STRIKER: The “Die Minute”

MOHBAD’S death is clearly a symptom and consequence of a lawless country, whatever anyone thinks to the contrary. No democracy can run without strict enforcement of the rule of law. Democracy, majority rule, cannot run on impunity.

If might is right, with certain persons untouchably living above and beyond the law, as is clearly the case in the land today, there is no way of asserting that that society is democratic.

As we write, millions of barrels of Crude Oil are still being purportedly “stolen” while this very week, soldiers and policemen were ambushed, killed and their vehicles burnt in Imo; interestingly, in thousands of such instances over the years, hardly anyone is ever conclusively brought to justice openly.

To begin with, what are the causative factors of criminality? A famous saying has it that “an idle hand is the devil’s workshop” while another says “my people perish for lack of wisdom (knowledge).” Whereas there is a choice to be made by every man and woman, based on conscience and morality, there is no debating that widespread hunger, unemployment, underemployment, illiteracy, ignorance and poverty are stronger forces than moral admonitions and good conscience.

It is ONLY after the primal needs of man (food, clothing and shelter) are taken care of, and quality education that delivers knowledge, character and skills is everywhere available and affordable, that those who choose crime can then be truly identified for the devils they are.

Governments everywhere that do not take the provisions of the above seriously, despite the statement that the “primary responsibility of government is the security of lives and property and WELFARE of the people,” thereby show their hands as devil’s agents.

Democracy is no empty word; it bears repeating a million time! It is the expectation by the founding fathers of democracy that it will lead to the triumph of the wishes of the majority; and to what end? Securing for them the rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, which are inalienable for all men (and women) who are created equal by God. It is on this foundation that the principles of the rule of law, fundamental human rights and separations of powers are built. Political parties, periodic elections, the judiciary, the free press, and the likes, are only means to an end of delivering the ultimate democratic objectives; their mere jaundiced and zombie presence in any country does not automatically translate to the fact that society is democratic or enjoying democratic dividends.

Indeed, it is clear that “democracy,” in most African countries especially, has been so corrupted and manipulated that it has become a smokescreen for authoritarianism, delivering brutal exploitation and oppression of the majority, with super benefits only to minority power elites at the slavish service of foreign powers. These despotic elites merely pay lip services to democratic principles and practice; making sweet, empty promises to their disempowered people that they wittingly divide to rule. The spate of coups and return to military rule in many African countries, especially former French colonies, while it may be a desperate jump from frying pan to fire, is no doubt a clear expression of the frustration of “the majority” with “democracy” that is now no more than a new nomenclature for dehumanising tyranny.

The first steps of any genuine “government of the people, by the people and for the people” in guaranteeing security of lives and property and the welfare of the people, can never be to make life more difficult for them under any conditions or (un)reason, while preaching understanding and perseverance. If Democracy cannot better their fortune, it should leave them where they are. The genuine first steps are to start solving the problems of why the majority are not gainfully employed; why there is epileptic energy supply; why they cannot locally refine, process and add values to a multitude of their God-given resources; why they cannot feed themselves with over-abundance of arable lands and livestock; why education is not delivering knowledge, skill and character, and is even now unaffordable even as it is mere schooling and certification; and many such issues that seem intractable for decades. Unfortunately, the questions are not even posed much else attended to, as the fixation remains on “free oil money” collection, loading into federation accounts, and disbursing to tiers of government for wilful spending by the CEO at each tier. In all these, the question of return to a genuine FEDERAL REPUBLIC for equity is even forgotten.

Essentially, for Nigerians and Nigeria, the warped structure has bred and grown all kinds of monsters, pushing us to the “die minute.” May the death of Mohbad (Imole) amplify the wakeup call to those whose avowed calling is the progressive transformation of society.