“The art of leadership is saying no, not yes. It is very easy to say yes” – Tony Blair
Officially by the timetable of the electoral umpire the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), and in accordance with Section 99 (1) of the Electoral Act, 2010 (as amended) which provides that political parties shall commence campaigns 90 days before polling day and end 24 hours prior to that date, the much long awaited campaigns for the 2019 General Elections for the Presidential and National Assembly kicked off last weekend. While that for the Governorship and State Houses of Assembly kicks off next weekend. The big question is will Nigeria come out from the Elections more divided,considering how polarized the country is or resolve to forge ahead more united? The other big question is , will voters make enlightened choices or will they be swayed by emotions? Will their emotions rule their political decisions or will they vote rationally?
There is no doubt about the unique position of Kaduna State in the politics of Nigeria – both military and civilian, which goes beyond its location. When the crocodile city, the home of the famous Kaduna mafia sneezes the rest of the country catches cold. Ibadan,Benin and Enugu former regional capitals like Kaduna have since lost their political relevance. Kaduna State remains the only state were the State House of Assembly successively impeached a governor and the impeachment stood. In 1979 the fiery Balarabe Musa, who was elected on the platform of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), was impeached for gross violation of the constitution. It is this unique position that makes Kaduna State the topic of political discourse.
Twenty years after the Muslim – Muslim Ticket of late Chief MKO Abiola and Ambassador Babagana Kingibe, Kaduna State Governor the Nasir El-Rufai, a very daring politician named Hadiza Balarabe a medical doctor and a native Muslim from the South as his deputy governorship candidate. Hitherto the position had always been reserved for Christians in a bid to balance the ticket and assure the Christian South of “belongingness”. That the Muslim/Muslim Ticket generated the kind of uproar it generated shows that Nigeria has indeed retrogressed , rather than progressed from the Abiola move which was welcomed. This is no doubt an eloquent confirmation of how more divided we are as a people.
Nasir El-Rufai by taking this bold decision has forced Nigerians to have descent conversations – about what we desire or want as a people? Do we want development or underdevelopment? Has the Muslim -Christian Ticket in real terms changed the material conditions of Nigerians? Will the Muslim/Muslim Ticket not turn out in the long run more beneficial for the South,which has always been at loggerheads with every Christian Deputy Governor since 1999? Will the decision force the South to ask questions about its politics? Will the South value the position more and respect whoever especially a Christian who in future emerges as a deputy governor? There are questions,tons of it which Nasir El-Rufai has forced.
Going by Statistics,the – the number of military rulers,ministers etc that the core Muslim north which has “wielded and continues to wield power” has produced, the north ought to be an Eldorado. At individual levels many of them have done well,like the elites from the other parts of the country. But the question which many people fail or refuse to ask is , in what way has this benefited the region? The raw facts shows that Muslims occupying top positions hasn’t changed the objective reality of the north, which by every developmental indices is lacking behind the South and is confronted with more social and economic problems – than the South. For instance Kaduna State which educationally is the northern “star” has consistently placed 12th in WAEC, behind states like Anambra and Imo. Kaduna State is home to more than ten (10) federal government institutions of learning. Off the one hundred (100), top schools in Nigeria the north has less than ten (10). Of the seventy five (75) private universities Osun and Ogun states have seventeen (17) universities between them. While the entire nineteen (19) Northern States have less than five (5), universities.
Should the South worry itself about El-Rufai’s decision to pick Hadiza a daughter of the zone,though a Muslim ? Can the South gloss over the consequences of rejecting her? Nasir El-Rufai having picked a Muslim as his deputy has definitely raised the bar of justice and fairness to an entirely new level.Every action and inaction,the distribution of projects etc of his are going to be subjected to real scrutiny. Only a man of justice will assume such an added responsibility. The one problem why positions and religious belief of office holders continue to dominate our politics is because in the past government use to “be it”. Unfortunately there is still that tinny minority that is wallowing in the past about the role of government,which has refused to take note of trends. For instance the sale of contract papers is a thing of the past. The reality or better still the failure to comprehend that the future is the private sector, and not Government is largely responsible for the reaction to the Muslim/Muslim ticket.
For Southern Kaduna the Muslim/Muslim ticket offers it an opportunity for deep introspection – especially its relationship with its political leaders. In 1990 James Bawa Magaji,who emerged as deputy to Dabo Lere ,was treated as an orphan,a trend which continued since 1999 to date. Late Patrick Yakowa who became Governor was equally treated like a leper. The South refused to embrace and like the saying goes you don’t value a thing until you lose it. Bala Bantex ,the incumbent deputy governor’s decision not to seek reelection with El-Rufai , was obviously as a result of the barrage of insults and attacks on his person. He has been called traitor, useless sell out,that twice he reportedly indicated his desire to resign. The only time Bala Bantex received any iota of respect or recognition from his zone was when he reportedly slapped El – Rufai, an indication of the kind of relationship some of “his people” would have preferred. But had Bantex slapped Nasir El-Rufai , would he had lasted one day longer in office? A Deputy Governor can only be as effective as his boss wants him to be,which is why is why Chukwuemeka Ezeifie once derogatorily referred to them as worse than spare tyres.
Nasir El-Rufai has by his decision to pick Hadiza focused or redirected attention to the essence of governance and the key characteristics of good governance which are consensus building, participation by both men and women,either directly or through elected members, equity and inclusiveness ,all for the best interests of all stakeholders who desire good life. And in this regard he must make the best use of resources – human, technological, financial, natural and environmental – at his disposal and failure to will mean the failure of his administration and history will mete out the appropriate sanctions.
Nasir El-Rufai, true to the words of Winston Churchill has been murdered several times over by political opponents and would expectedly be savagely murdered several times over in the coming days,weeks and months as politicking towards the 2019 elections becomes more intense. The one outstanding quality of El-Rufai is that from the very outset to date, he has faithfully spoken his mind, he harbors no secrets. He is unlike governors who could have chosen a Christian, who would have in every sense of the word been a passenger in government. Under former governor Namadi Sambo,the Chief of Staff was powerful than the deputy governor. On the choice of Hadiza as his deputy he hasn’t surprised as he has lived up to that reputation of traveling the road most politicians will never dare – the road of conviction. He has shaken up things – from civil service reforms to the choice of his deputy and for certain Kaduna State will never be the same again.
In the United States of America, for a very long time political appointments,through the “spoils system” ensured that jobs went mainly to supporters and family members of politicians. Senator William Marcy culled the term “spoils” . He was notorious for saying “to the victor belongs the spoils”. But it had to give way because it led to widespread inefficiency, including the brutal assassination of President James Garfield by Charles Guiteau, a mentally deranged political office seeker which forced America to turn her eyes to a merit system. And the Congress did the needful by passing the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act that placed merit over family considerations in appointments. Perhaps Nigeria moving forward would need to critically assess the situation we have found ourselves as a nation and the need for a change. Nasir El-Rufai has set the ball rolling.
El-Rufai deserves the support of the people of Kaduna State to deepen the reforms and take the state to the next level. Singapore under Lee Kuan Yew became a First World country by embarking on the necessary and very painful reforms which were generously administered. Singapore is an example that there can’t be gain without pain. Christian/Muslim ticket , Muslim/Muslim ticket didn’t achieve the heights that tinny country has achieved. Very fundamental is that governance in Kaduna State and indeed Nigeria can no longer be about the building roads or drilling boreholes or the provision of transformers – routine operational assignments that competent directors can implement, while the Governor concerns himself with setting the strategic direction in which the State should travel and formulating the broad policies to enable this happens.
