Every Knee Shall Bow

By Bala Ibrahim

Above are the words of God, in emphasis to the inevitability of death and the certainty that every tongue shall swear allegiance to Allah. We’ve woken up today, to the sad news of the death of Mallam Abba Kyari, the chief of staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, Nigeria’s leader.

Until his demise, Abba Kyari means many things to many people. Those in support of late Abba were calling him the man of allegiance, whose loyalty or commitment to the cause of his boss, knows no bound.

He does the wish and respects the interest of his boss to the exact tenets of the provisions of the oath he took. They see Abba as the personification of loyalty,  who remained faithful to his boss, even in the face of the revolt. Today, Abba’s knees have bowed, we should await our own.

Of course, his adversaries saw him doing the opposite. To them, late Abba Kyari was the nemesis, that was playing the foe under the pretext of being the friend in the Buhari government. Abba Kyari was described by them, as the head of the cabal, that was exerting remarkable influence on matters within the villa in particular, and the country in general. They saw him as evil. Today, Abba’s knees have bowed, we should all await our own.

Indeed every knee shall bow, but we will not all bow in the same way.  Every person will bow before God in the way God had ordained. Individually or collectively, we were directed from the onset, to follow certain paths, constructed by the unseen contractor of mankind’s highway, called destiny. Destiny has beckoned on Abba today. His knees have bowed, we should all await our own.

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On his return for the second time, PMB was extremely pressurized, not to return Abba Kyari as his chief of staff, hinging their disapproval on perceived arrogance and excessive power-mongering. They even accused him of practising Atheism, who doubted the existence of God as a deity.

God knows best, and he would call on us one day, to account for what we said about the man, whose knees have bowed today.

In all the brouhaha, PMB never uttered a word on the issue. He permitted the late Abba to continue doing his work without any official announcement, I think. Equally, Mallam Abba never joined a word with his adversaries, probably because he believed in Karma, which would decide his future, and the future of those pro, or against him. Today, Abba Kyari’s knees have bowed, and so shall we all, one day.

Late Dr Yusuf Bala Usman one day said, “Death is inevitable, everyone shall die. The issue is, we shall all die, but the question is, how?” We all want to die with a sense of fulfilment, particularly the fulfilment that permits us to follow our inner passion, and not according to the dictates, expectations or standards of others.

For those happy with Abba’s performance, may Allah give you the fortitude to bear his loss. For those who feel he was a stumbling block on their way, may Allah permit you to have space in your hearts, to pardon his mistakes. His knees have bowed, and so shall ours, one day.

Mallam Abba is the first high profile member of the Buhari administration to be taken down by the Coronavirus. And also the first senior official, whose burial was privately conducted.

When historians come to write about him, Abba Kyari would certainly be remembered as one of the most misunderstood people on the corridors of power in Nigeria.

Adios Abba.

Bala Ibrahim, a Media Advisor writes from Kano.