by Ayodele Ibiyemi
“Now that people confirmed that Buhari distributed enough palliatives nationwide, it is clear Buhari is not our problem” – Zahra Buhari
Daughter of Nigerian President Muhamadu Buhari, Zahra Buhari, posted the above statement on her Instagram page, trying to absolve her father of the responsibility of being the President of a dying nation. First, she acknowledges that Nigeria has problems but she passes the buck by claiming that her father who is the president is not the country’s problem. This argument seems appealing and seductive, even logical as the palliatives that were looted across warehouses were kept there by State Governments. However, a more critical look at it would show the illogic and irrelevance of it.
Her father, President Buhari was voted into power five years ago in 2015. Now in his second term, he has failed to fulfil a lot of his campaign promises. Instead, things seem to have gotten worse in security and the economy. And, when you remember that his administration came with probably the highest amount of goodwill any Nigerian president has had in a long time but within a few years, you may regret the love you threw around in support of him.
He has also failed to respond promptly and decisively to a lot of issues that affect Nigerians. An example of this slapdash attitude is his prolonged silence in the face of the #EndSARS Agitations. As the President and Commander in Chief of the nation’s Armed Forces, he should be able to call the rogue Police Unit to order and if he had any humanity in him, the rogue unit might not have committed atrocities at such a high level. They knew that they would escape consequences so it was easier for them to continue in their sleazy ways.
Despite riding on the theme of anti-corruption to power, President Buhari has presided over a recklessly corrupt administration and in his last nationwide broadcast failed to humanise the poor victims of the incident now known as the #LekkiMassacre.
Nigeria’s problem is still largely a problem of leadership and Nigeria has only one leader at the top, Buhari. For a president who reacts to dissent with threats, his daughter who is also a youth has no moral right to make comments accusing others.
Leave a reply