Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.( Proverbs 13:2)
I had my breakfast at a Buka.
“Two pupuru, one meat and one pomo, make the soup Egusi”, I made my order. As the Lady that attended to me motioned to leave my table, I added, make the soup mixture.
Where I sat, 4 men walked in, obviously also coming to have breakfast ahead of the day’s work.
" A ma wo kan ti baba olori fun fun a so bayi", a rough translation in English will mean, “we will see what the oga with white hairs will say now”. The man with white hair being Rotimi Akeredolu, Governor of Ondo State. The topic of discussion was the attack on the farm of respected Afenifere leader, Pa Falae by suspected herdsmen. You will recall that is not the first time his farm has been attacked, so this time, it looked like more weight on the camel's breaking back. I did not contribute, but broke into intermittent painful smiles.
However, the most painful part of the discussion was when the one opposite me blurted out," I am not voting in the next election...I will just stay in my house", and a coincidental confirmation dawned in the hearts of the others, as one by one they all said, they will not be voting. Why? " Buhari's winning is the first election I voted in since I was born. I was really hopeful...", the man by left exclaimed. He is obviously close to his 30s. This is a rough reflection of a lot of people that voted Buhari into power. We were just tired of the poor leadership and the wanton corruption happening under GEJ, we wanted a breath of fresh air. The man who had no shoes had left a lot more people without shoes, so the sound of change was a tune we wanted to hear. After 3 losing trials, we hoped he had learned enough to put us on the path of greatness where our potential as a nation will be excellently explored.
He had a Christian Pastor and professor with him, that was enough to calm the nerves of some of us, who were attacked from the church that we were were supporting an Islamist/Jihadist.
So I campaigned, took the message everywhere I went, lost friends, gained new alliances and more importantly, I got more involved in political mobilization.
Next year we vote again, but we have a weakening hope.
You enter a taxi during the fuel scarcity to the sound of doubled fares, you want to complain and the driver reminds you." No be you vote for change...It is change oh". In Nigeria, when fuel prices go up, cost of living grows life, so the market woman has the same excuse, sometimes in more explanatory formats--stories you can relate to.
The body language we screamed when he came in has expired, things are returning back to normal.
The number of corruption cases that get lost in the clouds because they are close to the top is increasing. These days, all it takes to stop being corrupt is to change the colours and get a broom.
A new term, cabal, is now blamed for everything that the president should be blamed for.
We screamed Boko Haram as the major security issue for GEJ, but under PMB, we are hearing stories of the painful menace of the "Fulani" Herdsmen. It is more painful that there are cases in the past where Herdsmen were attacked and he was a defender of their rights; and now as president when he is supposed to defend the rights of all, we see more headlines than actions. We have deployed, we have deployed! yet we see more killings. You complain and you are reminded of headlines "The IGP has relocated to Benue" or a military this is now that, but how does the man in the warring village who has lost more understand the stories of these deployments better than seeing results!
We are tired! I am tired! I have no excuse for any killing happening on either side, the killings just have to stop.
No time to discuss matters, when there is a clear bridge of established laws, defaulters should be brought to book. You do not like a law? there are ways to make your grievances known and not threaten constituted authority. Are you above the law?
Stop the blames and get to work! people are dying.
As I type, Timi Dakolo’s Great Nation has been on the replay, cos the wearied hope is getting me sick. I am optimistic about the options for the 2019 elections. I steadily get the stick for being a firm supporter of the current administration, I blame no one for that, but while we wallow in the blame games, a new season is about to start, will you lose again? You think I made a mistake? Correct it. I take my actions for the love of country, no allegiance is superior to my quest for a better Nigeria.
So this is the gist, the time to make your voice heard is now. Do your part, campaign for your candidate, deal with issues, value human life over political correctness, extol patriotism over blind partisanship…I voted out GEJ, voted in PMB, I am disappointed in both—they have functioned below the standard of leadership I expect—so I prepare myself to vote again in 2019.
Irrespective of who wins, I will not stand down, I am running for a better Nigeria.
