“ IT IS SOMETIMES FUNNY TO WATCH SOME PEOPLE DO SOMETHING THE WRONG WAY BUT DOING IT CONFIDENTLY, EVEN MORE FUNNY, THEY SUCCEEEDED”-TOBA BETA
The people of Nigeria and its leader are one hell of a strange and uniquely peculiar people. We have a penchant for living for today and forgetting tomorrow. We deceptively hide under the
illusion that ‘tomorrow will take care of itself’. It is this wishful thinking that resulted in the aggregation of ethnic nationalities called Nigeria, in which we never had the opportunity of discussing and agreeing on how to live and form a veritable union, despite our differences. No thanks to the British, who in no small measure made this misadventure happen, and prefer to stay aloof because the ‘elephant in the room’ favors their interest. Britain is happy when we only see our differences and decide to pull each other down, thinking that’s the solution. What folly!
It is no longer news that President Buhari, amidst jeers and boos from lawmakers, during the week, presented before the National Assembly, the 2019 budget proposal. According to the Federal government, it is planning to spend a proposed sum total of N8.9trillion in the 2019 fiscal year. 
As expected, and as practised in other climes of the world, the Budget presentation is an auspicious opportunity thrown at the door of lawmakers to dissect, analyse thoroughly and call to question the stewardship of the previous budget implementation vis-à-vis the incoming fiscal period. It is an opportunity to criticize and for what it’s worth, inform the executive of its shortcomings, or better still progress and seek out ways to synergise and chart a way forward. But no! That can only happen in sane climes like South Africa, Rwanda, Israel, America or Britain. What we witnessed was a show of shame, lack of insight or rather short-sightedness, petty politics akin to one played by student union governments in Nigerian tertiary institutions.
In sane climes, lawmakers fight over ideas and policies, they agree to disagree. Sometimes you see things degenerate to the extent of punches and chairs being thrown at each other; not for their personal aggrandisement but for the implications it would have on their constituencies. It is only in Nigeria that a budget presentation which is supposed to be accorded the much needed solemnity, grace and grandeur, becomes an opportunity to bring to ridicule, the ‘Office of the President’ all in the name of ‘we hateBuhari’. Therefore what he represents does not matter. We may think the show of shame was on Buhari, no, the joke is on us. Our lawmakers have time and again played and keep playing on our gullibility, by chasing shadows and leaving substance.
As earlier stated, Nigerians do things without thinking about its immediate and future consequences. I bet anyone, if tomorrow, the opposition Peoples Democratic Party wins the next election and Atiku goes to the National assembly to present the Budget, what do you think will happen? Payback time!!! Perhaps we might finally see them for what they have always been, the House of Comedy (or Ridicule!). The nation has not had it so bad until this present session of lawmakers. Just when we thought we had seen it all with previous generation of lawmakers who were clueless as to what their main responsibilities were, this present crop makes the past ones look ‘saintful’.
But why are we surprised? Was it not these same lawmakers who summoned Hamed Ali, head of customs, to appear before it in Customs uniform before he can be granted audience? Knowing fully well he is a retired General from the Nigerian Army? How about the numerous bills which would improve the lives of the people, or check the excesses of the executive, which are lying fallow, collecting dust at their archives? Or how can one explain how the electoral bill which had been in its custody all these while was hurriedly passed, but Save for the executive who picked holes in it, and other bills, we would have been in trouble by now. Yes, the executive has its own shortcomings, but on these instances, they’ve made them look like a saints.
Politically, how Buhari allowed these ‘legislooters’ ridicule the office which he represents in order to score cheap political points, is beyond acceptable, if not condemnable. The signs were there that the lawmakers were calling for blood, how and why Buhari was left to be ‘gullitoned’ is unfathomable. We’re no longer shocked at such blunders from the executives anymore though. Where do we even begin? Is it the military that unilaterally suspended the operations of a UN agency such as UNICEF and the president remained callously insouciant; or the incessant killings of our troops at the battlefield due to lack of proper motivation and provision of sophisticated ammunitions, and the executive remains clueless as to how best to handle the situation; need I mention the drama between the EFCC and DSS, and its culmination in the mishandling of high profile corruption cases. These ‘comedy of absurdity’ causes one to truly ponder, DO WE REALLY HAVE A PRESIDENCY?
The answer to that question will be best answered in the coming weeks as we approach the 2019 elections. WE ARE WATCHING.
