Salute to His Fighting Spirit

Nseobong Okon-Ekong writes that the campaign of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar to become President of Nigeria has salutary effects on Nigeria’s evolving democratic culture.

Nigeria’s former Vice President and presidential candidate of the main opposition political party, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2019 national elections, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar is a survivor of many political battles. If he was in the armed forces, he will be a general with many stars to show for attaining commanding heights.

For about 27 years, Abubakar has made an unyielding quest to rule Nigeria, saying to his compatriots, again and again that he has the magic wand to turn around Nigeria’s economy and usher in an era of prosperity that will take the country out of the doldrums. He readily points to his illustrious businesses as evidence that he has the capacity to lead Nigeria successfully.

Though Abubakar had carried the presidential banner of different political parties in the past, the 2019 challenge has been his most vigorous effort. In preparation to run the race, he made a clean break from the All Progressives Congress (APC), returned to the PDP (for the umpteenth time), and started pelting the ruling party with virulent criticisms. He soon became the most credible rallying point for the opposition. At the same, he went round the country in one of the most extensive consultation to different interest groups to win support for his ambition.

Therefore, it was expected that when it was time for him to line up among other contestants to be chosen to lift the PDP’s presidential banner, he more than tripled the votes of his strongest challenger. But the Abubakar victory was not achieved overnight. It was the product of years of bridge building and the oiling of a political machinery that ran like clock work, whether Abubakar was in or out of power. Critics may argue that he inherited the coherent political structure of the late Shehu Musa Yar’Adua, but it will be uncharitable to deny that Abubakar has not only kept it intact, he should be credited with deploying his own intelligence and character to ensure consistency.

In a game that favours the one with the greatest number, Abubakar possesses the honey pot that draws a swam of teeming admirers. Arguably, one of the few Nigerians famed to have the war-chest to stand up against the government of the day, Abubakar is not one to wring his hands in frustration over lack of capital to pursue his dream of becoming Nigeria’s president.
For the 2019 presidential which he jointly ran with former Governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, under the broad theme, ‘Let’s Get Nigeria Working Again’, Abubakar hired some of the best hands and paid them handsomely to secure whatever ideas or services they could render.

So strong was the Abubakar wave that many strong opponents were either swept off or enveloped, in the existing parlance of his presidential campaign, to become ‘Artikulated’. His name was on every lip in Nigeria. A few years ago, Abubakar was not so much loved. Odium surrounding his name had become magnified by the sustained slander from his ex principal, former President Olusegun Obasanjo. The Atiku image has gone full-circle, transforming from the good, to the not-so-good, to the bad and back to the good; even (and surprisingly) in the estimation of Obasanjo. Perhaps, for Abubakar, one of the gains of his 2019 presidential campaign may be returning to the good books of Obasanjo.

Those who showed open animosity against Atiku, took this position largely on account of an unproven allegation that he was the mastermind behind many corrupt schemes. In the unofficial fraudulent, but thriving enterprises that drives the Nigerian underground economy, Atiku was perceived to possess extraordinary intellect or skill that is markedly superior to his or her peers. This supposition has strikingly signposted his public services, whether in the Nigerian Custom Service, as a politician and later in The Presidency. He was thought to be responsible for the highest level of planning and execution of major corrupt operations.

The most recent infraction leveled against him was the alleged involvement of his business partner, Mr.Gabriele Volpi and his company, Intels Nigeria Limited in some shady deals, including manipulation of its expatriate quota. Before that, Atiku’s name was linked to the controversial importation of 53 suitcases in 1984 by a first-class traditional ruler from the North. He was fingered again in the Halliburton scandal which resulted in the conviction of a US lawmaker, William Jefferson, leading to Atiku’s ban from entering the US. But the former Vice President has repeatedly challenged anyone with evidence of corruption against him to come forward. So far, no court of law has tried or found him guilty of corruption.

Though the issues surrounding Abubakar’s purported ban from the US remain hazy, he was able to make a ‘triumphant’ visit to America to end the controversy over his status in that country. This point of view which was mostly orchestrated by agents of the Nigerian government was finally put to rest. That would not be the only time the government openly derided or showed hostility to Abubakar. A widely publicised example was when his aircraft was subjected to embarrassing search. This won a lot of public sympathy for the PDP Presidential candidate.

Abubakar, better known by his ethnic title as the Turaki of Adamawa (he has since been elevated to Wazirin of Adamawa) is derided by many for habouring an inordinate ambition to rule the country.
Many Followers of Atiku think his best chance to become President of Nigeria was in 2003 when majority of the governors were urging him on and he had Obasanjo by the balls. Then, he could have easily moved from Vice President to President, after all, there was said to be an understanding that Obasanjo would serve only one term, since his emergence was initially informed by a compelling need to placate the Yorubas over the perceived injustice done to Abiola. But having tasted power, Obasanjo did not only renege on his promise, he even sought clandestine ways of remaining in power for a third term.

In 2007, Atiku took a shot at becoming president. However, the political dynamics had changed. Many of the governors who could swing victory in his favour had lost power. Obasanjo ensured that he was muscled out. He promised the governors that one of them would succeed him, thereby weakening the influence base of Atiku, who was also forced out of the PDP. He went ahead to contest the election on the platform of the Action Congress (AC). He lost the presidential election to PDP’s Umaru YarÁdua who became President of Nigeria. However, one of the good things that came out of that political maneuver was the public presentation of Abubakar as a leader of thought, capable of proffering ingenious solutions to the different challenges confronting the Nigerian society. He began with a speech at Chattam House in London.

Following the defeat, Abubakar became a wanderer on the political landscape, searching for the best place to actualise his ambition of leading Nigeria. He made another failed bid in 2015 through the All Progressives Congress (APC).

This time, Abubakar has advisedly added a deliberate engagement with Nigerian youths, while embarking on nationwide consultations to seek support from different interest groups over his ambition of become Nigeria’s next president in 2019.

If there will be another day for Abubakar to make a bid for Nigeria’s highest public office, only time will tell. One thing is sure, the former Vice President will be remembered for helping to strengthen democratic institutions in the country through his dogged determination and impressive contribution to Nigeria’s evolving political culture.