Femi Adesina, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity says Nigeria needs a leader with an iron fist like his principal, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.).
The presidential aide also said Buhari won’t allow criminals and insurrectionists from any part of the country to destroy Nigeria.
Adesina stated this in a piece on Friday titled, ‘I Suddenly Remembered Why I Fell In Love With The President’.
“The man we fell in love with is of iron and steel, one ready and willing to knock sense into contumacious heads, whipping everyone into line. And being kind to us in the process. A kind bully, if you like the oxymoron,” he described Buhari.
The President, on Tuesday, condemned the attacks on police stations, prisons and offices of the Independent National Electoral Commission, especially in the South-East, warning those supporting insurrection and violence in the country.
Buhari had said and tweeted that some of those misbehaving today are too young to be aware of the destruction and loss of lives that happened during the Civil War, adding that they will be treated in the language they understand.
The President’s tweet riled some persons who felt he was insensitive to have made an analogy of the civil war. His critics subsequently reported the tweet to Twitter and the microblogging site later deleted the post with a comment, “This Tweet violated the Twitter Rules”.
Adesina in his piece on Friday said the President cannot allow anarchy to overtake the land.
He said, “What our country needs at this time is iron and steel. An alchemy of GMB (General Muhammadu Buhari) and PMB (President Muhammadu Buhari).
“We are in a democracy, yes, but democracy is no byword for lawlessness. If anybody misbehaves in any part, repeat, any part, of the country, they need to be whipped into line.
“The nation needs not go into a tailspin because some people bear giant-sized grudges in their hearts. By the way, is there any part of the country that does not have one grievance or the other? Is the next option then to capsize the boat of the country? Any leader that has sworn to uphold the Constitution would not open his eyes, and see it happen.
“Leaders must do whatever they should do to maintain peace and tranquillity in their countries. Their intentions will always be misinterpreted and misrepresented. No matter. The good of the larger majority must be considered at all times. North, South, East, West, anarchy should never be condoned, no matter what some people may say.”
“President Buhari is not genocidal, and can’t ever be accused of such intentions. But a leader worth his salt cannot look on, and watch law and order break down irretrievably. It is not about a people, or region. It is about the country he took an oath to keep together,” Adesina stated.