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Nov. 28, 2004 “Yet each man kills the thing he loves, By each let this be heard, Some do it with a bitter look, Some with a flattering word. The coward does it with a kiss, The brave man with a sword!” - Oscar Wilde A mad man with an exaggerated sense of importance, who once kidnapped a governor, unleashed terror on his state, destroyed lives and left behind over 30 billion Naira worth of damage, finds home in the nation’s capital, and lodges comfortably in the country’s prime hotel from where he plots more havoc for next month. A callous president sets up a clueless presidential committee, headed by a crass governor, to reconcile the mad man and his mad godson called a governor. Reconciliation, as if the mad man just punched the mad governor in the privacy of their PDP home. Is it me that is stupid or the rest of the world? Who will pay for the damage done to state property? Who will bring back the lives of victims of this mayhem? Is Chris Uba going to cough out 30 billion Naira or is his friend, Olusegun Obasanjo, going to dip into his oiled pocket? Will the salary of policemen who did nothing while the carnage went on be used for reconstruction? How do policemen, trained to protect lives and properties, stand by as thugs destroy lives and property? How do they go home and sleep at night? What does their conscience say to them? How do they reconcile such behavior with their professional integrity? I apologize that I stupidly went to school. I am sorry that I listened when my teachers taught the rule of law and due process. I sincerely apologize that I learned something about ethics, about shame and about character. I accepted the rationale behind the sanctity of life. It has become my famished alibi. I regret that I continue to make a connection between things I do on this earth and the place I shall earn when this life is over. The deceit of my heart is complete. It is my fault that I listened to my parents. From them, I learnt humility, goodness, decency and love. I learnt that life is best lived when one does things that will enhance the lives of others, especially the next generation. If these were not so, these mad cocks would have seen the mad fox in me. But I am restrained. I am imprisoned by my schooling. I allowed my schooling to interfere with my education – something a wise man warned us to avoid. For that, I apologize. I am sorry I cannot give these things back. I cannot lock them up in a box and let my disgust drive me down to Uga, up to Awka with a stop at Abuja. I have allowed them to form a yoke of moral principles around my neck. A part of me wants to be lunatic - just like them. It wants to drive a truckload of disinfectant into Anambra state and spread the renegades and their savage backers. It wants to join C. C. Onoh in chasing those crazy brutes out of town. But my hands are tied by hours and hours of lessons on humanity, intellectual honesty and other craps like that. My legs are chained by years and years of reading book about the civilized man, ideals and values. It is sad, my friends. It is very sad. I am going crazy. A man can survive the failure of his fist, but when his mind capitulates, insanity follows. I understand that in an insane society like ours, some men will evade the law and escape punishment. But how come they are able to contravene customs without consequence? I have denied my responsibility. My soul is as guilty as hell. Therefore, I apologize. ------------ About the author: Rudolf Ogoo Okonkwo is a syndicated columnist. Email: rudolfokonkwo@aol.com Tell a friend about this site! ------------ |
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