Every time the house leopard comes into the house, most half-baked pundits and illogical analysts quickly call it “conspiracy”. They can’t fathom a wild cat, even after hearing its loud cries, living in the house. Some days ago, the cat came visiting with a new story
Amina Ali Nkeki, one of the captured #Chibok girls, escaped the den of her kidnappers some days ago. Her news wrapped social media and television sets. But, as always, most pundits think it’s a hoax and that the story doesn’t add up.
There’s a denial of the wild cat’s existence. Just one year ago and the scent of the beast rattled the Nigerian cage. People took to the streets with placards and sharpened their twitter fingers to tell the world about the beast.
Perhaps, their denial is that the wild cat never leaves a captured prey in tact and that the captured prey must be eaten and spat out as mere bones.
The pundits, ironically, forget that they too are victims of the leopard. It masticates them daily. And, maybe, just maybe, that’s why their thinking is a little jaded.
Suddenly, evidence is strewn across the pages of major newspapers and social media forums that the #Chibok girl story is made up. That Nigeria is merely learning to weave conspiracy theories from the likes of Pat Robertson.
Even more suddenly, these pundits have discovered that the number of missing children is inaccurate. And for double measure, they’ve accused the government for wasting their time with such pettiness.
Meanwhile, the leopard sits in the house that we’ve all created and continues to eat us slowly. Getting fatter as we wallow in the senselessness of trying to find whether Sambisa is real or not.
There is another leopard under training. The cry ministers from Aso Rock are doing that dastardly job. How can a truamatised girl be hurled into the mouths of international and local media? Is there no room for secrecy first, counseling second and later, media disclosure? Plus, why is she guarded by military personnel only, what about medical doctors?
What would Amina tell her baby? How will her baby understand that there is a wild cat in the house?
The essential early intervention needed to shield Amina from maladaptive functioning is missing. It’s important that the authorities swoop in on this. One only hopes that the intervention comes sooner.
There’s a leopard in the house. The onus is on Nigerians to know how to manage it or exterminate it. Turning a blind eye to it doesn’t add to the nation’s development.
God bless the house.
Michael Irene tweets from: @moshoke