Can I sell my grandfather’s clock? No, sell that house

BY DAVIDSON OBABUEKI

So thinking outside the box has made many a Nigerian politician stir crazy. Wow! It is really interesting to know some do not think outside the box before and we have same thing in and out the year. The log covering their eyes is seemingly beginning to fall off like scales. I even think they have come to develop insomnia that they would not even bat their eyelids for sleep it would not come because ‘I need to think outside the box’. What a tall order!!!

Out of frustration Mr. President told his cabinet members to go think outside the box. In fact, I must say, Mr. President, this is not fair, to have subjected mummies and daddies, your very ministers, to do what is ordinarily atypical of a Nigerian politician, to go think outside the box; very unusual of a Nigerian politician. Now that they are no longer in the box, as we all know inside the box has brought more advanced looting and mature methods of stoking their stomach with infrastructural rubbish, they are now outside the box to do white magic. I do hope the thinking outside the box thing bodes no ill for Nigerians.

First, they said they will throw away certain billions of naira into the economy so it gets reflated. Throwing away in our modern politics has become an accustomed style for politicians if it be ‘small billions’ so they say its easily thrown away, ‘big billions’ on the other hand will be properly pumped as subventions into the economy. Such stylishness of words!

Now, thinking outside the box has brought politicians to a level that the sale of the nation’s vital assets is best option. Solomons are being made out of Grundy Mr. President and their display of unparalleled wisdom is really offsetting the well-known unfortunate predestined fate of Grundy. I hope the outcome of the wisdom does not affect the common Nigerians like me I am not willing and wishing to experience that wisdom

They contemplate selling some vital national assets. As I have heard the sale of some of the oil installations is their target, one would have expected a total departure from the norm. I thought that was what thinking outside the box entails? Your ability to deviate totally from the status quo ante and brainstorm on possible and new ways of improving the economy. In my mind’s eye, thinking outside the box will not include the sale (or encouragement of it) of the nation’s ancient but lucrative artifacts. It will not mean selling those things that belong to the nation, but those ones that are more personally private.

My grandfather’s clock is still sitting tall on my shelf. It cannot be sold however expensive or less it may cost just in a bid to ameliorate a bad situation of my life or even that of my generation because its purpose is sacred in its own. It is to be passed on to my next generation as a symbolic representation of our ancestry. It is indeed a public property as far as my family is concerned. I will prefer to sell my house being my personal chattel to save the bell, to rescue an imminent problem. It will go a long way in telling on me and even making me stronger and to work more even by the skin of my teeth.

Our politicians are faced with the most difficult of tasks to handle as I presume it to be. They really cannot borrow or take a leaf from themselves the previous ‘wisdom’ exhibited in massive looting during their ‘inside the box thinking’ and adopt same as ‘out of the box thinking’ measures. The measures should come if they are even to think such far in the form of a downward review of their salaries and allowances. It will make much sense if they can bring to bear the knowledge used in acquiring the official spoils by reviewing those spoils (excessive salaries and allowances) downwards. It is their very ‘personal acclaimed property’, and I see no reason why it cannot be sold and the proceeds used in rescuing the economy than selling our grandfather’s clock.

Nigeria is known to have a national airways just like you have the British Airways so is there the Nigerian Airways. It has obviously become our grandfather’s clock and as such should not be sold. The Queen of England is known to fly passenger airways and here in Nigeria Mr. President boasts of about ten (10) aircraft and he jollies in it, yet it has not dawn on the acclaimed special thinkers to consider OLX-ing the crafts rather the purported sale of oil installations that have being sustaining Nigerians even the economy down to the oil looters can attest to it, they think fit to sell. The out thinkers will obviously not extend their tentacles towards Mr. President’s fleets of aircraft. Why will they dare, do you want Mr. President to declare them corrupt and freeze them all with the EFFC? It is very unfortunate Mr. President had to press the red button alert on persons that took him over six months to appoint, now a show of sheer balloon knowledge.

I am not really surprised at the learning curve of the said out of the box thinkers of politicians as we are not far from expecting same results. It is like telling a young man to lie with an old woman so as to have new babies. It will only take a miracle to happen, so is the case of the politicians. They have really being inclined to thinking inside the box with gross looting at its maximum output.

Mr. President, you went too far by instructing your ministers to do the impossible; to force blood out of stone. Now we are pulling a tightrope.

The LEGAL WATCHMEN advocates that if there is anything to go by, even as deliberations on what and what to sell continues, it is to be the presidential jets and a downward review of the salaries and allowances of both the executives and legislature; that is  the house I said you should sell.

God Bless Nigeria!