Detractors and Governor Abubakar
Bauchi is a unique state in the North-eastern part of Nigeria. It boasts of too many intelligent commentators and critical analysts. Reading through daily newspapers and listening to radio stations, this much can be deduced from opinion pages and programmes. However, the sore point with the litany of commentators, opinion writers and analysts in Nigeria is that most of them have constituted themselves into prophets of doom, naysayers and masters of letters without substance.
It is disheartening that most of these people seem to think that by virtue of the letters after their names, they know better than those of us without a letter apart from the initials before our surnames. So they come out with abracadabra mischievously to confuse the masses. They use every trick in the books to confuse the masses on the good works of the very person they voted to govern their state, Muhammed Abubakar, casting doubts on the giant strides of the All Progressives Congress (APC) government since May 29, 2015.
The simple truth is that the man Abubakar is doing a wonderful job in eradicating the pests and madness of our society - corruption, indiscipline, insecurity and so on. The question always asked that band of prophets of doom and naysayers is where were they when certain officials gathered to mismanage public funds meant for developing the state? Or who amongst them could have been bold enough to threaten and fearlessly investigate those locusts once at the helm of affairs? Who else if not Abubakar could have tackled the issue of ghost workers and the menace of political thugs (Sara suka) in the state?
The lessons the people are fast learning from the his style of governance is that if the now fading political thuggery and hooliganism had been dealt with by the past administrations, like we have witnessed from May 29, 2015, the state could have been a better place. The point is that instead of destructive criticisms, the so called ‘Dr. Know -alls’ should come up with solutions to support and help the progressive movement. Unfortunately, even if Abubakar assumes supernatural powers and walks on water, his detractors will surely say it is because he could not swim. It is a known fact that no human being can please all the people all the time and Governor Abubakar cannot be an exception.
One challenge consciously thrown to the band of claimed intellectuals and politicians of substance battling to rewrite the history of Bauchi State to suit their selfish desire is that they should give names of other individuals that can perform better than Governor Abubakar in the pathetic situation he found the state. The time has come for the people to learn to show appreciation to their leaders so that the state can move forward for the sake of future and generations yet unborn not baseless and mischievous allegations laced
The institutionalising of democracy must flow from the institutionalising of our political parties. If we continue to treat the political parties as nothing more than the means to grab, retain and exercise political power, I doubt that our democracy would ever develop and strengthen its tap roots. Their statutory responsibilities of the political parties go far beyond winning elections. They are the guardians of the best practices in democracy. Or they should be. They can make or mar democracy - democratically.
PDP is not dead or dying. The story of its inevitable demise is clearly exaggerated. The party has been going through the trauma occasioned by its loss at the centre in last year’s general elections. It is not always possible to manage electoral losses with a smile.
The party’s current leadership problem has refused to go away because the huge animals in the ring are well-fed African elephants. Ahmed Makarfi and Ali Modu Sheriff are formidable politicians. They are former senators as well as former two-term governors of their respective states. Their pockets are deep and their quivers are full of poisoned arrows. Their bitter struggle has inevitably polarised the party into two main factions. Factionalism is anathema to party unity and could, indeed, threaten the survival of the party itself. Those who think the party is dying base their conclusion on this premise.
Despite its current leadership travail, some important things are worth nothing about the party. Firstly, at the inception of the Buhari administration, it haemorrhaged badly with even its well-heeled with parochial sentiments and primitiveness from ingrates.
One of the things the band of critics have been talking about lately is that he has squandered the Federal Government bailout of N8.6billion without reference to what the bailout was meant for.
In as much as these people have the right to their opinions, there is the need to be objective most especially by the positions they occupy today in the scheme of governance. What the greatest critics of Governor Abubakar tend to forget is that the overall interest of the state and his ability to move the state forward is the most important aspect of his administration. Whether he listens to them or not, as long as the state is moving in the right direction without their input is what is desirable. The truth is that if the state had continued with the, you chop, I chop’ PDP style as they wish, the situation could have generated into chaos and anarchy. Even the so called performing states passed through hard times before attaining a fair economic stability to perform. In the case of Bauchi State, the governor inherited a collapsed system with a bastardized economy that could not support the actualization of his blue-print to reality within a short period.
Despite baseless and malicious allegation tailored to greed, today, Bauchi State is a better place in the sphere of security within the North-East. In Bauchi the people go about their businesses, go worshipping in their Mosques and Churches without members that had chopped bellyful in its 16 years in power as governors, deputy governors, ministers and commissioners, abandoning ship in a hurry. That haemorrhaging has been stanched.
Secondly, the party still has its feet firmly on the ground in the South-South and the South-East geo-political zones. All the geese that lay the golden eggs are in the South-South zone. It has a good war chest to fight its battles at national and state levels.
Thirdly, the party provides the prop for Bukola Saraki’s senate presidency. Should he kiss the dust over his alleged poor mathematics of his assets declaration, PDP would step back into the senate presidency. Do not tell you have inkling of who and who are waiting in the wings.
Is the PDP dead? Do not rush for your hymnbook for the funeral dirge.
Is the APC weak? I find it expedient to speak from both sides of my mouth here for fear the big men might lay me by the heels.
Still, what I see is that the party appears to be tip toeing even in its corridors of power. Perhaps, this is inevitable, given the circumstances of its emergence as a political party. The parties that dissolved into the party and the powerful political leaders who gave up their political ambitions for the party created powerful centres of political power. When a situation like this arises, centrifugal forces are inevitable. Thus, as the centres of power pull in different directions, they weaken the centre. APC cannot transform itself into a formidable political or democratic institution in the circumstances. It is a long walk to institutionalised democracy driven by the political parties. fear of Boko Haram elements. The state governor has strategized his administration to accommodate all as he is doing a fabulous work that does not need distractions from negative press the way detractors, prophets of doom and naysayers are trumpeting.
If those aggrieved politicians and other groups disturbing the peace and economy of the state want genuine dialogue, Governor Abubakar is ready to listen, but if stolen fund from budget padding and constituency projects is used to ridicule the people’s administration, what should we expect? War only begets war. Histories are written by victors not the vanquished.
As I said, even if the governor walks on water, it won’t marvel those who are set in their ways, as in the case of great leaders, they will still say it is because he couldn’t swim.
He rejected a selfish request for purchase of luxury apartments in choice areas of Abuja and exotic cars as condition for support from political urchins lacking any political substance and integrity than trading in lies and mischief for self recognition. A lot has been said, the governor painstakingly gave a detail of his administration’s expenditure to satisfy any curiosity and doubt, but mischief makers are still on the bit. Their actions confirm their mischief beyond doubt.
To say the least, public funds are meant for public welfare not for selfish interests and purchase of posh houses and exotic automobiles to individuals.