Nigeria last Tuesday concluded a three-phased election into public offices. The stage is set for all manner of fall-outs from the poll, which turned out to be a mixture of joy and sadness. Some are rejoicing; a lot of others are sulking as a result of defeat, or mourning because of calamities and melancholy traceable to the conduct of the poll. Like the late inimitable reggae maestro, Bob Nesta Marley, put it in one of his evergreen albums, he who feels it knows it all!A negligible few are responsible for the endless miseries being inflicted on the nation now, but all us are victims of the savagery. The mindless killings either as a result of sporadic bomb blasts or deliberate acts of arson or even outright resort to the use of guns, cudgels and swords to perpetrate violence are all signs of that we need urgent divine intervention. This is not to say that the Almighty had watched arms akimbo while these evil men carried on with impunity.The domino effects of the attendant riot in parts of the North after the presidential election are taking different shades and shapes daily. Some governors from the South have had to evacuate corps members of their state origin from the troubled states in the North. Many individuals, who had over the years plied their trade in that part of the country, are returning to the South because of the possibility of reprisals by some natives and other forces and interests in the brewing conflict.The problem of mutual suspicion and distrust, which we have made some significant progress in addressing in the past, is posing a fresh challenge. A monumental project like the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) project, which was intrinsically designed to foster national unity, is being torn into shreds.Yet, some leaders are still demonstrating their inability to control their emotion and passion. They are not showing some degree of restraints either statesmen or opinion moulders, whose views are like lethal weapons in a war situation. Instead, those so-called leaders are making inflammatory statements, thus putting the fragile nation at bigger risks, if not at the precipice. A lot of them are crying more than the bereaved, not because of any patriotic zeal but engaging in a sheer display of eye-service before the authorities at different levels.Without prejudice to ongoing investigations by security operatives, there are indications that all we have heard or known about the political violence witnessed in the North after the presidential poll is presumption. We can only get a clear picture of the tragedy when the various appropriate agencies of government conclude their investigations, and that will substantially depend on the thoroughness and neutrality of the parties in the macabre dance.What bothers me most, however, now is the totality of the dire consequences of our current actions and inactions after the elections. Shortly, those politicians, who have won, will begin to talk about reconciliation with rival camps within and outside their political parties. Many of those political leaders, who defected to other parties just because of their inordinate ambitions or as a result of clear cases of injustices at party primaries, will jump at the offer of being carried along in the scheme of things. They would have put the bloody clashes behind them after grabbing a piece of the proverbial national cake through power-sharing, while the rest of the populace stared with gloom and despair at the scar left by the recent carnage and other heirnous crimes perpetrated by agents of some political desperadoes in the run-up to the elections. But beyond the psychological torture is the fact is that the unity of the country, which had, is still being put at jeopardy by the political class. Because of their antics, the language you speak, your place of origin and your faith have becoming a strong factors in a country, where our diversity had become a sort of strength. So, we must be extra careful in managing the fragile unity of the country if governors could resort to withdrawing corps members posted to areas other than states of their origin, as such action is tantamount to a gradual loss of public confidence in the Nigerian project, it poses a bigger challenge to Nigerian leaders regardless of political affiliation of religious inclination. This development, coupled with the necessitating factors is an anti-climax to the spirit of the founding fathers of the country, who invested a lot of energy and made enormous sacrifices to lay a foundation that subsequent leaders ought to build upon.It is not only President Goodluck Jonathan that has an enormous responsibility to initiate proactive measures aimed at healing the wounds caused by the polls, and trying to revive and build on the foundation. But the demands placed on his shoulders are greater because he will be assuming office at a time of an abysmal low public confidence in government. He has faithfully recognized the precarious situation and promised to tackle it squarely. Those so-called leaders, who have spent all the time sowing the seed of discord in the name of politics, also need to purge themselves of their sins and begin a process of reconciling themselves with reality, because their actions have caused more harm to the polity and the nation. Some governors, party leaders and a couple of senior citizens are guilty of not moderating their language and thoughts at this perilous time and need to seek ways of giving peace a chance.In spite of the raging fire in Tripoli, given what is happening in our country today, embattled Moummar Gaddafi could be chuckling over his guttural misadventure and vomiting a few years ago on the Nigerian projects. Those American Nostradamus, who many had labeled as prophets of doom for their forecast that Nigeria could break-up, could be praying that their dreams come true so that they could have their names in the Guinness book of World records.This cannot be the wish of many, because Nigeria was able to overcome more daunting challenges in the past. It took both the leaders and the led to collaborate in saving the country from the fringes of disintegration during a three-year civil war and the June 12 debacle. The current gloomy situation will come to pass. The security problem is not insurmountable if the will is there on the part of the leadership of the country. However, it is a matter for regret that we are returning to another era of reconciliation, reconstruction and rehabilitation after inflicting an avoidable colossal damage on the country and public psyche. Lets pray this one will mark an end to the vicious circle, especially after major elections in Nigeria.Oderemi, 08023501874(sms only)ReactionsOn what can Jonathan, Buhari offerI think we should also consider how Nigerians will respond if they (Jonathan and Buhari) fail to keep to their promises like Americans do.Oge (07038171775)
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