HOW TINUBU FAILED NADECO By: Dr O.N Akeredolu
0
0
0
0
HOW TINUBU FAILED NADECO By: Dr O.N Akeredolu
Anyone still expecting anything reasonable from the current administration of Asiwaju Ahmed Tinubu GCFR may wait for eternity. It’s obvious that the Asiwaju of Lagos State doesn’t have solutions to the myriad of Nigeria’s problems and has failed pro-democratic elements who fought General Abacha. General Muritala Muhammed (RTD) could create many states, reposition the civil service, and established many universities in just six months of his reign, being in charge of Nigeria for over a year, Jagaban of Borgu has no excuse for the current suffering in our nation.
*In the same vein, General Abdulsalami Abubakar (RTD) returned Nigeria to democracy in 9 months, which General Ibrahim Babangida (RTD) and General Sani Abacha (RTD) failed to do in their 8 years and 5 years, respectively. When our Messiah finally arrives in this country, it won’t take an eternity to bring Nigeria back to the track of progress.
The emergence of Asiwaju Ahmed Tinubu GCFR as the President of Nigeria has been surrounded by many controversies. Some of us started hearing the names Senator Bola Tinubu, Senator Arthur Nzeribe, Senator O.J Adewunmi, and Senator Remi Okunriboye in our childhood of the early 1990s. It was a challenging period for the country and quite a disappointing moment for the nation as a whole because the nascent democratic process was truncated by the military. After the June 12, 1993, presidential election, Mr. Henry Nwosu, then chairman of the central electoral body, having announced some states in which late Chief MKO Abiola was already leading conveniently, stopped the process by order from above and General Ibrahim Babangida finally nullified the entire election through a national broadcast.
Then the richest man in Africa and acclaimed winner of the election had to travel out of the country, even without a visa, to the United States of America just to lobby the Western world for their support. The leader of the junta, General Ibrahim Babangida, was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder following the shock of the 1990 Okar coup in which the evil genius narrowly escaped through the help of General Sani Abacha. It was obvious that this Niger State-born military generalismo was not ready to dare the Western influence, having seen what they did to his friend, General Samuel Doe of Liberia. He decided to leave the affairs of the nation under an interim government led by Chief Ernest Shonekan.
In an attempt to return to Nigeria, he was prevented from landing at Muritala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos State. When General Sani Abacha, the then most senior and influential military officer, serving as the Chief of Defence Staff, heard about the decision of some officers preventing Chief MKO Abiola’s jet from safe landing on the order of the interim government, he gave a contrary notice to his boys and ensured otherwise. This was where the dreaded General gained the attention of Chief MKO Abiola and his apologists, considering using his unlimited military power to channel a new course for the nullified aspiration of the Egba man. Earlier to this period, the Kanuri man who grew up in Kano, the late Sani Abacha, had sent some of his men to Kano, wishing his houses in the state to be renovated for his retirement. He was later prevailed upon by the then Are Ona Kankanfo of Yoruba land to torpedo the interim government and hand over power to him.
The Chief Ernest Shonekan-led temporary government was sacked, and the junta government, having late General Sani Abacha as the head of state and late General Oladipo Diya as the Chief of General Staff of the Military Ruling Council, took over the affairs of the nation. The vice-presidential candidate of SDP, Ambassador Babagana Kingibe, was appointed to the Ministry of Internal Affairs as a Minister, currently called the Interior Ministry under Honourable Bunmi Tunji-Ojo, the youthful performing minister, popularly called BTO, while others like late Chief Lateef Jakande, former governor of Lagos State, late Professor Olu Aluko, a renowned professor of economics from Ekiti State, Chief Ebenezer Babatope, and Alhaji Abdullahi Adamu, served in the cabinet in various capacities. The initial arrangement of handing over government to the late Chief Abiola was set aside, and the new Head of State was asking the acclaimed winner to take monetary compensation instead.
Having been betrayed by his newly found military friend, Abiola, gathered pro-democratic forces under the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) as a pressure group against the General Abacha-led military government. The organisation, which had Chief Adekunle Ajasin as the leader, Chief Olusegun Osoba, Chief Abraham Adesanya, Chief Olu Falae, Chief Opadokun, General Alani Akinrinade, Mr. Alfred Rewane, His Excellency Chukwuemeka Ezeife, Captain Ndubiisi Kanu, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu, now Nigerian president, Dr. Fredrick Fasehun, and a host of others as members, made the 5-year stay of General Abacha as head of state unbearable for him. Though he killed many of them, even the awaiting Nigerian first lady, the late Mrs. Kudirat Abiola, was gunned down by the killer squad of the dictator.
After several years of languishing in prisons across the nation by the democratic pressure group members, the dreaded General Sani Abacha mysteriously died and was succeeded by General Abdulsalami Abubakar, who ruled for 9 months and restored our latest democracy which is over 25 years now. Finally, after several shenanigans, Alhaji Bola Ahmed Tinubu became the President of Nigeria and has spent over a year presiding over the affairs of the nation. In all honesty, Nigeria had never been this miserable, not even during the first and the last civil war of the country, which spanned over 3 years. At the last Democracy Day celebration dinner, in which Senator Shehu Sani was invited for a speech, he encouraged Mr. President not to disappoint the people who fought for the democracy, believing that the Asiwaju of Lagos State was part of them.
Judging from the current level of suffering and poverty of Nigerians, characterised by the APC-led governments, championed by the incumbent president, who initially served as a national leader of the party, there is no hope in sight for the suffering citizens of this country. The APC-led governments have been a curse on the nation. The executive recklessness under the watch of the former governor of Lagos State is unbearable. His largest cabinet in the history of Nigeria is of no value to the downtrodden cum masses, and the majority of them, I mean cabinet members are functionally redundant. No doubt, Nigeria hadn’t been this bad since our independence. The Jagaban of Borgu has failed the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo and late Chief MKO Abiola, the duo who wished to govern Nigeria, of Yoruba descent, waiting to see this day in which a democrat of the Oduduwa tribe is ruling Nigeria. Also, NADECO members, a few of them still alive, must have been disappointed with the current lacklustre federal government of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu that lacks direction.
*Dr. Akeredolu O.N., Medical Doctor, Surgeon, Neurosurgeon-in-training.*
About The Author
