Open Letter to General Muhammadu Buhari at 70

Open Letter to General Muhammadu Buhari at 70

Dear Sir,

Firstly, I will use this opportunity to commiserate with you on the recent loss of your beautiful daughter Zulaiha: May her peaceful soul rest in perfect peace: Amen.

The peoples General, the hope of the masses, the indefatigable one, the epitome of incorruptibility, the standard of leadership and the nightmare of the corrupt, today is your day, we rejoice with you as you join the league of septuagenarians.

Compassionately, you humbly cancelled a landmark celebration in your life to mourn the naval helicopter tragedy in Bayelsa State, which included Governor Yakowa of Kaduna and former NSA General O.A Azazi. It is because of these types of gestures some of us are celebrating you and your ideals; you are indeed a rare gem, an exemplary leader and a role model to those of us who sincerely want to serve our nation for common good, and not for self-aggrandising purposes.

Only those with sinister motives and anti-progressive agendas will play to the gallery of your traducers. Time without number they unsuccessfully attempt to taint your good name but have been shamed. They have attempted to rewrite history but have failed, because some of those who witnessed your good works are still alive today to debunk their innuendos bordering on bunkum.

For example, during the Obasanjo regime a scrutiny of your stewardship of Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF) was launched to expose shady practices, but instead they fortuitously unearthed the hard work and dedication you put into the service of your nation.

Your detractors also tried to label you a religious bigot but it also ricocheted in your favour, because such lies could only be fed to the gullible without access to facts. Recently, they even tried to associate you with Boko Haram, as you were surreptitiously nominated a respected negotiator; a Catch 22 situation somewhat. Expectedly, you gracefully rejected the vindictive conundrum by condemning the activities of the dreaded sect and disappointed your naysayers.

When real men like Professor Tam David West tell the facts about your regime and your achievements, they are sickened because it contradicts their smear campaign. And when they read articles from the likes of Sam Nda-Isaiah refuting their fables, they are nauseated. Even when the respected Rev. Fr. Mathew Kukah tried to set the records straight on your religious tolerance, they were infuriated because it doesn’t fit into their concocted xenophobic vituperation.  

It was during these orchestrated maligning brouhaha people like myself discovered the facts about your person and integrity. You have served the nation as a Governor, Minister of Petroleum and Head of State. Amongst other achievements that are too numerous to mention, I will highlight two areas that are vital to the development of our country: electricity and petroleum. It was under your leadership the state of the art Lagos Thermal Station Egbin with an installed capacity of 1,320 Megawatts was commissioned. This landmark facility included 300 housing units for the staff, provision for 3 different adjoining communities Egbin, Ipakan and Ijede that were all fully resettled with new houses.  Unsurprisingly, it was during your servitude to the nation our respective oil refineries were constructed.

In addendum, I read some indisputable comments from various sources:

“Character traits showcase Buhari's appeal. Nigerian perception of candidates' character traits may help explain support for candidates. Of all the candidates, Buhari is most frequently associated with integrity, leadership, accountability, honesty and transparency. Nigerians are more skeptical about these qualities in Atiku and Yar'adua”. - Opinion Analysis. State Department, Washington. March 19th 2007.

“General Muhammadu Buhari as a member of the Supreme Military Council and as Head of NNPC was by nature taciturn and introvert. But he took any work that was given to him very seriously. He is reliable as he is hardworking and honest”. - President Olusegun Obasanjo, in his book, "Not My Will".

“Buhari has three qualities namely INTEGRITY, which even his worst enemies can't fault; he is CONSISTENT, he does not say one thing in the morning and another at night, and he is COMMITTED to implementing the restructuring of the country. Anyone with these qualities deserves the support of Nigerians”. -Chief Olu Falae-This Day Newspaper, 23rd March 2007.

“Buhari stands out to be the most DEDICATED and PATRIOTIC leader. We want the President who would confront both the foreign and local enemies of democracy”. - Femi Falana (Lawyer/Human Rights Activist) -Tribune Newspapers 24th March 2007

“Buhari is a forthright and very clearly a disciplined man. He has managed to cut the image of a person who abhors corruption genuinely. - Vanguard Editorial. 23rd January 2003.

Being enlightened with these facts, I was disheartened and wondered why some people could be so evil and work against the progress of their own nation. I came to the conclusion that poverty (mental and physical) might be the reason some resort to such tactics or descend to such lows; after all he who pays the piper dictates the tune.

I can proudly say, I write because of the love of my nation and the retrogressive state of inertia it currently lays. Some people are shocked when I say, “I have actually seen Buhari once in person”, which was during the 2007 elections at the residence of our late President-elect M.K.O Abiola (RIP) - so I am nobody’s stooge.

We are all witnessing the manifestations of a corrupt polity, a government rife with ineptitude, a socio-political malady and the indices characteristic of a failed state. We read about staggering figures unaccounted for, recently we gathered about $31 billion (dollars) vanished in 2 years. These are staggering figures that can conveniently facilitate the transformation of any society.

Recently, Dubai announced it wanted to build a new city and we are still grappling with 24/7 electricity in 2012, a country blessed with abundant human and natural resources!

Some have wondered why the current government busy themselves with Buhari’s activities, why they are concerned about what you do or say, that even your silence is a problem, it is because their conscience is pricking them and know they are the real enemies holding Nigerian masses to ransom. Many have also asked “how come Buhari is still relevant” I respond, this is a no-brainer: as long as there's endemic corruption in our polity, Buhari will remain relevant. It is the avaricious acts of those perpetuating corruption that makes Buhari a perpetual force to reckon with.

As you turn 70 today, I pray the Almighty gives you the strength to witness the Nigeria you attempted and still hope to reform. You will continue to be an inspiration to those of us who abhor corruption and be the abradant to the brawn of corrupt entities in our midst.

Many Happy Returns, GOD Bless you and Nigeria!!!

Yours Sincerely,

M.B.O Owolowo