Most religions preach and teach forgiveness as one of their highest tenets. So, when I started seeing how Nigerians responded commendably to Festus Keyamo’s well dramatized Senate meeting that is worthy of an Oscar award, I laughed in Swahili. I knew this is not the kind of forgiveness promoted in the Bible. Forgetfully, young, and old Nigerians who ought to know better started praising Keyamo for standing for the masses. They thought or assumed they were seeing the similitude of the one and only Senior Advocate of the Masses, Gani Fawhehimi (SAM). They forgot that this is the Keyamo who has been the unofficial legal mouthpiece of Muhammadu Buhari with Prof. Itse Sagay in Buhari’s first term. They have also forgotten that this is the same Keyamo that was a ready tool that Nasir El Rufai used in scandalizing Apostle Suleiman as the legal adviser to the striper Stephanie. And they could not remember that Keyamo was the Director of Strategic Communications for Buhari’s second term presidential campaign after witnessing Buhari’s disastrous leadership that has made Nigeria a killing, kidnapping, and corruptionful terrain.

It was the German philosopher and economist Karl Marx who once opined that “Religion is the opium of the people”. But evil and unreasonable men are becoming the opium of the people nowadays. With all the evidence showing the corruption of the politicians in our midst, it still baffles me when I see the glaze of unreasonableness in the eyes of Buhari, Tinubu, or Trump supporters. These individuals are fully aware of the duplicity of their heroes, yet like willing sheep being led to the slaughterhouse, they do not care if Nigeria, their state, family, or unborn children are suffering or will suffer as a result of their candidate’s ineptitude or corrupt practices. The Nigerian government cannot create 774,000 sustainable jobs. They just want an engaging distraction. Their unseriousness was revealed by those they gave the responsibility to manage the fictional job opportunities – an influential park tout and Tinubu’s daughter. In the absence of no new lies from EFCC via the Lying Mohammed about Patience Jonathan or Diezani Alison-Madueke, 774,000 jobs will serve as temporary opium or distraction that will keep the masses busy and excited. I hope you did not swallow that bait. Festus Keyamo has also seen this as a window to start his long-term disengagement from this callous and corrupt government that will definitely and forever tarnish the reputation of key players like Babatunde Raji Fashola, Chris Ngige, and Yemi Osinbajo.

I pray that Nigerians do not continue their forgetfulness about the past deeds of public and private officeholders. I pray that Deltans will not forget that Festus Keyamo was a major player in Nigeria’s worst administration yet. Because tomorrow Keyamo will want to run for the Senate or governorship of Delta State. I also pray that Nigerians should also watch the action, inaction, and silence of civil rights activists like Pastor Tunde Bakare who were Tigers under Goodluck Jonathan’s administration but are now Pussycats under Buhari. It is this forgetfulness or jaundiced forgiveness that has placed us in our present predicament were the administration that was declared clueless and called the worst by the likes of Omoyele Sowore, the publisher of Sahara Reporters, that is now appearing to be the most clueful. As we endure this administration before something happens that will save the situation, let us shine our eyes. Let us be judgemental. Let’s use the past and present records of our kith and kin to arrive at conclusions that will enable us to forecast accurately what their leadership would be like. Anyone running for office has enough past we can use in predicting their future. We must not be forgetful again.

Ata Ukuta, Editor  – www.towncryyers.com