I watched with keen interest, the declaration to run for presidency come 2015 by former Vice- President Alh. Atiku Abubakar and erstwhile military ruler Gen. Muhammadu Buhari both on the platform of All Progressives Congress (APC).
The declaration by these two presidential hopefuls has set the tone for the race to occupy Aso Rock in the next few months.
The intent of this writing is to offer my unprejudiced, unbiased and objective position on the content of the speeches of both men.
Atiku Abubakar's declaration was exhilarating, constructive and issue- based. His draft policy is a comprehensive document which echoes brilliant ideas on how he hopes to solve Nigeria's problems of infrastructural deficiencies, revamp the economy, fight corruption, terror, improve health care, education e.t.c.
The highpoint of Atiku's speech is that, if elected, our economy would be private sector driven. What a beautiful idea!
General Muhammadu Buhari on the other hand, demonstrated an irreverent attitude. Typical Nigerian politician pull-him- down syndrome. Rather than giving a quality speech and rolling out well- conceived and novel alternative manifestoes, the septuagenarian and his lieutenants; Rotimi Amaechi, Timipre Sylva, Audu Ogbe and co were busy saying nothing other than casting aspersions on Goodluck Jonathan led PDP government. It was an uncharitable show characterized by mere empty verbal jousting.
I am not an APC member. I do not share the philosophy APC if any exists nor believe that the reorganisation and redemption Nigeria needs can come from the Party. I do not have any leaning for Alh Atiku nor Gen. Buhari but of course i have alot of respect for both elder statesmen.
The Atiku brand to me no doubt, is an intellectual brand that the twenty- first century society yarns for. Gen. Buhari is a cultured, incorruptible, disciplined and decent gentleman.
However, Alh. Atiku and Gen Buhari come to the national domain with putrid and unimpressive profiles in their hands.
I marvelled when Alh. Atiku publicly declared that he would fight corruption. I can not come to terms with the assertions of Gen. Buhari that he will fix Nigeria given his very horrendous antecedents of human rights abuses. Gen Buhari staged a coup against Nigeria and truncated second republic democratic arrangement in 1983. When you remember his notorious decree 4 what comes to your mind? Gen. Buhari's headship of 1983-84 was ruthless, draconian and above all paternalistic. Now the stage is set again.
As the duo squares up for APC presidential ticket, I wish them success at their forth-coming national convention. In the words of Aristotle; dignity consists not in possessing honours but in the consciousness that we deserve them.
The submissions about the two most popular gladiators in the APC are far from my expectations. It is a statement of fact that anyone who was not born in the 60s was not old and conscious enough to appraise the 1983-84 situation. There is no amount of History Books or archival documents that could actually capture the real situation. The Gen. Muhammadu Buhari/Idiagbon Coup that birthed their military administration was a total necessity. Then, Nigeria was about to degenerate into a complete state of anarchy; the political class were actually paranoid; thugs were the rulers then; the NURTW members had become quintessential overlords; the situation was that bad such that anyone who was not around at all or someone who was a toddler would never understand the Nigeria of 1983. The military did well by taking over the reins of power in order to prevent a total breakdown that would have unavoidably balloned into a full scale war. It was a real war between the gladiators in both the UPN and the NPN in the south-west; a bitter fight between the NPN and the PRP in the North; and the NPN and APGA in the eastern part of the country. These wranglings were a direct fallout of the remnants of the bitter politicking between the Action Group (AG) of the old Western Region, National Council for Nigeria and the Cameroons (NCNC) in the old Eastern Region and the Northern Elements People's Union in the North. Dear TR, the analyses of the pre-Buhari Nigerian politics is quite inexhaustible. Part of what is to become Nigeria's lot has been philosophised in J. Esawa Elaigu's GOWON. Buhari did his best to save Nigeria from that disastrous fall from the precipice. If the Buhari/Idiagbon regime was not truncated by the obnoxious regime of their successor, Nigeria, by now, would have become an America. During the Buhari/Idiagbon era, Nigerians enjoyed the fixed-price system; one bought a tin of Titus for 25k, Geisha for 15k, a tube of Pepsodent for 15k, a family-size tin of Ovaltine for 40k, i used to board a bus from Ibadan to Iwo at 40k and life was very cool. A tin of milk and a bag of rice sold for the same amount at Lagos, Ibadan, Kano, Calabar, Port-Harcourt, Gongola, Sokoto, Ilorin, Abeokuta and the other cities and towns across the entire country. The Buhari /Idiagbon regime was the best experience. There was ORDER in the real sense of the word and there was peace and stability. I can stick my neck for Gen. Muhammadu Buhari anytime when it comes to decency, modesty and decorum in the country's political terrain.
Signed
Pharm Smile2012
Your good contribution needed
by ROTMANLUV 2023-07-08, 17:34
