The Nation Newspaper

Category: Hardball

  • Jelili the braggart

    “Jelili the trader” was a common jibe to, in good humour, tease the heroics of Prof. Jelili Omotola (Allah bless his soul and grant him eternal rest!), former vice-chancellor of the University of Lagos, in liberalising commercial activities to put Unilag on an improved footing, fund-wise.

    Despite the jibe, Prof. Omotola’s exertions were noble; and the university is arguably better for it today, long after the good professor had answered the final call.

    But there is another Jelili that lives, in the public space too, but seems, by his pronouncements, unable to vault to his late name sake’s nobility. He is Jelili Adesiyan, minister of Police Affairs.

    This living Jelili, it was, that threatened to maul Isiaka Adeleke, former governor of Osun State, if perchance they met. He bragged, clearly referring to his “fix it” skills: “who is the elephant hunter beside the hunter of humans?” The grim irony of such ultra-savage thinking was clearly lost on him, minister of Police Affairs of the Federal Republic.

    Not much earlier, Jelili became a cry-baby in parliament, when told to say what he knew about the death of Bola Ige, former minister of Justice and federal attorney-general.  He broke down and wailed like a baby, swearing he knew nothing about it. Fair enough.

    Just suffice it to say the cry-baby of yesterday has become the braggart of today, in-between acquiring the notoriety of attempting to commit the Police, under his charge, to help muscle the vote in the Osun gubernatorial election, which the people’s resistance and vigilance however defeated.

    Just a few days ago, Mr. Adesiyan, playing the super-patriot (isn’t patriotism the last bastion of the scoundrel?) was in Lagos, at the head of Yinka Odumakin’s newfound company, at the launch of Watching the Watcher, Odumakin’s new book.

    Adesiyan bragged to no end, that he had instructed IGP Suleiman Abba (fresh from badly burning his fingers in the Police invasion of the National Assembly) and the director-general of DSS to arrest anyone who was fomenting alleged treason in the land.

    His idea of “treason” was public commentaries on soldiers court-martialled to die for mutiny, who nevertheless countered that the state had not adequately armed them, therefore could not logically have charged them with refusing to fight, according to their service oath.

    Adesiyan threatened the arrest of Rivers Governor Rotimi Amaechi and probably former President Olusegun Obasanjo, for allegedly making inciting statements on security matters. Phew, this Jelili clearly thought this was a police state and not a democracy!

    Inasmuch as no one should trifle with security matters or encourage mutiny in the army, is it fair in a democracy for the ruling agents to clamber on security scare mongering, to criminalise the citizens’ right to ask probing questions?  If the Army headquarters end up court-martialling an indecently high number of mutinying soldiers — and still counting — is it not legitimate query to halt and re-examine the basics, lest the mass sentencing to death is a symptom covering the real root of the crisis?

    Of course, the security scarecrow is a great mask, hiding blind panic by the Jonathan Presidency.  Not unlike the Biblical Saul whose the kingship had left but still clutched at the straw of seeking to destroy the innocent David, the Jonathan court, smelling crushing defeat in the coming election, is now barring its fangs on the opposition, which it fears would be its nemesis.

    Well, you can’t spank a child and expect it not to cry. Still, Adesiyan’s sick cocktail of bragging, vulgar abuse and old wives’ tale would just not do.

  • Jonathan and ‘the next four or five years’

    If it wasn’t such a self-serving projection, President Goodluck Jonathan’s optimistic conclusion about the country’s immediate future should be very welcome. It was interesting that he made his rosy but thought-provoking remarks at the Christ Apostolic Church, Garki Area 1, Abuja, on the last Sunday of the year; but this doesn’t necessarily translate into a confident and infallible prophecy.

    Jonathan said: “As a nation, we have not reached where we want to go; definitely not. But we are coming up with a number of policies.” He continued: “Those who are taking pains to look at what we are doing will agree with us that if we progress as a nation steadily in this manner, in the next four or five years, this country will be a better place.”

    For a politician who is seeking re-election next year, it was probably expected that he would seize every platform for self-promotion; but even that could be carried too far, and could be done against the dictates of reason and the dictates of conscience.

    Evidently, to go by his words, Jonathan considers himself a strong factor when it comes to realising the dream of a better Nigeria. Well, he is certainly entitled to his exaggerated sense of self-importance; and he is free to imagine things, not to say hallucinate. But it is surely beyond the bounds of sense to suggest that the country has made steady progress on his watch. It is even more unreasonable to believe that staying on the same track with Jonathan will result in the country’s desired progress.

    By now, those who are familiar with Jonathan’s irreverent use of pulpits for the purpose of political promotion should no longer be dismayed. If he insists that the pulpit is where a president should make strange claims about railway improvement, agricultural advancement, creation of employment opportunities, economic stabilisation despite falling oil prices and the coming elections, then it further reveals that he probably has not only a misplaced sense of place, but also a misplaced sense of propriety.

    The truth is that the sacred environment cannot positively transform falsehood, even when the person involved is falsely credited with having brought transformation to the country by those who tag themselves “Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria.” Jonathan’s tales of progress never pass the truth test, which is the honest truth about his dishonesty.

    Consider what he said in church about the 2015 elections. Jonathan said: “None of us should begin to think that he is the best person to be anywhere from state houses of assembly to the president. There are a thousand and one Nigerians that are super qualified more than those people who are even aspiring to occupy offices.”

    If he wasn’t just acting a deceptive script, he must be aware that his actions contradict his words. This is the same man who outrageously stage-managed his emergence as his party’s unchallenged presidential candidate, driven by a fantasy that he is the best and there is none as qualified as him. Or does he mean the people should hear his words and be blind to his deeds?

  • HARDBALL

    HARDBALL

    May God hear Pope’s prayer on Nigeria

    Pope Francis’ Christmas Day informal intervention in strife in Nigeria, specifically the apparently religious war by Islamic fundamentalists under the banner of Boko Haram, should be cause for deep reflection by the presidency, which does not seem to be winning.  It is noteworthy that the Goodluck Jonathan administration extended emergency rule in the troubled Northeastern states of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe by another six months with no end to the destructive conflict in sight. There are indications that the insurgents have reviewed their strategy in a counter move to the government’s approach, and their recent devastating penetration of military facilities demonstrated that they were not about to surrender or concede defeat.

    So, when the new Vicar of Christ, elected on March 13, in his first “Urbi et Orbi”  (to the city and world) message on the theme of peace,  called for a dialogue to resolve the violence, he was understandably speaking as a priest and perhaps without a clear understanding of the basic issues. It is certainly difficult to imagine a compromise on the part of the rebels, who have escalated hostilities since 2009 and callously terrorised the people with a view to imposing an Islamic theocracy, which amounts to an unacceptable contradiction of the secularity emphasised by the country’s constitution. How do you talk with closed-minded desperadoes who refuse to co-exist with others outside their own faith?

    Ironically, the Roman Catholic leader, who preached a homily of harmony to tens of thousands of the faithful from the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, represented a symbol of the very religion that Boko Haram considers anathema and deserving of destruction, to go by its consistent attacks on churches.  It is interesting that with particular reference to the peace process between Israelis and Palestinians, and the crisis in Nigeria, Syria, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Iraq, the chief of the 1.2 billion-member church said: “God is peace; let us ask him to help us to be peacemakers each day, in our life, in our families, in our cities and nations, in the whole world.”

    Of course, the Pope’s recommendation of dialogue in connection with the Nigerian conflict is not novel; various other voices from different quarters have before now suggested that the government should pursue the path of negotiation and lay down arms. However, there is no doubt that, on account of his immense stature and moral influence,  the Pope’s verbal mediation has not only further publicised the clash internationally, it has also reinforced the need for government  to critically re-evaluate its road map to peace. It is a development that demands a high degree of strategic creativity, especially in the light of the fact that the prolonged fighting continues to arrest progress in the affected areas.

    It is intriguing that the government has been unable to crush the rebellion through the force of weapons, which makes the Pope’s wisdom attractive.  However, apart from the rigid resistance of the militants to dialogue, there is the inevitable possibility that such accommodation may set a counter-productive precedence, which could be exploited by others. The situation places the administration in a tight spot, but it will need to do something anyway and expeditiously too.

    It is clear that the world is watching and waiting to see how answers will be provided to the problem, and what answers.  The Pope’s supplication for peace brings to mind the poetic construction of Alfred Lord Tennyson, who wrote: “More things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of.”  In this context, it is optimistic to dream of a New Year that will bring an end to terror in the land. May God hear the Pope’s prayer!

  • Baba, the Bard and barbs

    Baba, the Bard and barbs

    Still on his Watch, Baba and the Bard (BAB) just tangled. Is it any wonder barbs are flying from the Bard, that takes no lexical prisoners?

    Baba, former President Olusegun Obasanjo, has committed the literary equivalent of the proverbial Islamic zealot that carries his saara (votive offering) beyond the mosque.  The last time the Ebora Owu committed such literary harakiri, he was still the all-mighty president.

    But not even that illusion could save Baba from the Kongi tempest, sending Baba hurtling down the literary plane, as a vicious hurricane would uproot a big tree and send it zipping on the horizon, like some tiny pin!

    Phew!  Had Baba compared notes with those who inherited his court, they would not have committed similar suicide.  Not so long ago, a certain presidential spouse tried her lexical kindergarten on this same bard — and open sesame, a new lexicon birthed on Nigeria’s literary space: sheppopotamus!  This bard sure takes no prisoners.  Lexical mis-adventurers, beware!

    But like a doomed dog deaf to the hunter’s whistle, Baba would go court avoidable trouble. In his latest book, My Watch, Baba ran his mouth on the Nobel laureate’s alleged shakabula (crude, inaccurate) reputation as a political pundit.

    Hear Baba Iyabo declare with flourish: He is a “misfit as a political analyst, commentator or critic … For Wole, no one can be good, nor can anything be spot-on politically except that which emanates from him or is ordained by him … I take him seriously on almost all issues except on the political, particularly Nigerian politics.”

    Since Baba chose literature, a field in which the Nobel laureate is well grounded to dismiss him as a “bloody amateur”, the same way the general would, in military conceit, dismiss non-soldiers as “bloody civilians”, Kongi chose D.O. Fagunwa’s Yoruba classic, Igbo Olodumare, to paint an unflattering portraiture of Obasanjo’s public persona. That persona belonged, according to the book, to the worst set of humans who, when they die, in Fagunwa’s fictive cosmogony, don’t go to heaven or hell direct, but are garrisoned somewhere, for extreme wickedness, while on earth.

    The Bard declared that the alleged persona of his amateur literary traducer, from Fagunwa’s classification, belongs to the seventh and worst of this class of people.

    More details on that persona, according to WS, quoting Fagunwa: “With his mouth, he ruined the work of others, while he used a big potsherd to cover the good works of some, that others might not see their attainments. He nosed around for secrets that would entrap his companions, and blew them up into monumental crimes in the eyes of the world. He who turns the world upside down, places the deceitful on the throne, casts the truthful down — because such is a being of base earth, he will never stand as equal among the uplifted …”

    Does that really add up Baba’s public image, though the Bard insists the man is an unfazed master of mendacity? The jury is out!

    But before you could call WS, our Bard rounded off with sarcastic flourish: “So, let our Great Immortal, the Unparalleled Achiever, Divinely appointed Watchman … remember Fagunwa’s Iku, the ultimate predator whose visitation comes to us all, sooner or later.  Chei! There is Death o!”

    Did a certain presidential spouse feel some collateral heat?

  • Just what Obasanjo loves to hear about himself

    What should the people make of the news that former President Olusegun Obasanjo has been credited with uncommon brilliance by a professor in an academic context? Coming from a senior academic in the country’s university system, it was a thought-provoking praise for an ex-leader who continues to inspire a committed and venomous circle of public attackers.

    Obasanjo’s intellectual fan, Prof. ‘Deji Ayegboyin of the University of Ibadan, Oyo State, reportedly made the flattering observation after a two-hour teacher-student interaction with him. Ayegboyin said he was highly impressed during their meeting in his office in Ibadan to explore how Obasanjo should approach his PhD programme and thesis focused on “Liberation Theology.”

    The don, who is supervising Obasanjo’s PhD studies at the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), said: “I took Chief Obasanjo for two hours in my office and my impression of him is that he is extraordinarily brilliant. He asked probing and intimidating questions, which show that he is extremely interested in the topic of the thesis.” Ayegboyin’s choice of descriptive words   carries a hint of determined exaggeration. Just what does he mean by the description, “extraordinarily brilliant”?

    Since it is unclear how Ayegboyin arrived at this assessment, which may not be empirically provable, it is possible that Obasanjo’s considerable political weight was a factor, whether consciously or unconsciously. Could Ayegboyin have said anything less glorious about this special student who has been a military head of state and two-term democratic president? With all due respect to the professor, it won’t be out of place in this matter to wonder whether he was in any way influenced to paint a politically correct picture of Obasanjo. In other words, was Ayegboyin guided by the respectable principle of intellectual honesty when he painted Obasanjo’s alleged intellectual gift in such bright and beautiful colours?

    Interestingly, Ayegboyin’s suggestion that Obasanjo possessed the qualities of a genius was probably never suspected or appreciated by the people during his years in power. It should, therefore, not surprise anyone if, for example, Obasanjo completes his PhD in Theology in record time. It is relevant to note that a press statement issued by University of Ibadan spokesman, Mr. Olatunji Oladejo, quoted Obasanjo as saying:  “I have disciplined myself under the tutelage of my supervisors for effective learning to take place. And I had got assignments from them which I must have to work on.”

    It is easy to imagine that Obasanjo must be thrilled by Ayegboyin’s positive remarks, which could pass for honourable intellectual endorsement, especially when juxtaposed with the image of an allegedly clueless President Goodluck Jonathan who ironically has a PhD.

    For a man who has consistently demonstrated an often nauseating sense of self-love, self-worth and self-projection that borders on narcissism and shuts out everyone else, Obasanjo got just the kind of things he loves to hear from Ayegboyin. Of course, he is entitled to all the flattery and sycophancy he can get, but he would be gravely mistaken to believe everything or think that the people believe everything.

  • Chibok: Xmas 2014

    hristmas 2013: The Chibok girls, probably poor but happy, celebrated with their proud parents.  If anyone had told the doting parents that one year hence, their girls would be nowhere to be found, they would have dismissed such a thought.  That is the way of humans.

    Christmas 2013: The gods of Aso Rock were eating chicken and turkey and washing them down with choice champagne.  They ate with the double assurance of people given jobs and are doing them — in any case, would do them anytime they were called upon to do so.  They ate and made merry — and why not?

    Christmas 2014: At Chibok, do they even know it is Christmas?  Even if they do, and there is indeed some merriment to mark the occasion, would it not be just the oppressive memories of the last year — when there was laughter in the house, the girls were happy, the parents were loving.  Even the harmattan, dry and biting cold, could not break the glow of parental love and filial joy. Not so, this year: the joy is gone and the hearth is dog-nose cold!   It is the way of despondent and subdued humans.

    Christmas 2014: In Aso Rock, the air of merriment tarries: clinking of glasses, downing of wine, strutting on the dance floor, wolfing down choice victuals, all the works!  Yet, the gods that feast so much, and so unceasingly, have not done what the state feasts them for!  Ah, how blessed is the way of the gods!

    When the Chibok girls crowed Merry Christmas and bawled Happy New Year in 2013, they verily believed — and why not, or aren’t the gods billeted in Aso Rock? — that they were safe and well protected; and that no harm could come to them.  Theirs, however, has been a painful illusion.  When it mattered, the gods failed them.

    But were the gods sorry for this grand failure?  Hardly!  Boko Haram, murderous Islamist kidnappers and murderers, have captured the girls, all 276 of them, though 57 managed to escape, leaving 219 — and so what?  Must that stop the gods in their celestial revelry?

    It was unfortunate; and if Doyin Okupe is to be quoted, it is a pain we must learn to bear.  But should that stop the state from functioning, the government from running, the president from running for election, his camp from campaigning?  Indeed, should it?

    Of course, not!  Who can change the grim decree of the gods — mere mortals?

    Still, as they wine and dine this Christmas at the Abuja seat of power, they must realise that citizens, lost girls, the future flower of our nation and their distraught parents, law-abiding citizens, are in deep mourning.  It is double jeopardy, melancholy at Christmas.  Melancholy is bad enough, any time.  But when it blights Christmas, that season of joy and goodwill, then it is something very devastating.  Yet, that is the state at Chibok.

    So, compatriots, as you enjoy your Christmas, just spare a thought for both victims and the failed gods.  For the victims, pray for the girls’ eventual return, safe and sound.  That grieving parent could be you and the missing girl, your daughter.

    But the failed gods?  Declare: never!  Never again, a band of purposeless and incompetent people, as our leaders!

    That is Hardball’s exhortation this happy season.  Merry Christmas — and a complete sack of failed gods in the New Year!

  • Shameless pugilism

    Shameless pugilism

    Herbal missiles are flying in the aftermath of the intensely divisive December 8 governorship primary election of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Lagos State. Although casualties are yet to be counted, it is likely that the raging battle will consume giant egos. Reports said “guns boomed” during the intra-party poll held at Yard 158 Event Centre, Kudirat Abiola Road, Oregun, Ikeja, which may be considered as the forerunner of the war of words.

    It is interesting to note that the cause of the bitterness has become a court matter.  Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, a former Minister of State for Defence, who was apparently worsted in the primary, has challenged the outcome in the temple of justice. Obanikoro, who is pursuing the cancellation of the election, alleged that some prominent personalities in the party were biased against him and created an enabling environment for electoral fraud, which was to his disadvantage. He named Chief Olabode George and Senator Adeseye Ogunlewe, and accused them of unfairly promoting the aspiration of Mr. Jimi Agbaje, who was declared winner of the primary.

    George’s reaction to the allegation of electoral manipulation sounded like a volcanic eruption. He described Obanikoro as “a desperate and obsessed man, who is apparently incapable of absorbing the reality of his defeat by a well-bred and better man.” He continued: “Surely, Obanikoro is possessed and obsessed. He needs psychiatric treatment. He is a desperate sinking man, grasping and thrashing in self-inflicted chasm.” In conclusion, George said: “Enough of his desperate tantrums and lunacy. Lagos has moved on, far beyond the primitive wretchedness of little, ill-bred hooligans.”

    Obanikoro’s counter-statement was spiced with innuendos about George’s experience with the law over corruption-related charges connected with his time as Chairman of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), despite the voiding of his prison sentence and imprisonment by the Supreme Court. “For whatever it is worth,” Obanikoro said, “it is to Chief George’s credit that his family name is tainted and now constitutes a generational blemish as Nigeria’s leading metaphor for gross moral deficit, lack of integrity and public dishonour.” He added: “As Chief Bode George embarks on his feeble attempts at painting a picture of me that exists only in his imagination, let someone remind him that the post-traumatic stress disorder that comes with a time in jail would take more than just an unholy alliance with a pharmacist to heal.”  The reference to a pharmacist represented an unmistakable inclusion of Agbaje.

    “In all my life and public service career,” Obanikoro boasted, “I have never been accused, arrested or convicted for fraud whether at home or abroad and I have been happily and responsibly married for 34 years.” Again, the domestic dimension was clearly a dark hint about George’s married life.

    By the look of things, this bout may yet feature even more image-damaging blows, given the ferocity of the fighters. It has all the promising ingredients of a fight to the finish; but it remains to be seen whether the warriors are shameless enough to carry on the battle at the expense of what is left of their dignity

  • Okupe-istic apostasy

    Okupe-istic apostasy

    A columnist with The Nation hit on the coinage, Okupe-istic cant, describing presidential public affairs spokesperson, Dr. Doyin  Okupe, and his great deeds.  Had that columnist tarried awhile, he would even have been gifted with a bigger catch: Okupe-istic apostasy!

    That is the latest from the stable of the stout and doughty Dr. Okupe who, somewhat reminds you, not of the graceful foot works or even the defence rope-a-dope of Muhammad Ali (The Greatest), but the brawl-and-let’s-brawl boxing philosophy of Smoking Joe Frazier (of blessed memory).

    Hear The Greatest, pay a pre-fight tribute, to his gamesome opponent: “It would be a thriller, when I square up with the gorrilla, in Manilla.”  That match-up, which ended in a 14th round TKO victory for Ali, was more than a thriller. It was the closest to death, Ali conceded of the victory over the man that handed him his first professional defeat!

    So, when Okupe does his chores, in the defence of his principal, President Goodluck Jonathan, he takes no prisoners.  He could be blown out, as a typhoon blows out everything in its way, as George Foreman twice blew out Frazier; or be savagely competitive, in a loss or win, as Frazier fared with Ali in their three fights.  But never is Okupe, a bit thickset not unlike Frazier, known to be a quitter.  No matter the punishment, he always bobs up for more — in the defence of his principal!

    Even then, Okupe’s latest misadventure, of comparing his embattled principal to Jesus Christ, has earned the gamesome presidential spokesman perhaps the greatest shellacking of his presidential spin career. Hardly any section has not heavily descended on Okupe on his rather impolitic, not to talk of careless, reckless and religiously irreverent comparison.

    Yet, what Okupe meant to say was that his boss was longsuffering and patient, a line which an angry editorial of The Nation even took to the cleaners. Jonathan, it contended, was not elected because he was the meekest or the gentlest. He was elected to do a job, for which he zealously presented himself — and he may as well get on with that job!  Phew, what comeuppance!

    But the Okupe unfortunate allusion somewhat reminds Hardball of another literary parallel, in Wole Soyinka’s play, The Strong Breed, in which the tragic hero, is a traditional Jesus of a kind, bearing the burden of his community, after a yearly ritual.  To the community, his sacrifice is a boon, on which consummation of the life and wellness of the community depended.  But for the poor human mule, it was sheer pain!

    Okupe, by his choice of metaphor, and the flak he got, gives the impression of the strong breed, put to an impossible chore.  Were Jonathan a popular and winsome figure, the reckless Okupe-istic (that coinage again!) metaphor would still have been condemnable, because of its insensitivity to the Christian faith.  Still, perhaps not a few would have rationalised, excused and generally spoken out in veiled defence of the mistake.

    But for Jonathan, with his eternal bumbling, whom earlier Okupe had nevertheless blabbed was the best president Nigeria had ever had?  Doyin Okupe certainly had it coming!

    Perhaps the doyen of reckless comparisons and irrational allusions will now learn to keep his peace — if he has nothing worthwhile to say.  That sure would be better than earning Okupe-istic scorn!

     

  • The Patience patrimony

    If you think that by the above title, Hardball has rolled out a new blockbuster novel, well, you must have to wait a bit longer. This is not the book yet, though it might sound like it. This is about the recent ‘insurgence’ of our matriarch and number one woman in the land – Dame Patience and wife of President Goodluck Jonathan. She is also known as Mama Peace.

    Last weekend, Mama was in her native land; her ancestry in Okrika, in Rivers State. She was attending the funeral of the late Senator Tari Sekibo in her homeland and in this season of undiluted politicking, she is not one to throw away a great opportunity to play in the field and score great political goals. In fact, if Nigeria’s politics today can be likened to football, Mama would be indisputably, Lionel Messi.

    To buttress our point, Mama gathered members of the Council of Okrika Chiefs and addressing them, she said pointedly: “Before you today, is the next governor of Rivers State. He is the former Minister of State for Education, Barrister Nyesom Wike…”

    Those are not limp, ordinary words of a mother; no, that was a ‘patriarch’ addressing the chiefs of the land, issuing directives and handing down imposition.

    Igboland and indeed, most part of Nigeria is patrimonial, meaning that a woman does not assume the stool of the land and in most cases, does not partake in inheritance, especially where there are male children. But from the unfolding Okrika milieu, Mama Patience has assumed the role of the patriarch of that great, ancient land. The only thing she has not done is to climb the stool.

    Though there may be other factors, it could be said that the chief cause of the tiff between Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State and the first family is the issue of the proposed redevelopment of the Okrika waterfront by Amaechi.

    Recall that at the inauguration of that major urban renewal project about two years ago, the First Lady and the Governor almost had a punch up in public. Mama was said to have virtually snatched the microphone from the governor and went on to rebuke him publicly for attempting to displace his people in the guise of urban renewal. The governor on the other hand had reportedly stormed off the scene to avoid further breaches of protocol and public order.

    However, Governor Amaechi is known to have gone on with what was a key government initiative and what has turned out today to be one of the signal projects of the administration. They say there is no anger like that of a woman whose pride is injured. If such a woman happens to be a very powerful woman and indeed, the number one woman in the land who has the ears of the commander-in-chief, then one might as well rouse an earthquake.

    Since then, Mama Peace has not forgotten or forgiven and Rivers State has known no peace. Some of the offshoot is that the state’s legislature has been rested sine die and the judiciary caught in the crossfire and made comatose. The epic battle is ahead: who occupies Government House next year? Mama the Okrika Patriarch has broken all bounds to publicly endorse her candidate, Wike. Governor Amaechi backs APC man, Dakuku Peterside. Who will rescue the state?

     

  • Democracy of stray bullets

    There was no picture, but the report was sufficient to provoke a mental image. If there was any doubt about the pollution of the country’s democratic environment, the incontrovertible evidence was provided at the December 8 governorship primary election of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Lagos State. The venue was Yard 158 Event Centre, Kudirat Abiola Road, Oregun, Ikeja.

    A newspaper report said: “One of the aspirants, Mr. Babatunde Gbadamosi (aka BOG), wore a bullet proof vest. He told reporters that he was protecting himself from being hit by a stray bullet.”

    Now, why would you have bullets flying around aimlessly at an event organised to choose the gubernatorial face of a political party? Who would be in possession of guns at the place, and who would do the shooting?

    It would appear that Gbadamosi may not have been thinking only of the armed policemen, who were ostensibly meant to provide security and came with dogs. There must have been other possibilities, perhaps known to him, which could lead to “being hit by a stray bullet.”  In this context, it is noteworthy that the report said “guns boomed” and “thugs loyal to some aspirants clashed.”

    Gbadamosi was quoted as saying: “I am wearing the bulletproof vest because I am afraid of being shot. I am urging all my supporters to come and not be intimidated.” It is not clear whether his supporters also wore bulletproof vests. If they did, it would suggest combat readiness of a disturbing level. But what if they didn’t? Well, wouldn’t it suggest that Gbadamosi cared little about what could become of them, if bullets started flying as he seemingly anticipated?

    The combat-ready aspirant further said: “There is fear of intimidation and some people in the party want to intimidate the delegates, but we will ensure that everyone will vote freely as it pleases them.” Interestingly, in the end, Gbadamosi scored 21 votes and lost the election.

    It was a dramatic day indeed, considering that another report said: “While counting was going on, there was uproar, as some persons tried to grab the ballot box.”  Also, it said: “While 806 delegates were recorded, 863 ballots were counted at the end of the election, a development that caused a disagreement.”

    It is likely that those who “tried to grab the ballot box” were enemies of democracy, just as it is undemocratic that 863 ballots were counted, while 806 delegates were recorded. No one has been able to explain the 57 strange votes.

    Perhaps not surprisingly, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, a former Minister of State for Defence, who was worsted in the primary, has challenged the magical figures. “We must stand by the truth and the truth is that last Monday’s primary must be cancelled and reconducted,” he said.

    Whether truth can be built on fabrication, or fabrication on truth, must be a major consideration in this still-developing story. However, it is easy to see that standing truth on its head, such as was demonstrated by the result of this particular primary election, cannot advance democracy.

    Furthermore, a political party that accommodates such shameless fraud deserves to be rubbished.