Opinion: Bólèk’ájà Party Primaries, By Lasisi Olagunju – Newstrends
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Opinion: Bólèk’ájà Party Primaries, By Lasisi Olagunju

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“You heard the commanding voice of Senator Bola Tinubu last Thursday demanding the presidency of Nigeria as a matter of right. “E gbé e fún mi/Èmi ló kàn (Give it to me; it is my turn).” That scene, complete with all the finger-pointing ‘thingfication’ of a sitting governor inside his Government House, reenacted what the conductor did on lorries of the past.”

Bólèk’ájà means ‘come down and let’s fight’. If you lived in Yoruba land of 1970s with its wood-bodied passenger Bedford and Austin lorries, the slang wouldn’t be strange to you. Sometimes, the push for a fight came from the scruffy lorry boy; some other time, it was a bad passenger who wanted a fight in the gutter – or right there on the dusty road. The come-down-let’s-fight challenge might lead to the real thing or it might end a mere bluff and bluster to silence the impudent. But, in both cases, it served to inject some excitement to the capricious life on the road and its insufferable tension.

You heard the commanding voice of Senator Bola Tinubu last Thursday demanding the presidency of Nigeria as a matter of right. “E gbé e fún mi/Èmi ló kàn (Give it to me; it is my turn).” That scene, complete with all the finger-pointing ‘thingfication’ of a sitting governor inside his Government House, reenacted what the conductor did on lorries of the past. Irreverent children of comical remix soon hijacked that “èmi l’ó kàn” battle cry. They’ve weaponised it and it is trending and unraveling an aspiration that has cost decades and billions to erect.

I do not belong to Bola Tinubu’s the-king-does-no-wrong crowd. When some old friends asked me not to share the career-threatening social media remix of his bad outing of last week, I told them that the owner of Lagos himself loves dragging others; his butt knows neither age nor reverence. He would share those stuffs if it was his next-door rival that was in this raging storm. His politics knows no good and bad; what it knows is the ultimate end of his “life-long ambition to be president of Nigeria.” The trending ‘Emi lo kan’ mash-up of Tinubu gives us a reason to smile amidst the devastations of today’s misgovernance. So, why should I not laugh that a cook is getting baked in his own oven? Chinweizu, iconic literary critic, addressed this issue 38 years ago: “There comes a time…in the affairs of men and of nations when it becomes necessary for them to engage in bólèk’ájà criticism for them to drag the stiflers of their life down to earth for a corrective tussle.” That is what the memes are doing right now. We should enjoy them before the next one is created at today’s convention of the ruling party.

It doesn’t rain in Nigeria; it pours. After overlord Tinubu’s portentous demand for the crown came his party chairman, Abdullahi Adamu’s outburst on Saturday.  The leader condemned the national leader; he said Tinubu did the unthinkable: he insulted untouchable Buhari. “It must never happen again,” Adamu warned. I listened to Adamu’s foaming response and wondered whether it was not an unnecessary overkill; a completion of the bólèk’ájà construct of that party of commotion. He particularly promised to punish the Lion of Bourdillon. I gasped. Six years ago (2016), there was a video of Tinubu dancing to the beats of a local band. It was during that year’s Iléyá festival. The accompanying song made a lot of political sense, so he danced with gusto: “Òpè ni wón o, won ò mo nkankan/Àjànàkú yo l’ókèrè, wón lo m’oré dání/Erin kojá eran à nf’òpá lù…(They are neophytes, they know nothing/Ajanaku struts out at a distance, they went for canes/Elephant is more than an animal you beat with sticks…).” Headmaster Adamu needs to go and watch that video and study the body language of the man he wants to beat like an errant school boy. But I do not blame Adamu; I blame Tinubu. When an àgbàlagbà (elder) ties corn to his agbádá, he becomes the pecking victim of chickens.

I watched Abdullahi Adamu’s threats and felt like abusing him in defence of Tinubu. But I reasoned, what is my own in that family feud? Tinubu should be clear on why he ate what he ate – the fúra that is giving him the trending constipation. If you live in harmony with God’s reason for your existence, you won’t go stray into the snare of the world’s fowler. That is what has happened here to a man who thinks he is surer than fate. May we not be too big to think the eyes of the earth are fitting stool for our beaded feet. Ìwà rere l’èsó ènìyàn (good character is man’s adornment). Good character has properties; arrogance is not one of them. Greed is not. The principles of Ìwà contrast sharply with a life of clutter and entitled gluttony. Chaos, frustration and failure are natural outgrowths of non-alignment with the foundational principles of Ìwà. The big man, Tinubu, lamented that for over 25 years, he had served his boys; he called them ‘àwon omo’ (children). I suggest he reads Sara Berry’s ‘Fathers Work for Their Sons: Accumulation, Mobility, and Class in an Extended Yoruba Community.’ The book is an anthropological account of cocoa farming in my and Tinubu’s part of Yoruba land. It is about kinship as investment and about what Dwayne Woods, a reviewer, describes as the “perpetual restlessness” that makes people move from old fields to new ones. The fathers in that book did not regret or complain about the service they rendered as fathers. And the sons were good too; they did not undermine their father. It is tragic that all the field commanders whom Tinubu kitted up for this day are on the side of the enemy. But with him they share hubris and whatever he suffers they will suffer.

You’ve seen how the PDP did its 2023 primary thing. You are seeing APC’s ‘Anointing Oil’ politics with its Bólèk’ájà counterforce. The grand finale starts today. It will be Soyinka’s ‘A Dance of the Forests’ with Dead Man, Dead Woman and Half-Child and all other characters to, once and for all, settle their unfinished business. In all these, let me ask: where is the face of deliverance for the hungry and the ill in unlit cities and villages? Evil appears to have triumphed in Nigeria. It is not as if God has stopped creating good people. They may exist in the country but they are silent (or silenced), resigned and lethargic. Lethargy means “a lack of energy and enthusiasm”; it also means “deep inactivity.” Thomas Jefferson, author of America’s Declaration of Independence, in a 1787 letter described ‘lethargy’ as the “forerunner of death to public liberty.” We’ve almost lost it completely here. Jefferson’s American project has been a success because its conscience is not clogged by a complicit culture of silence and inactivity. Here, everyone is scared or bought. The price is high.

Let us go back to Tinubu and his eruption. Was he wrong to say that the presidency is not for the North alone? He was very right; no one could fault him on that. Perhaps, that was the real reason Adamu was very angry. Why should anyone be angry because of that basic truth of our nationhood?

There is a man called Babachir David Lawal. He used to be Nigeria’s Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) until his friends yanked his fingers off the soup pot. His enemies call him ‘the Grasscutter’ and that is because, as SGF, he awarded multi-million naira grass-cutting contracts and got caught. The case is still in court. Like Adamu, Lawal spoke in response to Tinubu, particularly on this North thing and what it could do if southerners continued to say stuffs bigger than their mouths. Lawal is (or was) a loyalist of Bola Tinubu. He was unhappy that his favourite Yoruba man misgoverned himself in Abeokuta and said political power was not the birthright of the North and that it was the turn of the Yoruba – and his turn – to be president. Lawal felt that this Sango miscarried his baby. So, the ex-SGF forgot their friendship and came out firing as an enemy: “When Yorubas vilify the North like this, our sense of fear and insecurity under a Yoruba presidency gets heightened and in the end, pushes us to rethink our support for not only Bola (Tinubu) but any Yoruba as president for that matter.” Errant, promiscuous fruits always invite stones to their mothers. Lawal did not stop at the bashing of his friend and benefactor; he had to extend his insolence to every living Yoruba man. He thinks the northerner is the only one with unconditional rights to Nigeria’s presidency; anyone else who claims it is a threat. But Lawal himself is a butterfly calling himself a bird. He is a Christian from Kwambila village in Adamawa State. Can he ever be president of Nigeria under the present unjust system? He is more marginalized and disadvantaged than the Yoruba man that he threatened.

I enjoy discussing Nigeria and its politics with one man I have not met in person. He is from the North. My northern friend insists he is not Fulani; he says he is Hausa. But he believes so much in the North and laments its multifarious illnesses and diseases. He thinks, however, that the permanence of the North’s headship of Nigeria would cure it of its afflictions. Amidst wars and rumours of wars shaking the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), my friend would ‘try’ me with a torrent of WhatsApp messages last week: “Let me ask you this…. Do you think power going South is in the interest of the North? We need to be in power to develop our region. You southerners have a strong diaspora population to leverage to fund development in your region. Out of $25 billion remittance from abroad, 95% goes to southern Nigeria. We are very backward and underdeveloped. Catching up with the South is a near impossible mission. You have more wealth per capita than us. May be something like 1:100. Just look at that report on industrial production. Lagos and Ogun account for 98%. By the time you add other southern states, you will have 99.999999%. Where is the economic justice?”

The words were clearly provocative, but I observed that my northern friend was very calm and deliberate in composing and sending his message. It was a direct proposition of slavery. The Ijesa of Yoruba land would say: “orí mi má je kan bè mí l’ébè ìyà (may my head not let ‘them’ beg me to come and suffer).” Wooing a man to come and live in slavery is alien to my part of the world. In a ping pong manner, we played ball with words. I told him the presidency residing in the north for a million years would not make any positive impact and that it would remain a curse there unless they changed their ways. I told him: “Unfortunately, there is nothing you can do to keep power beyond your allotted time. Even the British with all their wisdom and sophistication had to leave in 1960. You cannot punish the South for the effects of the choices you made with open eyes. Even as we speak, your people are still opposed to education. You and I know that the only antidote to poverty and underdevelopment is education. We see the effect in our individual lives. I blame you northern elites. You do not love your people. You use them.” My friend agreed that the northern elite are predatory and grossly irresponsible. He, however, added that “we can’t have peace and development when a large part of the country is left behind. A country is only as strong as its weakest part.” I agreed with him but asked why he wouldn’t agree with me that “every part of Nigeria could be made to work without injuring any other part.” My friend loves having the last word, so he said: “the truth is that if southerners want peace and stability in this country, they must get involved in building and developing the North.” Towards the end of last week in Lagos, I showed the chat thread to a friend, an editor with The Punch. He shivered.

And then, the news broke on Saturday night that the APC bloc of the Northern Governors Forum had endorsed the party’s ticket to go to the South. Imperial Buhari followed up with instructions that all the aspirants should go and reach a consensus on one of them before today’s convention. But as of Sunday morning, Senate President Ahmed Lawan and Kogi State governor, Yahaya Bello, were still waving the flags of their provocative ambitions. There were also immediate, sponsored plebeian protests against the governors’ position. What could all these suggest? Think. My friend’s reaction to that development was “I honestly don’t want this power to go to the south. We have many problems in the north which can be addressed only by a northern president.” I keep imagining how many of the well-read up there think like my friend. The discussion with my northern friend was a long one; it will likely continue this week after Muhammadu Buhari, Bayajjida II, must have chosen our next president for us.

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Why I can’t form coalition with Peter Obi – Sowore

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Peter Obi and Omoyele Sowore

Why I can’t form coalition with Peter Obi – Sowore

Omoyele Sowore, the African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate in the 2023 election, recently shared his reasons for not forming a coalition with Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s candidate in the same election.

In his appearance on the Honest Bunch podcast, Sowore asserted that, in his view, Obi is similar to other Nigerian politicians, describing him as “better at packaging.”

Sowore explained that his own journey in politics began long before Obi gained national recognition, emphasizing his dedication to advocating for systemic change in Nigeria.

During the podcast, co-hosted by Nedu, Husband Material, Deity Cole, and Ezinne, Sowore highlighted his belief in challenging the status quo, which he feels differs significantly from Obi’s approach.

Sowore said, “Before you discovered Peter Obi, I was already running for president. All these shouts about Peter Obi… He just knows how to package. Anyone can do it.

“If I form a coalition with Peter Obi, I will be going against what I have always stood for, which is that I will never support a Nigerian leader who has held any political office — whether at the federal, state, or local level — if I consider them non-performing.

“It’s the same reason I would never have joined hands with Atiku. And the Peter Obi you’re talking about was a vice-presidential candidate to Atiku when I was a presidential candidate in 2019.

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“So, what are we talking about? There is no lesser evil in my book. If you are evil, you are evil. If you are good, you are good. I have a general disdain for non-performance.”

He added that there is no such thing as “emotional attachment” in his dictionary.

“There was a friend of mine who kept saying, he doesn’t care if Peter Obi is Igbo, but that it is the turn of the Igbos. But it is beyond that; I have a natural disdain for poor performance,” he explained.

Sowore insisted that while many may not know it, he knew Obi before and during his time as governor, and he backed him.

“I had always known and supported him and stood against his removal when (Olusegun) Obasanjo wanted to use Andy Ubah to replace him—the twists and turns then.

“However, when Peter Obi finished his term in Anambra, the question I asked him was whether he could send his child to any university he had built in Anambra—he was mute and could not respond.

“I also asked him if he could enter any hospital he built in Anambra, which he governed for eight years, even if it was for the slightest headache—there was also no response.”

Sowore went on to challenge the four anchors or any other Nigerians, saying, “If they can pack their bags and head to Anambra for a vacation.”

PUNCH Online reports that President Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress recorded 8,794,726 votes in the 2023 presidential election, followed by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party who secured 6,984,520 votes.

In third place, Labour Party’s Obi garnered 6,101,533 votes, and Rabiu Kwankwaso of the New Nigeria Peoples Party secured 1,496,687 votes.

Why I can’t form coalition with Peter Obi – Sowore

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Why we want Jonathan to contest 2027 presidency – Northern group

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Goodluck Ebele Jonathan

Why we want Jonathan to contest 2027 presidency – Northern group

The Arewa Consensus for Jonathan, a political group in the North, has urged former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan to enter the 2027 presidential race.

Jonathan, who served as Nigeria’s president from 2010 to 2015, is widely regarded for his role in fostering democratic growth and his relatively peaceful exit from power after losing the 2015 election.
Despite his exit from politics, his name has remained a focal point in discussions about Nigeria’s future leadership.

The group’s leader, Munir Musa, who made the appeal during a press conference in Bauchi over the weekend, emphasised that Jonathan’s return to office was crucial to addressing Nigeria’s pressing economic and security challenges.

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He argued that Nigeria, grappling with severe economic downturns and rising security threats, needs a leader with Jonathan’s experience and competence to restore stability.

“The nation is at a crossroads, and we believe that Goodluck Jonathan is the right man to steer us out of the current malaise,” Musa told reporters.

He expressed confidence that Jonathan’s leadership could heal the country’s deepening wounds and usher in a new era of progress.

 

Why we want Jonathan to contest 2027 presidency – Northern group

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Afenifere, Council of Obas back Aiyedatiwa for Ondo gov

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Governor of Ondo State, Lucky Aiyedatiwa

Afenifere, Council of Obas back Aiyedatiwa for Ondo gov

Afenifere, the pan-Yoruba socio-political and cultural organization, has endorsed Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate for the November 16 governorship election in Ondo State.

Sehinde Arogbofa, a prominent Afenifere leader, announced the support at the Olubaka of Oka land palace, Oba Yusuf Adebori Adeleye.

Arogbofa expressed confidence in Aiyedatiwa’s leadership and encouraged him to follow the values and legacy of Chief Adekunle Ajasin, Ondo State’s first governor. “Afenifere stands firmly behind your mandate… Strive to make Ondo State great again,” Arogbofa said.

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Oba Adeleye, speaking on behalf of traditional rulers in Akoko South West Local Government Area, also endorsed Aiyedatiwa, citing his masses-focused policies and the governor’s initiative to allocate five percent of local government funds to traditional institutions as a demonstration of his commitment to their welfare.

“The Council of Obas has decided that Governor Aiyedatiwa is our candidate,” Oba Adeleye stated, pledging their support for Aiyedatiwa’s election campaign.

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