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An interesting Letter to Mr. election stealer OBJ Open letter to president Obasanjo, by Wada Nas
Friday, February 20, 2004
Compliments of the season in arrears and wishing you the very best you wish yourself. I came before, through this public channel, as a humble citizen of our great country, to offer you a very sincere and honest advice, which I believe is for your own good and the future of our beloved nation.
Before then, let me apologise for going public with the object of this letter. However, I am doing so not to spite you but to share its contents with our fellow countrymen and women for their own inputs which is in the interest of enhancing public debate.
Having said so, Sir, please, I want you to reflect very deeply on the good name you made for yourself arising from your enviable record of 1976-79. You became ‘a scarce commodity’ sought after by compatriots and internationalists alike.
Your Excellency, this recognition included your membership of the Eminent Persons Group on South Africa; a fellow, Institute of African Studies, University of Ibadan; member, Africa-American Institute to mention just a few.
The role played by Nigeria under your leadership in the liberation struggle in Southern Africa would remain forever in the memories of all freedom loving people the world over. It was during this period that Nigeria became one of the frontline states that worked out strategies for the liberation struggle. When you nationalised British oil interests in Nigeria, I recall, the Prime Minister at that time threatened that one day we will pay very dearly. But your countrymen and other enslaved people of the world were fully behind you. These patriotic achievements cannot be taken away from you. Nor can any one dispute the various structures you put in place, especially in the area of refineries and oil depots. Recall should be made of the university colleges you also established in some parts of the country, later converted to full fledged universities by your successor, President Shehu Shagari. You were never the less active in other areas of national endevour.
You crowned your success when you handed over to civilians in 1979 despite pressure on you not to do so. These and more shot you into the everlasting memory of your fellow citizens and members of the international community, for which reason they rate that era as the golden age of Nigeria. Then, you were really the man of the people, other considerations notwithstanding.
I believe that it was in order to maintain this glory that some compatriots advised you against entering into the murky waters of the political terrain in 1998-99. Alhaji Ummaru Shikafi, unquestionably a highly principled personality, has never failed to remark that it was a mistake that you did so, preferring you to have remained the father of the nation that you were from 1979-1999. At that time, your words were enough to remove your successors from Shagari up to Shonekan and Abiola too. This was because you were seen as the rallying point of the nation; the Abraham Lincoln of Nigeria who saved his country from the calamity of war or disintegration. Such were you a national giant Mr. President, for which you were given the presidency on the platter of gold in 1999.
Those who did so forgot what Shagari once said, when the Federal Government, under him, bought a vehicle for the Great Zik of Africa. Asked why he would honour his political opponent, he replied to the effect that had Zik remained the father of the nation, ten cars wouldn’t have been enough gift to him.
It is here Sir, that I want you to reflect very seriously about your place in Nigerian history after your adventure into partisan politics, an adventure, I dare say, is unbefitting of your father figure.
Today your Excellency, you have become a subject of scorn, a former patriot no one wants to hear his name any longer; an achiever, who has turned into a failure; a one time patriot who has turned the national television into his prayer house every Sunday; a preacher against corruption under whose tenure the disease has now become a natural norm; a listening person who has now become intolerant of others; a one time critic of all successive administrations after him but does not tolerate criticism; a man of great wisdom who now deploys insults as intellectual response to criticisms. I can go on and on Sir, to enumerate what fellow citizens think of and about you.
Nothing could be more painful for a great leader than to fall from grace to grass, as it has now happened to you. Consider in 1999, when some fellow Nigerians killed many as demonstration of support for you. Remember how organisations such as Afenifere, YCE, OPC and the media stood solidly by you. In those days, no editor will touch what Col. A. D. Umar wrote about you. It was a taboo then. Any criticism of you was seen as a plot to invite the military to remove you. So many of such ‘plots ‘were exposed’ almost on weekly basis by your numerous media loyalists.
Today, they have turned full circle that it is those who support you that are now being attacked by them. In 1999, it was near impossible to count your foot soldiers. Now you can count them on the fingers of one hand.
Even the OPC is not as much with you as it once was. Can you imagine yourself being pitiably reduced to an ethnic champion?
The Patriots, have since before the election parted company with you. Of all your former political associates, who today is still with you, except a few who want to die in office and even in death, still want to remain officials. Such are not political friends but opportunists, those who Nigerians call A G.P – Any Government in Power.
In the East, you have lost favour; in the South West, they no longer want to hear of you having deceived and betrayed them; in the North, they have very bad opinion of your record; with the unions, you are seen as their number one enemy; among pensioners, you have lost face. As for farmers, non has been as destructive as you; in the opinion of road users, no performance has been as hopeless as yours. Among all Nigerians, they consider 1999 to date as the worst in their lives.
It is that bad Sir. Indeed the low opinion about you among your fellow countrymen and women is by far lower than described here and many feel it that this is happening to you; a man that was seen as a last hope for our national salvation now being seen as a national calamity of very disturbing proportion, who has reduced them to the status of a conquered people, one who does not believe in democracy except one of rigging as happened in Georgia (for which the people used their might to get him out), and Haiti, where battles are now raging between patriots and forces of ballot manipulators.
Nigerians know how much you mention God even in a very short sentence and to demonstrate this, the NTA is now your prayer house every Sunday, as already noted. If, in truth, you believe in Him, as you portray to us, then you will not have any problem in doing what Imo did, swearing to an affidavit, that in truth you never won the 2003 presidential election because in the first place there was no election in at least 18 states.
Deep down, you know this. A man of God would never succumb to any cheating or manipulation or accept stolen property. For sure you stole what you now call your mandate from Nigerians.
As one who believes in God, I urge you to return the stolen property to the owner and take final trip to Otta. Doing this may restore your lost glory. So, please, call it quits, resign and earn your former status. You need to do so for your own good and that of our fatherland. If you care about Nigeria and glory for yourself, use your NTA Sunday sermons to announce your resignation and retirement from politics and earn the status of the father of the nation. It is good for you, the country and everybody. It is more so for your own personal glory and good name
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In reading Wada Nas' open letter to the election rigger and "dissembler" of Nigeria, Olusegun Obasanjo, I'm reminded of of this poem by Robert Frost. Enjoy!
"The bearer of evil tidings When he was halfway there Remembered that evil tidings Are a dangerous thing to bear.
And as for the evil tidings Belshazzar's overthrow Why hasten to tell Belshazzar What Belshazzar soon will know?"
___________________ Acting Major Benbella Posts: 27 | From: Madison, Wisconsin | Registered: Oct 2003
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I likings your writings talkings okporokpo blackings. How you doings that to showings Chu-Chu Ukabam. I wantings to be toldings everybodies and Chu-Chu Ukabams knowings to seeings nwa fada.to be gbala nkw nwanyi.
___________________ Agha bu njo Posts: 58 | From: Moscow | Registered: Aug 2003
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