The sons of Shimmei.
BY Femi Adesina.
There is nothing new under the sun, goes a popular saying. In fact, the more things seem to change, the more they appear the same. From time immemorial, some people have spoken evil of leadership, cast aspersions on them, and generally portrayed themselves as the scum of the earth. No matter how a country loves its leader, there will naturally be those that the Good Book calls “filthy dreamers” who “despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities.” That is why as spokesman to President Muhammadu Buhari, I never respond to such people. Their type would always be around.
President Buhari has been indisposed since the beginning of the year. It is human, and presidents, despite their elevated status, remain human. If there is anybody who considers himself 100 percent healthy, or who bears what William Shakespeare calls “a charmed life,” let that person stand up to be identified. All mortals are doomed to sickness, they can recover, and they can die. That is the truth that has been internalized by millions of people praying for the recovery of our President. And that is where the shallowness, vacuousness, and hollowness of people who wish the President dead and carry unfounded rumors, is on stark display. Filthy dreamers. They speak evil of dignities and despise dominion. But we forgive them, for they know not what they do. When President Buhari returns (as God would make him do) where would they hide their faces? In shame.
Now, I started by saying we would always have scumbags around. It is inevitable. They are the descendants of Shimei, the son of Gera, whom I want to introduce to you now.
Who is Shimei? Well, I met him on the pages of the Good Book, and he bears a striking similitude to some people in our country today. The evil wishers, the hate monger, and those who spend their days conjecturing tragedy for leadership.
Absalom, the son of King David, had led an insurrection against his father. And the king of Israel fled, with some of his supporters in tow. As David got to a place called Bahurim, the Holy Bible records that Shimei, the son of Gera, a man of the family of Saul, came out, and started cursing the fleeing king. You don’t kick a man that is down, goes a saying, but Shimei not only cursed David, he also threw dust and stones at him. It was a show of shame.
David had succeeded Saul as king of Israel. And Shimei was from the family of Saul (read, People’s Democratic Party, PDP). Shimei hadn’t forgotten the bloody nose the family of Saul got when the kingship was taken away from them, and given to David. So when the latter got into a time of travail, no pity at all from people still smarting from bloody noses.
The All Progressives Congress (APC), inspired by Muhammadu Buhari, halted the 60-year pipe dream of PDP at the polls in 2015. Has the latter forgotten? No, they won’t forget till forever. But so much is the animus, the antipathy towards the President that they wish him dead. While millions of Nigerians are praying, some elements are rejoicing and imagining evil. But they forget: man is not God, and Jehovah always has the final say. The descendants of Shimei need to learn vital lessons from their forebear.
As the base fellow assaulted the fleeing king, Abishai, one of David’s mighty men, said:”Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Let me go over and take off his head.”(2 Samuel, 16:9). But David restrained him, saying if God had not permitted Shimei, he could not have done what he was doing.
President Buhari has tolerated people who have called him all sorts of names in the past two years. If he didn’t move against them directly, he could have allowed many Abishais to move against them, “and take off their heads.” But not our President, a reformed democrat, a pious man, who has resolved to leave the people suffused by hatred unto God. And will they get their just desserts one day? As night follows the day, they will. If not from man, they will get it from God. Their forefather, Shimei did. He reaped what he sowed.
After some time, the rebellion led by Absalom was crushed by loyal troops, and David regained the throne. As he headed back into the city, who came to meet the king, with one thousand of his relatives, pleading for mercy? Shimei. The Yorubas say the same mouth that the snail used to abuse the gods, is what it uses to lick the dusts of the earth. Shimei had suddenly become gentle. And humble, too. He fell down before David, and said:”I have sinned. Have mercy on me. Don’t remember what I did against you on the day you went out of Jerusalem.”
Heh, on a certain day, some people would come to prostrate, begging for mercy, asking President Buhari to forgive and forget. What will the President do? What did David do? Abishai said again to King David:”Let me bring down the head of this man, who cursed, and threw stones at you?”
But David said to Shimei:”Thou shall not surely die.” And the king swore unto him.
But did Shimei live happily ever after? Old sins, they say, have long shadows. Before David died, he instructed Solomon his son, who succeeded him, not to forget to deal with Shimei. At least, David had kept his part of the bargain not to kill Shimei.
What did Solomon do? He restricted Shimei to Jerusalem, adding that any day he went out of the city would be his last on earth. Days, weeks, and months went by. Shimei remained gentle. But on a certain day, two servants belonging to him ran away to Gath, another city. Shimei saddled his horses, and led his men to bring back the servants. He had received mercy from David, but he couldn’t show mercy to the servants. Mercy begets mercy.
The story was told to Solomon. Shimei has left Jerusalem. He went to Gath, contrary to your instructions. It was time for judgment. Solomon commanded that what Abishai had long wanted to do should be done to Shimei. And his head was brought down.
Will the descendants of Shimei repent, turn a new leaf, and become human? Will they recognize their own mortality? He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he that is filthy, let him be filthy still. He that is overtaken by hate, let him remain hateful still. Behold, I come quickly, and my reward is with me, to give to every man according as his work shall be.
Let the descendants of Shimei who have ears to hear please hear. There is recompense for evil, and there is also recompense for good.
Adesina is Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to President Buhari.
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The deteriorating mind of Femi Adesina
By Femi Fani-Kayode
I am convinced that President Muhammadu Buhari’s spokesman, Mr. Femi Adesina, has now finally lost his mind. In his latest essay, titled “The Sons of Shimmei”, he compared Buhari to the biblical King David, the greatest King that ever ruled Israel.
One is constrained to ask the following question: what on earth is Davidic about Buhari?
King David was a Spirit-filled believer and a heroic and courageous child of God whilst Buhari is ….
In what can only be described as a chilling and irresponsible manner Femi also said that Buhari could have “cut off the heads” of his opponents, meaning he could have had them assasinated. Gosh. Jumping Jehoshaphat! What has happened to my old friend? Poor old Femi.
He has just made a cardinal spiritual blunder the consequences of which I have no doubt that he will deeply regret.
In this game you must never threaten your opponent with death because once invoked the Angel of Death usually returns back to sender. I shall pray for Femi because I want him to live long and prosper.
I knew that he was frustrated but I never knew he was a man of blood.
I never knew that he and his leader believed in murder as a tool of governance.
Yet the truth is that the Lord will see to it that they pay a terrible price for even thinking of taking the life of their detractors and political enemies both in this life and in the next.
The truth is that God alone gives and takes life and whether they like it or not He guards His own jealously. The Bible says “touch not my annointed and do my prophets no harm” . Consequently no-one is intimidated by Femi’s implicit death threat.
One thing is clear though: he ought to be mindful of the fact that whilst he and his associates are planning to take someone else’s precious life they may end up losing your own. Examples of such a course and turn of events are replete in the Holy Bible.
Femi mentioned the great Abishai who was a biblical hero in his own right and one of David’s strong men and allies. Abishai and David’s other strong men were courageous and righteous men who undertook a noble cause, who shed the blood of evil men and who fought against tyranny.
To compare members of Buhari’s cabal to David’s strong men is like comparing Queen Helen of Troy to a Bombay whore.
One is regal and queen-like in all her ways whilst the other is nothing but a cheap back-street, “short-time”, AIDS-infested woman of questionable character and easy virtue.
Femi has done a great disservice to Abish by mentioning him in the same sentence as the cabal.
I say this because he was a soldier of truth and a gallant man of honor.
This is not the case with anyone in Buhari’s cabal. They are the opposite to the Abishai’s of this world. They are the darkness that seeks the darkness. They are predators who drink the blood of their innocent victims and feed on their flesh.
They prey on the weak, they destroy the young and they slay the old, the vulnerable, the defenceless and the weary.
Buhari has no Abishai’s around him. He has no Joab’s and no Prophet Samuel’s either. He only has the Absalom’s, Haman’s, Judas’, Delilahs and Ahitophels of this world.
That is the tragedy and weakness of his Presidency. That plus the fact that he does not fear God and he does not respect the rights of the Nigerian people. If he did he would have resigned long ago and handed over full power to his number two, Professor Yemi Osinbajo.
Finally Femi wrote “when Buhari returns home some people will bury their heads in shame”. He is wrong.
The truth is that when Buhari returns home some people will prop him up and pretend that he is well enough to be President until he falls sick and goes back abroad again.
It is called “corspsocracy” and it is defined as “the rulership of the living by the dead”.
That is Nigeria’s biggest burden and challenge today.
Instead of telling us that his principal can kill us all Femi should consider his many failings and fluctuating health and advise him to resign honorably.
That is what a real believer and a true man of honor would counsel his erring and ailing boss to do and not try to intimidate those of us that are in opposition with blatent, vulgar and bullish threats of death and assasination.
The path of blood is a dark and unpredictable one. I advise Femi not to take it. Meanwhile I continue to wish both him and his principal well and we look forward to his eagerly anticipated return from nether nether land.
***Femi Fani-Kayode, a former Minister of Information and Culture, sent this piece from Oshogbo, Osun State