By Daniel Nyam Gwash
The ruling Peoples Democratic Party (DP) has presented President Goodluck Jonathan as its sole candidate in the 2015 general elections and Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria (TAN) which seems to have prior knowledge has toured the six zones of the country to canvass for this support. One more verdict awaits Jonathan, PDP and TAN and it is indeed crucial, if this dream must be achieved.
Jonathan’s sole candidacy was first mooted by PDP governors, followed by the National Working Committee (NWC). These bodies have advanced reasons for this action. Some are hinged on his transformation drive which they argued has achieved a lot for Nigeria – reasonable economic stability and improved well-being of the citizenry. He creditably handled Ebola case to global satisfaction. The achievements of Jonathan cannot be counted at a go. Some of his supporters have argued in the media as well as private dialogues that he is the best president that ever ruled Nigeria.
This claim holds water and I have nothing to query about Jonathan’s achievement in the last four years. However the performance of the president deserves some analysis so that he could land on safe ground and on a smooth level playing ground as he is the only player and certainly all eyes shall be on him. This is true of the view being expressed by many that Jonathan should await verdict of Nigerians.
TAN should not go to sleep because of its successful tour of the country and collection of signatures from supposedly those who have endorsed Jonathan for 2015 general elections. TAN in its evaluations X-rayed and approved of Jonathan for contest. It refused to turn around and consider few other negative factors requiring its critical analysis with regards to its endorsement and campaign for Jonathan.
The governors and NWC of PDP are equally guilty of the same stand with TAN. They want Jonathan to cross over in 2015 but are refusing to direct him aright in such a way that he will have easy walk to success in 2015 polls. It may be true and reasonably too that they have endorsed him but forget to realize that no person with dry weeds round his waist can participate in putting off a flame.
Many Nigerians have been crying foul about Jonathan’s lack of justice and fairness on issues directly connected with the less privileged. Nobody can say accurately about the rains that have beaten or wet some other people. The only rain that is relevant to him, which he may acknowledge, is the rain that has soaked him wet. This is the itching and woeful story of the victims of the re-circled crises in Plateau State between 1991 and now.
Plateau and few other states in the Middle Belt region have faced rigorous political challenges with severe repercussions over the years. The crises have continued to claim innocent lives unabated. Properties valued in billions of naira have been destroyed and owners made destitute and vagabonds to no fault of theirs.
The federal government has constituted judicial commissions of inquiry which looked into most, if not all of these crises. It is believed to have knowledge of their root causes and those responsible but has continued to keep mute and failed to make the reports of the commissions public for reasons best known to it.
Many victims of those communal crises are completely down without least hope of revival. Life has become their worst enemy. A man reduced to a squatter and with some members of his family eliminated is hopeless and a wounded lion whose thoughts and understanding cannot go beyond life of impunity that have enveloped him. A wounded lion is ever ready to consume whatever may cross its sight and mercilessly too. These are people that Jonathan has declared no assistance for without any second thought. There is nothing that can be injurious and embalming than this in the life of a crisis ridden country like Nigeria and its crises consumed citizens.
Further to this, none of the victims is guilty of the crises. If anything, no report of any of those commissions of inquiry has found any of the victims responsible for the crises that have engulfed the Middle Belt over the years and denied it peace, unity and progress. If no one is found guilty then not assistance but the right step is payment of compensation to these victims. Justice is blind and a one way affair.
I’m a victim and bitter over the declaration by President Jonathan. TAN campaign, NWC verdict and endorsement by PDP governors lacks merit, justice and fairness and therefore unconvincing to me and other numerous victims of re-circled communal crises in the Middle Belt. This must have to be resolved before Jonathan’s issue can really become reasonable and attractive. Anything short of this is mere day dream. We will continue to recite and shout on top our voices over the injustice that demeaned our prospects and survival as citizens of this country.
I fail to understand and can’t accept the tragedy that has befallen me as a result of the declaration by Jonathan and unprepared to accommodate him as my president. We need a president whose sympathy should be towards his people and not towards a few select citizens. It is painful and irreconcilable when I remember that the house I built with the proceeds from the sale of my farmland has been reduced to ashes and I can’t reclaim the farmland. Worse is that the case does not attract sympathy of my president whom I voted to power in 2011. This and many others are critical to the decision about 2015, especially as it concerns Jonathan. Once beaten, twice shy. This is the unresolved case between Jonathan and victims of re-circled communal crises in the Middle Belt and the one million-question that those groups must answer.
Gwash wrote from Gombe
