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Leadership (Abuja)

Nigeria: Why I Disagree With Buhari (1)

Suleiman Uba

15 October 2007

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opinion

I read with keen interest the editorial published by Daily Trust newspaper in its Wednesday, July 25, 2007 edition, followed by more recent articles written by such respected writers as Mohammed Haruna, Father Matthew Hassan Kukah, Adamu Adamu, etc, all seeking to defend the position of Major General Muhammadu Buhari (Rtd), in his crusade against the imperfect presidential election of 2007.

Unfortunately, for whatever reasons, all of these writers, including the respected Daily Trust newspaper, never bothered to fathom how Buhari has come to find himself in what could be called this sorry pass. They all seem to concentrate their energies in urging the General not to withdraw his petition from the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal, as demanded by a leading Islamic cleric and some elder statesmen, with some of these writers going as far as strongly condemning and insulting these people for seeking the withdrawal of the petition.

And in the Daily Trust of Monday, October 9, a certain Ali Abare Abubakar wrote yet another article in the Monday Column, chastising the national chairman of the ANPP as well as all those who disagree with Buhari on his current crusade. This Abare and Adamu Adamu chose the language of the gutter in venting their anger, as if two wrongs could make a right, while Daily Trust, Father Kukah and Mohammed Haruna had their expressions laced with some decorum. But as I pointed out, the similarity in all their write-ups is that they addressed a less fundamental issue, ignoring the more serious matter of Buhari's antics that have landed him where he is now, and which, without any doubt, would land him in greater mess if the issue continues to get swept under the carpet.

Let me start by correcting Daily Trust newspaper for making very erroneous claims in its editorial of July 25, 2007. It says a lot about the credibility and esteem on which I hold the newspaper that since its debut more than six years ago, I have never had cause to disagree with its editorials. But to everything, there is a first time, and for once, I beg to disagree with its opinion that the ANPP has betrayed its presidential candidate in the 2003 and 2007 elections, Major General Muhammadu Buhari for accepting to be part of President Yar'adua's Government of National Unity (GNU). This is also the view expressed by many pro-Buhari writers. I know that my opinions are going to be condemned by the cabal around Buhari, for the truth is always bitter to swallow. But this should not dissuade me from placing the facts on their true and proper perspective - for the benefit of the Nigerian nation and posterity.

To start with, I disagree with Daily Trust's claim that "the ANPP was virtually dead before Buhari's entrance brought it back to life and made it the credible opposition party it has become today." It is indeed difficult for the politically conscious to doubt General Buhari's credibility, but it is most uncharitable to say that a political party that has produced nine governors long before Buhari ventured into party politics was "virtually dead." The newspaper also stated that the "marriage of convenience" between the ANPP and Buhari "was far more beneficial to the ANPP than it was to Buhari." But this, as I would soon illustrate, was only on the short run, because while Buhari met the ANPP with nine executive governors and a considerable showing at the national and state assemblies, the number reduced to only six ANPP governors several months after he joined, and then only four, almost five years after he joined the ANPP, as is obtained today after the 2007 elections. So instead of ANPP's fortunes to appreciate after Buhari joined it, it ended up depreciating astronomically. The figures have shown and proved so. Any opinion to the contrary is just sentimental opinion often expressed by those who believe Buhari always does no wrong. The reason is not that the party has lost its appeal with the electorates, but General Buhari's antics which rather than heal wounds, often ends up not only opening them but also rubbing salt into them.

Secondly, Daily Trust did not do its home work well when it stated that Buhari was left virtually alone to pursue his petition in 2003. If only it had gone back on its editions in that year, the newspaper would have seen pictures of Buhari being shown alongside Governor Ibrahim Shekarau in each and every sitting of the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal. The Kano governor is on record to have given Buhari massive moral and financial support to pursue his petition, so much that neither Buhari nor any member of his TBO - many of them very rich men and women - had to contribute a kobo. But what was Governor Shekarau's reward? The answer follows shortly. And until most recently when the ANPP withdrew its petition on the presidential election, neither Buhari nor any TBO member was financing his petition. It was largely being financed by the ANPP as a party, and this is a fact that Daily Trust should have crosschecked, though I would not be surprised if TBO members deny it, as they have been denying every good thing done to them.

And the last of the corrections: General Buhari did not join the ANPP in 2003 as stated in the editorial under reference. He joined in 2002 and met a ready platform on which he contested the presidential election in 2003. Now to the main issues: Did the ANPP betray Buhari? My answer to the question is a capital NO. The truth is that the General and his TBO are their own enemies for the following reasons and more:

First is the politics of exclusion which Buhari and his TBO played. When the General ventured into politics, there was the euphoria that the messiah had come. Truly, he had to his credit an excellent record in both personal and public life. And with then President Obasanjo strangulating Nigerians, what they needed was a man who would lift the nation off the edge of the precipice that the civilian dictator was fast pushing it into.

General Buhari easily became the beautiful bride, being courted by Nigerians, especially the downtrodden. But instead of allowing other credible Nigerians to get close to the General and contribute their utmost to his quest for the presidency, those at the TBO decided, rather selfishly, to own Buhari alone and allow no one outside their fold any proximity to him. This is what started frustrating and scaring away many important politicians and other distinguished Nigerians from joining the Buhari project, as they felt unwanted.

And as Buhari became more and more popular, two things started happening almost simultaneously: those at the TBO and many Nigerians took it for granted that he was going to emerge president after the 2003 presidential election owing to his massive popularity. Buhari started displaying a holier-than-thou attitude which alienated and disenchanted many influential Nigerians. By so doing, he succeeded in injecting serious fear into the elite members of the Nigerian society, so much so that they started thinking of what would become of them if he succeeded in becoming Nigeria 's president. It is noteworthy that not all of these people made their money in government as to fear being probed. But the PDP just took advantage of this to instill fear in those in the organized private sector, as well as those in the public service, showing that their fortunes were going to nosedive if they allow a Buhari presidency.

Instead of the TBO to correct this impression, many of its members carried on with a toga of arrogance - please permit the expression - believing that their principal had become a president in waiting; and that he is the all-powerful kingmaker who could make and dethrone kings. This of course is an attribute of God - for Him alone. But in displaying this arrogance, not even the nine ANPP governors were spared. Indeed, not even Shekarau who financed Buhari's petition and was patronizing many of the TBO chieftains was spared of their sharp-tongue. This explains why as early as 2003, many ANPP governors started feeling threatened, and when the insults continued unabated, they naturally could take it no longer. Some of them vent their anger on Buhari for his refusal to call these TBO people to order.

At a time when General Buhari, in 2007, should concentrate in building bridges of friendship, he and his TBO people were busy rejecting virtually all hands of friendship extended to them. Once again, they thought the presidency was just theirs for the asking. So they did not deem it fit for Buhari to embark on any serious nationwide campaign. They hid behind the spurious excuse that there was no money to finance the campaign - a false allegation whose implication is that the candidate did not even build the needed bridges of national goodwill to attract patronage. While a few in his fold advanced strong arguments for fund rasing, Buhari was instigated against it by his other handlers, some of whom later left him and decamped to the AC and PDP.

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