Amaechi: The wailing canary

A canary has come home to roost. Reason it sings discordantly. Its singsong is harsh and jarring. It’s everything but harmonious. Indeed, this canary is wailing.

Seamlessly, without prompting, they’re confessing. They are vomiting their dirty deeds. All the conspiracies perfected against us.

They converged dead in the night. In those unholy hours. And moved violently against us. The wicked pacts they signed. They’re being ripped open. Effortlessly too.

Those deadly deals. The awful bargains and covenants. All were done against our common interest. Now they are coming to light. And to our delight!

Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi perfectly fits this odd bill. He is the immediate past Minister of Transportation. He also remains the immediate past governor of Rivers State.

Time was when he was the toast of the town. He was in his best element then. He was proudly the rave of that moment. Year 2019 was one of his best times.

That was the hot build-up to the general election. He fought bloody. He was made to taunt former President Goodluck Jonathan. He equally hunted and haunted him. He did it to the best of his ability.  

Pity! All that has changed for the worst. Amaechi is not finding it comfortable. Nobody in his present shoes will. He’s not keeping quiet. He won’t allow things lie low.

And he did shout. He did yell. He did sing. And he will continue to cry, scream and even wail. That is the promise. He vowed to stick to just that.

For all we know and care, a canary sings. And sings melodiously. This distinct styling of canary is apt: “A mainly African seed-eating songbird that typically has a stout bill and colourful plumage.”

Not so with Amaechi. His is a weird canary, a wailing type. Strange? Yes, never seen anywhere else but Nigeria. That’s even stranger!

He was in deep distress. And he showcased it with uncommon anger. Amaechi was disappointed. He was down and out. He told us of a queer contest we never comprehended:

“What you are having in Rivers (State) is that APC (All Progressives Congress) and other parties are contesting, not against PDP (Peoples Democratic Party), but against INEC (Independent National Electoral Commission), against police.” Curious than imagined!

More damning: “There is a total failure of governance in the country, complete failure.” Amaechi was sure of his outburst. He laid bare his “facts”:

“Police are helping PDP to arrest APC members and SDP (Social Democratic Party) members. Gongs are being beaten about in communities asking people who will not vote PDP not to come or they would be beaten… nobody has spoken.”

Amaechi was restless in his approach. He went all out and ruthlessly too: “INEC is a complete failure. There are those of us who opposed the reappointment of Yakubu Mahmood (INEC chairman).

“The person who nominated him is a member of Tinubu’s camp. So, what are you expecting?” He wondered aloud. We wonder with you too.

He promptly owned up. He stood by every word he uttered. He told anybody whose ox was gored to go to blazes. He didn’t care a hoot.

They can as well drown in the marines. He held on firmly to his “hard facts.” Ready to stoutly defend them.

As a matter of more facts, Amaechi threatened to vomit more. Some never heard or known. He was reported: “Amaechi said he has served in the current APC-led government and that he knows a lot of things more than any other person. He said he is trying so hard not to let the whole world know what has been going on in the APC-led government.”

He was shocked to the marrow. The crash of his APC in the governorship election was monumental. He was amiss at the APC misfortunes in Rivers State. The reason he sings in the awkward manner he sings.

Amaechi is weeping over spilt milk. But let’s overlook his wrong timing. It’s better late than never. That is one beauty of democracy. Let’s oblige the rare canary. We dare not abandon him. That won’t be wise.

Honest. He needs all the encouragement he can possibly garner. Let’s urge him on. The canary in him must not be quenched. He must not stop singing. No matter how incongruous.

He should continue spilling the dirty beans unrestrained. We certainly need more canaries like Amaechi. Notwithstanding belated. The more the merrier. And the better for our collective survival.

He has more things up his sleeves. He must not be shut down. That will be imprudent, ill-advised. Why? He has not talked yet. He has not even started. He’s still booting.

Let’s oblige him more space. He needs it to perform optimally. Let us hear him out. It is for us to listen. And listen attentively. Perhaps, we’re getting somewhere, somehow.

He confessed he knew a lot. You can’t fault him. He has been deeply involved. That we also know too well. He has seen it all these past eight sordid years.

He has been a leading character in the tragic drama. Thanks heavens, that’s heading to a speedy close. He can’t be denied that disgusting privilege. He has a date with history.

That date is today, even now. Don’t stop the music. Wail on, Amaechi, the wailing canary.

Where’s the bloody nose?

He blew hot. We thought he sincerely meant business. He threatened. He vowed. He spit fire. We jumped for joy that we would get it right this time around.

We goofed. At the end of the day, no nose was bloodied. Nobody was bruised. It has been business at our usual bizarre way.

The thugs, the hoodlums still had a field day. Nothing changed. It was the shame old story. From start to finish; from top to bottom.

It was a false hope. And we are dampened. We don’t find it palatable at all. We can’t pretend about it any longer. Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Lucky Irabor, really did us in. And we won’t forget him in a hurry.

He raised our hopes to high heavens. We thought he meant serious business. He told us the 2023 elections would be different. That it would not take after any of its ugly predecessors.

He was emphatic on Monday, February 20, 2023. He spoke in Abuja: “By and large, I would like to use this opportunity to assure Nigerians that, on the security front, we are good to go on all fronts.”

He vowed not one single Nigerian would be disfranchised: “I do not need to tell you how we would do it. All I am telling you is that we will do it. Everyone will have the liberty to exercise their franchise.”

We were excited. A new sheriff was in town. He even brightened our hope the more: “And for those planning to scuttle the smooth electoral process. They better have a rethink because they will have a bloody nose.”

We jumped for joy. But when the dust settled. We got the exact opposite of what Irabor promised. Chief Observer of European Union Election Observation Mission (EU EOM) to Nigeria, Barry Andrews, testified. He gave an incriminating verdict on Monday, March 20, 2023.

Very damaging in all departments: “On election day, multiple incidents of thuggery and intimidation interrupted polling in various locations, primarily across the South, but also in states in the central and northern areas.

“There were reportedly some 21 fatalities (deaths). In polling units in several states, violent incidents targeted voters, INEC personnel, citizen observers and journalists.”

What other proof? Irabor failed us. And woefully too. SAD! Pray, these highly contentious polls will not come our way again.

Pray, they won’t be a common decimal under President-elect Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Pray, he won’t supervise a remote resemblance of these hugely controversial elections.

If wishes were horses…