AS PRESIDENT BUHARI DISSES NIGERIAN YOUTHS

Was it not the late Fela Anikulapo Kuti, who in his masterpiece, "BEAST OF NO NATION", described then Head Of State, General Muhammadu Buhari, as using words such as,
      "my people are useless,
       my people are senseless,
       my people are undisciplined",
on Nigerians, in his first stint as Head of State in the 1980s, after coming to power via a military coup, which many who were of age at the time could quite relate to, as one who was quick to apportion blame to others, and hardly ever taking responsibility for a bad turn of events, which dogged his regime back then, just as awful as it is doing today, on all facets of governance?

Sadly enough, when fortune smiled on him once again, and he was gifted the rulership of Nigeria again (on a platform aimed solely at removing former President Goodluck Jonathan, than it is for any thing he'd rightfully done in and out of power, besides an anticorruption posture, that was vindictive at his first coming, and an act of vendetta against those who denied him power all these years in this second coming), he doubled down on his shameful rhetoric, of demonizing every Nigerian but himself, so much so that by demarketing Nigeria in the early days of his presidency, he caused the country to go into recession, as the people and country he presided over couldn't be trusted by foreign investors, whose funds just before the 2015 elections helped make Nigeria's economy, the fastest growing in Africa. 

At the slightest opportunity,  he would remorselessly take Nigerians to the guillotine, as "cleaners" would be charitable regarding his penchant to talking down on Nigerians, without considering the consequences, especially before a world that's gotten used to not seeing or hearing anything good about his country, sometimes but not many times deservedly so, so much so that he didn't vehemently reject the assertion by former British Prime Minister, David Cameron (a tax defaulter by reason of storing his wealth in tax havens) before his Queen, that Nigeria is "fantastically corrupt", rather seeing such an odious slight on his people as vindication of what he'd always said.

Unfortunately, this same man has in the past few years since coming to power, harbored very corrupt individuals in his kitchen cabinet (the case of the grasscutter, easily comes to mind here), as well as in his main cabinet. Wined and dined with corrupt Nigerians, including those on whose shoulder he rose to power. Enabling them and doing their bidding, against the wishes of Nigerians, and the letters of the constitution. Known fraudulent characters have also found refuge under and within his government. 

But the recent cause of anger amongst Nigerians, especially youths is his recent description of that critical mass of the Nigerian public (which he claimed, at a summit in London, forms sixty percent of the population), as "LAZY", inferring that they have an entitlement mentality, because they say they are from an oil producing country, and therefore should get everything free, and that from a man who'd lived virtually almost all of his life off Nigerians and her oil wealth, who in the same breath as he was casting aspersions on Nigerian youths in London, couldn't hold up his excitement in declaring that "Shell", that serial violator of the rights of oil producing communities in Nigeria, as well as Nigeria's greatest environmental polluter, had intimated him of their intention to invest a huge sum in the oil sector, he swore to wean Nigeria from in an attempt to diversify the economy, only to turn around to stick with oil alone, not just by making himself the substantive petroleum minister, but going ahead to plunge scarce resources into the elusive search for oil in the North, doing exactly what he just accused Nigerian youths of. 

Interestingly, he made this speech at a time his deputy was in Lagos, visiting tech startups, founded by youths, already recognized by Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg and Bill Gates during their visits respectively to Nigeria. Sadly, only President Buhari failed to see, and hail these landmark achievements by youths, who have gotten so far without any form of assistance from government over the years. Much more unfortunate is the fact that he rose on the backs of many of these youths on social media to power, only to miss a most significant opportunity to laud their works before the international community. Electing to continue in his characteristics bashing of anything and anyone Nigerian, as his custom is, leaving a sour taste in the mouth of discerning Nigerians, who he continues to disappoint and embarrass routinely. 

I wonder, if statements like the one he made in London, is the sort he dishes out when unscripted amongst his sycophantic aides, and which they find so funny as to tag him a "funny man" if only we knew him the way they do. If it is so, then it is quite unfortunate, and indicate of the extent people can carry sycophancy to, enough to laugh sheepishly to expensive jokes made in bad taste, sometimes and probably insulting the sensibilities of those present at such occasions. 

It's unsurprising as well, to find his deluded supporters online and offline, doing their best to justify the latest London misyarn, only to find themselves muddling further already muddled waters, when it would have been better if they just kept quiet in the hope that even this gaffe, like the myriad before it will speedily pass, or be superseded by the next nightmarish news of killings and death across Nigeria (the numbers of which wartorn countries like Syria and Yemen can only attempt to equal on their worst days of battle), that's now become the hallmark of this administration, with the government having no answers or response, aimed at curbing if not bringing an end to the senseless killings either by murderous and marauding herdsmen or the now ever present menace and reality of Boko Haram in Nigeria's northeast, despite several lies by government of their defeat or impending defeat, as the government sadly fails Nigerians in fulfilling its primary responsibility to Nigerians per diem.

President Muhammadu "THE BLAME" Buhari has never shown one of the most distinguishing attributes of a leader, and indeed has never exhibited it, as he can't and couldn't be caught taking responsibility for anything wrong, while at the same time willingly lapping up praises to his exhibition of piety, ascetism and holier-than-thou attitude, built largely on false premise, that's done very little to impact the Nigerian people as he basks in his aloofness in power, like none before him, and maybe and hopefully after him. Unfortunately, many Nigerians fear that the 2019 elections may not signify an end to the  constant verbal abuse at the mouth of their president, as the institutions that ensured his ascension have been intentionally and systematically compromised, in order to make it difficult for him to democratically lose power.

'kovich