Reno Omokri: APC should stick to issues, not insults
The
other day, their propaganda machines and media outlets carried the lie
that the President went to Kenya with seven Presidential Jets.
Meanwhile, one of Kenya’s daily papers put a lie to this story and
revealed that it was the investors that went with the President that
came with their own private jets.
I am always amused when I
read the statements issued by the All Progressive Congress, APC. They
seem to think that politics is all about using gutter language to make
the most noise forgetting that empty barrels make the most noise. Many
people have said to me on Social Media that the APC dominates the
headlines with their propaganda and insults, but as any media
professional knows a noisemaker is not the same as a newsmaker. A
noisemaker goes to the media to make noise But a newsmaker does not have
to go to the media. Rather, the media go to the newsmaker because he
is newsworthy. President Goodluck Jonathan is a newsmaker. Big
difference!
Their inadequate
understanding of the qualities of a strong leader makes them think that a
gentleman is weak and a brute is strong. A rock may think itself strong
and may consider water as weak, yet a rock can’t break water, but with
time, water breaks all rocks.
Leaders tolerate ignorant
folk. It is not weakness. Is a lion weak because it does not bother
about flies? It knows flies have no power over him. President Goodluck
Jonathan never insults anyone even though those who are desperate to
unseat him do so on a daily basis. They talk in insults, but he responds
with performance.
Let any of his critics go
toe to toe with him in terms of achievements if they can. Many of them
have been in government before him so they have a record. Rather than
insult the President, all they have to say is that while I was in
government I achieved this, this and that, what have you achieved Mr.
President?
The recourse to insults is indicative of mental laziness.
As I have said before, the
building blocks of the President’s Transformation Agenda are ideas.
Many of these people lack an understanding of ideas. They are living in
the past and believe that politics is all about giving people food at
their homes on a regular basis. But when you share food with your friend
you both have half a plate of food. However, when you share an idea
with your friend, each of you has a full idea. This is because ideas are
infinite.
To distract the attention
of the public they start to talk about lists and documents in their
possessions. When people who are notorious for not keeping secrets and
are known for blabbing start to talk about a list without publishing it,
its because it only exists in their imagination. The President himself
has said that anybody with such lists or agreements should publish it.
What are they waiting for? If they have one billion Naira to spend on a
birthday party, surely they have a few hundred thousand to pay for a
paid advertorial in a newspaper to publish their lists and agreements.
If they do not have the money, let them say and I will start up a fund
for them to pay for their advertorials.
They keep lying and
insulting the President in an attempt to give a dog a bad name in order
to stigmatize him, but as the late Chief MKO Abiola of blessed memory
would say “even if you change the name of honey it would still be
sweet”!
And this honey is indeed
sweet! Only five days ago the British Broadcasting Corporation, BBC,
released a documentary with the theme ‘From BRIC to MINT’ and listed
four nations that are soon to be global economic powers based on their
current economic performance and Nigeria is one of them. I invite
objective minded Nigerians to follow the documentary here http://t.co/FMs3IbCvR8.
Just last week, the
Federal Government was in The Central African Republic evacuating
Nigerians from that war torn nation and bringing them back home in
addition to providing them with relief materials and a modest stipend so
that they could rebuild their lives. This is the action of a government
that cares. This is the behavior of a government with a human face.
I urge Nigerians to
contrast this behavior with those of the chief insulters who specialize
in unconstitutionally deporting indigent Nigerians from their spheres of
influence to other states. I have said it before that there are
progressives and there are pro-aggressives.
These men are experts in
propaganda and would move from fallacious story to fallacious story
without regard to the damage they are doing to their nation’s
reputation. The other day, their propaganda machines and media outlets
carried the lie that the President went to Kenya with seven Presidential
Jets. Meanwhile, one of Kenya’s daily papers put a lie to this story
and revealed that it was the investors that went with the President that
came with their own private jets. Objective
Nigerians can read the truth on this Kenyan paper (tinyurl.com/m2pz8gp).
While President Goodluck
Jonathan’s preoccupation is on how to extend the frontiers of Corporate
Nigeria so that our people can have jobs, the opposition is seeking to
damage such efforts because they do not have the capacity to think about
such ideas.
It has been said before
that wisdom is the ability to discern differences. These propagandists
have not noticed the subtle transformation going on all around them
because when you have rottenness under your nose but your eyes are
focused on your enemy, you tend to think he is the one smelling.
When was the last time
they and their family spent the Yuletide period with abundance of fuel
everywhere? Of course they would not remember. It is because of the
policies of the Goodluck administration that Nigerians were able to
celebrate Christmas and New Year with fuel everywhere.
I don’t intend to go down
the insult lane with Lai Mohammed, but I urge him to respond to the
issues and leave insults alone. For his benefits and those of his pay
masters, I have again done a comparative analysis of the achievements of
the Jonathan administration and the promises kept by the President. I
don’t deal in insults. My parents were true progressives and did not
bring me up that way! Let Lai Mohammed and his bosses challenge me if
any of these indices or deliverables are untrue and they will shut my
mouth forever.
Fact Versus Fiction
They have said that the Nigerian Economy Under President Jonathan has Retrogressed. Is this true?
Here are the Facts with web based evidence so that my readers may trust what I write but verify for themselves:
Under President Jonathan Nigeria’s Economy Has Grown To Become The Largest Economy in Africa. (tinyurl.com/pbbld8r)
In 2009 Nigeria’s Per Capita Income Was $1091.Today it is $1721 and increase of almost 70% (tinyurl.com/y5tfwwd)
In 2007 Average Life Expectancy in Nigeria Was 47 Years. Today it is 52 Years (tinyurl.com/yyl5xy2)
In 2010 Inflation in Nigeria Was 15.60%. Today it is 7.9% (tinyurl.com/6pyhylf)
In 2007 Maternal Mortality Rate Was 750 per 100,000 Births. Today It Is 580 (tinyurl.com/lfr4jjb)
They have said that President Jonathan Does Not Fulfill His Promises. Is this true?
Here are the Facts with web based evidence so that my readers may trust what I write but verify for themselves:
On August 26, 2010,
President Jonathan Promised to Privatize Nigeria’s Power Sector After
Heavily Investing in Improving It’s Infrastructure. On November 1, 2013,
That Promise Was Fulfilled After Successful Bidders Took Delivery
Nigeria’s Power Generation and Distribution Companies.
Before President Jonathan
Ascended to Power The Southeast Had no International Airport. He
Promised The Southeast One in 2011. On the 24th of August 2013, The
First International Flight Operated by Ethiopian Airlines Landed at the
New Akanu Ibiam International Airport Enugu. (tinyurl.com/ovodpla)
In 2011 President Jonathan
Promised to Revive the Railways. By 2012 The Nigerian Railways
Corporation Began Operating a Lagos to Kano Service at the Cost of Just
1500 Naira. In 2013 Rail lines Were Revived From Lagos Port Direct to
Kaduna. (tinyurl.com/dytx484)
In 2010, President
Jonathan promised to Build at Least One Federal University in 12 States
of The Federation That Had No Federal Universities. These Include
Bayelsa State, Katsina State, Jigawa State, Taraba, Kogi State,
Nasarawa, Ekiti State, Ebony State, Gombe State, Kebbi State, Yobe State
and Zamfara States. Today, ALL of These States Have One Federal
University Each.
In 2011 President Jonathan
Promised to Build Schools for Itinerant Scholars in The North Known as
Almajiri. As at Today, 123 Almajiri Model Schools Equipped With Malam’s
Quarters, Hostels, Qu’ranic Recitation Hall and Science Laboratories
Have Been Completed While 277 Are Awaited.
In 2011 President Jonathan
Promised to Rebuild or Repair Nigeria’s Roads. This Advert From ABC
Transport Company (a Private Company) Is Proof He Is Fulfilling This
Promise
In 2011 President Jonathan
Promised to Revive Nigeria’s Health Sector. By 2013 His Administration
Has Built 3389 Heath Centers Nationwide. This Administration Built
National Cancer Screening Centers nationwide, including at the Federal
Medical Centre, Gusau in Zamfara, The University of Port-Harcourt
Teaching Hospital and the National Obstetric Fistula Centre in
Abakaliki. The Jonathan Led FG By 2013 Has Modernized the Obafemi
Awolowo University Teaching Hospital, the University of Benin Teaching
Hospital (UBTH) and the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan and
Built National Trauma Centers at the University of Abuja and the
National Hospital also in Abuja.
These Investments in the
Health Sector Led to the First Stem Cell Transplant Surgery Ever in
Nigeria at UBTH in 2012. By October 2013 UCH Performed the First Open
Heart Surgery in Nigeria.
In 2010 President Jonathan
Promised to Overhaul Nigeria’s Football and Sports Administration for
Better Service Delivery. In 2013 Nigeria are the African Champions after
Winning the 2013 African Cup of Nations in South Africa. We are Also
the World Under 17 Champions After winning The 2013 U-17 Tournament in
The UAE. Nigeria Also Became the First African Nation to Qualify for the
2014 World Cup in Brazil.
In 2010 President Jonathan
Promised That Agriculture Would Be Revived. In 2011 Nigeria Imported
$11 Billion Worth of Food Especially Rice and Wheat. In 2013, After the
Introduction of Cassava Flour and The Duty on Imported Rice Which Led to
Massive Local Production, Nigeria’s food Import Bill Has Been Reduced
by 77%.
3 Million Jobs Have Been
Created in the Agriculture Value Chain Since 2011. And Nigeria is
amongst only a handful of countries that improved over the previous year
In the 2013 Global Hunger Index (http://tinyurl.com/lskklx6).
On the 7th of March 2013,
President Jonathan said “my presidential ambition is not worth your
blood”. In keeping with this promise politically motivated killing or
assassinations have become a thing of the past.
In 2010, President Jonathan promised Nigerian women that the Nigerian Defense
Academy, NDA, would start
to admit women. Today in 2014 the is getting ready to admit its third
set of female cadets having open its doors to women for the very first
time in 2011.
In 2011, President
Jonathan promised to sign the Hydro Power Areas Development Commission
(HYPADEC) Bill into law. In 2011 he fulfilled this promise and in the
2014 proposed budget the Federal Government has made provision for a
take off grant for the institution.
In 2010, President
Jonathan promised to dredge the River Niger. By 2012 the Federal
Government awarded a N36 billion Lower River Niger dredging contract to
dredge the River Niger from Onitsa in Anambra State to Baro in Niger
State.
In 2011, President
Jonathan promised to tackle youth unemployment. On the 10th of October
2011 President Jonathan launched the Youth Enterprise With Innovation in
Nigeria (YouWin) initiative which has so far awarded grants of between
2-10 million Naira to over 3000 Nigerian youths to start businesses that
will employ other youths after receiving Federal Government funded
entrepreneurial training.
Fiction: Educational Standards are Falling in Nigeria.
Fact: In 2009 only 25.99
per cent of candidates had credits in English and Mathematics in the
WASSCE examinations. By 2013 70% of students had credits in at least 5
subjects.
Conclusion: Don’t Judge
President Goodluck Jonathan and This Administration on the Fiction That
Opposition Linked Propagandist Media Publish. Learn to Separate Facts
From Fiction.
Reno Omokri is Special Assistant on New Media to President Jonathan.
