I want to reach out to the President but I know his handlers have
him in their palms where they want him. I am still constrained to write however as one who voted him into office. His key co-aspirants made my choice of voting easier and I would still have voted for him given
those circumstances at that time. Mr. President has not disappointed me, it is
an understatement to say so. He tells his Ministers and almost everyone near him
to go and sing his praise, but they cannot come to the village square to say
some things without being stoned. Buhari’s name evoked positivity years ago but
today many of us wish 2023 was tomorrow. We hope the ‘wicked counselors’ and ‘rogue advisers’ who have him in their palms would have a rethink. Feedback is key to every project. As a shadow director of a monopolistic company, will you believe your line manager’s report of good public perception or your company’s customers who complain of bad company policies? The customers are stuck because of a monopoly, and that is where Nigerian are. STUCK and HELPLESS. The recent protests were never about ‘regime change’ as they made the President believe. It was borne out of oppression, brutality, abuse of office, and outright disregard for law and authority. I almost shed tears watching Miss Chineye Igwetu narrate to the Abuja SARS Panel how her sister due for NYSC passing-out in few hours was murdered in Abuja.
Someone close to the President has to tell him the truth. The ‘change’ promised in 2015 meant more to us. Mr. President knew we suffered years of abuse and promised to bring us a ‘change’. It was meant to bring institutional realignment, a detour from the directionless journey we had embarked on many years ago. Build the foundations for justice and equity first and other needs will follow almost effortlessly.
Human rights abuses have become a culture under the entire spectrum of our security outfits, from the Department of State Services to the Police, and the Army. Ironically, we have laws we don’t enforce and enforce non-existent (laws) rules. Officers ask for immediate gratification because of low morale, but the Presidency and NASS take a huge bite off the yearly budget. The Police as an institution needs reform and cannot be reformed by the present Inspector General who has succeeded in burying so many complaints against his officers. So many judgment debts on Human Rights abuse have been abandoned under his leadership further putting the judiciary in a bad light. So many atrocities have been buried under his watch and he has no willingness to punish them because they possibly have something on him too. I would have recommended an outsider to clean that stable, unfortunately, the Police Act has constrained Mr. President to choose from the top crop of Policemen. I hope there are a few good men there if well sought.
I don’t want to go into the atrocities and accusations against men of the Police. A Policeman once told me, ‘go and tell the CP (Commissioner of Police) I asked for money’ when I reminded his bail was free. Mr. President I am sure was told our Police is one of the best, and so think we are exuberant, the reason for the recurring use of the phrase ‘a few bad eggs’. We are not being exuberant, they have pushed us to the wall and the rot is deeper than imagined. If the ‘few bad eggs were just asking for bribes, the stoic Nigerians we have become will not be on the street protesting, they are taking human lives and maiming our friends and family. How do we live with this when it is exactly what criminals do and what they are paid to prevent? I opined somewhere after Mr. President's first victory at the polls that we would need to organise demonstrations, sit-outs, and engage in civil disobedience to get our demands. This I premised on the fact that freedom is never given to the oppressed but won by them if they need it. But, October 20 still gives me mixed feelings about this.
People often tell me that politicians and lawyers are part of the problems of Nigeria. Their argument is that while the former steals, the latter gets him off the hook for a share of the loot. That’s not true, Mr. President, with an effective Police you may not need the EFCC and ICPC. If investigations are water-tight, lawyers will be asking for plea-bargaining for their clients, but this of course comes with good funding, training, and access to tools. The National Assembly is a liability to our democracy and must be pruned. But of course, the President has to lead by example.
Mr. President, the EndSARs protest is not child’s play like your Media-aide said. We shouldn’t be asking you for a CHANGE you promised us. Getting the Police right is key to solving many problems in our country. If you can achieve this and ignore those praise-singers you will be leaving a towering legacy and posterity will forever be kind to you. Mr. President, Adamu (IGP) may be your friend, but the Police is not your friend.
