Ondo Governor Olusegun Mimiko has been accused of sponsoring violence against selected media-men.
We live in a world where brutal force is used as an instrument of
oppression by those who control the institutions of government. They
wield state powers and control the institutions that are financed from
our collective patrimony. We matter not to them.
Our ignorance is all that is required to vagrantly rape the law of
the land. That is why there is so much impunity in the land. Opposing
their views is like opposing the God almighty. But they have forgotten
that no human being shares the unique attribute of the God almighty. The
God that is present everywhere. The God that distinguishes not the
governor from the governed. The ultimate owner of all powers, including
the ones in the kitty of Mimiko and his lieutenants. They live large in
the aura of powers, latent in the ephemeral authority of the governor
and his boys.
Such naked power was unleashed on the editorial staff of the “DROCKET
NEWS” on Thursday 2nd, 2012 at the newspapers circulating point,
Adegbola Junction, Akure. Some sponsored thugs, supported by the
government, had reportedly gathered at the office of the Chief of Staff
to Governor Olusegun Mimiko, a day before that unfortunate morning. They
came in a commando manner, packed all the copies of the newspaper to
the Government House. I had a share of their fury. Resuming the
production of the DROCKET NEWS and publishing the rot in the Ondo State
Oil Producing Areas Development Commission, OSOPADEC, were the reasons
why they attacked us.
Ondo
Governor Segun Mimiko accused of sponsoring violence against media men.
This road was made impassable for several months. The road leads to
Adaba FM, a major opposition news medium in Ondo State
Thanks to the people of the state who showed appreciable concerns
through their repeated calls. My phone rang till it ran out of power.
For those who could not reach me on hearing the news of the unfortunate
incident, I sincerely express my unreserved apology for creating fear
with my incommunicado. I thank the media too for its support. Precisely,
I am moved by the concern of the correspondent of The Nation and Adaba
FM radio, the only private radio station in Ondo state. Were it not for
their quick intervention, the hostility and threats would have
imprisoned our desire to go on.
The present horrible experience raised the need to confront the
challenges that have rendered our laws impotent and made our youths
tools of violence. Governance in our country is about men and not the
law. That is the reason why some worthless entities who only possess the
cancerous nuisance value could mobilize their fellow urchins to the
newspaper distribution centre in Akure to pack a community newspaper in
the glare of the public. In a society where there are laws and the laws
are in operation, no sane human being will engage in that kind of
criminality.
These elements are patronized by the desperate people in the Nigerian
politics. They tinker with the judiciary to circumvent the judicial
process. Any discerning mind needs not ask why the likes of James Ibori
and other notable men committed unimaginable financial sleaze and still
escaped all the judicial snares on their ways. Why won’t the younger
ones join others when they know the long hands of the law could no
longer bring them to justice?
We breed army of cultists from our tertiary institutions who turn out
to be area boys and party thugs. I could recollect my encounter with a
young fellow who accosted me recently on my way home. He demanded
explanation on why the assailants hijacked the newspapers from the
agent. I offered an abridged narration of the event. The poor boy, out
of ignorance and genuine passion to help, offered to give me some of his
boys as stand by body guards. I declined and cautioned him. This is a
clear example of how degenerated the situation is.
In addition to the above is the failure of the State to pursue
genuine development in the last three and half years. The massive
corruption of State officials and the anemic state of social services
with its attendant consequences has robbed the State of its God-like
character, thus providing incubation for breeding of dangerous army of
youths needed for dirty politics. Specifically, the ability to create
full employment opportunities for her citizens has eluded the state.
Chief Olu Falae attested to this while speaking at the campaign jamboree
of Dr Rahman Mimiko in Akure recently. A government that was adjudged a
failure in the area of job provision for its youth has missed the very
essence of governance.
Also, the desperate desire to access scarce State resources has
serious implications for youth involvement in violence. This situation
is accentuated because of the fact that the State in Nigeria plays a
leading role in the development process; economic resources are
therefore largely controlled by the State. This has the extended
implication of making the state a coveted price to be won at all cost by
the various class fractions that create division in society to attain
their goal. The youth are thus used when required during intra class
struggle for State control. That is why Mimiko and his men are out to
frustrate any attempt that could put his hands off the public purse.
The active age to which the unemployed belong has several
implications for the society. The youth are not only easily mobilized in
period of crisis, the increase in crime rates, armed robbery and other
social vices are found among these groups. And the government has
deliberately subverted our laws so as to keep their hold on the masses
and violate our laws to suit their purposes.
The cumulative implication of this development is that while the few
that has political power easily manipulate the youth to mobilize support
when they have need to so do, there are no instruments to check them.
This is a major reason why thuggery is an attractive area in Nigeria
politics today. That is why the youth will continue to remain
instruments in the hands of the political class for survival. I have
risked all that I have to call the attention of Dr Rahman to what needs
to be done. I have made him, the governor realize that his approach to
governance will only increase the burden of the state. I advise him to
redirect his energy to efforts that could lead to the creation of
quality jobs. That to me is the only solution to this rottenness and
unbridled violence that we have in our hands in the state.
In a society where men are above the law, there is always anarchy, economic impoverishment, unemployment and oppression.
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