BUHARI AND JONATHAN: TWO HEROES OF CIRCUMSTANCE

               BUHARI AND JONATHAN: TWO HEROES OF CIRCUMSTANCE

                             

Nigeria is a droll country filled with complex personalities utterly in need of serious psychological assessment. Not long ago, President Goodluck Jonathan was called names: a demon, a cankerworm that has eaten deep into the fabric of the nation. He was castigated for wrecking the economy and the country as a whole. And so, he must go!  From the other side there was the heroic Rtd. General Muhammadu Buhari for whom majority of the Nigerian masses were ready cast their votes in the March 28 presidential election. He was the one with the Midas touch, the one who has solution to the series of problems afflicting Nigeria. Though he had some skeleton in the cupboard when he was the military head of state for his hardened measures on discipline and crimes, he was quickly forgiven. He was now the hero. Thus the battle for the tenancy of Aso Rock was between the 'demonic' President Jonathan and virtuous General Muhammadu Buhari.

The battle, very fiercely contested, came and passed; the saint defeated the demon. Congratulations! Surprisingly though, many Nigerians rushed to the Facebook, the platform of their armchair activism, to commend the courage of the demonic president who was so honourable in defeat. And for this singular democratic gesture, the demonic president suddenly became a hero. One comedian even put a clarion call on Facebook for Nigerians to nominate Jonathan for Peace Nobel Prize. In a twinkle of eye, Jonathan also became a hero. Interesting! Now we have two heroes: president elect Muhammadu Buhari and President Goodluck Jonathan; the former for deposing a demonic emperor and the later for gently accepting to vacate Aso Rock. Remarkable!

For me, these two are no heroes. Or put appropriately, they are mere heroes of circumstance. The deplorable situation the PDP and President Goodluck Jonathan has left Nigerians is such unbearable that anybody that promises to/ has the slightest chance to rescue them will be welcomed, as a hero. The situation is analogous to that of a dog that is terribly thirsty and is already on the verge of death, anybody that can provide water at that moment is its hero, and can do with it whatever he/she likes. This is where the APC and General Muhammadu Buhari come in. If Nigerians said NO to APC and Buhari, who could they have said YES to? To professor Sonaiya? Apparently, there was no other option. So, Muhammadu Buhari became thevhero. Fortunately, Jonathan, having tried unsuccessfully to make sure he held the key to Aso Rock till 2019, resigned to fate, tamed his political dogs and accepted his defeat honourably. Let me ask, if he didn’t do that, what better option had he?

However, I sincerely do not wish to belittle President Jonathan’s honourable acceptance of defeat, it’s a commendable act. I am just uncomfortable with the way some Nigerians have over-amplified it. It leaves me with a terrible feeling that Nigerians are confused and do not really know what leadership means; that you are an enemy to Nigerians when you hold a political office and you become their dearest friend immediately you are out of the office. Is it so?

In this just concluded elections, the victory isn’t that of the APC. It is the victory of Democracy. The true heroes are the awakened Nigerians who voted with their heads and not their hearts and our democracy which has taken a great dive towards positive development. President Goodluck Jonathan and President elect Muhammadu Buhari are just heroes of circumstance.