By Jude Atupulazi
A lot has happened and still happening; so much so that I have been left befuddled. I don’t really know where to begin but I must begin somewhere.
The killing of Aiza Nwosu
His name was Isaac Nwosu but everyone who knew him called him Aiza. He was popular for his comical actions and the music blaring from the loudspeakers of his vehicle with which he ran adverts for people and made announcements. We were friends. Any time he saw me, he called me, ”Oga Fides”.
In the days of Governor Chinwoke Mbadinuju when schools were shut for one year and civil servants were owed, a period when the morale of workers was at its nadir, Aiza used to sing one particular song that prophesied about a day of joy, a day when the sorry plight of workers and those of other citizens would become a thing of the past.
The song went like this: ”Joy, alleluia joy, alleluia joy will be on that day, joy, joy, joy, alleluia joy, alleluia joy will be on that day’. He sang this song at every opposition political gathering then and workers gleefully sang along with him.
As it turned out, the Mbadinuju Government was voted out. But there was no immediate joy. The winner of that election, Peter Obi, was denied his victory. Chris Ngige became the beneficiary of that electoral heist but he however tried his best to do well and right the wrongs of the immediate past. However, he was bugged down by the then godfathers who made life miserable for him and even kidnapped him. Eventually his turbulent regime came to an end when Obi reclaimed his mandate.
Still, the expected joy remained elusive as Obi was enmeshed in a gruesome fight with same godfathers who fought Ngige. They impeached him. He returned from impeachment only to face a battle for the then hostile House of Assembly controlled by enemies of progress to pass his budget. There were entreaties by well-meaning people of the state to the hostile House of Assembly until they finally passed the budget.
But just as Obi wanted to settle down to work, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, conducted an election in which Obi and others were disqualified from contesting in order to make way for their anointed candidate, Andy Uba. The selection worked and Uba came on board. He would however, stay only 17 days in office before being sacked by the court at the instance of Obi. It was only from then that the state began to witness stability.
Today, the state has been fully stabilized, politically. But violent crime has refused to go. The greatest threat to the capital city of Awka has been cult related violence. It has defied government’s efforts to combat it. The killers have hardly been caught as their operations have been like guerilla warfare. It is this cult violence that is suspected to have claimed the life of Aiza.
Was he a cultist? No! Why was he a victim? We may never know. Yet, his shooting and killing had the imprimatur of a cult-related attack as another man was shot same day in Awka.
Sadly, Aiza who sang about the day joy would come did not live to enjoy that joy. So, so sad. May his happy soul rest in peace.
Harshest punishment for drug sellers
I have often imagined how a normal human being can leave their house in the morning and determine to take some other person’s life. They will do this and still eat, laugh and sleep. It can only be a drug-induced mind that can do this.
Today we have so many kinds of hard drugs and new ones keep surfacing every day. Before now, the most popular one was Indian Hemp, variously known as weed, igbo, ganja, etc. It was seen as a terrible substance that could make one run mad, as indeed, many did. But years later, this substance has become like water. It is so common these days that people smoke it in public places and even on the roads. No one gets bothered anymore. It has become routine.
It has long been replaced by more dangerous ones and two of the most dangerous these days are methamphetamine or mkpuru mmiri and colos. These have serious effects on the users and turn them to animals after using them. Thus, it is only those who take them that can act like animals and take human life as easily as killing a fly on the wall.
Those who take such and other drugs have no control of their minds. They can do and undo. They can perform bestial acts and they do not think of the consequences of their actions. This is why it has become highly imperative that those behind them should be caught and put out of circulation.
It is especially so for those who procure and sell them. Without making the drugs available, there will be no buyers and society would have been much better and safer. All these kidnappers, armed robbers and cultists take these and other drugs and that is why they do what they do.
I propose that the worst possible punishment be meted out to those selling these drugs. They have done more harm to society than even kidnappers and hardened criminals. So, the earlier they are clamped down upon by government the better for us all.
Open letter to priests, others
As the 2027 General Elections draw near, it has become clear that it will be a battle between ”we and them”. The masses are ”we” and the thieves in government are ”them”. Those in government have been feeding fat on the common wealth of the people. They sit at the table and gorge themselves with all imaginable delicacies and are so selfish that they are loath to let the masses have the dry bones of the meat they consume. They get fatter when the masses get thinner. But the worst is that they are not ready to relinquish their hold on what belongs to us all.
It is therefore, becoming clear that the coming elections should be fought with every available legal weapon. It is no longer time to sit on the fence or play safe in order not to hurt some people. Everybody should use what they have to launch an offensive that is within the limits of the law.
There are people whose voices carry more weight, people who have access to more people even more than the politicians. I’m talking about our men of God – priests, pastors, general overseers, prophets, prophetesses and others, even dibias. These people should use their long reach to preach against reelecting the present government at the centre. I’m not talking about candidates seeking election for other positions. There are many good people among them. But as for the presidency, Tinubu must go!
Tinubu’s Government has been among the worst in the nation’s history. I thought no government would compete with the late Muhammadu Buhari as the worst. But the current government is proudly doing so. It has failed to address all the ugly things that happened under Buhari.
They have been unable to address the killings by terrorists, bandits and herdsmen. They have failed to address the issue of high cost of energy and this has resulted in massive hunger across the land. Worse still, there seems no hope that anything better will happen. There simply is no hope in sight.
With a failed government comes more crime and that is why Nigeria has become the crime capital of the world today. Movement from one state to another has become perilous; even movement within isn’t safe. Anyone about to travel will first have to fast and pray, not against an accident, but against being kidnapped along the way. The victims cut across all segments of society.
Those who have money pay their way out. Those who don’t have money have their body parts sold to ritualists. That is how terrible the situation is. And as all this happens, the government pretends nothing is happening. That is why they are still preparing to return a second time. Should we just fold our hands and watch?
I am therefore, calling on our priests, and pastors and everybody with a voice to declare that voting for Tinubu will be committing a sin! It is a sin because voting for him will be like signing the death warrants of innocent citizens. Our men of God should no longer ”respect” anyone. They should shout from the rooftops to people of God to reject Tinubu. Rejecting him should be seen as task that must be done. Do it and all will be well. Don’t do it and you commit a sin. It is as simple as that!
