AVOIDING THE ROAD TO GIDEON ORKAR’S TEMPLATE. By Richard Akinnola
Some may be in denial or cynical about it for various reasons, the reality is that we are now more divided than ever before and this portends grave DANGER for this country.
Some may want to be politically correct publicly but in our closets, social gatherings and informal groups, the dominant issue is the state of insecurity in Nigeria and recourse to ethnic identities.
For those who are two young to understand the Major Orkar phenomenon, when certain parts of Nigeria were excised out of Nigeria during the April 22, 1990 abortive coup, you need to read my book – FELLOW COUNTRYMEN:THE STORY OF COUP D’ETATS IN NIGERIA and the thoughts of Captain Tolofari, one of the leaders of the coup, as contained in pages 152 to 178.
Thank God, the eras of coups are gone for good but worse things than coup, like was witnessed in Rwanda, can still happen in Nigeria if we are not careful. There is so much ethnic distrust and anger amongst the people. We need to quickly address this and nip it in the bud. We cannot continue to pretend that all is well. This may eventually blow up in our faces. This resonating phenomenon of “to your tents O Israel” is worrisome. You can deny it if you want, but deep down in your conscience, you know that things are not the way it used to be. Unfortunately, fundamentalist political support for the president and visceral hatred for him by some other people, have beclouded rationality. It’s so difficult to have decent, rational discussion without being emotive for and against. That, certainly, would help our current dilemma.
It is better to jaw jaw than to war war. Even those who have not withstood tear gas, are shouting war. These are people who would scamper at the sound of a tyre burst, shouting war. War is not a tea party. But already in our sub-conscious, we are already at war with each other. We need to address this and nip this in the bud because we are at the precipice.
It is imperative that the president must initiate genuine interface among various contending interests because there is palpable mistrust, lest we go the way of Major Gideon ORKAR’S template.
May God guide us right.
