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The ongoing congresses of the Peoples
Democratic Party aimed at producing the party’s flag bearers in the next
general election have exposed President Olusegun Obasanjo as one that
can not be trusted or relied upon. Anyone who decides to do otherwise
does so at his own peril. Those who do not know this man before now,
can tell their stories of the huge disappointments he has meted out to
them.
When the third term campaign started, the
president was said to have promised the campaigners in the national
assembly that they would have automatic tickets if the dirty job was
done for him. The state governors who supported the tenure elongation of
the president were equally promised ‘auto’ tickets in the ruling party.
Unfortunately for all of them, some honourable men at the National
Assembly decided not to trade their honours for Ghana-Must-Go or Auto
Tickets and hence decided to burry the third term agenda.
Other aides of the President were not left
out of the promise to get paid for the dirty roles they played in the
administration. The rewards come in different dimensions ranging from
juicy appointments, Ghana-Must-Go, insurance cover against EFCC wolves
to auto tickets.
It is reasonably expected that the
President would still fulfilled his promise to these men who stood by
him, at least as a way of saying ‘thank you.’ Most of them traded their
honours and even took the risk of been crucified by their kinsmen for
the inglorious roles they played. But that was never to be. It is
another case of use and dump attitude that Obasanjo has come to be known
for.
The speaker of the House of
Representatives, Alhaji Aminu Masari, was dangled with the Governorship
ticket of his state and it became clear that he wanted to swing the
house under his leadership to favour the third term agenda.
Unfortunately, the Governor of the state, Alhaji Yar’adua who is now the
anointed candidate of Aso rock stole the show in the state to decide who
rules in his stead. Obasanjo failed to help his one time friend.
Former Political Adviser to the President,
Akin Osuntokun, became loose when he got the wind that his ambition to
rule Ekiti state would be galvanized once he could do some dirty jobs
for his master. As from then on he threw caution to the wind and abused
everyone from the Vice-President to whoever was perceived as enemy of
the President. At the last minute of the gubernatorial primaries,
Osuntokun was disqualified and he had to address his weeping supporters
with misty eyes to accept the situation. Osuntokun’s godfather at the
Villa was nowhere to assist him in time of need.
The Deputy Senate Leader, Dr Jonathan
Silas Zwingina was drafted into Obasanjo’s train to diminish Atiku
Abubakar’s political empire. He did the dirty job with the promise that
he would get the governorship ticket of his state. Just about eighteen
hours to the primaries, Zwingina was disqualified along with five
others. His Aso rock godfather was nowhere near to bail his one time
confidant.
Deputy Speaker of the House of
Representative, Austin Opara, came out against all odds to support
Obasanjo’s tenure elongation project in return for the governorship
slot. Even after the demise of the project, Opara tried to provide an
alternative avenue to resurrect the tenure elongation plan of the
President by proposing a one term six years tenure for the president. If
he had succeeded, Obasanjo would have netted additional two years after
the expiration of his second term. In the just concluded primaries, he
lost out to Governor Odili’s anointed candidate and that ended Opara’s
dream of getting an auto ticket from Obasanjo.
Senator Ifeanyi Ararume, another ardent
supporter of President Obasanjo, supported everything from tenure
elongation to anything you can think of. He was to get the governorship
ticket of Imo state on a platter of gold for all the dirty jobs. As at
the time of going to the press, he was still battling with other
aspirants for the slot. His godfather did not go to his rescue.
I do not sympathize with these set of
people for the loss they suffered because they were forewarned. As an
African proverb puts it, ‘a dog that is destined to get lost does not
heed to the whistle of his master.’ My advice to these people is that
when next they dine with the devil, they should go with long spoons.
Mohammed Ali Jnr.
Kaduna
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