Mr President, good morning. I address the issue of human rights this morning and, as a corollary, admonish you. First, let me thank you for the release of Miss Comfort Emmanson, who was brutalised in the most inhuman way by the Air Ibom host and hostesses. In her case, two wrongs don’t make a right. She could have been anybody’s daughter. Over the last two weeks or so, I have seen instances of ridiculous state–led violence against the citizens, which should not be. Many of the gross violations may not be apparent to you. But the buck, as they say, stops on your table.
One is the arrest of Mr Omoyele Sowore, my comrade and compatriot, who was invited by the police over spurious charges. He honoured the invitation and was subsequently detained, mentally tortured by being shuffled from one detention facility to another just to break his spirit. Mr Omoyele, a former presidential candidate under the African Action Congress (AAC), should have been granted bail on self-recognition if detention were warranted. Given the clarion call he has made several times for the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) to resign and the recent protest he led over the deteriorating welfare of the police, perhaps, his harassment was a convenient way for the IGP to take his pound of flesh.
He was released due to public outcry. The damage is not so much against the image of the police but the image of the president, who would be seen in the eyes of the global public as a tyrant. For example, this is how Standardpress.com framed the public perception of your administration over the Omoyele saga: “In the eyes of many, Thursday morning’s assault confirms their worst fears — that the Nigerian state is actively dismantling civil liberties. And in doing so, it isn’t just harming one man — it is sending a chilling message to every voice of dissent”.
Two, Ushie Uguamaye popularly known as Raye, a youth corper who served in Lagos and known to have criticised your policy that earlier in the year, was last Thursday denied her discharge certificate drawing widespread condemnation in respective of the defence put up by the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) to the effect that it has nothing to do with public criticism of your administration but on the ground of a two-month disciplinary action against her for missing April clearance.
This defence has been controverted by Raye’s lawyer. Even then, opposition forces in the country have weighed in on the matter, demanding the release of her certificate. Alhaji Abubakar Atiku, former Vice President, has noted that “It is unacceptable that the young lady, who had served her country without queries, should not have received her National Youth Service Corps certificate one year after passing out. The appropriate authorities should take urgent steps to ensure that she gets her discharge certificate”. Also, Amnesty International Nigeria described the withholding of the certificate as capricious.
As the international human rights body put it: “The decision to withhold her certificate may not be unconnected with her comments on social media about widespread economic hardship as a result of President Bola Tinubu’s economic policies. Instead of punishing her for expressing discontent, authorities should prioritise addressing the country’s escalating economic woes”. It should be obvious to anyone familiar with the bureaucratic processes that the president never gave such an order. One civil servant is overreaching his/her mandate, if he/she has any.
Also, it should be noted that security forces, afflicted with what I have called the Glover syndrome, are always overzealous. Lt. Glover of the British Navy, who established the nucleus of what is today the Nigerian army, recruited a pack of rebellious slaves of Hausa extraction and used them to pacify the indigenous people of Nigeria in the interest of the British. This foundational doctrine has been transformed into code by the post-colonial security forces that see the people they are meant to protect as the enemy while obeying instinctively, even without command from the interim wielder of the sovereignty of the people.
Honestly, Mr President, given the travails of the prodemocracy activists as a result of the repressive policies of successive military juntas, I thought a post-military government should hallow the observance of human rights. If others before you failed, you should follow a new path to the realisation of this expectation. The American intellectual giant, Noam Chomsky, warned against historical amnesia. In his words: Historical amnesia is a dangerous phenomenon, not only because it undermines moral and intellectual integrity, but also because it lays the groundwork for crimes that still lie ahead”. Haven’t we learnt enough lesson?
Mr President, you learn from the tolerance of Dr Goodluck Jonathan. In my opinion, he was the most abused head of government of this country and at the same time the most tolerant that I know. He never jailed opposition elements. He met every abuse with an invasive, humble smile. According to Carl Sagan, “One of the criteria for national leadership should therefore be a talent for understanding, encouraging, and making constructive use of vigorous criticism.” This is worthy of emulation.
Professor Akhaine is with the Department of Political Science, Lagos State University.
