Battle
of Throne!
Idowu Akinlotan, a public affairs
analyst and columnist writes on the intrigues surrounding the selection of a
runner mate for the APC Presidential flag bearer Gen. Muhammed Buhari and the
importance of making a wise choice by the APC in the forthcoming election.
Enjoy it after the cut…
The All Progressives Congress
(APC) is about to discover that deciding on Gen Muhammadu Buhari’s running mate
is much tougher than electing their standard-bearer. It is not simply because
that choice, once it is made, has the potential to make or mar the ticket, it
is because navigating the treacherous courses of Nigeria’s competing groups and
issues has become almost an impossible task. Asked a few days before the
primary whether he countenanced picking a Muslim as his running mate, Gen
Buhari prevaricated. He said he preferred to defer to his party, and then went
on to anchor his hesitations on historical facts confirming that Nigerians
previously voted for same faith candidates and running mates. He was, however,
indicating that his party was battling to make up its mind, and that one or two
of the leading contenders for the running mate position are Muslims.
The incredibly successful conduct
of the APC presidential primary, and in particular the election of Gen Buhari,
places a huge burden on the party to make the right choice, one that would add
value to the principles and philosophy of the party, and one that would inspire
and fire the country to put a definitive end to PDP’s reign in 2015. That
choice must not diminish the ticket or vitiate its battle preparedness. Two
hard choices stare the APC in the face. First is whether to produce a running
mate from the Southwest or elsewhere. And the second is whether to gamble on a
Muslim-Muslim ticket.
The choice the party makes, in
its daringness and appropriateness, will be a reflection of how desperate it
wants to dethrone the PDP. Once that choice is made, it will be irreversible.
If it is the right choice the dynamics of electioneering will trigger a
momentum that will ferry the party into the presidency. But if it is the wrong
choice, the same cruel dynamics will put the party on the defensive and wreck
its chances, perhaps for a long time. No person, indeed no analyst, can claim
to have the answer or see into the future. However, propelled by a primary
election high, it seems much more sensible for the APC to avoid rashness and
overconfidence in order to sustain the momentum, and also to ensure that the
issues that will shape the February poll will not be polluted by Dr Jonathan’s
desperate government.
First, the Southwest and its
leaders may reason that having inspired the formation of APC, and having as it
were led it so creatively, though under the weight of accusation by
anachronistic members of the Yoruba political elite that the region was being
sold cheaply to the Hausa/Fulani oligarchy, they may want to ensure a
south-westerner on the ticket. Given the nature of Nigerian politics,
especially the enormous powers wielded by the presidency over the ruling party,
it is understandable why APC leaders from the Southwest would want someone from
the zone on the ticket. The problem with that reasoning however is that the
impression will be created that their exertions were induced by considerations
other than philosophical, and that other powerful concessions bigger and more
potent than a running mate cannot be secured. They will be saying that they were
not inspired by great democratic principles and nobler motives required to
redirect and nurture Nigerian politics and democracy along the civilising lines
which contentious Yoruba leaders led by Ayo Adebanjo and others in Afenifere
have failed to understand. Unknown to many, Nigerian politics is being
restructured fundamentally away from the bigotries and antagonisms of the past.
That process, masterminded by the APC, must not be aborted.
Second, because Dr Jonathan is at
his most vulnerable does not mean he is already dead meat. The APC must
therefore weigh the risk of presenting a Muslim-Muslim ticket. Given how badly
Dr Jonathan and his supporters have muddied Nigeria’s political waters and
fouled it with ethnic and religious prejudices, the APC will find it difficult
convincing itself it is prepared to sail near the wind with a Muslim-Muslim
ticket. It is of course nonsensical to religionise party tickets, as if same
faith tickets would ineluctably promote one religion over the other. But the
APC must be capable of reading the signs of the times, and of making choices
that show its perceptiveness and acuity of mind. It must be able to anticipate
Dr Jonathan’s campaign tactics and not hand it ready ammunition.
In 2011, Gen Buhari had his best
chance of winning the presidency, if only he would reach accommodation with the
then Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN). He incredulously made the wrong call.
Now, it is not just Gen Buhari’s best chance to win, it is in fact the best
chance for his party to win. They must not make the wrong choice. Apart from
choosing the right running mate, the party must take over the general’s
campaign, steer it away from the insularity that hallmarked his 2011 campaign,
mould him as much as they can into a modern leader with believable democratic
credentials and founder’s mentality, and into a politician who envisions great
things, has the capacity to relate creatively with the National Assembly, and
is capable of taking the people to a height that exists only in their
constructive imagination. Whatever they do, APC leaders must recognise that
their first task is to win and save Nigeria from apocalypse. Nothing must
interfere with those noble goals of saving democracy and rebuilding this
shattered and dispirited country.
Source: Nation
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