Jonathan Agreed To Be One-Term President – Obasanjo

20 February, 2013 

Obasanjo speech during the campaign 2011 grand finale of the Jonathan/ Namadi Sambo ticket:

‘’Mr President, we are here because we believe in what I call Nigerian dream. Mr President, we from the South West we were the first to collectively stick out our head to say this is the way, and what is the way?

 ‘’The way of Goodluck Jonathan for Nigeria. A Nigerian dream entails collective aspiration, collective hope, collective objective, collective target and collective fulfilment. It also entails our communality. And what is our communality in Nigeria? What is the communality between me and my brother from Sokoto? What is the communality between me and even my brother from Yenagoa?  What is the communality between me and my brother from Maiduguri? What is the communality between me and my brother from Badagry, or even from Ekiti? It is Nigerian identity. Nigerian Identity! That is our communality.

“If you say the communality is that we belong to the human race, so do the Europeans, so the Americans, so the Asians. But we are one communality, one identity, Nigerian identity. If we have a common identity, then we can have a common Nigerian dream.

”For me, I see a Nigeria dream of land of unity in diversity. For me, I see the Nigerian dream in equal opportunities for all Nigerians; land of freedom and choices; land of prosperity, fairness, peace and justice; land of love, care, harmony among its people; land respected internationally and playing its rightful role within the comity of nations and land where no one is oppressed, discriminated against, enslaved or disadvantaged.

‘’For instance, let me go to an element of one of the aspects of the dream. When I was a young man, leaving secondary school, there was only one university in Nigeria. The opportunity for young men to go to university in Nigeria was then limited. Today, there are 117 universities in Nigeria, expanded and enhanced opportunities. We have to match that with opportunity to access to employment and to good living standard. Your Excellencies, this I believe is attainable and as a political party, we in PDP have dreams.

“We have set about actualising our Nigerian dream. You will see this in the formation of PDP. The history of the PDP speaks for its self. The constitution of PDP, the manifesto of our party and the performance of our party so far. We have set our hands on the plough and there is no looking back for PDP.

‘’Drawing from our national Constitution which upholds Federal Character, we are the only political party that enshrines Federal Character in our Constitution through zoning and rotation.

”And we should be proud of that. For us and for the foreseeable future that remains sacrosanct, I am an apostle of Federal Character under Murtala/Obasanjo administration and I cannot now preach anything different. The accident of history of the recent past must be understood for what it is, an unexpected situation and PDP as a party has addressed that issue.

‘’At the last meeting of BoT of our party last Saturday, the issue was tabled by the president as it was raised by three distinguished members of our party a day before that BoT meeting with the President. I was mandated to take up the position of the party with the three distinguished members of our party who raised the issue. They are General Ibrahim Babangida, General Aliyu Muhammed and Alhaji Abubakar Atiku.

‘’

  We are impressed with the report that Dr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan has already taken a unique and unprecedented step of declaring that he would only want to be a one term President. If so, whether he knows it or not, that is a sacrifice and it is statesmanly. Rather than vilify him and pull him down, we, as a party, should applaud and commend him and Nigerians should reward and venerate him. He has taken the first good step. Let us encourage him to take more good steps to achieve what we need to achieve for this country by voting for him in landslide victory as the first elected President of Nigeria on basis of our common Nigerian identity and for the purpose of actualising the Nigerian dream. God bless you all.     

 ’’

“The following day, that was last Sunday, I took up the matter with General Ibrahim Babangida, who expressed to me that the issue is not the accident of history, but rather it is the issue of perception in some quarters that Federal Character, zoning and rotation, as established and practised by PDP, have been jettisoned and permanently cancelled.

‘’I, on behalf of the BoT, allay the fear and I promised a public report while he briefs the other two party members with whom we saw the president on the eve of the BoT meeting.

‘’What am I saying? What am saying simply is that Federal Character, zoning and rotation in our party is alive and kicking. I personally see the practice of Federal Character, zoning and rotation of key political and governmental positions and offices by the PDP, if it will continue to be the ruling party in Nigeria, I see that position beyond my life time. It will only happen when unity, stability and democracy have been established with full confidence and trust by everybody in the system and within the polity and among the participants for factors of competence, performance and track record to become predominant. PDP should be praised for being the only party that enshrined Federal Character, zoning and rotation in its constitution and also practicing it.

‘’PDP has brought stability and substantial predictability to the polity and to the system. I do not know who will be the President of Nigeria after Dr. Goodluck Jonathan. That is in the hand of God. But with the PDP policy and practice, I can reasonably guess from where in terms of section of the country from where the successor to President Goodluck Jonathan will come and no internal democracy or competition will be hereby destroyed.

‘’The recent resort to sentiments and emotions of religion and regionalism is self-serving, unpatriotic and mischievous to say the least. It is also playing on dangerous emotive issues that ignite uncontrollable passion and can destabilise if not destroy our country. It is oblivious of the sacrifices others have made in the past for unity stability and democracy in Nigeria in giving out their lives, shedding their blood and in going to prison. I personally have done two out of these three sacrifices and I am ready to do the third if it will serve the best interest of Nigerian dream.

‘’Let me appeal to those who have embarked on those dangerous roles to desist from taking us on a perishable journey. A common identity as Nigerians there is more that binds us than separate us.

‘’I am a Nigerian born a Yoruba man and I am proud of those identities, as they are for me complimentary. Our duties, responsibilities and obligations to our country and citizens and indeed as leaders must go side by side in our likes and demands. There must be certain values and virtues that would go concomitantly with our dream.

 

‘’Thomas Payne said and I quote: “My country is a world.” For me my country I hold dear. On two occasions, I have had the opportunity, thanks to God and thanks to the people of Nigeria, to work for my successors in the government of Nigeria. On both occasions, I never took the easy and destabilising route of ethnic, regional or religious consideration. Rather, I took the enduring route of national, uniting and stabilising route. I worked for both President Shagari and President Yar’Adua to succeed me. Not just because they are Muslims, northerners or Hausa/Fulani, but because they could strengthen the unity, stability and democracy of Nigeria. We, of course, with all the displeasure of ethnic chauvinists, for doing what is right for our country; that is in the nature of the burden of leadership. A leader must lead, no matter whose ox is gored.

‘’In the present circumstance, let me reiterate what I have said on a number of occasions. Electing Dr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan in his own right and on its own merit, which is there to be seen as the President of Nigeria, will enhance and strengthen our unity, stability and democracy and it will lead us towards achievement of the Nigerian dream.

‘’We are impressed with the report that Dr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan has already taken a unique and unprecedented step of declaring that he would only want to be a one term President. If so, whether he knows it or not, that is a sacrifice and it is statesmanly. Rather than vilify him and pull him down, we, as a party, should applaud and commend him and Nigerians should reward and venerate him. He has taken the first good step. Let us encourage him to take more good steps to achieve what we need to achieve for this country by voting for him in landslide victory as the first elected President of Nigeria on basis of our common Nigerian identity and for the purpose of actualising the Nigerian dream. God bless you all.’’

SOURCE: NAIJ.COM

The topical issue being discussed by all and sundry that follow the polity is the supposed agreement reached by the Jonathan administration to run for a term in office.

However this is one of the campaign speeches of the former President Olusegun Obasanjo during the 2011 electioneering campaign.

hat now the air is cleared as former president Obasanjo has

Jonathan Agreed To Be One-Term President – Obasanjo

20 February, 2013 

Obasanjo speech during the campaign 2011 grand finale of the Jonathan/ Namadi Sambo ticket:

‘’Mr President, we are here because we believe in what I call Nigerian dream. Mr President, we from the South West we were the first to collectively stick out our head to say this is the way, and what is the way?

 ‘’The way of Goodluck Jonathan for Nigeria. A Nigerian dream entails collective aspiration, collective hope, collective objective, collective target and collective fulfilment. It also entails our communality. And what is our communality in Nigeria? What is the communality between me and my brother from Sokoto? What is the communality between me and even my brother from Yenagoa?  What is the communality between me and my brother from Maiduguri? What is the communality between me and my brother from Badagry, or even from Ekiti? It is Nigerian identity. Nigerian Identity! That is our communality.

“If you say the communality is that we belong to the human race, so do the Europeans, so the Americans, so the Asians. But we are one communality, one identity, Nigerian identity. If we have a common identity, then we can have a common Nigerian dream.

”For me, I see a Nigeria dream of land of unity in diversity. For me, I see the Nigerian dream in equal opportunities for all Nigerians; land of freedom and choices; land of prosperity, fairness, peace and justice; land of love, care, harmony among its people; land respected internationally and playing its rightful role within the comity of nations and land where no one is oppressed, discriminated against, enslaved or disadvantaged.

‘’For instance, let me go to an element of one of the aspects of the dream. When I was a young man, leaving secondary school, there was only one university in Nigeria. The opportunity for young men to go to university in Nigeria was then limited. Today, there are 117 universities in Nigeria, expanded and enhanced opportunities. We have to match that with opportunity to access to employment and to good living standard. Your Excellencies, this I believe is attainable and as a political party, we in PDP have dreams.

“We have set about actualising our Nigerian dream. You will see this in the formation of PDP. The history of the PDP speaks for its self. The constitution of PDP, the manifesto of our party and the performance of our party so far. We have set our hands on the plough and there is no looking back for PDP.

‘’Drawing from our national Constitution which upholds Federal Character, we are the only political party that enshrines Federal Character in our Constitution through zoning and rotation.

”And we should be proud of that. For us and for the foreseeable future that remains sacrosanct, I am an apostle of Federal Character under Murtala/Obasanjo administration and I cannot now preach anything different. The accident of history of the recent past must be understood for what it is, an unexpected situation and PDP as a party has addressed that issue.

‘’At the last meeting of BoT of our party last Saturday, the issue was tabled by the president as it was raised by three distinguished members of our party a day before that BoT meeting with the President. I was mandated to take up the position of the party with the three distinguished members of our party who raised the issue. They are General Ibrahim Babangida, General Aliyu Muhammed and Alhaji Abubakar Atiku.

‘’

  We are impressed with the report that Dr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan has already taken a unique and unprecedented step of declaring that he would only want to be a one term President. If so, whether he knows it or not, that is a sacrifice and it is statesmanly. Rather than vilify him and pull him down, we, as a party, should applaud and commend him and Nigerians should reward and venerate him. He has taken the first good step. Let us encourage him to take more good steps to achieve what we need to achieve for this country by voting for him in landslide victory as the first elected President of Nigeria on basis of our common Nigerian identity and for the purpose of actualising the Nigerian dream. God bless you all.     

 ’’

“The following day, that was last Sunday, I took up the matter with General Ibrahim Babangida, who expressed to me that the issue is not the accident of history, but rather it is the issue of perception in some quarters that Federal Character, zoning and rotation, as established and practised by PDP, have been jettisoned and permanently cancelled.

‘’I, on behalf of the BoT, allay the fear and I promised a public report while he briefs the other two party members with whom we saw the president on the eve of the BoT meeting.

‘’What am I saying? What am saying simply is that Federal Character, zoning and rotation in our party is alive and kicking. I personally see the practice of Federal Character, zoning and rotation of key political and governmental positions and offices by the PDP, if it will continue to be the ruling party in Nigeria, I see that position beyond my life time. It will only happen when unity, stability and democracy have been established with full confidence and trust by everybody in the system and within the polity and among the participants for factors of competence, performance and track record to become predominant. PDP should be praised for being the only party that enshrined Federal Character, zoning and rotation in its constitution and also practicing it.

‘’PDP has brought stability and substantial predictability to the polity and to the system. I do not know who will be the President of Nigeria after Dr. Goodluck Jonathan. That is in the hand of God. But with the PDP policy and practice, I can reasonably guess from where in terms of section of the country from where the successor to President Goodluck Jonathan will come and no internal democracy or competition will be hereby destroyed.

‘’The recent resort to sentiments and emotions of religion and regionalism is self-serving, unpatriotic and mischievous to say the least. It is also playing on dangerous emotive issues that ignite uncontrollable passion and can destabilise if not destroy our country. It is oblivious of the sacrifices others have made in the past for unity stability and democracy in Nigeria in giving out their lives, shedding their blood and in going to prison. I personally have done two out of these three sacrifices and I am ready to do the third if it will serve the best interest of Nigerian dream.

‘’Let me appeal to those who have embarked on those dangerous roles to desist from taking us on a perishable journey. A common identity as Nigerians there is more that binds us than separate us.

‘’I am a Nigerian born a Yoruba man and I am proud of those identities, as they are for me complimentary. Our duties, responsibilities and obligations to our country and citizens and indeed as leaders must go side by side in our likes and demands. There must be certain values and virtues that would go concomitantly with our dream.

 

‘’Thomas Payne said and I quote: “My country is a world.” For me my country I hold dear. On two occasions, I have had the opportunity, thanks to God and thanks to the people of Nigeria, to work for my successors in the government of Nigeria. On both occasions, I never took the easy and destabilising route of ethnic, regional or religious consideration. Rather, I took the enduring route of national, uniting and stabilising route. I worked for both President Shagari and President Yar’Adua to succeed me. Not just because they are Muslims, northerners or Hausa/Fulani, but because they could strengthen the unity, stability and democracy of Nigeria. We, of course, with all the displeasure of ethnic chauvinists, for doing what is right for our country; that is in the nature of the burden of leadership. A leader must lead, no matter whose ox is gored.

‘’In the present circumstance, let me reiterate what I have said on a number of occasions. Electing Dr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan in his own right and on its own merit, which is there to be seen as the President of Nigeria, will enhance and strengthen our unity, stability and democracy and it will lead us towards achievement of the Nigerian dream.

‘’We are impressed with the report that Dr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan has already taken a unique and unprecedented step of declaring that he would only want to be a one term President. If so, whether he knows it or not, that is a sacrifice and it is statesmanly. Rather than vilify him and pull him down, we, as a party, should applaud and commend him and Nigerians should reward and venerate him. He has taken the first good step. Let us encourage him to take more good steps to achieve what we need to achieve for this country by voting for him in landslide victory as the first elected President of Nigeria on basis of our common Nigerian identity and for the purpose of actualising the Nigerian dream. God bless you all.’’

SOURCE: NAIJ.COM

The topical issue being discussed by all and sundry that follow the polity is the supposed agreement reached by the Jonathan administration to run for a term in office.

However this is one of the campaign speeches of the former President Olusegun Obasanjo during the 2011 electioneering campaign.

hat now the air is cleared as former president Obasanjo has

Why Buhari may not be elected President

February 13, 2013 by Sabella Abidde (sabidde@yahoo.com) 

Why Buhari may not be elected President

From 1973 until his death in 1987, I was an ‘Awolowo-man’. I still am! In some ways, Chief Obafemi Awolowo had equals; but in many other ways, the mountain and the oceans were his and his alone.

 To me, he was the greatest Nigerian who ever lived. You may debate my assertion, but really, what’s there to debate? Verifiable data are there to support my claim. But beyond the data are the everyday realities that attest to the superior accomplishments of Awolowo.

 Ask yourself this simple question: “Who was on the stage before Awolowo; and what’s the political stage and space been like since his death?” In another  time and place, he’d be philosophised and declared a statesman extraordinaire.  He was that good. He was that great a human being.

But amongst the current crop of high-level politicians, ideologically and philosophically, Maj.-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd) stands closest to Awolowo. He is a clear disciple of the sage. He himself may not say it; but the characteristics are apparent for sharp minds to see. Thousands of politicians run around the country claiming to be Awoists, but really, the vast majority are counterfeits. I tell you this: If Buhari had not been a military man, he most likely would have been an “Awolowo-man”. And so too would have been Col. Abubakar Dangiwa Umar (retd.).

Buhari has missed out on the Presidency because of several calculating forces. There are some Nigerians who hold his military background against him. They seem to forget that he came to the rescue at a time when the country needed to be rescued. How soon they forget the mind-numbing extravagances that characterised the Second Republic (1979-1983), as represented by the then National Party of Nigeria. 

How soon they forget that the Shehu Shagari regime was mortgaging their future. How soon they forget the excesses of Umaru Dikko and others. If Murtala Muhammed were alive, they most likely would have crucified him, too.

 

Second, the Nigerian media allowed itself to be manipulated by repeating lies and damaging myths that his opponents spread about him. Wings of the media publish without verifying the facts; they publish gossip as the gospel truth. They want you to believe nasty things about the man. Don’t! He is not the ethnic and religious extremist they paint him to be. Third, the stealing-fleecing elite know that their wrong doings will come to an end the day we have a President Buhari!  The fact that Awolowo was going to stop the rot, and perhaps, probe them, was one of the reasons they denied him the Presidency. Today, when they think of Buhari, they think of Awolowo. This scares them.

On the other spectrum are the elite who are afraid of the long arm of justice; afraid that the key to the “Central Bank” will be taken away from them; and afraid of the sanity and progress that will follow. This was a man who, in the very short period that he was in power, gave us sunny days and hopeful nights. He enthroned sanity and orderliness and progress and a sense of purpose and accountability.

Especially since 1999, instead of economic growth, we have regression. Instead of political progress, we have stagnation. Instead of Buhari, they forced Obasanjo, Yar’Adua, and Jonathan down our throat. What’s more, colonising forces opposed to our country’s complete liberation seem to be against his ascension. Buhari, unlike many others, is not a man that will genuflect sheepishly before the imperialists. And Buhari, like Awolowo before him, is not a saint. But this is a decent, pious, able and capable humane human being. He is a credit to our republic!

Since 1999 there have been no fewer than 200 men (and women) who made their ambition known in terms of contesting the presidential election.  Some were not serious candidates, and even if they were, they had no chance of winning their own electoral ward. A few others were so bad they couldn’t have won their household even though they were the master and leader of their household. And of course there were the jokers. The dreamers. The pretenders. The masqueraders. The marionettes. The zombies. The charlatans. And the thoroughly unqualified.

To be sure, Prof. Pat Utomi and a few others were/are qualified to lead and turn the country around; but Buhari has been the most qualified, and the most patriotic of all. This was true in 1999, 2003, and 2007 and in 2011. He lost the election four times. He lost because of the reasons I stated earlier; and also because of other forces that ganged against him: the vote counters, and the courts.  They all conspired to cheat him, and by extension, cheated posterity. The forces that ganged up against Awolowo, are today working against Buhari.

Some pundits have advised that “Buhari should leave the electoral stage for the younger generations.” Why should he? In the first place, he is a relatively young man. Second, his reasoning and decision faculties are still in order, and in fact, his mind is sharper than many men half his age. Third, his ideas and worldview are still relevant and is a man who is open to other people’s contrary assessments.

He is a man with a steady voice, steady hands and legs and with an intellect to match. Obasanjo, Yar’Adua, and Jonathan do not have advantage over him. And none of his other rivals have advantage over him. What’s more, his standing, in and outside of the country, is an added benefit.

Another set of analysts opined that Buhari – though capable and qualified to lead the nation – cannot win a presidential election. This is not only false, it is a defeatist argument. He is electable! In a level playing field, he will win. He will win across all the geographic zones. If all eligible voters are allowed to vote, and if all votes are truly counted, Buhari will win. He will win because Nigerians know him. 

They know and understand that he will not use his office to enrich himself; they know that he will fight corruption and nepotism and political stupidity; and they know that he will help to actualise our collective dream and aspiration. With President Muhammadu Buhari, there will be order and a new national culture.

The study of Ifa in Osun school

By DOYIN ODEBOWALE
One feels compelled to write this piece on the recent announcement by the Osun State Government on the introduction of the study of Ifa religion in all its schools. While no time should be wasted in congratulating the government led by the visionary Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola on this courageous and needful step, a conscious attempt must also be made to educate those who may be genuinely regarded as ignorant on the socio-legal imperative of permitting a pan-Yoruba ethos play a pivotal role in the development of the society.

All efforts made at raising the level of development must be anchored on this all-embracing substratum. As for hypocrites, commercial religionists with vast business empires which thrive on the very objects of deceptive public excoriation, we must hasten to allay their fears that this novel but necessary introduction will not affect the enterprise of “miraculous healing” and the promise of prosperity in a land already devastated by political locusts.

A multi-cultural milieu, such as Nigeria, must recognise and accept the reality of ethno-religious pluralism and the attendant divergence to promote equity, fairness and justice among the ethnic nationalities and groups, the necessary conditions for amity, peaceful co-existence and realistic aspirations towards growth.

This is the irreducible minimum below which no group should be subjected. The omniscient posture adopted by the adherents of prominent religions, Christianity and Islam, exposes abysmal ignorance on the essence of other indigenous religions and explains why intolerance adorns an official garb in various shades. This combative attitude is also symptomatic of a post-colonial society still reeling from the debilitating effects of foreign subjugation in all ramifications.

The dubious and ostentatious display of piety by these men of God, on one hand, and their obscene materialistic disposition, is more than sufficient to cause a serious study into the misfortune of a society in decline. We leave this interesting topic for another time. For now, it suffices to assert that this present move by the government is the most significant since independence.

If development is about the people, then it should be taken as given that understanding the ways of life of all who live in the society is a sine qua non to planning. The challenges faced by various categories of people compel introspection and determination, which will ultimately lead to progress.

Professional politicians, deprived of patronage for two years now in Osun State, considered the source of the people of the South western part of the country, will also stop at nothing to confuse the people who have been dispossessed over the years.

If our children are made to study foreign religions and some even get higher degrees, including PhDs, knowing other peoples’ cultures, then it is rather salutary that a government is considering making the study of Ifa religion an option in the school curriculum in Osun, albeit belatedly. Nigeria is a place where the elite take pride on being proficient in speaking and writing other people’s languages.

We crave advancement depending solely on the cultural ethos of other lands. Our claims to decency are often predicated on the fact of our adherence to the precepts of either of these foreign religions. We are nurtured to imbibe the customs and traditions of those who treated our ancestors with utter contempt.
We grew to hate what is truly ours. We receive awards aping the ways of life of other lands.

What belongs to us is despised and treated with unimaginable derision. Our cultures are subjected to foreign prisms in determining their acceptability. It is expected that deluded beings, who either believe genuinely in the myth of superiority of these imposed sub-sets, products of the perceptions of other peoples on natural phenomena observable within their societies, will join issues with this truly progressive leader of the people.

 What we must, however, eschew is silence which suggests connivance at the unwarranted attacks on the dynamic governor who has turned the fortunes of the state around positively with the little resources at his disposal. Nuhu Ribadu, a man not known to suffer fools gladly, just attested to the sterling qualities of this exceptional character.

Several other people have been commenting on this ascetic being whose energy belies his physical stature. Religion was central to the development of ancient Egyptian civilization. The challenges faced by the Egyptians compelled them to look for solutions in the spiritual realm. Disasters, prominent among which was the constant inundation of the Nile, were considered as sanctions from the celestial beings.

These ancient people used their belief in life after life and the existence of a supernatural being, Ra, whose decisions were unquestionable, to interact with their natural environment. The modern world is the direct beneficiary of the legacies of their fecund minds. Their children were nurtured on the nuggets of beliefs, which propelled keen observation of natural phenomena.

This attitude gave provenance to the unparalleled scientific discoveries for which the Egyptians are still widely acknowledged. The originality of the thought process ensured that all nations in the ancient world looked up to it. Greece became the greatest beneficiary of this unique ancient civilization and, by necessary implication, the western world in the modern sense of the expression.

What the average hypocritical and ignorant Nigerian will regard as superstitious and sinful formed the basis upon which his faith predicated on this imported religion is established. The judicial system of the ancient Egyptians was an aggregate of their socio-cultural values.

These were contained in the curricula of the schools at various levels of learning. The Chinese also developed their civilization independent of other existing ones, relying heavily on their cultural values. China today is an exemplar in advancement because it has never allowed any undue influence on her socio-political system built on oriental values.

This country stands out today as a bulwark of inspiration when most western nations are grappling with issues of survival occasioned by debilitating economic circumstances. A Chinese child will never look up to the West for socio-economic redemption. The child believes that his/her language is the best and only learns other foreign languages to derive advantage in a competitive world. He/she does not in any way feel inferior to the western child.

The state has no official religion, yet the Chinese child is not precluded from studying any subject of interest. American students now come to Nigeria to study specific aspects of our much- despised culture. They speak impeccable Yoruba, Hausa or Igbo, among other Nigerian languages.

That is not a challenge to them at all. They are keen researchers on the mysteries of our ancestral past. They come to study Egungun cult, the talking drum and its significance in information dissemination, cultural values as encapsulated in the Odu Ifa corpus, among others.

They become initiates of the Ifa religion, which ignorant and ill-educated Africans denigrate. The tragedy of the whole scenario is that they are now in a position to educate us on our past. While we struggle to ape the Europeans, Americans and Arabs, we have become alienated from our origin. Nothing from us is good except it is subjected to western approval.

 So deracinated and uprooted from our origin have they become that fanatical members of some families openly destroy artefacts and other valuable vestiges of the glorious epoch when crass mercantilism had no impact on the psyche of the people.

Traditional rulers are the most pitiable characters of these tragic-comic elements. Some of them employed all manner of underhand methods to subvert the process of selection to become deluded kings in a republic. Once they ascend the so-called throne of their forefathers, they soon discover that their past was sinful.
In their hypocritical exhibition of vacuous devotion, they destroy shrines and shun religious rites, which justify their anachronistic existence in the first place. They invite commercial pastors to come and preach to their so-called subjects to do away with the traditional ways.

These religious businessmen in turn flaunt these clowns as trophies won in the battle to civilise the natives. They denigrate the very essence of their sustenance as custodians of the people’s customs and tradition. They cherish the flowing three-piece traditional attire and the complementary ponytail, veritable emblems of indulgence and vanity.

And just as their forbears collaborated with slave traders, commercial precursors of the proselytising hypocrites to raid villages and hamlets for slaves, they too are willing participants in the pillaging of the resources of the state at the local government level. Very few of them deserve attention in the midst of decent people.

Granted that the retrogressive position held on indigenous religions is correct, does it not make sense that our children are trained to know why their ancestral past must be condemned? We have fed generations of Nigerians, nay Africans, on foreign diets before independence through post-colonial period to the present time.

The ultimate ambition of an average child is to be white in everything. Is it not ironic that at a time when the western world looks towards Africa for cultural renaissance, our people strive unabashedly to cast aside everything which reminds them of their beginnings? Adherents of African traditional religions have been discriminated against over the years.

The Nigerian experience has been heart corroding. Supposedly educated religionists jettison family names, which remind them of “pagan” practices. They adopt scriptural names of other cultures alien to the continent without understanding their significance.

Thus we see funny names such as “Olugbemi” in place of “Fagbemi.” What ignorance! The new policy on education in the State of Osun will afford our children the opportunity to know that the difference you find in all religions of the world is in the practice.

Doctrinal issues have now subsumed the didactic and edifying aspects of religion. In Nigeria, economic consideration far out-weighs the sincere quest for spiritual regeneration. The Osun example has exposed the lie peddled by people who exploit religion for selfish purposes. Our children must be allowed to know something about what they are called upon to hate.

They should be able to decide if there is any remarkable difference between the promoted religions and the message in the Ifa corpus. Students whose parents are adherents of Ifa religion must also be allowed to study their faith in an ambience devoid of discrimination and intolerance.

Virtues such as continence, loyalty, honesty, piety, civic responsibility, devotion to parents and elders, humility, among others, are embedded in Ifa. Any child who has the good fortune of being nurtured on this unadulterated teaching will be useful to himself and the community at large. The hypocritical posture of politicians on this policy must be condemned.

Our children must be allowed to understand, for instance, that Esu, the perfect trickster with a dual personality is not Satan or Lucifer, the archangel in the Christian pantheon of the gods. When our children hear names such as Esubiyi, Esugbayi or Esuronmbi, the ready connotation in their minds is the devil of the Bible or the Quran. They cannot fathom why anyone who is not insane will bear such names in the society. Beyond names, certain virtues are considered the exclusive preserve of the established religions.

Experience has, however, shown that there is a wide gulf between mere avowal and the actual deeds of those who profess piety. The very first lesson to the Ifa devotees is on contentment as against complacency. “Ohun enu ri ni enu nje, adifa fun igbin ti o je erupe la”. (The mouth is satisfied with whatever comes as food just as the snail relishes in the nutrients of the soil).

There are fables of the adventures of Orunmila or Obatala, which are also didactic. The treacherous deeds of the bush rat, Okete and Osanyin, are replete in the Ifa corpus. The consequences of unfaithful deeds are taught with the fables of these mythical characters. Temperance is a virtue of the gods and any mortal lucky enough to be endowed with this special gift will experience peace, which is beyond the understanding of man. A man’s character determines how successful he will be on earth.

The story of “Iwa” teaches us that one of the greatest gifts bequeathed by the gods to man is the ability to do what is right. I had the rare privilege of listening to Prof. Olu Longe who informed most of us who were ignorant of the invaluable contribution of the Ifa religion to the Yoruba accounting system. The basis of the computer is the Odu.

The first 8 in 2 places making 16 multiplied by 16 making 256 to infinity is the principle upon which the operation of the computer is based. Whoever insists that our children do not deserve to know this fact is not only ignorant but wicked. I enthusiastically recommend the eminent professor’s lecture, “Irapada Onka Isembaye wa ni ile Yoruba”, to those who may not know that such as the ancient Egyptian religion, the Ifa corpus contains aspects of science, mathematics, accounting, medicine and ethics. It is most unlikely that any child properly nurtured on these pristine values can ever grow to become a burden to the society.

The government of Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola is among the very few that can be regarded as focused. All good people must come together to encourage this exceptional leader who has displayed rare administrative acumen amidst the daunting challenges faced by him since he assumed office as the governor. Other ACN governors should follow the good example of this man who has taken giant strides in ensuring real development in a state once ravaged by locusts.

Odebowale, a lawyer, teaches in the Department of Classics, University of Ibadan