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Obasanjo: Indulgent Father, Mischievous Sons By Calix Agwu Some time last year, President Olusegun Obasanjo relieved former Environment Minister, Dr. Iorchia Ayu, of his duties for reasons that were not disclosed. But the announcement sacking Ayu was very well- worded, thanking him for his services to the nation and wishing him the best in his future endeavors. However, obviously because Ayu got wind of the fact that he was going to be sacked, he hastily addressed a press conference in which he claimed that contrary to government’s announcement, he was in fact, the one who tendered his resignation. As is now the case with all those who have some differences with President Obasanjo, Ayu insinuated that he was being persecuted because he is Vice- President Atiku’s man. He also claimed that he was being sacrificed because he stands for integrity, The whole point of his press conference was to outsmart government by portraying himself as a principled moral giant who was being unfairly persecuted for his integrity and loyalty to a cause. Ayu’s smartness did not however wash with Nigerians. No one bought his claim of being a man of integrity. No newspaper wrote editorials or comments that were sympathetic to him. None saw him as a hero. Ayu must be a sad and disappointed man because his gambit failed miserably. Ayu’s smart move is an example of what some prominent and not- so prominent Nigerians do to President Obasanjo and when he reacts, he is termed a vengeful man who does not forgive or forget any wrong. It must be noted that when Ayu embarked upon that mischievous act, the Obasanjo government did not do anything. It never sought to rubbish Ayu by releasing to the public some of the sins he may have committed which warranted his sack from the Federal cabinet. No one has since then written or said anything by way of commending Obasanjo for his level- headedness in the handling of that affront by Ayu. Certainly. if the President had reacted by releasing damaging information about Ayu, some Nigerians would have said that Obasanjo is a vengeful man. In recent times, Ayu’s fellow TiV “brother”. General Victor Malu. former Chief of Army Staff. seems to take enormous delight in looking for every opportunity to irritate Obasanjo or provoke him to anger. No opportunity seems inappropriate for Malu to malign Obasanjo or say something nasty about him, his government or both. At a recent gathering of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) in Kaduna, Malu is reported to have said something to the effect that he regretted not having over- throne Obasanjo when he was Chief of Army Staff. Some commentators have become Malu’s spin doctors, claiming either that Malu did not say so and that even if he did, it was no more than a humorous remarks or a slip of the tongue. Surely, if Obasanjo’s government takes Malu to court for treason, there will be a hue and cry that Malu is being persecuted for his outspokenness. Yet, what Malu is reported to have said is clearly treasonable and unexpected of a man who was once the head of the whole Nigerian Army. A man of Malu’s antecedent ought to be so guarded in what he says in public that he cannot be held accountable for any slip of the tongue nor will he accused of malicious humour. There is yet another example. About two and a half years ago, another TiV man, Senator Joseph Kennedy Waku, stirred a major national furor by saying something in an interview that amounted to his calling for a military coup against the government of Obasanjo. These examples are merely coincidental. It should not in any way be interpreted to mean that it is only Tiv men who have been unfairly antagonizing the President nor is there a campaign on to denigrate Tiv men. These are only a representative samples of some of the irritations that Obasanjo has been suffering in silence over the years in the hands of Nigerians who expect him to have the large-heartedness of God and the forgiving spirit of a saint. It is not only Tiv men who have been engaged in acts of mischief against Obasanjo. Some Nigerians from other parts of the country think that they have a license to be mischievous. Surprisingly, while they are at the game of mischief-making, they expect Obasanjo to be the perfect indulgent father. He should endure their pranks with philosophical calmness. To the eternal credit of Obasanjo, he has largely been very tolerant of those who seem clearly out to provoke him to anger. One is not inciting Obasanjo if one says that if he were not a leader or father with a very large heart, so many Nigerians will either be in jail or facing prosecution. The kind of things some Nigerians do and say to Obasanjo and go scot-free, they certainly cannot do and say them to the governor of their state and live to tell the tale. Many of our governors have either driven the opposition in their states out of the state or underground. Some have completely pocketed their legislators. Some, their word is law in the state. The governors determine the tenure of office of elected chairmen of councils. They dictate who can be anything in the state. Some, their wives are more powerful than their deputies. Is it not some irony of some sorts that Obasanjo, a former military man, has by far greater democratic temperament than a good number of our so-called civilian governors?The evidence is too glaring. The kind of checks and balances which the National Assembly offers to Obasanjo’s Executive Branch, which state of this federation do you find the state house of assembly offering even a token check to the excesses of the Executive? In the light of what we have seen of Obasanjo compared to the governors of states. Obasanjo deserves to be praised rather than being vilified as a man of vengeance.
Calix Agwu lecturer, College of Education Obudu, Cross River State
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