The rage this time

In the last 10 days waves of unimaginable destruction of government property and Private businesses swept through the land on the trail of the EndSARS protest which was widely acknowledged as arguably the best organized and peaceful within memory. A great deal of thought was put into it.

However, this came to an abrupt end following an Army crackdown on the protesters at the invitation of the authorities troubled by an orgy of arson and destruction in parts of Lagos. The police had been aloof in dampened spirit, feeling demonized and humiliated even though only a special arm of it had intolerably abused its power and public trust.

The bottled up grievances have been long. The misuse of power evinced in brutality, extortion, torture and extra-judicial killings of promising young men and girls was the trigger for the EndSARS protest in the first place. This predictably rubbed off on the police in general. The assurances of reform by the government and the police high command did not calm nerves and miscreants unconnected with the protest took over and lit the fire that sparked and spread rapidly like harmattan inferno in the dry season. Today, various governments and individuals are counting their losses. Kogi alone lost drugs and billions of Naira worth of property and goods. Lagos is asking for Federal assistance to rebuild what the undesirable elements destroyed in their rage.

There is no doubt that the country at the moment is rife with quick, nasty temper. What is the nature of anger, it may be asked? In anger there is wrinkling of the face. The outstreaming of the radiations of the spirit that is man is curtailed, seized by shadows. The tangibility of the shadow constitutes weight on the spirit. In place of a light and uplifting feeling characteristic of joy and happiness, the spirit sinks, and a man boils with anger. In anger he loses connection with Light and help. He is cold and loses hold on himself. He becomes a ready tool of Darkness. A hungry man lends himself a ready tool. A hungry man, it is said is an angry man. Many a time he blames everyone but himself for his plight and he drives to take it upon his neighbour. This must have accounted for the brigandage and looting of warehouses witnessed across country in the last few days. No government should condone evil. What a government should do is to minimize the possibility of the tendencies.

The time for blame game should now be over and give way to what must be done to return normalcy to the land. What must the leaders and the led do to engender peace and enduring harmony in our land without which there can be no progress development?

FULL DISCOURSE NEXT WEEK.