Deconstructing General Dambazau
“Patriotism is fundamentally a conviction that a particular country is the best in the world because you were born in it”--- George Bernard Shaw
It is in the light of the above quote that I assert that if there are few men in the country who have demonstrated ‘scarce’ love and patriotism to the unity, peace, security and prosperity of Nigeria, one of such men is retired Lieutenant General Abdulrahman Bellow Dambazau (CFR). He is such a contented man that is not desperate for anything in life, rather he subjects everything to the absolute will of God Almighty.
He is also a man who believes that in the affairs of mortals, it is only God that determines destiny and whatever level He chose to place each and every one of us in the society; it through dedication, diligent and selfless service to the people, society and the nation that we can appreciate him for his benevolence and grace on us.
This piece is however not suggesting that General Dambazau is a perfect man neither have the author seen anyone in the world, but in a nation filled with avaricious people with cavalier attitude towards the poor, weak and the vulnerable in the society; hearing a courageous voice in the ‘jungle’ calling for empathy of connectivity among Nigerians as well as telling the stark truth to the powers that be without fearing for his life in a ‘dark night’ where virtually everyone was calling ‘snake’, a ‘stick’ because of fear of the unknown; a man that could dare the ‘Lion in the jungle’ deserves being deconstructed for public understanding. The above statement can best describe the rare courage displayed by General A.B. Dambazau on Thursday, January 22, 2015 at the 12th Daily Trust Dialogue titled: “2015 Elections: How to make Nigeria the Winner” held at Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja.
The General was one of the notable speakers at the event. And in his lecture entitled: “Nigeria will win if right people are elected”, he described ‘right people’ as people who are competent and of high integrity; people who are focused and selfless; people who are courageous and loyal; people who respect human rights and appreciate the rule of law; people who would be transparent and are ready to be held accountable; people who understand the essence of human security; people who are ready to once more make Nigeria the giant of Africa; people who appreciate that without peace and security there will be no development; and above all, people who believe in a united and indivisible nation.”
He went further to pose some questions to Nigerians about the just concluded elections. His questions were; “Would the 2015 elections provide opportunities to elect good leaders that would clear the path for peaceful co-existence, security and national development? Would they lead to the long awaited consolidation of democracy in which good governance would be evident through accountability, transparency and respect for the rule of law and human rights?” Would they bring about a radical change that will lead us to economic growth and political stability? Would they improve Nigeria’s corruption image in which the Transparency Corruption Index (TCI) depicts Nigeria as one of the most corrupt nations on earth?
Would they improve Nigeria’s poor governance image as depicted by the 2013 Mo Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG)? Or would the 2015 elections provide the opportunity to improve Nigeria’s status in the UN Human Development Index (HDI) from being among the low developed to highly developed countries in the world? To what extent would the outcome of the 2015 elections significantly reduce the risks of terrorism in which Nigeria presently occupies the 4th most risk position (even ahead of Somalia) in the world according to the 2014 Global Terrorism Index or to turn things around in the world of cybercrime in which a computer crime and security survey ranked Nigeria as the most internet fraud country in Africa and the 3rd in the world?”
Hence, when President Muhammadu Buhari finally emerged as the winner of the March 28 Presidential Election and was subsequently sworn in on May 29 as President of Nigeria, some Nigerians who felt threatened and unsecured started peddling unsubstantiated claims about his future in the new government. This was mostly fueled by the fact that he and PMB shares the same idles and values on the future of Nigeria and how to turn the terrifying nightmares of the citizenry to sweet night dreams which are far beyond any personal interest.
The truth of the matter is that, if one is not useful no one will use him! It is on this account that President Buhari in 2011 personally appointed him as Chairman of Security Committee in the Presidential Campaign Council of the defunct Congress for Progressives Change (CPC) and was subsequently appointed as the Director of Intelligence and Security in the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council in this year’s Presidential election.
However, when the rumor of his political fate became strife, the General responded by saying: “For good reasons, people may have their expectations, but that should not be translated as mine. Of course, I will be glad to work for the President if he assigned me any task or appoints me in any capacity he feels I can contribute towards the success of the government…
At any rate, the President has the prerogative to appoint any person of his choice to any of the available positions, but in the final analysis, it is God that determines who gets what. My prayer therefore is for the Almighty God to guide President Muhammadu Buhari in this very task of nation-building. Such a statement coming from a man who shared the same ideology with ‘The new Sherriff’ and have being with him for years confronting all sorts of storms at different states ‘at the eleventh hour’ where virtually everybody is busy deploying every contact in his arsenal to be part of the new cabinet should serve as a shining example to those who are desperate and are ready to anything for power. It is when we understand the absolute control God over all his creations, that the tensed anxiety in the country at the moment can be reduced. After all, power belongs to God!
Comrade Edwin Uhara is a Journalist and Public Affairs Commentator based in Abuja.
He is reachable on 07065862479 or [email protected]