African Pride

"WE ARE FINISHED" We were not finished when a sitting governor quietly lodged state funds into the vaults of his own bank... A conflict of interest wrapped neatly in the garb of Money Heist. We were not finished when a governor watched unmoved as doctors went on strike for nearly 400 days... Diseases festered, sicknesses worsened, and avoidable deaths became the state’s daily anthem. The supposed Number One citizen of the state, disguising instead as a butcher. We were not finished when a guvernor doubled the poverty rate of a land famed for massive potential and boundless creativity. A leader turned poster boy of SAPA, crowned as its desperate ambassador. We were not finished when a leading presidential candidate branded a simple election - A sacred democratic exercise - as a Religious War, in a nation defined by the constitution as secular. Simon Peter was known as the Rock - but this Peter? A religious arsonist fanning the flames of division. We were not finished when you became the most enduring monument of mediocrity... The ultimate symbol of failure. But when a First Lady - long celebrated for her philanthropy and devotion to noble causes - turned to her friends, allies, and loved ones, and said: “Look, Instead of lavishing fortunes on newspaper adverts, ostentatious gifts, and extravagant owanbes for my birthday, channel those affectionate gestures to a cause dear to my heart - the National Library...” Was that our finish line? This in no way subtracts from government responsibility; rather, it adds - gifts that could have been her private indulgence, converted into a public treasure. And the First Lady’s noble gesture is hardly novel. We’ve seen citizens of distinguished standing build roads, erect schools, and donate facilities to the government. But how would Peter know? Every act of his that mimics philanthropy drips with ulterior political motives. Dear Leader, kindly stick to burials and graveside theatrics - and leave matters of national consequence to men and women with the breeding for it. Good Afternoon Sir and Severally...