Reuben Abati before his price was paid wrote a column on
Guardian condemning the recklessness of unelected Dame Patience Jonathan
Thursday, 27th Aug 2010
"DEMOCRACY is readily associated with freedom: the
freedom to be free in many respects and increasingly in Nigeria, many of our
compatriots, particularly persons in positions of privilege and authority
confuse this with the right to be disagreeable. The sober truth is that
democracy is about rights and responsibilities, a democratic dispensation
therefore cannot be a licence for disagreeable conduct as a norm; just as the
possession of power in any form does not guarantee the right to be reckless or
to ignore the etiquette required of office holders. Anyone in the corridors of
power, either by chance or right, or appointment, is expected to behave
decorously.
