Fire On Buhari!

By Lauretta Onochie

Carol Ajie is a Lawyer. I am not. I am a Lecturer, Carol is not. I took one look at her petition against President Buhari and her call for the respected leader of the most populous black nation to resign and I thought, "Joker, who set her up?". But that's her opinion from the view point of a lawyer. But as a Lecturer, and a layman in law, I would try to teach Carol one or two lessons she missed or even educate her on how not to make herself a laughing stock.

One lesson Carol and all those lawyers who are selective in their "Fight for Justice", must learn first is that lawyers are well respected across the world and Nigeria is not an exception. However, it takes very little for Nigerians to caste anyone from the height of respectability to the abyss of ignominy and notoriety. If Carol was seeking fame and respect, allowing herself to be used by the likes of Femi Fani-Kayode and Oliseh Metuh has obviously done the opposite. She has drawn the ire of Nigerians. This is because many Nigerians can no longer see any line, not even a thin one, between IPOB and PDP.

Another lesson is that President Obama of the United States, although an illustrious son of Africa, is not the Prime Minister of Nigeria nor the General Overseer. Because Pres. Obama did not also register to vote in Nigeria,  President Buhari is not accountable to President Obama. Nigeria is a part of some world bodies like the United Nations but by and large,  Nigeria is a sovereign nation and not answerable to any other nation. President Buhari is not a subject of President Obama of the United States of America. I therefore do not see the need or the point of Carol addressing the nonsense she ignorantly penned to President Obama.

Looking into the Nigerian Lawbooks and the constitution of our land, Barrister Aliyu Abdullahi insists that the power to hear a petition against the President by the National Assembly is non existence. He went on to add that the National Assembly can however, institute impeachment proceedings where there's evidence of a gross misconduct, which till today no law has sufficiently defined what constitutes a "gross misconduct". I believe Carol is aware of this or she is just being mischievous.

Coming to the uninformed and frivolous allegations of meddlesomeness in the judiciary by president Buhari, it's very clear that Carol, does not have a firm grasp of what the laws say in Nigeria. So far, our president has respected the boundaries between the executive and the judiciary. That's what democracy demands. This too has been lost on Carol. But who can blame her? When one decides to go into partnership with embittered PDP remnants such as Chief Oliseh Metuh and FFK, they hit at the air and swallow a combination of shame and disgrace.

If Carol followed the trend on the Nnamdi Kanu or of the Dasukigate as it unfolded or did her homework as all professionals do, she should have discovered or at least guessed that there are litany of charges lurking in the background and waiting to be hurled at Nnamdi Kanu or Col Sambo Dasuki and his ilk as they try to use injunctions and bail applications to pervert the cause of justice. Agreed that the courts have a right to issue injunctions and to grant bails. The anti corruption agencies also have to be clever and on their feet. They have the right to bring new charges against any accused person, as long as they can prove their case.

Nnamdi Kanu was facing charges at the magistrate Court for which he was discharged on the application for the withdrawal of charges made by the DSS. The reason being that a higher charge of treason has now been filed against Kanu at a High court. We are not aware that Kanu applied for bail, yet! How Carol arrived at the conclusion that President Buhari was disobeying court orders for not supporting the release of some people who are facing grave criminal charges, is beyond Nigerians.

Nigerians on the Social Media and everywhere were outraged that Carol was making a case for corruption and insurgency, two issues that have weighed heavily on the minds of President Buhari and millions of Nigerians. Issues that contributed to institutionalising poverty in our nation. Issues that dislocated families and made numerous people refugees in their own nation. Issues that have sent multitudes to their early graves. Issues that ex President Jonathan neglected to confront but which President Buhari is courageously and bravely confronting.

It's common knowledge that our criminal justice system need a facelift in terms of reforms. We all agree that our courts need judges who can exercise their discretion more in the interest of the Nigerian people as a nation. Aliyu Abdullahi, a lawyer, thinks it's high time Nigeria revisits it's laws on corruption, the trial procedure and that penalty should be all encompassing and severe to have the intended deterrence effect. That's how a lawyer thinks. That's what Carol should be focusing on. To lend her name as an advocate of corruption to the point of asking President Buhari to resign, is the deepest pit one can dive into and I doubt there's a ladder long enough to help one climb out.

Nigerians are delighted with President Buhari's work of rebuilding our nation from the ruins of corruption. Corruption enabled our elected and appointed political office holders who looted the funds we gave them in trust to keep us under. They are unhappy that the love affair between President Buhari and ordinary Nigerians is waxing stronger and that he is determined to keep acting and protecting the interests of the ordinary Nigerian people. We are delighted that he would nip insurgency in the bud by keeping us safe from security threats, be they from Zaria, Biafra or elsewhere. For the sake of ordinary Nigerians who suffer most the effects of corruption and insecurity we say, "#FireOnBuhari".

@Laurestar laurestar@aol.co.uk