He canvassed extensively for the candidacy of General Buhari in 2015 to the extent that it looked as if the man Buhari was the saint and Messiah Nigeria had waited for too long. At a time like this we need his Prof. David West’s input and reasoned critique on the happenings in the economy and politics of our dear land. I am personally not comfortable with this “golden” silence. We need to know what he thinks and converses for now. On what integrity grounds should 500 clerics engage in National prayer and fasting for just one presidential candidate to win 2019 Election? See New Telegraph Newspaper Headline 1st Nov. 2018. I still don’t comprehend how and what transpired before, during and after such exercise.
Have Nigerian clerics- Christian and Muslim become partisan politicians? Why should they in their blindness consider it gemaine to pray and fast for one specific Presidential candidate to win? Are other candidates not relevant and capable of winning in 2019. What if God rejects such myopic discriminatory prayer in 2019 election? Would they burn their Holy Books as some threatened in 2015? I am still tempted to confront such clerics who had a bunch of prayer contracting jobs in 2015. Their candidate did not win Let us not make a mockery of our divined call or promise more than our master Jesus Christ.
Josef Stalin was not however the first or last of his kind of tyranny. The provinces of totalitarian leaders promise on everything and demands on everything have been on the increase perpetually. Such tyrants normally engage in brutal disposing of anyone who opposes them. In the area of our crude or developing political games assassination, kidnapping and destruction of economic or any other investment of their political opponents just to teach such some serious lessons that even themselves have not learnt. As they do these to their opponents they directly or indirectly sow seeds that would locate them later in life in one way or the other. “Whatever seed we sow against others, we shall also reap it while we live and this could equally affect our next generations. (Galatians 6:7)
The poor, the weak, irrelevant, the forgotten, cheated, marginalized today can spring powerful surprise tomorrow. Let us be careful on the type of wicked and corrupt seeds we sow today. Power is transient. If you live for political, economic or religious power today, don’t forget that the same power at a point can decide to leave you and this is bound to be disastrous.
Adolph Hitler, (Germany), Josef Stalin (Russia), Idi Amin (Uganda) Sani Abacha (Nigeria); Chairman Mao-(china), Ayotollah Khomeini, Saddam Hussein etc King Ahab and Queen Jezebel, Nebuchaddnezzer, Herod the great (in wickedness) —etc are glaring examples of tyrants who ended their lives miserably and disastrously. History is busy teaching us serious lessons but because we have refused to learn, history then is repeating itself.
CRUEL EMPIRES AND KINGS – PROPHET
Daniel had a vision that was predicted on some tyrants. History recorded the emergence of one terrible empire being overpowered by another empire and king. Life and living on Earth are powerful experiences. Is history still teaching us? Any cogent lessons? Are we willing learning? Are we learning anything?
Each King and empire became stronger but more tyrannical and bestial than the past. (see Daniel 8:23-25; 11:21-45) under a single cruel king. Remarkably tyrants are indeed cowards who cover their cowardice and incompetence by being bestial and tyrannical. They are mostly covenant breakers. They easily bite and chop off the fingers that fed them at a very critical stage of their lives. Their hearts are often seared with hot iron. Such are bound to suffer retributive justice somehow and somewhere study the career of traitors.
Nebuchaddnezzer became very arrogant and disregarded God’s warning. Hence God sent him into the forest to fraternize and study with wild animals. Nebuchaddnezzer spent miserable solid seven years. He lost his human – kingly senses and was demoted to the level of a wild animal. It took only God Almighty to restore him back to relevance dignity and divine glory.
His testimonies and praises to God and recognition of the prophetic unction of Prophet Daniel and his key Jewish friends revealed that God rules supremely even in the affairs of men on Earth. God can still do something more deadly than that of Nebuchaddnezzer in our era if rulers and leaders continue to provoke him repeatedly. Life has taught us that a dying dog hardly perceives offensive ordour.
Antiochus IV of Syria was a typical example. He was somehow an obscure tyrant that ruled for one and a half century before the picture or description of the birth of Christ. Antiochus IV was indeed the worst enemy of the Jews in history prior to the emergence of Hitler. Antiochus IV could not succeed totally against his archenemy – Egypt. Hence Antiochus IV transferred his frustration and aggression to the very little Jerusalem. He had an intention to make Jerusalem a Greek city rather than a Jewish, capital. He did that by uprooting the revered Jewish religion.
He also sold the sacred post of the High Priest to an opportunist and transformed the temple into an altar for the Greek god, Zeus. Expectedly, that disrespect and desecration ignited one of the world history’s earliest guerrilla wars, the Maccabean Revolt which began in 168BC. Antiochus IV was able to conquer Jerusalem twice and slaughtered thousands of the Jews. Hence the outlawed Judaism and declared himself as God incarnate.
YRANY AND TYRANTS HAVE ENDS:
Irrespective of the tremendous power of the tyrant and terrorist Antiochus IV, became a raving insane man and he died a miserable and unceremonious death. What a tragedy! His spot on history easily disappeared.
It was a strong irony that the religion (Judaism) he determined to destroy has remained till date and with Christianity its offshoot, gathering adequate momentum around the whole world. That’s a great lesson derivable from the book of Daniel. Dangerous, incompetent, wicked terrible rulers and leaders are bound to rise up one after the other, but they will definitely someday, somehow and somewhere disappear one after the other in quick succession . It is not out of place to expect political terrorism but above all we must look up to God and depend on God absolutely because the arms of flesh will disappoint us as in the past.
ANTI CHRIST: In the New Testament there is a suggestion of Antiochus’s brutal deadly pattern that will appear and culminate someday in the Anti Christ, an arrogant leader (Political or Religious) who would dominate the world and terribly persecute God’s people as never before. Many scholars do believe that Daniel’s last vision referred to this particular character. However despite the Anti Christ’s power, he too will experience abysmal failure at the end. God’s sovereignty, justice will rule over the planet earth.
Whoever that believes in this encounter and outcome would have reason to be as brave as prophet Daniel.
To what extent does Daniel’s view affect your perspective on universal politics? Are most of our world leaders not getting agitatedly confusing now than before? Can they escape the dooms and do they possess the divine wisdom to show others the way not eluded of lasting peace? In an effort to make peace they create more openings for pockets of wars etc. According to United Nations Organization (UNO)- requirement =
It is one policeman to 400 people. Nigeria is very far behind this international standard of Policing. Many of our serving policemen are engaged in activities that are private in Nature. The political arm of the Roman Catholic Church stated that over 2000 Roman Catholic Churches, Missionary buildings and institutions, have been destroyed by Boko Haram insurgents in the North East. How many Mosques have been treated in that respect? The National Director, Pontifical Mission Society of Nigeria, Rev. Fr. George Segun Ajama stated this in Abuja at a press conference in commemoration of the world mission Sunday (Sunday Sun Page 39 (21/10/18) which holds annually on the last Sunday of every October to raise funds to improve the welfare of those who have given themselves to the service of God and to procure social amenities for the society at large.
In what ways should a Christian view the human or man-made “powers that be”? can you give a vivid description and explanation on how the “Mighty Are Failing” steadily? Does it not baffle you on how most of our leaders speak wisely and powerfully but live foolishly at home and at the corridors of power? What type of restructuring do we need to move Nigeria forward?
Sound Fiscal Federalism with genuine resources control? Election fear has come with the dose of most politicians speaking before thinking in their various promises? Are we ready to vote wisely and take our votes wisely if we get short changed or raped with impunity. Where is the conscience of our Nation, leaders and we the followers? May our voice of wisdom speak with finality this time. Let’s get it right this time irrespective of the political, tribal, religious and economic biases.
Does a Tyrant have the right to arrest, detain, restrain people/citizens before commencing investigation….. can this be different from Dictatorship?
Tyranny and dictatorship are twin brothers that are obviously in operation- when court orders are recklessly disobeyed or when in utter ignorance, stubbornness, leaders prefer National Interest (far above) to the rule of Law which is the origin and foundation of Democracy in any clime globally. It is tyrannical to still detain those citizens that the courts have ordered that they should be released from prison or detention.
When citizens rights-human and fundamental rights are flagrantly denied in the areas of expression, belief in your God, association with who and what you choose to associate with or the right to freedom of movement and expression. Justice and or impunity are examples of tyrannical behaviors by some leaders in history and they paid dearly for it.
