Guest Columnist By Dr. Bisi Olawunmi
Nigeria’s elite political gladiators, in a state of animated chicanery , jetted out to their London play ground in the week ended Saturday, August 27, 2022 for a horse-trading jamboree, deceitfully tagged meetings to save Nigeria. The enduring allure of London to the Nigerian elite presents them as colonial suckling who cannot be separated from the mother hen – Britain. The London meetings could be described as their ‘ Berlin Conference ‘ , as internal colonizers, where they were negotiating spheres of influence/offices in the Nigerian political space. It was, therefore, appropriate for them to meet in the capital of that ancient citadel of colonialism – the British Empire, an empire with global sphere of influence over which the sun never set, at one time in history. Ironically, it has been sunset for colonial Britain and it may sooner, than later, be political sunset for many of the locusts gathered in London.
We all know King Kong, the restless Gorilla King of Nigeria’s political forest, who is everywhere but no where – the one who holds court with everybody but belongs to nobody. ( apology to President Muhammadu Buhari ) After shepherding a gorilla cub to the London meeting with the Atiku Tormentor, the irrepressible, loquacious Rivers state governor, Nyesom Wike, and his three-governor Ensemble of choristers, King Kong was to disown the gorilla cub on his return to his den. In the epic, award winning trilogy film – Lord of the Rings – directed by Peter Jackson, King Kong’s trajectory have been ‘ Followership of the Ring’ -when our King Kong got inducted into political ring followership from militarism ; The Two Towers , depicting King Kong’s two tenures in the political Tower, with the Return of the King bringing the trilogy to an end. In the third episode, the King had fallen from power and a into 10- year coma. Remember, it is getting to nearly 10 years since our King Kong has been in political limbo, as it were, since jumping ship in the twilight years of the Jonathan Presidency. Now, in the film, to get King Kong out of coma, he needed blood transfusion. They could not get a transfusion matching partner locally until from abroad – in Borneo – a luscious, matching female ape was found – and King Kong returns with a bounce into vigorous action, before eventually passing on !!! The fascination of matching female for King Kong ! Well, from London, going forward, we may expect a transfused, energized King Kong becoming even more vigorous in Nigeria’s political jungle, before the final exit. So much about King Kong . We return to The Wike Ensemble.
Nyesom, son of Wike, has come a long way – from PA ( Personal Assistant ) to governor is a great leap. But for ambitious Nyesom, it is just a jump. He wants to leap into Aso Rock Villa. Flushed with petro-dollars, he believes he can ramrod his way through whatever obstacles some ‘ bad belle ‘ people may put on his way. Only he didn’t seem to fully reckon with the war chest and resolve of a certain Mallam from Njidda village in Adamawa state – Atiku Abubakar , the veteran presidential candidate. The year 2023 is critical for Atiku – he either wins or kiss his presidential ambition goodbye. It is his LAST STAND. So, he has to bring on all the ammo. He laid ambush for Wike at the presidential election convention of the Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP ). An obviously over confident Nyesom Wike, who apparently thought he had the numbers in the bag, was trounced at the party polls, to second fiddle. Wike leapt alright, but landed far away outside even the courtyard of Aso Rock Villa, as Atiku ignored him for the Vice Preside (VP) slot, preferring amenable Ifeanyi Okowa, the Delta state governor. Only Presidential candidates of the two leading political parties – Atiku Abubakar of the PDP and Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, of the All Progressives Congress can be said to be in the last lap in the race to Aso Rock Villa , with Peter Obi of Labour Party, a tag along.
Wike was not just flustered by being denied by Atiku, the Pro, of the PDP presidential ticket, he was incensed, vengeful when he also lost out for the VP position. Wike seems to have adopted a two-pronged strategy – to engage in a war of attrition with Atiku to let the man sweat, while also offering himself as a beautiful bride power broker with the three leading presidential candidates – a sort of playing the political prostitute, seemingly willing to go to bed with the highest bidder/offer. Nyesom Wike is, of course, not alone in the class of political prostitutes, many Nigerian politicians are, which is why many are jumping from one political bed to the other.
To strengthen his bargaining hand with the presidential candidates, Wike had ingenuously assembled an Ensemble of follow-follow governors as trophies to show his clients the votes he can deliver. The follow come governors to London were abrasive Sam Ortom of Benue state, beefy Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia state and homeboy Seyi Makinde of Oyo state. All the three major presidential candidates – Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, Atiku Abubakar and the shepherded Peter Obi – were conveniently in London to respectfully listen to Wike’s pitch. The question remains : what does Wike want ? And to what extent are the leading presidential candidates willing to sell out in their hustle for votes ? It seems Nyesom is spoiling to be a spoiler, but for who ? This prospect of Nyesom Wike as a spoiler, must have informed the presidential candidates’ decision to humour him so as not to throw sand into their ‘ garri ‘.
However, whatever spin is put on it, the odium of the London meetings stinks, in spite of efforts at deodorizing it as dialogue to save Nigeria. Should that dialogue hold in London ? Don’t our politicians have any sense of national pride ? What is the value added to their discourse by holding it in London ? Considering raging issues ravaging the country – horrific insecurity, worsening economy and the shutdown of public universities – the London jamboree is insensitive and a flagrant advertisement of the disconnectedness of the Nigerian political elite from the Nigerian people.
Dr. Bisi Olawunmi, a Mass Communication Scholar, is former Washington Correspondent of the News Agency of Nigeria ( NAN) Email: olawunmibisi@yahoo.com Phone : 0803 364 7571
