Who’s Shocked That Buhari Says Cows Are Easily Led Than Nigerians? -By Isaac Asabor

There is no denying the fact that not a few Nigerians have taken to social media to express their aversion and angst to a somewhat derogatory comment credited to former President Muhammadu Buhari saying cows and sheep are much easier to control than fellow Nigerians.

As gathered from NAN’s report, former president Buhari was quoted to have said, “I am looking forward to tomorrow to fly to my base and go back to my cows and sheep, which are much easier to control than fellow Nigerians.” As gathered, he spoke at a dinner held on Sunday, in Abuja ahead of the swearing-in ceremony of the then-incoming president, now President Bola Tinubu, on Monday, May 29.

Going by his words as excerpted in the foregoing, the former president has in the comment insinuated that it is easier to lead cows and sheep than leading Nigerians among whom he made his special advisers and ministers.

Expectedly, not a few social media buffs and other Nigerians at diverse gathering points have started sharing divergent views following the comment which not a few of his critics have considered to be an insulting parting gift.

Given the foregoing, who is shocked that the former president says cows are more easily led than Nigerians?

In fact, to not a few Nigerians, the absence of mutual understanding between the former president and Nigerians unarguably buttressed reasons being taunted for his poor performance for the eight years he was in the saddle so much that he left Nigerians less secure, poorer, and more in debt than when he came to office in 2015. Despite the unprecedented failure he recorded in the political history of Nigeria’s presidency, he gave himself a pass mark on Thursday, in Abuja, when he said he has run a good race and finished his course as Nigeria’s leader for the past eight years. Therefore, he said, it is in order for him to pass the baton of service to another leader who will lead the country for the next four years. Against the backdrop of the foregoing, he was widely reported to have said, “I’ve run a good race, finished my course”.

Though not a few Nigerians may be shocked that Buhari insultingly compared them with cows, even denigrating them by saying that cows are more controllable than Nigerians. To me, it depends on the kind of control he meant. The reason for the foregoing is that cows can be misled while Nigerians cannot be misled as they are sensible, and they know the dynamics of the Nigerian constitution which invariably draws the line for anyone that wishes to control them by virtue of his political office.

At this juncture, it is sagacious to urge Nigerians that are shocked by his derogatory comment not to be shocked by his insult as Mr. Maxwell Adeleye, who spoke on behalf of eminent leaders of thought from the South and Middle Belt of Nigeria, under the aegis of the Nigerian Indigenous Nationalities Alliance for Self-Determination (NINAS) where he serves as the communication manager in 2021 in a statement said it all as he urged the United Nations to declare the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association (MACBAN) as a terrorist organization, alleging that the actions or inactions of Buhari have emboldened Fulani militia and worsened insecurity in the country, and further described him as a leader who values cows more than his people as he always talks about cattle, values Fulani cows more than human dignity.

In fact, I overheard a colleague saying he was shocked that the former president, in terms of being amenable to leadership, that he rated cows above men, Nigerians, whom he unarguably led and even worked with for a period of eight years. He wondered that the former president might have over the years been seeing members of his cabinet to be defiant and cowardly, particularly when compared to cows. In my view, I was not in any way shocked as I am not ignorant of the fact that the love for cows and herdsmen by the Buhari regime knows no bounds, particularly as the former President is a proud cattle farmer, who hails from the Fulani extraction who are principally pastoral farmers and cattle dealers.

Ostensibly buttressing the sentiment expressed by Adeleye, the Founder of Salvation Ministries, Pastor David Ibiyeomie, later in the same year lamented that a cow is more important than a human being in Nigeria. He said that this is how funny the Nigerian government (under President Muhammadu Buhari) is by allowing cows to have more value than human beings.

Ibiyeomie spoke at the second service of his church in Port Harcourt, Rivers State on a Sunday in December 2021.

“In Nigeria, a cow is more important than a human being that is how funny the Government of Nigeria is, where cows are of more value than human beings.

“I have not seen one Boko Haram man convicted not one, have you heard anyone convicted? So, who is behind it? You better answer it. That is the level of wickedness everywhere. Are you saying that they don’t know them? Why it is that one person has not been caught and convicted?

“We are privileged to hear things from the military men which I might not be able to say on the altar, but by the position of my calling I hear from the military, if you say you want to attack the Boko Harams, you may be the victim they want to attack, you know in the military you don’t talk else they will Court martial you, it is a very funny country,” he stated.

Ibiyeomie said only God could rescue Nigeria and in that time, Nigeria would be rescued, saying, “For the sake of the saints Nigeria will be rescued.

“But we told you before you voted, so whatever you see now you can endure it till whenever some of us are traveling far, so be careful wherever you’re going, Glory to God, that is why you need divine protection because even the Government of Nigeria can’t protect you as citizens, so you need divine protection,” he added.

Given the foregoing anecdotes, it is expedient to reiteratively ask, “Who’s shocked that Buhari says cows are more easily ked than Nigerians?