REJOINDER: A Word For Professor Yemi Osinbajo By Femi Fani-Kayode

BY ‘LAKUNLE JAIYESIMI

The reputation (better, ill-reputation) of that man, Femi Fani-Kayode is public knowledge. He’s wont to gibbering and one wonders at the rationale behind his efforts at continual incoherence or ideological dismemberment (to be lenient with choice of description). Any reader (deliberate or accidental, as this writer is) of his written pieces (lacking ‘head or teal’) will notice the previous description with ease.



His piece, “A Word for Professor Yemi Osinbajo” should enjoy some befitting (or otherwise) attention. The methodology employed in this rejoinder requires direct responses to particular statements made by Mr. (I meant Chief) Femi Fani-Kayode (apologies, I guess he’s a Pastor since he mentioned God and God-related terms throughout the piece more times than an average Pastor would on a typical Sunday morning. My fear is, if he’s a Pastor, he must be one of the false ones).

He starts out, “I am glad that the APC eventually took my advice and saw the wisdom in not fielding a muslim/muslim ticket for the 2015 Presidential election.…” Pastor Femi must have an over-bloated sense of self to have imagined that it was his advice that APC heeded not to have fielded a muslim/muslim ticket. Maybe, someone needs to inform him that even the people he supports usually become expectedly uncomfortable as they read some of his gibes. He continues that previous statement “…even though I hear that, right up till the last minute, they almost did.” This last statement makes it obvious that APC carried on their activities, almost fielding a muslim/muslim ticket, in spite of Pastor Femi’s advice, but our self-glorified Pastor would pride himself in being the town-crier, the conscience of the land. I laugh.

“I congratulate my friend and brother Professor Yemi Osinbajo on his nomination as the Vice Presidential candidate of the APC and running mate to General Muhammadu Buhari.” This is subtle condescension and it is a smart thing to do by our Pastor. He’s a genius at courting the attention of power-brokers and here, he’s at it again. Whichever way the election goes, he’ll never lose out in the political calculation (I hope he’s right this time).

He won’t stop there, “I have known Yemi for a number of years and I must say that he is not only a very pleasant and civilised person with a warm and gentle disposition but he is also a cerebal lawyer with a brilliant mind. I have immense respect for him.” That’s the beginning of his accustomed partisan sycophancy.

“Yet sadly ever since I heard about his nomination and announcement as Buhari's running mate I have felt nothing but sheer pity for him and a deep sense of pathos. My counsel and words for him are as follows:

“Woe unto the children of light that secretly delight in darkness and that seek to thwart the counsel of God for their nation by joining hands with the sons of Boko and the daughters of Haram.” Several pastors, especially the false ones (methinks; less I be accused of how I arrived at the identities of false pastors myself), would use the name of God to impose their opinions on unsuspecting persons rather than expend time and plenty words attempting to convince the latter. They have discovered that it’s easier to convince many with the name of God, hence found it handy. My fear is, in this case, who is Mr. Femi trying to convince? Prof. Osinbajo or the electorates?

“”The bible says ''what fellowship is there between light and darkness?'' It says ''what does God have to do with Belial?'' It says ''what profiteth a man to gain the world and lose his soul?’”” Hmmmmm. Interesting. How foolish any writer would think his readers are to believe they will accept this submission as a conclusive evidence in categorizing great, steadfast leaders differently from corrupt, corruptible, clueless ones! Who constitutes the light and who, the darkness? Who constitute God and Belial in Mr. Femi’s analysis? By gaining the whole world and losing his own soul, I hope this man isn’t referring to Prof. Osinbajo; if he is, one person (emi), at least, needs an explanation.

In disparaging the APC’s choice of Buhari/Osinbajo, Femi continues in his attempt at creating a dichotomy between the church (actually, RCCG), being educated on the one hand and being a Northern muslim on the other, “’A respected Pastor of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, a devout and committed Christian and an intellectually-sound, well-bred and well educated Professor of Law accepts to be running mate to a closet fundamentalist, a bloodthirsty, cruel and murderous military dictator and a die-hard believer in the philosophy of ''born to rule''? This is serious.”’

“A gifted servant of God who is a favored spiritual son of Rev. Enoch Adeboye, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church Of God has jumped into bed with one of the most notorious troublers of the faith and one of the most consistent enemies of democracy and Nigeria? This is very sad”. How so, sir?

Femi pointed out how tragic (for him and without providing a rationale) it is that Prof. Osinbajo has let down Rev. Enoch Adeboye and even the “Kingdom of God” by “choosing to play ''man Friday'' and second fiddle to an individual that represents everything that is troubling, unsettling and repugnant to the modern world and to the 21st century”. A few children should be saddled with the responsibility of flogging a straying aging man here. Does this man even know what the Kingdom of God is? In what ways has Prof. Osinbajo let down the patriarch of RCCG? And even if he does, how has that destroyed Nigeria? Mr. Femi, who I’m certain, will appreciate the tag of an elder statesman (if not nationsman or internationsman) needs to be informed (if he pretends not to be aware) that the fate of the nation, methinks, cannot get worse than it is already; so, it is his current boss that needs his advice the more.

“A learned Professor of Law and a senior member of the Nigerian bar who is the leading authority on the law of evidence and who has written numerous books on that topic chooses to play number two to a man that failed all his exams at military college and that never went to a decent school or to any university? Jumping Jehoshaphat.” Here, it becomes apparent how Femi thinks. He was born with diamond spoon in his mouth and in a bid to keep that spoon in his mouth, has successfully been prostituting with all manners of government. Why would he not think a University education is second to none? If not that the world is fully aware of Femi’s chameleonic nature, one could have been fooled to believe that he would be of the same opinion if Buhari were Bill Gates or other successful (money-bags, that is) school dropouts. If that was the case, FFK, by now, would have become the errand boy for the Bill Gates/Osinbajo ticket. However, he makes this disjointed noise because in spite of being poor, Buhari himself had confessed not to have money to bribe anyone. Guess Mr. Femi may need to provide the name of a completely uneducated person, who’ll fit the number two man to Buhari.

You’ll find such baseless conclusions (like saliva-soaked sheets of paper. Is this man drooling while writing?) littered along the paths taken by our Pastor (pastor, I mean), “Is there anything that these creatures from hell will not do?” Have you been to hell before to be able to identify the people from there? “Is there anyone that they will not use…” Sir, do you wish to be used by the APC at a price? He continues, “…and is there any norm that they will not defile, pervert, debase, violate and corrupt…” This is a senseless and unnecessary use of synonyms; your words stink of desperation towards an end employing a means that even babies will not contemplate; conclusively, he states, “…in their ignoble quest for power and as a consequence of their insatiable lusts and manifest greed?”, please, look in the mirror and read out your own words.

Some have said, and I have hitherto brushed aside their claims, that FFK is confused and mentally disturbed. It will however be difficult to prove them wrong with such statements as, “It is no wonder that the Redeemed Christian Church of God has disassociated itself from a false claim that the Church and, by implication, Rev. Adegboye…” Rev.?? Adegboye?? What was he thinking? Did he have Rhema Chapel International Churches in mind as he wrote, or was he absentminded at the time or he was actually confused? Whatever was wrong with him, how does he expect anyone to take him seriously? The gaff continues “…himself, was supporting the Buhari/Osibajo ticket (The name of the APC vice-presidential candidate is Osinbajo, sir). Thankfully they have come out to say clearly and categorically that this is not so. One can always trust Adegboye (again? It could not have been a mistake) to do and say the right thing because he is a man that is truly ''after God's heart''.

Struggling to be a prophet (no more a pastor this time), he has this to say, “Yet the denial of an endorsement and tacit support from his Church is just the first of many shockers and unwelcome surprises that Yemi will be served with in the next few weeks. He will get shock after shock and surprise after surprise until the battle is over and circumstances compel him to go back to his very lucrative legal practice.”

Mr. Femi credited some words to Pastor Bosun Emmanuel, ''woe be unto any believer who joins hands with the enemies of God in an attempt to bury the Church and destroy the gospel''. Very correct. A billion woes to such a believer, be it FFK or GEJ or any other, who watches while many churches and creatures of God are being destroyed by Boko Haram, hunger, accidents, murder, assassinations and a whole lot. Some of these same people sponsored the conviction of soldiers (death penalty), who have risked their lives in the service of their motherland. I repeat the words of Pastor Bosun Emmanuel, ''woe be unto any believer who joins hands with the enemies of God in an attempt to bury the Church and destroy the gospel''.

“Boko Haram abducted 185 women in Borno state on December 18th and they killed no less than 52 innocent people. Despite that some people are still supporting Buhari and his army of desperate Haramites? What a people, what a country.” What is the relationship between Boko Haram and Buhari; that their names start with a capital B? Have you attempted to even mention the name of the number one man, who offered himself to secure the country and some voted, while others got votes for him, somehow and who have failed in carrying out that mandate? Mr. FFK, keep mute and continue to collect the dollars of the man who appointed you and helped squash your court cases. It’s no use trying to justify your pay by talking. There are others doing the job including Mr. Abati and the man that said Nigerians should call him a bastard if APC lasts a year after the merger, Okupe.

Mr. FFK arrogates to himself the power of God’s spokesman and concludes, “We shall meet him in the field: let God's will be done.” Even if many of us do not know the perfect will of God, we are sure whatever is happening and will continue to happen with tenure elongation isn’t the will of God. No, it can’t be.