The Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Archdiocese, Mathew Kukah, has called on Nigerians to avoid making the health of Nigeria’s public figures a subject of political discourse or speculations.
Kukah spoke in reaction to the controversy recently generated by the ill-health of President Muhammadu Buhari, who is currently in the United Kingdom where he is expected to see an Ear, Nose and Throat specialists over infection in his ear.
Buhari’s health became a subject of speculations last month following his repeated suspension of scheduled official trips as well as denials by his aides.
Speaking with journalists in Abuja on Saturday, Kukah noted that leaders of some popular nations of the world had serious health challenges, which were managed to avoid undue public attention.
He specifically noted that a former US President, Ronald Reagan, suffered from Alzheimer’s disease for most part of his tenure in office but that nobody knew what the former president was going through.
“I do not think that the health of any Nigerian should be the subject of politics or speculations. It is something I find so troubling because nobody does the things we do in Nigeria.
“Reagan was suffering from Alzheimer’s and for the greater part of ten years nobody had the slightest idea, what was happening to Reagan.”
On the agitation for the realisation of a separatist Biafra by some Nigerians in the South East zone, the clergyman said the matter should be properly handled, especially because the country practices a representatives democracy.
“I think the question we should be asking is: what right do people have to express themselves?’ We are in a democracy and people should be allowed to express themselves because ours is a representative democracy.
“There are representatives and if people want to stop being a part of Nigeria there is a process for achieving that.
“The second point is that we cannot speculate as to intentions and motives unless you legitimately bring a person to court and say why have you done X Y Z? You can only speculate. And I don’t think we should be depending on speculations.”
Kukah said the problems of Nigeria were partly because its founding fathers tampered with the provincial system government, but added that there was hope for the nation.
He further noted that another major challenge of Nigeria’s democracy was the lack of citizens’ participation in governance.
“There is a lot that is wrong with Nigeria as we are structured now. Nigeria is the only country in Africa that was colonised by Britain, but tampered very well with the provincial arrangement.
“A major challenge of Nigeria’s democracy is the abject lack of citizens’ engagement in debating, and more importantly, shaping public policies that often have dramatic impact on their lives.
Kukah said the Kukah Centre, which he founded, was already putting together a programme aimed at bridging the age-long communication gap between the masses and the leaders.
He explained that the said programme, which would be called “Fix Nigeria Initiative,” would attempt to address the challenges of Nigeria and proffer lasting solutions.
“The importance of robust debates can never be overemphasized in a democracy,” the clergyman stated.
“If free and fair elections mark the basic validation of democratic mandates, citizens’ involvement in public policy-making is the oxygen for democratic governance.”
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