MARYAM BABANGIDA'S DEATH, ANY LESSON FOR NIGERIAN LEADERS?

Former Nigerian First Lady Maryam Ndidamaka Babangida is dead. She finally succumbed to ovarian cancer, which had plagued her for so many years, taking a turn for the worst in recent past. The ebony-black, elegant former first lady and wife of the evil-genius, the man who killed Dele Giwa, the self-styled prince of Minna, toothy General Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida, died at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Centre in the United States. Maryam was 61 years old!

According to sources, Maryam died early hours of Sunday December 27, 2009 at the hospital where she was receiving treatment for the past three months; with her husband and children by her side for their final goodbyes! Her funeral as being planned by her family, will commence as soon as her remains is flown back to Nigeria. She is survived by a husband Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida and children Mohammed, Aminu, Aisha, and Halima.

A native of Ogbeogo, Umuonaje Quarters, Asaba in present day Delta State, Nigeria the late Maryam Ndidamaka Babangida (Nee Okogwu), met and married then Major Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida of Minna Niger State in 1969; and commendably remained married to him until her death did them apart. Kudos to her husband, despite being a Muslim of great wealth, he remained loyal to his wife in a monogamous marriage as far as kept records are concerned; but whether he kept a harem of mistresses and concubines, Icheoku does not know! However, this apparent fidelity alone, does not forgive his numerous sins. Between them, they have four children.

Maryam Babangida will be remembered mostly for her pet-project, the 'Better Life for Rural Women programme' which 'touched' the lives of many rural women throughout the nooks and crannies of Nigeria? According to one of her admirer, commenting on the programme, "the Better Life for Rural Women certainly brought the issue of women to the forefront in a dramatic way. People, for once, became more sensitive to some of the issues concerning women." Another said, "she devoted her life to the emancipation of the womenfolk while she imbued her office with grace that radiated far and wide." Maryam Babangida was also credited for influencing the choice of Asaba as the capital of Delta State, which state was created by her husband during his hijack of Nigeria as a military junta head of state?

Icheoku says, may her soul now answer for the misdeeds of her husband to which she was privy and overtly or tacitly supported while she lived; especially those infra-digs they committed while in power. Dele Giwa, Gloria Okon, Mamman Vasta, Gideon Orka and crew, Ejigbo plane disaster, MKO Abiola's presidential election victory June 12th annulment, $12billion dollars Iraqi oil windfall and also the gift of draconian Sani Abacha to Nigeria, a midget despot who Babangida purposely left un-retired and who unleashed unquantifiable killer-venom on the people of Nigeria particularly the South-West? Like all mortals, the once all powerful Nigerian First Lady of yesterday has now given up the ghost and joined the list of soon to be forgotten once lived pieces of humanity? Any lesson whatsoever? For death, it does not matter that her husband helped himself enormously from the treasury of Nigeria and would have bought her health, cajoled, outfoxed or even bribed or lobbied to have her life spared; but no, Mister Death has no price, cannot be lobbied or bribed; and it does not matter that the Babangida family is reputed to be one of the richest former first family out of Africa, having stolen their heart's delight while in power? It was time-up and off she went with clenched mouth and fist and not with even a single dime out of this world? Any lesson Nigerian leaders?

As a first lady, Maryam charmed many Nigerians and exuded such elegance that her outward personality became very captivating to many if not most? But Icheoku cannot and could not vouch for her internals or whatever laid behind the fanciful facade; but for having steadfastly stood by an acclaimed 'evil genius' of a husband, whose reputed meanness was such that he killed his best-man based on a phantom coup, makes one to wonder if she was indeed a Lady Macbeth? Did she have a heart of cold steel within her palatable outward appearance not to dissuade her menacing killer-husband from carrying out all the rampages witnessed while he was in office? Who knows, but since a dead cannot hold court to defend herself, we are prepared to move on.

Like many Nigerian high-ups, Maryam Ndidamaka Babangida also died in a foreign hospital bed in far away United States of America! Whether her ghost will be able to find its way back to Minna from far away America is inconclusive, since city of angels, Los Angeles, is reputed to have so many lost and confused strange phenoms walking the streets which have lost contact with their bodies? If only these men and women of power in Nigeria know how insulting it is for the country for their bodies to be flown in as cargoes from different parts of the world for burial in Nigeria; dying in strange lands, among strange doctors and nurses who do not really know who they are and could care less, but are mostly interested in the bills and charges collectable from these health-tourists 'bigwigs' out of Africa, cash cows of some sort? If only they know, they would have done something to change the comatose health-care and facilities in their countries? Imagine a viable and thriving African hospital, where they would ordinarily be extra-ordinarily pampered, nursed, nurtured, loved, revered, respected and cared for with all imaginable tender loving care; which level of affectionate care they can never receive in a foreign hospital among strangers in a strange land.

Strangers they always remain in these foreign hospitals where they are sometimes looked down upon as black Africans with an accent, who must have stolen so much money from their people, so why not collect some of the loot? Some of these export-patients are even sometimes too timid and intimidated by the presence of White-people everywhere they go that they fail to fully articulate their thought to express their needs fully for fear of being talked back to in a way not befitting of their useless status? As leaders they failed, neglected and/or refused to develop their country's health care facilities and only concerned themselves with looting enough from their country's treasury to pay for such expensive overseas hospital stays whenever the need arises, including eventual death, from where they are shipped in for burial in cold and stuffy cargo bays of airplanes. Whatever happened to the dignity of one dying among ones own people, in his or her mother/father-land, surrounded by loving countrymen and medical personnel; which necessarily brings with it the right to refuse an autopsy and have your remains be buried intact, full and complete; and upon the time and manner of your choosing without the necessity to comply with several funeral and human-remains disposal codes and regulations, which are sometimes overwhelming for exotic health-tourists and outside their control, authority and influence? Nigerian leaders please change your ways and start thinking big and broad and into the future. Stop being very parochial and self-centered with your policies; instead pursue projects that will enable you to leave your imprint in the sand of time. Say to yourself today, I will not die in a foreign hospital bed but will help to develop a first-rate hospital in my country comparable to any in the world, where Nigerians including myself can receive a par-excellent medical treatment and eventually die with dignity among my people. It is doable and can be done, just be patriotic enough to stand up and be counted and say no to the cheapen health tourism! JUST DO IT!

Approximating Maryam's hospital bills and charges for the three months she was hospitalised without any health insurance; at about $510,000 for a ten days stay, her gross total cost of hospitalisation might be in excess of $4.5 million dollars? Enough to build a cottage hospital in rural Asaba or Minna and possibly equip same? But these short-sighted leaders so called of Nigeria, including her former husband had opportunities to develop the health care system and facilities in Nigeria but choose not to; lest ordinary Nigerians will avail themselves of such services; and would readily scamper out to a foreign hospital anytime they have a medical need. Thankfully enough, the leveler Death does not care and will get you, no matter where you run to in search of a cure, once your time is up. It does not matter whether it was to a rat infested, under-funded and drug-less medical clinic in rural Minna or an elitist center of medical excellence in fancy Los Angeles, California USA? No matter your reputation or depth of pocket or how far away the search for a cure takes you or how highly priced your medical/health consultant is, once the clock is up you must yield because 'the inevitable is always inevitable.' And so soon thereafter, the medical examiner who does not give a damn whom you were, will be starring down your prostrate cadaver, lying down naked on a cold slab and with a pair of giant shears, will cut same open without a quiff of any sentiment. This is the fate of all mortals and their curse of morbidity and so was Maryam Babangida.

Once again Nigerians, especially the leaders so called, should learn their lesson with the death of Maryam Ndidamaka Babangida. It does not matter who or what you are, or how much you have neglected the people of Nigeria or how much you stole from them, when your time is up it is up. The only question that will remain will be, what legacy did you leave behind and ask yourself, would your death be celebrated as a good riddance because of your very high negatives with the people?

If the death of the former first lady teaches you one thing, let it be for you to use every God given opportunity to breath his free oxygen, to do good for humanity, your fellow travellers in this journey called life. That is the only thing one really has - good deeds, and which one can really take with him/her to the world beyond as evidence, while facing trial and subsequent judgment to account of one's days while here on earth. To the IBB grieving family, Icheoku says, take heart in your loss of a loved matriarch, what a lesson learnt! And to the chief mourner, Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida, please use whatever is left of your time here on earth to do some real introspection and ask yourself, was it worth it? Adieu Ada Asaba!