World News
Published: November 4, 1998Slippery
Myths and the Nigerian Crisis
By Olusola A. Adeyeye, Ph.D.
Secretary-General, United Democratic Front of Nigeria
A person who shows the capacity to learn from past experience is adjudged to be wise. Therefore, if a people have been subjected to flagrant dehumanization, wisdom and inborn instincts for self-preservation dictate that they learn the monumental lessons of their peculiar history. Or else, they are sentenced to suffer a doubled affliction of past woes. For more than twenty-seven years, Nigerians have suffered crass dehumanization because of the tyrannical stranglehold of metastasizing military oligarchy. As we stare down the corridor of recent history, our memory and civic consciousness are jolted by the thunderbolts of state violence. No wonder, against all odds, and despite the treachery of so-called international friends who would rather Nigerians suffer from collective retrograde amnesia, we have succeeded in driving the message home to our oppressors that we have had enough of stolen power and its concomitant absolutism and brutality.
The long-awaited broadcast of General Abudulsalam Abubakar included one confession that ought to gladden the hearts of Nigerians; he openly admitted that the Nigerian people are fed up with the pestilence of autocracy. Even so, there are still formidable obstacles to democratic governance in Nigeria. Already, the euphoria that greeted the death of Sani Abacha has been drowned in the heinous but well-planned murder of President-elect Chief M. K. O. Abiola, a crime committed in the presence of international guests that unwittingly served as perfect alibi. While our memory is still fresh, and before predictable conduits of image laundering and gratuitous revisionism assault us further with apocryphal histories, outright concoctions and half-truths, it is necessary to debunk some myths that are now spewed with gusto at home and abroad.
Myth 1: Abdulsalam Abubakar is a "professional" soldier who will do what is right for Nigeria.
Facts: The cold fact is that for five years, General Abubakar served as Minister of Defense for a regime that even he has now admitted manipulated the process of governance against the legitimate and democratic wishes of the Nigerian people. It was his responsibility to keep tab of the military while his mentor, the accursed and Satanic Sani Abacha wove his evil designs on Nigeria. Had Abubakar possessed the professionalism that his image manufacturers now attribute to him, he and other top military brass should have used their offices to bring an earlier end to the trauma inflicted on our people. Alas, as a top brass of Sani Abacha's diabolical cabal, it was quite convenient for Abubakar to violate the code of honor of the military profession by perpetuating the usurpation of political powers. Professionalism indeed!
For five years, Abacha took Nigeria down the darkest labyrinths of civic existence. His self-serving program was conceived in treachery, executed with viciousness, and ultimately surrendered via the providential rescue of a merciful God, operating through human agency perhaps. We do not know for certain. All we can insist upon is that it is never too late to do the right thing. Abubakar had a golden opportunity to do the right thing. He blew it. The right thing was for the military to admit its errors, and to accord Nigerians a hallowed respect for the mandate they gave Chief Abiola on June 12, 1993.
Excuses about why Chief Abiola's mandate could not be honored were just that- excuses! What law of Nigeria says the military could not admit its errors and give Chief Abiola his mandate? None whatsoever! But of course, we are yet to hear from Emeka Anyaoku's team of legal advisers. Those who argued that Nigeria is bigger than one man, and that it was time for Nigeria to move forward were correct. Nigeria is bigger than Sani Abacha and his court of obsequious henchmen who held our nation hostage for so long. Abubakar could have abandoned their macabre agenda. The Nigerian train was derailed on June 12, 1993. Those proffering solutions that fail to recognize the point of our derailment simply compounded our woes. Sooner or later, those who bury woes under the carpet of pretense will have those woes erupt before their own faces. There is ample evidence from history, especially contemporary history, that nations can never be permanently kept together by military power. Justice is the only glue that binds a nation in harmony. It was not too long ago that the Russians controlled 80% of the military apparatus of the Soviet Union. That republic imploded under the centrifugal forces of its own contradictions.
We in the Nigerian prodemocracy movement have argued that the Nigerian military cannot midwife democracy. We had called for a Government of National Unity and Reconciliation (GNUR) to be headed by Chief Abiola. That compromise would have ensured that the arbitrary cancellation of election was not allowed to stand as a precedent. It would also have ensured that the Sovereign National Conference that would have been conveyed by the GNUR would not be subjected to military hijacking. To date, there has not been a more logical, moral, and rational proposal.
But Abiola has been murdered. And Nigeria must surely move on. But where and how? Certainly, Abiola's blood like that of Kenule Saro-Wiwa, Kudirat Abiola, Alfred Rewane and thousands of other Nigerian victims, will haunt Nigeria until justice flows like rivers throughout the breadth and length of Nigeria.
Like other dictators before him, Abubakar's rationale for imposing himself on the Nigerian people sounds very hollow. If the selection of a Government of National Unity was considered undemocratic, and granted that Nigerian people have demonstrated their yearning for democracy, as Abubakar himself admitted, is the maintenance of a military oligarchy as Nigeria's apical power caste the democratic alternative? We must leave the ridiculous for the sublime. The leopard does not change its color.
It might not be long before Abubakar follows in the steps of his evil predecessors. The Nigerian people must remember their history and, in the pursuit of liberty, they must make eternal vigilance their watchword.
Myth 2: Kofi Annan and Emeka Anyaoku went to Nigeria to seek a resolution of the Nigerian crisis:
Facts: By an act of serendipity, two sons of Africa, Kofi Annan and Emeka Anyaoku, who are eminent international bureaucrats, now serve as the Secretary-General of the UNO and the Commonwealth, respectively. Both visited Nigeria at the same time and gave the world reports that, upon close scrutiny, are patently conflicting. Whereas Mr. Kofi Annan indicated that Chief Abiola had given up his mandate, Chief Emeka Anyaoku disclosed that little had changed. Meanwhile, in so far as Chief Abiola was concerned, we all knew that, indeed, little had changed. If Chief Abiola had, indeed, given up his mandate as Kofi Annan gleefully told the world, what reason on earth could the military have for holding him? From his grave Chief Abiola has spoken! His published letters can be summarized in one sentence: Kofi Annan plays fast and loose with facts, and is adept at deception! In any case, Annan was fully briefed of the position of the democratic opposition. Having listened to him before his visit to Nigeria, we knew what to expect; the fabrications he issued after his visit to Nigeria came as no surprise to us. Clearly, a pattern of dubiousness is emerging in the manner that Mr. Annan performs his function as Secretary-General of the UNO. His dereliction of duty in Rwanda was a liable act of omission; in Nigeria
it was a felonious act of commission. The hypocrisy of our so-called international friends- wrapped in diplomatic obfuscation and all-too-familiar double-speak comes as very little surprise. What is tragic is that African sons were the conduits for these brazen and sickening chicaneries. Kofi Annan knows too well who his paymasters are. As the saying goes, he who pays the piper always dictates the tune!
The performance of Emeka Anyaoku was even more sickening. As Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, whose colonial turf is considered an important adviser to the international community, Anyaoku betrayed his primary advisory role. He went far beyond the business of conflict resolution to inflict psychological attack on Chief Abiola in order to break the resolve of a hostage who was denied access to his counselors.
His overzealous performance in fostering the position of the military cabal that held Chief Abiola hostage was pathetic but definitely not surprising. After all, Anyaoku had issued a de facto endorsement of Sani Abacha's candidacy when he stated in South Africa a year ago, contrary to the supposed canon of the neutrality of his office, that Abacha was free to run in the election! While informing Chief Abiola of the legal advice he had obtained, Anyaoku conveniently forgot that at no time had the Supreme Court of Nigeria ceded its responsibility to adjudicate in such matters to the legal advisers of an international bureaucrat. Of course, Anyaoku must have forgotten to mention his own earlier de-facto endorsement of Sani Abacha's candidacy in a process that even Abubakar has now confessed to be flagrantly manipulated.
Perfidy! Chief Abiola's pungent question to Anyaoku must be asked again: "What is your special concern that you went looking for legal advice?"
Myth number 3: Obasanjo is Nigeria's messiah.
Facts: It is true that General Obasanjo distinguished himself as the only usurper of power to "voluntarily" relinquish it. However, is that enough to make Nigerians forget that on the eve of handing over power, his government in its usual condescension and hypocrisy, promised to repeal ALL BAD LAWS hitherto used to stifle dissent and civilized debate of national issues! Acknowledgment of the use of bad laws by that regime was a poignant testimony to the arrogance of Nigerian rulers and their cohorts. And what system did he leave behind? One of the supremacy of government violence and brutality, a judiciary to which justice was anathema and a police force that excelled only in the art of bribe taking and public harassment. Obasanjo's post-incarceration observation on the state of the military and other patriotic rhetoric sound hollow, coming from a man who presided over a dictatorship that gave birth to the likes of Babangida and Abacha. In any case, while western media were busy extolling the messianic credentials of Obasanjo, it was quite convenient for them to forget that Obasanjo's only constituency in Nigeria is the military. That his erstwhile constituency visited him with unmerited imprisonment showed the limitation of his clout.
Although a Yoruba by birth, most of his fellow Yoruba regard him as a traitor. Hopefully, he does not delude himself about being popular in the eastern part of Nigeria. In the north, even before Abacha stole power, Obasanjo is regarded with amused condescension. Yet, the international press keeps parading him as a messiah. And like the dictator he was, he speaks with the finality of an emperor who is always right. Recently, he opined that Chief Abiola's death and the resolution of June 12 are internal affairs of Nigeria! We of the UDFN did not consider Obasanjo's unjust incarceration as an "internal affair" of Nigeria. We have long rejected that cliché as the contraption of the African alliance of usurpers intent on turning African countries into pockets of tyranny.
Yes, Obasanjo was the first dictator to "voluntarily" relinquish power. But should we forget the numerous other firsts of which the Murtala-Obasanjo tandem was guilty? That regime was the first to retire, sack or dismiss civil servants and members of the judiciary en masse without giving these Nigerians the benefit of the due processes established by Nigerian Public Service Commission. The foundation for future more blatant violation of the rule of law was laid in 1975. In an attempt to consolidate power, Obasanjo's regime was the first to capriciously retire all military officers above a certain rank. Future dictators took a cue from that. Today, we have a military that has self decimated its senior officer ranks. Contrary to the canons of federalism, Obasanjo's regime was the first to seek national unity by appointing military governors into states other than their own origin or legal residence.
The metastasis of native colonialism that afflicts Nigeria today is a direct consequence of the political naiveté originated by Obasanjo's regime. Obasanjo's regime introduced the scepter of the "Unknown Soldier" into Nigerian governance. Properties were razed by "unknown" soldiers who also recklessly inflicted physical torture on citizens that have not been found guilty by any court of the land. In the zeal of Obasanjo's regime for vengeance, it promulgated and backdated a decree to ensnare Yakubu Gowon! By an irony of history, Obasanjo and Yar'Adua later became the most celebrated victims of that very decree! Obasanjo's regime was the first to acquire the institutions and properties of state governments without compensating those states!
It was the pernicious beginning of the erosion of the cardinal pillars of federalism in Nigeria. But Obasanjo's regime did worse; it was the first regime to take over a private newspaper by forcibly acquiring 40% of the shares of Daily Times thus wrecking havoc on the fourth estate of the realm. In a national broadcast, Nigerians were told at the beginning of the Obasanjo's political process that the elected President must win a quarter of the votes in thirteen states. Alas! Obasanjo's regime played Maradona on Nigeria by changing the rule of the game midstream by the infamous twelve two-third saga. No less a person than Theophilius Danjuma later told Nigerians that it was a blunder.
Had the process been taken to the electoral college of Parliament as the constitution stipulated, Shagari most likely would still have become President. In any case, Obasanjo's regime slaughtered due process and left a sickening example for future Nzeribes to copy. Among Obasanjo's worst crimes against Nigeria was his infamous declaration several years ago that Abiola was not fit to be President. The avowed democrat forgot that unlike himself, Abiola at least faced the people in an election and won! Unlike Obasanjo's, Abiola's mandate was not derived from the barrel of bazookas! With these as Obasanjo's undeniable record, when international media project him as a democrat, Nigerians must tell them to leave the ridiculous myth for the sublime reality.
Myth number 4: The established Democracies of the world truly wish for democracy to thrive worldwide.
Facts: Our ancestors recognized that when elephants fight, the grass suffers. It is no longer a secret that some powerful nations are engaged in a neo-colonialist wrestling match over Nigeria. Abacha went so far as to reward France with an announcement to make French Nigeria's second official language! More importantly, he shifted the accounts of Nigeria's oil royalties from British banks to French banks. A newly produced anti-Abiola documentary had just begun to make the round on European televisions just before Abiola died. It was part of a grand design to prepare European nations for a reversal of their stand on sanctions against the despotic regime in Nigeria.
This comes as little surprise. Tony Blair's government in Britain was busy secretly dealing in arms with Sani Abacha even in violation of the publicly stated stand of the Commonwealth. Just what are African lives worth after all? The public confession of President Clinton during his visit to Africa was greeted with thunderous applause by those who are familiar with the dealings of US governments with Africa. Specifically, President Clinton admitted that because of the Cold War, the United States governments had not often done the right thing with regard to Africa. Unfortunately, even now that the Cold War is over, it is with utter dismay that one must admit that in many instances, the United States government's policy is still dominated by a Cold War mind-set that prevents it from doing the right thing. Nigeria is a clear case in point.
That Abacha and his junta were a ruthless, diabolical and tyrannical military oligarchy needed no saying. That his regime daily violated every conceivable fundamental human rights and civil liberty in Nigeria was documented beyond any reasonable doubt. That Abacha's so-called transition program was a sham was obvious from the very beginning. That Abacha's planned transformation into a civilian dictator was an ill wind that would have produced, inevitably, a whirlwind of disasters in Nigeria and indeed the rest of Africa was incontestable. Given the reality that about a quarter of Africans live within the borders of Nigeria, the fact that such disasters would have had enormous global consequences was obvious. Why then did the United States not take the leadership in doing the right thing in Nigeria? We believe the answer lies, in part, in the fact that Abacha and his henchmen have used oil money to cajole, bamboozle and buy influence in quarters that ought to know better. Bill Clinton`s political party having received over $400,000 in campaign contributions from Chagoury, a Sani Abacha purse-bearer, we helplessly watched for five years as his administration waffled over Nigeria.
In debunking these myths, I recognize that the greatest tragedy that afflicts Nigeria today is neither the absolutism and terrorism of stolen power by a military oligarchy nor the patent hypocrisy of diplomatic prevarication, double-talk, and disingenuous international politicking. Rather, it is that Nigerians have remained so complacent in the face of flagrant dehumanization. When Nigerians are prepared to shake off the yoke of tyranny, neither foes nor friends shall deter us. That day will certainly come. Our struggle continues.
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