Some days ago, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye, made a profound statement about the future of our dear nation in the next dispensation. Specifically, Adeboye said with God’s help, Nigeria would prosper under Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who has been declared President-elect.
The declaration has not gone down well with a number of opposition elements who are hopeful that the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal and the Supreme Court will retrieve the certificate of return issued to Tinubu. The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), ex-Vice President Atiku Abubakar, and his Labour Party (LP) candidate, Mr Peter Obi, are at the tribunal seeking to be declared the lawfully-elected replacement for outgoing President Muhammadu Buhari. Atiku came second in the presidential race. Obi came third. But, both believe they won the election and not Tinubu.
It is against this background that opposition supporters feel disappointed in Adeboye for saying the country would prosper under Tinubu God willing.
As a Nigerian currently living in America and also a British citizen, the prosperity of my base should be my concern. But, an average Nigerian, though away from home remains a Nigerian and wishes the country well. Our Nigerianess was the reason we religiously followed the presidential primaries and the general elections. We minute after minute kept refreshing our social media handles for news about the primaries and the elections. Some of us even live streamed the primaries and we supported candidates despite the fact that our laws do not currently favour diaspora voting.
The presidential election was not perfect. It was far from it. However, is it enough reason to burn our country down? Certainly, no. The tribunal and Supreme Court should be allowed to do their work and their decision will be final not because the judges are infallible but because they are final. (Apologies to the late Justice Chukwudifu Oputa).
While we wait for the decisions of the judges, which no matter what anyone thinks will only come after May 29, Tinubu will be sworn-in and will govern the country until the law says otherwise. Adeboye knows this and as a leader of a church that is not just popular in Nigeria but all over the world, the good of the greater majority is what he stands for.
During this wait period, whoever is in charge, which going by the law will be Tinubu, the prosperity of the country is a task that must be pursued with vigor. Nigeria has skidded over the years and for us to get back to good health, God has to be in the detail. The recent economic crisis caused by the money swap policy is so huge that only time can reveal its effects. So many small businesses have died and even big firms are gasping.
Generally, things are bad. This does not mean Buhari didn’t do anything but it means his best is not enough. The change Nigerians anticipated, which made many of them support him in 2015, is certainly not what has been delivered. What we have now is far below expectations. So, there is an enormous task for the next government.
In this light, it would have been irresponsible for Adeboye to have wished that the country would sink further under Tinubu. That Will not be good enough for us all. Even those of us abroad are feeling the effect of the bad state of things back home. Only our bank statements can tell the story of how we are set back by the situation at home. Our WhatsApp call logs and messages can also bear testimony to how we are not insulated from the chaos back home.
Nigeria has to work. There are no two ways about it. Naira has to appreciate. It is crazy that dollar exchanges at one to 700 or more naira. We have fuel, we have other resources and we are not short on human resources. The best professionals in America are Nigerians. Doctors, lecturers, nurses, IT experts and others who are helping America to keep it together have Nigerian blood flowing in their veins.
The world has acknowledged our greatness and only if we all, leaders and the led alike, play our parts can the country thrive and when it does, many of us abroad will return home. In the first place, an average Nigerian adult who moves to America, like novelist Ukamaka Olisakwe puts it in a recent interview, is like learning to use the left hand at an old age.
Adeboye did nothing wrong. If he didn’t endorse your candidate, it is his right. I am not aware he even endorsed anyone. Wishing Nigeria a better time in the next dispensation is a thing of joy. We need to return to the era when Naira was powerful, when our hospitals were not glorified clinics, when students flocked to our universities from outside our shores, when our travel passport was respected, and when so many other good things revolved around our land.
In the wait time, what Nigeria needs is the prayer and dedication of all of us and after the Supreme Court rules, we should also rally round whoever wins because Nigeria is greater than any human alive.
Source: The Nation
