Mr. President, the issue at stake is, pay ASUU their arears of salary, increase their pay, and furnish the universities for quality education, then the strike will be called off. Remember, your days in office are numbered for enough is enough for the hell fire Nigerians have suffered since May 29, 2015.
Mr. President, the issue at stake is that you should ask God to teach you what to do because enough is enough for all your political appointees who are not telling you the truth but deceiving you by heroes worship, eye service, boot licking to remain in office so long as they are getting richer daily. Mr. President, your lieutenants will not tell you that you performed far below your expectations in power and far below your achievements in office as a military ruler in 1994. Mr. President your aids will not tell you that Nigerians are disappointed about their expectations in you and that you actually failed in your second coming as Nigeria’s ruler. Haba! enough is enough!
Mr. President, the issue at stake is the best thing for you to do now partly to restore your lost glory is to attend to the request of the Academic Staff Union of Universities [ASUU] so that Nigerians and indeed the whole world can applaud you for once because enough is enough for this let down on you.
Mr. President, the issue at stake is that crime is growing in Nigeria and our children who are idling at home consequent on ASUU Strike are increasing the percentage of staff strength of Banditry, Boko Haram, ISWAS, Kidnappings, Cultist, and eminent protest that could lead to breakdown of law and order and further discredit your regime. Haba! Enough is enough!
Mr. President, the issue at stake is that, enough is enough of the increasing percentage of mass majority of Nigerians who now live below poverty line compared with when you were a military ruler in 1984. Mr. President, enough is enough because life expectancy of Nigerians have fallen from 54years in 2002 to 49years in 2022.
Mr. President, enough is enough, it is high time you reversed Nigeria’s economy from underdeveloped to developed economy by paying serious attention to education sector assisted by ASUU. Mr. President, Nigerians are unable to meet their desire for basic necessities of life such as food, transport, education, healthcare, employment, electricity and are looking unto you as enough is enough.
The issue at stake from October 1, 1960, why Nigerians remain underdeveloped was the collaboration of exploiting class in the core allied with their counterpart in the periphery to exploit the lower class in the periphery. Thus, the comprador class existed in a subordinate or sub ordinary capacity to the exploiters in the metropolis. This informs why Nigerians still see their future abroad. This informs why even leaders take Nigeria’s money for keep for themselves and their family abroad. This informs why all privileged Nigerians including their president go abroad for medical attention rather than build and furnish with equipment their hospitals. This informs why most privileged Nigerians would send their children abroad to school rather than build good schools for their children and future generation.
The issue at stake, and which has not been resolved was what led Major Chukwuma Nzeogwu, a Lecturer in the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) led a group of young army officers to seize political power on 15th January, 1966. According to Major Nzeogwu:
“Our enemies are the political profiteers, the swindlers, the men in high and low places that seek bribe and demand ten percent, those that seek the country divided so that they can remain in office as Ministers or V.I.P’s, the tribalist or nepotist, those that make the county look big for nothing before international circles.
Those that have corrupted our society and put Nigeria’s Political calendar back by their words and deeds”
The issue at stake is that Nigerians have sinned by their words and deeds, by their omission and commission, both past and present leaders. Indeed, no Hero since 1960. Even the youths no longer agitate for good governance because everyone hope that one day it will be my turn to chop. Like former President Olusegun Obasanjo said “We are all corrupt” Youth leaders and some labour union leader’s sneek backdoor, receive bribe from those in power in betrayal of their followers. Everyone wants to make it. No wonder, it had being leadership failure since 1960. Enough is enough Mr. President.
The issue at stake is the manner in which the political parties conducted their primaries to produce a presidential candidate can never yield a genuine leader for Nigeria. It was a cash and carry business which was why Abubakar Atiku and Bola Tinubu emerged for the two biggest political parties, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressive Congress (APC). Are those two the best for Nigeria? This process would continue and Nigeria will not produce a genuine leader to pull her out of poverty and underdevelopment. In 2014, Bola Tinubu went to handpick Muhammadu Buhari to run as Presidential candidate for APC. Nigerians were goaded and voted for Buhari. Today, it is the irony of corruption, insecurity, and indiscipline that Buhari promised Nigerians that is in vogue. The issue at stake is that enough is enough Mr. President!
Mr. President, the issue at stake is that enough is enough because even with the new minimum wage of President Muhammed Buhari in 2019, the income of the rural and urban poor in Nigeria did not grow in real terms. The United Nations (UN) estimated that over 70% of Nigerians live below poverty line compared to 48.5% in 1998, under a military rule, enough is enough Mr. President!
Mr. President, the issue at stake is that enough is enough because since you ruled Nigeria in 1984, the education sector has suffered setbacks consequent on neglect to the extent that one out of five (1/5) out-of school children in the world is a Nigerian. This is unfortunate consider that the country has enormous human potentials respected world over, enough is enough!
Mr. President, the issue at stake is that enough is enough because the transport sector in Nigeria has suffered to the extent that it can be described as:
Poor, deplorable, isolated, competitive rather than complementary, underdeveloped, chaotic, and expensive. The sector promote pain, horror, and nightmare to many Nigerians. Walahi talahi, enough is enough!
Nasir El-Rufai in his analysis on Nigeria: Rich Country, poor people’ (Nasir El-Rufai 2011:1) asked equivocally:
Though Nigeria’s populations is three times that of South Africa, our economy is second to theirs in Africa. We are the 37th largest economy in the world, and 11th in terms of labour force [about 48 millions] according to 2010 estimates. So how come we are one of the most impoverished countries in Africa and the 25th poorest in the world. Global average income is about $25 per person per day, or $9,000 per annum. [Nasir El-Rufai; 2011:1].
Even with the new minimum wage of President Muhammadu Buhari in 2019, the income of the rural and urban poor in Nigeria did not grow in real terms. The United Nations [UN] estimated that over 70% of Nigerians live below poverty.
The issue at stake is that I trabador, I traverse, the trouble with Nigeria is that we are all equally bad. A people get the kind of leadership they deserve. In July 27, 2015, God told me he is angry with the people of Nigeria because the people of Nigeria are wicked and sinful and he is going to punish them by fire. This was barely two months after Muhammadu Buhari was sworn in as democratically elected president of a Federal Republic of Nigeria in great jubilation and celebration to the extent that some youths trecked from across the country to the Federal Capital, Abuja, to congratulate their newly elected president who was supposedly choosen to fight corruption, indiscipline and restore security to the Nigerian State. Today, Nigerians are bewildered if this was the Muhammadu Buhari they popularly elected? Late Prof. Chinue Achebe in his little pamphlet The Trouble with Nigeria, wrote that, stopping a Nigerian from being corrupt is like depriving a goat from eating yam, except you tie the goat there is no way you can stop a goat from eating the yam that it is looking at.
The Issue at stake is that leadership failure has been the problem with Nigeria since 1960. But the leaders are a product of the people. So, where do we get good leaders? “Everyone, great and small, tries to make money dishonestly, even prophets and priests cheat the people” [Jeremiah 6:13]
The issue at stake therefore, is not whether a muslim rules Nigeria or a Christian rules, whether a northerner rule or a southerner rule, whether Hausa, Fulani, Yoruba, Ibo, Edo, Ijaw, Nupe or whichever ethnic group rules the country? The issue at stake is redefinition of the status quo, the issue at stake calls for self-examination. Enough is enough Mr. President pay ASUU their arrears of salary and increase their salary then they can call off the strike.
Associate Professor Anthony Danladi Ali is in the Department of History and International Studies, Federal University Lokoja, Kogi State, Nigeria,
E-mail: [email protected] or [email protected]
