To command is to serve, nothing more and nothing less. Andre Malraux
It’s no longer news that the most populous black nation on earth is gearing towards a general election come 2015, a process seen to consolidate the democratic gains of Africa’s largest economy and present candidates aspiring to become the leading hopefuls of the opposing political party. The uncertainty leading to primaries in the All Progressive Congress (APC) makes it very difficult to calibrate the strategy of the opposition party (at the moment, our best guess is what the party chairman said concerning the presidential race) “as regards the presidency, we have said that any person from any part of the country can contest”
The beauty of the 2015 general election is the fact that both the chairman of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Alhaji Adamu Mu’azu, and his APC counterpart Chief John Oyegun were both former state governors, this present a paradigm shift in the manner they may handle the affairs of their political parties. various party. The PDP chairman proved this point when he assumed office early in the year and told state governors on a solidarity visit to “ Go back to the people and appeal to their sense of judgment for them to elect you. There would be no imposition of candidates from Abuja”
In advanced democracies especially the United State of America, a country which we emulate in theory but not in principles, there are, usually, three type of leaders: those who fail and those who get out before they fail. The third are the visionaries who come to win and change the status quo. Often times, the only way to check whether a leader has failed his people or won their admiration, is to assess him in retrospect, judging his achievements in the light of past deeds and mistakes.
In Africa and most parts of the developing world, there are also three types of politicians: those who come to correct their predecessor’s wrong, those who have no reason to fail, and those who do not care about winning or failing.
The crux of this analysis is to put a barometer on the presidential aspirants and evaluate their candidacy as regard their aspiration to lead Nigeria to the path of greatness. Soon the APC would choose a new face to front the party in the 2015 presidential election. You would be fatigued in counting if you have the list of touted names who are aspiring for the plum job. However I will narrow my analysis to what the party chairman said in an interview “We in the party know that there are at least four people already running for the presidential ticket” not to jump the gun I will dissect the quartet aspirants pending when others join the race.
Among the known contestants is a septuagenarian in the contest dubbed the “ Abraham Lincoln” of Nigeria, an unrepentant political dinosaur who has nursed and nurtured his presidential ambition, a former Governor and a serving Senator who is seen as a bridge between the young and old generation, there is also a pharmacist-turned publisher-turned politician with modern ideas.
Needless to say, all the above-mentioned gentlemen in the APC camp are, or at least appear formidable and capable of leading this great country. Their audacity does not necessarily make the office of the president appear less important but in a more objective sense, it seeks to ask the very important question: who has what it takes to be president?.
The qualities of leadership are so subtle that it is very difficult to describe all of them in a coherent narrative. Some characters appear so promising for leadership until they take the deep plunge into the murky waters of politics. Their actions and inactions become the medium by which people judge their performance given the fact that some of the aspirants for the presidential race have occupied certain political position in the country.
A prospective aspirant is not the best until he is tried and proven to be. How does candidate Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) strike you? A credible, no nonsense general, whose fame days of War Against Indiscipline (WAI) still resonates in the mind of the populace, the simple looking general in a bid to grow the economy ensured imports were cut, resulting in the rise of goods and high inflation, there is a perception of his prudent managing of the excess oil revenue fund with transparency and efficiency. He is well known to the political hawks given the fact that In 2003, 2007, and 2011 he ran in the presidential race and lost to the ruling PDP. On the global front, Buhari is reported to be well respected. It is a known fact that he and Nelson Mandela were the only private African individuals invited by the White House to Barack Obama’s inauguration ceremony.
To the average Nigerian youth, who are swing voters, Buhari falls into the older generation. While he also has employed the use of a website and electronic social networking as campaign tools, it is not clear whether he will fit well to bridge the generational gap between past leaders and the current crop of upwardly mobile, technology-enabled savvy youth.
Alh. Atiku Abubakar is a political gladiator in the Nigerian politics. But those who have followed his politics since the formation of the ruling PDP know his worth. As William Shakespeare said, some are born great, some achieve greatness and others have greatness thrust upon them, he is known as someone with a deep pocket across the spectrum, he has also been switching ships in his mission to cling on to the presidential ticket starting with the PDP which he co-founded, the defunct ACN, back to PDP and the now APC, but he has kept absolute faith with his spirit in leading Nigeria. He has showed incredible commitment to the party, and now wants to lead it to victory in the 2015 presidential elections. He is also a co-founder of the Peoples Democratic Movement (PDM) and its sole financier. For now the business mogul seems confused on what platform to contest APC or PDM. Atiku is also present on social media where he discusses with the youth, using the handle @Atiku he discusses issues like jobs, quality education, security and keeps a date on facebook with his friends for the #LetsTalkJobs every Tuesday.
The most important question the electorate seeks to answer in any electioneering process is what makes them prefer a particular candidate to others. In a sense Sen. Bukola Saraki belongs to the category of presidential candidates dubbed the diaspora-aspirants, because of his extremely successful sojourn in UK as a medical doctor, before returning to become Governor of Kwara state, which made him the heir of the Saraki dynasty (which he now leads), the former member of the ruling PDP was among the aggrieved members who defected to the APC along side the current Governor Abdulfatai Ahmed who is touted to be his protégé. Contrary to what his detractors may be saying, Bukola Saraki claims to have the winning machinery for victory in Kwara state. Does he have that for the presidency? Time will tell. He is seen as a formidable bridge between the young and old generation, and possess in his chest a legislative and executive experience. Bukola is also a good user of the social media with the handle @Bukolasaraki where he discuss with his followers on key national issues.
In addition, it seems Sam Nda- Isaiah has been preparing well for the presidency so far, it is evident in his excellent analysis of issues and his apt understanding of the feelings and aspirations of the average Nigerian. His constant social media conversation the #AskSam Convos on social media and his Google hangout with popular social commentator Japheth Omojuwa, has exposed his rare leadership qualities to political connoisseurs and the social media savvy youth. Having gained tremendous experience through the management of the Leadership Group which he founded in 2003 and has fast risen to a conglomerate, employing able young Nigerians, has made him a fine model who has paid his dues to the common cause over time. He has found time to contribute to the socio-political discourse in Nigeria by writing a weekly Monday column in the Leadership newspaper. Sam, a new brand, is also not soaked in the toxic battle that has poisoned the politics of Nigeria. He also tweets from @SamNdaIsaiah where he discusses with his followers on burning issues.
The Governor of Kano state Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso has commenced a subtle step into the contest. I will keep a date with his intention and update my analysis in due time.
As expected, the presidential race will lead to a presidential debate where aspirants will officially launch their visions and strategies to the public as judges.
The APC needs the best candidate to lead it to victory in 2015. Ultimately, the choice of the flagbearer is not just the party’s responsibility; it is the duty of good and honest judgment.
George Daniel is a public affairs analyst, wrote in from Port Harcourt
Email: gd557539@gmail.com
