A president taken lightly

…also published in Daily Trust

The dramatically unfolding circumstances of the scandalous reinstatement of the former chairman of the Presidential Task Force on Pension Reforms Abdulrasheed Maina represent yet other instances of how some top government officials simply take President Muhammadu Buhari lightly, and, in fact, how they practically run a clandestine government within his government, capitalizing on his apparent reluctance to tackle the growing trend of systematic covert sabotage from within his administration.

This is notwithstanding his subsequent order for immediate reversion to the status quo in Maina’s case, which only came following the public outcry the reinstatement had triggered. Also, this is regardless of whether Maina is guilty or not. After all, apparently, he had some powerful accomplices who therefore want terminate the case by hook or by crook, get him quietly reinstated, or, in the event of failure to achieve these, simply ensure that he pays the whole price alone while they get away with it.

Between Buhari and governors

…also published in Daily Trust

Since the beginning of President Buhari administration, the underlying dynamics of power politics between the president on the one hand, and the state governors on the other have been quietly and steadily changing. Until recently, successive Nigerian presidents and state governors have maintained a mutually serving relationship that has kept their respective political interests quite interdependent.

Usually, for instance, a president serving his first term in office while looking forward to getting reelected to serve his second term in due course, state governors in a similar situation and with a similar ambition, and also outgoing governors serving their second terms and pursuing senatorial ambitions or simply looking forward to remaining politically relevant enough to secure ministerial or ambassadorial appointments, would always maintain such a mutually serving relationship,  of course at the expense of the people.

President’s tacit indictment of Ganduje and others

....also published in Daily Trust

The conspicuous absence of Kano state governor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje and his Katsina state counterpart, Aminu Masari among the thirteen governors commended by President Muhammadu Buhari in his National Day address last week, for their contributions towards the steadily growing success of his administration’s economic diversification policy in agriculture, captured the interest of many observers. The thirteen state governors who earned the Presidential commendation were the governors of Kebbi, Lagos, Ebonyi, Jigawa, Ondo, Edo, Delta, Imo, Cross River, Benue, Ogun, Kaduna and Plateau States.

By implication, this commendation is also a tacit indictment of the other governors. Of course, as Bakano, I am particularly interested in the implications of Governor Ganduje’s absence in the list, being also governor of the ruling All Progressives Congress’s largest stronghold in the country. Governor Masari’s absence is also quite interesting, being governor of President Buhari’s home state i.e. Katsina, which is also arguably the second largest stronghold of the ruling APC.

Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje of Kano state

Now, unsurprisingly, no sooner had the President finished his address than some Ganduje’s critics began to ridicule him and rejoice for what they consider their vindication for insisting that he has failed to live up to expectations. His political opponents from Kwankwasiyya faction of the APC in particular gloated over what they regarded as President Buhari’s show of disappointment in him despite his purported loyalty to him (Buhari). Interestingly, since falling out with his former boss, Rabi’u Kwankwaso, Governor Ganduje has been increasingly portraying and promoting himself as a staunch Buhari loyalist in his apparent attempt to neutralize the looming threat that Kwankwasiyya followers and other disillusioned Kanawa pose against his re-election bid in 2019.

Stealing the limelight at UNGA

…also published in Daily Trust 

The annual United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) held at the organization’s headquarters in the US city of New York sees the largest gathering of presidents, prime ministers, monarchs and other heads of governments to supposedly discuss various challenges hampering the achievement of a secure, politically stable, economically prosperous and environmentally sustainable global community.

Ironically, however, while frankness in discussing issues and real commitment to addressing them are supposed to define the UNGA proceedings inasmuch as the attendees are after all the leaders of the world, the occasion often turns out to be an event where almost all the attendees take their turns one after another to feign commitment to solving issues and doing the right things purportedly to address the challenges and crises bedevilling the world.

Looming scenario in Rohingya crisis

…also published in Daily Trust

The systematic persecution of Rohingya Muslim minority by successive Buddhist governments of Myanmar (formerly Burma) over the decades isn’t likely to stop anytime soon, in view of the apparent reluctance of the international community to end it.

Though acts of persecution against them have been widespread since the end of the British rule in that country in 1948, the perpetration began to assume a systematic manner culminating in the formulation of laws and issuance of decrees to that effect, e.g. the 1982 law that effectively denies them the right to the country’s citizenship. Their right to free movement in the country is also restricted as they are also excluded from state-funded schools and government jobs.

In the meantime also, from time to time, a government’s crackdown and a public lynching campaign targeted against them are launched simultaneously resulting in a massacre that spares nobody including children, women and the elderly. Their already poverty-ravaged settlements are also torched. 

By the way, though the current round of recurrent lynching campaign against them is indeed atrocious, yet it isn’t necessarily the worst ever, contrary to some assumptions. However, being the most widely covered round by the general public thanks to the availability of social media platforms, it attracts more public attention and, of course, instigates more outrage particularly among Muslims around the world. This is despite the apparent lack of appropriate interest in the crisis that the major global mainstream media networks, with the exception of Aljazeera, betray.