Fela’s Evergreen and Nigeria’s Situation
The late Fela Anikulapo Kuti, believed that real Afrobeat could not be sung in proper Queen’s English. So, though he had an excellent command of the English Language, he chose to sing in pidgin English laced with Yoruba, his native tongue. Do you remember Fela’s song “Confusion Break Bone”? It was released in 1975, I believe during the military regime of General Yakubu Gowon. Fela sang “......My people dey say Nigeria don dey, but me, as I see am, I know say Nigeria go go down. Our country dey make money, my people of country no see money.... I see many wrong things in Nigeria.... When I say confusion, everything out of control, go be say, it pafuka o – pafuka na quench.... I sing about one street for Lagos called Ojuelegba.... Old news be dat.... If I sing say water no dey.... electric light no dey.... inflation.... mismanagement.... corruption .... stealing by government....”.
If only Fela was here today! He would be shocked that, the confusion which he sang about over 40 years ago, is nothing compared to what we are experiencing today; confusion at its peak! So many of Fela’s songs, like ‘Shuffering and Shmiling’, ‘Army Arrangement’ refer to corruption, confusion and suffering of the common man in Nigeria. I can imagine that if Fela were to be alive today, he would have had a field day of pointing out the ineptitude of our successive governments, and though Fela was against the military totalitarian way, I am cork sure that he would have been just as disappointed to discover that the democratic governments, are not much better.
I wonder how Fela would have felt, or what music he would have released, when his “old friend”, General Olusegun Obasanjo - to whom he practically dedicated his song “Zombie” which he released in 1976 - became civilian President (1999-2007) – maybe “Soldier in Civilian Skin” or something like that (remember his song ‘Beasts of No Nation’ – “Animal in Human Skin” - though that song was dedicated to General Buhari for putting Fela in jail/ what Fela saw as the undemocratic nature of the United Nations). We would probably have heard outright abuses, during the time of the ‘third term’ saga. With Generals Obasanjo and Babangida metamorphosing into letter writing social critics, and the dire straits that Nigeria finds itself presently, there would certainly have been more of Fela’s musical tongue lashing in songs like “Coffin for Head of State”!
Fela had Vision and Foresight Fela, na true you talk sha, like say you dey see vision (Fela, you spoke the truth, as if you were clairvoyant)! We dey see many wrong things for Nigeria (we are seeing many wrong things occur in Nigeria). Everything don go down, e don pafuka (everything has gone down, it is spoilt), confusion no just dey Ojuelegba, na for everywhere in this country o (there is confusion, not just in Ojuelegba, but everywhere in this country). Today na Herdsmen, tomorrow Boko Bumbum, next tomorrow, Land Use Charge Law, last week, recovery of loot wey public officials don steal, next month ‘Mainagate’, today, foreign exchange too cost, poor education and healthcare nko? unnecessarily high cost of governance, arrest of NBA Branch Chairman wey dey protest increase in land use charge; the list no fit finish o (today it is the Herdsmen, tomorrow Boko Haram, day after tomorrow, Land Use Charge Law, last week, recovery of loot stolen by public officials, next month, ’Mainagate’, today, weakening of the Naira against foreign currencies, what about poor education and healthcare? unnecessarily high cost of governance; arrest of an NBA Branch Chairman protesting the increase in the Lagos State land use charge; the list is endless).
Today, in the guise of keeping the peace, the State is using the Police to gag the people and curb their freedom of expression, instead of spending their time more usefully, like ensuring that people don’t escape from custody, as they did in Kogi State! These days, if you talk wetin Government no like, not only will their spokespeople ‘zage zage’ you for public, na EFCC, Tax, Police dem go take pursue you (These days, if you criticise the Government, not only will their spokespeople abuse you in public, you will be pursued by EFCC, Tax and Police)! However, I hope our present situation, will never escalate to the time during General Obasanjo’s regime, sometime after the release of Zombie, when ‘Kalakuta Republic’ (Fela’s home) was raided, and violence and mayhem were unleashed there by the soldiers, who launched the attack on the Kalakuta citizens. Fela ended up with broken bones during the attack, while his mother, Chief (Mrs) Olufunmilayo Ransome-Kuti, a Human Rights Activist, was said to have been thrown down from the balcony, as a result of which she subsequently died, from the injuries she sustained from the encounter.
Why? When I heard that Lagos State Government had declared Thursday, March 29th, 2018 as a public holiday (work free day) and several roads were closed because the President (and Vice President) chose to do a two-day visit, I really wasn’t surprised. Let me be brutally honest, we are a country, that seems to have lost proper focus; confused, with misplaced priorities. Firstly, during such an important time for Christians, at the end of their fasting season, you chose to come and disrupt their activities. Secondly, where people are struggling to make ends meet, and we were at the peak of the Easter season, in which there would be some opportunity for people to make a little money because of the festive season, people buying and selling, you blocked the roads and said that people should stay at home, when Good Friday and Easter Monday are already worldwide public holidays for staying at home? I watched a video clip of people being forced to walk long distances, because of the road close; they were full of curses for the APC and the Government!
Many people have been killed in Benue State, the North East and so on, by Herdsmen and Boko Haram. There is “fire on the mountain”, in many parts of the country. The President and other top government officials, only popped in to those danger zones for a few hours; yet they deemed it fit to come to Lagos for 2 days to attend Birthday lectures, commissioning of bus stops, and inspection of new estates, estates which are obviously the preserve of the rich and not for the common man. When those that have been adversely affected by the extreme violence which has been unleashed on their communities, lash out in bitterness and frustration about the seeming insensitivity and nonchalant attitude to their plights, Government Officials will then call it ‘hate Speech’!
Pray tell, what is the importance of these functions that held in Lagos on March 29th and 30th that warranted road close? The laying of the foundation stone of the Lekki Deep Sea Port by the Vice President, is even slightly more understandable than those other functions. Abi APC don dey use kuru kere to start their Presidential Campaign? (Or is the APC surreptitiously starting their Presidential Campaign?).
State Declaration of Public Holiday Another source of confusion in Nigeria, is not even knowing which law is valid or not. Recently, a lot of what we have been witnessing on most issues, are contradictions or uncertainty about the position of the law on the issues, both trivial and crucial ones. Does the Chairman of EFCC need Senate confirmation? Must the Controller General of Customs wear uniform? Can NASS amend the Electoral Act and change the sequence of the elections? With every step, there is confusion and debate. Now, can a Governor even declare a public holiday? Some have argued that a Governor cannot declare a public holiday in his/her State.
Section 4(2) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (the Constitution), empowers the National Assembly inter alia, to make laws for the country, with respect to
any matter included on the Exclusive Legislative List set out in Part 1 of the Second Schedule to the Constitution. Public Holidays is Item 51 on that list. Section2 (2) of the Public Holidays Act 1979 (the Act), subject to Section 2(1) of the Act, empowers a Governor to declare public holidays within the State. Section 2(3) of the Act defines ‘public holiday’ as part of the day or any day declared as a work free day.
I believe that by virtue of the Act, a Governor can declare a public holiday. My dear colleagues, am I right?
“I WONDER HOW FELA WOULD HAVE FELT, OR WHAT MUSIC HE WOULD HAVE RELEASED, WHEN HIS “OLD FRIEND”, GENERAL OLUSEGUN OBASANJO - TO WHOM HE PRACTICALLY DEDICATED HIS SONG “ZOMBIE” WHICH HE RELEASED IN 1976 - BECAME CIVILIAN PRESIDENT (19992007) – MAYBE “SOLDIER IN CIVILIAN SKIN” OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT...”
Anyway, as Fela would have said, my conclusion be say, na all of us dey dis Nigeria for the past how many years wey PDP dey miscaform. Na una, APC, say u go ‘change’ am. Nobody force una. We don tire for all this blame game. Una dey sound like broken record o. Cockroach die, na PDP. Snake swallow money, na PDP. Oyinbo say “na bad workman dey blame im tools o”. Una don fall our hand. A beg, make una sharpen up, do the right thing. This suffer dey too much for Nigerians.