Open Letter To Femi Fani-Kayode: Stop Portraying PMB As The Problem Of Nigeria

Editor’s note: Emmanuel T. Okedeji came up with a counter article to the open letter to President Muhammadu Buhari by Femi Fani-Kayode, the erstwhile aviation minister and an influential opinion-maker. The article deals with corrections of his accusations of the present administration, and serves as the means of warning Mr Fani-Kayode against portraying the Nigerian government as the problem of the nation.

Mr Fani-Kayode, what is you real intention?

Sir, as one of your staunch followers and unacquainted learners under your tutelage, who has nothing but utmost reverence and admiration for your personality, I am constrained to pass my sincere opinion to you through this medium, maybe because it is opposite to your actions. This could be the result of the open letter written to President Buhari on December 28, 2015; after a conscious peruse of the piece I was left confused by your intent.

Sir, I must confess the piece was a concise and a creditable one, portraying your role as one of the marshals in the House of Opposition. At least since the inception of the present administration, your works and that of the ever vibrant and courageous Ekiti state governor have been keeping the ruling party on its toes, and it must be commended. But one has to ask: is all this to the benefit of the country at large or to your personal benefit since it has been observed that it is conventional for you to “criticize to acquire power”. In fact, your alternation between the country’s two major political parties has left a poser in my mind.

Stop wasting your talent on sowing the seeds of hatred

As a matter of fact, it is not an overstatement to rate you as one of the most respected and educated people in Nigeria (at least your certificate is not missing). Being a certified “educated” lawyer from a highly respected institution and an evangelist I remain disturbed about the way you make your assertions with false induction and unnecessary accusations based on your political bigotry. Though you are a model to me in the field of literature, I observed that most of your literary works are always full of some elements of implicit vituperations. I am still awaiting the day you will make some constructive recommendations without insulting another politicians.

Permit me to point out some of the unnecessary accusations and false assertions you have made in your latest open letter to the Nigerian president.

The arms purchase drama

In the letter you accuse Muhammadu Buhari of the contradictory statements made on the issue of the arms purchase by the preceding administration. One is bothered to ask: which is right either way? Either the preceding administration bought arms with raw cash, or it embezzled the money allotted to purchase arms, the truth is that there was an element of corruption.

Me and other concerned citizens of Nigeria could have only taken this seriously if you had said that neither of the presidential assertions was true. However, since your recommendations were to come out straight to the president, it is evident you admitted something was wrong, and that was not alien to the citizens anyway.

I wonder if the UK has signed any agreement with the country compelling it to always provide arms in times of war, or do we need to remind the erstwhile minister that the international system is about conflict and cooperation? I may assume you are aware about it, but prefer to pretend you are not for the sake of your criticism. We are seriously in need of the international community to wage war against the “jihadists” as you may refer to them, but you still find it pleasing to recommend conflicting relations with another states. This makes me realize you are against us in lieu of being for us.

Make recommendations instead of accusations

I think it would be laudable if you recommended the means of combating Boko Haram. Maybe my mind, or let me say my eyes skipped the names of the local governments that had recovered since the inception of the present administration, or maybe you just forgot to add them to the letter. Well, as far as Nigeria is concerned, the war against the Islamic extremism is on our side, and Boko Haram operations are being minimized.

It is to my utmost amusement that you as a respected citizen could refer to the action charged against the former national security adviser as the “state-sponsored tyranny” and the “wrong representation” on an offense that was crystal clear to the whole country, serving as a medium to exonerate the star at the heart of the scandal. This is so contradictory to your supposed person, I should say, and we are in fact disappointed.

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Since you touted yourself as one of those who could criticize the effort of the administration, one has started to wonder where you were when the former president was dancing after the Nyanya bomb blast. Maybe you were not aware of the embarrassing TV drama that featured the wife of the former president in respect to the Chibok girls. I am sure you did not notice that the fight against Boko Haram was suspended till the eve of the election. If all this had happened and not even an article had been written about it, then I believe we should not have been surprised because even the devil could quote the Bible.

Be for Nigeria, not against it

Sir, it is not and will never be a criminal offense to stand in the opposition. This may be due to the ideological conflicts, but you must understand that it is an immoral act to criticize or even oppose without a pure intention. I wonder what Nigerians should expect after you have been allocated a political appointment. I wish you could use your sugar-coated mouth and your literary prowess to say and write something good about Nigeria; with your theological knowledge you could solicit for us in the heaven.

I know I am the least of those who should write this to you; I just hope you will consciously consider it. I drop my pen by referring to one of your quotes: “Courage is the greatest of all the virtues.” I hope you could see me as the one who has never treated you as an enemy. God bless Nigeria.

Emmanuel T. Okedeji is a political science student at the University of Ilorin, an award-winning essay writer and the author of the motivational book Sojoirn on Campus: Accelerated Academic Excellence.

This article expresses the author’s opinion only. The views and opinions expressed here do not necessarily represent those of Naij.com or its editors.

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