Nothing is Wrong With Africa and Nigeria Just Common Sense

EXCERPTS FROM THE BOOK- "NEW NIGERIA: NOTHING IS WRONG WITH AFRICA AND NIGERIA JUST COMMON SENSE"

THE FOLLOWING CHAPTER UNDERLIES THE IMPORTANCE OF VOTER EDUCATION.

AND, ONE GREAT CHALLENGE WE HAVE IS THE NORTH. BECAUSE ONLY FEW ARE EDUCATED.

THIS FEW MOST TIMES TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE LARGE UNINFORMED AND UNEDUCATED LOTS.

THIS IS WHAT CHAPTER 28 OF THE BOOK TRIES TO DEAL WITH.

MISINFORMATION HAS GREATLY MARRED THE NORTH AND THE RESULTS ARE WHAT WE SEE TODAY.

CHAPTER 28
'AREWA: THE SCHLEMIEL OF POLITICAL DECAPITATION.'' - Dr Ahmad Abubakar Mahmud Gumi.

The following article was posted on Facebook by Dr' Ahmad Abubakar Mahmud Gumi.

AREWA:THE SCHLEMIEL OF POLITICAL DECAPITATION, on 21st July 2022.

I was greatly disappointed by his write-up so I had to respond. My response follows his lenghty divisive article.

Dr Ahmad wrote as follows,
“A generation which ignores history has no past – and no future.” - Robert A. Heinlein.

"On the 15th of January 1966, Ahmadu Ibrahim Bello, the Sardauna of Sokoto was assassinated by Major Chukwuma Kaduna Nzeogwu an Igbo Nigerian Army officer for no obvious reason besides religious and sectional bigotry. Arewa lost a great political leader. On the same day also the Prime Minister, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa was killed by the same group of coupist. The nation lost a great most competent eloquent leader.

However, the SW and SE had their political leaders all saved by providence or prudence giving them an edge to date in the political scheming of power struggle. They inherited a legacy that Arewa lost.

Then ten years later on 13th February 1976, Gen. Murtala Ramat Muhammed was also assassinated by Lt. Col Buka S**a Dimka, a fellow northern Christian from the Langtang tribe. Murtala was a nationalist married to a Yoruba Lady. Therefore the apparent cause of his murder by fellow Dan Arewa was purely on religious prejudice.

With the brutal killings of these great leaders of Arewa, the region became an orphan politically at the mercy and whims of other regional political powers and a victim of vicious political dynamism and power struggle.

The insurgencies and kidnappings rampaging the region today are not unconnected with this political decapitation as Arewa became dismembered and disorganized without any legacy inherited from the founding fathers of the region so as to sustain collective mutual respect and obedience.

Only a few people of influence are crying for Arewa, the new crop of her political leaders are by and large after their own interests first and foremost, which explains why the region is economically in a pathetic situation. Just imagine if the SE or SW had any of its regional leaders killed by an Arewa soldier or that they have a teaming population of greater numbers than Arewa, what the language of equity and fairness would be then. Cameroun and Benin Republics are neighboring examples.

Your guess is as good as mine.

Yet, with this traumatic history, Arewa has remained the cement of the Nation. The schlemiel of political absurdity. Nobody is there to seriously bargain on its behalf. The victim of malign and abuse. Arewa trucks burnt, their cattle killed, and they were once required to wear identity tags in some places and not much hullabaloo about it. The Hausa will say, Haba!

Fortunately, the Nation still has Arewa as one of its last hope. Only a nationalist like Gen. Murtala can hold the nation together. A man devoid of regional sentimentalism. One who believes in one Nigeria at heart, not for political expediency or hidden motive.

I have hope for this great nation. It will overcome its deficiencies and heal from the wounds of its past, but only with people who are genuinely nationalistic.

May Allah Be our protector and guide. Amin""

My Response
I wondered how could a man of his calibre and learning inform people of his religion with such a divisive write-up, because they contained so many half truths and all half truths put together equals complete lies.

So this man was lying. My response to him was a lengthy one, and it goes thus: "Your thesis is very very sentimental and very very divisive. You have only mentioned the killing of hausa moslems by christians or southerners, but failed to point the whole truth.

Who killed Abiola? Who killed Yar Adua? Was Ironsi a part of the coup? Who killed him? Who moved first for the Independence of Nigeria? It was the South.

The north refused to bell the cat in the demand for Independence. But who became most important when it was granted? The north. Which region has been in the seat of power in Nigeria the most? The north. Who should therefore be held responsible for the woes Nigeria is presently going through? The north.

Who should be held responsible for the terrorists in the north? The north. Why? They desired to leave a large proportion of their people in the dark so they can be eternal stooges? Now the table has turned around, the stooges have become scourges.

Dear Doctor our learning should be used to instil virtues not incite violence. It was this type of your publication that incited the civil unrest and war that claimed the lives of over 2 million southerners. The killings first started in the north through a religious propaganda. There was no retaliation in the south because they are very civil down here and their leaders always try to nip violence in the bud.

And note these was not the first religious crises that was incited. The north has it in history to have propagated such killings even before the killings that culminated into a civil war. The Nigerian purse was used in executing the war against fellow Nigerians. The war was unnecessary.

But because hitherto, injustices like the incessant unwarranted religious killings in the north of innocent Nigerians have never had anyone brought to book, never has any head rolled after such unwarranted attacks, it therefore led to the uprisings of the likes of Kaduna Nzeogwu.

They desired a Nigeria of equal rights and justice. Thank God he gave orders for the elimination of the premiers in the South but his commands were not attended to. So, he acted without tribal sentiments. But this your poor thesis is packed with so much tribal sentiments.

And, am amazed you will still do this even with the level of awareness we now have and in this age of technology.

Where was Abacha from? How much did he loot? To which nations did he domicile the monies? Did he really love the north? No! Why? Because if he truly did he would have invested those monies in the north!

But like many other leaders who have arisen from the north, he chose to underplay the Importance of his people due to selfish purposes.

Dear Doctor if there is any region that should have the most qualified human resources, it should have been the north. But I don't seem to understand the mannerisms the north displays. Like a pretentious woman they want a thing but then in the open condemn that very thing.

Boko Haram is one of such example. Almajiris is another. No one can eat his or her cake and have it! Why? Because God rules in the affairs of men. You can deceive men not God.

The violence in the north today is an escalation of the violence that some northern leaders chose to condone for several centuries. Now, they are reaping the fruits. Goodluck Jonathan decided to solve the issues of Almajiris but the very north arose against it and said they needed no one to do it for them.

Please Dr Ahmad use your ability to truly educate your people. Stop polarising them to their disadvantage. If their thinking is not straight then their very societies will not be.

I will encourage you to think and act like Abraham Lincoln,' I do the very best I know how, the very best I can, and I mean to keep on doing it to the end. If the end brings me out all right, what is said against me will not amount to anything. If the end brings me out all wrong, then a legion of angels swearing I was right will make no difference.'

We must stop running after cheap recognition and instead be the hand of God to humanity.

God bless Islam and God bless the truly faithfuls.

An excerpt from the book, New Nigeria: New Africa Of Fearless Heroes.

The summation of this chapter is that, if you made money as a politician, then you are a BIG THIEF!!!

Chapter Twenty Three :Calvin Coolidge – A rare- breed- leader of the 20th century

In the 20th century there was a man named Calvin Coolidge. He was truly a cool man as his name lmplies. He became the president of United States of America in 1924. He was vice to Warren Harding, but Harding died in 1923 which led to Calvin becoming the president.

Warren died with a barrage of corruption allegations leveled against him. But, Calvin Coolidge kept his hand clean. He could stay clear from corruption because he was a frugal and simple man. He had no undue and ungodly desire for material acquisition. Imagine, that a man could withstand the forensic auditing of intelligent U.S auditors in a corrupt administration? It’s rare.

Only a few men can do this. Also, very few of our Nigerian and African would avail themselves for such forensic auditing, because many of them would not only have soiled their hands but would have done so before the opportunity to lead was made available to them.

I don't seem to understand why many African leaders have the notion that pilfering of public funds is synonymous to leadership. An hausa man would exclaim, 'Haba!.' And the truth is, once a thief ever a thief.

Calvin Coolidge was known nationally and internationally as a quiet man. He often gave short speeches and even as a politician he always used words sparingly. Before Calvin Coolidge became a president of U.S.A, he was a lawyer in Northampton, Massachusetts. He was known never to drive a car to his office.

He always walked to his office. And after he became president and returned to his law practice he still didn’t drive to office. The same people who saw him walking down to his office before he became the president were still there when he returned and resumed the trekking to his office.

One regular neighbor who never failed to show his respect for Calvin when ever he passed by, said to Calvin while he passed on a certain day after his tenure in the White House. He said. ‘ ain’t seen you around lately, Cal.’ Calvin’s reply was,’ Nope, been away a spell.'

To Calvin, all the business of being governor and president was over.’ No excessive air of importance. No attachment.to wordly status.

And as Chinua Achebe said about learning from the good, I ask the same question. Can’t our leaders learn from the man, Calvin?

The import of the story about Calvin is that you can not be a politician and be stupendously rich. If you ever do then it means you pilfered public funds as a leader.

An excerpt from the book, New Nigeria: New Africa- Nothing is wrong with Africa and Nigeria, Just Common Sense.

Chapter Nineteen
The Enemies of the African Economy in Disguise

THE FOLLOWING IS A REVELATION OF A BRILLIANT SENATOR OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA
Very few people really have good thoughts about Nigeria and Africa. And these few are bold enough to say the realities on ground so we can begin to progress. The senator said, 'The problem of Nigeria began in 1986 when we did ‘Structural Adjustment Program.’ When we were persuaded to devalue our currency every week for 32 years. When I went to school and many of you are here. The naira was 1 dollar 50cents. The naira was almost 1 pound Sterling. They came here, some brilliant men from Harvard and the World Bank, and persuaded us that weekly devaluation was wonderful.

32 years of devaluing your currency. Until we hit #527 to a dollar. And they were still telling us that the naira was still overvalued.
That brought poverty and many misery upon us. Then interest rates went to 30%. So, nobody could build a factory, start a firm, produce anything, or create jobs. Because everytime you bring in a ship load of rice, you also bring a ship load of unemployment. You are transferring your wealth to sustain other economies. Somehow Nigerians didn’t notice it. So we became a nation of importers.

Toothpicks each year cost Nigeria, $18million. Tomatoes paste $40 million. But we need to start our own factories, so we can tell importers of paste to stop. But when we do, we will make enemies. Even the rice we are trying to reduce, we have enemies. Heavy enemies. People who can kill if they have a chance. Because you are spoiling their business. And let nobody take it lightly.

This guys have seized this country”s economy, And have taken us hostage. And they have no intention of giving up because this is a huge Market. And they have taken control……. ..’ A good and great revelation from the Senator.

But my candid reply to him is that he should now push for a totally fresh constitution. Because, the reason the men from Harvard and World Bank could successfully twist our economy with deceit as he claims, was because those that represented us as leaders were not academically qualified to do so.

When we have a constitution that okays a First School Leaving Certificate holder and a Senior School Certificate holder to man a seat as important as Senatorial, Governorship and presidential positions, what do you expect?

Success in our world or economies of nations is a battle of wits. It is hinged on technical know- how. So if the polished men from Harvard and IMF had told our unschooled leaders that selling our country to them will give us great profit, they would have done so.

All they needed to do was flaunt brilliant promises before them. Common sense therefore, should tell Africans the need to always assess all aspirants vieing for political offices discreetly, to ensure they are academically sound enough to compete with whoever and from wherever, without bulging to inferiority complex.

That is to say the least qualification we should allow to aspire for positions into political offices in Nigeria and Africa should be an Harvard's degree since they were the standard of men that were used against us.

An excerpt from the book, New Nigeria: New Africa- Nothing is wrong with Africa and Nigeria, Just Common Sense.

Chapter Five
CRITERIA'S FOR CHOOSING A COMPETENT LEADER

We must not make a mistake between rulers and leaders. Rulers are people who when in power decide not to be answerable and accountable to anyone. But leaders are people who when in power are there for the people and by the people.

The fact however is, no ruler is stronger that the people. The people are always more powerful than any government. But it is wise to never give room for a ruler to get into power. And the only way to do this is to ensure we participate fully in elections and also encourage everyone to do likewise.

The following are the competency check we all must consider before we cast our vote for anyone.

1. A true leader must be emotionally philanthropic not politically philanthropic: We can tell when a man is giving because he wants to get into power. We can also tell when a man is giving because it is in is nature to do so.

Politically philanthropic men are men who get into power and eventually become rulers. They are wolves in sheep’s clothing. They give because they want to score political points. They come out during elections to give of the bounties they have stolen. Well, when they share so much money, I will advice you take it, but then never vote for them because they will get into power with a rage to steal more than ever before in order to replace that which they shared, and in the long run enslave you the more.

Must be into business- A technocrat. Leadership calls for and requires ability. It requires someone with a think- tank ability. And the only indices to measure this is by a proven, see-able, touch-able and feel-able success in personal business. The person’s track records must be truly weighed. But the sad reality in Africa is that many Africans have a low price tag hanging over them.

A person who is glaringly a failure and who has very poor track records of corruption and inefficiency will still have the audacity to contest for elective positions. And one reason they can do this is because many Africans vote along cultural, ethnic, religious lines, and for belly sake, not with hindsight and foresight. This is sad. This is manner of savages but I don’t think at this era many Africans should still think like this.

Must have prowess academically, socially, full of energy (not sick or weak bodily and otherwise) and must be young in heart and age: Developed nations do not make mistakes when they choose to vote only people who have gone to the best schools and also have proven that they are academically sound. The position of leadership requires someone who is full of energy.

Africa is bedeviled with so much ills and so it needs men and women who are strong enough to attend to the needs of their country. Not men whose age have become a barrier to their strength.

Any man who is above 70 years of age can hardly produce result as an African leader, because so much energy is needed to stay awake for many nights and days. It is almost impossible to find a person who is above 60 years that can lead a nation in Africa. And most men at 70 years can hardly relate with modern technology.

It's not that they don't want to, it's simply because their passions do not tag along those directions and so it cannot appeal to them. And to succeed in today’s world, one must have prowess with modern technology.