The only patriotic thing Nigerians can do in the forthcoming elections is to vote out bad government and allow fresh people with vision and ability that can move the nation forward take over, Bishop Seun Adeoye of Sufficient Grace and Truth Ministry, Okinni, Osun State has urged the citizens.
Bishop Adeoye who is also the Spokesman of World Bishops Council (WBC) Africa, the World Federation of Churches (WFC) and the World Clergies Congress (WCC) in a statement issued on Friday, January 11, 2018 in Osogbo warned about re-electing President Muhammadu Buhari into office.
The statement reads, “Few days to the 2015 presidential election, I circulated a statement warning that if Buhari is elected as the president his government will cause untold hardship to Nigerians. Not many people listened to me. They were overwhelmed by the “change” campaign. Buhari was elected and the rest is history.
“To further sound a note of warning, I held a one-man rally in Osogbo, the Osun State capital where I emphatically declared that Buhari’s government did not bring change but “chain”. Few days after my one-man protest, I was visited my six heavily armed men in police uniform.
“What did we get in the last three and half years? The primary responsibility of any government is to protect lives and property, but never in the history of any government in this country have we lost so many innocent souls especially in Benue, Taraba, Plateau, Kaduna, Sokoto and Zanfara states. Indeed, the blood of innocent souls is flowing like river in Nigeria.
“Bad enough, the governor of the President’s state, Aminu Mazari Bello recently shouted out that his state, Katsina was under the siege of bandits, rustlers and kidnappers. Who will help him? Was he expecting hapless citizens with no arms to assist him?
“Few days ago, the governor of Zamfara State, Abdul-aziz Yari Abubakar also called for a state of emergency to be declared in his state due to insecurity. That was a cry too loud. Yari Abubakar is the Chairman of Nigeria’s Governor’s Forum and an APC chieftain.
“There are signs of trouble everywhere. Not long ago, Amnesty International reported that over 3,600 were killed in the herdsmen-farmer war. That is alarming.
“Has the Boko Haram war been won? What we were initially told by the government’s spokesman, Mr. Lai Muhammed was that the battle was technically over. What is the situation in Bornu, Adamawa and Yobe states?
“At just one blow, over 100 soldiers were killed by the insurgents. That’s calamitous. We read of casualties every day, not so much on the side of the hoodlums but on the sides of Nigerian military and the poor citizens.
“The Governor of Bornu, Alhaji Shetima’s openly wept at his recent meeting with President Buhari about the devastating catastrophe of Boko Haram resurgent in his state.
“Has the economy improved? We read of over 10 million job lost with about 20.9 million Nigerians unemployed and high exchange and inflation rates. We know of many industries that had closed shops. The rising costs of services and food items are unbearable. Nigerians are really hungry. Health facilities are not improving and education standards are nothing to write home about. Today, ASUU, ASUP, SANNU are on strike.
“Yet, we found out according to a figure released by the Debt Management Office (DMO) that Nigeria’s debt was N22.43 trillion as at September 30, 2018 as against N12.12 trillion in June 2015. That’s shocking! Over 10 trillion debt incurred by the Buhari-led government in three years? Where are the visible projects that gulped as much as this?
“The acclaimed fight against corruption got messier day by day. The Transparency International report was damning. I read the president saying he will not use public funds for his campaign. But whose funds will he use? On daily basis, we see how top opposition members were running to join the president’s party to avoid prosecution from corruption.
“Is our democracy on a sound footing? Is the rule of law being observed? We read of the military invading Media houses. We heard of how those who opposed Mr. President were being hurled into detention.
“Didn’t the president’s wife, Mrs Aisha Buhari raise the alarm of cabals who held Buhari at the jugular? She said only two men – not Buhari or his Vice, Yemi Osinbajo – are in control of Nigeria. Who actually is in charge?
“Even with all these, I still asked God, ‘will Nigerians be better if Buhari is re-elected the second time as the president?’ What I heard worried me and if it happens, ‘Buhari’s re-election will bring double portion of pains and hardship to Nigerians’ was the reply.
“Nigerians have several options before them and they are free to choose who will rule over them. The only patriotic action Nigerians can take to help themselves and the generation yet unborn is to vote Buhari out and vote a new president in. Again, I await the invasion of my resident by Buhari’s men.”
