DR. BUGAJE: THE POLITICS AND REALITY OF "GOOD GOVERNANCE" - Maiwada Dammallam
I intend to highlight one of such efforts recently released to the public via the Blueprint print media. It was a paper written Dr. Usman Bugaje and delivered by one Dr. Yima Sen, described as a lecturer with the University of Abuja. The event was the launch of a suspicious initiative, the "Charter for Arewa Initiative for Good Governance" in Kaduna at the weekend. Much as I tried to separate the event with the ongoing political adjustments by different blocks in preparation of 2019, my brain simply won't toe the line.
Dr. Bugaje's paper titled "Nigeria fast becoming a failed state" which pontificated on good governance viz-a-viz President Buhari's leadership style, successes and failures left me in no doubt about the motive and trajectory of the paper or the meticulous selection of forum to release it to the public. When I first read excerpts of the paper as published by Blueprint Newspaper, I waved it away as one of those "to be retracted with apology tomorrow" publications until I shared it on my Facebook wall and the respectable Dr. Bugaje, rather than dispute the publication, picked and shared it on his wall thereby, confirming the authenticity of its source and his desire to give it a wider coverage. Initially I doubted the source because the substance of the contents was unmatchable to the well acclaimed intellectual finesse and political sophistication of Dr. Bugaje - at the least, the Dr. Bugaje I knew and revered.
Actually if the paper was credited to a 'roadside analyst', I wouldn't have wasted a minute responding to it but, coming from an intellectual giant who achieved the prestigious status of a Presidential Adviser (Political) - and not just to any President but the most dexterous and cunning, former President Obasanjo - certainly it deserve attention and probing. An erroneous political opinion shared by Dr. Bugaje could be more dangerous than a '2015 elections' without card reader on the table of comparison.
Therefore, Dr. Bugaje's opinion that Nigeria is heading to a failed state and a failed society citing an incongruous scenario of a "rising and horrifying social conflicts and violence" and an equally horrific albeit, unsubstantiated claim of some "studies by international analysts" which went far as setting dates for Nigeria's collapse as a nation, is something that certainly deserve communal concern, attention and verification. Articulate as Dr. Bugaje is know to be, he didn't make the job of verifying this concern easy. He (quite unlike him) left enough room to question the veracity of the so called "studies by international analysts" which attached date for Nigeria's collapse. He conveniently remained silent about the identity of the analysts for proper debate and counter opinion.
In sharp contrast to Dr. Bugaje's doomsday prediction for Nigeria by some faceless "international analysts" due to a supposed Buhari's 'failure' were the unanimous unsolicited testimonies of leaders across the globe. The podium performance of President Buhari at the recent United Nations General Assembly should have told anybody what the world think of President Buhari and how much his tireless effort to turn the ship of Nigeria away from wreckage is being appreciated.
Interestingly, even the unpredictable and erratic Donald Trump was full of praises for President Buhari not to mention other world leaders who were aligned with his efforts and successes and didn't mince words painting a rosy picture of an emerging new Nigeria under the leadership of President Buhari - even going over themselves to pledge more support to him. Who could have missed this 'welcome back' with all the prospects it heralded to Nigeria. Who could have missed the sudden transformation of Nigeria from a semi-pariah to a respectable nation. If anybody could miss the moment of glory of Nigeria at the recent UNGA certainly, it's not Dr. Bugaje who would made an excellent diplomat but for his decision not to accept the honour.
Even in the early days of his administration when it was dealing with teething problems, acclaimed world leaders including former US President Barrack Obama, former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, former French President Francois Hollande and Switzerland's President Johann Schneider-Ammann all extolled President Buhari's leadership and lavished him with their cash and kind support. I ask, who could be more an "international analyst" than the Trumps, the Obamas, Ban Ki-moons and the Hollandes who feeds the global community of analysts with issues to analyze for minions to spend a life time writing thesis about?
One may even discount the AU's excellent approval ratings for President Buhari which, while on his sick bed, earned him the endorsement of all African leaders to lead a continental anti-corruption war to rid Africa of the menace of corruption. This couldn't be accidental but a clear approval of President Buhari's success to rid Nigeria of corruption. If all these efforts/successes means nothing, then walking across the length of the Sahara without your boot picking a grain of sand wouldn't count as a spectacular achievement.
With above in mind, no doubt, Dr. Bugaje's paper would raise more questions than answer the few he threw to Nigerians to distract sympathy away from President Buhari. Definitely those who came across such spurious claims would like to know why Dr. Bugaje is yet to see the meaningful progress achieved by President Buhari in tackling the accumulated rot he inherited from PDP even when people of different status and standings are not only seeing but saying Buhari is doing well.Not even President Buhari's traditional enemies would deny him the credits he achieved in areas of security, societal moral rejuvenation, agriculture and reversal of Nigeria's infrastructural decay, all within a a short period of 2 years and with a revenue barely a quarter of what was generated by PDP but used to dance 'owambe' while the mess accumulate to the horrific level handed over to him.
President Buhari is not a magician that could make things happen with a magic wand. Dr. Bugaje is a seasoned administrator with the requisite experience to understand the complexities of governance and debate performance using normal acceptable variables. He's the least I expect to demand for a functional Nigeria straight from the debris of the 'razed to the ground' Nigeria Buhari inherited without Nigerians feeling the biting pinch of the reconstruction process. He is so enlightened to know that jobs don't fall from the sky, they are created by a vibrant economy and flourish with the serenity of a secure political environment. Does he, in all sincerity, believe 2 years is period enough to heal the traumatic socio-economic and political vandalism Nigeria was subjected to for the best period PDP was in charge?
To appreciate President Buhari's success one need to take various factors into consideration. Sadly, Dr. Bugaje flagrantly refused to do so even when it might have enriched his submission. Not even lethargically did his paper mention the catastrophic global economic situation which has more than a passing effect on Nigeria since the inception of this administration. By ordinary estimation should remain the opening chapter of the history of the administration opening paragraph of any debate on the spectacular achievements of President Buhari in two years with so little in the treasury.
It was a relief though, that midway into the paper, Dr. Bugaje opened up and revealed the objectives of the pseudo-agitations veiled as a search for a way out for Nigeria. Without successfully establishing the failures of this administration, he upped the agitation to red level alert. He said:
"We are determined to unite and organize to terminate these tragic, nay catastrophic self-afflictions, and salvage our country from the brink of collapse and disaster by conducting a thorough problem analysis in order to chart a way forward. Precisely to create a formidable platform to engage and mobilize all those concerned about the future of our country and are ready to stand up for it; and to participate in this rescue mission that can firmly set Nigeria on the path of human security, prosperity and development". Not done, he went further to remove any doubt about the intent and purposes of the "Charter for Arewa Initiative for Good Governance", as well, the "Kaduna APC Aqida summit" in these words:
“Now that our hope for rebirth after the heavily fought 2015 elections is yet to come to fruition, we must wake up from our slumber and complacency and salvage our society before it becomes too late. We commit ourselves to participate in this process of a political re-birth to move together into a carefully considered political platform to ensure that our political life is reformed to produce conscientious, competent and courageous leaders that will be guided by the fundamental principles of democracy, accountability and responsible leadership for the moral, social, political and economic development of our country".
I'm left wondering what 'rebirth' Dr. Bugaje was propagating. Topmost on the list of the hopefuls being positioned to midwife the so called rebirth being propagated is Atiku Abubakar. With a record of two terms Vice Presidency and very little to show for being there, I'm not sure if Dr. Bugaje, himself a former Special Adviser to the President, is talking about a new wine in old bottle or an old wine in a new bottle. I can, however, understand that the so called rebirth is nowhere near the new wine in a new bottle Nigerians are experiencing today.
To me, just like to Blueprint Newspaper, this is more an indication of a birth of a new political party than a sincere project to review, analyze and offer possible solutions to Nigeria's real and imaginary problems. With Atiku Abubakar's heightened political desperation; running from pillar to post searching for a convenient platform to challenge President Buhari with the prospects of doing so under the APC becoming dimmer by the millisecond and, with the established strong political bond between Atiku and Bugaje, I doubt if anybody need to search deeper for the correct motives of the heightened agitations and political activism of people trapped with the task of resuscitating the comatose political career of Atiku Abubakar and pulling down political giant like President Buhari to translate Atiku's desperation into votes.
Going deeper, this may even explain Dr. Bugaje's rejection of his ambassadorial nomination by President Buhari. Back then it was rumored that he rejected the nomination to avoid being schemed out of Nigeria's political arithmetic. Some even went the extra mile to opine that he was instigated by Atiku Abubakar probably in anticipation of the futuristic dream of pulling the rug under President Buhari's feet. True or false, these developments, if anything, only injected life into the schemings and machinations of close allies of Atiku Abubakar like Dr. Bugaje. Surely, naive people like me would like to know why should Dr. Bugaje feel justified agitating for good governance from the outside when he outrightly and flagrantly rejected an offer to do so from the inside.
In all these petulant exercise, one thing that was made obvious is the choice of Governor Masari to be the launch pad for ambitious attacks meant to demystify President Buhari and contain his intimidating political acceptability and compromise his excellent connectivity with his traditional support base - the masses. The choice of Governor Masari and Katsina state was a strategy to create chaos and project a phantom image of a President without the requisite political clout to maintain a cohesive home much less, a cohesive political Nigeria.
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