Politics

Anglophone Lawyers recently gave an ultimatum to the Cameroonian dictator President Paul Biya to decree a new rebirth of bilingualism in the country. The Anglophone legal brains stated inter alia that "what is at stake is our Anglophone dignity". Although the Republic of Cameroon has an official policy of bilingualism, it is in reality very much a Francophone country. We of this publication believe this is not just because more than three-quarters of its population belong to the French-speaking regions but especially because English is neither protected nor encouraged officially. Evidently, Anglophones must learn French to survive in Cameroon while Francophones feel very much at home and have no need to learn English because public affairs are conducted in French.

Ever since reunification, Anglophones have struggled with this discrimination but Francophone rulers backed by France have blatantly refused to make any concession. With the apparent failure of the All Anglophone Conference, the Southern Cameroons National Council including the Southern Cameroons Youth League to champion the secession of Southern Cameroons territory from La Republique du Cameroun, the Cameroon Anglophone Lawyers who seek both to maintain and promote the Anglophoneness of Southern Cameroons took yet another decisive step in the direction of forcing the 82 years old head of state into enacting legislation that would make it possible for Anglophone Cameroonians to smile again in the United Republic of Cameroon. To the lawyers, Biya must solve the Anglophone problem!

In a strongly worded document sent to the presidency of the republic, the Cameroon Anglophone Lawyers revealed that English and French were official languages of equal value. To be sure, the Anglophone Lawyers petition called for special responsibility for the promotion of bilingualism in every sector of the country.  However, anyone who knows how Anglophones conduct themselves in Cameroon finds the Cameroon Anglophone Lawyers action as yet another loud sounding nothing threat coming from a desperate group of people described by our chief political reporter as merely “seeking for notice”.

Who are these lawyers? Who are their leaders? Who do they represent and what do they stand for? How could Anglophone Lawyers be addressing a petition or better still, an ultimatum to a monstrous liability of a head of state who himself has little regard for English because he has never addressed the nation in this other official language? Can Biya be trusted to deliver faced with the lawyer’s ultimatum or is it just the normal hot air tactics inherited from the SCNC? Anglophones have been eagerly looking forward to what the lawyer’s statement will amount to in practice. We of Cameroon Concord do not want Southern Cameroonians particularly those in the Diaspora to build up false hopes.

From Bamenda to Buea, our cream of intelligence officers have revealed that contrary to what the lawyers told the world, the delay in getting a leader for the Cameroon Anglophone Lawyers is centred on the North West/South West divide politics. In similar obedience to conscience, we questioned Barristers Agbor Balla and Blaise Sevidzem Berinyuy at OIC in Buea last month and both men shied away from the issue of leadership. If Cameroon Anglophone Lawyers have so belatedly decided to revamp the Anglophone struggle, they should better do so with the necessary boldness and far-sightedness that a new beginning deserves.

Good luck

Details

Ngwa Bertrand

06.Jul.2015

Hits: 2602

Anglophone Lawyers recently gave an ultimatum to the Cameroonian dictator President Paul Biya to decree a new rebirth of bilingualism in the country. The Anglophone legal brains stated inter alia that "what is at stake is our Anglophone dignity". Although the Republic of Cameroon has an official policy of bilingualism, it is in reality very much a Francophone country. We of this publication believe this is not just because more than three-quarters of its population belong to the French-speaking regions but especially because English is neither protected nor encouraged officially. Evidently, Anglophones must learn French to survive in Cameroon while Francophones feel very much at home and have no need to learn English because public affairs are conducted in French.

Ever since reunification, Anglophones have struggled with this discrimination but Francophone rulers backed by France have blatantly refused to make any concession. With the apparent failure of the All Anglophone Conference, the Southern Cameroons National Council including the Southern Cameroons Youth League to champion the secession of Southern Cameroons territory from La Republique du Cameroun, the Cameroon Anglophone Lawyers who seek both to maintain and promote the Anglophoneness of Southern Cameroons took yet another decisive step in the direction of forcing the 82 years old head of state into enacting legislation that would make it possible for Anglophone Cameroonians to smile again in the United Republic of Cameroon. To the lawyers, Biya must solve the Anglophone problem!

In a strongly worded document sent to the presidency of the republic, the Cameroon Anglophone Lawyers revealed that English and French were official languages of equal value. To be sure, the Anglophone Lawyers petition called for special responsibility for the promotion of bilingualism in every sector of the country.  However, anyone who knows how Anglophones conduct themselves in Cameroon finds the Cameroon Anglophone Lawyers action as yet another loud sounding nothing threat coming from a desperate group of people described by our chief political reporter as merely “seeking for notice”.

Who are these lawyers? Who are their leaders? Who do they represent and what do they stand for? How could Anglophone Lawyers be addressing a petition or better still, an ultimatum to a monstrous liability of a head of state who himself has little regard for English because he has never addressed the nation in this other official language? Can Biya be trusted to deliver faced with the lawyer’s ultimatum or is it just the normal hot air tactics inherited from the SCNC? Anglophones have been eagerly looking forward to what the lawyer’s statement will amount to in practice. We of Cameroon Concord do not want Southern Cameroonians particularly those in the Diaspora to build up false hopes.

From Bamenda to Buea, our cream of intelligence officers have revealed that contrary to what the lawyers told the world, the delay in getting a leader for the Cameroon Anglophone Lawyers is centred on the North West/South West divide politics. In similar obedience to conscience, we questioned Barristers Agbor Balla and Blaise Sevidzem Berinyuy at OIC in Buea last month and both men shied away from the issue of leadership. If Cameroon Anglophone Lawyers have so belatedly decided to revamp the Anglophone struggle, they should better do so with the necessary boldness and far-sightedness that a new beginning deserves.

Good luck

Details

Ngwa Bertrand

06.Jul.2015

Hits: 3164

The man APC Nigerians had claimed will put an end to the Boko Haram onslaught against civilians is reportedly helpless. Boko Haram Takfiri terrorists have killed nearly 200 people in fresh attacks on homes and mosques in Nigeria in two days, reports say. Early on Friday, the terrorist group dragged at least 11 men from homes in Miringa, a remote village in Nigeria’s northeastern Borno state, and executed them in the presence of villagers. According to AFP, the men had allegedly escaped forced conscription by the armed group.

These men had fled from Gwargware, their home village in Yobe state, to seek refuge in Miringa, another resident noted. In another deadly incident on Friday, up to 50 armed bikers of the group attacked Mussa, a village in the restive Borno state, opened fire on villagers, and burned their homes. “They killed six people in the village and they chased the inhabitants into the bush, firing at them... 25 people were killed in the bush,” said Bitrus Dangana, one of the survivors.

Later on Friday, a 15-year-old girl, wrapped with explosives, blew herself up in a mosque in Malari, a village in Borno state, killing 12 men who had attended the mosque for their afternoon prayers. In a statement released on Friday, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari condemned the latest mass murders by Boko Haram as the “most inhuman and barbaric.”

“These last desperate acts of fleeing agents of terrorism underscore the urgent need to bring to early fruition the efforts of the government to form a more effective international coalition against insurgency and terrorism in Nigeria and neighboring countries,” the statement read. On Wednesday and Thursday, the terrorist group killed at least 145 people and injured dozens others during attacks on homes and mosques in the volatile Borno state.

Boko Haram, whose name means Western education is forbidden, has claimed responsibility for a number of deadly shooting attacks and bombings in Nigeria since the beginning of their militancy in 2009 that has so far claimed the lives of about 15,000 people. The terrorist group has stepped up its attacks since Buhari, a former army general, came to power in late May. President Buhari has vowed to curb Boko Haram’s militancy.

The militants have pledged allegiance to the ISIL Takfiri group, which is primarily operating inside Iraq and Syria. Back in February, four nations of the Lake Chad Basin -- Chad, Cameroon, Niger, and Nigeria -- launched a campaign, together with a contingent from Benin, to confront the threat from Boko Haram militants in the region.

Details

Ngwa Bertrand

04.Jul.2015

Hits: 508

Suspected Boko Haram insurgents rounded up and shot dead dozens of people in a raid in a town in northeast Nigeria on Wednesday, military and local sources said, part of a resurgence of attacks in Borno state in the past month.

"Many people were killed," said a military source. The casualty figure "may be very high," he said.

Alhaji Habib Kakero, a former local official in the town of Kukawa near Lake Chad, said the suspected Islamist militants attacked in the early evening and killed many people.

Bashir Ahmed, a member of a local self-defense group, said he had been told by a colleague who fled the attack and then returned to the town that they found 97 bodies, some badly charred because the attackers had set houses ablaze.

There was no immediate official comment from the security forces nor a confirmed death toll. 

Boko Haram insurgents have killed thousands of people and left about 1.5 million others displaced in a six-year-old insurgency to create an Islamic caliphate in the northeast of Africa's most populous nation and top oil producer.

At the end of last year the group controlled an area roughly the size of Belgium but they lost huge chunks of territory when the military went on the offensive in the months before of a presidential election in March.

By then, the military said it had taken back all but three out of 20 local government areas previously controlled by the Islamist militants.

But the last month has seen a resurgence in attacks, many in Maiduguri, the biggest city in northeast Nigeria.

New President Muhammadu Buhari moved the army's command center for the campaign against Boko Haram to the Borno state capital after coming to power.

On Tuesday, gunmen attacked two nearby villages elsewhere in Borno state killing 48 people, Mohammed Tahir Monguno, a member of the lower house of parliament, and a police source said.

"The terrorists attacked the twin villages of Mussaram I and Mussaram II in the night. They went there in the night when the villagers were resting after the day's fasting and assembled them before opening fire on them. From reports given to me," the legislator said by phone.

President Muhammadu Buhari, who was inaugurated on May 29, has held talks with officials from neighboring countries Chad, Niger, Cameroon and Benin to set up a regional force to tackle the insurgents.

The fight against Boko Haram is also expected to be high on the agenda when Buhari travels to Washington to meet U.S. President Barack Obama on July 20.

Details

Ngwa Bertrand

02.Jul.2015

Hits: 353

What is truly going through the mind of President Buhari at the present moment has become a task for fortune tellers and tea leaves readers. In these early days of his Presidency, he reminds me very much of former President Olusegun Obasanjo in the second term of his Presidency. The former President, who had a very clear idea what to do with Nigeria, made a clear point of refusing to interact with Nigerians through the mass media and allowed the opposition to use the media as a playground to throw mud at him uncontrolled. Much of that mud does stick to the former President today in his public perception.

On the contrary, former President Goodluck Jonathan had no idea whatsoever, what to do with the Presidency and the country at large. To him, being a President was divine blessing enough, than the overwhelming task of moving Nigeria forward. The latter was a burden that he simply did not bargain for. Yet, he used the media. He communicated regularly with the people no matter how much trash and childish messages he communicated. His aides hired foot soldiers to write irksome comments on articles and even sponsored media outlets with public funds while the President stayed far away from stepping on toes. Today, remnants of these foot soldiers have gone haywire and purely insane propagating anti-Buhari messages simply for the sake of malignity.

But Buhari is not helping matters either. Having missed the golden opportunity of his inaugural speech to brace Nigerians for things to come in the clearest language possible, President Muhammadu Buhari is yet missing out on another opportunity to woo the hearts and mind of ordinary Nigerians. He seems stubbornly and deliberately refusing to address the nation almost one full month into his Presidency while his inactions are leaving far more questions than answers.

Like Obasanjo, there is no doubt that Buhari has a very clear idea what to do with Nigeria. His numerous international consultation travels primarily to woo allies for the overall security of the country, show his serious commitment to solving the overriding security problem of the country as quickly as possible. And that is precisely where it ends. Every other issue has become a guessing game.

While this approach of talking less and letting results speak for themselves is a very legitimate approach often adopted by action men and honorable people of authority, it is yet a dangerous public relations strategy that may make any achievement whatsoever amount to naught in the face of unnecessary public anger. Former President Obasanjo can tell a thing or two about this. This leads to the next pertinent question, if Buhari is resistant to advice from his aides or if his aides are sheer incompetent.

A professional drafting of an inaugural speech will only end up in futility if the speech fails to come down to earth and address every citizen in the language they will understand. Coded and well-packaged messages that are meant to be decoded by a select target audience on a day of inauguration is the first own goal and a hallmark of professional inefficiency. Then the gaffe of “Western Germany”, “President Mitchell” and all that stuff!

So far, these have all been mitigated by very positive rumors that are in sync with public expectations. Nigerian refineries are reportedly working towards the commencement of full-scale refining operations in the early days of July 2015. A move that will surely relieve the pressure on public funds wasted on subsidizing the importation of refined fuel by larcenous importers with the credentials of former presidential alliance.

While insane old-time foot soldiers of former President Jonathan relish the wishful thinking of crediting this feat to their defeated presidential principal, I have always craved the provision of proof that the former President commenced the turn-around maintenance of the refineries. Indeed, I have no memory of any such public information that the former administration was ever interested in the domestic refining of fuel to say the least of awarding any contract to this end. The priority of that administration was either the unconditional lifting of subsidy (as was already proposed in the next fiscal planning) or the continued importation of refined fuel by surrogate thieves. Not even in the heat of the presidential campaign did the losing party make any mention of (the non-existent) efforts to revitalize refineries. The conclusion can therefore, be just one: The fear of something has simply become the beginning of wisdom in such a way that turn-around maintenance was done in such a very short time contrary to fears that the work and costs were ways too enormous. Whatever the truth may be though, we keep our fingers crossed. If refineries commence work in July and subsidy disappears, the credit will go to Muhammadu Buhari since goals are always credited to scorers and no to midfield assists.

There are rumors that the EFCC will be merged with the ICPC – a laudable move in the fight against corruption that has suddenly seen the EFCC now brazenly arresting big names after sleeping through Jonathan’s 5-year reign. Then we hear that power supply has now improved dramatically. There is a vow to recover stolen funds and in fact rumors are making the rounds that quiet deals are being struck to bring back stolen money by different individuals. The days of a rampaging “First Lady” is now over with Aisha Buhari openly telling the nation that she is just not “First this or First That” simply because her husband is President.

On the other hand, the wave of uncontrolled corruption and the massive flow of donations in foreign currency as were seen during electioneering a few months ago are enough to leave anyone with the premonition of a “virtually empty” treasury. The President said this without mincing words. Of course, Jonathan boys will not be true to their name if they did not try to capitalize on this to launder the inherently soiled image of their clueless principal. They have either not understood the meaning of the “virtual” or missed out on the word altogether, in the President’s comments. Today, remnant Jonathan foot soldiers have launched a sort of brainless Tea Party campaign hurling stones at Buhari simply for the sake of it.

They are just not being silenced in shame yet partly because the President does not seem to have fully understood his responsibility and is stubbornly – and with all due respect – “foolishly” refusing to address the nation to outline the state of affairs.

As if this was yet insufficient, renegade Senate President Bukola Saraki continues relishing the image of a determined spoiler relentlessly fanning the embers of disunity and party insubordination. Precisely this issue is the crucial stroke that has sealed the confines of President Buhari’s cage and trap. It has defined the scope of his virtual incarceration and personal confusion.

While Buhari was quick to switch gears from electoral campaign to the practicality of the Presidency, he has taken to heart, the looming danger of an overbearing Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the running of the Presidency. Having tried and failed in efforts to impose himself as Vice Presidential candidate against the wise counsel of many well-wishing stakeholders, the former Governor of Lagos State does not seem to have any intention whatsoever, to take a prominent backseat at the present moment. On the contrary, he seems to clad himself in overbearing cloaks relishing insatiable hunger for power and wealth. With the huge ballast of negative image that he brings along with him into government by his party, any prudent and strategy-inclined activist would have toed a line that is less burdensome to government and his party. After all, the fight against corruption and nepotism, which Tinubu prominently stands accused of, is one major pillar of his party’s credentials.

Does he then wonder that alliances are subsequently forged against him with the President gleefully taking a backseat in the “indirectly complicit” hope that the result may bring Bola Tinubu to his badly needed senses? Moreover, President Buhari seems to be resisting vested interests – be they Governors or divisive regional leaders – in the selection of his lieutenants. Unlike former President Obasanjo, he is just not YET being openly defiant in the “To-hell-with-you-all” pose. The need to pacify and keep the friendship of electoral facilitators – no matter the degree – seems to be yet taking the better of the President.

In the process, the President seems to be taking his time to understand the true position of things even though this sounds outright irritating given that he was once a leader of the country and has a long history of failed application for the coveted office.

Bukola Saraki and people around him now seem to be taking undue advantage of this temporary impasse in stamping presidential authority to advance their own agenda beyond reasonable limits. After all, for a cross-carpet frontliner, it should not take a sage to impress it upon Bukola Saraki that he is being overtly too bellicose and crossing the crucial red line. Having landed that huge coup of emerging President of the Senate with the help of members of his former party, Bukola Saraki should understand the limits of stretching the demarcating line. With perhaps, the “unspoken” support of the President in trimming Tinubu’s wings, there is no gainsaying that no elected officer would get anywhere without the party and its programs. As with many things Nigerian, Saraki is losing it and doesn’t seem to have a clue, when and where to slam the brakes before they consume him. Openly acting to and encouraging others to defy and ignore his party will not only expose him to the suspicion of crossing carpet to advance a clandestine agenda for his former party but also to the anger of the electorates, who elected a specific party of their choice. Proceeding to fill principal positions with members of his former party in total disregard for party directives can only be counter-productive to his political ambitions and interest.

In fact, Buhari may now be getting far more than he bargained for in Saraki’s rebellion to establish a balanced equation with Bola Ahmed Tinubu. After all, the same party sponsored primaries to produce the presidential candidate Muhammadu Buhari. No losing candidate rebelled to fight the other openly. Then candidate Buhari relentlessly emphasized the relevance of the party in defining his campaign and programmatic agenda. Coming out openly to defy the majority choice of his party caucus in preliminary mock election of the Senate President was negative news enough for the overall image of the ruling party and team. Going further however, to encourage party indiscipline and open defiance in the selection of a majority leader, chief whip etc., is a declaration of an all-out-war on his own party.

Muhammadu Buhari now seems to be faced with the constraint of seeking a total realignment of forces to push his personal agenda forward as President. He will no doubt, seek to pacify Bola Ahmed Tinubu while at the same time keeping his reach to presidential policies as moderate as possible. Will he be however forced, to take up a fight in trimming the wings of an overtly over-ambitious Bukola Saraki? So far, the President seems to be shying away from being drawn into any distraction.

On the whole however, while I regard Buhari’s slowness in announcing his team of aides to the country as unhelpful to his general perception, I do not see extreme damage being done to his presidency on the short to medium term since he still has ample time to correct all flaws and unfold mitigating achievements that may send town-criers singing another tune. With all the information at my disposal however, I have no doubt, he will strike the right nerve.

Details

Ngwa Bertrand

30.Jun.2015

Hits: 2142

What is truly going through the mind of President Buhari at the present moment has become a task for fortune tellers and tea leaves readers. In these early days of his Presidency, he reminds me very much of former President Olusegun Obasanjo in the second term of his Presidency. The former President, who had a very clear idea what to do with Nigeria, made a clear point of refusing to interact with Nigerians through the mass media and allowed the opposition to use the media as a playground to throw mud at him uncontrolled. Much of that mud does stick to the former President today in his public perception.

On the contrary, former President Goodluck Jonathan had no idea whatsoever, what to do with the Presidency and the country at large. To him, being a President was divine blessing enough, than the overwhelming task of moving Nigeria forward. The latter was a burden that he simply did not bargain for. Yet, he used the media. He communicated regularly with the people no matter how much trash and childish messages he communicated. His aides hired foot soldiers to write irksome comments on articles and even sponsored media outlets with public funds while the President stayed far away from stepping on toes. Today, remnants of these foot soldiers have gone haywire and purely insane propagating anti-Buhari messages simply for the sake of malignity.

But Buhari is not helping matters either. Having missed the golden opportunity of his inaugural speech to brace Nigerians for things to come in the clearest language possible, President Muhammadu Buhari is yet missing out on another opportunity to woo the hearts and mind of ordinary Nigerians. He seems stubbornly and deliberately refusing to address the nation almost one full month into his Presidency while his inactions are leaving far more questions than answers.

Like Obasanjo, there is no doubt that Buhari has a very clear idea what to do with Nigeria. His numerous international consultation travels primarily to woo allies for the overall security of the country, show his serious commitment to solving the overriding security problem of the country as quickly as possible. And that is precisely where it ends. Every other issue has become a guessing game.

While this approach of talking less and letting results speak for themselves is a very legitimate approach often adopted by action men and honorable people of authority, it is yet a dangerous public relations strategy that may make any achievement whatsoever amount to naught in the face of unnecessary public anger. Former President Obasanjo can tell a thing or two about this. This leads to the next pertinent question, if Buhari is resistant to advice from his aides or if his aides are sheer incompetent.

A professional drafting of an inaugural speech will only end up in futility if the speech fails to come down to earth and address every citizen in the language they will understand. Coded and well-packaged messages that are meant to be decoded by a select target audience on a day of inauguration is the first own goal and a hallmark of professional inefficiency. Then the gaffe of “Western Germany”, “President Mitchell” and all that stuff!

So far, these have all been mitigated by very positive rumors that are in sync with public expectations. Nigerian refineries are reportedly working towards the commencement of full-scale refining operations in the early days of July 2015. A move that will surely relieve the pressure on public funds wasted on subsidizing the importation of refined fuel by larcenous importers with the credentials of former presidential alliance.

While insane old-time foot soldiers of former President Jonathan relish the wishful thinking of crediting this feat to their defeated presidential principal, I have always craved the provision of proof that the former President commenced the turn-around maintenance of the refineries. Indeed, I have no memory of any such public information that the former administration was ever interested in the domestic refining of fuel to say the least of awarding any contract to this end. The priority of that administration was either the unconditional lifting of subsidy (as was already proposed in the next fiscal planning) or the continued importation of refined fuel by surrogate thieves. Not even in the heat of the presidential campaign did the losing party make any mention of (the non-existent) efforts to revitalize refineries. The conclusion can therefore, be just one: The fear of something has simply become the beginning of wisdom in such a way that turn-around maintenance was done in such a very short time contrary to fears that the work and costs were ways too enormous. Whatever the truth may be though, we keep our fingers crossed. If refineries commence work in July and subsidy disappears, the credit will go to Muhammadu Buhari since goals are always credited to scorers and no to midfield assists.

There are rumors that the EFCC will be merged with the ICPC – a laudable move in the fight against corruption that has suddenly seen the EFCC now brazenly arresting big names after sleeping through Jonathan’s 5-year reign. Then we hear that power supply has now improved dramatically. There is a vow to recover stolen funds and in fact rumors are making the rounds that quiet deals are being struck to bring back stolen money by different individuals. The days of a rampaging “First Lady” is now over with Aisha Buhari openly telling the nation that she is just not “First this or First That” simply because her husband is President.

On the other hand, the wave of uncontrolled corruption and the massive flow of donations in foreign currency as were seen during electioneering a few months ago are enough to leave anyone with the premonition of a “virtually empty” treasury. The President said this without mincing words. Of course, Jonathan boys will not be true to their name if they did not try to capitalize on this to launder the inherently soiled image of their clueless principal. They have either not understood the meaning of the “virtual” or missed out on the word altogether, in the President’s comments. Today, remnant Jonathan foot soldiers have launched a sort of brainless Tea Party campaign hurling stones at Buhari simply for the sake of it.

They are just not being silenced in shame yet partly because the President does not seem to have fully understood his responsibility and is stubbornly – and with all due respect – “foolishly” refusing to address the nation to outline the state of affairs.

As if this was yet insufficient, renegade Senate President Bukola Saraki continues relishing the image of a determined spoiler relentlessly fanning the embers of disunity and party insubordination. Precisely this issue is the crucial stroke that has sealed the confines of President Buhari’s cage and trap. It has defined the scope of his virtual incarceration and personal confusion.

While Buhari was quick to switch gears from electoral campaign to the practicality of the Presidency, he has taken to heart, the looming danger of an overbearing Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the running of the Presidency. Having tried and failed in efforts to impose himself as Vice Presidential candidate against the wise counsel of many well-wishing stakeholders, the former Governor of Lagos State does not seem to have any intention whatsoever, to take a prominent backseat at the present moment. On the contrary, he seems to clad himself in overbearing cloaks relishing insatiable hunger for power and wealth. With the huge ballast of negative image that he brings along with him into government by his party, any prudent and strategy-inclined activist would have toed a line that is less burdensome to government and his party. After all, the fight against corruption and nepotism, which Tinubu prominently stands accused of, is one major pillar of his party’s credentials.

Does he then wonder that alliances are subsequently forged against him with the President gleefully taking a backseat in the “indirectly complicit” hope that the result may bring Bola Tinubu to his badly needed senses? Moreover, President Buhari seems to be resisting vested interests – be they Governors or divisive regional leaders – in the selection of his lieutenants. Unlike former President Obasanjo, he is just not YET being openly defiant in the “To-hell-with-you-all” pose. The need to pacify and keep the friendship of electoral facilitators – no matter the degree – seems to be yet taking the better of the President.

In the process, the President seems to be taking his time to understand the true position of things even though this sounds outright irritating given that he was once a leader of the country and has a long history of failed application for the coveted office.

Bukola Saraki and people around him now seem to be taking undue advantage of this temporary impasse in stamping presidential authority to advance their own agenda beyond reasonable limits. After all, for a cross-carpet frontliner, it should not take a sage to impress it upon Bukola Saraki that he is being overtly too bellicose and crossing the crucial red line. Having landed that huge coup of emerging President of the Senate with the help of members of his former party, Bukola Saraki should understand the limits of stretching the demarcating line. With perhaps, the “unspoken” support of the President in trimming Tinubu’s wings, there is no gainsaying that no elected officer would get anywhere without the party and its programs. As with many things Nigerian, Saraki is losing it and doesn’t seem to have a clue, when and where to slam the brakes before they consume him. Openly acting to and encouraging others to defy and ignore his party will not only expose him to the suspicion of crossing carpet to advance a clandestine agenda for his former party but also to the anger of the electorates, who elected a specific party of their choice. Proceeding to fill principal positions with members of his former party in total disregard for party directives can only be counter-productive to his political ambitions and interest.

In fact, Buhari may now be getting far more than he bargained for in Saraki’s rebellion to establish a balanced equation with Bola Ahmed Tinubu. After all, the same party sponsored primaries to produce the presidential candidate Muhammadu Buhari. No losing candidate rebelled to fight the other openly. Then candidate Buhari relentlessly emphasized the relevance of the party in defining his campaign and programmatic agenda. Coming out openly to defy the majority choice of his party caucus in preliminary mock election of the Senate President was negative news enough for the overall image of the ruling party and team. Going further however, to encourage party indiscipline and open defiance in the selection of a majority leader, chief whip etc., is a declaration of an all-out-war on his own party.

Muhammadu Buhari now seems to be faced with the constraint of seeking a total realignment of forces to push his personal agenda forward as President. He will no doubt, seek to pacify Bola Ahmed Tinubu while at the same time keeping his reach to presidential policies as moderate as possible. Will he be however forced, to take up a fight in trimming the wings of an overtly over-ambitious Bukola Saraki? So far, the President seems to be shying away from being drawn into any distraction.

On the whole however, while I regard Buhari’s slowness in announcing his team of aides to the country as unhelpful to his general perception, I do not see extreme damage being done to his presidency on the short to medium term since he still has ample time to correct all flaws and unfold mitigating achievements that may send town-criers singing another tune. With all the information at my disposal however, I have no doubt, he will strike the right nerve.

Details

Ngwa Bertrand

30.Jun.2015

Hits: 2003