What We Need

Four short phrases summarize Buhari: He is an incorruptible man. He is a patriotic Nigerian devoid of any trace of ethnicism and parochialism. He is a deeply religious man and a stern disciplinarian. We talk of the giant strides the Asian Tigers have taken to leap from the state of underdevelopment to developed nations. Little do we know or appreciate the agonizing hardship, pains and sufferings all Singaporeans, Chinese, Malays, Indians and other ethnic nationalities, had to endure for Singapore to attain its present height as a respected nation. Gold must be smelted in hot burning furnaces before unleashing its shine and purity.

Lee Kuan Yew was a benevolent democratic autocrat. He subjected his people to a good dose of rigorous healthy discipline. No country makes the kind of progress Singapore made without an unwavering sense of disciplined direction. Moreover, Lee Kuan Yew was an inspirational leader of his people. He governed by example.

It is not just the question of the number of kilometers of roads you build that elevates a nation. It is not a matter of the megawatts of power you generate or the number of buildings you erect for the populace; not even the refineries you build or the volume of agricultural products produced and exported. These are important. Any leader surrounded by brilliant experts, excellent technocrats and loyal advisers can achieve those basic and essential needs. Leadership calls for much greater attributes than the performance of those feats. A leader must have a strong, solid, moral and disciplined background, the inspirational ability to galvanize his people to higher, lofty and common purpose. These are not ordinary attributes available to every man. They are uncommon gifts and talents dispensed and bestowed only to a few. This makes the difference between one man and the other.

It is only a pity that fate thrust Buhari into the leadership limelight at a period in time when military revolution and coup d’états were in vogue. In a democratic setting as we have now, I believe that the real worth and essence of this man, encapsulated in an exemplary and enigmatic personal life, will blaze through and shine forth. It will soon be clear that those of his followers of questionable and dubious pedigree who think they can latch on to the reputation of this rare Nigerian would be the first to be highly disappointed.

I also believe that what is badly needed at this stage of our national development is a leadership that will turn the country round and rescue us from the depth of chronic indiscipline, disorder and decadence we have over the years, gradually descended and then slipped into. What I believe we need is a strong hand at the helm, with the support of our people, who will instill in us a much needed sense of order and discipline; inspire us into patriotic zeal and sacrifice; bring out the best in each and every one of us and encourage in us the love of Nation.

Buhari represents, in my opinion, the last opportunity we have to get it right. He should be given the chance to restore and consolidate the disappearing values of that golden age, so sadly disrupted by the military to which paradoxically and tragically, he and those in that generation and those before him were willy nilly pressed into being a part of. He carries on his frail ageing but reliable shoulders a historic responsibility and burden of getting it right. He has a duty to realign the nation towards achieving its manifest destiny. He has no excuses for failure. Otherwise why should he be seeking power at his age? History will judge him very harshly should he fail.

The immediate challenge before him is how to curb the excesses of the teaming masses of followers who undoubtedly adore him. The next is to rein in the display of empty, hollow pompousness and offensive arrogance by a few of his elitist, lazy patronage seeking associates, who if victorious will flock to him without discrimination.

I think it is time for us to begin anew. We should start to live as normal human beings and not in self-delusion and self-deceit. This is the real transformation needed. This is the revolution we yearn for at this time in our national life. One now understands what drove past Chinese leaders into staging the “cultural revolution”. Nigeria is ripe for a non-violent revolution, which will shake us up like a volcanic eruption from our present national stupor and sweep out the quacks and charlatans from our midst.

What we need is to get out there and March (28) for Buhari.