The year, 2019, is almost around the corner and President Muhammadu Buhari is aware of the closeness. And he seems to be trying to right some of the wrongs committed by his All Progressives Congress (APC) and himself. Although he has not declared to run in 2019, his recent actions and body language suggest that he may be interested in running for a second term. YUSUF MOHAMMED writes.
There are issues that have been raised by Nigerians in recent times. At the core of these issues are the lopsided appointments that characterized this current administration.
Buhari has been accused of appointing more Northerners into his government, especially those who are of the Fulani stock. However, his administration has continued to deny such, saying his appointments cut across the length and breathe of the country. They also argue that all appointments made by this administration are based on merit.
It was the need to convince Nigerians that forced the presidency to release a full list of political appointments to show that the president has been balancing diversity by carrying all ethnic groups along.
He has also been accused by the South East that he has deliberately left out people from the region in his administration. Apart from the Ministers who must be appointed constitutionally across the 36 states of the federation, many people have argued that there is no Igbo man that has been appointed into the Buhari administration in any capacity.
This is one of the issues that reawakened the agitation for Biafra by the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).
It was also alleged that the president had sidelined Senator Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, after all he did for him to become president.
The presidency, according to feelers, became panicky as usual and has been trying to disabuse the minds of people who think and believe so. Some people are also of the opinion that current government has become very unpopular, the change agenda is believed to be changing nothing positively, and all promises made during the campaigns have remained unfulfilled since he took over the mantle of leadership.
It would be recalled that the president promised to create million of jobs for the teeming unemployed youths. He vowed to crush corruption, promising that there would be no sacred cows. On May 29, 2015, his inauguration day, he told Nigerians that, “I belong to everybody and I belong to nobody” a statement many took to heart. A few years later, cries of nepotism have become the order of the day.
People have accused the president of belonging to a cabal. According to a former governor of Anambra State, Chief Chukwuemeka Ezeife, one of the main reasons for agitations across the country is that the president ignored federal character principle in making political appointments. He also claims Buhari is trying to frustrate the South-East out of Nigeria.
“Buhari is the engineer of the problems. He is trying to push the South-East out of Nigeria by marginalising, dehumanising and humiliating them,” he said, adding that the agitation for Biafra has now become a national problem. “The young ones couldn’t understand what he was up to and so they reacted as young people.”
“We didn’t have these problems under President Olusegun Obasanjo, Umaru Yar’Adua or Goodluck Jonathan but immediately Buhari took the oath of office and swore to protect the Constitution, he reneged on such things as the federal character. “He told us he belongs to everybody and to nobody but we have seen that he belongs to Katsina,” he added.
The president seems to be making efforts to appease aggrieved Nigerians across board. Now that 2019 is around the corner, he has suddenly begun to have listening ears again. He invited Tinubu to ASO Rock recently. There are also reports that the president reluctantly, sacked former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, after pressure from Tinubu and other party leaders. A move he made just to appease them and show Nigerians that his anti-corruption fight was not limited to members of the opposition parties alone.
Perhaps the biggest sign of all that he is trying to make amends was his visit to some states in the South East. He visited Anambra and Ebonyi States recently. That became the first time he would visit the South East since he assumed office in 2015.
While addressing a gathering at Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State capital, after being conferred with the chieftaincy title of ‘Ocho Oha’ (the people’s general) by the South East traditional rulers, he said, “My presence here today is a demonstration of my strong belief in the unity of Nigeria. “As the most populous country in Africa, with over 300 ethnic groups, our diversity is almost unique. When I met with the leaders of the South East in Abuja last month, they raised several issues of concern, including the state of the roads and infrastructure in the region.”
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This visit, to some Nigerians, was like the icing on a cake. But other people were not persuaded by his visit.
“He is wasting his time,” remarked Uchendu Obi, an Igbo youth advocate who thinks Buhari was wasting his time by visiting the South East at the time he did.
While speaking with The Next Edition, Mr. Obi further said, “Everyone knows he is playing politics. It is not from his heart. His remarks in recent time show his hatred for Ndigbo. He will lose in 2019 no matter what he does. It is all about perception; can he change the way people feel about him?”
Femi Adesina, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, has, however, denied claims that President Muhammadu Buhari’s visit to the South-East region was politically motivated “If some people are infusing political motives, they have a right to their thoughts. As far as the President is concerned, this is a state in the country he has been invited to come on a state visit and commission some projects,” Adesina said.
In defence of his principal, the presidential spokesman explained that the state in question (Ebonyi) is under the control of a party in the opposition, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
According to him, the President’s visit shows that he means well for all parts of the country. He also rejected reports that the Buhari-led administration sidelined the South East in his appointments. “Talking about appointments from the region, if you were here today in the places where the President was received, what is just the general opinion, what they have been asking for is just ‘more.’ It is not as if we have not gotten anything, they say thank you for the ones we have but we want more..
“And if you ask people from other parts of the country, it will be the same request; it will be the same sentiment. Thank you for what you have given us, but we want more.
“So, it is not only one region of the country that has issues about being under-appointed or under-represented in government, almost every region can lay claim to that,” he added
Meanwhile in what appeared to be a setback to Buhari’s South East tour, traditional rulers in Anambra refused to meet with him at Awka, insisting that the president should meet them at Onitsha. Members of the State Chapter of the APC have been pointing accusing fingers at the governor, Wiliie Obiano, for the actions of the rulers. It was gathered that Obiano viewed Buhari’s tour as a campaign for the APC candidate, Tony Nwoye.
In reaction, the APC in Anambra State berated the governor for the ‘u-turn’ by the traditional rulers. A statement by the State Chairman of the Party, Barr. Emeka Ibeh in Awka, said “it was very unfortunate and regrettable that Governor Obiano has denied Ndi-Anambra a huge opportunity to interact with the President in our very home, relaxed enough to ask critical questions on issues affecting Ndigbo.”
According to Ibeh, it is customary for the President to meet with the State Traditional Rulers led by its Chairman, Igwe Nnaemeka Achebe, Agbogidi, the Obi of Onitsha at Awka. “It is to our chagrin that the highly respected Royal Father suddenly did a u-turn, insisting that the President should rather meet them at Onitsha,” Ibe said.
“Such a sudden change does not happen in vain. We are aware the Governor has been threatening to withdraw the certificate of any traditional ruler that disobeys his directive on boycott,” Mr. Ibeh said.
They say in politics, there are no permanent friends or enemies, only permanent interests. If he yields to the demands of the political actors across board, he may be successful again at the polls in 2019. But there are several other issues that need to be tackled to give him or his party the chance. Is it too late? Only time will tell.