We are not going to dwell so much on the story of the monkey because we all know that it is an intelligent animal that both lives in the forests, survives on fruits and meats and as pets at homes. A video on a monkey during the week actually caught my attention and I started ruminating on the similarities between monkey and mankind.
In my view, the monkey on the video is a greedy one, self-centred and wasteful. That quickly reminds me of the unquenchable avarice also associated with humans around the world.
My findings across the world show social inequalities, lack of good governance, all manners of human deprivations just like the monkey in the video even when other monkeys are around him. It coveted all the food from the caretaker, ate a little, wasted most and denied its peers from benefiting from the largesse.
After watching the show, I need nobody to tell me the real meanings of greed, denial, selfishness and permanent desire to covet what should rightly go round for the public good by a particular person or certain group of people. That is the monkey in us, all of us.
In the slavery era, the European came to Africa, forcefully took our able bodied men to the new world to build their plantations for their prosperity. These Africans were dehumanized and treated like lesser mortals by the whites. But what actually triggered the actions of the European were actually greed and unquenchable gluttony as expressed in the monkey in humans videos. Till date, the genesis of wars across the world, if properly investigated, can’t be far away from greed.
The situation is worse in the continent of Africa where the monkey instinct spreads across all the strata. It is inherent in our so-called leaders or looters. It is there in the corporate world, government agencies, homes, churches and the larger society. The monkey tendency is in all of us. The tendency to grab, grab and waste. The greed to acquire the whole world to ourselves, utterly oblivious of the fact that such is vanity upon vanity, apology to the Juju maestro, Commander Ebenezar Obey Fabiyi. The monkey in humans cuts across human race and sex. Black or White . We are all caught in the web.
The most advanced countries and third world are not spared. Everyone is in this game of monkey in humans. Even going into the spiritual world, there are characters in the Bible that personified monkey in humans.
This explains why in Africa those leaders who gained independence over 60 years ago want to remain in office in a bid to continue to acquire even what their generations do not need. Some of them have gone senile and bereft of modern ideas on how to run a country, yet they won’t throw in the towel.
In Nigeria, the story is not different. The monkey in humans is properly applied here.
The greed in some politicians urges them to want to have everything for themselves, even when they don’t need them, but just to deny others.
Take note that my story is not targeted at anyone. I write on social issues to correct certain anomalies in our society and not intended to scare anyone.
My friends and brothers, please you shouldn’t misinterpret my writings and if you are affected by my articles, please, better change your ways in the interest of public good.
.It’s unimaginable that some people get to public office and don’t pick calls from their constituents anymore, until another four years, when they can throw crumbs at them but have forgotten that despite the avarice nature of the monkey, it’s a known fact that monkey is an intelligent animal
Nigerian electorates are not looking for crumbs any more, they know what good governance means. They know the importance of good roads, health centers, schools, bridges, and other social infrastructure.
Let me also use this opportunity to thank our representative for Irele and Okitipupa constituency, Prince Jimmy Odimayo for being able to table the problems of his constituents before the House of Representatives on Wednesday at the plenary.
This is what representative democracy is all about. In any representative democracy, the yearnings and aspiration of your constituent members is what you communicate to the general house and not your personal agenda. This will enable the entire representatives to feel the pains of our people back home for their quick intervention.
A situation where you won an election and disconnected from your constituents until another four years can’t be seen as true representative democracy.
The monkey in humans is also in the Judiciary, Executive and Legislature. They want to remain in office forever when it’s apparent that they have nothing new to offer. They can’t live outside public treasures. Everything they eat, wear, including domestic animals they rear are all at the expense of the public treasures. And Nigeria keeps borrowing to support this wastage like the monkeys.
At this juncture, let me pause a bit and celebrate another distinguished personality, a former governor of Ogun State, from Omu-Ijebu ,Shagamu. He is Otunba Gbenga Daniel.
As said in some of my articles, not all Senators or honorable members or executive should be addressed as excellencies or honorables because their actions and inactions have caused public pains. They represent the monkey in humans.
Our distinguished Senator Otunba Gbenga Daniel recently justified his status as a distinguished when he decided to show himself to the public as a man of honour by writing a letter to Prince Dapo Abiodun, the governor of Ogun State to stop his monthly stipends since he will now be drawing salaries from the Federal Government . He went further to say that if we can’t produce something in Nigeria, we shouldn’t consume it and also spoke that the opulence lifestyles of public office holders should be drastically reduced to reflect our true reality. In other words, sacrifices must start from the Presidency, Judiciary, Legislature and corporations, Agencies and parastatals of governments.
According to him, if we are able to address this problem, we should have addressed the monkey in us as a people.
I know we have a lot of people in the Judiciary, Executive and Legislature who have been drawing salaries from different accounts of government behaving like monkeys.
It’s therefore in the interest of these people to toe the path of honor as exemplified by Daniel. Let’s end the monkey in humans in our society.
This is clearly a show of monkey in humans in us as a people. If we want good governance, we must detoxify ourselves of avarice, greed, social deprivations and all manners of inhumanity in our society. Those who derive joy in using public institutions to oppress and infringe on the rights of the citizens are the monkey in humans.
Those who use their positions in the public to sabotage public policies so as to continue to maintainthe status quo are the monkey in humans. Those who see injustice and imbalances in our society and refuse to correct this are the monkesy in humans in our society.
Those who aid and abet illegality in our public space, including promoting brigandage and destruction of public institutions and keet quiet are the monkeys in humans in our society. Those who collect money monthly from different accounts of governments and are not willing to own up like Otunba Gbenga Daniel are the monkey in humans in our midst.
Those who started agitation over marginalization against a government that is barely 45 days in office but endured lopsidedness in our polity for decades, represent the monkey in humans.
.Otunba Sola Olatunji, Chairman, Ikale heritage Association, IHDA, writes from Lagos.
