Listen To The Words Of Elders

Nigeria’s media space is awash with reports on three eminent personalities who, at different fora, lamented the worsening economic and security situation in the country. In their opinion, the ruling political class should see why it is imperative to act expeditiously to arrest the perceptible decline before it becomes too late.

General Theophilus Yakubu Danjuma, General Abdulsalami Abubakar, and His Eminence John Cardinal Onaiyekan recently, at separate fora, addressed key issues that are at the core of the country’s current crisis.

We recall that Danjuma, a civil war hero, was a General Officer Commanding (GOC) and rose to serve and retire as Chief of Army Staff. He was also, under President Olusegun Obasanjo, a Minister of Defence; Abubakar is a former head of state after a meritorious service in the military, where he was a Chief of Defence Staff and Onaiyekan, until his retirement, was the Archbishop of Abuja Archdiocese and one-time President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN).

They are accomplished and highly respected leaders in the country who are not given to playing to the gallery. This is why we are persuaded to invite the current political leaders to listen to the words of wisdom these gentlemen utter.

Danjuma, very knowledgeable on military and security matters, admonished his former comrades in arms to quit giving excuses and end banditry now, halt what he described as senseless killings across the country and steer the nation back to a path of peace.

Abubakar focused on the economy and the sufferings Nigerians are experiencing as they try to cope with emerging challenges. He stressed that the hardship in the country was getting out of control and that the distribution of palliatives was not the way out. He believes sustainable action is urgently needed to end people’s suffering.

Cardinal Onaiyekan was expectedly pungent in his remarks at the sidelines of Marian Concert in Abuja. He called for a total policy review to minimise the country’s economic hardship. Calling attention to the disparity between the lifestyles of political leaders and the people, he said, “You can’t tell someone to be patient with poverty while we see the people who are supposed to address our poverty live flamboyantly.”

“The words of our elders are the words of wisdom’ is an aphorism that is relevant to the circumstances in which these three leaders are expressing their concerns. It should ring an alarm bell in the ears of the authorities to whom they were addressed.

Regularly, reports of impunity of terrorists, some choose to call bandits, loom so large on the horizon as if to suggest that the nation is lawless and unprotected. These criminals, in some instances, take the battle to the security forces, inflicting damages that leave Nigerians baffled and helpless. This is despite huge budgets that go as security votes and other expenses incurred in the fight against insecurity across the country. Danjuma, as once an insider, knows, which is why he wants the security forces to demonstrate acceptable seriousness in the war against terror. Nigerians want to live in peace without constantly looking over their shoulders in fear and trembling.

As a newspaper, we add our voice to that of the General and insist that the killings by bandits, kidnappers and other criminal elements cannot be allowed to go on as if the security agencies are away on leave (AWOL).

Why the insecurity in the country is so disturbing is that it is at the root of food insecurity that is so pervasive, as farmers can no longer access their farms, which have been cordoned off by terrorists who kidnap them for ransom or extort money from them in exchange for permission to cultivate their farms or harvest their crops.

When insecurity, hunger, and poverty are added to political leaders’ draconian policies, Abubakar and Onaiyekan’s warnings will begin to have the kind of impact any leader should respond to.

The insensitivity of the political leaders becomes ever so glaring with reactions from Nigerians who are daily taxed for unimaginable products and services. With take-home income remaining static and the value of the Naira in their pocket almost worthless, Nigerians are told to pay more for electricity, petrol, kerosene, school fees, transport fares, housing, and healthcare. There is a new one they call financial crime tax. All these put a heavy burden on the fabled common man in the street who labour almost slavishly to put food on the table for their families.

Amid this hardship, the leaders indulge in condemnable debauchery and concupiscence. While they argue over a living wage for the workers, they assign themselves immoral salaries and allowances. Even more disconcerting is their predilection to silence dissent.

We are, however, urging the political leaders to listen to the cries of the people who are at present living a life of drudgery, barely existing. Even more urgently, they should pay attention to the voice of maturity as exemplified by the appeals of Generals Danjuma, Abubakar and Cardinal Onaiyekan. It is in our collective interest for the political class to stop, ponder and do what is right for the people and the country.