One cannot eat crab in secret.
At the beginning of the year, I had promised that for 12 months, In Shaa Allah, I will once a month X-ray the issues around the forthcoming general elections in the world’s largest black population and sufacracy. This is the grand finale of them all, on local parlance the bottom plate.
Years ago I had gone to see a seer, and before my turn was that of a pregnant woman, from my eavesdropping after all said and done the woman, asked the Baba, what would be the sex of the child. Baba after a little abracadabra simply answered if you do not have a boy, you would have a girl. This is a simple process a scan would equally have achieved.
The first writer to use the phrase “abracadabra” as a magical incantation is, I understand, the (probably) late second century AD medical writer Q. Serenus Sammonicus. He does so in his two-book medical handbook, the Liber medicinalis, in chapter 51, as a cure for demi-tertian fever, which is perhaps some form of malaria.
I learned from Prioreschi that the actual origin of the word “abracadabra” is unknown but in the middle ages became famous as a way to work magic, medicinal and otherwise.
As we tail down the general elections of February 2023, amongst the candidates whom I refer to as the three musketeers, and others. We are in a state of abracadabra, so much magic filled noise, very little in substance. The weaponization of poverty is largely manifesting as a result of the engagements we see everywhere.
Let me regale us with the part of Fela’s government magic for a few seconds
Them go dabaru everything
Them go turn green into white
Them go turn red into blue
Water dey go, water dey come
Them go turn electric to candle
Government magic
Government bring instruments of magic
Them bring inquiry
Them bring two men
One soldier, one Justice
The name of Justice: Mr. Justice Agwu Anya The other Justice: Mr. Justice Dosunmu
Them start magic
Them seize my house wey them don burn
Them seize my land
Them drive all the people wey live in area Two thousand citizens Them make them all homeless now Them start magic
Them bring flame, them bring hat
Them conjure, them bring rabbit
Them bring egg, them bring smoke
Them dey scream, them dey fall
Them conjure, spirit catch them
Them dey fall, them dey scream
Them dey short
Them dey, them dey say
[Chorus]
Unknown soldier!
Na him do am.
As has also been the case as we get closer, you will hear all sorts, see all sorts, abracadabra boy arrested for defaming the First Lady, it’s a blabla blu thing!
Nigerians will die in their numbers, heads of families and loved ones will be hacked down for any and no reason. Apart from the prominent Nigerians that will die, scores of Nigerians would be killed by robbers, kidnapped and in one form of crisis or the other. We already are seeing that happen sadly. From Kano, to Zamfara, Rivers to Abia states innocent Nigerians will fall victims in all sorts of rallies, and sadly no one would be held liable.
Abracadabra Nigeria would not break; Nigeria will not fail or fall, because it already has. Nigeria will not break, and we will not restructure, should we continue like this either. Allah forbid! We are not united, but we are one in corruption, one in greed, one in maladministration and poor governance, we are united in the blame game and none of the men on parade comes with answers, they only raise more questions!
Nigeria won’t fail in 2023, neither will it fall, it already did since day one, whether 1914 or 1960. It won’t break because the winner of 2023 would be a conglomeration of the same difference.
So the search for purposeful leadership and citizenship with direction will continue in 2023, whether it is the dancing governor or certificate-less leaders.
Whoever wins abracadabra the stealing would continue, more monies would disappear in all tiers of government. And the EFCC would not fail in providing several scenes in the drama.
There would be strikes from unions and abracadabra you will see and hear things!
Did you see the viral abracadabra video of a popular Yoruba actor praying for one of the musketeers? Yes, like prophet Jeroboam, of Wole Soyinka’s famed Jero plays, I danced, abracadabra with eyes closed and spoke in tongues not known to me and I saw probes, probes, and more probes. As usual, the next president will institute probes and panels. The various state assemblies will follow the lead of the National Assembly in probing and investigating.
And as I saw probes, I saw committees, while the government will set more committees, citizens will ask for probes, men whose wives refused to conceive will be probed and committees set up. We will probe this and probe that, but probes without justice, equity and fairness will take us nowhere.
Just so we know, none of these investigations/probes will be people or result centered.
My apologies to the Chinese, but like their phones expect plenty of noise from our politicians, a large number of them will make utterances without thinking, and Nigerians would follow suit, as long as it fits into our ethno-religious and self-centered heads.
The herdsmen and farmers would continue from where they stopped in the outgoing administration, killing fields, in Southern Kaduna and parts of Plateau would continue, and this is because the next set of leaders don’t come with a Magic’s wand. We will continue to witness crises as conflict entrepreneurs up their game to thrive.
Abracadabra…It would be the government of magic, plenty of government magic, a name for the magic is ‘necessity’ like the borrowing of money to fight a war that has been technically won. All parties would partake of this magic; it’s a matter of convenience.
Abracadabra I couldn’t see clearly the APC guy who took over from Buhari nor did I see the PDP candidate who won or lost… I can’t see clearly if there was a new face and party.
Abracadabra, my only prayer is; may Nigeria conquer.
2023 would be pivotal for Nigeria and Nigerians, and it may as well be just business as usual, a repeat of history: The fly says that one who is afflicted by a sore is the one whose father’s compound it will pass through, would we see desired improvement in most spheres of national life—Only time will tell.