General (rtd) Muhammadu Buhari cast a looming image of a trustworthy leader among the citizenry. His integrity acts like a soothing balm that make Nigerians not to loose hope and a magnet that attract people to him. This is why Nigerians demonstrated an uncommon love for him and an abiding confidence in his ability to steer the ship of state to greater heights. The General’s honesty and single-minded devotion and commitment towards the improvement of peoples’ lot are pointers that honesty and purposeful leadership still pay. This explains why Nigerians threw their weight behind him during the April 2003 Presidential elections despite his late entry into the field and behind the door manouevres to prevent him from emerging as the Presidential candidate of the ANPP. When the civilian administration of Alhaji Shehu Shagari was toppled on December 31st 1983 and within just 20 months Nigerians were reorientated to the virtues of discipline, accountability and good governance that forms the bedrock of any meaningful pursuit of development. It was a measure of the commitment of Nigerians to the ideals of General Buhari that when his government was toppled in a palace coup many people smelt a rat and instantly became skeptical of the intention of those who took over. For this writer, my first published article denounced the take-over and questioned the integrity of the putschists.

Needless to say my predictions and that of many Nigerians came to pass, as the government that succeeded him became the worst compared to its predecessors. To show that the level of disenchantment goes down the line an interesting episode that took place in Gwarzo sometime in 1986 when Americans bombarded the Libyan cities of Bengazi and Tripoli is worth recounting. The Youths of Gwarzo under the auspices of Gwarzo Youth Progreessive Association (GYPA) staged a peaceful demonstration. After denouncing the bombing and the foreign policy of the administration a comparison was made with the regime of General Buhari. People clearly and unambiguously showed their preference for the regime of General Buhari to that of General Ibrahim Babangida. The Abacha administration threw yet another challenge that further boosted General Buhari’s profile. This was when he was given the Chairmanship of the Petroleum (Special) Trust Fund (PTF). Within the period it lasted PTF became a household name. With meager resources at its disposal it surpassed all the previous intervention agencies in terms of performance. An intangible achievement was that Professionals of various hues were encouraged to practice their professions.

Nigerians came to understand that given an environment that is conducive our professionals can perform wonders and compete favourably with any elsewhere. Thus with good leadership things can be turned around for the better.   The love and adoration of Nigerians for the General is genuine and uncontrived. I was opportuned to watch General Buhari in Gombe and Bauchi during the 2003 presidential campaign. It was quite clear where people stood. Moreover, on the 8th of April 2005 in Bauchi the General came to attend the Northern Senators Forum meeting. From the Awalah Hotel round about to the VIP guesthouse a distance of less than 10 minutes drive took him and his entourage more than 3 hours. This was because the town literally came to a stand still as people trooped en mass to welcome him. This further reinforced his standing among the majority of the people. This is happening at a time when everything is been done to make people forget about the flagrant abuse of electoral process in the 2003 election. If track records, general acceptability and the need for the enthronement of democracy are what Nigerians want, then General Buhari is our best bet. He is not a pretender. He is simple and frank. He cuts a figure of a forthright, honest and amiable gentleman who is genuinely loved for his past deeds. I pray to Almighty God to provide us with leadership that will attend to our basic needs and satisfy our yearnings. This way Nigeria will truly become the giant of Africa and a great player in the international political alignments and re-alignments.    

ENGR. BELLO GWARZO ABDULLAHI, NO. 5, NINGI ROAD, FED. LOW COST, BAUCHI.

e-mail: bgabdullahi@yahoo.com