By Naija Politica
Let us go down a bit into memory lane.
BUHARI AND THE NIGERIAN ECONOMY
BUHARI made it clear to all that IMF was never up for consideration and therefore not even an option. He inherited huge debt from Shehu Shagari and so tried out the IMF route but to his shock they wanted to bring Nigeria to her knees. IMF laid down rules upon rules coupled with the huge debt the government would acquire afterwards. Some of them are as follows,
The government must remove its subsidy on petroleum (which currently GEJ would gladly implement).
Nigeria must curtail its expenditure.
The Nigerian Government must rationalize its tariff structures.
It must put a freeze on its wages.
It must put a total end of non-statutory transfers to State governments.
The Federal Government must at least institute a 30% raise on interest rates—Buhari’s administration resisted this because the decline in its revenue earnings and its debt obligations made it almost impossible to raise interest rates without triggering inflation.
AND THE BIG ONE: The IMF demanded a minimum of 60% devaluation of the Almighty Naira then. Buhari refused. The implication of devaluation was that Nigeria would pay more to import lesser quantity of goods than it did prior to any devaluation. It would also export the same amount of oil it exported before any devaluation and derive lesser revenue than it received before any devaluation. The impact of these debt payments would have harsher effect on the citizenry if the naira was devalued.
This however did not make any economic sense to Buhari; he saw it as an insult on the intelligence of the African.
We must say Buhari is an intelligent man. If he isn’t intelligent then he obviously had intelligent people working for him.
Buhari administration entered into a $2 billion barter trade agreement with four countries. Nigeria daily bartered 200,000 barrels of oil as follows:
Completely knocked down parts for automobiles from Brazil.
Construction equipment from Italy
Engineering equipment from France, and
Capital goods from Austria. This barter trade took care of the administration’s need to have borrowed money but it intensified the ill will the US and Britain had for Nigeria.
By bartering this oil, Nigeria was:
Solving those needs which the proposed IMF loan was geared toward.
Able to cut off Britain who at the time was the major supplier of the goods which the countries in the barter agreement sent to Nigeria.
Able to deny the US usurious money lenders the chance to suck Nigeria dry through the IMF loan.
Able to cut off the profit made by the American and British oil companies who were irritated that the oil being bartered would flood the oil market thereby cutting in on their profits.
Able to put to check the oil being battered which were illegally bunkered by putting oil bunkering artist out of business.
For once, an African country had put positive economic mechanism in place to salvage its ailing economy without swallowing IMF’s poison pills.
It is worth noting that this was the major reason for which the Britain and America wanted the Buhari administration overthrown. The counter trade showcased Buhari as a visionary. He made America and Britain feel stupid and they swore to get him out of office.
When Babangida took over, on his maiden speech to the nation he promised to revisit the counter trade agreements. Within two weeks in office, September 17 1985 precisely, he setup a panel to review it and recommend to his administration how to revive the economy without the use of counter trade. Babangida rolled back counter trade at the command of his imperialist masters (Britain) and at the detriment of the Nigerian nation and people.
So you see?
Those who thought that Buhari is wicked should think twice. Amongst a very short list, He is one politician that is not corrupt and seems to be what Nigeria needs.
BUHARI AND THE JOUNALISTS
It is really awkward then but the truth remained that despite the fact that all Buhari was doing was good, his political opponents used the media to tarnish his image and efforts. The journalists interpreted arrant nonsense and said all manner of rubbish about his image. Only the wise would truly understand what he was doing then.
Fast forward to the present: Take a look at the people he is working with currently in this 2015 elections, they existed back then and they know very well what the man in question stands for. He is a no nonsense man.
As a journalist then, if you talk or write too much you will definitely have a good time in jail. The Guardian newspaper would gladly tell you that most of their journalists were “having a good time in jail”.
BUHARI: THE FREEDOM AND DEPRIVATION OF FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN RIGHT
The Chief of staff Idiagbon had the power to detain anyone without charges if you are seen as a security threat for up to three months. This decree that gave him such power has been in place since the time of Aguiyi Ironsi. Buhari only maximised the law.
If Jonathan were to be wise he would have used this same decree to cut down the excesses and corruption in his administration. Although this affected journalist badly but we all know it really kept the country safe. Fast forward to the present, terrorists are everywhere. The likes of Gen. Azubike and Gen. Azazi would have been jailed, former Governor of Borno state, Ali Modu Sherrif would have been rotting in jail by now and all this Boko Haram trash would have ended a long time ago.
BUHARI: Nigeria medical association (NMA), Nigerian association of resident doctors (NARD) AND INDUSTRIAL ACTIONS.
Buhari banned organisation that would lead to strike. He had his eyes especially on Nigeria Medical Association. What do you expect he was operating autocracy, so don’t blame him. If it were you, what would you have done? Jonathan’s administration has recorded the highest number of industrial actions (strike) since inception of this country. Buhari birthed the NSO, National Security Organisation, which was a secret police service. This in particular was the peak of it, to the extent that by October 1984 about 200,000 civil servants was retrenched.
BUHARI: CORRUPT GOVERNORS PLUS MINISTERS
Buhari rounded up all corrupt governors and ministers under Shagari’s government and JAILED ALL WITHOUT TRIAL. This of course affected even the innocent who found their names connected to corruption. The fun part was that president Shagari himself and his vice Ekwueme Alex were even slammed with corruption charges.
BUHARI AND “GHANA MUST GO”
Nigeria became so wealthy and enviable that it became the ‘economic Mecca of West Africa’. Today it could be likened to the USA. The same thing Obama is now trying to do was exactly what Buhari did as regards immigrants. But Buhari was brutal; of course he was running an autocratic government so he had to boycott the “due process”. He simply made a decree on the 15th of April 1985 saying that all foreigners especially from West Africa and Ghana should find their way home before 10th MAY. 700,000 foreigners left Nigeria. This made employment even for the aged, available.
But what do we see today? Nigeria has the highest unemployment rate in West Africa. And yet some are asking Boko Haram to stop. Don’t you know that if these young boys were employed and comfortable this menace called Boko Haram would stop? Listen to what OBJ said [READ HERE]. Today when you go to Ghana to buy the bag tagged “Ghana must go” they will correct you and say that it is” Nigeria must go”. Yet some are clamouring for Jonathan’s re-election.
Please note that it was during president Shagari’s time that the decree made for the Ghanaians to go was implemented.
BUHARI AND THE “DRUG SENTENCE FOR DRUG PUSHERS”
Quite brutal, but yes it was necessary. Today we have Malaysia, china and other countries executing drug traffickers. He did this using decree 20. Though this decree was used retrospectively but yet it served its purpose. Young men and women had to shun the risky but fast means of getting rich quickly. I know he went too extreme but that was exactly what needed to be done.
BUHARI AND WAI (War against Indiscipline)
WAI was first launched in Kano by Late Major General Idiagbon. It was really nice to see an organised Nigeria back then. It was like yesterday in my head. Igbo’s till date call it –Wepu Ajo Ihe. There was law and order during his reign. You can’t talk anyhow to authorities above you, you can’t litter the environment, and you don’t wear anything you like in the name of fashion. Robbery and pilfering was curtailed. You queue up properly to avoid being whipped by police men. Sanity was restored and people behaved and lived like actual human beings.
But today the reverse is the case. Nobody would deny that Nigeria is out of order. If it were during his time those MONKEY REPS. that jumped the house of assembly gate wouldn’t attempt such disgraceful act when the IGP closed it.
Buhari was well known to be highly disciplined and urged people to do same. The entropy level in Nigeria is so much now that sometimes we ask if actually democracy has made all Nigerians gone mad! Police beat up innocent citizens mercilessly and soldiers beat up police men, and now we many of us Nigerians are almost beginning to think that being beaten up by uniformed men is a normal thing.
Indiscipline was and still is the major obstacle to the economic, social, and political development in this country. BUHARI saw it and attacked it head on, but he was truncated by IBB and the wicked west who wanted to pocket Nigeria at all cost.
WAI was launched in five phases namely:
Queue culture – If you think being patient was for the weak, try ignorant and impatienct… the whip would be your companion.
Works ethics- try going late and see if you would still be able to afford your rent after all savings are gone.
Nationalism and patriotism
Corruption and economic sabotage
Environmental sanitation – Hahahaha, T.A Orji is king of dirt. Buhari would have rid him off that office or better still whipped him severely.
BUHARI AND RELIGIOUS FANATICS
Today we have fanatics in the resemblance of Boko Haram. During his time such thing almost came bearing Maitatsine sect which was lead by Musa Makaniki who unleashed terror and horror where about 1,000 lives were lost in Adamawa. Buhari was swift to act and sent troops to crush the stupid sect. But what do we have today? We are pleading to Jonathan to please #BringBackOurGirls.
Secondly, Buhari was once quoted to have said “muslims should vote muslims” during one of his campaigns then in 1999. Though in that statement he was only trying to encourage fair votes between muslims brothers, it came out really WRONG!.
NIGERIANS HEART FELT PLEA TO BUHARI
The peoples’ general (BUHARI); we at naija Politica want to bring to your notice that many people think you to be weak, purposeless and without precision and vision.
The citation to support the above reads thus:
If Buhari’s recent actions, utterances, and gestures are a guide, then it is fairly safe to conclude that the Buhari of 1985 is dead to Nigeria. Nigeria, by the way, seems to have returned the favour.When Buhari speaks now, he sounds withdrawn, disinterested, and aloof. I recently participated in a telephone interview with the General.
I was struck by how passion-less he sounded throughout the interview. And it wasn’t because we didn’t probe. We asked tough questions but also softball ones that should have enabled him to impress us with his diagnosis of Nigeria’s ills and his vision for curing them. Instead of punchy, substantive responses to our questions, we got platitudinous, banal, over-scripted political generalities.
Buhari’s political speech has become stale and bland, lacking the fierce urgency, to paraphrase Barack Obama via MLK, of Nigeria’s rescue mission. Buhari’s other recent interviews betray the same frustratingly noncommittal attitude and a seeming reluctance to make bold, promissory pronouncements about his intentions. He now speaks like a typical Nigerian politician; the same unimaginative vocabulary; the same vacuous rhetoric; the same lack of specifics; the same general, predictable promises about rooting out corruption, making government work, and improving security. The “how” of all this has been missing from the political gestures and pronouncements of today’s Buhari.
POINTS TO NOTE
Mai Gaskiya (Man of Integrity) we need you back. We need the Buhari of 1985, an insatiable patriotic, passionate, and courageous revolutionist.
Know also that Nigerians need you to spell out what your hopes, dreams, and visions are for them. Please don’t make the mistake of leaching off Jonathan’s misgovernance or using it as a platform to win the upcoming elections.
Even when you win the elections bear in mind that you are now in democracy ,so we don’t expect you to run autocracy because it is one of the major reasons Nigerians are scared of voting you again
Finally desist from making incriminating and inciting statements. Like the one you said during in 2012-“God willing, by 2015, something will happen. They either conduct a free and fair election or they go a very disgraceful way. If what happened in 2011 (alleged rigging) should again happen in 2015, by the grace of God, the dog and the baboon would all be soaked in blood.’’
