In perception, there are too many principles on how people are kenned. There is a school of thought which leans towards the believe that whatever you call yourself doesn\u2019t not matter, people perceive you based on your actions or inaction. This implies that calling yourself \u2018Don Money\u2019 does not mean that people actually see you as being rich.\r\n\r\n\r\nAlso, there are those who simply believe that, you are what you call yourself. After all, no one knows you better than yourself. If you call yourself a thief, regardless of any assumption that might have been made through your actions, it\u2019s only wise that valuables be kept away from you.\r\n\r\n\r\nThe opinions of many Nigerians on Buhari\u2019s latest interview with The Telegraph, have been divided along these two lines. If you\u2019ve not heard about it, you probably haven\u2019t had power in your area in days, you also don\u2019t have a generator or an inverter, and obviously, you don\u2019t go to church.\r\n\r\n\r\nThere are those (mostly Buhari\u2019s supporters and APC apologist) who believe that the president has done nothing wrong brandishing Nigerians (or \u2018some Nigerians\u2019 as they like to be quoted) as criminals on international stage. Their defense is simple, Buhari only stated the obvious, Nigerians already are known for criminalities around the world. They believe that acknowledging one\u2019s weakness is the first step towards salvation. One cannot address a challenged, if one does not first acknowledge it as a challenge. On this premise, they opined that Buhari has done no wrong. In fact, he has once again proven himself as an honest man. Some even went further to suggest that the simple act of honesty is Machiavellian, citing the 12th law of the 48th laws of power \u201cuse selective honesty and generosity to disarm your victim\u201d. Going by this, the president has not only proven once again that he is an honest man, he has also shown that he is a shrewd politician cum leader.\r\n\r\n\r\nRegardless of how vociferous this people have been in defending the president, I am one of those who are confident that the president has committed a great offense; he has betrayed our loyalty and he will only be forgiven if he can wash us clean, just where he had smeared us with dirt.\r\n\r\nI will like to use a personal experience in expressing my view on this national issue. Maybe my experience stemmed a biased mind, maybe it\u2019s the reason I have a better understanding of the situation, your opinion is free to sway in any direction you want.\r\n\r\n\r\nSometimes last week, I had a post on Facebook which did not settle well with a lot of people. No matter how I explained, they didn\u2019t just get my point. Need I say, I got called names and insult were hurled at me but all that did not get to me until an old colleague, screen grabbed the post and posted it in a WhatsApp group I happen to be a part of. A lot of hurtful words were once again conjured. I still didn\u2019t flinch until a friend joined in the macabre. Now, the friend didn\u2019t say anything different from what others have said but it got to me because it was coming from a friend. This friend could have put a call through, send me a private chat or do 101 other things instead of join in calling me names and making a mockery of my point of view. That was hurtful and that was exactly what president Buhari did to hurt Nigerians.\r\n\r\n\r\nNigerians know that we have poor international reputation. We all at one time witnessed or heard how the green passport is treated at the various embassies. We read the news that Nigerians over populate prisons abroad. For God sake! We have read the statistics that ranks us as the 3rd most corrupt country in the world. Some have even contested that position, how could South Africa beat us to the 1st position with all the enviable things we are capable of doing with corruption? Truth be told, even if the president had called us saints instead, Nigerians probably would have revolted with brilliant memes. So, we know what we are capable of as a country.\r\n\r\n\r\nNevertheless, the president was wrong to have drummed to the dance of shame albeit on international scene. Don\u2019t people say it is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak and remove all doubt? President Obama has on different times scolded the various inhuman behaviour of Americans. In fact, he had done so while he shed sorrowful tears but NEVER had President Obama gone outside of America and called \u2018some\u2019 of his people criminals or serial killers. He will rather talk about Americans who are doing great things, he will rather speak about the giant steps America is taking in making the world a better place but never will he damp the good in America with the actions of some few who have decided to be black sheep.\r\n\r\n\r\nIf president Buhari had said it on NTA or AIT, any of the local stations and newspapers, it would have been fine because there, Nigerians could have explained themselves and both president and Nigerians could have understood the good intentions and work out means to put these black sheep on leash. It is wrong that the number one citizen joined to wash our dirty linen in public. It is just wrong.\r\n\r\n\r\nI understand that there are but a little public relations gimmicks one can employ to salvage already battered goods but no company goes into the market and tell every customer the side effects of its good. Rather, the company will go back to the factory and try to correct the side effect, then go out to tell the customer what great improvement has been done on the goods. That is image building.\r\n\r\n\r\nAlso, a great leader is he who chooses his words carefully. What if Buhari had said something like, \u201cNigerians are hardworking people who, in the face of many challenges, had remained enviable ambassadors wherever they found themselves, exploring opportunities and making ground breaking records around the world. This is not to say I am blinded to a\u00a0few who might be falling short on many fronts but I know that with the collective effort of all Nigerians we are getting to the pinnacle where Nigerians and Nigeria will be fully recognized in the comity of world powers. We are already on our way!\u201d I just wrote a presidential speech with the potential of boosting the goodwill of Mr. President. I think it\u2019s time someone recommended me.\r\n\r\n\r\nAway from dream land, the president is the first image maker of the country. This goes to say that his words, actions and \u2018body language\u2019 should all be tailored to creating a better Nigeria while we deal with our numerous shortcomings at home. Of what good will calling Nigerians criminals in the hearings of investors do to the nation? As a matter of fact, that show of \u2018honesty\u2019 will only cost the economy. The situation is too bad already, we don\u2019t want it to get worse just because someone needs to sound like a tough dad!
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