In a previous post i titled ‘One missed opportunity attracts another.’ It was the issue of the carnage in Yobe that happened close to Nigeria's centenary celebration and President Jonathan addressed the Nation at the centenary celebration without using the opportunity to properly address the terrorism issue and give Nigerians the reassurance of good leadership that could bring the dastardly acts into an end. That was a missed opportunity, and it has attracted yet another one.
Monday 14th of April now tagged “black Monday” in Abuja was another stain in our Nationhood. Another disaster struck. The dastardly act happened fast, it happened early and as quick as it happened it spread the wave of sorrows, tears and blood. Emergency response no doubt, but lives already lost in dozens. Within 24 hours latter over a hundred girls were kidnapped from a secondary school in Yola. ‘It never rains, it pours‘.
While Nigerians recounted these harrowing experiences the President continued his political crisscrossing of Nigeria from Kano to Oyo. In Kano it was political campaign, with pomp and pageantry. Whereas in Abuja Nigerians and non Nigerians alike scampered to assist the wounded in every way they could. some went as far as donating blood. Even non Nigerians did so.
It seemed the President lived in a world of his own. What message does this send to the perpetrators. A father who attends a party while his house suffers the anguish of hoodlums is not likely to be able to fend away the hoodlums for good. Yes president Jonathan is the Father of the Nation, and as a father he has a lot of responsibilities to wake up to.
Even the sleeping confab was jarred from its slumbers as voices resonates of threats to halt the confab in view of the insecurity which had continued to devastate our nation with a reckless abandon. One cannot but ask the question, when would we be able to jolt the President. What is the president’s acceptable casualty figure or rather when do we get to the tilting point.
in another clime, some pundits would ague that one tilting point of President Obama's campaign last year was the humane response to hurricane Sandy. In spite of the nearness to election, President Obama visited the storm ravaged areas and showed enormous empathy. Even as he continued his campaign the presidential media people continued to show the president's continued concern and monitoring of the events.
This humane act; some would say was politics, earned president Obama a lot of points. At least it made the New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg endorse the president after the storm hit. Big lesson here. Its not election year in Nigeria, yet the president anxiously continued his political crisscrossing. In Kano the welcome was less than cordial, at least not with the response of the broom wagging fellows who ensures they swept off the feet of the visitor they never welcomed. Lesson learned is that even when we play politics, it should be with humane outlook. That way the people tend to believe you more.
Why can we not get the same kind of Obama response from our politicians or rather when would we get such a response. Its just one missed opportunity and then another. Again the president missed yet another opportunity to straighten things. The violence and dying pattern has now become part of us. Politrics is a non desideratum at this time. Nigerians are dying and we cannot continue to stand aloof. Or how many more needs to die!?
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