Insolence – Word For The Week
Insolence is defined as being insulting in manners or words. It is being rude, cheeky, impudent, arrogant, bold, cocky and disrespectful. Insolence to me has become the go-to word to describe Nigeria’s present class of politicians.
When news of Kemi Adeosun forged NYSC broke, I was hoping against hope that it will turn out to be false, Premium Times will be charged to court for libel and APC will emerge looking like All Positive Characters.
When rather than respond to the allegations, Madam Dishonorable Minister was doing anything but respond, I began to move my “hope against hope” to more fruitful endeavors, like Cardiff City winning the Premier League and Young Boys winning the Champions League in the same year.
I wish that was the height of insolence, nope. A professor of law, whose word at this point should literally be law, who was heading a committee against corruption, who has written textbooks on law, arrogantly comes out to chastise us for daring to ask about a forged NYSC exemption certificate. The temerity!
The ease with which supposed intelligent and upright fellows put aside morals and legality when it suits them is a topic for discussion some other time. The fact that the Vice President, A Professor of Law and a former Attorney General for Lagos State kept quiet throughout this debacle is even more puzzling.
Finally, she steps down and her admirers want the rest of us to give her a standing ovation. How deserving. We are yet to get back to the normal drama that is Nigeria when news of Our Minister for Communication having never participated in NYSC.
What is his own excuse? Unlike Kemi Adeosun, He schooled in Nigeria, he studied Law and according to him, getting elected into the State House of Assembly excludes him from having to go for NYSC. I wonder which constitution he read that from.
The insolence shown by Nigeria’s ruling class needs to be curbed. Election season is here again, I think it is time we start to look beyond the sweet talk, beautiful promises and grand performances put up by politicians during campaigns. We need to start to look at intellectualism, and just as importantly, moral precedence.
People do not change overnight. Childhood friends, colleagues and neighbors need to start stepping forward to testify on candidates so we can know what we are going into.
People get the leaders they deserve, it is time Nigerians show that Insolence is not part of our culture.
Wilson Joshua is a Video Editor, Content Creator and Creative Writer.
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