Femi Adesina, presidential spokesman, has explained the reason the pigeons that were released by President Muhammadu Buhari to commemorate the Armed Forces Remembrance Day refused to fly.
TheCable had reported how the president made several attempts to get the pigeons flying during the event but gave up trying when his efforts did not yield the desired result.
The incident sparked off comical reactions on social media with some Nigerians describing it as “a demonstration against bad governance in Nigeria” while some others said it was “a bad omen”.
But in a Facebook post, Adesina said the refusal of the pigeons to fly into the sky immediately they were released by the president was a “natural phenomenon”.
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He said there was nothing extraordinary about the incident, and that the pigeons had become accustomed to being caged.
“Now, something for those who twist my every word, turn it upside down, to generate hatred. Something for them to wail about. The release of the pigeons,” he said.
“At every Armed Forces Remembrance Day, after the laying of the wreaths, the sitting President releases some pigeons, to symbolize peace in the land. Emblems of National harmony. It was not different last Friday.
“The pigeons had been kept in a cage. For how long, I do not know. And when birds and some other roaming animals have been circumscribed for a while, they get accustomed to their new status as lawful captives. Therefore, when you offer them freedom, they first balk, thinking it’s too good to be true. It’s a natural phenomenon.
“President Buhari opened the cage that held the pigeons, about a score or so. One hesitated, then flew, followed by another. The others temporized a bit. And then, two, three minutes later, they all took to the sky. Nothing extraordinary in the development, you would think.”
Adesina said Nigerians are quick to find faults in Buhari’s actions, and that “detractors” always put a negative twist to everything the president does.
“But not to the idle and indolent, most of who populate the social media. It was time to major in something minor, cavil, find fault unnecessarily. The pigeons didn’t fly, they refused to fly, it’s ominous, they wailed like wailing wailers,” he said.
“And you began to wonder: are people this idle? Don’t they have productive things to do with their times? Are their minds so addled, and all they want to do is find faults against their President, ascribing spiritual connotations to a non-issue?
“For their information: Muhammadu Buhari has no time for such frivolities. He just continues to serve the country with his heart and mind, trying to make a difference in security, economy, and anti-corruption. And he will get there, by the grace of God. But if they don’t change, the wailers will be losers, standing small.”
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