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Like Tinubu Like King Joash; Like Onaiyekan, Like Zechariah
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By Sodiq Lawal Chocomilo
In 2014, Onaiyekan visited former President Jonathan and told him that the poor were suffering and decried rising insecurity. When he left Aso Rock, he became the toast of the Tinubu-led opposition. His allies did not only debate his visit, they sang his praises and hailed the clergyman as a hero of democracy.
Cardinal John Onaiyekan has stirred the hornet’s nest again. This time, he visited his former opposition friends who are now in charge of Nigeria’s ship. He broke through the gates. He did not consider the bulldogs. He was ready to face the consequences.
The Kogi-born Catholic bishop and his colleagues drove into Aso Rock, entered the Presidential Villa, and told President Tinubu that his policies have made Nigerians poorer. “Nigerians are dying. Insecurity is rising. People cannot afford decent meals. Help our people. We cannot continue like this. Protect our democracy. Don’t kill it. Provide a credible platform for it to thrive,” a coalition of bishops lamented.
Onaiyekan left the Presidential Villa and went on Arise TV. He narrated what transpired between the President and his fellow Catholic bishops. He said President Tinubu was not smiling and appeared ignorant of the reality of the Nigerian people. He also claimed that President Tinubu is certainly not aware of the true reality of the economy and its damaging impact on the people.
The cardinal underestimated his former friends. He probably expected to be celebrated like in 2014, when they were in opposition. He forgot that those same ex-friends are now in power. And as Michelle Obama said, “power reveals true character.”
Sadly for Onaiyekan, the same people who admitted in 2014 that former President Jonathan had made Nigerians poorer, now argue that poverty did not start under Tinubu. They claim it started during the military era.
The clergyman’s courage, confidence, and audacity provoked the Villa. Presidential media aides reacted sharply. Tinubu’s loyalists who now write as guest columnists in national dailies did not spare him either. They ignored the issues and launched ferocious attacks on the bishop.
Despite being targeted by the President’s media bullies, the Kogi-born Catholic bishop insisted that Nigeria cannot continue like this. What was his crime? He only echoed what international bodies like the World Bank, NBS, the United Nations, UNICEF, and civil society organizations have been saying repeatedly: the reality of the average Nigerian.
The World Bank said Tinubu’s policies have made Nigerians poorer. The institution reported that 139 million Nigerians are now poorer, with the majority in rural areas. It also stated that 86 million Nigerians are without power.
According to the NBS Multidimensional Poverty Index, 133 million Nigerians are poor.
UNICEF said the number of out-of-school children has increased astronomically. The UN noted that unemployment and poverty indices have risen. Civil society groups are tired of filling newspaper pages to lament the country’s harsh economic situation.
The average Nigerian is living a borrowed life, neck-deep in debt. The irony is that President Bola Tinubu, in his own addresses, has acknowledged hardship, inflation, and hunger caused by fuel subsidy removal. Almost every broadcast comes with an apology for the pain.
So why did he frown after the bishops’ visit? Was he expecting a pat on the back? Perhaps he was expecting a lullaby.
The Tinubu presidency is a joke. It remains the most confused administration since the creation of this country. If Nigerians are truly enjoying life and not suffering, as claimed by President Tinubu’s retinue of confused aides, then why does every presidential broadcast include an apology? Why is President Tinubu apologizing to Nigerians? Is it conscience, or guilt?
Tinubu becoming President has at least saved us from the agony of his followers claiming that Nigeria missed a savior. The truth is, Tinubu is not saving. He is destroying.
When Cardinal John Onaiyekan finished his interview on Arise TV and was immediately attacked by President Tinubu’s loyalists, I did not pity the bishop. You do not pity a man who is being intimidated for speaking the truth on behalf of the majority. Are Nigerians not suffering? Is President Tinubu not killing democracy?
In Osun State, the Nigeria Police Force has become a tool for political suppression and intimidation. They not only follow thugs to hijack motor parks, they also arrest opponents without evidence or taking them to courts. Out of 14 political parties in the state, 5 passed a vote of no confidence in Ibrahim Gotan, the Commissioner of Police, accusing him of bias and complicity. Instead of removing or transferring the compromised police chief, the IGP retained him. President Tinubu does not care, because the police are acting out a script that favors his political party.
Cardinal John Onaiyekan is like the biblical Zechariah, who went to King Joash and confronted him and his people for abandoning God and worshipping idols. Instead of repenting, Joash got angry and ordered that Zechariah be stoned to death. A year later, the Aramean army attacked Judah, and King Joash was assassinated by his own officials.
Onaiyekan has confronted President Tinubu for abandoning Nigerians and worsening the living conditions of the poor. The man of God said things cannot continue this way because the poor are suffering and the hardship has become unbearable. He also warned that President Tinubu, who once referred to himself as the father of Nigeria’s democracy, should not be the one to bury it.
Instead of addressing the issues raised by the Catholic bishops, Tinubu’s aides have descended heavily on Cardinal John Onaiyekan, calling him names and offering excuses.
Fortunately, it is not too late for President Tinubu. In a quiet moment, he needs to rethink. If possible, he should disguise himself and go into the streets to assess the situation. Like Cardinal John said, it is likely that President Tinubu is being deliberately misled about the true happenings in the country or he’s become a dictator that cares not about the feelings of his people.
Sodiq Lawal Chocomilo writes from Osogbo, the capital of Osun State.
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