Dennis Ogu

It is said that “he who is widely admired should not allow dust or ash to mar his face and body.” This is a piece of advice usually given to leaders generally and those in public offices.

Once candidates are voted into public offices, many eyes will be on them, and whatever they say or do will be critically evaluated. The way the public judges the utterances and actions of those in public offices is clearly different from the way it judges ordinary individuals. A person in public office should and is always expected to set good examples for others to follow.

However, in recent times, many high-profile political office holders in Nigeria have been reckless in their utterances and they expect the public to accept such pronouncements as normal or harmless.

The once respected and admired labour leader in the person of Comrade Adams Oshiomhole and now a senator representing Edo North district in the National Assembly, was credited to have said a few years back that “once you join APC, all your sins will be forgiven.” Meaning that no matter the level of crime you have committed in Nigeria, once you become an APC member, no government agency will prosecute you again.

It is not surprising then that people like former Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State and ex-Governor Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State, who have been severally accused of embezzling their states funds have been walking free and even allowed to contest other political offices. While the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has dragged Bello to court, it is to take legal action against Akpabio the incumbent Senate President till date.

There is every evidence that it is the reason governors and legislators are joining APC in droves so that their sins may be forgiven.

In 2023, one Ari Yunusa who was the Resident Electoral Commissioner in Adamawa State went out of his way and declared former Senator Aishatu Dahiru Ahmed popularly known as Binani winner of Adamawa State governorship polls when, in the first place other electoral officials in the state were still collating and counting the ballots. Secondly, it was clear, from the results that were coming in, that Ahmadu Fintiri was leading and thirdly, it was not Ari Yunusa’s official duty to declare the winner of the election since he was not the Returning Officer.

Till this very moment all the electoral laws against such fraudulent act and sabotage have not been used against him, because there are secret whispers that he is a card-carrying member of APC.

Also, in 2023, one MC Oluomo of NURTW in Lagos threatened fire and brimstone against those that would not vote for APC and Tinubu. The police even defended him saying he was not being serious about it, and nobody arrested or prosecuted him. The threat was later carried out where many were maimed and others lost their lives just for coming out to peacefully and patriotically exercise their franchise.

He once disobeyed an Appeal Court order, saying that until the order comes from President Bola Tinubu, he would not obey it. Since then Tinubu has not said or done anything, and neither have the law enforcement agencies done anything. Today, he is the national president of NURTW with his office in Abuja.

A video once circulated where the president, during campaign for 2023 general elections, was seen telling his supporters that political positions are not alar cat; that whoever desires it should grab it and run away with it. And we all saw what happened in 2023 general elections: a situation where presidential and national assembly polls were going on at the same time with same BIVAS machines; but along the line only the national assembly results were transmitted on the

IReV (the INEC Result Viewing portal)

real time, but some how some glitches prevented that of presidential results from showing on the IReV.

Few weeks ago also, same President Tinubu reportedly said that “all is fair in politics”. This is unfortunate and unbecoming of a public office holder of his status. Is he not aware that he is heating the polity? What will be his position if everybody and everywhere becomes violent and volatile?

There is this Igbo adage that “one should not engage in killing a person he knows he has the responsibility of burying.” In Igbo land, to bury a person is not a small responsibility; so, killing the same person you know you will still bury is bringing a huge burden upon yourself.

Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu is the president of Nigeria and is campaigning to complete another four years in office. So, why must he incite the same electorate he knows it will be his responsibility to govern if he wins the 2027 presidential election.

According to one of the presidential candidates, “those who occupy the office of the president are addressed as ‘Your Excellency’, therefore, those who aspire to be there should conduct themselves excellently.”

One Islamic cleric recently declared that Nigeria is an Islamic state and, therefore, whoever is not comfortable with that should leave the country. He said this in the presence of three governors, who are supposed to be upholders of the Nigerian 1999 constitution (as amended) but they were there laughing and clapping for him. And till this very moment, no security agency has summoned or questioned him.

Prior to the Osun State off-cycle governorship election, one Senator Francis Fadahunsi representing Osun East senatorial zone told his fellow APC members in the state that they should kill supporters of other parties if they saw them.

He later denied it, yet the law enforcement agents never saw any security threat in what he said even though the Nigeria Police Force merely interrogated him for few hours and set him free. Sadly, at the end of the election it was reported that at least thirty-three persons were killed during campaigns and election in the state.

Again, the Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, Chief Nyesom Wike has been singing and boasting that no other party will secure a single vote in Abuja except APC. He has converted Abuja to his personal territory and a no-go area for other parties.

He also said that if Tinubu had sent him to Osun State, Adeleke wouldn’t have won the election. So, what would he have done differently? Would he have forced the people of Osun State to vote against their conscience? As at the time of the election campaign was already over; so he wouldn’t tell us he was going there to campaign. Possibly he was to go there and force people to vote for APC as he declared he will do in Abuja. And now, one of his boys, Danjuma Shinkolo of Gariki Area Council in Abuja, has followed suit – threatening those who would not vote for APC that they should leave the area or face whatever comes to them.

A commissioner in Borno State has also said that he and his team will cut off the fingers of those who would not vote for APC; and it has also been interpreted as figurative. Would the ruling party and the security agencies give similar interpretation if such utterances had come from opposition parties?

What do these suggest? That the people’s freedom of choice is to be infringed upon – either they obey these self-styled warlords who hide behind their political party and offices to issue threats; either they obey them or their lives and safety will be in danger. In other words, this is no more political campaign but a verbal war declared against innocent Nigerians.

 There is this adage that “the frog who is bent on calling down rain should ensure his waist is well guarded to carry him through the flood that will surely result from it.” It is not enough to sing war songs in peace time, but those who do so should be sure whom the war will consume when it comes, and the extent the war will go. You don’t threaten a people who have been battered by hardship, hunger, inflation and high level insecurity because they simply want to perform their civic duty or because you want political victory at all costs.

Those mindless war mongers should understand that Nigerians have been pushed to the wall and no more afraid of death, because it is said that “he that is down fears no fall”. It is difficult, however, to imagine Nigerians watch these louts carry out their threats ; or would they simply run away from them when they want to make real these threats of theirs? Time will tell.

It is clear that this declaration of war against the people and the use of threat against the opposition has become the official language of those who now feel they are in power or at the corridors of power. The other time, Sen. Monday Okpebholo threatened that Mr Peter Obi should first get clearance from him before entering his state, Edo State, or face whatever he sees in the state. He was using the insecurity in the land as a cover. This was a careless statement in its height. People enter and leave Edo State – doing businesses, holding meetings and organising conferences. But it was Peter Obi he targeted because he is in the opposition party. This is a man whose duty it is to protect the people in his state as the governor, yet he rides on the wings of insecurity to threaten the same people. Should it not be a shame on his office if he fails to adequately protect the lives and properties of the people in his state?

Indeed, when people do not understand the purpose of their office, they will definitely abuse it. Public office is not just a position of authority, it is also a position of trust and responsibility. We are not saying that those who occupy public offices should be saints, but they shouldn’t be unscrupulous or rascally.

Sadly, many who occupy public offices in Nigeria today have lost their decorum and sense of responsibility, and have embraced rascality and insensitivity. With their utterances and body languages, they evidently don’t mean well for Nigeria, otherwise they should have been guided by what their offices demand and what they took oath to defend.

Understandably, they don’t want a progressive and developed Nigeria – they definitely envisage a jungle of a society where you either eat or be eaten, otherwise they wouldn’t have been proud associating themselves and their esteemed offices with such gutter and motor park utterances.

Power is transient and those who have it should use it for the right purposes. That is why William Penn said “I expect to walk through path only but once. Therefore, any kindness I should show to any creature; any good I should do, let me do it now for I may not pass through this way again.”

And during his days as the governor of Rivers State, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi shouted it in Port Harcourt that “… those who are senators today will become former senators tomorrow; governors today will be former governors tomorrow; ministers today will become former ministers tomorrow; presidents today will become former presidents tomorrow….”

Therefore, public office holders should strive to be remembered for good, not for hell.

Ogu, a public affairs analyst writes from Sango in Ogun state.

Mr Dennis Ogu is a public affairs analyst