PRESS
RELEASE ON THE STATE OF THE NATION
BY
THE
ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIAN AUTHORS (ANA).
WHERE
DOES ALL THESE LEAVE THE PEOPLE?
“When an individual no
longer feels a sense of responsibility to his society, the content of democracy
is emptied.” Martin Luther King Jr.
As
the 2019 general elections beckons, the media has recently been inundated with
news of Nigerian politicians switching lines, disconnecting and connecting new
political cables and raising new convertors to ignite their political luminosities.
The panic sown by politicians rationalizing their conducts, yelling so loudly
about biases meted out on them has led many to wonder whether the leadership
class in Nigeria will ever get it right. The big question, however, remains where do
all these leave the people? This question is very apt because one does not need
a crystal ball to see that the recent gale of defections and shenanigans coupled with the brazen
display of impunity by security services are being done within the narrow
confines of individualistic concerns instead of the broader concerns of the
people.
The
bad news in all these is that these political inadequacies are stretching our
democracy to a breaking point. It is sad that politics in this country is still
not in the interest of the people several years after the country’s return to
democracy. Now, the politicians have squandered the credit they won in the hey days of this administration. Instead of
reforming Nigeria, they now chose to fight over power, blocking each other’s personal
ambitions at the expense of the common good. Corruption and impunity are still rife
and institutions are still dysfunctional. The current defections are not driven
by fundamental ideological consideration. Thus the practice of politics by our
leaders has fallen short of the standards of democratic governance.
As
the umbrella body of writers in this country, It is not just important that we
point out the unprogressive nature of these defections and shenanigans by
politicians, we feel bold to remind the actors in these new direction of events
in the country to be wary of the anger of the people which has been inflated to
a bursting point. To borrow Chris Okigbo’s words, “…Let them remember thunder
when they share the meat,” They should remember that they
are accountable to the masses and that the day of account will soon come in
2019 when they will realize how impossible it is to say no to the thunderous
will of the people.A word is more than enough for the wise and for those who
will listen and act true to the thrust given to them by the masses.
Signed:
Denja Abdullahi.
Maik Ortserga
President,
Association of Nigerian Authors. Assistant General
Secretary, ANA
