When Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States was ravaged by natural disaster this year, President Donald Trump, “the racist”, visited the state with his Vice President, Mike Pence, to commiserate with his fellow countrymen.
When a gun man killed 59 persons in Nevada, Las Vegas, Trump and his wife, Melania, visited Nevada to commiserate with his compatriots (Remember that the gun man was dealt with even before this visit).
Now, come to Nigeria: The terrorist Fulani herdsmen rained a harvest of deaths and destruction on Nimbo in Enugu State, leaving behind them over 40 mutilated and mangled dead bodies (mostly women and children). This was an attack that was forewarned, for which the security agencies looked the other way. This was a gruesome genocide that would have been avoided, if the security agencies had answered to the clarion calls of the state governor to stop the carnage.
Yet, Buhari, his wife and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo did not deem it fit and proper to visit Nimbo to commiserate with those they swore oath of office to protect. They did not visit to see things for themselves. Rather, they commanded an apparently dishevelled Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State and ferried him to Aso Rock to meet with Buhari for a smiling and back-slapping photo-ops. That was a governor who shed crocodile tears less than 24 hours before the photo-op session..
Till today, no security head or agency was sanctioned for the avoidable Nimbo massacre. Till today, none of the terrorist herdsmen was arrested and prosecuted for such heinous crime against innocent, unarmed and law-abiding citizens of Nigeria.
Before Nimbo, it was Agatu and other far-flung places, no one was arrested. Even one of the leaders of the terrorist group was on Channels Television to adduce reasons why the killings happened. He walked away and was not arrested or prosecuted.
Just last week, the same merchants of death visited Benue and Taraba states with a New Year gift of rain of death. Over 120 innocent citizens, mostly women, children, and others were killed in cold blood. Yet, our President did not deem it fit and proper to visit his “subjects”, who were cut down by these merchants of death and destruction.
Rather than visit these states, President Buhari decided, like the emperor that he is, to summon the governor and elders of Benue State to Aso Rock for another photo-op. He even had the presence of mind to admonish them “in the name of God” (whatever he meant by that ) to “accommodate” these lawless killers, whose secretary even went on air 72 hours after the harvest of death in Benue to threaten another rain of destruction if the Benue governor refuses to suspend a lawfully passed bill in a constitutional democracy like ours. Why would some renegades threaten, and indeed, execute the killing of a people for a law that was constitutionally passed by a lawfully elected government?
Honestly, the more I try to wrap my head round about the absurdities in this jungle, called Nigeria, the more I get flabbergasted. Why will a people whose, children, wives, brothers and sisters were murdered be made to leave their grieving homes to pay homage to a man who was supposed to protect them but could not?
I grew up learning that in Africa when people are bereaved, others (friends, enemies, well-wishers etc.) visit them to commiserate with them. What is the meaning of this impudent culture of an employee, and elected President, staying in his office, hundreds of kilometres away from the scenes of carnage, carnage that would have been avoided if he had lived up to his oath of office and then expect the victims and mourners to come and visit him? What is the meaning of all these, bikonu?
For all of you who are angry that Donald Trump called your country a “shithole”, do you now see another evidence to show that you guys live in a putrid pit worse than a shithole? Trump was actually mild with his choice of word. You guys live in a far worse condition than a “shithole”.
I weep for Nigeria. I weep for the poor masses. Whatever offence that Nigerians committed that made them to be saddled with such weak, cowardly, incompetent and non-caring rulers in Nigeria?
- Dr Nnaemeka Obiaraeri, Ikoyi, Lagos. 08152027233, emekabk21@yahoo.com
PUNCH.