The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Political

  • Character in political leadership

    “Character, in the long run, is the decisive factor in the life of an individual and of nations alike.” –Theodore Roosevelt

    Lack of strong leadership has become a bane in our country, Nigeria. Politically, economically, and socially, our country has continued to experience moral decay. This is manifested in political corruption, economic uncertainty, decline in family values, poverty, greed, crime, and so on. Sometimes, I shudder at some kind of people that are elected or appointed into political offices in Nigeria –people who talk anyhow, ill-tempered, ‘fantastically corrupt’, without foundation in leadership, without ideology, focus, goals, and direction. In other words, we’ve so many ‘characters’ in the Nigerian political drama that lack character!

    This reminds me of ‘The 7 Blunders of the World’ postulated by the great Indian leader, Mahatma Gandhi. Three of the ‘Blunders’ that are related to this article are: Knowledge without Character, Wealth without Work, and Politics without Principles. And because we now have politicians without principles, that’s why we’ve what’s best referred to as ‘Political Prostitution’–defecting from one party to another aimlessly!

    Similarly, Dr. Myles Munroe also alluded to the fact that because political/governmental leadership now give priority to other qualities of leadership other than character, we’ve produced… “Charismatic Leaders without Character; Gifted Leaders without Convictions; Powerful Leaders without Principles; Intellectual Leaders without Morality; Visionary Leaders without Values…” This conforms to the saying that “the people get the kind of leaders they deserve.”

    If my memory serves me right, since the inception of democracy in 1999, the government seems not to ‘disappoint’ Nigerians when it comes to ‘Character Deficiency’ in political leadership. Take the House of Representatives, for instance: former Speaker (1999), Hon. Salisu Buhari resigned as Speaker because of press allegations of ‘Toronto University forged certificate’. We’ll not forget in a hurry the alleged bribery of $620, 000 between Hon. Farouk Lawan and Mr. Femi Otedola on fuel subsidy probe. The issue of ghost workers and BVN verification and of course, the latest ‘released drama’ of allegation and counter allegation of ‘Budget Padding’ that have torn the House apart!

    In my opinion, there’s a very wide difference between our politicians of today and the founding fathers. For instance, our founding fathers were after rendering selfless service to the nation; most of today’s politicians are after their selfish interest. Our founding fathers gave priority to character-building; today’s politicians are after creating crises. In the time of our founding fathers, Nigeria was well-respected in the international community because we had leaders of character. They exerted influence in the world arena because their words were congruent with their actions. But most politicians of today, their words are in sharp contrast with their actions. A politician who’s in party A, for instance, will sing all the praises for his party and its leadership in the morning; but guess what? The same politician, by means of ‘Political Prostitution’ joins party B, will inflict verbal injuries to the same party (A); it’s appalling, the level of moral depravity exhibited by some of them. It seems most of them don’t have something they stand for. Little wonder, Martin Luther King Jr. said, “If a man hasn’t discovered something he will die [stand] for, he isn’t fit to live.”

    What does all this lead us to? Of course, we’re paying (and will continue to) for the dire consequences of character deficiency in our political leaders! Some of such negative effects of character deficiency in political leadership are: (1) It has created a psyche of high distrust among the general public –most Nigerians no longer trust the politicians and political appointees, no matter how good-intentioned they may be; (2) The character flaws of a politician often end up hurting the general public. For instance, the death of over 20 persons in the infamous Nigeria Immigration Service recruitment in 2014 was caused by sharp practices by the leadership. Yes, “A leader’s values may be personal”, said Myles Munroe, “But they are never private.” (3) It can tarnish the reputation of the government and the country. The current allegations of budget padding, physical assaults on one another on the floor of the National Assembly, for example, are brushes that paint the country black. (4) It causes backwardness and under-development of a state or a country. Of course, Nigeria as a country is where it is not because we lack resources or human capital, but because we lack political leaders of character who are resourceful with our abundant natural resources. Most Nigerians are living in abject poverty in the midst of plenty because of bad leadership over the years. Indeed, “character defects are like sleeping snakes that awaken and strike people…” wrote Myles Munroe.

    However, in as much as our political leadership is mostly saturated with character-deficient politicians, we still have an infinitesimal number of politicians with strong character numerous to mention. However for Nigeria to attain the status of a great nation, we desperately need leaders of impeccable character like Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi, Winston Churchill, Abraham Lincoln, Jerry Rawlings, Lee Kuan Yew of Singapore, Margaret Thatcher, Mrs. Funmilayo, Ransome-Kuti, Prof. Dora Akunyili, the amiable and inimitable Uche Anyadiegwu, Helen Johnson-Sirleaf, President Of Liberia, and Of course Prof. Stella Chinyere Okunna.

    All these were/ are great leaders of character with rock-laden convictions stronger than their fears! They were great men and women who exerted influence and leadership is all about influence. “The essence of influence is the ability to motivate people to take action and effect change”, wrote Myles Munroe, “You can’t lead if you don’t influence…” And genuine followers are only influenced by leaders of character!

    If only we have just 20 per cent of our present day politicians like the above, I bet that Nigeria would’ve been better than where we are now. When Theodore Roosevelt observed that character is the decisive factor in the life of an individual and of nations alike; it tells us of the imperative of character in political leadership. All nations that have advanced economically, technologically and politically, are in my view, nations who have had political leaders with character at helm of affairs at different stages of the life of those nations.

    Character is the foundation of all aspects of effective leadership. There’s no true leadership without character. In fact, there’s no substitute for character in leadership! It is indispensable! Therefore, if we must make progress in Nigeria, our political leaders have no option but to build strong character. Because, according to Myles Munroe, ‘Leaders influence the mind-set of the followers; they influence the morality of the followers; they influence the commitment of the followers; and they influence the destiny of the followers’.

    It is my hope, prayer and earnest desire that our political leaders would wake up to the realization of the fact that Character Deficit is the main source of our sore troubles in Nigeria. To this end, we must give priority to character development in political leadership. In other words, there can be no effective (political) leadership without CHARACTER!

     

    • Chijioke, writes from the Faculty of Law, University of Nigeria, Enugu Campus.
  • Sheriff’s camp urges political solution to PDP crisis

    Sheriff’s camp urges political solution to PDP crisis

    The camp of the embattled National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Ali Modu Sheriff, has called for a political solution to the party’s leadership crisis.

    The stand-off between Sheriff and the chairman of the party’s Caretaker Committee, Senator Ahmed Makarfi, has polarised the ranks of stakeholders, as both camps have continued to lay claim to the leadership.

    Making the call at the weekend, the immediate past National Vice Chairman (South-South) of the PDP, Dr. Cairo Ojougboh, urged the Board of Trustees (BoT) to immediately facilitate a meeting between the warring factions.

    According to him,  the crisis requires a political solution, and the cases instituted by both camps, if allowed to go on, would hamper the chances of the party in the forth coming governorship elections in Edo and Ondo states.

    Ojougboh warned that if the BoT failed to save the situation, it could degenerate into an intractable situation capable of preventing the party from fielding candidates in future elections.

    The party chieftain dismissed claims by the Makarfi camp that Sheriff was hired by the All Progressives Congress (APC) to destroy the PDP, arguing that if the APC was sponsoring the embattled chairman, the police and the Department of State Service (DSS) would have taken sides with Sheriff.

    Said he, “The police invited both Makarfi and Sheriff  and tried to settle their differences. That is how the BoT should also behave. We are urging our leaders to be dispassionate in this matter.

    “The answer is not too difficult to proffer.  There is a court judgement by an Abuja High Court delivered by Justice Mohammed. In that judgement, it is stated clearly that the tenure of Sheriff ends in 2018, because Sheriff was elected by NEC to complete the tenure of Adamu Mu’azu.

    “A letter also written by INEC to PDP suspended the convention, saying that there should be no election into the offices of Chairman, National Secretary and Auditor. With all these put together, if you look at it legally and from the rule of law, you will see that Sheriff has a judgement and the law on his side.

    “Now, one begins to wonder. One of the emperors in the party, somebody like Mr. Nyesom Wike, is governor today by virtue of the courts and the rule of law.

    “Wilke lost at the court of first instance. He lost at another court in the second instance and won at the Supreme Court. But no one has come to tell Wike to allow for the political process to play, or to step down from being governor of Rivers”.

    Dr. Ojougboh noted that no one had appealed the judgement delivered in favour of Sheriff, adding that the embattled chairman has a good case.

  • Addressing political violence (For Kudirat Abiola)

    Addressing political violence (For Kudirat Abiola)

    This Saturday marks the 20th anniversary of the martyrdom of Alhaja Kudirat Abiola. She did not volunteer her life to be ended by the assassin’s bullet. Rather they killed her because they believed that she was in their way. What she stood for was antithetical to their belief. She stood for democracy and respect for the voice of the people freely expressed. They stood for dictatorship and the muzzling of the voice of the people with the gun. The only way they knew to deal with that situation of opposing views on the best form of government or approach to governance was by violently silencing her.

    Kudirat Abiola was not the first to suffer that fate. In the first and second republics, intolerance of opposing political views and positions claimed the lives of many innocent citizens. And when we include the mother of all political violence-the insane fratricidal war- it is beyond doubt that we are in a special league of irrational politics in which reason plays a subsidiary role to emotion.

    Alhaja Abiola has not been the last either. Since the beginning of the Fourth Republic, we have seen an escalation of political assassination across the board of political party platforms. From ANPP Chieftain Marshall Harry to Attorney-General Bola Ige and Engineer Funsho Williams, political assassination has been the norm in the so-called new dispensation.

    How do we make sense of this irrationality? Let me admit that it begs the question to suggest that it is irrational to engage in political violence. For we have to first understand what is irrational in the behavior or practice. For those politicians who deem violence the most efficient and effective means to the end they desire, it may be the height of rationality if in fact it is truly efficient and effective. This cannot be determined in the abstract. Therefore, for them, we cannot pronounce the irrationality of political violence a priori.

    On the other hand, if you believe, as I do, that certain conducts are irrational no matter the contribution they make to the realization of a desired end, then, you might be persuaded to agree that political violence is irrational. To make sense of this claim, we need only to ask ourselves the question posed by the Golden Rule: how would I like it if I was the recipient? What if it happened to me? And if we are not willing to be the recipient, but we choose to inflict violence on others, to that extent we are irrational because we are not consistent in what we will for others and what we will for self. Inconsistency and irrationality are identical twins.

    Political violence is irrational to the extent that none of its perpetrators will it for themselves. So the obvious question is “why inflict it on others?

    There are several answers to this question. There are two categories of agents of political violence. First there are state agents, those who wield state power, claim the protection of the state and claim to act in the interest of the state. And while the law or the constitution does not offer them any protection, they claim it anyway, with the connivance of other agents of state, especially the judiciary. In the darks days of military dictatorship, separation of power was a myth as the maximum ruler held sway over all levers of power. Therefore, what the constitution doesn’t permit is doneanyway, or the constitution itself is suspended.

    It was, therefore, easy for the dictator and his agents to commit evil against whoever was perceived to stand in their way. They had the raw power and no one can ask questions. It was state terrorism. It was the kind of power that even traditional rulers in our monarchical past did not possess because, at least in Yorubaland, these rulers had to contend with a number of checks and balances.

    Beside the state agents, there are those who aspire to become state agents. In a democratic system, the ballot box is the tool for the choice of rulers. This means that prospective rulers have to canvass the support of the electorates. Where freedoms of choice and association are respected values, and the humanity of everyone is recognized, this practice offers itself as the best. But not everyone respects the humanity of others, and certainly there are free citizens who are only too willing to deny the freedom of others. For them, placing their policy platforms before the electorate to compete with those of their opponents is just too much when they can sponsor violent attacks against them and their supporters.

    We all probably understand even if we do not endorse the motivations of these two sponsors of political violence—state agents and prospective state agents. There is a third category, namely the human tools and instruments that they use. Abacha didn’t go out himself to fire the shot that took the life of Alhaja Abiola. And those that pumped bullets into the body of Chief Ige and waited to see him breath his last, were different from those who really wanted him dead and sponsored his murder.

    These instruments and tools in the hands of the big bosses are the wretched of our earth. They entertain no qualm to kill for money. They make themselves available for the highest bidder. But who gets into this kind of “kill for money” business? The answer is not far-fetched. They are the ones created by the policies and practices of state agents who ride into power with the help of willing tools who inflict violence on the innocent. And as long as these state agents get their way, they will always willingly and deliberately produce willing tools to do their dirty jobs.

    Beside the state agents, aspiring state agents and their murderous willing tools, however, there are the enablers who encourage the actors either by their staying silent in the face of evil or by actively rewarding evil with their votes. Enablers are as morally culpable as the perpetrators of violence and together they account for the untimely deaths of thousands of innocent human beings in the last twenty-three years, excluding the first and second republics.

    Unfortunately, we cannot wish away political violence as long as the conditions for its existence in our body politics subsist. These include, first, mass unemployment of youths and young adults who willing tools simply because the big men they work for have the means to hire them.

    Second is the promising prospect of easy money in national politics. As governors, senators,representatives, and local government chairmen are seen as super-rich and their lifestyle confirms the narrative, many more citizens will be attracted to politics, and to ensure that they have a good shot at positions, they will recruit “boys” to “work” for them.

    Third isthe absence of strong institutions to enforce the laws against political violence. Many victims of political violence either suffer in silence or take to self-help because institutions of law enforcement have been deliberately weakened to the point that they are not capable of performing their constitutional duties. The police tragically take side with any government in power against the dictates of fairness. For politicians of an opposition party to rely on police protection from harm is seen by many of them as the height of folly, if not self-abnegation.

    Can we reverse our culture of political violence? To the extent that it is not an innate tendency of our humanity,and certainly not of our Africanness, one cannot foreclose its reversal. But there has to be a deliberate and sustained effort to humanize our systems and strengthen our institutions. How is this to be done and who is to take charge?

    Politicians have proved ill-equipped because the majority of them benefit from the chaos despite their constitutional obligation. Therefore, morally conscious citizens muststand up and call them out. Alhaja Abiola and other victims of mindless political violence deserve nothing less. For their sake we must address and reverse the culture of political violence. Their martyrdom must not be in vain.

  • ‘Political leaders greatest threat to Nigeria’s unity’

    ‘Political leaders greatest threat to Nigeria’s unity’

    Imo State Governor Rochas Okorocha has said political leaders are the greatest threats to Nigeria’s unity because “they fan the embers of hatred, ethnic and religious intolerance”. He warned them desist from actions and utterances capable of undermining the country’s unity.

    Okorocha spoke during the convocation ceremony of the Imo State University (IMSU), Owerri.

    Niger State Governor Alhaji Abubakar Sanni Bello was awarded a Doctor of Business Administration Degree (Honoris Causa) at the convocation.

    His words: “The greatest threats to the country’s unity are the political leaders who talk and act in manners that pose serious threat to the country’s oneness. The ordinary citizens have no problem living together as one people; it is the political leaders who always engage in inciting actions and utterances.

    “It is the high premium the government and the authorities of the Imo state University place on unity that made the institution decide to honour the Niger State Governor, Alhaji Abubakar Sanni Bello. His coming here today is a dramatisation of the unity of the country. I think we can build the Nigeria of our collective dreams and aspiration.”

    Bello corroborated Okorocha’s remarks on the unity of the country. He opined that Nigerians must unite for the greatness of the country.

  • Political decay, development and change

    To  say  the least the  last few weeks  have  been  very hard days for Nigerians all over the nation. No  light, no water,   no  fuel, and  traffic snarls  caused by those buying fuel blocking the way  of  those   who  have and  wasting the rare fuel  in their tanks.  That   sounds  a  bit like Shakespeare’s ‘ As  You like  it ‘  on the last stage of the seven stages of the life of  a man. Without eyes,  without  teeth, without  anything. The  difference here being   however   that we  are talking of the life of a man and that is quite  distinctly  different  from the life of a nation. Yet  there is no denying that even if  a nation  is like a cat with nine lives there  must still be a limit to the suffering and  forbearance  of its  people.  Honestly  Nigerians  have survived  so far on one crucial gruel  and that is hope  and the  fact that we have just elected a new government on a platform  of change. That single fact and the  fight against  corruption together  with  the heady  spectacle  of the revelations    from  the EFCC on the massive looting of our treasury with impunity  by the high and mighty  of the last administration,  keep  Nigerians going, in the hope  that God  is not finished with Nigeria  yet.  Like Jesse  Jackson loudly  reminisced  when  he lost the presidential  nomination of the  Democratic  Party  in the  US some time ago.

     So  in a way  Nigerians seem resigned to their fate which  fortunately is not hopeless.  It  is simply a teeth  gritting admission that things have got to get worse before getting better.  In  essence some political  decay is necessary  and  admissible before we can make progress and realize  our  hope.  You  may  say that is poor consolation or even  accuse  me of exaggeration of the plight of the masses because  I  am  a journalist and  the  EFCC has  accused journalists of being against the war on corruption  like lawyers .But let me tell  you  what happened at  the  launch of  a professorial  chair funded by the a traditional  ruler with an intellectual  bent, the illustrious Awujale of  Ijebu  Ode , Sikiru  Adetona Ogbagba  11    and  you  will see  that even  the high  and  mighty know  that there is political  decay  in the land.  You  will   see  that they  know  there is need to change not only our present style of leadership  and institutions but   our political and socio  economic values  and orientation to create meaningful  development  for our people.

    Let  me also  add here that bad  leadership  creates political decay and corruption just  as weak leadership engenders threat to the political system,  its   security  and it stability. That  in essence is  what  Dasukigate  has  been  all  about  with  its sordid revelations  on looting, abuse  of power  and fraudulent  diversion  of state  funds.

    However  at   the  professorial chair  launch the  former Governor  of the Central  Bank and now Emir of Kano, the cerebral Muhammadu    Sanusi reportedly  said   that 80%  of  the enormous  resources of the nation are  being squandered   to maintain the leadership  infrastructure  of the political  class  while the remaining 20%  is what is left  to cater for the needs  and wants of over 165m    Nigerians remaining. The  guest lecturer at the  launch a well  known  and  brilliant Urban  geographer  gave an analysis of the  Nigerian problem  as that of decayed institutions that have  not moved Nigeria forward in terms of progress and development. Also  at  that  launch Obas  from  Ijebu  were said  to  have  donated 125m  naira as  first instalment  of the 250m naira  they  have pledged  to fund the chair.

    Apart  from  these events and issues at the chair  launch there was an interesting suggestion  from the Senate leader Senator  Ali  Ndume  worthy of our attention and comment here with regard  to the topic of the day. The  Senate leader reportedly said  that   the last president should be tried by the EFCC if it is found that he secretly  gave the order that the funds meant for arms should    be  used  for campaigns. This  according to the senate  leader was  because he suffered as a result  of this as his house  was burnt in the insurgency. He  wondered if arms were  ever bought at  all. Yet  his most interesting  observation  and challenge was that  the  trial  of the Senate  president was given  publicity whereas his own  trial  for being a sponsor of Boko  Haram  has  been in court  for four years and  has not  been given much  attention.

    These  then are the issues  I  want  us to  digest  today   to  see a way  forward from  our present  predicament as a nation which I have  highlighted with due acknowledgements from those  who should know. I will  also  bring in the comment by  Donald  Trump  that Islam  hates America and similarly look  at the visit of the S African  president to  Nigeria  and the importance  I attach  to his addressing the Nigerian  National  Assembly.

    First  let  me start with the events  at the professorial chair  launch at  the Oriental  Hotel in  Lagos. The choice  of venue  is  instructive  for a university chair  for a university  located  in  Ago  Iwoye in Ogun state. I commend the Awujale for his promotion  of governance  and education but this  chair  must  be one of the best funded in the world. It  surely  must  be the envy of other chairs  in the university but  really part of the fund could  have  been used  to  develop a new  university  altogether. In  addition  I know the Ijebus  are bound to ask their  Obas  how they  managed  to pledge  so  much  and  have even paid  half  of it in a land with  so much poverty  and neglect  of social  facilities  and infrastructure.

    Similarly  the  observation  of the Emir  of Kano cannot  be ignored and it is in that light that  I wonder  why the  visiting President  of  S Africa  was accompanied  to the  National  Assembly  by  our president. Who  initiated that  and  for  what  purpose?  It is a well known  fact  that the president is at  logger heads with the  senators  over the new  luxury  official  cars they want  to purchase  and the case  of the senate  president is in court over false  asset  declaration. Would  the senate  president  attend court  after receiving  a head of state led to the senate  by  the president?  I doubt given our separation of  powers and  the earlier  excuse  of political intimidation.

    On  the lighter side  however I would  say  that the S African president was in good  company as   opposition  legislators who heckle him  on  corruption and  diversion  of  public  funds, anytime  he addresses the S African  National  Assembly  are  normally  thrown  out and  many  of  our own legislators  too are  on the books of the EFCC  for  similar offences. Which  brings  in the comments  of  the senate  leader  on  publicity  competition between  the senate leaders trial  on sponsoring Boko  Haram  and the Senate president’s trial  on false  asset  declaration. My  view is that both are the same side of the same  coin. It  is only  in Nigeria that both can still  be in office in  spite of going to court for their  trials. It is a potent sign  of our political  decay as a nation and as a people but both are trials we  must  see through in the courts in spite of booby traps, mines  and obstacles in the way  of justice to  see the right thing done to clean our legislative  Augean stable.

    On  Donald  Trump’s  provocative and insolent remark  that Islam  hates  America one   can only attribute that to the mentality  of Americans  that the whole  world  is made  up of  Americans and  no  one else. Are  there not  American Muslims and do they practice a faith  that hates  them?  Certainly  that  statement  does  not  make sense.  But  Trump  has  said he does not want  to  be politically  correct  but  just  correct. This  time he got it wrong  and  is not  correct, even  if that has  not affected his  popularity rating which  is soaring as the primaries  continue. Donald  Trump  has  become the enfant  terrible of  US  politics and is getting popular  by  the day. Whether  that is a good  thing or a sign of political  decay is for the Americans to decide on their own.  What  we know and say is that the world is  bigger  than  the US  and  Trump needs  to be educated on that before  it is too late.  Again, long live the Federal  Republic  of  Nigeria.

  • Wike’s political howler

    As if from the blues, Governor Nyesom Wike suddenly woke up one day to do what he is normally expected to do: accuse his sworn enemy, Minister of Transport and Aviation, Honourable Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, of hosting Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, to a birthday dinner. A former Rivers State Commissioner for Information and Communications, Mrs. Ibim Semenitari, had explained why Rotimi Amaechi’s administration hosted the Nobel Laureate for a birthday dinner (“Why Amaechi hosted Soyinka”, Nation, January 11, p7). According to her, the decision to honour Prof. Soyinka “had a link with his role in the naming of Port Harcourt as the UNESCO world book capital city 2014”. Obviously, this is a legacy Amaechi left for Wike to cherish and adore as the current Governor of Rivers State whose capital city, Port Harcourt, of all capital cities in Nigeria, was so enviously honoured by a prestigious international organization like the UNESCO. The honour did not come by Wike’s influence or Amaechi’s, but by Soyinka’s personal achievements and robust international connection.

    Now, as expected, Semenitari’s successor, a Dr. Austin Tam-George, speaking for Wike, not only alleged that ¦ 82m was “wasted” on hosting the Nobel Laureate, but threatened that Wike’s extremely shaky administration would involve the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in probing the expenditure on the programme. However, Mrs. Semenitari had replied. According to her, “¦ 82 million was not spent on the dinner alone as Tam-George, PDP and their cohorts would want the world to believe”. She then challenged Tam-George to release the entire documents as contained in her (Sementari’s) memo, reference MOI/com /c./82/vol iii/227 “to cover dance, drama by University of Port Harcourt Arts Village, Great Singha and his highlife band; set design, stage lighting, costume design and stage property, dinner, transportation and accommodation of guests from outside the country and those outside Rivers State, among others”.

    She said that instead of putting into proper context what necessitated the honour for the Nobel Laureate, the detractors exhibited “a sinister motive” of referring to Prof. Soyinka as “a friend of Amaechi”, thus reducing the state honour to a personal non-issue. She noted that having turned down several other honours for his enormous contributions to the growth of the literary industry in Rivers State, “it was a decision of the State Executive Council to celebrate a man who had been a strong voice in the birth of Garden City Literary Festival (later Port Harcourt Literary Festival) which catapulted the state to a global player in the arts”.

    On his part, Professor Wole Soyinka had graciously “honoured” Wike with a reply which would not have been necessary if Wike had not attempted to bring his friend, Rotimi Amaechi, into the picture as his main target. Hence, instead of a probe for his friend, Rotimi Amaechi alone who organized the dinner in his honour, what we read as Soyinka’s reply was “¦ 82 dinner probe: Soyinka dares EFCC, knocks Wike”, (The Punch, January 8, p7). Soyinka sees Wike’s “present level of abominable distractions as causing despair”, anticipating his warning to the nation that when you fight corruption “corruption strikes back”. He continues, “The unprecedented call by this governor is prescient of a warning I recounted in my recent pamphlet ‘The republic of liars’, and was taken from my address to an anti-corruption global conference that took place in Tunisia two years ago”. Describing Wike as wikeleaks, Soyinka agreed with his (Wike’s) call for a probe into the money for the dinner in his honour: “I do however fully support the wikeleaks call for multi-directional probes”, he said, but more importantly, “I recommend further that he involves the services of the INTERPOL to guarantee its extension to all international organizations and governments to whom I owe accountable events of recognition – including birthday luncheons, dinners, cultural receptions and events of real, fictitious, or simply opportunistic flavouring – to which I have submitted myself”.

    Now, with all the honours accorded Soyinka by international communities, he might just as well have asked “what then is the big deal about Wike’s howler concerning Amaechi’s addition to the many similar honours given to him at the international level?” Hence, in my judgment, this matter, certainly, is simply making a mountain out of a mole-hill. As for Amaechi, now Minister of Transport and Aviation and Soyinka’s friend who was really Wike’s target, he simply asked Wike “to go to court instead of peddling lies against him and Soyinka”. He said it was “unfortunate” for Wike to peddle lies against him and Soyinka, the Nobel Laureate, in order to “criminalize legitimate government transaction”. Amaehi continued, “Since Wike is blind to his responsibilities as the governor of Rivers State and has insisted on attacking the person and reputation of Amaechi as his one and only project, then let him go to court to prove his allegations and stop the nefarious insinuations”. Period!

    But the Rivers State APC has apologized to Soyinka on the N82m alleged expenditure (Daily Trust, January 12, p.20).  Describing as unfortunate the embarrassment caused him by the recent allegation by the state government that former Governor Chibuike Amaechi spent a sum of N82m to organize a birthday “dinner” in his honour, the Rivers State Chapter of the All Progressive Congress (APC), in a statement signed by its Chairman, Dr. Davies Ibiamu Ikanga, said: “On behalf of the good people of Rivers State, we hereby tender our unreserved apology to Prof. Soyinka and we assure him that Wike’s vile attempt to link him to an imaginary corruption will fail.  This accusation is nothing but the ranting of a drowning man looking for whom to pull along into the sinking pool but Wike has over-reached himself this time because Prof. Soyinka is globally renowned as a man of impeccable integrity who has never been associated with corruption in his 80 years on earth”

    That Wike could descend so low as to indirectly attack Soyinka on the well deserved honour accorded him by a governor who is well educated on a matter of that nature, like giving honour to whom honour is due, clearly shows the semi-illiterate and primitive mentality of Governor Wike. Let him, at least, be reminded that the saying might be true after all that a prophet is not honoured in his own home. For Wike, he should be told, out of his ignorance, that Prof. Soyinka had been accorded more celebrity dinners of similar qualities abroad than the one he is making so much noise about.  My judgment is that the man, Nyesom Wike, is destined to misadventures and misfirings most of the time.

    It should be noted that once again, in his tragic political adventures, Wike’s hoopla has turned to Wike’s political howler. On his blind and misguided attack on the duo of Amaechi and Soyinka, Wike, the irritant Governor of Rivers State, has goofed again, as in his character, and probably beyond redemption. Perhaps he, like many undisclosed others, needs deliverance.

    • Makinde, FNAL is DG/CEO, Awolowo Centre for Philosophy, Ideology and Good Governance, Osogbo.
  • New political calculations in Oyo

    New political calculations in Oyo

    There is a realignment of forces among major political gladiators in Oyo State. Ultimately, this is likely to give politics a new direction in the state. The All Progressives Congress (APC) is expanding its coast. But, it is also assailed by crisis. BISI OLADELE examines the post-election activities of the ruling and opposition parties in Pacesetter State.

    There has been a lull in political activities  in Oyo State. For those seeking patronage, hope has dimmed. The lull was inflicted by the dwindling resources accruable to the state from the Federation Account, following the sharp drop in the price of crude oil. This has affected the state to the extent that it is now unable to pay salaries and meet other basic obligations.

    The situation has, for instance, compelled Governor Abiola Ajimobi to delay the appointment of commissioners and special advisers since he returned for the second term. The governor appointed only members of the media team in December. Seven months after, no other appointment has been made.

    Aside from ministries, departments and agencies (MDA) that have no political appointees heading them, local governments are also being headed by civil servants. This state affairs gives politicians no opportunity to earn from government coffers. The situation has made things a bit hard for political jobbers and crowds of supporters who derive the bulk of their livelihood from political leaders.

    But, indications are that Governor Ajimobi is getting closer to constituting his team both at state and local government levels.

    With the general elections behind them, major politicians in the state have started positioning themselves to become more relevant. The unfolding development in the political circle is expected to shape the direction politics in the state in the current year and beyond.

     

    Akala ‘s permutations

    One of such developments is the decision of former Governor Adebayo Alao-Akala to join the All Progressives Congress (APC) last month; a move that surprised many. But, for close watchers, his coming was long expected.

    The defection of the former governorship candidate of the Labour Party (LP) is predictably a sign of what is coming in the year.

    Notable leaders in other parties, including the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Social Democratic Party (SDP) and the Accord Party are likely to follow suit for obvious political advantages. The development will further boost the strength of the APC at both the state and federal levels.

    Already, the party produced the three senators and 12 out of the 14 members of the House of Representatives. It also produced 18 out of the 32 members of the House of Assembly.

    With the coming of Alao-Akala, the number of APC members in the House of Representatives will rise by one, making the 14th member, Hon. Segun Odebunmi of Surulere/Ogo-Oluwa Federal Constituency, the only member of the opposition (PDP) representing the state at the House.

    Once Akala’s defection is fully perfected, the number of APC members will also rise from 18 to 24 at the House of Assembly. This will give it a clear two-third majority at the assembly.

    Alao-Akala’s defection and others that are likely to follow in its wake will make the APC stronger in subsequent elections.

     

    Is Shittu a factor?

    With the appointment of Adebayo Shittu as a minister, it is believed that his retention in the high position for the remaining part of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration may help him emerge as a new power bloc within the APC. It is believed that the minister, who is believed not to have abandoned his governorship ambition, will use his position to strengthen his platform to launch a new bid in 2019.

    To garner support, analysts believe that the minister may want to rely on the Oke-Ogun sentiment to wage a power-shift war within the APC and leverage on his influence in other parts of the state, which he may build within the next three and a half years, if he retains his position.

    His ambition will, however, breed a keen contest within the larger party against the majority who are expected root for an Ibadan indigene. A notable indigene of the city is already being touted for the APC governorship ticket in 2019.

     

    Ladoja’s dwindling fortunes

    Should Sen. Rashidi Ladoja lose in his petition at the Supreme Court, the party looks set for a downward slide in popularity and influence. Without a single member at the National Assembly, its eight lawmakers in the state are the only members of the opposition in the state assembly. Thus, the party may not look attractive for those seeking political patronage, who are in the vast majority across all parties.

     

     Makinde and indecision

    Though the young politician still sticks to the political platform he utilised to contested the last governorship election, the Social Democratic Parry (SDP) in his Christmas and New Year greetings, pundits are of the opinion that he may end up joining forces with others to climb higher political ladder this year. He came fifth in the last governorship election.

     

     Folarin in the wilderness

    Little has been heard of the former two-times senator since he lost in his governorship bid in the April 11, 2015 election. His party, the PDP, has also gone silent largely because of its loss at both federal and state levels in the last election.

    With the possibility of some members of the party joining the APC this year, it is doubtful if the PDP can stage a come-back within the next two years.

    But, entrants of new juggernauts into the APC may breed new intra-party squabbles beginning with appointments to be announced by Ajimobi soon.

    For instance, Alao-Akala and his group will have to slug it out with old APC members in Ogbomoso in distribution of political patronage, while Shittu’s group will also expect good patronage from the governor by virtue of his new position.

    In Ibadan, where many more people are expected to join the APC, patronage may also create intra-party disagreements.

    Ultimately, the growing strength of the party may create clashes of interest among top gladiators over 2019 governorship election. This may lead to implosion, if not properly managed.

    But, in all, the political terrain in the state in 2016 is set to witness interesting activities with the APC looking ready to swallow more parties and take a vantage position in the build-up to the 2019 elections.

  • Atiku denies hosting political meetings in Dubai

    Atiku denies hosting political meetings in Dubai

    Former Vice President and All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain Atiku Abubakar has denied hosting political meetings in Dubai ahead of the 2019 general election.

    He said his present preoccupation was the success of the country’s APC-led administration.

    Atiku, in a statement by his Media Adviser, Mazi Paul Ibe, said enemies of democracy and the country were trying to create distrust between him and President Muhammadu Buhari to distract the government from achieving its set objectives.

    The former vice president asked those he described as political mischief-makers and enemies of unity to allow him enjoy his peace and desist from sinister propaganda designed to draw a wedge between him and Buhari.

    Atiku, who was reacting to insinuations alleging that he held political meetings at Burj Al-Arab, Dubai, explained that contrary to the rumours, he was in Dubai with his family for physiotherapy on his injured knee.

    He maintained that he was embarrassed by the deliberate falsehoods being spread against him by political opponents who, he added, were bent on causing distraction for Buhari at a time all energies should be channelled into helping the President actualise his change agenda.

    Describing those spreading the rumour as “ill-motivated busybodies that don’t wish the country well”, he explained that his medical treatment was his private affair, which should not be politicised by anybody to achieve sinister objectives.

    He said he was entitled to enjoy his private life, including the right to attend to his health, without being harassed and lied against.

    The Turaki added that contrary to insinuations by political opponents, the success of the Buhari administration had been his preoccupation.

    He noted that any true APC member should have the same zeal.

    According to him, rumour mongers seeking to cause distrust and distraction in Buhari’s government did not mean well for the APC administration, adding that with the challenges of providing good governance for the country and creating jobs for Nigerians, including reducing the impact of poverty, the President needed all the goodwill and support.

    “Whether at home or abroad, the Turaki is preoccupied with his unassailable support to President Buhari and his administration, especially in this critical time, as it works assiduously to turn the fortunes of our dear country around and make Nigeria work for Nigerians.”

  • Ebonyi, no longer at ease over Umahi’s political moves

    Ebonyi, no longer at ease over Umahi’s political moves

    Ebonyi State Governor, Dave Umahi’s alleged friendly relationship with the Presidency is not only a source of concern to his political party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), but also the root cause of the speculation that he is poised to dump PDP for All Progressives Congress (APC). Associate Editor, Sam Egburonu reports that the development has pitched Umahi’s supporters with the followers of former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, and may redefine political alignments in the state.

    In Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State capital, and its environs, it is still possible today to see Governor Dave Umahi and Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, the former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), sharing warm jokes in public places. Just recently, when Anyim buried his mother- in- law at Isiagu and Umahi graced the occasion in style, the handshake was warm enough to create doubts in the minds of anyone suspecting a possible rupture in the relationship of the two political leaders.

    This show notwithstanding, insiders in the politics of the South-East state confirmed to The Nation during the week that all is no longer the same between Anyim and his political grandson, Umahi. We gathered that some PDP chieftains in the state, especially close associates of Anyim, who allege that the governor is shifting his allegiance to the new lords in Abuja, are no longer at ease with his political overtures.

    “All is no longer the same here because we have reason to believe that Governor Umahi, who is always passionate to be his own man politically, is poised to dump our leaders here. This is unfortunate because it is these same leaders that made him who he is today. We hear and have seen concrete moves that confirmed to us that he may no longer be a PDP loyalist”, alleged a top PDP member in the state who pleaded not to be named.

    Although Umahi has reportedly denied any move to dump PDP for APC, the allegation had literally placed iced water on the hitherto warm relationship between him and the other leaders of PDP in the state. Sources said some Anyim supporters, who accuse Umahi of not deferring to the former SGF any longer, are however helpless as Umahi’s control of PDP in the state and indeed the politics of the state today seems near total.

    According to Chief Uzoubi Uko, “Whether he chooses to remain in PDP or to defect to APC will make little or no difference in his control of the politics of Ebonyi. The governor is fully in charge here. If you understand the politics of this state and the dynamism of Umahi, a grassroots leader, you will understand that he is not and will never be threatened even if he chooses to defect to APC. But he has said he is not planning to dump PDP but have seen the need to give President Muhammadu Buhari the support he needs to succeed. Now, tell me, what is wrong with that? I do not know why some elements are just desperate to create tension where none exists.”

    In fact, since Engr. Dave Umahi, then as the Deputy Governor, first declared resolve to pursue his governorship ambition in Ebonyi State in spite of the then Governor Martin Elechi’s open refusal to offer the ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to him, the tempo of the politics of the South-East state has remained in the upward swing. The same, it seems, could be said to be the case with the political image of Umahi himself. He has always displayed uncanny ways of winning the stiff political battles he chose to fight.

    Bookmakers had given him little chance when he battled with Elechi, his boss, over the soul of the ruling party in the state. But he won and not only emerged the party’s flag bearer but also the governor of the state notwithstanding reports that most of the associates of the then Governor Elechi had teamed up in the Labour Party to raise the carpet off his feet at the grassroots level.

    Abuja connection

    When Umahi hijacked the leadership of PDP from serving governor Elechi before the last general elections, in what some commentators described as one of the most dramatic political coups of the Jonathan era, close observers credited the feat to his strong Abuja connections. Though the major actors in the Wadata Plaza headquarters of PDP in Abuja then and in the Dr. Goodluck Jonathan-led Presidency have all taken the back seat, his close associates confessed that Umahi is still highly connected in Abuja and is poised to utilize that connection to enhance both his political fortunes and the fortunes of his state.

    Ironically, it is this attempt by the governor to cultivate friendship with the Presidency and chieftains of the ruling APC at the centre that is allegedly heating up the politics of the state.

    The rumour about his alleged plan to dump PDP garnered steam when he held a closed-door 45 minutes meeting with former President Olusegun Obasanjo in Abeokuta. Stepping out of the meeting, Umahi had said to the new leaders at the centre, “We also came here to thank you for the manners and the ways you have been using the wisdom of God to assist in piloting the affairs of our nation. I thank you very greatly sir. I believe very strongly that what transpired during the election is actually the will of God. And we have the opportunity to right the wrong.

    “There is no administration that wouldn’t have some ills but the most important thing is the ability and the knowledge and wisdom to identify them like you just advised me here; all those good ones continue with them, the bad ones you can always right them,” he said.

    He did not stop there but openly pledged support for Buhari, saying of him: “And I use the opportunity to thank Mr. President Sir and to say one of the greatest things that will move this nation forward is forthrightness and Mr. President has displayed that. In our meetings, the governors, we are very pleased with him. It’s not a question of being in this party or being in the other party.

    “He displays rare sense of humility, honesty and the willingness to carry this country forward. And that’s what we are looking for. We are not interested in which party or the other party. We are interested in the man who has the welfare and the interest of the nation at heart. His directive to stop many accounts of NNPC, I’m sure you are gladdened because I had discussed that with you and you complained bitterly about the way NNPC was being run; when they keep more money than what they give the federal government.

    “So, we thank you and I want to say Sir that you continue to support Mr. President, General Buhari, and I’m very sure with you sir by his side, he is going to deliver in his promises,” Umahi said.

    Coming from a PDP governor, these comments have been interpreted to be a confirmation that the governor may be on his way out of PDP.

    Umahi’s interest in APC dates back to July this year, barely a month after his swearing in as governor, when he paid a well publicized visit to Buhari at the Aso Rock Villa though he defended then that his support for the programmes and policies of the President, especially the anti-corruption stance, does not translate to plans to defect to APC.

    But most political watchers could not believe him because not only has he gone out of his way to associate closely with Buhari and Obasanjo, he has also been seen consolidating his stake in the leading political platform by associating with and sending special gifts to some powerful Emirs who allegedly wield enormous influence in APC.

    We also gathered from top political leaders from the state, especially federal lawmakers who have held several meetings with him that he is zealous about the need to collaborate with Buhari’s government, notwithstanding how some elements in PDP will interpret it. An earlier report had quoted one of the Ebonyi State federal lawmakers as saying that Umahi actually advised them in a meeting to ensure that they align their bills with the vision of the Buhari-led government.

    No matter how Umahi may try to justify his resolve to praise and work with Buhari’s government in the interest of Nigeria, he can no longer deny the fact that this decision may have pitched him against PDP purists who see him as a betrayer. Umahi, it seems, is not perturbed. But there is some unease even amongst his associates, who are wondering if it is necessary for him to encourage this brewing political battle and if the governor stands a chance of coming out of it without sustaining some fatal political bruises?

    A top government official in Abakaliki, explaining the situation in the Government House said on Friday, “We are not worried here by the rumour because the governor is not afraid of political battles. He thrives from it. Recall that his political rise into the Ebonyi State Government House began when the then Governor Martin Elechi, who had assured him that the governorship of the state would be zoned to his old Afikpo bloc of Ebonyi South Senatorial district, suddenly shifted interest from him to the former Minister of Health, Prof. Onyebuchi Chukwu.

    “Many had thought the shift would mark the end of Umahi’s dreams but it ironically marked the beginning of a new tempo, a more radical and realistic tempo. Immediately the former Health Minister was named as the consensus governorship candidate, Umahi dished out his campaign posters. You know the rest of the story. So, he is not afraid to do the right thing,” he said.

    It is on record that in that political battle the official recalled, Umahi was backed by political heavyweights in the PDP like former Governor Sam Egwu, whose friendship with the then National Chairman of PDP, Adamu Muazu, gave enormous influence and the then Secretary to Government of the Federation, (SGF) Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, who literally oversaw Nigeria then, among others.

    With the help of these people, Umahi defeated Elechi and effectively took over control of PDP in the state.

    Now that his new steps would imply dumping these same PDP lords, it remains to be seen how it would impact on the politics of the state. Already, some supporters are saying that the weak economy of the state makes it wise for Umahi to relate well with the federal government. But the question his critics are asking is if he must dump PDP and his political godfathers before working with the Buhari-led federal government?

    The chess-like game has just commenced and it remains to be seen how it will ultimately affect common Ebonyi people and Governor Dave Umahi.

  • Baba Lekki dabbles in political astrology

    Day after President Buhari announced his much anticipated cabinet; Baba Lekki buried himself deep in sand at Sand grouse market. With his blistered legs sticking out of the mass of white sand, the old rebel was quite a sight. Many concluded that he was probably a holy savant having an out of body experience. It was here that Okon caught up with him on the third day.  The impish clown eyed the glum-faced mystic with cynical glee.

    “Baba, how far and how market? How many fools you don fool?” the crazy boy crowed.

    “Okon, this is not the time for illiterates and ogberi like you”, the old man snapped.

    “Baba no vex oo, but how dis dem Buhari cabinet? He be like if say dem  Yoruba juju dey work dis time”, the mad boy sniggered.

    “You see”, the old man began with a scholarly frown, “there is a critical misalignment of astral signals between some nominees and portfolios. I see a cabinet shake up very soon”.

    “Baba, all that na gbarogudu grammar. Alignment na vulcaniser work. You mean say portfolio no get portmanteau and portmanteau no get portfolio? “ the mad boy yelled.

    “Okon, na portmanteau no contain portfolio, but he get as he be”, the old man snorted.

    “Baba, in dat case make dem Buhari man name dem Okon minister without portmanteau. When my mama run comot with dem Ibo man, he come leave him portmanteau. I fit go carry dat one from dem Itigidi village”, the crazy boy hollered.

    “Okon, na dat one dem Soyinka man dey call ope  ra wonyonsi”, the old man retorted.

    It was at this point that the old man vanished without a trace as some jubilating urchins approached.