By Oluwaseyi Oduyela/Washington, DC
For the past four years, even since 2009 I have been very critical of GEJ’s leadership style and very few people saw it as wrong. In fact I have received commendations and a lot of likes. I am not just doing what I do because I want people to cheer me. I do not play to the gallery and I don’t ask for 1million friends on the Facebook because of that.
I discovered that since I have been critical of Buhari, most people have been offended and have openly responded to me with anger. I have also seen on the Facebook that once you speak against Buhari, you receive curses, tongue-lashing, insults, abuses and to a ridiculous level bringing God’s wrath on you.
Let us state here clearly, why do you all blame Jonathan for everything in Nigeria?
Who imposed Jonathan on Nigeria? Where were you guys when he was running with Yar’Adua? Where were you when he took over from Yar’Adua? Where were you when he defeated Buhari in 2011?
Surprisingly, Jonathan defeated ACN presidential candidate- Ribadu in the southwest. Buhari then was Boko Haram’s sponsor.
What I have discovered is that most people like to engage in self-serving biases. We feel more comfortable blaming others for our mistakes and that’s why we keep making it again and again.
Obasanjo made Jonathan, now he is undoing what he did and suddenly he is a hero now because he is supporting Buhari.
Some of my friends could not get their transcripts from Lagos State University unless they pay N30, 000 as bribe to the Faculty Officers, was that Jonathan?
Landlords in Lagos increase rents every when they have not done anything to upgrade their houses. They ask you to pay 3 years in advance, plus agreement and security fees as against the tenement law. Is that Jonathan?
We should also hold Jonathan responsible for lecturers who sexually harassed their students for grades and take bribes too.
One of my friends even blamed Jonathan for corruption in the media. Haba!!!! Jonathan was not president when some media executives started their stupid “special Project features.” When they sold 8 pages of their magazines to politicians. This started as far back as 2000. Was it Jonathan who gave journalists plots of land at Arepo Journalist Estate along Lagos/Ibadan express road? That was Segun Osoba.
May be we should talk about history briefly here. Before December 1983, no journalist has ever been appointed as Chief Press Secretary. Press Secretaries have always been seconded from the Federal Ministry of Information to various ministries even the presidency. It all changed when Buhari became Head of State in 1983. The first political appointment was by Buhari when he appointed Wada Maida as his Chief Press Secretary and two other guys. One them is still in the presidency since 1983, I won’t mention the name for now.
It amazes me how Nigerians chose to forget and forgive. Obasanjo came to office with N25, 000.00 and left with Billions on naira and sins are forgiven because he is a supporter of Buhari. Amaechi the governor of River state, a private jet owner is safe since he is now Buhari’s driver?
In a democracy not “them all crazy,” one should be free to express himself and all views should be respected. I respect my friends who believe in Buhari and my friends who are die-hard Jonathan backers. I am not a fan of either candidate and I should not be forced to choose between them. Also because I write and post things that make Buhari supporters uncomfortable do not make me a Jonathan man, far from it. What I write, post or say should be judged on the grounds of truth not on the grounds of who I support or against.
What has individual Nigerian contributed to the destruction of the country as against putting the blames on just one person?
As a police officer are you doing what’s right? Mr. Teacher how about you? Oga Pastor, how many members of your church do you know steal and you still take their tithes?
Buhari is not going to change Nigeria, Nigerians will change Nigeria. Let individual citizens stop expecting their uncle, brother, father, husband, and sugar daddies in government to steal for them. Once you win an election or appointed to office, you are expected to begin plans to build houses, stash money somewhere, open foreign accounts. If you leave office and your condition remains the same when you joined Nigerians will call you a failure. That won’t change under Buhari. Your people expect you to help them once you get to government. Get them jobs they are not qualified for, give them contracts they know nothing about.
Members of the Nigerian National Assembly make more money than the US President, yet they don’t do anything. You do not need a Buhari to change that for you, you need you.
We have forgotten those who sleep in front of the governor’s office, ministers’ offices, commissioners’ to ask for money for wedding, naming ceremonies, and all those stupid stuff. Buhari cannot change that.
Nigerian leaders are reflections of who their people are.
I am sure that if Buhari wins and no miracles happen within the first 6 months (which is going to happen) many of his supporters now will start to make noise again. They won’t accept that given this present system and structure, Mallam Buhari cannot perform miracles because the same people supporting him in his APC were few months ago in PDP. Buhari and Jonathan are prisoners of Special Interests. People spending money on them are expecting returns and if you think Buhari will just use them to get there, you are mistaken because these are masters in this game. They have positioned themselves in the two parties that whichever party wins, is their win. Abacha died mysteriously and the powers that be brought in Obasanjo to “stabilize things” for them not for Nigerians. Yoruba accepted him in replacement of Abiola. Obasanjo did a good job of that stability. In 2003 Yoruba voted en masse against Buhari, calling him Islamic fundamentalist. Their campaign was that Buhari will turn Nigeria to an Islamic state as if it’s that easy but now, he is a changed man. They did not remember his good works of 1983 and Obasanjo succeeded as the only Nigerian ever to spend to terms in office.
In 2007 Tinubu was a co-founder of CAN. He founded the party with Atiku but he spent money to support Yar’Adua’s election against Atiku his party’s presidential candidate. In 2011 Obasanjo a member of PDP, former president, senior member of PDP and Jonathan’s mentor, would have supported Buhari if the latter had agreed to drop Tunde Bakare for Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala. Bagangida, Atiku yurned against Buhari. Tinubu the leader of ACN worked against Buhari messed up the merger deal. The same faces are still around scattered in the two parties and utmost to them is their own selfish interest riding on the back on unsuspecting Nigerians yearning for change. They also have their foot soldiers
So Buhari or Jonathan, they win while the masses lose. According to my editor, under Jonathan people are stealing with impunity but under Buhari they will steal with fear.
To Buhari supporters, especially those outside Nigeria don’t make noise on FB go home and support your messiah with votes. What Mallam Buhari needs is not noise on FB but the votes. Convert the mass follower on Twitter and FB to votes for him, and then I will take you serious. And please don’t see non-Buhari supporters as enemies of Nigeria. As human beings we have the right to our opinions.
Remember that your support for Buhari is based on your perception and their support for Jonathan is based on their perceptions too and perception is 100% subjective. No one is right no one is wrong.
As for some of us who don’t believe in any of the candidates, let us be PLEASE.
Let me end this with a quote from Kung Fu Tzu (Confucius)
“If there is righteousness in the heart, there will be beauty in the character
If there is beauty in the character there will be harmony in the home
If there is harmony in the home there will order in the nation
If there is order in the nation, there will be peace in the world.”
To change Nigeria, it takes collective effort not reliance on one person.
Africanreporter 
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