by Kamtochukwu Anene
When I was in primary school, we read a comprehension about crying over spilt milk, our class teacher asked us what we understood by crying over spilt milk, and we all said quite naively that it means crying when we “pour away” milk….
Since the last election campaigns began, I’ve heard different versions of tales about incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari, some gory, some saintly. Approaching elections, I foretold that it was not going to be a walk in the park for the two major Presidential candidates, albeit more thorny for the immediate past President . Currently, we have a new and somewhat different government, and a new party is in power, but a critical question begs to be asked. Is there really change? Is it for the better ? . Majority of Nigerians welcomed the new government with much enthusiasm, and joy. Today, that enthusiasm has greatly diminished in many quarters and skepticism and doubt has replaced it. Is this new feeling rightly deserved?, Some agree, while some do not ,a lot of incidents in the past year has greatly shaken the faith of most pro-Buhari supporters, and has given pro-PDP supporters a reason to say “we told you so”.
From the President’s perceived incessant and ”unnecessary” travels, his initial slow pace of government, his flouting of laws and court orders and the one that has caused a major uproar in the social media community and Nigeria as a whole, His proposed budget of N6.08 trillion. This is the first time a budget has surpassed N6 trillion.
Immediately after taking over, PMB said that he met a very empty treasury, but used N2.2 Billion which we guess he magically generated within 24hours to travel to the U.S with his son and a few governors and ex-governors. Almost for three months after his swearing in, PMB hardly stayed in the shores of the country, as he traveled from one country to another, as if on a dare to go around the world in 80 days.
Nigerians went ballistic when they found out that the man who had condemned former President Jonathan’s N1 Billion feeding allowance has his at a rather steep N1.7 Billiom. We all remember a picture of PMB during the campaigning days having breakfast with just a sachet of milo, and his media aides making sure everyone saw him as an austere man who doesn’t spend unnecessarily.
Well, Nestle is about to have one of its best years yet.
Not only that, most of the amounts he criticized from the previous administration’s budget, his has surpassed, resulting in Nigerians regarding the President as a hypocrite. In his maiden media chat with ,He condemned the proposed N45 Billion for the procurement of cars for the National Assembly, going as far as deeming it extravagant and saying he would see if something could be done about it, meanwhile the Villa is supposed to use over N3 Billion for cars too. Such blatant whitewashings!!!!! Are we supposed to be so hung over on the fallacy of him being a “messiah” that we would be expected to ignore such flagrant display of tyrannical “Its only right when done by me” ? .
The man that some gullible people once thought of as the solution to Nigeria’s numerous problems due to excellent campaigning and spinning of lies has turned out to be what few foresighted people always knew he was; a bigger problem. From the carefree distribution of lies to the masses, and the disregard for law and public opinion, this is towing the ways of previous one. This shouldn’t come as a surprise to any, considering the fact that the new administration is filled with people from previous administrations, only difference being change in allegiance.
Buhari made very bold statements about how he would handle both the Boko Haram matter, and the Chibok kidnappings during Jonathan’s administration, and while campaigning. None of these statements have been actualized. The President announced mid December last year that the insurgents have been defeated , while current minister for information Lai Mohammed said that Boko Haram had been “technically” defeated. As if in response, Boko Haram carried out a bloody attack of the 25th of December, that left many dead and many more injured as usually. Since his swearing-in, the man who always cried foul after a Boko Haram attack during GEJ’s administration has never done a press release after any recent Boko Haram attack, which by the way hasn’t been “technically” completely crushed. It is worthy to note the valour of our soldiers in combating the insurgency .
Worst of all is the fact that almost all the activists who were openly criticizing activities of the previous government on all social media, organizing and carrying out protests and lectures and what not have suddenly gone silent, even as worse than they protested for is being practiced, begging the question “what is happening”?. Even the forefront #BringBackOurGirls campaign is all but defunct. Did the organizers all curl up and die? Well we didn’t see any obituaries . Or have the girls been found without the knowledge of Nigerians?
Contrary to expectations, PMB has continued to disappoint Nigerians as he keeps making mistake after blunder after mistake. Even his war against corruption seems like a personal vendetta or a witch hunt as only the opposition has been singled out . We refuse to applaud mediocrity and detest the hypocrisy that we have seen constantly from Mr. President.
Kamtochukwu Anene is a student of the Enugu State University of Technology.
The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author.
