By Invitation
Immediately President Bola Ahmed Tinubu finished his speech regarding the Rivers State political crisis; Niger Delta militants had a response, and by 3 a.m. in the morning of the following day, I saw a video of a consuming fire vomiting balls of flames. I asked my friend what was going on, and he said Niger Delta militants bombed another oil pipeline.
I smiled, hissed and shook my head horizontally. I said to myself that the militants are the only reaction we could see, but how long can they sustain it?
Bombing one or two oil pipelines will not answer the question all of us are asking. It will need sustained effort that can significantly lower the output of barrels of oil to the neocolonists who are the recipients of our natural resources.
This abuse of power cannot be stopped by any other person or group, except the militants. “But” it worries me that nothing can be achieved.
Tompolo receives hundreds of millions of dollars to protect the pipelines. His job is like in the era of the slave trade in Africa, where the strong or privileged had to catch potential slaves and deliver them to the colonial masters. This time, Tompolo catches those that derail the supply of oil to the colonialists who need it as the prize of ownership of Nigeria.
Tompolo’s business will be affected in an effort to get justice. The business of oil pipeline protection is handled by a group, and the money gotten from the contract is shared amicably from the top figures to the bottom figures. Minions that survey the bushes survive on the crumbs that fell off from the sharing table of the big guys. Bombing pipelines will take food off their tables, and they will fight for the status quo.
This is a remarkable problem, remarkable because it could even cause internal conflict. Those that want to send a message to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu might end up facing off with the people that secure the pipelines for Tinubu.
The Nigerian military and police are no match; the militant boys can handle them. We saw it in the time of Obasanjo, until the late president Yaradua approached the conflict with wisdom. The issue of Niger Delta militancy came to a halt, and Nigeria benefitted immensely.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu may have ignited the problem again, but we all know what can happen in Nigeria; the issue could die before even fledging. This generation is no longer as committed as the former one. This generation can easily be bought, and they barely have the unity needed to stand firm in the face of adversity.
Rivers State was instrumental to the election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu; it would be foolish to leave that state. Nyesome Wike handled the rigging that gave Tinubu victory; one good turn deserves another. Rivers is crucial to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and that Rivers State must be under Nyesome Wike to be guaranteed.
Nobody should be surprised that an emergency rule was announced by the president; it’s what Nigerian politics demands – desperation, illegality and an atom of madness.
The very purpose of writing this article is the hopeless hope that the country’s House of Representatives and Senate would stop President Tinubu. There are pleas to the legislature to restore the constitutional process the president has broken.
Unfortunately, turning on my TV this morning, I saw the House of Representatives members chattering like monkeys and adjusting their konkosa like chirping birds that flutter their wings under a soothing morning sunrise. They are the lot being beckoned on to save the country’s constitutional mishap.
The Senate President was debriefed by the President prior to the announcement; this is Nigeria, where the President is supreme. So, why not save your time and stop expecting or asking the Senate to stop the president who has long left the station with his authoritarian train?
Let me expressly bring to your notice that the president is aware that he has no constitutional power to suspend or oust a democratically elected governor, and he is aware that declaration of a state of emergency needs two-thirds of the Senate to be effective. So, don’t bother teaching the president what you know.
Senator Natasha was suspended by the Senate president for making public a prolonged sexual harassment she endured. Such a Senate known for illegality cannot be trusted to bring about any change; forget it, Rivers and other states will continue to be under the whims and caprices of the president.
The legislature is controlled by the executive, and because the check and balance had been compromised, the executive can do as it pleases. Had the legislature not been compromised by the executive, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu would not solely declare and enforce a state of emergency in Rivers State.
Even if a state of emergency is declared, there won’t be suspension or ousting of a constitutional governor. The state of emergency will be limited to certain departments. But here, they want the state, and they have taken the state by all means.
