One Small Voice at Peoples National Conference

 Good day Ladies and gentlemen. Where shall I begin? I don’t know. I wish this is the beginning of a quiet revolution we’ve been yearning for. I don’t really understand our purpose here. Are we here because of genuine love for the people? Or are we here to truncate the ambition of Democrat Aremu Obasanjo whom we think might want to rule us for another donkey’s year. Aren’t we playing with fire? Well, do we have “police permit” in our hands? You know very well the reason for my question. I ask again, aren’t we playing with fire?

            Anyway, my name is Suffering Altruism. I hate both names because they both depend on each other in order to function. They are like conjoined twins. I have retained them as a symbol of our present situation. I am from Phobiag State. When I heard there was going to be a conference of this nature, I cried to heaven and mused about it. My mother is Poverty and my father is Resource. They are both alive but unable to help me so I changed my surname. I changed it because people were fond of laughing at me, arguing about the contradiction. Yes, I was formally known as Suffering Resource.

            “How can you be wealthy,” they would joke, “and still suffer head.” They still laugh at my name though with genuine sympathy. I may be flotsam and jetsam but I am a citizen of this country. Or do you doubt my nationality? 

            Ladies and gentlemen, we need to be very careful in the way we go about our mission. If your main aim is to stop obasanjo at all cost, then count me out. I am here not because of Obasanjo’s reckless struggle but because of genuine love for the citizens of this nation. We will definitely fail if our mission is just to prevent 3rd term. Although I am against this third term palaver, it shouldn’t be the main issue, and I shall elaborate on this before my time runs out.

 I respect many of you here even though some of you were once led astray. I am referring to those of you who had served under military regimes. I still respect you because I count it as a mistake, which all human beings are prone to. In the last years, you have rectified the errors, and that is why I’ve agreed to sit down with you today. But we must be very careful. Because there’s no worse plague to bear than the enemy at home, who’s always there.

            Do I need to warn you about betrayal? It happens every now and then. As we sit here today I know there are spies. They are here to cause confusion. They know this conference is the last hope of the masses. They know this gathering could be the herb that will cure our mother who has falling sick since the moment Lord Luggard forced her into a marriage of convenience.

            Ladies and gentlemen, I am afraid. How can something so wrong be so right? Under normal circumstances, it is the government of the day that supposed to organise the conference of this magnitude. But it’s obvious no government – khaki boys or Agbada men – has lived up to expectation. The conference they organised some time ago failed before it even started. I was in that conference and I hit them on the head as I am doing now. But they thought I was a mad young man. I give you the permission to think likewise. Of course there are many mad men in our polity.

            Since we have convinced ourselves that this gathering is the path of honour, then there must no turning back. Aren’t we playing with fire? Let them go ahead and charge us with treason. Let them chain us. Let them kill us. Let them call us names. You must be a fool being in this room without first thinking of the repercussions. That is why I implied earlier that we’re playing with fire. Remember that many people have been assassinated and the police have not made any arrest. Yet this government is claiming security as its priority and achievement.

            Ladies and gentlemen, count me out if this conference is only about fighting the present government. It won’t yield any result. Of particular poignancy was the photograph of June12 when genuine men and women were murdered in cold blood. Fighting dictators is not new in this country. There is need to change strategy. In retrospect, our chase has been more thrilling than holding on to the struggling catch. What I am saying in simple language is that our battles have been half fought.

            For instance, we fought a poisonous snake to pave way for a vampire bat to pave way for a dodgy donkey. Let us not fight this donkey to pave way for animal of his ilk – not anymore. Our struggle this time should centre on the masses. It should be the last battle otherwise count me out. It should be the fight for liberty. Let us get started, ladies and gentlemen.

            It seems to me that this gathering is all about getting rid of Obasanjo. Or what is this news about dictators Muhammadu Buhari and Ibrahim Babangida as well as Professor Wole Soyinka and Chief Anthony Enahoro meeting with anti-third term members of the National Assembly! I don’t like the idea of every Uba and Adedibu coming together for the purpose of opposing third term. It berates the struggle if people like Babangida is seen fighting alongside Soyinka against Obasanjo. No, it doesn’t make sense to me.

            Is sir Ojukwu here? I read somewhere you had proposed a conference of this nature termed Aburi Accord, which is what we’re now implementing thirty something years after. May you live long to enjoy pretty madam Bianca. What of Sir Gowon? May he also continue to prosper in retirement. Oh, if we could turn back the clock…the clock of death…the clock of the innocents who perished due to blind ambitions of certain individuals. By the way, this one must not end abruptly. Let it be the bridge of no turning back. Of everlasting joy! Are we ready? I ask, are we ready?

            May I ask one more question: will you adopt a four-year of three terms if it is truly going to solve our problem? We need to find out why two terms have never been enough to sort out our mess. We should not say for example, that because United States adopts four-year of two terms, then we must “follow follow.” No, let us find our own distinct system that reflects our geographical location.

            Most of you in this room are renowned critics. Methinks it’s time you showed that you know the way and you can drive as well. Mobilise support for a new era. Empower the masses. Educate them. Let the world knows the battle to getting started has begun. I have said it many times that what we need in this country is getting started. Ladies and gentlemen, getting started means talking about amalgamation. Any conference that shuns discussion about our living together is a joke. And that was the main problem with Obasanjo’s conference. I am for anything that would alleviate or eradicate my name. If going our separate ways would bring about this change, then count me in…count me in…count me in.

            Ladies and gentlemen, I am suffering…I am suffering. Now I am counting on you. I cannot say that a coalition of pro-democracy, ethnic rights and civil society groups do not know what is right for this country. But you must be ready to really want to do this – physically, mentally, spiritually, and emotionally.

            It’s gonna be a rough road. Thanks and God Bless.

Robot  Villager

# 1 “How can you be wealthy,� they would joke, “and still suffer head.� They still laugh at my n...Read the full article. Posted by Robot| 07.04.2006 14:36

Elaa

# 2 Hakeem, you have spoken well. The problem with Nigeria is beyond this Obasanjo's 3rd term wahala. Did you write JAMB? Remember how things were? People will enter to read Biology, they will graduate as Doctors, or enter to read Maths and graduate as Economics - like so, like so. But you had to enter the University first. You could even transfer from one university to another, but you had to have written JAMB. There is much more we have to do, but we have to address this 3rd term yamayama first. I'm sure those in PRONACO know, and if they didn't, they will begin to know as people speak. It's a long road ahead. Let us begin with tiny steps. Posted by Elaa| 07.04.2006 15:33