Reflecting on Democracy Day

We have been inundated with several memoirs by former leaders and their aides who till now are still steering the wheel of power by proxies.The memoirs have appeared either gratuitous or retaliatory or both, revealing or distorting to known historical scripts jointly acted by Nigerians. Some have tried to fruitlessly and endlessly alter history but have through the facts, fictions, and insinuations re-echoed the good leadership Goodluck Jonathan gave.Trying endlessly and obviously fruitlessly to alter history will do no harm to posterity,a judge of time that outlast historians.Before the 2015 elections, we  had  the  worst  doomsday  predictions (both from religious and diplomatic circles), inter and intra ethnic  hate  speeches ,pr-programmed  ethnic  documentaries  and  several  write-ups  from  unbiased/hack-writers; all pointing  to  Nigeria as a  failed  state  and  dangling  on  a  dangerous  and  likely  irretrievable cliff  of  her sovereignty.

The  players  were  largely   disgruntled, angry  fellows  with  an   incurable  lust  for  power  while  their  handlers, mostly    opportunists, sycophants, suspected  public  treasury  looters  and  uninformed  or  indifferent  public   dance  precariously  or  ignorantly  to  the  tune  of  some  glutton-elites.  The craving  for  power  of  some  of  the elites, though  with  imaginary  exceptions,  who  for  long  have  customized  public  treasury  was  predicated  not  on  service  but  on  their  ego, taste  of  power, ill  earned  lavish  lifestyles  that can only be sustained and maintained by being in government, age-long  ethnic  and  religious  sentiments and,  above  all,   personal  grudges  against  individuals.

As  bitter  as  the  opposition  of  that  time,  so   was  the  then  ruling   party  whose  image  was  severely  and  severally  battered  by  intelligent  forces  under  the   willing  sponsorship  of  the  then  opposition  in  and  out  of   the  shores  of  Nigeria. As  the  political fireworks  continued  unabated, it  took  a  more  degenerating  dimension  on  the  internet, crippling  our  age-long  value  system, as  many  people;  old  and  young, built  and  unleashed  the  most  audacious  anti-social  manners   which  are  contradictory  to  our  cultural  (old and modern)   etiquette; gagging  each  other  with  unprintable  abusive  sentences  in  a   manner  showing  mild  or  absolute  disgust  for   the  spirit  of  sportsmanship  and  consequently  escalating  tension.

As  divergent  as  we  were, in  our  various  divisions, nature  found  us  lucky  to  have  a  leader  of  convergent  ideology,  a  rare  breed  of  a  cultured  politician  now  being  celebrated  internationally; Dr. Jonathan, the  testimony  of  an  impassioned  belief  in  the  processes  of creating  a  democratic  society. His  ideology  invariably  portrayed  Nigerians  as  onerous  in  our  zeal  to  live  together  despite  our  diverse  political, religious, ethnic  and  personal  convictions. Despite  the  enormous  powers  in  our  militarily  doctored  presidential  system  and  the  loopholes  for  abuse  of  power,  which  had  been  experimented  years  before, he  choose  the  honourable  path  which  was  evident  in  the  free  and  fair  elections  during  his time.

As  hostile  as  the  history  of  India/Pakistan  relations  after  the  partition  of  British-India  into  India  and  Pakistan  in  1947  and  through  the  Kashmir  conflict,  as  lucky  they  are  to  have  the  cricket  game  that  unified  the  two nations  who  had  erstwhile  shared  a  common  cricketing  heritage . Dr.Jonathan’s  character  pre-, during and post-election  periods  of  2015  signified  the  proverbial  cricket  in   India/Pakistan  relations  where  it is said:  “In  India, it  is   respect  for  Gandhi  and  respect  for  cricket.” Jonathan  entrenched  freedom  of  speech  in  law  and  as  personal  belief. Some  people, though  with  unpatriotic  orientations,  violated Dr. Jonathan’s  personality, policies  and  character  through  sustained  verbal  and  written attacks  but  he  ignored  and  allowed  them  but  at  times  rendered  apology  or   explanations  as  the  case   warranted. His  sense  of  tolerance  was  ridiculed  as  a  mark  of  weakness.Dr Jonathan  adhered  strictly  to   Mahatma  Gandhi’s  Jain  Pacifist  teachings  of  mutual  tolerance, non-injury  to  living  beings,  except  vegetarianism. The phone call Jonathan made on the day he congratulated General Muhammadu Buhari healed the long-inflicted wound of June 12 and united Nigeria like never. That day,instead of May 29, should be the Democracy day.

As  we  celebrate  Democracy  Day,  I  hope   writers  of  history, both in public and  private capacity, will  not  distort  the  positive  tune  of  our   nascent  democracy  which  living  and  dead  icons,  heroes  and  martyrs  like  Chief  Gani  Fawehinmi SAM/SAN (Senior Advocate of the Masses and of Nigeria who earned the epochal judgement that opened the democratic  space which was  delivered  by Justice  Uwais  on  November 8,2002.); Chief  MKO  Abiola  (winner of the insignia of Democracy; June 12.), Dr  Goodluck  Jonathan GCFR (for  guaranteeing  free and  fair  democratic  processes with no blood  spill); former  Senate  President David Mark ( for  managing Nigeria’s most delicate constitutional crisis in 2010); Hon.Abike  Dabiri -Erewa  (for introducing the Freedom of Information Bill to guarantee transparency and accountability in governance.); social critics and human rights crusaders like Prof. Chinua  Achebe; Fela Anikulapo Kuti  (for his afro beat drums against military, oppression and corruption), the Student Unionists( who stood against military  regimes.), Bamidele  Aturu, Chima Ubani, Pa Alfred  Rewane, Ken Saro Wiwa and the Ogoni Five, the media and the second Most Indefatigable Political Aspirant in Nigeria’s political history, President Muhammadu  Buhari  GCFR (for relying on the electoral process for four consecutive times) have  all  set.

After  I  have  conceptualized  my  thought  process  and  built  them  into  reasonable  logic, cutting  an  esteemed  comportment  of  one  at  peace  with  reason  and  conscience  and  against  bias  of  whatever  guise;  whether  of  puerile  argument  of  either  logic  or  history,  Dr  Goodluck  Ebele  Azikiwe  Jonathan GCFR  and  Chief  Ganiyu  Oyesola  Fawehinmi SAM/SAN  were  the  good-lucks   that  individually saved  and  strengthened  our  democracy  from  politicians  who  almost  foisted  a  state-of-hopelessness  on  the  polity  and  the duo’s  noble  efforts  serve  as  our  model  for  inclusive  politics  of   patriotism  whose  novelty  is  fundamental  in  the  building  of  any  democracy.

• Iwilade is a tourism researcher and poet.