It is not easy to be a leader. It is even harder to be a man of God. Every word that comes out your mouth is brutally analyzed, examined and evaluated – even by people who do not know a fraction of what you know.
Nigeria’s Vice President Professor Yemi Osinbajo (SAN) is known to be a man of integrity. Before he was chosen to be Muhammadu Buhari’s running mate in 2014, he was a pastor in the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG). He had also served meritoriously as Lagos State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice. But it seems politics and governance are now conspiring to make our beloved Osinbajo blur the lines between fact and fiction.
Because the Bible says, “touch not my anointed and do my prophets no harm”(Psalm 105:15) this article is not directed at Osinbajo the pastor but at Osinbajo the politician because he seems to have discarded the priestly cloak to adorn the multi-coloured toga of politicians who switch positions faster than they change their agbadas.
At the pastors and leaders retreat at Pastor Taiwo Odukoya’s Fountain of Life Church in Lagos, Osinbajo claimed that the APC’s favourite whipping boy, the Jonathan administration, did not build a single road in the six years it was in office. What an occasion to tell a barefaced lie! Did Osinbajo consult the Minister of Works Raji Fashola to verify that claim or was he just doing what his party knows how to do best – throw wild accusations at its predecessor?
In December 2015, at his first news conference as minister, Fashola disclosed that Jonathan had constructed more roads than any Nigerian president. Incidentally, Osinbajo and Fashola served in the Lagos State administration of Bola Tinubu so he must have cordial relations with the works minister. Maybe Osinbajo didn’t read that script. If he did, he had forgotten too soon.
The 59-year-old law professor has also come out to say that Nigeria doesn’t need restructuring but diversification of the economy to move forward. But he has conveniently forgotten that, while they were in opposition, members of the APC promised to implement true federalism if they were elected into office. But as soon as they gained power, the cry for restructuring was thrown out of the window for the status quo to continue. Unfortunately, Osinbajo has chosen to stay loyal to his party’s deceitful ways and pull wool over our eyes.
At any given opportunity, the erudite professor of law had blamed former President Goodluck Jonathan for Nigeria’s economic woes. So it was surprising to hear him shift the blame to the Niger Delta militants on September 19.
Speaking at the Presidential Quarterly Business Forum, the VP said “If we did not have vandalism in the Niger Delta as we are currently suffering, we will not have this recession today.”
So Mr. Vice President, who really is the cause of the recession? Jonathan or militants? Please make up your mind. Members of this government seem to be experts at “scapegoatism.” Someone else is always responsible for this administration’s failings.
Osinbajo has the rare distinction of being a pastor and a lawyer. To both offices, truth is supposed to be sacrosanct. It is not subject to conjecture or one’s feelings. But if one day Jonathan is the cause of the current recession and the next day it is the fault of the militants then one of these two have been falsely accused.
Speaking at the interdenominational church service organized by the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), The Vice President had also promised that Nigeria would be out of recession “soon.”
But a few days later, the Minister of Finance Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, who is best placed to know, said she couldn’t predict when the recession would end. “I don’t want to predict when we would get out of recession…It may take longer than we would like,” she said.
Was Osinbajo speaking prophetically or was he just trying to say something positive to make Nigerians feel optimistic? It is one thing to motivate the people; it is another thing to base the optimism on make-belief or wishful thinking.
The VP is also the chairman of the National Economic Council, which consists of all state governors as well as the CBN governor, so he should have a clue about the state of the economy. Choosing to base his optimism on wishes will not drive the problem away.
Osinbajo has also frowned at people who criticize government instead of joining hands to build a better Nigeria. But hey, wasn’t this what the APC specialize in doing before it came into power? Every leader knows that his policies will be criticized and analyzed endlessly, that is why a responsible government spends time to formulate policies that will stand the test of time.
French philosopher Michel Foucault said, “Victors of a social struggle use their political dominance to suppress a defeated adversary’s version of historical events in favour of their own propaganda.”
The APC has followed this script to the letter. Since it took over the reins of power the party has done its best to rubbish the country’s past leaders, especially Goodluck Jonathan. But Osinbajo should not fall into the trap of victors who try to rewrite history. He should remember that after a few years, he will also join the league of past leaders. And he would not appreciate if his legacy is rubbished by his successors.
Image: Vanguard
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