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Third Term Frenzy: Folly Of The Media And Lethargy Of Politicians By Ahmadu Abubakar
It is as if the “Third Term Frenzy” had decided to cool down during the mourning period as dictated by socio-cultural imperatives. No sooner was the sad week over, suddenly the atmosphere once again became awash with the hysterics about a supposed extension of tenure for President Olusegun Obasanjo. Let us at this point consider certain perspectives to this new preoccupation that appears to suit both the media, and the politicians, which by extension has become the latest mantra for Nigerians.
From all indications, it seems to me that there is either a contrived, or accidentally convenient conspiracy, to keep this “Third Term Frenzy” on the radar screen of the polity. Why do I say that? Consider the reasons herewith adduced.
President Olusegun Obasanjo has denied on several occasions any intention on his part to seek to stay in office beyond his second term. It appears that he got fed up with accostations on this issue and has chosen to ignore them. This posture has given an opportunity for those who choose to pre-occupy themselves with its ghost presence, to maintain the allegation, keep it alive, because it provides them with the type of work they enjoy.
More than anybody else in Nigeria, the President has tasted the respect and glory of a post hand-over of power status. Perhaps later, General Abdulsalami Abubakar too will reach those heights. It is safe to say that in these times, and at his age, nobody needs to tell the President just how many times more than before, that respect and glory will become, both at home and abroad. Is a person on the threshold of such magnificent a pedestal going to jeopardize it? Some may, but my opinion is that this particular man in question will not.
The arguement that others have tried to perpetuate themselves before is just what it says. Others have. Just as others have not. Has anybody looked at it this way at all? And even if others may have tried to do so, the circumstances of militarism conferred on them a legal basis to do so at will. Military governments were not subject to Constitutional constraints. Be that as it may. Much as some may not like to hear this, the proper basis for situating President Obasanjo’s intention for 2007 must be General Obasanjo’s action in 1979. At least on the matter of handover of power. Period!
Yes, since 1999 President Obasanjo has exercised his Executive powers in ways that have contravened Constitutional provisions. What makes this argument shallow as a basis for anticipating his intentions on accusations of self-perpetuation designs, is that none of the Constitutional infractions have been fundamental to the essence of Constitutional order. Without necessarily going into legalese, there is a well known dictum referred to as “THE LETTER AND THE SPIRIT OF THE LAW”
Disregard of the “letter of the Law” amounts to DISRESPECT for the rule of law. Disregard of the “spirit of the Law” amounts to the DESTRUCTION of the rule of Law. Obviously, the DIFFERENCE IS CLEAR. Unfortunately, this is not the article to expostulate on the jurisprudence of this assertion. I may embark on that, if and when required. Now, I will remain on the course of considering perspectives which, sensibly considered, negate the third term frenzy.
To saturate the national landscape with all manner of preposterous stories and calibrated rumours is the heavy duty hobby of our media, as well as our politicians. But, to suggest in the course of these machinations that President Obasanjo will deliberately, knowingly and consciously go all the way, full steam to conceive such a notion, propel a set of events that could DESTROY NIGERIA, is to go beyond the bounds of the game.
No matter what anybody wants to accuse General Obasanjo of, the last thing for any Nigerian above the age of thirty (30) to take seriously is any insinuation of an intention on his part to destroy Nigeria. There is no need for me to justify this categoric position, it is only young children who will need to be educated on this statement.
Nobody will deny that there are people around the President who are “EARNESTLY” advancing this proposition. Nigerians should not be alarmed by this fact; there is nothing new about it. The man in question himself knows. What is relevant here is the President should not be expected to devote his time and energy chasing the shadows these people are creating. At the appropriate time, Nigerians themselves will acknowledge that these people are acting on their own initiatives, for whatever purposes they harbour in their individual, or group, calculations. What is important is that, what the President has said and is doing should carry more weight and authority, than what these people are saying or do.
Through an objective scrutiny of these perspectives, the reader can see that this third term frenzy exposes what I refer to as the folly of the media and lethargy of politicians. Let me expatiate.
The very many complex forces created by primordial sentiments of ethnic, tribal, religious, conclave grievances or private obsessions need no discussion here. They are well known, and ANY PRESIDENT OF NIGERIA will always have to deal with them. To suggest however that their perennial intensity in Nigeria’s body politic is incurable is to miss the point. These factors persist because in the contest for power, major actors and players latch onto these emotive matters, magnify their importance and distort their significance to access whatever they seek.
NEEDS, the acronym for NATIONAL ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT AND DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY, is designated on economic reform programme. It is more than that. The socio-political ramifications are enormous in their manifestation. The consequences are intrusive in an all-inclusive, all-encompassing way. To say the least, the seeping effects are very disturbing to the fabric of society.
The President is strongly convinced that a determined pursuit of this paradigm shift in national development related thinking, away from the prebendalism and quasi-primitive content of these primordial sentiments is Nigeria’s best route to a prosperous, modern nation-state. For the record, let me state here that I am in total agreement with him on this score.
Now, instead of the ferocious opposition against this programme to address itself to proffering an alternative in an intellectually focused way, media folly and politicians’ lethargy have combined to create a third term frenzy, as a bogey to unite against the changes that NEEDS is slowly, but steadily pushing through the national landscape.
Let me suggest that rather than all this hype and hoopla Nigerians are being inundated with constantly about the President’s so-called “THIRD TERM AGENDA”, aspiring politicians and their media supporters should apply themselves to attempting, to formulate a more credible programme for Nigeria’s development, if they can. If they cannot, then absorb NEEDS and formulate what they may believe to be a more effective NEEDS. If they cannot perform EVEN THIS SIMPLE TASK, then it is best they resign themselves to the inevitable consequences of folly and lethargy.
Ahmadu Abubakar Abuja, Nigeria Email: bubakarz2@yahoo.com November 25, 2005 |