Every soul (or living creature) must, according to the injunctions of the Qur’an, test the torment of death. Death, therefore, is not a respecter of anybody. It will come one day either we are prepared or unprepared. The point is let us do the right thing always and seek forgiveness from the Almighty Allah. You will never be afraid of death.
Many people have expressed their views and feelings concerning the ill-health of President Umaru Musa Yar’adua on either to resign or continue with the leadership administration of the country from the sick bed of the hospital. If at all the country is to be considered first and foremost, constitutionally, the president is sick and the sickness is continuous, making other people think that he should resign as president. Others seem to think the provisions of the constitution should be implemented to enforce the retirement of the president and get rid of the leadership crisis that is brewing at the moment.
On the other hand, if the president refuses to resign, despite glaring evidence of his poor state of health to continue in office, it will then support the thesis that he is been propped up to continue in office by a clique for their own selfish and personal ends. The fact is those who brought Yar’adua to contest for the presidency have total disregard for the import of the president’s ill-health to the stability of the nation right from the time his presidential campaign flagged off in 2007.
Unfortunately, powers attached to the offices of president and executive governors in the states under the presidential system of government are tailored towards the number one leader in the state and the number one citizen in the country.
There are certain approvals, decisions, sanctions, etc that are needed for the smooth running of government that cannot be performed by a deputy or a vice-president without the mandate and approval of the governor or the president. In most cases annual budgets are not properly followed, monitored and adhered to due to the factors mentioned above.
For instance, Yar’adua’s frequent overseas trips purported to be on State engagements while they are actually rampant medical check-ups to gain good health played negatively on the running of the affairs of government. Every other thing, even if urgent and important, must remain at a standstill until the leader is back into the country. But government is not a private enterprise. Unfortunately, the presidential system adopted by our government is making our democracy to look like the private fief of the occupant of the office of president.
It is an open secret that our president was ill even before he took over the mantle of leadership of the country and now that we are moving towards the end of his first tenure, the illness seem to be advancing.
Obviously, the members of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) have not shown adequate proof that they are capable of playing the role entrusted on them, probably out of fear that they may lose their jobs. The constitution is very clear and specific on the issue of ill-health of the president should there be proof that he is incapable of performing his duties.
In fact, the question is not whether President Yar’adua is not a good performer or that some Nigerians wish him dead. Far from it; with the present achievements he recorded in the financial sector and the peace in the Niger Delta, it is enough to prove that President Yar’adua can do better if not because of the ill-health that has been slowing down his progress.
This clearly shows that President Yar’adua is a true progressive, an acceptable reformer and revolutionary leader in a democratic dispensation if compared to the previous administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
What we should realize is that Nigeria as an entity can survive the test of time and President Yar’adua has touched the hearts and lives of many Nigerians. It’s during his tenure that calls were made by important personalities to introduce total execution for corrupt people and officials, just like what China has been doing in order to minimize or bury the economic sabotage going on in the name of corruption.
However, we should learn to call a spade a spade, no matter what the consequences would be. How long would it take us to hide the truth and advance falsehood? We cannot continue to indulge in unnecessary religious, tribal or sectional utterances in order to satisfy our selfish interest at the detriment of other Nigerians.
Alh Gumel, writes c/o Darmanawa Quarters, Tarauni Local Government, Kano State. Email: [email protected]
