₦airaland Forum

This is not President Muhammadu Buhari’s first 30 days leading Nigeria. His first 30 days was in January 1984 and just as it is now, there was a problem with workers not being paid their salaries then. Within his first 30 days in office in 1984, Buhari attended to this issue by commanding the governors to pay the workers their four months wages. In 2015, Buhari has made the same move, this time, providing the states with N413billion to do so. This move came after Buhari’s camp faced much criticism over the pace at which it was bringing about change to Nigeria. Newspapers are questioning, columnists are talking, and even the blogs are writing about the messiah’s speed, but no one, it seems, remembers. It seems that everyone has forgotten that this is our messiah’s second coming and he is no stranger to criticims on the pace of his moves and movements.
The concept of a messiah is one that has come up billions of times throughout man’s history. It is a repeated phenomenon that shows itself whenever people have reached their breaking point, when people are ready to give up on hope, when good just isn’t good enough. We don’t have to look too far to find examples of this because this phenomenon is taking place right here in Nigeria. Former president, Dr Goodluck Jonathan and his administration fell upon desperately difficult circumstances; from a failing economy to the Boko Haram insurgency. Any administration would have had a tough time keeping the country afloat in such stormy weather — granted Jonathan and his staff erred multiple times — nevertheless they were faced with a daunting task.
It would seem, however, that Nigerians did not believe this. They did not believe that the country was proving too hard to run because of the situations at hand, rather, they believed the country was proving too hard to run because of the leadership at hand. No other president in Nigeria has survived the amount of sheer mockery and catalogue of insults that Jonathan endured. They mocked his image, his inability to be assertive, and his policies and, let’s forget our vibrant ex-First Lady, a true gift of comedy from God Himself.
So Nigerians felt it was time for change and they searched for a messiah. What they got was a man who was no stranger to playing the role of the “messiah”. General Muhammadu Buhari played the role of messiah in Nigeria in 1984, then as a military head of state, but a messiah nonetheless. It has been 30 days plus since Nigerians elected their godsend messiah and the impatient Nigerians are already complaining. “Where is the change?” is the new tune that is ringing in the mouths of Nigerians everywhere. A quick glimpse back to President Buhari’s initial foray as a “messiah” would reveal that the change may be on the way.
It is formidable how similar Nigeria, in 1984, is to Nigeria in 2015. From the terrible economic climate, unpaid government workers to the desperate longing for a change in leadership, history reveals that Nigeria is fundamentally still the same country it was then. The president before December 31, 1983 was Alhaji Shehu Shagari and he was ousted by the military after four years and three months in office. The amount of corruption and indiscipline recorded during his presidency was incredulous and Nigerians shed no tears for him when he was kicked out. Sounds familiar?
The similarities don’t end there, however, they continue into Buhari’s method of implementing change. Many Nigerians voted for Buhari in 2015 because of his experience in running Nigeria in the past and it is still this same set of Nigerians that are now calling him “Baba Go Slow”. Anyone who voted for Buhari to bring change and expected him to resurrect before 30 days does not know the man they voted for. This is because history is simply repeating itself. Even in 1984 when Buhari assumed his then newly found messiah status, Nigerians were quick to complain, indeed some newspapers called him “slow coach”.
Buhari became head of state on December 31, 1983 and Nigerians began complaining by January 15, 1984! In 1984, Buhari asked Nigerians to give him 18 months to truly and adequately effect the change that they desired. When he made this announcement, as expected, Nigerians lashed out against the General and expressed their disappointment. One can only imagine the uproar that would ensue if Buhari should make such an announcement today. Some things, as it is said, are better left to imagination. When defending himself, his management and the pace at which they were operating, General Buhari said in 1984: “We assure Nigerians that there is definitely going to be action but action has to be based on facts. We have to first gather the facts clearly before we can act”.
When a new government takes over from a different government, caution must be the watchword. They might feel that they are steering clear of the mistakes of the former government by making their own set of policies only to land in the same murky waters the former government got stuck in. The amount of expectations placed on the messiah equals the task that faces the messiah and this is not a sensible equation. Nigeria is far too dynamic, sensitive and problematic to be rescued in 30 days.
Contrary to popular hype, then and now, Buhari has been working. In 1984, when many claimed he was a “slow coach”, a commentator asked: ‘“What has really changed in Nigeria? Nothing.” In those 30 days, however, Buhari successfully instructed governors to pay salary arrears of four months, reduced the state ministries to nine, asked each governor to appoint nine commissioners comprising, at least, a woman and reverted local governments to the 1979 structure. All these, however, were not enough for the change — hungry Nigerians. It should be noted that Buhari has not accomplished as much in 2015, however, if he did, would the reception have been the same?
Patience is a virtue that Nigerians loathe. They did not have it in 1984 and they do not have it now. As these sets of mirrored events occur, Nigerians should quickly take note and refer to the history books. The man voted in office has a style, a calculated method and this method requires time. In an act of consistency, Buhari revisits his old playbook for his second round in the presidential ring. Many might argue that his method, like him, are aged but some principles will always ring true. He may be telling Nigerians that it took years to get Nigeria to this current state and so it won’t take days to get her out of it.

Lets give buhari time. 30days is too short for us to base our judgments on!

Am allergic to long stories!

I don't know why people just see pleasure in criticism, even world class magician can preside over Nigeria and turn things around within that 30days, Nigeria has spoiled more than 30 days magical intervention...I don't know maybe they've forgotten that someone was there for years and at the end they add salt to our injury....haters please find better things to do and stop castigating a 30 months old baby for not walking yet

I Just wan kwoment

->He shouldn't have bailed them out, he is setting a bad antecedent.

dere is God oo

Dullard!nho.