During the Year 2018 New Year day felicitations, and well wishing between Mr President and the National Leader of his party, the leader got Mr President interested in bidding for a second term in office as President and Commander in Chief. This decision was reached by the national leader mainly because of the kind of reputation Mr President will leave behind should he fail to secure what the national leader saw as a “second chance”, given for him to redeem his demonized efforts at the “Change” the party promised the people. The national leader knows and appreciates the truth that the very bad showing of Mr President is not his fault but that of those who explored and exploited Mr President political naivety and caged him by propaganda and blackmail. The national leader believes in the strong characterization of Mr President, and sees this strength as needed in the highest quarters of governance in the country: his steel is what is needed to beat evil men into a retreat. So he made it clear to Mr President how his reputation would be downgraded should he leave the government the way it is.
Having realized how some political scavengers overran Mr President while he was President-elect, and cemented the treachery they hatched at the convention of the party that produced Mr President as the flag bearer of the party in Lagos, Nigeria, and how these treacherous men designed a way to sideline him (the national leader) in the schemes of the emerging government, it was easy for him to sympathize with Mr President, who he saw has learning to lead as a democratic leader. He knew Mr President was immobilized by those who took over, guiding him on what is and/or not in democratic tenets. This was why he looked on while a mere senator-elect disobeyed his party, insulted his Vice President and went ahead to use members of the opposition party to become Senate President. The national leader thought that things like that only happen in movies, but here he was, watching helplessly as a senator-elect behaved criminally by invading the premises of a deserted assembly complex in darkness, going on to become the Senate President. “This can only happen in Nigeria”, the national leader said under his breath.
The national leader, at a point, while trying to assist stabilizing the administration of Mr President, was “cut to size” and as inconsequential as it was, he was, as lowly and childish, disqualified from attending the National Executive Committee meetings of the party, because as “National Leader”, his office, before the constitution of the party, is like the Office of the Nigerian First Lady: very ceremonial and legally ineffective. These evil men did not give their leader as much chance as the vision bearer for the ruling party: what wickedness! The national leader went home then, and waited for the New Year day celebrations of 2018. It was in Mr President’s interest that a meeting was set up between the national leader and high ranking staff officers of Mr President. The national leader hinted on “reconciliation”. The Presidential aides wondered at who would lead the reconciliation to reconcile the national leader with the party hierarchy.
So they returned to Mr President: “your excellency, this is an urgent matter sir. Our national leader is the most aggrieved member of our party as its stands. He has said he cannot help you in your second term bid if you do not clean up the mess in the party to allow him space to work sir”. “So?” Mr President replied. “Your Excellency, the national.leader want the reconciliation of aggrieved members in the party sir”. ” If that is what he wants, they go set up a committee to reconcile members “, Mr President responded. “The problem there sir, is who we have to reconcile the national leader sir”. “Please invite him let me talk to him”. After that talk with the national leader, the presidency announced the setting up of a reconciliation committee for the party and the national leader named as the Chairman of the committee. Not being a man to waste his opportunities, he set out to work and some evil men went into panic mode.
Hell was let loose on the gang of traitors after they tried to use the national chairman to sabotage the assignment of the national leader, and he refused to spare reporting their acts to Mr President, copying relevant other senior offices in the country. They scheduled a meeting and decided that the only way to black out the national leader totally and finally, and create loopholes for Mr President’s second term bid, was to exploit their strangleholds on members of the national working committee of the party and the governors who they have already captured to their side. They were sure the national executive committee of the party would willingly concede to a one year tenure elongation to nail in the national leader’s political coffin . Interestingly, the national working committee, which dodged the summons of meeting for close to 3 years, called for an emergency meeting, which outcome gave the national working committee a 12 months working extension. Suddenly after, in order to cement their position, they stroke preemptively by asking a Minister in Mr Presidents cabinet to go and request from Mr President the resurrection of his defunct office of campaign director general.
As one who knew how to deceive Mr President with his impulsive opportunism, he met Mr President and got his consent to duplicate his responsibility by adding to his assignment the coordination of Mr President’s second term campaigns. With tenure elongation and Mr President second term bid in their kitty, the national chairman arrogantly replied a journalist who asked him if he was sure of remaining the national chairman of his party, said “that matter is already finished with and it is in the past”. He said so smiling richly. However, the national leader at this time had withdrawn himself from any other party moves and decided to ignore invitations by Mr President to party functions. The fear of the national leader became the lot of Mr President. On being persuaded by Mr President, the national leader conceded to show interest in the activities of the party only if Mr President would disown tenure elongation and call for the congresses that would lead to an elective national convention. He got his demands in full and here began the political struggle for the soul of the ruling party.
Those who thought they have won the political match indisputably, on the 90th minute, watched as their opponents equalized against them and the match went into extra time after a short lived added time. What happened next, after these, were the party congresses, which were less than democratic but allowed by party caucuses to be by consensuses. These exercises divided the party into two in all the States of the country, except in those states where the exercises were suspended for more engaging national exercises. Interestingly, what is happening in the ruling party today is the return of Mr President’s hear drum to the old bloc, whose only voice is that of the national leader. As it stands today, the national leader has made very tough demands and Mr President is abiding. The new national chairman, together with the national leader have positioned themselves to return the ruling party to her initial platform on the basis of the Legacy Parties, and are both fighting to ensure the removal of all appointees of Mr President, who are not members of the Legacy Parties, from office. As this essay reaches its readers, it is not known if a former deputy governor of a south south state, angling deviously and selfishly to become the next governor of his state will still nurse his gubernatorial ambition in the face of the possibility of his losing both his ambition and his exalted office in an interventionist commission established to cater for development needs in the 9 Riverine states of the country. It is said who the gods want to destroy they first make blind. I am told that a word is enough for the wise? Will this Managing Director be wise? He is left to be watched.
Ini Akpan Morgan writes from Uyo, Akwa Ibom State
