their honest motive. Nothing more. And Tinubu should try and perceive their actions so. It’s an uncommon coincidence they spoke during Easter. Call it divine. You’re right. Or better still, miracle. You nail it!
No mortal is complete and total. None is blameless either. Not even one. But not God. He’s the Lord of totality and completeness. So with Kukah and Bakare. They certainly have their faults and shortcomings.
You may choose to ignore the messengers. You may not like the faces of these apostles. But you dare not shrug off their profound missives. Just feign ignorance of the message-bearers. Imagine their messages carelessly drop on your laps.
It’s then the gravity of their messages will dawn on you. If you’re not intentional. You may miss the import of the messages. Let’s avoid that disaster. And run with the kernel of the messages.
We need the proper understanding of our plight. That is the Herculean task before us all. As espoused by Kukah and Bakare. Can we then do the needful? Even now.
The substance of the priests’ messages is simple and basic: Where there is no penalty for offence. There can’t be justice but lawlessness and gross disobedience.
And where there’s no justice in any form. There can’t be peace. Also in any form. It’s a chain. It flows through the line.
Is the President ready to work on this? He can easily break the chain if he’s willing.
So, Tinubu, it’s better late than never. You can rewrite history positively. And enshrine your name in golden gold forever. Please, do it differently in the manner it ought to be done.
And the result will be different and pleasing.