NIGERIAN HERO: Would Falana Have Resigned From Or Rejected A Buhari Appointment?
Peregrino Brimah
I plead this bit of public space to tender my salutations to Attorney Femi Falana, SAN. Falana has stood out like a handful in Nigeria’s history. He has rejected invitations to be part of corrupt administrations and turned down billions of Naira to continue advocating for truth and justice through thick and thin and from one administration to another.
Like the Gani Fawehinmis past and I dare say, in my young mind, a more relevant hero, I always am pleased to find when I am on the same side as Femi Falana’s positions on national matters. In fact, sometimes to confirm I am on the right side, I search for Femi’s comments on the matters.
Would Falana have resigned an appointment say as Attorney General? I strongly believe so. When Yushau Shuaib resigned as FOSSRA Consultant, I was not surprised. While perhaps not an angel, we all witnessed how Yushau fought Jonathan and Ngozi Okonjo Iweala during their reign.
It takes a real man of conscience to be able to stand up for truth and justice against those on his side and those who employ him. This is one reason why I always commended Rotimi Amaechi. The former governor of Rivers could have made peace with Jonathan and ignored Patience and remained in the halls of power and perhaps kept Jonathan there too. But before APC was, Amaechi was!, and in total rebellion.
Compare to persons like el-Rufai for instance, pathological political appointment dependents, who only amassed ‘their’ wealth and ever worked in government and who were a full part of the Obasanjo-Atiku grand corruption machine, and only when Yar’Adua and Jonathan had no love for him and Yar’Adua had the EFCC initiate probing him (before Jonathan forgot about that), did he become a ‘rebel.’
I messaged Yushau Shuaib when he resigned to congratulate him on his liberty. There is no better state of human existence than knowing that you stand for justice and truth, pure and clean without fear or favor and without hypocrisy by political or partisan alliance.
Is there any way that you can make it up to those who have died as a result of the failures of a party or government that you are partial about? While you stay up at night believing in and being partisan about change, is there any thing or message you have for the relatives of those massacred by agencies of the government or bandits permitted by the government you refuse to criticize and condemn when and where due? Can you deliver change to known and unknown, marked and unmarked, single and mass graves?
I was impressed when Femi Falana warned Buhari not to take a loan from China with threats to sue the administration. And I was glad Buhari listened and refused to collect any loan. What I asked myself was, what would have happened had Femi Falana been AGF? We would have lost that safety guarantee perhaps…or would he have been advising and influencing Buhari on the inside?
As happened to Jonathan, Buhari has surrounded himself with nincompoops. Incompetent miseducated persons simply flabbergasted to be in power. This is why the Buhari government is failing so much and scoring so poorly in human rights. His bad company advises him not to talk about the Dalori massacre. Advices him to be silent as nomadic terrorists massacre across Nigeria. They shield him from advise of better elements in the government and outside, telling him everything is ok. The question is: would an employed Falana have been able to get past these hounds or would he have been frustrated and forced to retire in defense of his conscience?
Reading Falana’s recent letter to Muhammadu Buhari, urging him to investigate the piling up human right violations under his government, I was pleased Falana is who Falana is. Thank God for such kings among men. Falana listed hundreds to thousands of killed Nigerians, from boys killed in Opgoni land by soldiers to others they killed in Abia and Zaria. From torture deaths to secret mass burials. From permission of nomadic terrorist deadly campaigns across Nigeria to election thuggery and malpractice perpetuated/encouraged by the ruling party/government.
When a good friend of mine, Nomoreloss, christened Muyiwa Osinuga, a rare talent who we feature regularly on Naija.Live radio, passed, so many suddenly remembered him and sang his praise. The contradiction of it actually caused a social media rumble with some accusing others of having ‘forgotten’ him while he lived.
It is common to celebrate our heroes only after they have passed. I celebrate a living hero of Nigeria today!
May God Bless And Preserve Femi Falana and Nigeria!!!
