Some so-called born again Christians and Muslins mix their outward religion with those of African gods and the marabous for their survival in office, to protect their jobs and to conveniently dupe fellow citizens and the nation.  They kidnap children for human sacrifice and they loot the treasury with impunity because they have been assured by marabous that no evil shall befall them.  If these leaders believe in African gods and marabous, why not place their hands on Odu Ifa, Sango, Oya, or other book relating to African gods that dish out immediate justice for offenses committed again such god’s norms.  Then it would not matter whether any servant leader probes a corrupt leader or not because there’ll be immediate retribution on any infringements.  The only thing that would have mattered is having a political ideology that speaks to discontinue hurting citizens of Nigeria economically, socially, and infrastructurally, an ideology that can empower citizens to move toward a perfect union in theoretical, sociological, and moral approach to human existence.

Many of us at one time or another questioned God, I mean the Judeo-Christian God, for allowing the wicked and their children to prosper and I know God allows it.  We also recognized that those that follow the rule set forth in the Ten Commandments and even those in our nation’s constitution and other commonly acceptable norms find themselves disadvantaged. 

In Politics these days, many leaders come to us in sheep’s clothing by claiming to be born again Christians or Muslims, a political hyperbole if you please.  I recall that during the last election, Nigerians that wanted to sell Yar ‘Adua to the nation told us that among his many good attributes, for instance, they told us that: 1) He is a devoted Muslim; 2) He goes out to buy his own cigarette; and 3) He would be he first graduate to lead Nigeria.  At that time, I argued that all the reasons given were untenable because one never knows a person because sycophants and power except one given by God or a “god” can change any human.  I have no doubt that our servant leader is religious but religion that does show benevolence, that will not question why a leader will embezzle funds meant to improve standard of living of ordinary Nigerian citizens and one that does not help elevate humanity is a useless religion.

Along the three measurement matrices of Yar ‘Adua given above, let us look at the snapshot of our servant leader’s performance since getting into office.  On being a good Muslim, which I have no doubt he is, I see no difference between his own policies and those of non active Muslims or Christians.  For once, I expect the servant leader to listen to majority of citizens and begin probing the past administration’s misappropriation of funds but without vindictiveness.  I expected President Yar ‘Adua to have set up probe to begin probing leaders for selling the nation’s infrastructures to themselves through cronyism, for giving out billion dollar contracts that did not go through due process and that were not executed, for not reducing the insecurity of lives and properties, for not providing pain relief to citizens who were crying for help while leaders were becoming 1000 times richer than before they got into office.  Yet, his slow action is eroding the little faith citizens have in him.  So, it seems that religion has little or nothing to do with how a leader would perform in office.

On simplicity, I have no doubt that our servant leader is a simple man and very frugal in spending but this characteristics do not help to create jobs, reduce corruption and improve physical and economic infrastructures if he is unwilling to go against the grain.  So far, it seems, the servant leader is generally perceived to maintain the status quo and keep the corruption afloat.  I hope we are all wrong.  It is not being frugal with our money that is important but spending the nation’s money on policies that will create jobs, improve healthcare system, reconstruct our roads with available local and foreign professionals and encouraging citizens to venture out to develop Nigeria.  Nigerians are capable of developing Nigeria just like Indians, Chinese, Japanese, American or the Britons are capable of developing ours and theirs.

Education may have absolutely nothing to do with how a man performs as a leader but it may help.  The necessary experience a leader need are ability to listen, find credible supporting cast (ministers and members of kitchen cabinets) who can guide him through some uncharted waters.  No matter how negative we are about OBJ’s administration, he surely brought to his administration professionals that performed.  In deed, apart from the usual corruption, some performed admirably well.  So far, one cannot point to any stellar performance of Mr. Servant leader’s ministers.  All they are doing is getting fired, making unguarded and undiplomatic/patriotic statements, protecting the Iboris, the OBJs, and so on from being prosecuted from perceived misdeeds.  So far, one cannot point to any policy in education, energy, healthy, business, road infrastructures other than reversing some of OBJ’s ill conceived policies.  The reversal of previous administration’s policies is a bipartisan display of political umbrage which may be considered by some as a product of education.

While President Yar ‘Adua’s 7 point agenda sounded attractive during his and OBJ’s spearheaded national campaign, it is now sounding as an eloquent expression of grace in extremis.  Interjecting religion in politics is deceptive at best and it is so wide to reasonable human beings, that to perceive one politician as good, pure, and holy, is then of necessity to reject the other as bad, corrupt, and wicked but all are joined tightly in the umbilical chord of time but more importantly are equal in the sight of the almighty be it Judeo Christian God, Mohammedian doctrine or the African “gods.”  An idiosyncratic politics which we are conditioned to in Nigeria only appeals to changes in leadership without changing the nation’s religiously divided, zonalized, and tribalized politics.  As long as our politics is politics of job seeking and not of service, religion instead of uniting us in one accord, will always divide us.

Our religious dogma should be reducing corruption or outrightly eliminating it for our common good.  Let us assume that religion is at the core of our politics, corruption wouldn’t have taken a stronghold in our politics.  But then, it is time to recognize that corruption is almost universal amongst the younger generation as it is among aging generation because our current system is wicked, inhumane because it does not protect either group against retirement headaches.  It is wicked because a leader that is perceived to have enriched himself on the backs of citizens leaves office and gives a nation an increased petrol price.  Figuring out new citizens’ needs which may be different from the old paradigm, political, sociological, moral and rhetorical scheme may be a way of solving the corruption issue once and for all.  We must look for convertible politicians and religious leaders who are capable of giving up their lives, like Martin Luther King, Jr. for the likes of Barack Obama to later surface.  We need new leaders that can see the advantage of reducing corruption because we cannot sit on the political fence without taken bold steps and hope that time will heal wounds and corruption and status quo would resolve themselves.

Some say that the problems in Nigeria are well known to all citizens.  They accuse many of gratuitous preaching to the choir.  The root of their odd and vitriolic crusade is to shut up all voices of descent and to crystallize a pseudo peace and tranquility.  In Nigeria we must continue to restate our problems in many ways: philosophically, morally, religiously, culturally and hoping that some of the preaching will sip into the skulls of the leaders or at least allow the nation to seek new leaders that will help project a good image for Nigeria.

In this black nation called Nigeria, a nation sprawling in corporate labyrinth that includes legions of tribes and competing religions, religion must have no place in politics other than to prick our leaders’ conscience to follow the universality that if we love our neighbors we must not do what we do not want to be done unto us.  This simple affirmation of truth is the paradox at the heart of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s "I Have a Dream" speech and must ring true in America as it rings true in Nigeria and among all religions and political parties.  The economies of the nations where our stolen resources are hidden are collapsing, so what do we expect of our economy that is not nurtured to good health?  What then will become of our leaders’ ill conceived overseas investment strategies in these economies?  In this black nation called Nigeria where we cannot blame whites directly in some sense, all genuine political leaders must see that "we are able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood."  Let our religion propel us to act according to the tenets of our different religious ideologies to do good for humanity but not to play politics of religion and spiritual death wishing.

Robot  # 1 | 05.04.2008 07:42

In this black nation calle...Read the full article.