Onaiyekan and Makinde’s fellowship: When discretion takes flight

“Remember not only to say the right thing in the right place, but far more difficult still, to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment,” says Benjamin Franklin, a statesman, scientist, inventor, writer, publisher, diplomat, and one who could safely be regarded as one of the founding fathers of the United States. Boston-born Franklin, who lived between January 17, 1706, and April 17, 1790, helped draft the US Declaration of Independence in 1776 and participated in the Constitutional Convention that produced the US Constitution in 1787.

For Nigerians, the most vivid recollection of Franklin (as if they ever knew him) and hundreds of millions around the world is that this scientist’s face adorns the popular US $100 bill. Truth be told, some of us never liked mathematics, but today, most of us do not need the help of a calculator to reconcile monetary figures. I hope I’m not talking about you, yes, you!

It appears the Archbishop Emeritus of the Catholic Archdiocese of Abuja, Cardinal John Onaiyekan, and the Oyo State governor, Mr Seyi Makinde, never read or heard of this powerful line by Franklin or might have refused to take to heart that one’s ability to exercise discretion in sensitive matters, especially, defines the character of who carries the human body. These two, who appear to be in an unseen fellowship, simply can’t resist the temptation not to say some things even when there is an almost irresistible urge to let loose.

Don’t ever think that I’m about to pass a judgement on the Episcopal assessment of Cardinal Onaiyekan’s Christian service, in the past or in retirement, or Makinde’s governance delivery in Oyo State. That will also be lacking in discretion. I will not, however, shy away from the unholy fellowship between these two leaders, which on Friday, a few days ago, which I consider as taking lack of discretion and personal animosity too far.

Any reasonable Nigerian knows that our dear country has been stumbling through very stormy waters for over a decade, of course, through our own self-serving actions, criminal inactions, insatiable greed, demonic corruption and destructive aloofness. Like most Nigerians, most of us are equally in a hurry for our country to get out of the woods, especially as some of our multifaceted challenges are self-imposed.

I believe that the precarious state of the nation informed the decision of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of Nigeria to visit President Bola Tinubu, ostensibly to discuss with him some areas of concern and offer suggestions on how Nigeria can move forward faster than anticipated. In my opinion, there is nothing wrong with this sort of engagement. It wouldn’t be the first time the CCBN would pay such a visit to the seat of power.

It’s not the first time that concerned Nigerians, who have access to the nation’s helmsmen, would seek to move our nation forward through highly constructive engagements. The impact of such visits on governance, however, is a subject of discussion for another day, not today.

Some years back, a man of God led an advisory group to the Villa to deliver to the then President a compendium of what the group believed he should carry out immediately to stabilise the country and solidify its progress. Some aides of the then President packaged $50,000 as ‘transport fare’ and handed it over to a member of the entourage without the knowledge of the group leader, who was in another vehicle.

Somehow, the leader of the delegation got to know about the strange package and ordered the money returned immediately. The presidential aide, who packaged the unsolicited gift (he is late now), had ‘leaked’ the gift to a media house that takes delight in publishing unverified stories, completely unaware that ‘his gift’ was returned immediately. The aim was how to rubbish the reputation and contributions of those concerned Nigerians, not how to work on the group’s suggestions to make the country better. Little wonder Nigeria fast-tracked its backward dance since the life of that administration.

After the bishops’ visit to Tinubu, Onaiyekan had assumed the spokesman for the group. He hit a television station to air acidic opinions, in part, on the nation’s electoral process, fear of a one-party state and Tinubu’s desperation to win the 2027 election even in a free and fair election, which were not part of the private discussion with the President. The cleric, who passed his own assessment on the running of the country, regaled Nigerians with Tinubu’s perfect plot to rig the 2027 poll. Strangely, Onaiyekan did not provide a single piece of evidence to back up his reckless allegations, which he supernaturally extracted from a private conversation. Haba Emeritus!

Were this to come from an undergraduate, one would have taken it as youthful exuberance taken too far. How does a supposed elder pay a high-calibre visit to a President with a preconceived idea of what he wants to hear and what to say thereafter, regardless of the line of discussion? How do you rate this coming from a supposed elder statesman; a man seeking to build and not to destroy; a man of God who wants his words to be believed as coming from a man of integrity?

Let me admit that as a Nigerian, this supposedly distinguished cleric is absolutely free to make his political choices; he is constitutionally backed to support any political candidate of his choice. What I find offish in his choice is making fallacious statements without supporting such positions with verifiable evidence that people can relate to. When supposed leaders make statements to mislead or incite the people, such leaders are not qualified to be described as builders, but destroyers of what others might be trying to build.

With the Onaiyekans of this world, Nigeria does not need any external aggressor to undermine the efforts of the nation to move forward; the enemies and their foot soldiers are already on the ground. With an Onaiyekan in our midst, the Riley Moores (US senator) of this world do not need to be fed with falsehood to have sufficient weapons to demand President Donald Trump’s stiffer sanctions on the nation. Where is the place of discretion in the conduct and pronouncements of our Emeritus, please?

It may be necessary to remind our highly-exalted cleric the laudable roles played by former Head of State, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar, and the Catholic Archbishop of Sokoto Diocese, Bishop Matthew Kuka, before, during and after the 2015 presidential election as peace committee’s leaders. The election produced (the now late) Major Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd) of the All Progressives Congress as the winner and ended the Presidency of Dr Goodluck Jonathan of the Peoples Democratic Party despite his clear advantage as an incumbent.

With tensions at fever-pitch across the nation, and Nigeria cocooned in deep tribal division, Abdulsalami and Kuka’s shuttle diplomacy ensured that the nation did not plunge into a crisis of unimaginable proportion, especially after the hotly contested poll. One must admit that this is a standard every leader, who chooses to be a nation-builder, must aspire to. Nigeria does not need characters who, for self-serving purposes, choose to impose their self-centred interests on the interests of the nation no matter how loud they sound. The last time I checked just a few minutes ago, loudness and throwing big names around are never listed as virtues leaders must wear like a toga.

It appears that Makinde has made appreciable progress in Oyo State since assuming power as governor in 2019. Some people who live in the state said so in the past. What has been strange about him since last year is his desperation to be president after his governorship tenure. What is not known, however, is how this uncontrolled ambition has affected his sense of judgement.

Since the release of the Oriire abductees, this young governor hasn’t stopped behaving like a helpless toddler whose precious and lone loaf of bread has been snatched. It appears our governor has not been happy that this embarrassing episode eventually ended despite those three gallant soldiers losing their lives in the rescue effort at the Oyo National Park.

After waiting hopelessly for the United Nations to launch an international probe into the Oriire mass abduction as he demanded, Makinde, a few hours after Onaiyekan’s display of lack of discretion on air on Friday, set up a high-powered judicial panel of inquiry into the May 15 unfortunate kidnap of pupils and teachers in Ogbomosho’s suburb. I’m not interested in the fellowship Makinde had with the Emeritus, physically or spiritually, on the day. This combo is nevertheless curious.

It seems Makinde has important information about the mass abduction which has remained hidden from most Nigerians, including Long Range, which he believes needs to be validated by a judicial panel, strangely set up by him. This underhand strategy appears childish to me, especially after three of the killer terrorists were sentenced to life imprisonment, a strange sentence which only the judge can explain.

Nigerians have not been able to understand how murderers who gunned down a defenceless teacher; beheaded another innocent tutor in the forest; kept about 46 persons against their wish for over 50 days in an all-weather dungeon, and engineered the death of three soldiers could be handed such a ridiculous sentence. I’m trying seriously hard to fight the temptation to assume that some political characters could have been the unseen hands behind the judge’s strange pronouncement and might be trying desperately to ensure that the aftermath of the better-forgotten national tragedy is mired in controversies, Nigerian style.

People in positions of power carry enormous responsibilities. Making reckless statements that can raise tensions in the land; adding to the people’s prevailing miseries; and painting a picture of a messiah while wallowing in obvious errors and disguised falsehood are not the hallmarks of men of integrity. We should resist the temptation of playing politics with the thin thread holding Nigeria together.

PS

The Bakare not known

Next week, I will tell you who the Serving Overseer, Citadel Global Community Church (formerly The Latter Rain Assembly), Lagos, Pastor Tunde Bakare, was as a student at the Lisabi Grammar School, Abeokuta, and an undergraduate at the Faculty of Law, University of Lagos. A former senior student of Lisabi and Bakare’s lecturer at UNILAG provided this dossier you shouldn’t miss. Keep a date!

•Written By Ademola Oni