Atiku and the two wise men

BY RAZAQ-RAZAQ DIMLAR

The saying “wisdom is profitable to direct,” a key concept in the Bible, emphasises that wisdom is valuable and beneficial for guiding our actions and making sound decisions. But wisdom means different things to different people. To some, wisdom is the act of persistence. To others, wisdom is the ability to decipher right or wrong. But to me, wisdom is knowing when and where to draw the line. I believe my definition more because it resonates with Atiku Abubakar’s quest to be president. At the same time, I cannot question his undeniable right to seek political office. But I have questions about his endless pursuit that does not seem plausible given his political trajectory, contributions to the development and underdevelopment of the country and, the decision of his former running mates to quit after elections on two occasions. It is too much of a coincidence.

I want to start from 1999. Fate smiled at him. He won the governorship election in Adamawa state but was picked to run on the presidential ticket with Olusegun Obasanjo. And they won. But not without drama. His boss accused him of several things and the relationship went sour. In his book, ‘My Watch’, former President Olusegun Obasanjo said: “From the day I nominated Atiku to be my vice, he set his mind not for any good, benefit or service of the country, but on furiously planning to upstage, supplant or remove me at all cost and to take my place.” The rest is history and why he is where he is today.

Since 2007, Atiku Abubakar has contested the presidential elections without success. In 2007 he contested and came third in the contest after decamping from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the Action Congress (AC). In 2011, he returned to the PDP and contested the party primaries but lost. In 2015, he jumped ship to the newly formed All Progressive Congress (APC) but also could not secure the ticket of the party. In 2019, he returned to the PDP, contested and won the party ticket for the presidential election. He also lost. In 2023, he contested and won the party ticket and contested again, and he lost again. This was indeed a marathon deserving of a medal of honour. I dare to say that in the political history of Nigeria, no politician can equal Atiku Abubakar’s record.

In Atiku’s presidential marathon, 2019 and 2023 were significant in the choice of his running mates and what ensued afterwards. They are the two wise men metaphorically referenced in this article. Peter Obi and Ifeanyi Okowa are no longer members of the PDP. Both left and Atiku Abubakar is still hoping to actualise his ambition without them. It is curious and indicates that something is amiss. What could have happened? Could the suggestion by Nyesom Wike that Atiku Abubakar is not a man of his word be responsible?

Let me start with Peter Obi in 2019. His alliance with Atiku Abubakar was faulty. It was a marriage of convenience and not a conviction. They were both ideologically different and cohabiting would have been tantamount to passing a camel through the eye of a needle. And Peter Obi left either out of conviction or protest. The circumstances are still sketchy. Peter Obi was wise, and the rest is history. In 2023, it was the turn of Ifeanyi Okowa. He also had his share of the Atiku Abubakar’s marathon and eventually left recently. He was also wise for reasons best known to him. That is a curious tale for me. Why did the two wise men leave him behind? My take is this. There is no mutual benefit for his partners, so they either leave in protest or forge their own path. This mirrors former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s description of his ex-lieutenant.

There is a recurring decimal in the political trajectory of Atiku Abubakar. There is a smell of distrust attributable to his ferocious quest for power. I do not want to disregard the position of Obasanjo that after he nominated him to be his vice, he set his mind not for any good, benefit or service of the country. This much was expounded by the foremost 17th century French classical writer Francois de La Rochefoucauld. He stated that “cunning and treachery are the offspring of incapacity”. Indeed, I agree. Cunning and treachery are the offspring of incapacity, especially when it is fuelled by greed and not purpose. Greed is like poison; it creates an inner hunger that we always are striving towards an unattainable goal.

When you do not have the capacity for something that you so desire, you naturally employ a methodology that is hinged on cunning and treachery. In such circumstances, you will lack the presence of mind to know when and how to draw the curtain. If Atiku Abubakar joins the race for the 2027 elections, he would be deserving of a place in the Guinness Book of World Records for setting a record.

I do not think he should be contributing to the national discourse on governance. On what premise is he making such contributions? I noticed he has employed a new methodology poised at rebranding himself. These days, he is quick to jump into the fray, even if someone sneezes. He either empathises or condemns it. This is the time for him to embrace the wisdom to decipher when to draw the curtain.

In a recently published opinion article by Azu Ishiekwene, a long-standing cerebral journalist and columnist titled “Atiku, not Tinubu, is the wrecking ball,” he hinted that: “If the PDP is serious about a future, and Atiku cares about it, he must immediately drop his ambition to run again. This ambition is at the heart of the current turmoil in the party; it was why the PDP broke into three factions on the eve of the last election; it was why he has been unable to rebuild the ruins two years later. And it is why he is arguably the first Nigerian presidential aspirant to lose two running mates to defections.”

Do I need to say more? Benjamin Franklin, the famous American inventor, and political philosopher said, “Who has deceived thee as oft as thyself?”

Atiku Abubakar needs to take a rest. Okowa’s insinuation that Atiku Abubakar is on his way out of the PDP is an alarming one, and if indeed true might confirm the theories that abound about Atiku Abubakar and his obsessive quest for power. However, I align with the position that you cannot give what you do not have. He has nothing to offer. He had his chance in front of the goalpost with no goalkeeper. But shot the ball into the stands.