Matron, Buhari Youth Organisation, Lagos State chapter, Ladidi Afolabi, is a grassroots politician and tactician. She speaks with Assistant Politics Editor, DANIEL KANU, on chances of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential candidate, Muhammadu Buhari, in February elections, women marginalisation in politics and her fears, among other issues.
Passion for Buhari and mobilisation campaign
It is a well-known fact that Buhari is a trusted and tested leader whose word is his bond. He had done it before and we believe he will do it again and even better, looking at his antecedents. As former Head of State, we all witnessed all that he did, particularly his zero tolerance to corruption. We need a man that will tackle this humongous corruption that has eaten deep into the fabric of this nation. I can tell you that a lot of corrupt people will take to their heels if Buhari is announced the president today.
This is one former Head of State that you cannot trace wealth to either his bank account or lifestyle. I see him as the face of a new Nigeria that we need to cleanse the Augean stables. This nation as it is today, is at the crossroads and we need a leader in a class of Buhari to step in. President Goodluck Jonathan has done his best but if the truth must be told you can see a lot of lacuna created. Never in the history of Nigeria have we witnessed insecurity of this magnitude. Of course some say it’s a global phenomenon; we know, but the capacity of a leader to contain it matters. There was terrorism when Olusegun Obasanjo was the president, but it never escalated to this level. It is sad we are playing politics with what is happening in the land today and if care is not taken, it will consume all of us. It is time for us to see the danger ahead because when illness captures the head (president), it conquers the entire body (country). Leadership is the capacity to see beyond and above the ordinary eye. Jonathan appears helpless on the solution of the challenges confronting us today. It is a bitter truth. But that’s the reality. Buhari has the charisma that will turn things around for good.
Age as deficit for Buhari
Is he the oldest president in the world today? Do we not have presidents that are by far older than him the world over today? We need his experience now. We need his military background and network. Of course no president is an island unto himself or all-knowing, the reason they have ministers and advisers on different issues. Age may have something to do with leadership, but not when somebody is in his early 70s. Buhari has been contesting election since 2003 and that shows you how energetic and mentally alert he is. Those saying that the man is old should look for other things to tell Nigerians. He showed what a leader should be when in office and out of office. He lives by example and that, to me, is the hallmark of leadership. Age is even an advantage because he will not be carried away by the frivolities of life. At his age, he has seen it all and will now have total commitment to the service of his motherland.
Jonathan’s weak points
Look, today, there is hunger in Nigeria, if we must tell ourselves the truth. People are suffering; there is poverty in the land. There is large scale unemployment and you can see our youths joining the queue when they finish from school.
Look at the security situation in the land today. A lot of people are relocating from the North. The danger is that we might be saying it is a Northern affair, but none is safe because anybody can be a victim. People are dying every minute in the North as if they are no longer human beings. There is no way we can continue with this, unless we want the American prediction that Nigeria will disintegrate by 2015 to come to pass. But God will not allow this country to scatter because I know that once we have the right type of leadership, this country will rise again.
Women participation in politics so far
They are trying, given the situation they find themselves. I commend those that are there and will advise them to encourage more women. Politics, you know, is capital-intensive in this part of the globe, and our women cannot compete with the men in this area. Women are not being encouraged because as a women when you tell anybody that you want to go into politics, the first thing he will ask you is if you have the money to spend. I think the political parties should be granting waiver for the women in terms of collecting forms, and certain percentages must be left for the women to occupy. We must carry our women along, if we want to get our politics right because they are not prone to the corruption tendencies of the male politicians. Above all, women can help in stabilising the polity. Ignore the women and our politics will continue to suffer. Women have a vital role to play in politics. So they must be allowed to be part of the process.
Fears on February 14
I have fears and I hope God will help us. The North does not seem to like President Jonathan again and now has hatred for his leadership. This is dangerous because once they announce Jonathan as the president, there may be a revolt from the North. Also if Buhari is announced the president, the Niger Delta militants may likely go back to the creek to start what they know best. You know what I mean. So there is danger ahead. The contenders must properly educate their followers not to cause violence. Thank God, Jonathan and Buhari have signed a violence-free pact, I hope they will put it to practice.
I also want to use this opportunity to plead with the leadership of the APC to ensure that all parties in the alliance are treated equally because I notice that some members are crying marginalisation, particularly those that joined the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) to form the APC.