The iodine truth of the fallacy of flag flying at half-mast as a sign of mourning when a leader dies in Nigeria is explored in this piece. Indeed, Nigerian leaders only have caskets and not mourners. From one leader to another, Nigerians have considered their leaders as vinegar, wicked, and callous. In return, leaders are ever scared to disclose their ailments, which may explain why the ailments that killed President Yar’Adua and President Buhari remain unknown. However, King Charles III of Great Britain has been battling cancer, and the entire world knows about it. That disclosure has not killed him; he is well and about his daily business.
To me, it is simply because of the morbid fear of the people they have cheated and oppressed for years. It is only in Nigeria that one sees the absurdity of a platoon of policemen guarding a governor when there is no war anywhere. Is it not a wonder that before elections, our politicians are as friendly as a tamed dog? But having been elected, they suddenly change in character, considering us leprous and snubbing us. Would tears be wasted on such a leader when he or she kpai or is deleted, as Nigerians would sarcastically describe dying?
I have watched with unpleasant amusement how obituaries of living people are announced and the reactions of Nigerians, especially of public figures. These personages are victims of the luxury of having their deaths announced on radios or TVs while still breathing or perhaps “in the other room.” These crop of human beings rarely enjoy the mourning beatitude from the people who oxymoronically elected them out of love or lure, or by fraudulent glitches. This is not different from the chant on Jesus: Hosanna today, crucify him tomorrow. I remember as a young adult when Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe was announced dead while his living body and soul were alive. I did not witness abundant lamentation, mourning, or weeping by Nigerians for this great son of Africa who fought tirelessly for the country’s liberation from colonialism. I guess, from the frustration of witnessing his own obituary being announced, it was reported that Dr. Zik retorted that he was not in a hurry to leave because the earth is the only place he knows.
Why Are Nigerian Leaders Not Mourned?
The rhetorical question is: why are Nigerian leaders not mourned on their demise, or better still, why do Nigerians celebrate the demise of our leaders or keep dry eye sockets? Meanwhile, as living beings, a gang of sycophants and acrid opportunists celebrated them as the only good people on planet earth. This gang pays huge money to celebrate the king’s birthday, but on their demise, the eye sockets are as parched as the desert.
In my adult life, I have witnessed many heads of state die, both military and civilian. In my quiet observation, the remains of these men become a piece of wood only useful to the owner. In this case, this cadaver becomes the responsibility of the immediate family, his region or tribe, his religion, political party, his club to mourn, weep, or cry. Usually, as my people will say proverbially: “the corpse of another fellow is like a piece of wood.” This is how far Nigerians have taken the death of their leader, as my patient observation tends to prove. But why?
Global Responses to Leaders’ Demise
The global response to a leader’s demise shows how some leaders are loved and missed when they transition. A few examples would suffice to help us assess the Nigerian scenario. With the diverse nature of Nigeria, it is nearly impossible to have a leader mourned nationally. However, almost near objectively, three Nigerian presidents could be said to have been nationally mourned. Standing tall among the leaders is late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, who died in 2010. On his demise, people cried openly in mosques, churches, and public spaces. They cried for his perceived honesty, humility, and simplicity, which are counted for him as virtues of a good leader. He was the only Nigerian president on record who openly agreed that the election that brought him to power was rigged. In contradiction, other Nigerian leaders would navigate their ways through crooked means to get that seat, they grab it and run away with it.
Those who did that, dead or alive, know that the broom will be used to sweep away their dirty path after their demise. Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, who was assassinated in the first coup in Nigeria in 1966, can be counted. Balewa was deeply mourned either because he was assassinated or because of his golden voice.
Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, who died in 1996, was also mourned as a statesman. He died as Nigeria’s first President. He was a major nationalist and enjoyed respect across ethnic and political divides. Obafemi Awolowo, though nationally known, did not succeed in becoming a President. On his demise, he was regionally mourned. He was, however, a moral compass for many Nigerians. One pithy statement about him was that he was the best President Nigeria never had.
Reasons for Mourning Leaders
Reasons why people mourn their dead leaders vary: by culture, coercion, by love, symbolism; some genuine, some fake, even media coverage can be exaggerated. Open display of emotion can be guessed. Let us do a foray into other countries and note leaders that have been mourned dearly.
In Africa, Ghana’s Kwame Nkrumah, Tanzania’s Julius Nyerere, South Africa’s Nelson Mandela, and Ethiopia’s Haile Selassie are in the bracket. Even among military dictators, Thomas Sankara and Murtala Mohammed of Nigeria come to mind. In the Middle East, such names as Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran and Egypt’s Gamal Abdel Nasser can be mentioned. In Asian countries, Mahatma Gandhi of India, China’s Mao Zedong, North Korea’s Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il, and Lee Kuan Yew of Singapore readily come to mind. In Europe, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and Josip Broz Tito of Yugoslavia can be counted as those leaders where public outpouring of emotion was obvious. In the Americas, Abraham Lincoln, John F. Kennedy of the United States, Cuba’s Fidel Castro, and Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez stand tall among leaders said to be missed by citizens of their countries.
Why Would Citizens Cry for a Leader?
People cry at a leader’s demise for very different reasons: some are for genuine love and gratitude, shock or uncertainty, cultural expectations for mourning, fear or symbolic respect not personal affection, or as a Founding Father. Who would Nigeria consider as the founding father of our country? Nigeria may not have a “founding father” figure like Mandela of South Africa, Nkrumah of Ghana, Kenyatta of Kenya, or Nyerere of Tanzania. The founding father concept is a construct not based on the fact that you are the first leader of a country.
A founding father figure embodies the birth of a nation and whose influence outlives his lifetime. Thus, founding fathers play a central role in national birth, a symbolic unifier that transcends ethnic, religious, or regional identity; moral authority that includes national sacrifice such as serving jail term; going on exile for national cause; exhibition of clear national vision; creation of foundational institutions such as national symbols, etc. Most founding fathers appear at historical time and are laced in time future.
Most importantly, founding fathers are publicly recognized not by elite praise singers but remembered emotionally by ordinary citizens. Such personages are not officially mourned but by popular concession. From this analysis, which Nigerian leader, dead or alive, would qualify as the founding father of Nigeria? The answer is yours. While you are calculating, synthesizing, imputing, consulting, let this piece be food for thought for the living serving leaders. Your foundation and your public good can plug your misstep while in office. Serving leaders can be mourned, if and only if, you try to achieve the founding father characteristics.
Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar Act 3, Scene 2 said the evil that men do lives after them; the good is often interred with their bones, as spoken by Mark Antony. Evil actions resonate far longer and will be remembered. Today, we quickly remember Hitler and Stalin for their evil deeds, but we remember not the good people of their time. That is the reason why our good deeds are interred with our bones, awaiting God’s scorecard.
This piece is didactic and is for leaders at all levels. How do you want to be mourned? Let it be stated that if your mission is to acquire vanity, to oppress the poor, intimidate the weak, then be ready for the refuse dump of history. I suggest we strive to be a trans-generational bundle of goodness rather than be the ingredients in the cauldron of the three witches in Macbeth by Shakespeare. God forbid!
