The conduct of Mr. President during these difficult times is fell and comical. The old man is acting like a soldier whose heart is riddled with enemy’s bullets. It would have been better had the soldier died instantly because the injury seems to have turned his heart into stone, impairing the module. He is dying daily; in fact, he dies each time he gives us any of his sass. Hypocrisy, double standard, blasphemy and other vices always have a field day whenever he opens his lips. Yet this man has acquired the title: “Father of Modern Nigeria”.

I had silently believed Mr. President until recently, because I had not understood him. He had held me in awe, because he had held me in doubt. Now I could see his fallibilities. The veil has fallen from his pretentiousness, his hardness and ruthless despotism. Having felt in him these characters, I felt his jokes about his love for Nigerians. I have seen in Aremu the hypocrisy of the powerful, using religion and morality to keep the poor in their place and to repress and humiliate the young women and men over whom he is to protect.

Now I know Mr. President is not god or angel but an equal who I could direct. Without being insolent, and this is why I prostrate saying, “Mr. President Sir, I scorn the counterfeit sentiment with which you’re so proud of, and with which you’re using to exploit us”. Instead of being truthful to the nation about the situation in Ekiti State , Mr. President dabbled into crocodile tears saying, the decision to impose a state of emergency in Ekiti would enhance security of life and property. Ironically, this is the major area his administration has performed woefully with series of unsolved assassinations in the land. 

Perhaps I should remind Mr. President of a saying in my culture. Bi ilu ba le ni aleju, yiya ni o ya (A drum too hard for drumming will eventually tear). To put it succinctly, Mr. President is behaving like a god among men. I hope this mad, defiant act of bravado is not a sign of the end.

Hum...is this man telling us that he did not know that Fayose was going to be impeached? He chose to sit on the fence as a mere observer, and then brought a military man who belongs to PDP (President’s party) to replace an “elected” governor. In fact, I would support any postulation linking Mr. President to the crisis in Ekiti; after all, he did it before in Oyo, Plateau, Anambra and Bayelsa. Sani Abacha’s apologist, Late Alhaji Wada Nas, predicted that the military would rule Nigeria for another twenty years. I am beginning to take him seriously. 

Meanwhile it’s quite understandable for Olurin, a member of military cult, to tell traditional rulers, professors and learned men and women that, “there is no problem too big to solve”. But it is shameful, even ridiculous for Ekiti people to have succumbed to the soldier’s tactics of “I have come in peace, I will go in peace”. So Ekiti people would rather have a soldier rule them than “elected” civilian. I see double talk, double standard everywhere. Now what prevent the soldiers from thinking they are better than their civilian counterparts after all? Inviting a soldier as administrator in a "democratic" dispensation is beyond my understanding.      

It is up to the people of Ekiti State , fountain of knowledge, to expose the part Obasanjo actually played in the crisis. It is not enough to drive away the estranged governor. They should get to the root of the trouble. They should not forget that Obasanjo detests intellectuals. They should demand what Mr. President actually knows about his political son, Ayo Fayose, who is said to have flown to Germany . By the way, where are the Alukos of this troubled society? Hum, are the legislatures sleeping?

Robot  Villager

# 1 ...Read the full article. Posted by Robot| 24.10.2006 16:39

olootu  Villager

# 2 Good talk! I totally agree with you. It's only the gullible or weakened-hearted ones that will not see the double talk and double standard of Obasanjo. One adage says: "ogbon ni n'pa 'logbon." Obasanjo will definately beat himself to his own game. Let him ask Babangida, Abacha and Diya. The end is not very far. God bless u my brother. Ride on! Posted by olootu| 24.10.2006 17:11

purple  Villager

# 3 Mr Babalola, Thanks for your contribution to the current discourse. You are so right in your views on Mr Obasanjo. The President's latest act in Ekiti State is the last straw for many right thinking Nigerians. Whatever shreds of respect many of us grudgingly had for Mr Obasanjo simply evaporated with the bogus state of emergency clamped on the good people of Ekiti State. Some commentators have asked why the Ekitis do not take to the streets in civil disobedience. Any 7year old child in Nigeria knows that such peaceful demonstrators will be mowed down by the unaccountable agents of the Nigerian State and nothing will come out of it. My hope is that becos ours is such a young democracy, we will learn through trial and error and eventually get it right. Posted by purple| 25.10.2006 12:57