President Muhammadu Buhari cheerfully received leaders of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), who paid him a goodwill visit a fortnight ago in Abuja. The Christian leaders led by CAN’s President, Rev. Dr. Samson Olasupo Ayokunle, had come to congratulate him on his reelection and offer prayers for his success.
They also expressed their anxiety about ethnic balancing, the dutiful observance of the separation of powers and their undisguised alarm at the continued captivity of Leah Sharibu, the lone Christian girl held hostage by Boko Haram for refusing to renounce her faith. Miss Sharibu was kidnapped on February 19, 2018 along with 109 fellow students of the Government Girls’ Science and Technical College, Dapchi, Yobe State. The Federal Government successfully negotiated the release of all the kidnapped girls except Miss Sharibu.
Responding to the remarks by CAN leaders, President Buhari pledged to enthrone merit and national spread as his guiding principle in the allocation of political offices during his second term which commences on May 29. He also promised to drive for peaceful co-existence among all Nigerians irrespective of their religious beliefs. The President assured Christian leaders that not only would he make efforts to bring back those in captivity, he would strive to leave Nigeria better than he met it in 2015 when he assumed office as president.
The President, through those remarks, has rekindled the hope of many Nigerians that his administration would adopt a more even-handed policy towards all Nigerians, including those who did not vote for him. A new era of accommodation and understanding seems afoot. The Christian leaders offered prayers for his success. Indeed, they prayed to God to grant the President “everything it takes to perform a hundred times better” than in his first term.
The President’s promises are remarkable and they would buoy optimism because during his first term there were times when it seemed that the President needed being reminded of the Federal Character provisions in Section 14 (3) of the 1999 Constitution, which spelt out that the need to reflect federal character is based on the need to “promote national unity, and also to command national loyalty.” It is one of the most explicit, persuasive and powerful provisions of the Constitution, and it began by enunciating that the Federal Republic of Nigeria shall be a state based on the principles of democracy and social justice; it demands that every administration at every level must conduct its affairs to reflect the diversity of the people in order to promote a sense of belonging and loyalty throughout the Federation. In the same spirit, Section 217(3) of the Constitution is also designed to protect the officer corps and other ranks of the armed forces from being turned into a regional or partisan militia.
We hope that the President’s promise to drive peaceful co-existence would be realised in his second term. The herdsmen/farmers crisis briefly went quiet during the campaigns. Now it is beginning to re-emerge. But the truth is that there are many farming communities in the country today afraid of venturing into their farms because they are not sure of the result of an encounter with herdsmen.
It is equally reassuring that the President promised to recover all those young women in captivity. He has made this promise for the umpteenth time. We have no choice but to believe that this time he would deliver. Nigerians are encouraged by the President’s desire to leave a great legacy. The most dependable means of attaining it is by fulfilling the promises he made to the Christian leaders.
It means the emphasis on merit over other considerations. It means a president who is not bothered about the number of votes he received in certain sections of the country. It means an inspired, balanced, administration intent on justice and fair play, determined to lead by example.