THE IMPARTIAL OBSERVER
Matters of the Moment
Yaraduaology
HANK ESO
Wednesday 26 September, 2007
Maybe, President Yar’Adua is a man more complex than his appearance,
simplicity, and thought suggest…. the man remains an enigma and a
stark contradiction and antithesis of the past Nigerian political leaders we are familiar with.
This
week, President Umaru Yar’Adua and Nigeria stepped out to meet the world in New
York at a soiree hosted by Nduka Obiegbena’s ThisDay.
Later today, President Yar’Adua will cast his net wide, when he speaks at the
United Nations and lays out his vision of the world and aspirations for a
developmentally laggardly Nigeria. So far he seems to be saying and doing
everything right and cautiously; so much so that his tenure seems set to become
the aberrational presidency and an exception to the rule. But, is there a
definitive Yar’Adua vision or a doctrine which I would like to call “Yaraduaology”?
Since the President arrived in the US, a story quietly making the rounds in esteemed quarters pertains to his bona fides as our president. Simply put, he is more than many Nigerians know: kosher; i.e. clean, untainted, and uncontaminated. As the story goes, after his emergence as the possible successor to President Obasanjo, the Americans, mindful that they would have to do business with him, did what the do best: They checked him out. And they came up with zilch! The man seemingly had no history – negative history, that is. Yet he seemed the most unlikely man – the unlikely president -- anyone would select to lead Nigeria at a critical juncture, when the nation needed to reclaim governance urgently from political pretenders.
Believe it or not, he had indeed never visited America (this is his maiden visit as a private or public citizen). He had never applied for a US visa or a credit card. He reportedly did not own a credit card, nor a bank account or a house abroad. It seemed, quite unlike other Nigerian politicians, as if the man did not exist or did not have a life. The president-elect was like a phantom! As Saul Bellow would have put it, Yar’Adua is “simply a human being, more or less.” Whereas such a discovery would have been the basis to turn down the loan or mortgage application by any struggling or established immigrant, for President Umaru Yar’Adua and Nigeria, it was a big plus.
Finally and despite the fact that he was elected by dubious means orchestrated by his party, the man was a new icon on the Nigerian political landscape. He was someone with whom the Americans felt they could do business. Perhaps Obasanjo knew what the Americans knew or vice versa, which might explain why he single-handedly chose Yar’Adua to succeed him. Perhaps, his emergence was also based on a realization, best summed up in the words of John F. Kennedy, that Nigeria needed “a new generation of leadership to cope with new problems.” This much was known: He has political pedigree; he governed the State of Katsina well, and he is well regarded by his peers.
But no one knew of the man’s political ideology, assuming he had one. And even after several months in office, no ideology or doctrine seems to be emerging. Maybe, President Yar’Adua is a man more complex than his appearance, simplicity, and thought suggest. But one thing is certain: he is definitely different from our former leaders. But it will help; it will also comfort us and assuage our sense of moral alarm to know what the man is thinking and which direction he intends to take Nigeria.
We know that he is deliberate, almost taciturn, that he favors due process, and that he is forgiving. Charles Soludo would have been toast if Yar’Adua weren’t forgiving. So far, he has been tolerant of the errant ways of his maverick Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) Hon. Michael K. Aondoakaa (SAN), despite increasing calls for the AGF to be sacked. In essence, those who do so are telling the President that he made a faulty and questionable policy decision in appointing the attorney-general. More endearing to Nigerians is the knowledge that, unlike his predecessor, he is not given to blustery condescension. Finally, we know that he can also lay claim to being a number of distinctive firsts – first graduate leader of the nation and first leader to publicly declare his assets. Beyond these facts, the man remains an enigma and a stark contradiction and antithesis of the past Nigerian political leaders we are familiar with.
An obvious backdrop to his emergence is that Nigerian politicians have become intellectually and doctrinally lazy. For them, everything is attainable through a shortcut. The political focus and tendencies that led to a faithful fellowship and followership of the doctrines of Awoism, Zikism, and others have all been whittled away by indifference and are, therefore, glaringly absent in present-day partisan politics. Similarly lacking is the motivational impetus that led, for instance, to the 1936 founding of the Nigerian Youth Movement, the nation’s first nationalist movement and the first to espouse the need to search for a common ideal.
The apparent intractability of the discredited leadership has left a yawning gap and yearnings for the emergence of a leader who has broad appeal, vision, and grassroots support. In this context, the emergence of Yar’Adua may actually, despite its obvious faultiness, be tantamount to a long delayed birth of hope for the nation. But which way will he lead the nation, and what is the kernel of his vision? Well, it seems to be emerging gradually.
We know he is fixated on due process and the rule of law. Just one week before he left Nigerian shores, he said:
“Once we have adherence to the rule of law as a reference point in our country, investors' confidence in our economy will grow. We will pursue electoral reform to strengthen our democratic institutions and foster political stability in our country. We will also reform our education sector so that it can produce the knowledgeable and skilled young men and women you can employ."
But he seems also to subscribe to the notion and goal of “making Nigeria one of the world's leading economies by the year 2020.” Cast as a wish and dream, such a policy pursuit is most acceptable. But based on past realities, and its accomplishment being predicated on existing foundation, policies, and programs, the notion becomes elusive and wishful thinking. As a nation, we have been there and done that. We don’t need repeat performances of touted policies that turn stale on a kobo. Moreover, as a nation, we have never been bereft of grandiose ideas. The problem is not with conceptualization as it is with delivery and implementation.
One needs to take count of public policies and platforms that had high-sounding names, only to collapse off the drawing board, or off the approved consolidated national budget schedule. Operation Feed the Nation; Operation Green Revolution, Universal Primary Education, Universal Basic Education, Directorate of Food, Roads and Rural Infrastructure [DIFRRI], War against Indiscipline, (WAI), Kick Against Indiscipline (KAI), Concert of Medium Powers (a.k.a. Lagos Forum) are just a few among many definitional and descriptive labels for pretentious public policy labels that led to nowhere. Since they were less than ideologies and dogmas, the belief in them even by their architects were at best transitory.
Interestingly, the resort to political labels is nothing new; it serves as a means of pooling wool over the eyes of Nigerians. It has been prevalent under military and civilian regimes alike. Nigerians were hardly ever left the real choice of accepting or debunking them. So each label, just as the honorific they were, came and left with the prescribing regime. In a 1994 speech, Gen. T.Y. Danjuma made a profound comment when he said, “We are in very deep waters, for Nigeria is between the gunman (the military) and the con-man (the politician).” We have no reason to doubt President Yar’Adua’s good intentions. But we sincerely worry about those around him, who were also some of those around Obasanjo -- in the full knowledge that the road to hell is paved with good intentions, and the road to good intentions is often littered with broken promises.
But we are duty-bound to give our new president the benefit of our doubt. Some of the things he has said are heartwarming. They have the flavored relish of suya and kilishi, but where is the beef? Those who were privileged to be in attendance at a recent dinner in New York, where the president spoke, left for home very elated and reenergized in their belief that there may yet be hope for Nigeria. Likewise, when he spoke at the high-level meeting on climate, he put Nigeria’s interest and that of Africa clearly in the fore. Such pronouncements are gratifying. But what may have struck a cord and therefore, might be of interest to Nigerians, is his predisposition to purposeful and transparent politics. As if to project his persona and political idealism onto his fellow Nigerian politicians, he told his audience that being in leadership, seeking to lead and politics in general, should be selfless, focused on public good and should be about “seeking opportunities for service to the nation, not about opportunities for self-aggrandizement. That is what the concept of the servant-leader is about. We have a lot of work to do to change our concept of leadership.”
Also, as if mindful that he was not speaking to Nigerians alone, and that what he said may be rehashed beyond the confines of his audience and, also, as if to lay down his doctrine about the basics of good governance, he noted that his administration was in the process of reforming Nigeria’s electoral process so as to “lay a solid foundation for political stability.” He said the process would require a general reorientation in the conduct of politicians and political parties. Then, he reiterated his emerging doctrine: “We are taking steps to realize our objective of making Nigeria one of the 20 strongest economies in the world by the year 2020. We have a very clear vision. It is not going to be easy to achieve, but we will try very hard.” Also, Nigeria, under his administration would aim for a free market economy to provide a higher quality of life.
It is just way too early to tell but, arguably, President Yar’Adua, if he stays the course, may well emerge the best president we have had. His tenure, of course, will be measured against those of Balewa, Shagari, and Obasanjo, the only other three elected leaders we have had so far. We will defer to the President and accord him the right of his office and the presidential prerogative to determine what policies he thinks will serve Nigeria best. But as a nation, we have been fooled with various sound bytes, clichés, and policy buzzwords that in the end turned out to be shambolic. We hope this will not be a reprise of past political shenanigans.
For starters, President Yar’Adua must remember that the crux of the failed eight years under President Obasanjo rested on a singular premise: the collapse of the separation of powers and the attending check and balances. A weak and indolent judiciary and a confused and avaricious legislature had unwittingly provided fertile grounds for Obasanjo to attempt to expand presidential powers beyond constitutional dictates, all in an attempt to turn our nascent democracy into a unitary and linear government, the form that he was familiar and comfortable with. Second, President Yar’Adua must know that no amount of brilliant policy enunciation will uplift Nigeria and bring her to the desired threshold, if the policies are not faithfully implemented.
Finally, President Yar’Adua must remember that good governance begins with providing the basics and fulfilling the hierarchy of needs. Should he really need a doctrine Nigerians can buy into, it should be something along these lines, “we must return to the basics, to the grassroots and build bottom-up and on a solid foundation, for which the people must have ownership.” That should be the fundamental tenet of “Yaradualogy.”
It is only from that elemental but solid base that we can aspire to “making Nigeria one of the 20 strongest economies in the world.” The process will be incremental and we will surely get there, if we do it properly.
With neither anger nor partiality, until next time, keep the law, stay impartial, and observe closely.
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Hank Eso, is a columnist for Kwenu.com. His commentaries on Nigerian politics and global issues have appeared in The New Times (Lagos), African Profile International (New York), The Nigerian And Africa Abroad, (New York), African Market News (New Jersey) and in Gamji.com and Nigeriavillagesquare.com
© Hank Eso, Tuesday 25 September 2007.
Email: hankeso@aol.com