LAW AND ORDER

We received with heavy hearts, the news of the transition of President John Evans Fiffii Atta Mills of Ghana yesterday evening; he died earlier in the day after a very short illness which was attributed to cancer of the throat. He died in a military hospital in Accra, Ghana. Grief always makes people say that life was brief and the death of President Mills has by no means been an exception.  We commiserate with the good people of Ghana as a whole and the immediate family of the departed in particular.

I was surprised to hear that his deputy had been sworn in as the new President of Ghana. This is pleasing especially coming from a neighbour West African country. And again we shift in emotions as we congratulate the good of Ghana and Mr. John Dramani Mahama for the confidence reposed in him by the good people of Ghana to lead the democratically elected government.

What has happened in Ghana within the last 24 hours is the perfect example of law and order. Nigeria is not a lawless country as some people want to make her look. Nigerians can be quite organized and peaceful too in conducting their affairs if they understand the motive. I have on several occasions observed “area boys” in Fadeyi area of Lagos, Nigeria and seen how orderly they can be in their activities; for instance, the boys on one side of the road never ever interfere with the activities of the boys on the other side of the road. Such activities are largely sharp practices or outright illegal activities but they find a meeting point where they exist side by side in peace. The same goes for loading in taxi parks and bus stops. It could get rowdy once in a while, but it does work.

At a time like this, I remember when the democratically elected President of Nigeria took ill and eventually died. His illness and eventual death was shrouded in so much secrecy that it was only his wife who knows the actual date that he died. While Nigerians waited anxiously for news of the state of health of their President, strange activities were going on in government. The budget was signed in his name, huge contracts were being awarded in his name and Imams and Pastors alike were hired to give colourful versions of that state of his well-being. Some claimed to have seen him jogging while others said they had breakfast with him

While the people waited, the deputy did not dare to assume office to hold brief for the ailing President and when the pressure from the United States of America requesting for a concise briefing from the deputy on the actual state of health of the number one man became intolerable, the President suddenly died. To date controversial issues that were raised when the President was away from office have remained unaddressed and the mysteries surrounding the initial hesitation to allow the deputy to take office also remain mysteries.

I wonder why Nigerians still believe that they are more socially or democratically exposed than Ghana; if things can take such an orderly turn why do we still claim to be the “giant of Africa?” True, Nigerians are sharp, but sharpness without law and order tends to be chaotic; making us look like fraudulent people.

Nigerians should mourn, not for President Atta Mills but for what we are slowly turning Nigeria into. We have not added any value to the Nigeria that our “past heroes” left for us to inherit. May our children not curse us for being a wasteful and reckless generation.

GOD bless Nigeria