Obasanjo had a unique chance of going down in history as a hero for all seasons. He could easily have made the ranks of the greatest Africans that have ever lived. All this he has thrown away because of the tragic flaws of megalomania and feelings of indispensability; the stuff tragic heroes are made of. It would be painful seeing Obasanjo, who used to be a hero of sorts in a continent in want of true heroes, as the archetype of doomed valour. The present plot, by a strange irony, would be a failure if successful, as it can only allow a tragic ending. One man’s inordinate ambition to climb from Olympian heights to heaven, to become God; one man’s vaulting ambition does not make him care if a Republic, nay, a nation of one hundred and fifty million people is brought down crashing on him and everybody else. An individual who calls himself a Christian, surrounds himself with Judases (who are never in short supply) and is ready to spare no expenses to ride rough-shod on the will of the rest of his countrymen; in a bid to actualise a vision the rest of us cannot see.
One needs to remind Obasanjo of his antecedents in power politics. The two occasions he has come into possession of power, it was given too him on a platter of gold. On both occasions, he had come very close to death before getting the power. This is very much unlike other sit-tight African leaders who in most cases led wars of liberation e.g. Mugabe and Musevini, or led coup d’etats e.g the late Mobutu Sese Seko and the late Eyadema. Obasanjo does not seem to understand that he had been getting power because it was somewhat convenient for some people to give it to him. He does not seem to see that the apparatus of power does not really lie in his hands. As it were, he has given enough reason for those who brought him from prison to the throne to wish they had left him there.
The animal called man is the only animal that keeps on running blindly, after he has lost his way. If President Obasanjo says he wants to die for Nigeria, there is nothing dreadful about that; it is not my will, it is his will. In the spirit of Federal Character, and in a country where everything is zoned, it would be all right. Aguyi-Ironsi died in office, Murtala Mohammed and Sani Abacha died in office, perhaps it is the turn of the Yoruba Head of State to die in office.
The President is old enough to go if he feels like; I have no problem with that. Freedom of conscience includes the right to suicidal thoughts; he may already be missing Stella. My only worry is that if he dies in office, it is going to be a pretty expensive business; what with the cost of a state burial, which the economy can ill-afford.
Since the President is Balogun (Generalissimo) of Owu, it might be a better idea to go back to Owu and be ready to die for Owu; they will appreciate his martyrdom there. Other Nigerians might not appreciate what he thinks is a sacrifice; or worse still, celebrate it a la Abacha.
The devil fuelling this business is the fourth term agenda. Obasanjo is already on his third term in office. His first term was when he was military Head of State between 1976 and 1979. His second term was between 1999 and 2003, this is therefore his third term. Let nobody argue that his first term does not count because it was not through a democratic process. The period came from out of our lives. I didn’t pause my life during the period, I had to live it.
By the way, why this sudden interest in dying for Nigeria? From whence is this desire to get stuck in the valley of the shadow of death. Obasanjo didn’t die during the period of the civil war, during the coup against Murtala Mohammed, while he was a military Head of State (his first term), and while in prison. Why is it now that Obasanjo is engaging in this political brinkmanship? Why is he taking these awful risks? Why is he gambling with the history, which he has already made, for possible perdition? Why is he wasting the savings he claimed to have made from his economic reforms on a satanic bid for self-aggrandisement? There are so many whys, they all defy common sense, and therefore logic.
Mr. President, if you are reading this, do not bother to explain to us why you think you are the last President standing, the reason is clear to us; instead of being a Mandela, you prefer to be another Mugabe! What a shame! Spare us your good intentions, the road to hell is usually paved with good intentions. Spare us this bravado; you are not the Messiah by any stretch of the imagination. While you can always die in Nigeria like some of the victims of your policy thrusts, which you call reforms, do not die for Nigeria. While there is no argument that Nigeria is always worth dying for, not everybody is worth dying for her. Considering your age, which your son says is over seventy; your offer to die for Nigeria is not exceptionally attractive.
Do not listen to the plethora of court jesters and professional sycophants who are urging you on. While there will always be an orchestra of hangers-on, bootlickers, arse-lickers, carpetbaggers, wheeler-dealers, criminals pretending to be patriots, and plain mischief-makers; it is for the true statesman to be discerning enough not to mortgage his commonsense for infamy. It is clear that infamy eventually crystallizes only around the branded villain of the plot. Remember Ibrahim Babangida and the annulment of the June 12 election, Adolph Hitler and the Second World War, Joseph Goebbels, the principal instigator of Nazi hatred of Jews in particular, and non-Aryan races in general, Judas Iscariot and the betrayal of Jesus the Christ. History is replete with these infamous characters. The characters on the fringes that edged them on have long been forgotten. They disappeared in the confusion they created; only for the characters now branded antiheros and villains to carry the burden of history alone.
It should be clear to you by now that you have already flunked your chance of going out in a blaze of glory; we are going to celebrate your exit rather than celebrate you. Your consolation should be that your exit would save us all, including you, an unnecessary journey down the road to hell.
However, if only you will leave when your tenure expires in May 29, 2007, you can still go with (no more than) a modicum of dignity. Despite Odi and Zaki Biam, despite haven chased only your opponents with your well-trained Doberman and Alsatian, the EFCC and the ICPC, and despite what we have gone through with your reforms, you will definitely get a soft landing; Nigerians are a very forgiving lot.
On a last note, Olusegun Aremu Obasanjo, you have a right, as an aspiring dictator and maximum ruler, to attempt to shape the present the way you think it should be, history, however, is definitely going to be written by other chroniclers.
To the members of the National assembly toying with the destiny of Nigeria, and to fellow citizens who are sitting on the fence, it might help to know that Hitler came to power through a political party. It is a fact of history that he was sworn in (yes, sworn in) as the German Chancellor on January 30, 1933. As difficult as it seems to believe, Hitler was elected into office.
I rest my case.
Kehinde Nubi (0803 859 7944)
Chairman, National Conscience Party, Ogun State
adebola_nubi@yahoo.com
