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In the theater of Nigerian politics, we have witnessed many "absurdist" moments, but the recent 10-minute stopover in Plateau State by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has set a new benchmark for cognitive dissonance. When the leader of a nation—the man who holds the mandate to "provide light"—openly complains about the darkness to the bereaved, it is no longer just a logistical issue. It is a profound failure of accountability.
1. The Irony of the "No Light" Disclaimer
According to a viral report from a Northern Islamic cleric, the President’s reason for rushing his condolence visit to Jos was blunt: “There is no electricity. I’m not going to spend more than 10 minutes. I am flying back to Lagos.” At INFORMATION HUB, we must analyze the optics of this statement. The President is the head of the Executive branch, the ultimate authority over the Ministry of Power and the nation's infrastructure. To complain that "there is no light" is to admit a personal and administrative failure. It is akin to a pilot complaining to passengers that the plane is too high, or a chef complaining to a hungry crowd that the kitchen is hot.
2. A Disaster for Me, but Not for Thee
The Cleric’s critique hit the "Pivot Point" of the issue: the President viewed the lack of electricity at the Yakubu Gowon Airport as a "disaster" for his personal schedule and comfort. Yet, for the ordinary Nigerian, the lack of electricity is a permanent, grueling reality that affects hospitals, small businesses, and safety.
By stating he would not stay because of the darkness, the President essentially admitted that the conditions he expects 200 million Nigerians to live in are "unbearable" for him for even sixty minutes.
3. The Geography of the Elite
The decision to meet victims inside an airport hall rather than in their community—and to then cite the airport's lack of night-operation capability—reveals a leadership that is physically and emotionally "detached." If the airport has no light to operate at night, whose job is it to ensure it does?
4. The "Easter in Lagos" Priority
To pair the "no light" complaint with a rush to "fly back to Lagos for Easter" while bodies are being buried in Plateau is a staggering display of misplaced priorities. Leadership is defined by presence in times of crisis. A 10-minute visit at a transit hub is not a condolence; it is a drive-thru.
The Final Audit: The Shamelessness of Power
True leadership requires a sense of "Holy Shame"—the feeling that if the people are in darkness, the leader should not be comfortable in the light. When a President can complain about the darkness without feeling the weight of his own failure to provide it, the "Social Contract" is effectively broken.
The North is watching. The victims are watching. And the history books will record that in the hour of Plateau's greatest darkness, the leader of the nation complained that he couldn't see, and then he flew away.
