It has been said in some quarters that whereas some countries have the misfortune of experiencing natural disasters, our natural disaster is bad governance. Government after government, it has been a tale of crass incompetence, selfishness, greed, lack of vision and overall case of bad governance.
Former military head of state and two-time democratically elected president, Muhammadu Buhari, died in a London clinic where he had gone for medical care. Unfortunately, he passed away last Sunday. The remains of Buhari, who died at 82, was interred in his country home in Daura, Katsina State last Tuesday.
Our hearts go out to his immediate family as we pray that the good Lord, the unimpeachable judge be merciful to him. But the truth has to be told how this Daura General, who is one of the very few persons who have benefited immensely from the country, fluffed several opportunities to better the lots of Nigerians while in office.
For those who insist that speaking of the actions of a dead person amounts to speaking ill of the dead, I beg to disagree. After all, it is said that the burden of death is not on the dead but those still living.
An honest assessment of a former leader is not to condemn him, but for the living to learn from and realise that while still holding that office, they should seize the opportunity to leave a good impression of themselves. At their death, the same fate awaits them. No sentiments.
Nigeria gave its best to a very small segment of the populace. Buhari and Olusegun Obasanjo are unarguably the most fortunate. They have not only served as military heads of state and 8 years as elected president, but also are retired generals of the Nigerian army. They have also held several public offices. For this class of Nigerians, they have enjoyed what millions of others cannot dare to dream of.
In a country where many can hardly point at anything tangible which they have benefited from the country, how does one explain it that these extremely fortunate ones have not repaid the nation with anything substantial by way of good governance and exemplary leadership?
How is it that the Nation has continued to retrogress, and remained underdeveloped with all her contemporaries at Independence in 1960 by far ahead of us now?
According to reports, General Abdulsalami Abubakar and the late Buhari, were both admitted at the same clinic in London. We are told that Abdulsalami was already on admission at the hospital when Buhari was admitted. Two former heads of state of one nation in the same clinic at the same time. Perhaps, the promoters of Guinness World Records should consider this for recognition. Thank God that Abdulsalami is alive, their story would automatically have gained entry into the world record books.
It’s indeed shameful to say the least. What does it take to at least replicate that experience they always run to enjoy outside the country here at home? We are not reinventing the wheel. It’s a matter of lack of willpower. They continually fail to improve our infrastructure because they know they can afford treatment abroad. They know that with their humongous resources, their unborn generations can still afford to travel anywhere for leisure.
How can our healthcare system improve when the leaders and public office holders whose responsibilities it is to build them do not use them? How can our schools compete favourably with others when the children of local government chairmen and all public office holders have their children in schools abroad?
For all of the eight years of Buhari as president, he was constantly abroad for treatment. Of course, his bootlickers and miserable appointees kept telling us that his absence would not affect governance. Well, we all now know better.
Whichever way, one wants to look at it, it remains a sad commentary on the nation that a President of that nation, whose responsibility it is to lift his people and improve their wellbeing is always running abroad to seek healthcare attention.
It is a shame that we are only talking of brick and mortar and not rocket science or nuclear technology. We are only demanding that they build and equip our hospitals. Medical expertise is never in short supply here.
Those who insist that we must not rightly assess Buhari’s tenure in office or who are spewing false eulogies about a leader who simply failed in office or dismissing those who express the opinion that Buhari’s tenure was a failure, are sycophants and hypocrites.
They should tell how many times Buhari was seen in any hospital in Nigeria. It took his wife Aisha to expose the fact that in spite of the billions being spent on the Aso Rock clinic, they had nothing to show for it when she visited. That is what a good leader should do; visit.
They should tell us how Buhari’s ethnic and religious bias helped us as a nation. They should tell us if Buhari’s reign left us more united or divided. They should tell us what Buhari did other than his relentless pursuit to advance religious and ethnic agenda. How many Nigerian cities did Buhari develop as he did Daura? They should tell us why Buhari chased and hunted Nnamdi Kanu and Sunday Igboho, but never lifted a finger, let alone arrested his fellow Fulani who were killing and displacing locals from their communities.
Or is it a coincidence that not one Fulani killer herder was arrested in the eight years of Buhari’s ruinous reign? How does repeating what we know and condemned while he was alive now amount to speaking ill of the dead, now that he is, sadly, no more?
We all have our date with death, so whatever we do while alive will determine how we will be remembered.
While I totally condemn people rejoicing at the death of anyone, I also don’t expect those who celebrated at the death of former head of state, Sani Abacha, to be the same ones condemning those who are doing the same thing at the death of Buhari.
Buhari has finished his race and is free of the burden of death. It’s for the living and our leaders of today and tomorrow to learn and work on themselves and remember that they must leave behind good legacies for which they would be remembered. Running away from what is an obvious reality is hypocrisy and sycophancy taken too far.
Today, President Bola Tinubu is the president; what he does now or fails to do will be how he will be remembered. He has also joined the medical tourism voyage. We are not against it because he can afford the best of healthcare anywhere in the world, but he must also realise that if he fails to leave a good impression of his time in office, people would still assess him as they deem fit. His tenure in office will still be judged by the living. Some leaders after dying are spoken well of while others are not. It’s what it is. No attempt at revisionism can change that reality in future.
Therefore, the lesson for the living at the death of anyone is to remember and work on themselves on how they wish to be remembered at death. No amount of wealth or influence can change that; only a life of selfless service to the people and good leadership, at whatever level, can guarantee us kind words and fond memories by the people when we are gone.
