By Paul Dada
According to Worldometer, Nigeria has a population of over 243 million people. But Statbase says there are over 124 million adults (from 18 upwards) in Nigeria.
I am sure Nigeria would be a terribly boring and intellectually stagnant country if all the 124 million adults reasoned the same way on every matter. Variety, they say, is the spice of life. A society without multifarious and divergent views would be one occupied by people who are like zombies in an apocalyptic sci-fi movie.
There is no better terrain where diversity of opinions and choices can be as enriching as that of politics. Diversity of opinions is not meant to breed toxicity but to foster enrichment. But will holier-than-thou, fanatical Obidients ever learn this?
Currently, and just as it was in 2023, there are only three frontrunners in the presidential race. And they are President Bola Tinubu, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and former Anambra Governor, Peter Obi. Each of these men has his diehard fans as well as zealous opposers and critics. To expect anything otherwise is akin to living in a fool’s paradise.
There are also others like me who do not and cannot be persuaded to be subjective followers of any of these men. I believe that every serious politician is tainted somewhat, albeit to varying degrees.
But many Obidients think, not all, and act like their idol is some flawless deity when he is being scrutinised or criticised. They yell and rant like someone who has been pricked with the sharpest needle in existence when Obi’s competence is queried.
But there is no public figure, especially a politician, that should not expect to be criticised. Tinubu, as President, is excoriated every day by Nigerians, as he should be. No leader in any civilised democracy in the world escapes the heavy and sharp stones thrown at them by disgruntled citizens.
Between 1999 and 2007, Obasanjo, who held sway as President, was berated for his perceived high-handedness, wasteful Independent Power Project, selective investigation and prosecution of political foes and egregious third-term agenda. But he was also praised for such things as getting debt forgiveness for Nigeria and actualising the GSM revolution.
Umar Musa Yar’Adua, who succeeded Obasanjo and whose tenure was cut short by the cold hands of death, was blamed for reversing the “good” policies of Obasanjo, notably the reversal of the sale of the nation’s comatose refineries. But he was hailed for his simplicity and for “sincerely” admitting in public that the election that brought him into power was flawed.
On his own part, Goodluck Jonathan was derided as a weakling. Under him, terrorism raised high its ugly head. According to his critics, under him corruption became insurmountable. But his hailers think he was not as incompetent as the media painted him. One of the things they love him for was that he gracefully conceded defeat to his opponent in the 2015 presidential election.
Muhammadu Buhari, who succeeded Jonathan, was sorely criticised for his characteristic insouciance while the nation suffered insecurity, economic retrogression and multidimensional poverty. He was seen as clueless and inept. He was deemed to be an ethnic bigot who had an unmuffled disdain, if not hatred, for the people of the South-East. But his lovers gushed over him for what they saw as his strides in infrastructure. They pointed to the second Niger Bridge. They hailed him for the school feeding programme. He got their encomiums for policies such as the cash transfer programme for indigent Nigerians, N-Power, et al.
Bola Tinubu, the incumbent President, is seen by critics as the worst bringer of suffering. His economic policies, which have brought serious suffering to ordinary Nigerians, are unforgivable to them. The increase in the spate of terror attacks in the country is another thing that will never make a good number of citizens fall in love with him. They also tongue-lash him over what they see as a lack of balance in his appointments. They say the juiciest appointments go to his Yoruba kinsmen.
But his supporters, while admitting the current suffering, think Tinubu is a genius. They say the suffering of the citizens is a necessary and temporary precursor to the time of plenty. They say he had to stop petrol subsidy and end the floating of the naira to plug the wide holes in the economy.
They point to the gains Nigeria is already making at the macroeconomic level, with an increase in foreign reserves and a boost in foreign investors’ confidence. They point to NELFUND, tax reforms and ongoing multiple infrastructure projects in different parts of the country as eloquent testifiers to his genius.
But the incumbent President is not the only one getting both praise and blame. His opponents, whose fervent dream it is to send him out of Aso Rock, are also drawing both praises and flaks from the citizens. Atiku is alleged to be fantastically corrupt. His dressing-down by his former principal, Obasanjo, and his perpetual bid to become president, even at a time when the general thinking is that the most exalted position should be occupied by a southerner, are part of the reasons why many citizens do not want him. But his praisers think he is an economic genius. They think his cosmopolitanism and considerably huge political following are feathers in his cap.
Peter Obi is seen by his critics as sorely incompetent. They listen to his speeches and interviews and conclude that he lacks the necessary intellect to preside over Nigeria, a multi-religious and multi-ethnic country with hydra-headed problems. They accuse him of just uttering platitudes while lacking innovation and clear strategy. To them, he is all motion and no movement. They also allege that he is a liar par excellence and a master of false statistics. His critics say he is not as transparent as he postures. In fact, a key opposition leader who used to campaign for Obi told me privately that he regretted doing so. He described Obi as terribly tribalistic.
But his hailers think he is a political puritan. They think his integrity is top-notch and unparalleled. They believe he was a high achiever when he was a governor. They seem to think that he is the only top Nigerian politician with the formula to fix Nigeria. When you hear them, it’s almost like they are saying he has a magic wand to wave for Nigeria to transform into an Eldorado. This hero, to them, seems to be the only one who can make Nigeria regain her respect in the comity of nations.
Obidients will love and adore you if you shower praises on Obi. But if you raise any question or express a doubt, let alone directly criticise him, they would knock you, disrespect you, insult you, mock you, rather than make attempts to convince or win you over. To them, it’s a sacrilege to express an iota of doubt about Obi. He is their political Messiah. He is their god, their Alpha and Omega.
And if you are “unlucky” to be a Yoruba man who is not enthusiastic about Obi, they convince themselves very foolishly that you are an ethnic bigot. An Igbo man who supports Obi is a patriot, but a Yoruba man who doesn’t is a bigot. I have never seen a worse warped logic in my life.
In their maladroit thought pattern, they also think that when you criticise Obi, it means you support Tinubu. I can’t even understand how supposedly educated people can think in such a pedestrian manner.
To Obidients, anger seems to be a campaign strategy to help their god become the nation’s helmsman. They tried anger and insults in the 2022/2023 election season. It didn’t work. It surely won’t work now.
But will they learn?
Will they?
