AMBER

AMBER

“At least there is hope for a tree: if it is cut down, it will sprout again, and its new shoots will not fail. Its roots may grow old in the ground and its stump die in the soil, yet at the scent of water it will bud and put forth shoots like a plant.”… Job 14:7-9 (NIV)

I do not think I have ever been as anxious as I was yesterday running the battery of my phone flat repeatedly just to get any update whatsoever on the grand slam action that was going on at the main bowl of the Teslim Balogun stadium in Surulere. I roamed from Twitter to Facebook during the weekly academic seminar of my department; I doubt if the talks on special stains and restorative materials left any lasting impression on my limbic system; the thought of circulating currency and credit alerts flooding the stadium and deciding the outcome caused me great distress indeed.

I altered the channels on my television set on Wednesday night to locate any station airing live the All Progressives Congress’ convention but realized that the Africa Independent Television and the Nigerian Television Authority were covering the same PDP event. I tuned in at the period when Sammie Okposu was belting choruses from a stage to an audience some of whom were seated unexcited behind the bullet-proof glass frame of the executive box at the Eagle square in Abuja. I spotted Alhaji Sambo with a lemon-green hijab wearing female I presumed to be his wife seated to his right. I was baffled that the news of the coronation of the Gandhi incarnate evaded me; how on earth did I miss the trailer for the “One man show” in Abuja? I eventually realized that only the Lagos state Television out of the local stations available on my bouquet was airing the APC event live but I could not continue due to a combination of tiredness and lack of any externally generated megawatts to power my house.

The thought of another candidate winning ahead of General Buhari was not permissible in my mind; I hoped and prayed that the thousands of delegates from Mercury and Neptune would realize what I had already processed in my head that Buhari was the most realistic option to shake the foundations of the incumbent party despite the lure of financial prosperity. The chance of having another four years of the Jonathan-Sambo tag team seems to me like a nightmare I may have to deal with until that chance is extinguished come February. 

I did not get to vote in 2003 because of what I will term a clever tactic by the then president to disenfranchise would-be voters. We all got to register at polling centers located within the campus of the University of Ibadan but a “mysterious” strike action by Academic Staff Union of Universities from January to June 2003 delayed resumption. The strike ended and the school was reopened after elections had been concluded and the president sworn in for a second term. I ended up getting stuck in Lagos and watched from afar as Bola Tinubu fought tooth and nail to marginal edge the victory in the Lagos state gubernatorial elections over the late Williams. The presidential election held first in 2003 with General Obasanjo winning by even more votes than he secured in 1999 largely justified by the tactical maneuvering of the Alliance for Democracy to support a regional agenda over national interest. I watched the late Abraham Adesanya on a television interview say boldly to the cameras that he had looked through the list of candidates and could not find anyone better than Obasanjo. I wondered then why these Southwest leaders opted to ridicule themselves and campaign openly for a candidate they so greatly opposed only four years prior.

They went about asking the electorate to vote PDP at the center but AD at the state levels without the PDP reciprocating in kind. Five out of six states fell in one blow to in some cases, far less credible PDP candidates except Lagos. The governorship election that day was marked by apathy and heavy torrential rainfall that lasted almost the entire day. Nigerians generally did not turn up because of the result they received from the presidential election the week earlier. It dawned on many that their votes would not count and this trickling in of voters was broadcast by the media. Strangely, the total votes recorded that day seemed nearly equal to the previous week irrespective of the very low turnout. That to me was a major sign that the election was deeply flawed but that did not matter to the main beneficiary of that setup. The Action Group cloned opposition died  and the likes of Adesanya lost any claim they had with winning the war for democracy’s restoration but what he gained was his daughter getting a ministerial appointment in Obasanjo’s cabinet.

THE RISE OF JAGABAN

The metamorphosis of Bola Ahmed Tinubu into what he is now must have been revealed to him in a dream as there is no way I can explain how a man once distracted by the small matter of a potential certificate scandal rose to lead a charge to nearly reclaim all the lost grounds from the PDP hinged mainly on the hope-laden performance of his “anointed” successor in Lagos state. The outgoing Lagos state governor could easily rap with the names of all the streets in Lagos. He seemed to know the location of every pothole in the Lagos metropolis and the needs of every local government area. The man just took governance to a whole different level. BRF is a very likeable man despite his intermittent skirmishes with doctors and also with those industries vigorously resistant to change; especially the transporters, traders and bikers. Many suggested that a Fashola presidency should have been the joker for 2015 but they forget that dislodging the incumbent has nothing to do with the age or educational qualifications of the likes of Fashola. The incumbent’s attack dogs would have still mentioned that he was younger and inexperienced compared to their patron and discredited him with Lagos’ debt issues, deportation of Southeasterners to Anambra and banning “okadas”. Many would have been too lazy to find out that the Primary Health centers across Lagos are absolutely good enough for the exact reason they were established.

I can only speculate on the reason(s) why a last minute alliance of the CPC and ACN failed in 2011. A few gossip columns said it was due to BAT seeking a slot on the joint ticket and one or two said it had to do with the inclusion of Pastor Bakare. Jonathan eventually secured over 1million votes from Lagos alone while the ACN’s candidate Nuhu Ribadu could only muster over 2million votes in total. The very young CPC led by Gen. Buhari was seen as just a regional party but still managed to score over 12million votes in total. Many said he would have secured even more if only he had been less rigid and campaigned in the Southeast while others opined that a successful last minute alliance with the APC could have forced a rerun at least.

MAJOR GENERAL

Buhari to an extent is rigid and old fashioned which may explain why he launched a party so late towards 2011 and why he relied on the mammoth electorate in Northern Nigeria to do the trick. However, the enormous war chest at the disposal of the incumbent should not be ignored. They keep saying that we had a “free and fair” election in 2011 but when a president has a vast pool of resources which the other candidates did not possess including a fleet of exotic jets; such a poll should not have been termed fair especially with the limited time that was available for campaigning. That electoral process witnessed the acting president evade a much publicized debate organized by a private media outfit but instead chose to debate with ghosts and desks at one organized by government owned and funded media outfits.

I do not claim to know the General from close range or from afar but I choose to trust my impressions of who he is from what I have learned. I do not believe the man at 71, soon to be 72 years old is desperate for power especially for selfish or an evil agenda. It seems to me that he is a very easy target for fabricated rhetoric and simply someone from Nigeria’s past who is available to be blamed for all that is evil and regrettable about it. Many refer to him like he plunged Nigeria into the civil war, calling him unprintable names and even accuse him of creating and/or sponsoring the current Boko Haram insurgency ravaging the Northeast of the country. They continue to refer to the 20months he ruled as the head of the supreme military council after the highly corrupt and unpopular Shagari-led government was toppled. I wish I could go back in time using Dr. Who’s time machine to witness for myself all that played out from the 1st of January 1984 to late August 1985. Most coups that happened on our shores mostly bore the names and tags of those individuals whose appearances, utterances and actions dominated the events of those episodes. Most of the chief architects were lost in transit and their actions consumed by the more active participants. Who was the chief planner of the December 1983 coup? Why did two hardliners get the nod to head an “anti-corruption” junta while a certain Armoured corp officer dropped to the number 3 position despite being technically the second highest placed army officer at a time under the Shagari-led government? I believe the setup of Buhari’s government was deeply flawed and compromised from the onset. They tried to keep a brave public front but networks within worked very hard to justify an impending overthrow.

A number of people too lazy to search the volumes choose to believe any construction of words without scrutinizing such. Buhari has been labelled evil and the cause of the deaths of “many” people especially jailed politicians who did not particularly die under his watch. There is constant reference to a retroactive decree that ensured 3 drug couriers were executed; it is easy to forget that Obasanjo as head of state oversaw a new decree in March 1976 which was backdated to ensure the execution of those apprehended for the failed bloody February 1976 coup attempt which claimed the life of Murtala Mohammed, his ADC and driver as well as a few other army officers. Thirty-nine people in total were executed, 32 in March and 7 in May inclusive of the civilian brother-in-law of General Gowon. The police officer and well educated former governor of the defunct Benue-Plateau state, Gomwalk was tried a second time after he was initially cleared before being executed alongside Lt. Col Dimka. Do we remind Olusegun Obasanjo about the army officers who were guiltless but yet executed in 1976?

Murtala Muhammed is mainly remembered for his 3months of firing civil servants and retiring Judges and military officers in a widespread purge to fight corruption. Many describe the nature of his death as extremely violent and unfair hence his legendary status in the annals of Nigeria. His less than 6months reign has somehow compensated for his leading role in the July 66 mutiny which consumed a host of Eastern officers and the Asaba massacre which occurred under his watch as commander of 2 Division during the civil war.

Ibrahim Babangida gave a host of reasons why he toppled Buhari in a palace coup and assumed the headship of the government. He talked about Buhari’s unpopular decrees and policies as well as his stubborn refusal to accept an IMF loan offer. IBB flung open the prison gates and the politicians of 79-83 began to merry again. He took the loans and plunged the economy he accused Buhari of mismanaging down the abyss. We still do not know who is responsible for Dele Giwa’s death and one of the two reporters jailed under Buhari’s decree worked closely with IBB even handling the annulment speech that scuttled the June 12 1993 elections. I guess that was destiny for him. They have said time and time again that Buhari never had a plan to handover to a democratic government which is accurate. They do not realize that Gowon as the head of government usually chose Independence Day speeches to announce a delay or postponement of such lofty dreams thereby staying on for 8 years while the tactful and more liberal IBB executed at least two handover plans failing every time before eventually stepping aside. IBB was witty and had a lot of loyal soldiers in his inner circle and politicians alike. He engaged the media positively and even got the Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka with his cousin Prof. Ransom-Kuti to work for his government at different times. Buhari spent 20 months as the head of state and did not launch Nigeria on the path of joining any Islamic organization; we all know who did that.

The 53.

The issue of 53 suitcases constantly deployed to discredit Buhari is most outrageous to me. The incident involved the former Emir of Gwandu who also doubled as the father of Buhari’s ADC, Major Jokolo. He had arrived Lagos from Saudi Arabia with an entourage of just over 10 people which included a close relative of General Buhari. On board the same plane was a diplomat who was returning to the country with his large family to take up a new appointment as the protocol officer to the head of state. The head of the National security Organization was said to have facilitated the exit of the diplomat and his crew out of the airport without the mandated check of their luggage which would have amounted to at least 20 if all them had one luggage each assuming the baggage allowance in the 80s was one luggage per traveler.

There was a directive in April 1984 to shut the borders in preparedness for a sudden alteration in the color of the local currency. The closing of the borders was aimed at preventing the haulage of illegally stored currency into other nations in order to change them into foreign currency before the color change was effected. I am not sure if it also had to do with foreign currency being shipped in to convert into the new currency for re-storage after the change. Any baggage brought into the country and exiting at the airports was meant to be checked irrespective of the individual(s) concerned. It was common knowledge then that some politicians were found with stockpiles of money when the military took over on the 31st of December 1983; this currency tactic was targeted at forcing others with similar stockpiles to move to have them changed before the notes became useless. The head of the customs service at the airport was the former vice president Atiku Abubakar. He was said to have addressed the media that 53 cases allegedly belonging to the Emir were taken away by soldiers without being checked suggesting that all were perhaps filled with foreign currency. Major Jokolo had been permitted by his commander in chief to meet his father at the airport that day in April. It was the Major who gave his own account that his father’s suitcases were never 35 not to talk of 53 and he also highlighted the dimension of the diplomat and his family but many still choose to take Atiku’s word above Jokolo’s without cross-examining the details.

Was it true that a certain diplomat arrived aboard the same plane with the Emir? Was it a fact that the man had a large family with him? If the Emir indeed arrived with 53 suitcases loaded with foreign currency, where did he get the money he exchanged the cash with? I guess he must have transported an almost equivalent amount of suitcases loaded with the soon to be old naira notes out of Nigeria considering the exchange rate at that time via the same Lagos airport when he left the country initially. Did the customs officers miss an old man with at least 10 co-travelers and their over 53 suitcases leaving Nigeria? Would I risk transporting 53 cases filled with cash through baggage handlers and on an aircraft that could very well fall from the skies? General Buhari has been repeatedly accused on this matter for covering up for his ADC and exhibiting double standards in the fight against corruption. I ask those who keep exhuming this coffin, would you transport millions of cash in suitcases and not fireproof safes across oceans and deserts? Assuming the Emir indeed brought in the alleged monies without initially taking out any naira notes, would he have changed it back to the new naira notes and stored them under his bed or deposited it in the bank? Let it die.

General Buhari is old school and appears to me like he feels so frustrated at constantly being misunderstood or misrepresented. He is no doubt not a saint and has definitely done or said things wrong in the past. He is not an orator but is definitely not stupid as some would suggest. They pick on the way he speaks and his advancing age. When they are countered by making reference to Mandela who became the South African president when he was over 75 years of age; they refer to such as invalid and another kettle of fish. He has at various times condemned the activities of armed insurgents and rejected the toga of religious fundamentalism. His views on the controversial sharia law as it applies to a secular state of Nigeria is regularly taken out of context and inflated beyond measure. He has just emerged as the APC candidate and the next moment Femi Fani-Kayode comes out with a religious assault on the man. He claimed Buhari said Muslims should only vote for Muslims among other things; he has now called on Nigerians to avoid him calling it a battle for the soul of Nigeria and a battle between the forces of light and darkness. Is Goodluck Jonathan now the force of light in a nation where people crawl around in the dark and contend with fumes and noise from their internally generated megawatt facilities? Who are the people he is hoping will heed his advice to stop an Islamic fundamentalist? Muslims? What is the difference between a man who is accused of asking Muslims to vote only for Muslims and a man who has openly asked Christians to vote for a grossly incompetent Christian?

Do Christians or Muslims ask for the religious or tribal affiliations of the pilots of aircrafts before they decide to board? Should a Christian stranded on the highway with darkness approaching and two punctured tires refuse a spare from a turban wearing sheik because he is Muslim? Do we care about the ethnicity or religion of our football players but whether they put the ball in the back of the net and win games? I remember Nigerian fans stoning the bus that carried the Super Eagles after a barren draw in the second group game against Congo at the 2000 African Nations’ cup. The team returned for the third game at the National stadium in Surulere and put up an impressive display, defeating Morocco by two goals. The same Nigerian fans pulled off their shirts and cleaned the bus as the players were driven away from the stadium. Would we not give anything to have the imperious Rashidi Yekini at his peak striking for Nigeria? Who cared for a second that the late maestro was a Muslim?

Jonathan’s loyalists have reduced criticism to a battle of “those who are for are more than those who are against”. They label anyone with a contrary view as disgruntled and trying to make the country ungovernable. Many Nigerians have degenerated to the point of being unable to discern right from wrong and to rise above primordial sentiments. If we are able to discern when a football manager is underperforming and perhaps deserving of a sack, why do we find it so difficult to infer that the incumbent manager of Nigeria’s affairs is deserving of a retirement and confinement to whatever piece of land he has acquired in his hometown? If only Jonathan had an AFCON trophy like Keshi, I could have understood if anyone stood by him on the principle of achieving something of really great significance over the past 6 years but that sadly is only a mirage.

Nigeria is in freefall but the reigning government constantly claims that we are revolving round the sun and close to economic paradise. We need a reformatting of our allegiance to the nation that may not have given us more than the portion of her land we stand upon. Buhari is not a magic tonic to vaporize all our problems but at least he clearly identifies what our true problems are and he could be the catalyst for drastic and emergency change that we so desperately need even if some people think we are fabulous as we are. 2015 for me is beyond Buhari, it is about the average Nigerian waking up to the reality of all that is absolutely possible. That the common man on the street can meet up with the economic power brokers on Broad Street and be in sync whenever change is required. A time should come when the secondary school students understand their roles in the future of our great nation and will resist the urge and lure of corruption, mediocrity and wickedness to humanity.

I could not bring myself to ponder about Buhari not winning the ticket of the APC. He is not the best candidate by any parameter but when a surgeon needs to stop a bleeder on his table, he basically would grab anything he can improvise with if the ideal tool is not forthcoming. The ideal situation is to have young, dynamic and exception talents in the land take over and take Nigeria beyond our wildest dreams. That unfortunately is not realistic at the moment because vandals and bandits are sitting on the throne of our development and the system which they are operating is depriving the young access and in some cases cutting their lives short while the emperors continue to flourish. Nigeria at this time needs those of us born about the time when Buhari was supreme commander to rally alongside him into this battle to rescue our futures in order for us to be in prime position when he exits the stage and we will then be able to pursue the goal of achieving the Nigeria of our dreams. Anything short of that will be endless voyages to find El Dorado for many of us and a vandalized republic far worse than Somalia where black gold will be bitter to the taste buds and poison to the blood.

I waited for a sign that there was a slim chance for Nigeria yesterday; I was restless for the red traffic light to become amber. It did by whatever force and that is sufficient for me to believe again that Nigeria is possible.

Sai Buhari.

God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Joa

12-12-14