There's a pretty harsh parable in the Bible, but I'm glad Christ told it, at least for the instruction of our Stockholm-Syndrome government apologists in Nigeria who keep raising a round of applause for nonsense:
There's a pretty harsh parable in the Bible, but I'm glad Christ told it, at least for the instruction of our Stockholm-Syndrome government apologists in Nigeria who keep raising a round of applause for nonsense:
'But who is there among you, having a servant plowing or keeping sheep, that will say, when he comes in from the field, "Come immediately and sit down at the table," and will not rather tell him, "Prepare my supper, clothe yourself properly, and serve me, while I eat and drink. Afterward you shall eat and drink"?
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'Does he thank the servant because he did the things that were commanded? I think not. Even so you also, when you have done all the things that are commanded you, say, "We are unworthy servants. We have done our duty."
I was 8 years old when I first read the Bible through. Obviously I wasn't mature enough to appreciate the import of everything I read. I thought it rather unfeeling then that a poor servant who had worked so hard all day should not even have a right to expect some appreciation from his master. But there was a crucial lesson to be learned there: the difference between rights and privileges, and the obligations entailed in a contract of employment. Your rights are backed by law, and can be claimed as a matter of course. Privileges are granted at the discretion of the grantor, and can be withdrawn as he sees fit. When you begin to claim privileges as a matter of right, abuse must surely follow.
Public servants in Nigeria are a creation of our law and Constitution, but the perception that we have of them is shaped by our political history. The racist assumptions of imperialism and colonialism, and the second class status conferred on we 'bloody civilians' during our nightmare of military dictatorship, have largely robbed us of the collective self-esteem which would make us recognise that we are the sovereign masters of our fate. Oppression has blinded us to the fact that our presidents and governors, legislators and judges, only exist to carry out the will of We the People, no more, no less.
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After declaring the principle of democracy and social justice as the foundations of the Republic, the 1999 Constitution says in S.14 (2) (a): 'It is hereby, accordingly, declared that:...sovereignty belongs to the people of Nigeria from whom government through this Constitution derives all its powers and authority'. Ergo, we're in charge, not Dr. His Excellency, Alhaji, Sir, Field-Marshal Big-Shot. We pay the taxes, we contribute the resources, we are the reason the government exists, not the other way around.
We have had our sovereignty stolen so many times and so brutally, that even now, fourteen years into the working of a democratic, constitutional republic, we are still sleep-walking in an oga-at-the-top dream-world in which we blubber with pathetic appreciation every time Oga decides to throw us a few crumbs from our collective patrimony. I am sure the evicted residents of Badia were among the chorus of 'Fashola is trying' not so long ago. Back then, if you asked any questions about how judiciously Lagos IGR was being used, they would probably be the first to warn you to shut up and stop belly-aching over affairs above your station. So quickly do we forget that the surest safeguard of democracy and good governance is not the dubious saintliness of our leaders, but the vigilance and pro-active attitude of our citizenry. Questioning our leaders is no act of treason or even malice; it's our responsibility as the ultimate decision maker in a free republic.
Enough of giving our leaders a free ride without asking questions. No leader deserves that, no matter how well he is doing. Leaders will come and go, but if you relax your habits of vigilance just because you have a leader in office that you like, it's only a matter of time before he is replaced by one who will take advantage of your apathy to steal your freedoms and your wealth. We have to evolve into a culture of persistent inquisitiveness until it becomes a factor in the thinking of our leadership. I look to the day when, when a governor who is being pressured by his slimy godfathers, will have to answer them:' You want to kill me? When these people find out, they will roast me alive!'
So we ask again, where does the money for the First Lady's projects and trips come from, if her office is not constitutionally recognised? How much does the Lekki concessioning company rake in, and why do Lagosians have to pay so much in tolls? Where did Gov. Donatus Akpabio's largesse to 2Face come from? Why is the same Donatus not facing impeachment for election rigging after his televised confession? How come Obasanjo has not had to explain how you can spend $16.2 million dollars on power generation and still come up with 'Up NEPA!' How come Farouk Lawan was not arrested with the marked notes in his possession when a 'sting operation was conducted on him? How come with 70% arable land we still have to import rice? How come we spend more on importing refined fuel in one year than it would cost to fix all four of our refineries?
'I KEEP six honest serving-men
(They taught me all I knew);
Their names are What and Why and When
And How and Where and Who.
I send them over land and sea,
I send them east and west;
But after they have worked for me,
I give them all a rest.....
But different folk have different views;
I know a person small—
She keeps ten million serving-men,
Who get no rest at all!
(Rudyard Kipling)
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of SaharaReporters
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