Human Silence is very
deep, pregnant, and multi-faced. Its underlying spirit is
influenced mostly by shock, regret, anger, disappointment,
shame, pain, law, or desire for peace. The abnormal
tight-lip posture demonstrated by President Musa Yar’Adua on
the heels of the political tsunami that arose following his
hospitalisation at the King Faisal Hospital in Jeddah, Saudi
Arabia has helped to shed more light on the culture of
silence and the collateral effects on a democratic society.
Events in the last two months has made it safe for this
writer to suggest that the president’s unexpected silence
has something to do with both his personal and forged
perception of those people calling on him to activate
section 145 of the constitution of the federal republic of
Nigeria. As a kid, I was told that silence is the best food
given to fools. As a matter of fact, Nigerians have been fed
with enough bowls of silence about the health condition of
their president. I remember vividly how one of my elder
brothers nearly injured me for maintaining sealed lips when
he sought information about his dinner. In my brother’s
blunt opinion, I had called him a fool. By deliberately
refusing to write to formally inform the National Assembly
of his prolonged absence from office due to ill-health, many
Nigerians believe that the president has squandered the
goodwill they extended to him. They see themselves as being
perceived as fools.
One other important reason for keeping silence is when one
is in the premises of a sitting law court. As far as I know,
King Faisal Hospital is not a law court and President
Yar’Adua could therefore not be undergoing trial there. Like
many others, I feel deeply touched by what the president is
passing through at this time of his life. This is one strong
reason why he still enjoys some amount of sympathy from
Nigerians. Nevertheless, the presidency is like a tap root
in a presidential democracy. A vacuum or disconnect in Aso
Rock would portend danger for our nascent democracy.
Most of the seemingly anti-Yar’Adua campaigns are sincerely
aimed at safe-guarding our budding democracy. Frankly, Yar’Adua’s immediate family and close aides did not manage
the health issue properly. They painfully forgot that
presidents and prime ministers all over the world hardly
enjoy privacy. A president is more of a public property. The
pro-Yar’Adua army must therefore appreciate this fact and
stop seeing those who openly discuss Yar’Adua’s health as
being inhuman. More than that, it is not yet a crime to fall
sick. Nobody should therefore be ashamed of taking ill.
Family members and close aides of Yar’Adua have painted the
picture that it is a taboo for the president to fall sick.
That was the reason why everything concerning his health
condition has been wrapped in deep secrecy.
It is very difficult to explain why of the four official
delegations that went to Saudi Arabia to see the president,
none was allowed access. Despite this fact, more delegations
are being packaged. The latest being that of the Federal
Executive Council (FEC). Why are we joining in celebrating a
culture of silence? It is undemocratic. Due Process, Rule of
Law, Transparency, Accountability do survive in societies
that revere the culture of silence. Little wonder why there
is so much corruption and mal-administration in the polity.
The president’s recent BBC interview opened another big
chapter on the crude culture of silence. While many doubted
the authenticity of the voice in the said interview, I
dismissed it as Bibicitocracy- a sophisticated form of
silence made to deceive listeners. As far as Nigerians are
concerned, President Yar’Adua has not yet spoken. And he
really needs to talk to Nigerians. For now, it is only the
Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) that can protect
Nigerians from the artilleries of lies and deceit launched
against them by the apostles and zealots of the culture of
silence.
On recently, the federal government raised an alarm that
some persons are engaging in campaigns of calumny against
Acting President Goodluck Jonathan. The aim of the campaign
is clear: To derail the acting president. The amount of
success to be achieved by Jonathan would be dependent on how
he is able to manage the powerful band of unpatriotic
elements that have continued to hold this nation hostage in
order to protect their parochial interests. Enough is
enough!
KALI GWEGWE
2 Greenvilla-Custom Link Road,
Biogbolo-Epie, Yenagoa, Bayelsa State.
0806 407 4810
kaligwegwe@yahoo.com
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Published
February, 21st, 2010
