A political and cultural analysis of Nigeria

A guest post by Leke Adebayo

“It is high time for me to put an end to your sitting in this place which you have dishonoured by your contempt for all virtue and defiled by your practice of every vice. You are a fractious crew and enemies to all good government.  Is there a man among you that has the least care for the good of the nation? You that were deputed here by the people to get grievances redressed have yourselves become the greatest grievance. Your country therefore calls upon me to cleanse this unclean stable. I command you, therefore, if you value your lives, depart immediately from this place. Get out. Make haste. Take all your shiny shiny stuff with you. In the name of God, go!”

Colonel Gnabio Amaguna, in a speech to the Guinean parliament just before his coup d’etat in 1979.

If you have never heard of this man, there’s no need to worry. I hadn’t heard of him too until a day ago. That’s because he doesn’t exist. I made the name up. These are the paraphrased words of Oliver Cromwell in 1653 to the English Rump Parliament just before he dismissed them.

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