In a sudden twist of events: Nigeria is declared free of the Ebola Virus Disease; Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal, finally dumps PDP for APC; and Sheik Gumi tells Muhamadu Buhari to remember his past and jettison presidential ambition.
I completely agree with Tajudeen Disu that the sacking of Stephen Keshi, by the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) as Super Eagles Coach, is not a wise decision. It could mark the end of Nigeria’s qualification for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).
Yes, we lost two matches, drew one and won one while Keshi was in charge. But how will the sack better our chances? How come he was not sacked when we were losing; why sack him the night after we won a match?
Some people have alluded to the fact that Keshi had dropped their ‘man Friday’, Ikechukwu Uche, from the squad based on personal reasons. I disagree. There is nothing personal about indiscipline. It was discipline that gave us AFCON victory last year.
The same people who are crying foul now almost sacrificed Keshi when he decided to drop Osaze Odemwingie from the team on grounds of indiscipline. The coach stood his ground and we won the cup after almost 20 years.
The talk has now shifted to hiring a foreign coach. That’s questionable. How many foreign coaches hired by Nigeria in the past have won either the Cup of Nations or taken us beyond the preliminary stages of the World Cup?
Let’s look at both the female senior and junior national teams, and of course the male junior national teams. These teams have won many editions of the World Cup and other trophies for Nigeria. And they have always been handled by Nigerian coaches. Ehen!
Truly, something is wrong with our football. The problem does not lie with the coaches and the players alone; those politicians in NFF should look inward.
Except for NFF, I would have said that, for once, Nigeria is in the news for the right reason. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared the country Ebola-free. Among all the countries affected by EVD, Nigeria had posed the greatest concern to the world.
Reasons ranged from the unruly size of our population to our under-developed status; and the fact that we are never prepared for any misfortune.
However, Nigerians did something unusual: we put politics, religion and ethnic differences aside. We stood together; we planned together; and with one indivisible surge, we fought the war against EVD. And we won.
Even Atiku Abubakar has applauded PresidentGoodluck Jonathan for defeating EVD in Nigeria. My regret is that the real heroes – the health professionals – who won this battle, are not here to celebrate with us. History will never ignore their sacrifices.
Tambuwal’s escape from PDP to APC should not surprise anybody. It was a matter of time. Tambuwal never pretended to be active member of PDP since he became the Speaker. He held both the party and the presidency in contempt.
A jolly nice fellow with a rich smile, I personally enjoyed my closeness to Tambuwal during the fight against the third term project in 2006. He was combative, and for good reasons.
It is not clear whether the APC would offer him the presidential ticket, or whether he is even interested in the race. One thing I know is that if he does, he won’t find it easy; just like his compatriot, Muhammadu Buhari.
Buhari came under fire last week. First, Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso, another presidential aspirant, said nothing would make him step down for any other aspirant, including Buhari, who has already declared his aspiration.
Those putting pressure on Kwankwaso to step down for the retired General are clearly reading the writing on the wall. The truth is that when it comes to a straight fight for the ticket, Buhari would likely be dwarfed.
Perhaps, that is why the controversial Islamic scholar, Ahmed Gumi, has advised Buhari to forget about his aspiration and allow younger people with a sense of quality leadership to seek the office.
Gumi’s advice, which Buhari is bound to ignore with contempt, stems from his belief that the retired General has leadership problems. The religious scholar noted that leadership is different from credibility or truthfulness in government.
More importantly, Gumi has blackmailed Buhari with what happened in December 1983 when the General led a coup that ousted the administration of Shehu Shagari and then went ahead to detain the former president.
He says Buhari had allowed himself to be “naively used” to derail democracy and that the ills of that action were still visible. Then he asks: “Do you truly believe Allah is still not in cognisance of that?
“You were led to uproot a duly elected leader and incarcerate him for close to two years, knowing well that he had no charge of even the corruption that was labelled against him.”
Gumi said the General’s “weakness in control of men” became evident when the people that used him to revolt against a constituted authority came back to uproot him from power.
Politics – dirty, uncertain and sometimes unfriendly – is here again. If Buhari’s pasts are articulately exhumed and used against him, then the race is as good as over for him. Soon, for sure, someone is going to shout from the roof top: Gumi is speaking for PDP!
