WHAT MANNER OF MEN ARE THESE?!

"Nigerian leaders, again I emphasise, mostly men, are manifesting the worst possible form of spiritual and moral atrophy. They have operated for so long without regard for truth, constitutionality and the greater good that they have not only become virtually unable to, but are also incapable of recognising and appreciating it in others."

I don’t know about you, but I am concerned about the direction this country is headed. And it’s all about the moral and ultimately, the spiritual condition of the men, mostly men, who have found themselves in leadership positions in our land.
 
The situation today reminds me of one story that I have had occasion to tell on this page before. According to the story, an after-dinner joke, actually, representatives of several nation-states bordering Nigeria were reported to have requested audience with God to discuss a matter of urgent regional importance. Face-to-face with the Creator, they were said to have complained about the inequity of the distribution of natural, mineral and human resources in the region. “You have given Nigeria much more than all of us put together; a huge population, vast arable land, variety of agricultural produces, access to the ocean and now even oil and gas”, they protested. “But look at us; puny by comparison. Why, Father, why?” As the story goes, the Creator was said to have looked at the delegates, a glint of amusement in his eyes and said: “yes, you are right; I gave them all of that; but have you noticed the kind of leaders they have?!”

It’s funny, but please, don’t laugh. Nigerian leaders, again I emphasise, mostly men, are manifesting the worst possible form of spiritual and moral atrophy. They have operated for so long without regard for truth, constitutionality and the greater good that they have not only become virtually unable to, but are also incapable of recognising and appreciating it in others.

There are so many contemporary examples, including former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s disingenuous and satanic statement concerning his foiled third-term in office bid. He claimed that the fact that it was not an executive bill meant that he did not initiate it, and that also meant he never wanted it. Then he threw in the sacrilegious. If he wanted it, he would have got it. He would have got it (because) there is nothing he asked for from God that he never got. Now, that is something! This man was lying and calling God as witness! Did he think we have all forgotten that he said, in the heat of the “unsolicited” term elongation debate, that God was not a God of abandoned project? If that wasn’t passing the project off as God’s, I don’t know what it is? What kind of man is this?! Any wonder that Nigeria is like this, when a man like that ruled us for nearly twelve of our 52 years?

There are other examples, but the most unnerving is that about the building or renovation or both of St Stephen’s Anglican Church, Otuoke, family church of President Goodluck Jonathan, by an Italian construction firm. What makes it so worrisome is that the core issues of morality and constitutionality it raised are being buried in an avalanche of abusive verbiage, crass politicking and the worst form of ethnic and religious bigotry. To worsen matters, the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion), through the Primate, no less, allowed itself to be drawn into the politics of it.

The President was reported to have, among other things, told his audience at the dedication of the church building that he personally complained to the CEO of Gitto Costruzioni Generali Nigeria a contractor handling some jobs for the Federal and Bayelsa state governments, about the state of the church. Smart guy that he is, the CEO took the hint. His company went to the rescue and the cute little church being dedicated is the result. (CONTINUES BELOW)

 
Dutifully, the Action Congress of Nigeria latched on to what is clearly a Freudian slip by a President I have long suspected has a problem with speaking outside prepared speeches. Its National Publicity Secretary, Lai Mohammed issued a statement asking the National Assembly to commence impeachment proceedings against the president for constitutional violations.

Citing the Code of Conduct for Public Officers which is an integral part of the constitution of the Federal Republic, the ACN said the president’s admission that he solicited and received assistance from a government contractor is a clear violation, which should be investigated and followed to its logical conclusion. Some other political parties, civil society groups and notable lawyers and public affairs commentators agree with ACN.

Predictably, reactions came from all the expected quarters. But, if anyone expected light from the reactions, it probably is still on its way. For, what came was a lot of heat, no illumination. Here are some of the reactions.

The Presidency: “Yes, a contractor who has worked and continues to work in Bayelsa State and other parts of Nigeria thought it fit, in fulfilment of its corporate social responsibility, to facilitate the renovation of the small church in the President’s home town of Otuoke. It takes a lot of desperation to translate this act of social responsibility for which there are innumerable precedents in our country into a crime for which the usual suspects are now calling for the ‘impeachment’ of President Jonathan…Examples of such corporate assistance to communities, cities and states abound across Nigeria. The President’s accusers are certainly not unaware of the fact that the famous Millennium Park in Abuja was donated to the city by a construction company, but we do not recall that anyone was ever accused of receiving the park or other similar communal projects as a bribe.”

The Contractor: “Gitto Costruzioni Generali Nigeria Limited (GCG) DID NOT build a new church at Otuoke for President Jonathan or any other person. The fact of the matter is that the Company, as well as friends and well-wishers of the community, were contacted during the burial of the late Pa Jonathan by the members of the community and parishioners of Otuoke to renovate the already existing church. To this end Gitto Costruzioni Generali Nigeria Limited (GCG) responded to this request based on its strong Corporate Social Responsibility culture. However due to the dilapidated state of the existing structure it became apparent that the risk of maintaining it was far too grave, hence Gitto Costruzioni Generali Nigeria Limited (GCG) was left with no choice but to reconstruct the church in its entirety.

I shall be quoting from a few others, including the most disappointing of them all; that from the Church next week. It suffices to say here that Reuben Abati, who authored the Presidency’s reaction in his usual elegant prose, did not deny that the President said he “complained” to GCG’s CEO, which if true must pass for solicitation or worse, intimidation. The company’s statement, on the other hand, spoke about being approached by “members of the community and parishioners of Otuoke.” Was the President one of them? Did the President lie against himself? What kind of man would do that? (TO BE CONTINUED).