1984

1984

I remember in late 1984 when I was in Form 2 our English teacher had asked us to pen down our views for or against the premise that “Civil rule is better than Military Rule”. I remember that I was the only one had a contrary view.

My argument then was based on my perception of the complete disorder and lawlessness of the 2^nd Republic and the resultant effects of the 1983 General Elections. I remember our next door neighbor a UPN supporter who danced for joy in the early hours of 1^st January 1984 after listening to Brigadier Abacha’s, “Fellow Nigerians” coup speech. The gentleman from the southern fringes of the then Gongola State (now in Taraba) had lamented so vehemently on  the robbery of Awolowo’s Presidency by FEDECO and Shagari’s NPN, was now so pleased and thanked God for the Nigerian Military. I had thought that Mallam Umaru was just being cynical on losing the elections and couldn’t handle the loss and his “welcome” of the coup was a soothing balm for his bruised ego.

To me the previous civil regime was made up of lethargic politicians and their cronies who just weren’t the Leaders that this nation needed. To me they were bosses who found themselves in power by an accident of history, hurriedly put together by exploiting the ethno-religious fears of an unrefined voter. These bosses were the folks who enjoyed a retinue of sycophants following their bursting motorcades, came 2 hours late for official functions, did not know the words of the National Anthem, made empty promises and left. These were folks who had investments in other countries rather than in theirs, and were part of the class that turned Nigeria into an “importing economy”.

Then in 1984 all changed. We had a Head of State (Maj Gen. Muhammadu Buhari) and Government (Lead by Brigadier Tunde Idiagbon) who were visibly trying to bring about sanity and a sense of purpose. We had smart leaders, veterans of the Civil War that wore the fabric of discipline and duty that had clearly defined goals and wanted to put this Nation of various ethnic nationalities onto the path of true nationhood. For these patriots it was Nation    first. And if it meant that that whips had to be used, they had to be used. Try talking to wild animals into making queues, it just won’t work. And so it was, in the urban jungle that was Lagos- where every sane  citizen had trooped into to make his fortune but had come out a “wild animal”. The rightful use of whips guaranteed an orderly line for the infamous Lagos molue’.

Folks elsewhere were taught not to jump lines, have respect for the national symbols and orderliness and moderation were being encouraged. All companies were compelled to fly the Nigerian flag. Head of any organization flying a torn flag was dealt with. If you couldn’t sing the National anthem, frog jump was the punishment. I remember “civilians” in flowing baban riga’s doing the frog jump on TV. This may have come across as brutal but it was a necessary way of achieving a goal… of arriving at the ‘promised land”. Nigerian psyche was improving, there was focus. Money was only being spent on sensible projects. How many “white elephants” were there during the Buhari era? Years of neglect were being made right.

The Head of State had a simple 504 has his official car and I clearly remember Maj Gen. Muhammadu D. Jega ( now HRH Iliyasu Bashar the Emir of Gwandu) our Governor then had barely 4 cars in his convoy of Peugeot 504’s and we set our clock by his impeccable sense of timing. His 8:00am was 8:00am dot. I remember once when he came to our school and had updated us on the news that our school caster had just read. He was current, disciplined, focused and decisive, unlike our civilian blokes. But then they mostly were, the Administrators of that regime.

What makes human begins different from the animals, are the laid down societal norms dictated by culture and circumstance. And the fact we operate within them makes who we are.  And so is “freedom” within such parameters acceptable. We often forget that “freedom” is a relative term. We need to realize that no man is free; your freedom might begin where mine ends. Sometimes for the progress of a nation personal freedoms have to be curtailed, just ask the Japanese and the Chinese. Japan, a nation that was destroyed by the Second World War had to refocus and its energies towards rebuilding and growth. Citizens often had to work for long hours, for little pay, living in squalor in bunk like accommodations, giving up their personal freedoms. But then what did they achieve…… a Nation that became a global economic super power. Likewise, China was able to systematically channel the energy of its Billion plus population into collectively thinking of country first, yes curtailing personal freedoms while embracing its very culture. Look at China now- an economic and a military super power, a nation that has more millionaires than the US.  And I truly believe that it this concept of Nation before personal freedom is what the 1984 regime had in mind when Decrees 2 and 4 where enacted. The press was revolting because either they had no knowledge or had very little as to where to place Buhari and his government. If the regime had to be strict for the nation to get its values back, there was absolutely nothing wrong with it. The end would have justified the means. This would have been a small price to pay for securing the nation’s future. Yes perhaps the regime did not buy the carrot and the stick concept and just stuck to the stick part, but this would have just been a small part in the large tapestry of progress of the Nigerian Nation. Unfortunately in 1985, Nigeria lost its conscience and became a mental pariah. 

Today we have civil rule, a longest unbroken chain since Nationhood, but the lessons of history have still not been learned. We still have civilians still feeding on exploiting the ethno-religious divisions of an oppressed voter. Vagabonds in places of power and vagabonds fighting for- whose selfishness is systematically taking apart an already fractured nation. We still have bursting convoys of luxury automobiles and even a larger retinue of sycophants, where every ethnic nationality wants to lay claim to the “choicest part” of an already burned National Cake.

Today we have a nation that has no respect for its national symbols,   where states are flying their own flags and booming their anthems to the detriment of the green-white-green and the two verses of “Arise o Compatriots”. Where security is worse that it has ever been, where ethnic and religious militia hold sway. A nation that has NO idea on how much black gold it produces or how much natural resource it even has. A nation that prides on free press but has press without an ideology.

A nation whose leaders when shouting, “Dividend of democracy” probably imply: bombings, murder, kidnappings, officially sanctioned looting, bunkering, infrastructural decay, educational backwardness, selfishness, ritual killings etc. A nation with so much potential, now completely engulfed in the stale air of clueless, edging closer to the doldrums of chaos and anarchy. A Nation where “wealth by all means” is becoming carved on the national consciousness. A state of self-inflected gashes- HARA-KIRI even.  

I often wonder with a sense of nostalgia on what might have been had 1984 moved into 1999   without any interruption. Would Nigeria have gotten it right? Wonder what lofty heights the nation would have attained? Maybe finally peace and justice would have reigned? Maybe every other line of its National Anthem would also have come to pass.

Today its 29 years since I had taken pen to paper and wrote against, “Civil rule is better than Military Rule”. But even today though I might title it a bit differently, the basic message would still remain the same.

Gamji Pictures

Kola Tree Planted by the Premier

Premier's prayer mat and beads



His Desk

 Entrance to the Grave and the cobwebs

 Gidan Sarki where the grave is sited

 Hajiya Hafsat's ( 1st Wife) Grave

 Sarduna's Grave

Slab over the Grave to prevent people stealing the mud covering the body

Place where the Premiers bloodied body was recovered

SIr Ahmadu Bello: The Legacy Tattered

Sir Ahmadu Bello: The Legacy Tattered

 

“If as a result of the agitation for the fragmentation of this great region, fostered and encouraged by people seeking to protect their own political interests, the unity of the North is damaged or impaired, I fear greatly that we shall step, NOT through the gates of the future into the broad prospect of prosperity which can lie before us; but back into the past, into religious intolerance and into violence.”

-          Sir Ahmadu Bello, Sarduna of Sokoto

 

Having grown up in the North, I have been on the perpetual quest to understand the workings of Northern Nigeria during the years of Sir Ahmadu Bello the Sarduna of Sokoto and the Premier of the Northern Region. I am what you would term a, “Sardunaist”. Not a disciple as such, but a scholar who wants to know how the Sarduna was able to unite 240 plus tribes of Northern Nigeria under one voice. Never has there been a “regional’ leader like the Sarduna nor will there be, I’m afraid. But upon achieving so much for the north and paying the ultimate price it’s suffice to say that the North would have treated the memory of this great leader with reverence…… but was I wrong.

Recently and yet again, I was at the Arewa House in Kaduna to visit the residence of the revered Premier. Great, the residence was fixed up, with a new coat of paint and roof, even the roads were done! But I wanted to see history NOT history literarily “whitewashed”. I wanted to see where he sat, where he worked, what he wrote, what he wore, what he drove etc. I did not want to see a house hurriedly fixed and the bullet holes covered on the insistence of some prodigal sons of the Sarduna to whom bullet holes were “too painful” (not my words) to see. His   bloodied clothes were hurriedly bundled to Sokoto for “religiously it was wrong to have put them on display” (again NOT my words).

NO…… I wanted to see and feel the bullet holes and blood on the walls. I wanted to see the bloodied clothes he wore when life left him. I wanted to feel his pain. I did not expect that the prodigals would not even have the courtesy to cover the slab where the Sarduna and his wife were found, with even ceramic tiles much less a marble slab. The area where he was said to have died is now a restaurant!! His family quarters a PG Hostel!!

As irritated as I was, I was very pleased that the museum has at least preserved some of his artifacts and pictures. The folks that showed me around mentioned their unhappiness in way the blood, bullet holes and clothes were “disposed” off. They too had a sense of history, a sense of reverence for this Northern Star and all he stood for.

My mind started to ponder, here was a man who could have become Prime Minister but rather chose to stay and lead his home. Here was a man that used ALL the savings from the salary accrued to him to open a bank (Bank of the North) for the benefit of his beloved North. He pushed his people to join the military despite obvious deficiencies. He formed the New Nigerian newspapers so that his people had a voice. He encouraged girl child education formed a university to cater for the educational needs of the north and in fact provided for the students such that they studied in comfort. He got the so called “minorities” close to him so that bridges could be built along the regions and religions of the North. He knew that the diversity of the north was its strength.

But what happened, his prodigal sons made sure they systematically destroyed all he stood for. Bank of the North was sold just because the Northern states could not support it with funds. Someone used HIS OWN FUNDS to build this bank and the Northern leaders decided that perhaps the funds were better spent in buying palaces in the UAE or the UK, than supporting the whims of a drowning bank…. Legacy 1 tattered.

In the 34 years of northern leadership, every single one of them was “albarkan cin Sarduna” but these were leaders that did not know what to do with the oil money… but built a bridge or two in Lagos. We have had leaders that preferred to work in the Native Authority than help the Prime Minister NOT because they cared for the North, but because they were paid more. We have had leaders that have used resources to develop themselves, build mansions on hilltops rather than be their brothers keepers……Legacy 2 tattered.

While the economy drained in the north and decent grew, the leaders decided, “let’s use religion to sustain power” after all “divide and rule’ did wonders for the British colonies. To hell with the Sarduna….. After all he was too rigid and wanted power himself….. so it goes… “ John kai arne ne.” OR “Abdullahi kai dolo ne. Shanu kawai”. In less than 25 years the intricate web of brotherhood that the Sarduna fought so hard to build was completely destroyed. People forgot that Sunday Awoniyi, Capt Paul Tahal, Dr. Ishaya Audu- all Christians, were die hard Sarduna supporters. This sick idea of “Middle belt” and “core north” emerged and the monolithic northern unity was gone. Today the north’s greatest enemies are its leaders…… Legacy 3 tattered.

I was at the grave site (Gidan Sarki) of the Sarduna during my recent trip to Kaduna and  I saw one un-covered grave (of Hajiya Hafsat) and an en tombed grave  belonging to the Sarduna. When I asked why the grave was completely sealed save for a very small opening at the side, the caretaker told me that it was done to prevent…..listen to this….. People carrying the soil from the grave for rituals!!!!!!!!!!! OH God!!! How low you senile son’s of the Sarduna have become. First you destroy everything he strove to build… then you divide his people and now you want power…. Oh…. you idiots…. Don’t you realize that you can never be like him. You have alienated the region, made a mockery of the Sarduna. And you’ve buried him in an unmarked grave. WOE to you Northern Elders…… you have been condemned for eternity…. … But I’m sure that ONE DAY Arewa will shine and the bones of the Sarduna will finally… rest in peace.


...........................................Published in Weekly Trust, 6th August, 2011