President Olusegun Obasanjo is perhaps the most favoured Nigerian leader given his political antcedents in this country. A man renowned for his deft political sagacity, Obasanjo is a man who does not mince words at least we have discovered that since he left power. Lately though, the avuncular Ota farmer has developed a hobby; one of letter writing. From letters to Goodluck Ebele Jonathan to recently writing the Nigerian Senate with a singular strand running through both to wit; accusation of corruption. while one cannot deny his avowed love for this country one wonders whether there is more to these letters. When the ex-President wrote President Goodluck Jonathan making wild accusations, many wondered whether the issue couldnt have been better handled with a secret discussion behind closed doors to thrash out the thorny issues involved rather than the abrasive, open-toothed , combative style adopted by the ex leader. Many indeed queried the public demonstration of angst against his erstwhile political "god-son". President Goodluck Jonathan had wisely replied that he would not want to join issues with baba. Obasanjo did not stop there, he wrote the PDP hierarchy and leveled all sorts of accusation on both the party and the government many bordering on inefficiency in government. The public renunciation of PDP and the ceremonial tearing of his PDP membership card was the coup de grace on a party on whose platform he won the ticket to preside over the affairs of this country for 8 years and on whose platform he sought desperately to get a 3rd term ticket. The PDP hierarchy was justifiably peeved by the development. Although he openly refused to decamp to the ruling party, APC as was the vogue for the shameless politicians whose idea of politics is akin to changing the blinds of one's windows at one's whims and caprice, many within the fold of the PDP still believed his body language tilts annoyingly towards APC. The emissary of the PDP led by Governor Lamido sent to broker peace with the ex leader could not convince him to have a change of heart. indeed Obasanjo made it clear that he had privately communicated with Goodluck Jonathan on the issues he was forced to make public to which the latter paid no heed and that nothing would make him return to the PDP. Governor Sule Lamido and his delegation had to leave the hilltop mansion of the Ota-born politician like the proverbial dog disppointingly missing out on an enticing bone with its tails behind its legs. Obasanjo did not only supported Buhari during the run-in to the election, he openly campaigned for him.
8 months down the line, the former President has directed another missive , this time at the National Assembly accusing them of selfishness and corruption. while some, if not all the accusations against the legislative body are axiomatic to all and sundry, one cannot help but question the motive behind the action.
Baba has also not only written letters to these bodies, he went ahead to publish a book, "My watch" where he not only chronicled the events that transpired during his stormy tenure but cast virulent aspersions on his perceived political enemies. Not only is the said book riddled with fallacies and half truths, it also contained innuendoes that cast the shadow of a man in dire need of political relevance. As state-manly as the actions of baba may seem, one wonders whether the strategy adopted in passing these messages matches the intention of addressing issues of bad governance within the polity. A true statesman would never make unguarded utterances, a true statesman would weigh the implications of every action. A true statesman indeed talks less and acts more. if anything, it is the action of statesmen that stand them out as true statesmen. Nigeria is at a stage in her tortuous and tempestuous march to history when every word spoken, every gesture, every move is under searching scrutiny. In an era where mutual fratricidal mistrust and hatred reigns supreme, in an era where people associate your views with a political inclination, in an era where an innocuous criticism of political leaders invariably degenerates into an inquest of your political beliefs and ideology, the last thing any one needs is an ex leader and supposed statesman constituting a bull in a china shop. it does not matter how altruistic the intention may be. Obasanjo's latest pontifications of sanctimoniousness betrays a man in dire need of redemption, it betrays a man fighting for credibility, it betrays a man labouring under a self -induced amnesia rooted in delusion. If indeed Obasanjo is acting under the belief of entitlement as a statesman, he would have approached the issues in a more mature way than he did. A statesman has the ears of his successors at all times and would certainly not be denied audience if any had been sought. however, he characteristically chose the path of a combative lion pursuing a personal vendetta. "Take the message, hate the messenger" is fast becoming a salutary saying which the author adopts hook, line and sinker albeit with caution.
Posers that have perturbed me since his latest antics include; i. has our beloved Ex President suddenly become born again and repented of all the ills he has accused the dramatis personae in this whole saga? ii. could it be that he is genuinely disturbed by the state of affairs in the country . iii. is it possible that Mr Ex President believes Nigerians have forgotten about some of the not so pleasant things that transpired under his watch as President? Obasanjo did not hand over an El dorado to Umar Musa Yar 'Adua. Some if not most of the ills being witnessed under successive administrations save for insurgency, were all experienced during the administration of President Obasanjo. University lecturers were on strike for spells during the tenure of a President who treated the education sector with disdain. We might all need to refresh baba's memory about the Halliburton and Siemens scandals which were high points of graft in his administration to bring him back to earth. Brazen and flagrant disdain for rule of law and the courts were all features we witnessed . One wonders the moral turpitude of a man who sequestrated the funds of some states because of perceived political differences, to question his successor(s) .The charade misnomerly called the 2003& 2007 elections were firmly ochestrated under his watch as President. Selective arrest and prosecution of government officials for alleged graft were dramas we all witnessed. indeed, lawmakers who were part of the infamous third term bid have not denied the allegation of compromise of the legislative chamber by the executive of which Obasanjo was leader.
No doubt, salient issues were raised in Obasanjo's letter such as querying the institutionalized shrouding of the budget of the National Assembly in secrecy but the messenger labours under a moral tag that makes us query his intentions. When the circumstances surrounding his fall-out with Jonathan is analysed and when we pause to think for a while of the possibility of the fact that had they had a cordial relationship , some of the issues he raised publicly may never have been exposed, then, this reasoning becomes clearer. i am curious to know who baba would write next and remind him that while he ponders on "his watch", he should take stock of his time while he was in office.
No comments:
Post a Comment