On May 1 and 2, 2006, the Guardian carried a two-part article ("The country of anything goes") by General Olusegun Obasanjo. The article, first published on September 24, 1998, in the New York Review of Books was written shortly after Obasanjo was released from prison following the death of General Sani Abacha in June 1998. The editors at the Guardian must have published the article to show how things have changed between 1998 and 2006 and to create a better understanding of the current third term debate. Whatever the reason, the Guardian should be commended for bringing this article to the attention of Nigerians.

I have read and reread Obasanjo’s article. I recommend it to every literate Nigerian. And when you read it find time to pass it on to as many people as you can. My first impression after reading what President Obasanjo had to say about Abacha, dictatorship, democracy and sundry issues in 1998 and what is happening currently on his watch was that we have a Janus-faced ruler as President. It shows what power can do to an individual. It was Lord Acton, the British historian, who wrote these eternal words: "Power tends to corrupt; absolute power corrupts absolutely". It is hard to find a better example. If we were in Hollywood, Obasanjo would win an Oscar for best actor based on his 1998 script. I shall return to this.

The highlight of the week in Obasanjo’s self-succession plot or Third Term Agenda (TTA) was the claim that the President had "disowned publicly the ongoing campaign to elongate his tenure", as one newspaper reported. Reading the first few lines of that report, you would think there was a formal renunciation of the TTA by Obasanjo. Here is a summary of the full report. The President, on the first day of his two-day visit to Jigawa State had been asked by a praise singer to continue in office beyond the two terms prescribed by the constitution. The praise singer who spoke in the local (Hausa) language said: "Baba, Nigerians are behind you, disregard the constitution and hold on to power for the next 12 years". The President, looking embarrassed, replied in Hausa: "I have no hand in it."

Obasanjo’s response is subject to many interpretations. Of course, we can say the President has no hand in the TTA. It is God, going by Obasanjo’s numerous pronouncements, who is directing this agenda and He has provided the President a long list of willing accomplices, including governors, party functionaries and members of the National Assembly. As Obasanjo continues to splash state funds on the TTA, the list of public officers signing onto the bandwagon grows each day. While some have gone about it in subtle ways, others have resorted to strong-arm tactics. But they all have one aim: to subvert the constitution and keep Obasanjo in power as long as he wants.

It didn’t come as a surprise when Yobe State governor, Bukar Abba Ibrahim, recently remarked that "no individual or groups and political parties in the country can stop Obasanjo from achieving the (third) term agenda". The governor gave 15 reasons for backing the tenure elongation for Obasanjo and vowed to join forces with the proponents to make it a reality. This statement, I should add, was made at a meeting of "the people and stakeholders of democracy".

Two days after the Jigawa denial, Obasanjo finally came clean on the TTA, if reports in various newspapers are to be believed. During a meeting at the Presidential Villa, the President was reported to have instructed south-west governors and some members of the National Assembly on what to do to achieve the TTA. Obasanjo spoke extensively about his achievements and the need to sustain them. He explained that he was not in the race for a third term for selfish reasons, but to ensure that Nigeria was placed on a firm footing before quitting the stage.

The President allayed fears that the third term plot was anti-people. He explained that his desire to continue in office was demonized by some elements desperate to succeed him but who had no good plans for Nigeria. The President was said to be bitter that the whole essence of constitutional amendment was being reduced to third term. Well, Nigerians have enough reason to be bitter. We have been there, done that. Less than a decade ago, Nigeria was snatched from the jaws of death; the country’s future put on hold because of the ambition of one man.

The general feeling is that Nigerians suffer collective amnesia. But in this matter of Obasanjo and the TTA, there seems to be no gaps in our memory. Except those (Corporate Nigeria, the Private Sector Supporters for Good and Transparent Governance, PSSGTG, and a few politicians) who are benefitting directly from this scam, Nigerians are overwhelmingly opposed to the TTA because it represents a direct assault on the national psyche. While security forces have made it a priority to arrest those opposed to the TTA, the rabid supporters of tenure extension for Obasanjo are having a field day. So far, the faceless PSSGTG has spent close to N40 million on its "Vote for Greatness, Vote for Tenure Extension" newspaper campaign on behalf of the President.

The actions of groups like the PSSGTG notwithstanding, Nigerians have consistently voiced their opposition to the TTA. But if there is one person to thank for the renewed vehemence in opposing the TTA it is the President himself. And we have to go back to November 17, 1993, when General Sani Abacha usurped power in a palace coup. Abacha’s rudderless and inept regime had set the country on the road to destruction. Abacha wanted to transform himself into a civilian president and he used "any means necessary". Nobody was spared. Assassination became an essential part of state policy. Abacha’s nemesis was an opposition that included journalists, human rights and pro-democracy activists. Enter General Olusegun Obasanjo.

Riding on his so-called international clout, General Obasanjo lent his weight to the many voices opposed to General Abacha. The world took note. Many remembered Obasanjo’s criticism of General Ibrahim Babangida, the self-styled evil genius whom he accused of "holding onto power through terror and intimidation". Though Nigerians were skeptical of his credential as a democrat, particularly after his comments that Moshood Abiola, detained winner of the June 12, 1993, presidential election annulled by General Babangida, was not the "messiah" the country needed, Nigerians were ready to look beyond Obasanjo’s foible. It was the season of anomie and like a locust, Abacha was stripping Nigeria of anything that stood against him and the presidency.

As the opposition to Abacha grew, one more voice, even if from a retired general, was welcome. After handing over to an "elected" government on October 1, 1979, even if under questionable circumstances, Obasanjo deserved the benefit of the doubt, some people argued. That was how Obasanjo became one of the "champions" of democracy in Nigeria. His efforts landed him in Abacha’s prison. To cut a long story short, Obasanjo survived three years in jail and was released following the death of Abacha.

It doesn’t seem we have made any progress since 1998. Today, Nigerians find themselves in the same viselike grip they were under General Abacha. But Obasanjo is worse that Abacha. At least with Abacha Nigerians knew what to expect. Obasanjo is the master of political intrigues. Even though Nigerians are supposed to be enjoying the "dividends" of democracy under Obasanjo, there is nothing to show after seven dreadful years. Obasanjo, to borrow his words against Abacha, has shown an "unexpected capacity for deception". By undermining the very constitution he swore to uphold, the President, again to use his words, is "stealing the property he was meant to guard".

To understand Obasanjo’s denial of the TTA in Jigawa State and his instructions to governors and legislators two days later is to understand Obasanjo, the man. There is no contradiction. Obasanjo has made a career of political opportunism and doublespeak. Here in lies the relevance of the New York Times article. It was Obasanjo at his duplicitous best. At the end of the article, he had remarked: "People will always outlast any government no matter how oppressive and wicked it is". I hope Yobe State governor, Bukar Abba Ibrahim, is listening.

"The reality of Nigeria is that we need a stable base for our development; and the only kind of government that can give us stability and involve all citizens is one that is based not only on formal elections but on a Continuous Democratic Process (emphasis mine) in which all can participate and upon which all can continue to build." That was Obasanjo in September 1998.

I don’t think we can find a greater indictment of the President than his own words written eight years ago.

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