29th January, 2015
General Muhammadu Buhari use to be many things in the past particularly as a military head of state. He made decisions and took actions that were unpopular but now he says he’s a changed man. He wants to right his wrongs but does he truly deserve to be given a second chance?
I’m sure there’s no one in the world, who can confidently say that he or she has not made mistakes in life. There’s no one who can say he or she has not learnt from past mistakes or utterances and I think this also applies to Buhari.
He’s made mistakes in the past and he as accepted those mistakes. He says if given the chance, he would have approached things differently, particularly if he knew then, half of what he knows now.
Like Buhari, if given the chance, many of us would rescind decisions we made in the past. Some of us would have married some lady or man we broke up with; others might have been more serious at school; some would have taken their business seriously; some their health and some would have been more kind, loving etc.
There’s always something we wished we could change from the past but we have to put it behind us and move on. We need to look at how we can change the future now.
If you ask me, is Buhari the best candidate the All Progressives Congress can produce, perhaps my answer will be NO. But the fact that he prides himself in the team he works with now and the team he will assemble if president, makes me want to put a splinter of hope in him.
Calling on Buhari to be given a second chance would have been needless, if President Goodluck Jonathan had delivered pretty well in his six years as president.
If Nigerians are slaughtered like wild animals in the northeast and millions of graduates are sitting at home with no jobs and our refineries are still yet to be fully functional, then there is a need for a change.
Nigeria is ailing and the need for a quick surgical operation is now.
Like millions of Nigerians, I really do not think the ruling Peoples Democratic Party is much different from the main opposition, the APC but if the PDP under President Jonathan has not been able to turn the fortunes of the country around, I’ll try my luck with another candidate.
The presidential election is not about Buhari but the fact that PDP has failed to live up to expectation. Irrespective of who the APC presents, I believe Nigerians would have voted for them at the presidential level.
I strongly believe that when a person is not performing to expectation they should get the ‘hairdryer treatment. If APC is given four years in office and there’s no glaring changes then we should vote them out.
For me, everyone deserves a second chance and I think that includes General Muhammadu Buhari. But the decision to give him a second chance is personal and one that has to be done with personal persuasion.
Written By Seun Bisuga
Twitter: @bisuclef