Yardy bucked custom and publicly criticized Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe at the ongoing EU-AU Summit in Germany. Nigeria's head of state again used the term "Rule of Law" (I wonder if anyone is counting how many times the man has uttered that term, Nigeria Politricks, are you game?). To the gathering of European officials and African representatives, Yardy said,
“I want to emphasise that what is happening in Zimbabwe is not in conformity with the rule of law. I do not subscribe to this."Okay, I will admit that I am also getting tired of hearing the term "Rule of Law" uttered by Yardy. It appears that every time I read any statement made by him, it must contain those three words. He is obviously working hard to be make "Rule of Law' his moniker. That is fine because we all know that Nigeria and some other countries - Zimbabwe, included - need to better practice respect for the rule of law.
Yet, I cannot help but notice that Yardy was pandering to the audience. He was in Germany for the European Partnership with Africa Summit. He went on to implore attendees to not turn the presence of Zimbabwe into a divisive issue that could steer attention from the fact that the event will be mutually beneficial for EU and AU nations. Yardy also requested the equivalent of the "Marshall Plan" for Africa. His suggestion was to increase foreign assistance to develop African nations. He apparently said the right things. And, this makes me wonder why the President of Nigeria can be such a capable speaker about Zimbabwe when he in Germany, and yet fail to decisively comment AT ALL on pressing corruption issues at home! Yes, once again, I am harping on the Ettehgate scandal which he avoided by simply relegating it to a due process issue.
I mean, come on, you have to take a stance! Even, OBJ is publicly questioning Yardy's "sof'ly, sof'ly" style. Obasanjo told Nigeria's The Nation newspaper, ""For Nigeria to be great, [Yar'Adua] must be prepared to take tough decisions and carry out reforms..." Although, I believe OBJ is not in a position to comment on the performance of the present administration, I must confess that for once, we are of the same opinion on an issue.
Related Articles of Interest
- Zimbabwe
- Nigeria, Mugabe & The ICC
- 'Soiled Hands' & Strategy":What Nigeria Says About Democracy
- Yar'Adua, Mugabe & The "Rule of Law"
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12 Curiosities. Add Yours.:
Hey, Boda Yara-on-the-dialysis-machine is trying his best o...
he has to start from somewhere.
And I agree that we have to start challenging our leaders.
Pls, we have to admit that the phrase, "rule of law" sounds very sexy.
He has to start somewhere. Personally, I feel the guy is very scared. This position is definitely VERY different from what he is used to....
Obasanjo should just quietly retire na who beg am make i put his mouth inside stuff?
i guess if i ever meet with yar'adua, i'll ask him what the hell 'rule of law' is supposed to mean...sounds like empty rhetoric to me...who's law?...who says that anyone should conform to any 'rule of law', considering how ambiguous the statement is...perhaps mugabe is conforming...albeit a few mistakes, well, quite a few...he should have spoken with chavez before pressing forward...i do agree with obasanjo, but that goes for all african leaders...'for africa to be great, all leaders must be prepared to take tough decisions and carry out reforms for the betterment of their constituents'...i'll make sure and write the speech for obj next time;)...africa will be free, africa will be nice...
I am telling you! That "rule of law" thing is getting very irritating, meanwhile, Obasanjo should go and run his poultry and stop making mouth there!
first time here *looks around*... wow.. great blog.. so much information.. let me grab my brother, TLK, he loves blogs like this.. ok, I dont know much about naija politics so let me go and learn now..
mwahxx
Obasanjo shld go to jail not his poultry jo.but like pam said rule of law sounds sexy.
I tell you what. I watched Mugabe talk recently a the UN general assembly i NYC. He lambasted everybody from Bush to the Gordon Brown. That was uncool. Militant pseudopatriotic grandstanding by Africans is counterproductive in the global community. Mugabe needs to back down if he wants Zimbabwe to be free. It is interesting to find an African leader publicly criticise He Who Should Not be Mentioned. Second point, all of us, moreso those in Diaspora need to learn diplomacy in our criticism of slow change in Nigeria. just like Mugabe's error, fiery rhetoric will not influence our politicians. We need to adopt a conciliatory tone, as if we are partners in progress, and not 'Critics' or 'The Opposition". That is what works in the real world. Finally, note that if change in Nigeria is slow for our expectations, we should not be indignant, but patient and hopeful. Where we are in 2007 is different from where we were in 1999.Think bout it. And thank you solomonsydelle for commenting on my new blog posts.Mebbe we collabo soon on some emerging branding projects,say?
Yardy. LOL. (Thats genius). On the real though, I'm tired of the Mugabe administration. The man has literally cocked up that country. But Alhaji should try and take care of home. Can't believe Ettehgate. OBJ woulda purused her from that place one time. But GOD dey! We can only hope for the best! Nice one.
hmmmm, I have lost count...but when next Yardua use the term "Rule of Law", he should at least make bold what side of the law he is standing on. Enough of this ambiguous rhetorics!!
Yar'Adua reminds me of Shehu Shagari who said he went upstairs to pray when his underlings were counting stolen money in HIS living room, therefore, he knew nothing about the money.
As for Mugabe, he should learn from South Africa's gentle approach - I agree with Ayo Adene, however, it can be frustrating dealing with the hypocrisy.
Nice blog. Thanks for having a look-in.
@ Ayo: I agree that "fiery rhetoric will not influence our politicians" but I believe that for Nigeria to change, passion is necessary. If that passion is expressed as "fiery rhetoric", then so be it. As long as such passion does not become violent, I am all for it.
If I may confess, I also don't believe in being conciliatory, my brother. I think that too many Nigerians have adopted that attitude for too long and the result is a Nation where the populace is powerless. Nigerians don't run Nigeria, and that is unfair.
Anyway, God made all kinds of people. Some quietly make change behind the scenes, others protest in the street, some converse amongst themselves and educate each other on how to do better. we can all make difference right?
But, you are definitely right, at the end of the day, we must all be hopeful, that is the only way that we can envision and eventually create the best possible Nigeria. Thank you for reminding us all.
Cigerette companies are nothing but legal drud deallers. Many people quit crack and herione but struggle with ciagreets. I hope Naija wins every penny.
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