In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the MercifulNo affliction can happen on earth nor to your souls, which is not recorded in a Book, before We bring it into existence; surely that is easy for Allah. This is done so that you may not grieve for the things that you miss, or be overjoyed at what you gain; for Allah does not love any vainglorious boaster. (Quran 57: 23)O My servants, were the first of you and the last of you, the human of you and the jinn of you to be as pious as the most pious heart of any one man of you, that would not increase My kingdom in anything. O My servants, were the first of you and the last of you, the human of you and the jinn of you to be as wicked as the most wicked heart of any one man of you, that would not decrease My kingdom in anything. O My servants, were the first of you and the last of you, the human of you and the jinn of you to rise up in one place and make a request of Me, and were I to give everyone what he requested, that would not decrease what I have, any more that a needle decreases the sea if put into it Hadith Qudsi No 17.AND so it came passthat General Muhammadu Buhari publicly wept in Abuja last week while rounding up his campaign for the election of last Saturday; that he eventually did not, according to Professor Attahiru Jega, win the election to the office of the President of Nigeria; that sequel to his defeat by Goodluck Jonathan, some youths in Sokoto, Kaduna and Adamawa decided to turn those parts of our country to a wasteland through riotous assemblage and unwarranted brigandage. Brethren, should Muhammadu Buhari be sad that he lost the presidency to Goodluck Jonathan given the fact that this would be his last attempt at governing this country as a civilian In other words, how could Muhammad Buhari have lost the election, going by the multitude that attended his electioneering campaigns, particularly in the North How could he have lost the election since his greatest strength is his anti-corruption pedigree and all Nigerians, excepting a few, seem to have reached the consensus that the bane of our arrested development is festering corruption in the landHow could the electorates have voted the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) at a time a litre of diesel now costs N160 How could Jonathan have won the election at a time most federal roads have failed How could Nigerians have voted for a PDP presidency again at a time our airports remain superior only to themselves and inferior to all others Who could have rejoiced with the PDP except those whose fortunes lay in the comatose condition of the Nigerian polity Would the ascendancy of the PDP to authority not translate to continued lack of electricity Much as the necessity to answer the above questions was engaging, some other questions invariably intervened: Why should Muhammad Buhari weep just because he has not been given authority to rule this land Is it not better for him to be denied such opportunity than to risk difficult accounting on the day of resurrection Allah says: O mankind! There has come to you an instruction from your Lord, a cure for whatever (disease) is in your hearts, a guidance and a blessing for the true believers. Say: It is the grace and mercy of Allah (that He has sent this Quran, so let the people rejoice over it, for it is better than the worldly riches they are collecting. Thus if attainment of the presidency is one of such worldly riches mentioned in this verse and if the grace and mercy of Allah is indeed better than three presidencies merged into one, would Muhammadu Buhari not take solace in his pursuit of that which would last instead of the illusory perquisites of worldly authority which would never last Again, having been a Head of State once, would it not suffice that our brother in Islam should continue to seek the forgiveness of Allah for the errors of omission and commission and the atrocities which were perpetrated under him during his tenure between 1983 and 1985 instead of risking eternal damnation through his ascension to the presidency one more time Brethren, instead of weeping for Buhari, I thought I should rejoice with him. I should thank Allah who has made this cup to pass him by. Instead of rising up in brigandage, instead of creating a state of anomie and chaos through violence and riotous actions, would it not be better for lovers of what Muhammad Buhari stands for to take solace in the promise of Allah; that He would not forsake His servants even in the most challenging of human conditions Is it not true Is the words of Allah not true: that you may desire something and in it lies much evil for you; that you may detest something in life and in it may lie much good for you. Thus I could not resist asking the question over and over again: how would the destruction of lives and property translate to the attainment of the Presidency by Muhammad Buhari How would the destruction of an Emirs palace make a president out of a personality like Muhammad Buhari who is loved both by Muslims and Christians But in rising up against the perceived infraction in the electoral process, which led to the defeat of Muhammad Buhari, those youths in the northern parts of our country seemed to be sending a message; that it was high time the Northern elite rose to the challenge of poverty confronting that part of our country; that a class war is imminent between the extremely rich and the extremely impoverished elements in that part of our country. I think the protest by the youth against the loss of Muhammad Buhari during last Saturday election is one against the northern political class, which is completely disconnected from the odious and grim realities in which majority of my northern compatriots now live. That protest is, therefore, a signifier: that unless practical efforts are made to ensure that what belongs to all is given to all, a revolution, the Nigerian version of Arab uprising is in the offing. Thus I say: Weep not Buhari! While asking Buhari not to weep and be disconsolate over his defeat last Saturday, I make bold to say to the victor: Rejoice less O! Jonathan. I encourage the elected President to rejoice less because his circumstance is like that of a medical practitioner who is heading to the theatre, or that of the boy in the village who heads to the examination hall. All words of congratulations to Goodluck Jonathan on his victory last Saturday should, therefore, be tentative and tempered by the enormity of the challenges, which lie ahead of him. Thus we should all pray for his success so that this fractious boat may not disintegrate. One of my teachers once said; whatever the world gives at dawn, it takes away at dusk!(guardianfridayworship@gmail.com)
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