Ekiti state governor, Ayo Fayose was again in the news recently for his infamous letter to the Chinese President urging China not to grant Nigeria a purported $2 billion loan.
The Presidency, which before now had responded to the various gimmicks, tantrums and antics of the Ekiti state governor with deafening silence, came all out to clarify that Nigeria isn’t taking any cash loan from China. This has not stopped the issue from generating heated debate among citizens as to the legality, sanity and otherwise of the letter and the writer respectively.
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I am not going to lend my voice to be recorded as one of those who chide Mr Fayose for his seeming indiscretion. However, I am intent on toeing another line entirely and bring to the front burner what I perceive as a grand conspiracy, a script being acted at the expense of the growth and development of our beloved nation.
Mr Fayose is an embodiment, a sorry one at that, of the present opposition who aims to “strengthen” our nascent democracy by engaging the ruling party on issues of national concern. It is yet to be seen if Mr Fayose is doing a good or horrible job in that regard.
Of the teeming number of stalwarts that the umbrella party boasts of, a few of whom are still in government at various levels, Mr Fayose seems to be the most vocal and out rightly critical of the present government in all aspects.
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Surprisingly all others are rather mute in criticizing the present government. This doesn’t in any way mean they are in tandem with the current change mantra but it may not be unconnected with a calculated move aimed at giving themselves some space to maneuver out of the opposition when the time is right. Already, some have cross-carpeted while some others are already flirting with the ruling party.
A good number of loyalists of the leaky umbrella party have of late found their lost voices with the current economic quagmire, fuel shortage, power outages, dollar draught and other challenges the country is currently facing.
They are found all over the social media; Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and all around the Nigerian newspapers online forums as well as the blogs set up for propaganda purpose like the one which coyly imitate popular online blog- Sahara reporters.
These chaps, many of whom are vestiges of the “New media” team of the previous government, are out there still bearing allegiance to their former pay-masters and criticizing the way the economy is being handled by President Buhari.
Going by their antics, the game plan seems not to be far from using the social media to reduce the approval rating and popularity of the current government by drawing constant attention of social media users to the sorry state of certain aspects of the economy. Sometimes they go as far as even blaming the present administration for the mistakes of the past government.
Mind you, they will never publish the gains the present government is recording in several fronts, like the war on terrorism in the North-East, the Treasury Savings Account (T.S.A) which have so far earned the government $13.57 billion and a host of others.
They will also not tell Nigerians that the present sorry state things are presently, were as a result of the manner their pay masters squandered our collective wealth, enriching themselves and those around them at the expense of the country.
They will never mention it anywhere that the revered “Coordinating minister of the economy” Okonjo-Iweala recently chided former President Goodluck Jonathan by stating the obvious that his government never having the will to save during his tenure, no they won’t.
They will never let Nigerians know that what we were seeing during the twilight of GEJ’s dispensation was nothing but window dressing. That in reality, the economy was already in shambles. No, they won’t write about that.
They will not say a word of criticism against President Jonathan because they too believe that stealing isn’t corruption and that the present anti-corruption drive is merely a ploy to stifle the opposition. “After all there are corrupt persons in President Buhari’s cabinet and within the ranks of the APC”. So they always say.
Know why they won’t write about those things? Because it will deal further blows to their already battered and sunken ship. Rather, they’ll focus on the travails of the ruling party and even conjure up rumors to heat things up. Like the recent unfounded rumor that pressure was on Chief John Odigie Oyegun to resign as APC National Chairman. These are ploys, hoping to strengthen the position of the party ahead of the 2019 elections.
Unfortunately, these won’t be enough to galvanize support for the umbrella party ahead of 2019. The party stalwarts and their large Facebook and Twitter army know this.
However, it calls for serious concern the perception in certain quarters, which may not be far from the truth, that the so-called opposition are perpetrating acts which are aimed at sabotaging the efforts of the present government in delivering to Nigerians the content of their change package.
First, it was missing budget document, then budget padding, then of late removal and reduction of several of the key capital projects which the government claims are pivotal to the achieving their infrastructural roadmap for all sections of the country. Not forgetting the ill-advised action of Mr Fayose in dispatching a letter to the Chinese president.
When viewed critically, the PDP and their moles seemed to be meeting the Presidency at every point of their movement, riddling the way with land mines. The discordant tunes from the National Assembly where the ruling party has the majority but the minority controls things, has not helped matters. The scenario can be described aptly by the biblical voice of Jacob and hand of Esau.
My op-ed will be incomplete without making reference to Messrs Femi Fani-Kayode and Femi Aribisala, two individuals notorious for championing the failed re-election bid of ex-President - Goodluck Jonathan on whatever platform they find. Unfortunately, instead of shamefully leaking their wounds in utter oblivion, they still bestrode our social sphere with their stock in trade.
I am baffled that in other climes, FFK would be in forced retirement from the public glare, coupled with the toga of corruption hovering round his head. But in our clime, where impunity and shamelessness is best demonstrated, FFK still shamelessly speaks when he should be silent.
Same goes for Femi Aribisala who I use to hold in high respect until he began writing in a tone that clearly marked his biasness and perhaps compromise. It would be a daunting task for Mr Aribisala to convince some of us that he never partook in the sharing of “Dasuki’s yam”, especially the intensity he suddenly started demonstrating his new found love for Goodluck Jonathan and the intensity with which he bashed current President , Mohammadu Buhari back then.
They both in my humble opinion have lost their credibility hence the penchant of FFK in speaking up for the Igbos and the “minority” south, simply trying to buy some fans from among the gullible.
They are always the first to raise an alarm of an impending “Islamization” of Nigeria, they are generous enough to alert us of the alleged government’s bid to take our native land and give it to the Fulanis for cattle rearing via the National grazing bill. Their divisive articles are not worthy of our time so I won’t dwell on them more than this. But suffice it to state that commentaries that tend to divide rather than unite us as a nation should be shunned by all well-meaning Nigerians.
Whatever our political affiliation may be, the growth and development of our fatherland should form the bedrock of our mindset at every point in time. It behooves on the opposition to give the present administration the needed cooperation and support in other for them to deliver their promises.
Even though most of these perceived acts of sabotage cannot be empirically proven, actions which could be perceived as sabotage should be avoided for the sake of our Fatherland.
We all as Nigerians, irrespective of ethnicity, religion, political ties, should join hands united by one common course, which is the economic, social, infrastructural growth and development of our country.
Nigeria will be great again. Keep faith!
Jed Johnson
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