Today on Line of Sight, I thought I should do something different. I am democratising this space by sharing some of the readers’ comments I have received over the last couple of weeks. Since this column debuted on August 13, 2020, I have thought of publishing some responses occasionally. But Nigeria has been unrelenting. Every week, there is a buffet of provocations to be addressed in the column. Some of these are so urgent and timely because as is the nature of this country, things move rather too quickly and yet they stay the same.
I suppose at some time we all get tired of writing about the floods, (every damn year) or power failure, the shenanigans of our politicians or the context of our culture and behaviour as a people. Or the exchange of a hundred terrorists for the last batch of 23 Kaduna train abduction victims. It gets too much sometimes and we just need a break.
Writing this column has been an experience. Having been one who hitherto preferred to keep my opinions to myself, until ex-Daily Trust Editor-in-Chief and my former boss, Mannir Dan Ali, nudged me on this journey, first to write regular analysis and news commentary for the paper, and subsequently as a columnist.
The column has grown, first from a strip tucked inside the Thursday paper to the back page. Over the last two years, I have vented here on my love for my country and the habitual frustration it torments us with, from the humorous, the tragic, and the bizarre. Some of these pieces even I did not want to write because they evoke in me a deep sense of heartbreak. They were simply too painful to write. But this is the price we pay for loving Nigeria and having this deeply challenging yet satisfying task of chronicling our country’s history as it unfolds and contextualising the things, incidents, events, flaws and beauties that have and will continue to define us as a people. For nothing happens in isolation, devoid of context. And I have always been fascinated by the context in which our character as a people has been forged.
In no way has this been easy, and in many ways, it has been satisfying.
I have enjoyed the tremendous support and goodwill of my readers, many of whom have taken the time, through emails, WhatsApp and text messages, on Facebook comments, to share their appreciation for my writing or their contempt or annoyance with my opinions. I have gained followers and lost some. It is the nature of this craft. What I have not lost, and hope not to lose, is my sincerity. Sometimes, I suppose it gushes a little too much on the pages. I will not have it any other way.
I remember this rather petulant fellow who took exception to a column I wrote that was critical of the president (I confess, I have done that quite a few times, not out of malice but for the deep affection I have for my country. For if we do not hold our president to the highest standards possible, what then is the point of this affection?) Despite not knowing me, this disgruntled reader sent a message proclaiming that I must be a hungry man married to an ugly and troublesome woman who is making my life miserable enough to have the gumption to criticise the president. I reported him to my fine wife and she, ever so generous, dashed him one “Allah ya isa!”
I have been called a patriot. I have also been called a sell-out and tribalist when my social critique has swung the other way. I consider myself an equal opportunity social critic and unlike some Op-Ed writers, I do not have the energy to engage readers with contrary opinions to mine in verbal fisticuffs. I respect contrary opinions proffered with civility. One of the greatest lessons I have learned in this life is that we are often offended, not by what is said, but by our opinion of what is said. This has served me well over the years.
So today, a few select responses from my readers:
Re: Mr Politician, where is your certificate? (Published Sept. 15, 2022)
Good day sir.
While I agree with you that we should rather ask our politicians more significant questions instead of paltry ones, I do believe that anyone entrusted or is due to be saddled with the responsibility of the masses should come clean with regards to certificate forgery because competence and sound certificate are not mutually exclusive.”
—Habib Abdullahi
Most of these questions about certificates have become irrelevant since INEC has not (and will not) disqualify these guys over having or not having one. We should rather focus on what they did in the offices they held previously and other important considerations. If good, they should be elected on that basis.
—Awwal Ibrahim Ndako (from Facebook)
Re: In Praise of Dr Bukar Usman (published Sept 29, 2022)
There was an era of intellectuals in public service in this country. Dr Usman was right in the centre of it. My library boasts of some of his books, especially the collection of folktales. I pray he and others like him that have helped bring intellectual flavour to the narrative of service delivery will continue to inspire through books.
—Dr. Lizi Ben-Iheanacho (from Facebook)
I came across his books first at the Kaduna State University library. I was astonished by his works: the content and their quality. No doubt, the outward material of his crafts is made of very high value. God bless him and his works.
It’s bliss: let the great men be told of their impactful feat while they breathe.
—Nana Muhammad (from Facebook)
Re: Not everything should be a joke, Nigeria (Published October 6, 2022)
Nigeria has a lot of clowns that entertain its people and their problems to the extent that tragic issues that need serious attention turn out to be comic plays.
The Messiah turned to the monster. Recklessly playing with its people’s future.
Our healthcare [system] was already down. The education sector is on its way.
Malam Adamu Adamu has done a lot for the nation’s education. He crippled the system. And degenerated institutions’ cut-off marks—university from 180-150, polytechnic from 150-100. Primarily to cover up his mischief and incompetence.
Thus, students, today reluctantly read the way they feel like. Because with 150 they can get admission into universities, and polytechnics, 100.
So, with this remarkable achievement, Malam Adamu Adamu deserves National Merit Award.
—Yusuf Adamu (from Facebook)
You have said it all. Nothing surprises me again in Nigeria. We have reduced the country to a pack of jokes. The list of the many jokes is countless; from the attack on the nation’s defence institution (NDA) to the abduction of over a dozen police officers in a convoy and the subsequent payment of ransom to get them released, to the abduction of many school children still unaccounted for and under captivity, to the shameless negotiations with the bandits’ chiefs and warlords by the government officials, to the irony of conferring a traditional title to a local bandit chief and celebrating same with security officers in attendance…. The joke of this country is just too many. We are just not ready as a people to have a decent existence… not just our leaders but even we the followers that are so docile to demand accountability and action. Until all of us are consumed by these jokes, I am afraid that the coming generation will read our inglorious and shameful stories and even be ashamed of being called our descendants.
We are people in a rudderless ship without a crew and compass
—Muhammad Sani Suleiman (from Facebook)
Thank for reading and for your comments. Until next week, God willing.
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