The Urban Dictionary defines it as "The act of criticizing or fighting injustices in distant lands, yet ignoring injustices in one's own nation or local community."
I have observed a very consistent and well coordinated practice of Afghanistanism on the social media by media aides and propaganda machinery of the current rigging-induced government in Akwa Ibom State. For some times now, the Media Directorate of the State Government (including those working officially for the Speaker of the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly) and the State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have taken it upon themselves to attack, denigrate, castigate and malign President Muhammadu Buhari and his administration.
Get this straight, I have no problem with any citizen of Nigeria irrespective of political persuasion, criticizing the president and his administration. It is an integral part of democracy. Everybody cannot support the president, I have been criticised the president myself when occasions demanded.
But when I think of where we coming from, when I ruminate on our recent dark past as a nation, I cannot but support the president. The imperfections of Buhari has not obliterated my hope for a glorious future for Nigeria with him as the president. He is certainly on course.
What I cannot fathom is why these mushroom aides whose existence is contingent on their ability to satisfy the insatiable desires of their paymasters will totally abdicate from the grave challenges of governance confronting Akwa Ibom State, and rather dissipate their energies on the federal government. What do they stand to gain by calling Buhari unprintable names?
By the principle of vicarious liability, Mr Udom Emmanuel and Hon. Onofiok Luke are responsible for the actions and utterances of their agents cum aides.
A situation where a so-called Chief Press Secretary to the Speaker of the House of Assembly keeps ridiculing the president of Nigeria in the most offensive and unthinkable manner is unfortunate. How does Buhari's phonetic affect his leadership capability? Why mock the president's way of speaking? Majority of Nigerians love him that way, otherwise he wouldn't be the president today.
Not long ago, I received barrage of criticisms, sponsored insults and attacks from the Speaker and his aides when I took him on weeks ago over his reckless and provocative utterances. I was rudely vilified for daring to "attack" or criticise the so-called "peoples speaker".
Currently, the same people who usually accuse me of insolence and being disrespectful to their tiny gods because of my bluntness are calling Buhari unprintable names everyday. These people are not only mischievous but hypocritical.
Their intention is deducible. It is to distract and divert the attention of the people from the criminality and failure of governance in Akwa Ibom State. They want to influence public discourse to concentrate on the federal government while the feast of shame and brigandage in the State continues unabated. But if this is all that they are paid to should, what is wrong in them exuding modicum of decency in their approch?
This Afghanistanism will not help them.
The Nigerian Labour Union in Akwa Ibom is preparing for an industrial action. The State Government is incuring more debts, people are suffering. The House of Assembly seems merged with the Executive. The Speaker's preoccupation now is to loiter about the streets of Akwa Ibom looking for who is dedicating a new toilet facility for him to attend and show his so-called "closeness" to the people.
Beyond this, the attacks shows a deep-seated hatred and contempt that the current government in Akwa Ibom State have for President Buhari and his administration.
One would have expected that after the controversial Supreme Court judgment that they will exude sobriety; talk and act out of introspection. Instead, what we see daily is that these media aides have maintained their attacks on President Buhari and the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the State, Obong Umana Okon Umana.
They seem not satisfied that they obtained a judgment which has continued to induce global and national outrage. What else does Udom Emmanuel want? Those who live in glass house should not throw stones. That some of us have been relatively reticent on the sordid and anti-people actions of the present un-elected government in Akwa Ibom State does not mean that our voices have been caged.
Udom Emmanuel and Onofiok Luke should immediately call their attack dogs to order. They can criticise the president, but there should be decency. Calling Buhari an illiterate and other insulting names should not be the preoccupation of official media aides of a State government.
Rather than engage in this course of action, these media aides should be telling Akwa Ibom people the achievements of their paymasters, if any.
I remain Inibehe Effiong.
Always visit - http://www.alamathias.com
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