In order to make some sense out of this heading, it is necessary to clear first of all, some extraneous issues.
All public discussion, to be worthy of the name discussion, and not just a display of ignorance or emotion, has to be logical.
Any discussion that is not based on correct logic is useless, and a waste of time. Indeed it is worse than useless, because it pretends to be what it is not. Illogicality in reasoning diverts the direction of the mental process into the bush, and attempts to pass off the bush as the road.
Now we all know that if you have a destination, you have to keep to the road to be able to claim you are making progress. Moving forward is not necessarily progress. Being busy is not progress.. Moving forward, or being busy at a task is only progress when you are on the right road.
No matter how busy you are, or how fast you are moving, if you are NOT on the right road, what you are doing is worse than useless. It is worse because the more time you waste going into the bush- the wrong way, the more time and more effort it will take to retrace your steps, return to the point where you derailed, and start afresh form there… It is not always easy to make this about turn.
This means we have no choice if we want to move forward, other than to always test and re-test our positions on the basis of logic.
That is one of the things I have retained from my romance with Marxism as a university student in the 80s. Criticism and self criticism. Continually examining one’s position on all issues on the basis of strict logic.
But today in the age of Social Media, this has become very scarce. You look in vain for logic and consistency in public debates; and this not only on social media. You hear people who wish to be taken seriously making statements that are illogical, emotional, or even factually inaccurate.
Statements are routinely twisted or distorted or misunderstood, and then the mangled version is attacked in the most vicious of ad hominem attacks.
The problem with all these is that we live in a logical universe. So anyone who thinks, speaks or acts in an illogical manner is fighting Nature. And therefore brands himself as incapable of rising to embrace, and understand, and acquire all what Nature has in potential. Everything in Nature is logical…illogicality is un-natural, anti-Nature, strange to Creation…and is a form of discordant disturbance.
Logic is vital
Therefore, logic is one of the things we must cultivate in our daily life, in our belief system, in our thinking and in our daily actions.
That is the way to make progress both materially and spiritually. The multiple illogicalities in our public life for instance, has helped us remain where we are as a Nation… Illogicalities in Religious beliefs has ensured that we have more religion and little spirituality…
It is in the light of this absolute necessity for LOGIC, and the virtual absence of it in most aspects of our society, that we must analyse and understand public arguments and discussions as we attempt to make sense of our society and suggest better ways of doing things.
Anything that is illogical is inherently wrong in a logical universe such as we live in, and can not be supported in logic or reality. In this there can be no exception whatsoever, since universal laws, of which Logic is an inherent part, and on which the universe is based, do not permit of exceptions.
Therefore, whatever we human beings design down here to regulate our earth-lives, has to be logical. If it is not, we must be humble enough to admit that the law or principle we have decided upon is faulty….not that the universal laws permit of illogicality.
The foregoing is a fitting backdrop to an examination of the activities of those who have come to be variously called ‘human rights activists’ ; human rights Lawyers, Civil rights activist’ Civil Society Organizations etc in our country. Many of these appellations, of course, are originally self-given, or come to be used by careless journalists with little forethought, and later became accepted.
Lack of logical consistency
The first thing to observe about our human rights community is that, with few exceptions, this set of people are hardly consistent in their disposition.
This means, for a discerning observer, they apply different rules to different situations. This is bias. Some of the bias shows up as preference for one’s race or tribe or profession or religion or party, or sundry other things through which people have chosen to identify themselves…
This just causes confusion.
But what leads to commotion is when observers can not see this for what it is and continue to defend all manner of wrong reasoning thrown out there by these class of people calling themselves human rights activists; which, to them, also means freedom to be insulting , abusive, arrogant , and freedom from having their reasoning process being subjected to the rigors of logic. Anyone who expresses scepticism of their narrative is viciously attacked and branded a lackey of the government of the day, or slave of a named leader (who they, the critics, have developed a personal, and often irrational animosity for ).
Proper reasoning is thrown out of the window. Objectivity is nowhere to be found. Humility, that admits of possibility of being wrong is non existent. And this is compounded, made worse, by an unwritten law that anything said to be done in the name of human rights activism is not to be touched or questioned.
‘Impunity’
Yes. It must not be questioned on the basis of such basic rules of public discourse as: decency in language, moderation of thoughts, mutual respect for all, and fairness in reasoning. They go overboard in heaping abuses; insults and curses on the People they are criticizing, and also anyone who happen to disagree with their positions, or their filthy language …
This kind of behaviour: doing the wrong thing (as attested to by the lack of Logic and bad language); insisting it is right, refusing to listen to any alternate view, and attacking anyone who draws attention to the illogicality; is now wildly endemic in this age of Social Media.
Once a person calls himself a human rights activist, has some social media following, they join the clique of these untouchables. Anything they say is not subjected to logic. They are accepted as gospel truth, and even people that want to be taken seriously simply join the cacophony. The default mode of many critics is that the government of the day is ALWAYS wrong.
Of course any serious observer knows that this is nonsense. Nobody or government is always right or always wrong. Each issue must be examined on a case by case basis.
The person that speaks or writes a lot of sensible things today, may well pen an emotional, illogical and self serving nonsense tomorrow. This call is to say that we should admit of this possibility, and ways analyse issues on a case by case basis. No individual is infallible.
Though it is notalways a good idea to mention names, but for the sake of illustration, and clarity, we must just give examples.
Omoyele Sowore makes a lot of sense many times. But not every single time. Femi Fani-Kayode is a good read any day, but recently he has become so emotional in his writings that logic takes a back seat. He swamps the truths in his write ups with unnecessarily heavy dose of emotional outpouring. This detract from his full final impact.
Then there is Reno Omokri. He too, like the two mentioned above, is a writer and thinker. But he also occasionally does forget himself and gets personal and emotional. The problem is, when these people go overboard, Nobody wants to listen to contrary logic…They think they are always right and their followers agree, unequivocally.
The other two practitioners of this arcane and devious art, not to be discussed here because their attitude betrays that which can not be said to be noble. These two who shall be named but not discussed are Deji Adeyanju and one “ Professor “ Farook Kperogi.
These two can not be dignified with any further statements at all without descending into the dirtiest part of the morass..
These ones seem to have crossed the line and are apparently irredeemable
This situation is quite unfortunate. For anyone who has been following public discourse, the picture we have painted is one of deep sadness. The quality of public discourse have degenerated. Mobility of mind and dignity in expression is retreating, to be replaced by frivolous inner emptiness strutting all over Social media and regular media with impunity.
Oh judgement, thou are fled to brutish beasts!, and men have lost their reason!.
We can only hope that more and morepeople will take more note of what has been said, be moremindfulof it, refuse to join in the creeping failure, and also make efforts to call out these people when they err.
It would be wrong, and a form of complicity, when we notice things like this, and fail topoint them out, hiding under or behind various porous masks, major one of which is to describe the malevolent one as a ‘human rights activist’, ‘rights campaigner’ or , a ‘fighter for rule of Law’.
In so far as all these things are never absolute, they must be taken with a pinch of salt, and can not be left as a shield toprevent a thorough examination of what we allow in our public space.
Now, as a contrast, we have to mention what it used to be in The Nigeria public space. People that analyse public affairs with dispassionate clarity, devoid of emotional distortions, and whose write-ups never fail to elevate public discourse- at that time.
Many of them have retreated from the National scene, and National discourse have suffered on account of it.
Step forward , and take your diadem for nobility of thought, and analytical prowess: Dr Edwin Madunagu, Uthman Shodipe ; Ashikiwe Adione Egom, Dr Chinweizu, Nkem Ossai, Lade Bonuola, Professor Eskor Toyo, Tunde Fatunde, Stanley Macebuh, Olatunji Dare, Adebayo Williams, Festus Iyayi, Femi Osofisan, Amah Ogan, Onwuchekwa Jemie, Gbolabo Ogunsanwo,and many more. .. Maximum Respects…
These are the people. ..that laid the foundation for clean, analytical public discourse, and who, by their clarity of expression and nobility of thought, are the real human rights activists. And theyhad no reason to hide behind the lies of being human rights activists…Not those that proclaim it loudly, or those who are the most violent and uncouth in language that assail our public space today.
These should be the examples to aspire to, support as necessary, and promote.
The unconditional support granted to some of the modern dirty commentators, who pretend to be activists, should not be. Such people are con men, (and women), because there are females too…
A People can not rise higher than the quality of their thoughts…we need to encourage high thinkers and noble writers. ..to raise the quality of our Society. Pretending to be human rights activist is NO substitute for this.
We must be watchful…who will join the watchmen???.
