A society that cares about its future, must experience sleeplessness, especially as it pertains to the preparedness, possibilities, as well as the prospects of its youth as leaders of tomorrow on the one hand, and the well being of its citizens after retirement on the other hand.
Though in 2009, His Excellency Matthew Hassan Kukah, had in a piece titled “Preparing for Nigeria’s Coming Power Elite”, hypothesized that: “In about half a century from now, a new brand of leaders of Nigerian descent who are now honing their political skills and tailoring their brinkmanship in some of the best schools around the globe, will return home to seize the mantle of leadership from their thieving and corrupt parents who presently run the show and who would have become too old to be involved in the physicality of election rigging”, here within the climes of Southern Kaduna, I am more worried about a foreseeable class I refer to as the Incoming Retirees.
As a corollary to His Lordship’s submissions, I foresee that unless something is quickly done, in about quater of a century from now, our homesoil shall be witnessing the influx of its sons and daughters from the cities retiring home not as ex- soldiers, civil servants or entrepreneurs, but as former house boys and girls. Like the
zionist Jews, the return of these veterans would usher us into a dispensation of conflicts in our own Middle East. There will be claims and counter claims about their ancestral land and particularly, the ownership of some economic trees planted by their fathers as their pension.
We must accept in all humility that a generation of our elite has failed us. Yes they have failed us for their inability to mentor these incoming retirees some of whom are well schooled and have their certificates, brains and skills as evidence that they equally have the capacity to occupy the enviable positions their colleagues in other climes occupy. What is obvious is the fact that the abysmal inaction was clearly as a result of an unbridled greed, but moreso that, as far as the Kaduna political architecture is concerned, the Southern Kaduna politician had been structurally disadvantaged based on creedal identity.
Every year, before the completion of the Senior School Certificate Examinations, contacts and arrangements had already been made via some veteran house boys and girls in the cities on members of the privileged class who may be in need of the services of these Southern Kaduna ‘orphans’. “But he or she must be of good character,” the employer will insist. Of course, the liason veteran will certify them as having the fear of God.
Yes, this is the state of affairs in most of our Southern Kaduna climes. What is now indisputable is the fact that unless men of conscience like President Tinubu and Governor Uba Sani interfere, our future as youth will comparatively remain bleak. As youth, whenever we compare with our colleagues in other climes, we feel devastatedly cowed down. Only recently, I attracted a friend’s attention to the very young boys and girls Governor Nasir El-Rufai is mentoring from his own divide and creedal constituency. These young men and women he appointed into various positions in government are now many steps ahead of us. And it appears as if we now live side by side as children of Hutus and Tutsis respectively. What is again obvious is the fact that we are likely to be their stewards in the nearest future given their experience, skills, knowledge, wealth and connections. Little wonder we resort to the alternative of being house boys and girls to make up for the lacuna.
Now that it is very glaring that in the last eight years, our elite – especially the political class, have either died or become ostracized from the kitchen of power and have now become economically lame, it will seem that agriculture and entrepreneurship are the only windows through which we can sneak into the land of equality where we and our now privileged colleagues are all Tutsis. Surely, this corroborates Bishop Matthew Kukah’s point that “seventy percent of our problems in Southern Kaduna can be solved through economics – money, than on the acquisition of school certificates. No wonder, only last week, my muslim friend said to me: “Christianity in Southern Kaduna has done a lot in the areas of Education and Healthcare, but unfortunately unlike Islam, paid little or no attention to entrepreneurship.”
Though agriculture and entrepreneurship are the windows into the future, politics unarguably remains the vehicle. As we have seen in the last eight years, public policy determines who gets to where as we can see in the Dangotes and A.A. Ranos of this World.
What is now clear is that, if we are to get rid of the incoming retirees, that is, our own version of the Almajiris, then our powerful men and women, especially those in the business and political classes, must be ready to invest in agriculture and entrepreneurship. But who at the moment? They have either died, lost their financial muscles, or indisposed! The fact that, at the moment, no son or daughter of Southern Kaduna descent appears to have either the finance or the structure to contest for Governorship in the State, says it all. Indeed, an epiphany – a peeping hole into the vulnerability of our near future. With the death of our first eleven, Southern Kaduna has now become a large orphanage. Where are our Sir Patrick Yakowa, Cols. Mamman Dickson, Yohanna and Joshua Madaki? Where is our Chief Garba Madaki Ali, Sen. Isaiah Balat, Engineer Stephen Shekari, Gen. Luka Yusuf, Rear Admiral Ishaya Iko, Prof. Yakubu Sankey, Arch. Barnabas Bala Bantex, Prof. Andrew Nok, Dr. Chris Abashiya, etcetera? Yes, they have all returned to the author of life.
Now that the emergence of our son – Gen. Christopher Gwabin Musa – as the Chief Of Defence Staff – has re-activated a cautionary hope in our people, to the extent that Pregnant mothers are already contemplating naming their babies Tinubu, it will not be out of place to say the following. One, that immediately he was announced, the whole Southern Kaduna, especially in the market places, were dancing. And that the social media is awash with videos of women dancing at various markets. True, we are glad that the symbolism of his emergence alone has brought relative Peace to the region. It is a map reading into the mind and heart of the President that he will not tolerate the killings. The message is simple: the same-faith ticket was only a strategy of winning elections. Also that with this development, the President has literally converted a one – time gentile territory to the APC thereby laying a good foundation not only for the Party in 2027, but also resolving the bitterness that brought about the agitations that characterized the region in the last eight years against the APC government.
Two, with the region’s experience of political exclusion which made it anti – APC in the last eight years, and its people vulnerable to poverty and insecurity, President Tinubu has only one step more to making history. Now that there’s so much conversation about how he raised and mentored a whole generation in Lagos, at a time that in Kaduna State, the Governor, Deputy Governor, SSG, PPS, Speaker House of Assembly, and even the Speaker of the National Assembly, are all of the same religion, all he needs do is to balance the equation by considering a Southern Kaduna Christian for Ministerial appointment and others. Yes, the large orphanage needs an improvised fatherhood in both President Tinubu and Governor Uba Sani.
Of course, it is important to make the clarification that the emergence of General Christopher Gwabin Musa as Chief Of Defence Staff is not, and cannot be, a compensation for the apparent eight years of exclusion, even with the two Ministerial appointments the State enjoyed in the last eight years, because, the General is a career soldier deserving his position and not a politician.
And since it is now in public domain that the only bridge that connects my village of Ikulu to the rest of Southern Kaduna was literally built by the late M.K.O. Abiola, which was, according to Macdonald Luka Akoka, what endeared him to his Father and their generation, It will therefore make sense to say that, Tinubu, being the new Abiola, ought to be concerned about building the bridge through which our generation – the incoming retirees, will pass through to a prosperous future.
Hopefully, with the President and Governor Uba Sani on our side, sooner than later, we shall be invited to the baptistry for Southern Kaduna’s total and meteoric conversion to the APC. No doubt, our Priests, who misunderstood the President before the elections, will be willing to administer the baptismal rite. May God bless Nigeria.
Damina wrote from Kaduna and can be reached through francisdamina@gmail.com
