“On the Couch with Falz and Laila”

Hey guys! Yeah, I have been MIA for several weeks now, and I apologize. Guess I have been getting used to being a husband, after marrying the love of my life in July 2018 (I’ll start the new year with a special feature on my beautiful wife, you don’t want to miss that). *wink* Well, a lot has been happening lately in Nigeria, and just some brief thoughts on something I think is fascinating. It’s not the first place you may have heard about it though.

On the 10th of August 2018, Folarin Falana Esq. (popularly known as FALZ) and Laila Johnson Salami released the Episode 1 and Season 1 of a YouTube channel dubbed ‘On the Couch with Falz and Laila’, and in that episode they had a very critical 33 minutes of interactions with Mr. Fela Durotoye; a renowned Entrepreneur and life coach who is running for President of Nigeria in 2019 under the Alliance for New Nigeria (ANN) party. Since August 10, ‘On the Couch with Falz and Laila’ have hosted 9 presidential aspirants... Here is what I think about setting up and being ‘On the Couch’!

Nigeria’s two decades of democracy (come May 2019) can be likened to... (I have a lot of things on my mind, you can imagine) a family where children are born to parent to whom they really have no choice in (in our case, PDP and APC), I’ll let you decide who the Dad and Mum is in the Nigerian case. *smile* This isn’t funny though, but somehow the children in my illustration (Nigerians) always find a way to lighten up the mood in the home (Nigeria). But you know what, at some point, the children (Nigerians) come of age and they get to deal with the real issues; and may even walk away from their parents (PDP and APC) if nothing seems to be changing. I think we are at that point; WE HAVE COME OF AGE!

Enough of the illustrations, back to ‘On the Couch’. Not only will Falz and Laila be voting for the first time as Nigerians in 2019 and represent another over 14million Nigerians who will also be voting for the first time in 2019, but having presidential aspirants in front of the camera to respond to several spontaneous questions is a move that I think is noble and provides insight into some of the very little things about those who wish to represent us. Presidential debates in Nigeria have arguably remained a facade, even in cases where they have been held, your guess is as good as mine on the logistics and protocol involved. Now, I know the presidential candidates of our ‘Dad’ and ‘Mum’ may never sit ‘On the Couch’, but that shouldn’t be a surprise; Nigerian children will traditionally not put their parents on the spot. I am trying as hard as possible to remain unbiased in this piece, and I pray I succeed.

What is your point Myk!? Nigerians are becoming ‘democratic adults’; ‘On the Couch’ is one of such evidences of demanding critical and accountable leaders for ourselves, but Falz and Laila can’t do this job alone. If we must make a statement and let ‘our parents’ know how we feel, then WE MUST DO IT TOGETHER! The young people (and even old) must determine to vote for a Nigeria that will not break down when we need it the most to be strong for us (our children and their children, and children’s children). I don’t feel like I let it all out in this one piece, but I think it’s a safe place to leave it and still be as critical as possible.

Here is a link to the most recent episode of ‘On the Couch’.

https://youtu.be/mYBLtA_Nvqw

Kindly share your thoughts on the program and this write-up too. Let’s hear from you please!

Reminiscing CHANGE 730 days later...

Beyond the ritual of churning out a statement to commemorate the day, the President's Address to the nation on Democracy Day (29th of May), as with every other remarkable day, is intended to serve as a mirror into the direction of the government in the period under review.

Fortunately or unfortunately, the Democracy Day address for this year was made by the Vice President, in acting capacity as the President, while President Buhari continues his INDEFINITE medical vacation in the UK (that is talk for another day).

Three issues stood out in Professor Osinbajo's address today, namely; Security, Corruption and the Economy. He continued by stating reasons why he and the rest of the government feel that some amount of progress is being made in these areas: the seeming conquer of the Book Haram sect; the prosecution of individuals alleged for corrupt practices; and several ongoing efforts to reverse the economic trend in Nigeria with initiatives as Economic Monitoring Team, Single Treasury Account, among others...

My submission is simple; we may not need an official address to let us know our current status as a nation, the living condition and hardship of ordinary Nigerians speak volumes already. While we must agree that governance is more of a journey than a destination, it is not gainsaying that Nigeria has been on this journey for way too long, and Nigerians seem to have become 'weary of travelling', but sadly the end may still be fat from sight.

I still believe in the Nigerian dream; I believe that little by little, tiny deeds of kindness and integrity in 180+ million places, will birth a Nigeria of our dreams. Hence, all hands must be on deck!

Happy Democratic Anniversary to Africa's Sleeping Giant!

FALSE FLAG OR NOT, TURKEY IS ON FIRE!

 

The dawn of Saturday, July 16, 2016, may have been another beautiful morning for you, but it certainly wasn't for Turkey; the government had been compromised, the military had left the barracks, what seems to be the military counterpart of a revolution had occurred, there had been a military coup!

The coup which, according to report, began at 21:30 on the eve of July 16, was believed to have been staged by a faction of the Turkish army. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had been on a vacation within the country when the coup plotters struck blocking two major bridges in Istanbul and seizing the Turkish Parliament in the Turkish capital - Ankara. By dawn, the Turkish government reported that the coup had failed and the government was fully in control.

Whatever the 'triggers' of the coup; attempts by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to transform the state into an Islamic brotherhood state, or pressures and reactions from Kurdish insurgency and terrorist attacks, Turkish democracy has been badly challenged, and that has serious implications. Again, although some skeptics have argued that the incident of Friday night wasn't a real military coup, but a false flag; alluding to the fact that no government official was captured prior to the coup, the President was also not captured, and infact the time of the coup was suggestive, whatever the case, there has been a coup - fake or real, with real consequences unfortunately.

If President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had only intended to use the coup as a means of strengthening his grip of government; making the coup a false flag, unfortunately that  trick would only succeed for a very short time, and if it was actually a failed coup, it is most likely that, not too long from now, there would be another attempt, and another, if there are no visible changes in the Turkish domestic and foreign policies in the months and years ahead.

 

For whatever it is worth, the recent and unfortunate incident in Turkey sends a message to governments across the globe; there is always a limit to injurious policies, and when 'the people' are pressured to the limits, they surely would respond in a revolution (civilian response) or a coup d'etat (military response). Democracy would only make sense as long as government is responsible to 'the people', including the armed forces.

At least 200 people have died, more than 1,100 wounded and 6,000 arrested over the coup attempt. The Turkish coup has also, since, been condemned domestically and internationally by NATO, the EU, and ME! 😊 

Erdoğan has been Turkish President since 2003, and leads an Islamist cabinet. He has also faced increasing pressures owing to the Kurdish insurgency in the south-east, and a series of ISIS terrorist attacks.

DEMOCRACY: 17 YEARS AND CHANGING...!

 

I have been thinking all day of how best to capture my perspectives about the state of affairs in Nigeria 17 years into the only surviving period of democratic rule in Nigeria's independent history...

May 29, some 17 years ago(1999), meant the dawn of a new era for many Nigerians and Nigeria in particular; the military was gone and we hoped this time for good... One administration after another has subsequently come and gone in 4 tenures (under the same political party); all serving twice consecutively. Unfortunately, Nigerians have only began to experience a new 'delicacy', and somehow we feel like it's no different from what we have had in the past, or even worse (as some argue)... The second sentence in President Buhari's anniversary speech captures this point: "It has been a year of triumph, consolidation, pains and achievements". Although many seem to identify more with the 'pains' than the 'triumph', and even fewer are less (or not at all) concerned about the 'consolidation' and 'achievements', the reasons are, however, not far-fetched.

From reality, we observe that two sides exist to every coin; the pleasant and ugly experiences of our lives are what make the complete story of who we are, and regardless  of where we are, as individuals, we are still 'changing' - our stories are still unfolding (good and bad). This may apply for Nigeria as a state as well...

We are obviously millions of miles away from where we are headed, but we are definitely not where we left off. Regardless our seeming 'weekly' troubles: terrorism, corruption, Niger-delta, and recently the fall in oil prices, we have only a few things to smiles about: Nigerians seem to have began to realize the power of the ballot, INEC is becoming truly independent (especially with the last general elections), notwithstanding the number of casualties, and we hope these trends continue.

 

It's exciting to think that what we face at the moment isn't the last of Nigeria's experiences or the end of her story; Nigeria indeed is 'changing', and we have a couple more ugly and definitely pleasant experiences to share... The latter will only prevail and subsist if the next 365 days are met with resolve and commitment from leadership and followership alike. Like I always say, and ending on that note:

IF THE NIGERIAN STATE IS TO SURVIVE, THOSE WHO ADVOCATE IT MUST SUBMIT TO IT, THOSE WHO BELIEVE IN IT MUST PRAY FOR IT, AND WE WHO REPRESENT IT MUST FIGHT FOR IT!

Long live Nigeria; and

Long live you and I to see her best days!

Happy Democratic Anniversary!