The fruits of patience

Also published in Daily Trust

One of the most interesting things about time is the speed at which it flies especially when viewed in the context of a particular event scheduled to take place at a particular time.

Though this is an easily observable fact by all, the inspiration it exudes surprisingly eludes many people, which explains the extreme impatience that defines their attitudes when pursuing their individual or collective interests.

As Nigerians increasingly look forward to witnessing the next Friday’s historic transfer of power when President Goodluck Jonathan finally hands over the presidency to the incoming President Muhammad Buhari, I recall the widespread post-election violence that erupted in the aftermath of the 2011 elections in the country, which could have been prevented had the parties involved summoned up enough patience and sense of restraint to manage their grievances.

Though the sheer desperation displayed by many politicians to get or cling to power by any means was solely responsible for the bloody post-election violence that ensued, the disproportionate impatience that characterized some people’s attitudes as they reacted to the widespread election fraud incidents was partly responsible for the deterioration of the situation and the rapid escalation of the violence.

While several hundreds, if not several thousands, of mostly innocent people were killed across the country, and huge amounts of properties were lost, the beneficiaries of the election rigging celebrated and looked forward to enjoying the disproportionate privileges attached to elective office, for a period of four years, which apparently looked long enough for them to have enough fun.

Meanwhile, many of those who were rightly or wrongly said to have lost elections and their respective supporters had clearly felt that the four- year period was too long for them to patiently wait for. Therefore, while the former were desperate to maintain their ‘mandates’ through whatever means possible, the reactions of the latter were disproportionately characterized by recklessness, hence it was basically a confrontation between an excessive sense of desperation on one hand, and a disproportionate amount of impatience, on the other, which explains the magnitude of the violence.

Anyway, now that the 2015 elections have come and gone, and that some incumbents have managed to retain their offices while some others, who could not constitutionally run for the same offices anymore, won in other election contests, it is not clear whether or not the political opponents who instigated, directly or indirectly encouraged, condoned or actually engaged in election-related violence during and in the aftermath of the 2011 elections have learnt any lessons from the sheer speed at which time passes.

What happened in 2015 election underscored the fact that patience and sense of restraint indeed pay off. The election victory of the incoming president Muhammdu Buhari is particularly remarkable in this regard, having contested in the three previous presidential elections, notwithstanding whether or not he had actually lost in all the three contests or he was simply short-changed in elaborate election frauds as widely believed.

Whereas, whatever amount of benefits the beneficiaries of the 2011 election fraud have got, and whether or not they have retained their positions or have won in other elections in the recently concluded elections, history has accurately documented and will always continue to document whatever happens to eventually judge them accordingly. This is of course before they are finally held to account before God the Almighty in the hereafter. Also, this is even though one of the mysterious ironies about Nigerians’ largely ironic religiosity is their apparent disregard for that unavoidable event, as the vast majority of Nigerian political elites in particular hardly seem to actually believe that they shall indeed be held to account in the hereafter.

Yet, as opposed to what obtains elsewhere where public figures and political leaders, who having hardly believed in any religion, are obsessed with how the history will judge them, hence do whatever it takes to ensure that they leave good legacies, Nigerian leaders don’t seem to bother about how the history will judge them, either.

Nevertheless, the need to sustain and build on the little but promising progress the country has achieved in improving its electoral process has never been more urgent. After all, the country’s prospects for achieving socio-political stability and economic prosperity depends on its ability to sustain whatever little progress it achieves in institutionalizing the culture of transparency in the country. With hard work and patience Nigeria will indeed change for the better.