PMB @ 77: ‘Please tell Baba we are with him all the way’

Continued from page 42

Larceny and plunder have been the bane of our country. That was why we were consigned in gross backwardness and underdevelopment. Now that I see a man who has come to make a difference, I choose to stand by him all the way.

We know people who were worth only thousands when they got into leadership positions in this country. But they came out in obscene wealth. In other words, they went not to serve the country, but themselves. And here is Muhammadu Buhari, a man who wants nothing from Nigeria, but who has come to empty himself in the service of the country. And some people say we are fanatical supporters? Yes, for the sake of our country. For the future of our children. For the good of ordinary people, we are Buharists.

Simplicity. President Buhari is a Muslim, a good one, and I am a Christian, trying daily to be a good one. I see him at close quarters. At home, in the office, in the country, out of it. What a simple man. He holds power with simplicity. He eats simply. Wears the most modest things. No swashbuckling, no ostentation. And when we talk privately, I love when he indicates that he’s in a temporal position, which he wants to use for the good of the larger majority of Nigerians. That’s why I’m a Buharist, and no apologies.

Abhorrence of corruption. I said it before. President Buhari is not a thief, and he cannot vouch for you if you are tarred with the brush of corruption. You will simply be on your own. There is the jaded talk of the anti-corruption war in the land being selective. Well, those who say that are merely operating from a mindset. No matter who you are, however close you can be to him, when it comes to corruption, this President speaks up for no one. That is why the anti-corruption agencies are making conquests. He tele-guides them in no way.

An eye on history. That’s where the President keenly focuses. He wants to be positively remembered as a man who came, who saw, and made a difference. That’s why the country is one big construction site. Roads, rail, airports, power, water projects, and many others. Nigeria must get a new lease of life, and history must record it that the revolution started under one man: Muhammadu Buhari.

A kind man. Don’t mind the names you hear. Tyrant. Iron fist. Military ruler. Violator of rule of law. Major General (as if he’s not one). And many others. But you know what? This President is a kind man.

In 2015, some months into office, a proposal was thrown up at a meeting. The civil service was unwieldy, the economy was down, and salaries were being paid through the noses. It may well be time to cut the civil service strength by half, since most of them were even idle.

But the idea didn’t sell. The President said if he had his way, not a single civil servant would be sent home due to rationalization. Things were tough enough for them, not to add loss of jobs. And so it happened.

When labor unions came some years later to agitate for higher pay, the President first balked. He said it was not sustainable, which was the truth. But eventually, he buckled, due to a kind heart, and new wages are being paid at serious cost to government.

Let me say this, with the presumed permission of the President. He kept the Service Chiefs he inherited in 2015 for a couple of months. And when it was time to let them go, he sent for me one afternoon. He gave me the names of the new appointees, and told me not to announce till the next day.

“I have informed the outgoing Service Chiefs some minutes ago. But I don’t want their families to hear the news over radio or television. I want them to get home, and break the news themselves,” the President said.

I told him we would not be able to keep the news under wraps till the next day, that it should rather be announced immediately. He looked at me, laughed, and said: “You have not been sacked before. That’s why you are talking that way. Me, I’ve been sacked from office before, and I know how it feels.” We laughed.

When the chief executive of a major corporation was also going to be replaced, he gave me the new name, and said I should not announce for an hour or two, so that the outgoing man would have received his letter, and not hear it from the media.

Many acts of kindness have I seen the President shown to many, and also to me, yet some people want to call him strange names. And I should believe it? I hear!

On this auspicious day, I celebrate our President. Cynics and scoffers would say why won’t you applaud him since you are part of the largesse of office. Yes, I hold office under the President, but I am yet to see the largesse. Maybe tomorrow. Or day after. And whether in government or out of it, count me among those who believe.

I am a Buharist. So are also millions of Nigerians. We thank God for bringing him our way. May his strength be renewed daily. He’s our miracle man, whom nobody could have predicted two years ago would still be with us today. We love him because he first loved us, and is serving us with all that is in him. Like that young man in the aircraft, “Please, tell Baba we are with him all the way.”

.Adesina is Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to President Buhari