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Tukur Yusufu Buratai: Still in the Service of Fatherland
Tukur Yusufu Buratai: Still in the Service of Fatherland
Sahara Weekly Reports That Though not seen on the front pages of any Nigerian newspaper yet, there is a photograph of president-elect Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress standing with erstwhile Chief of Army Staff General Yusufu Tukur Buratai somewhere in the Federal Capital Territory. Both men are in traditional outfits, the sunniness of Tinubu’s recent electoral victory apparent from his white brocade. A head taller, Buratai is wearing an ash-coloured kaftan. Both of them are smiling, the sort of smile you glimpse on the faces of those who have gone to battle and come out victorious.
Both men have every reason to smile. For close to six years he was COAS, Buratai had to contend with the menace of Boko Haram insurgents who had most of the north east by the jugular. It was as if nothing could dislodge them, not even the formidable Nigeria Military. But then, with the full support of President Muhammadu Buhari who appointed Buratai as COAS in January 2015, along with other service chiefs, the frightening spectre of Boka Haram became history.
Today, Nigeria’s COAS from 2015 – 2021 can chest-thump anywhere about his achievements in decimating the ranks and file of the religious sect. It was during his time as COAS that the mouthy and cocky former head of Boko Haram Abubakar Shekau was annihilated, counting many of the senior commanders of the insurgents.
Though under intense pressure to relieve his service chiefs for underwhelming performance in the face of the worsening security situation in Nigeria at some crucial point, PMB refused to bow under. He knew for certain they were right on track in containing the scourge of Boko Haram however much the general public may think differently. And true to his belief and trust in them, the service chiefs had done some appreciable job in wiping out whatever was remaining of the terrorist organisation in Nigeria.
Of course, for a job well done, PMB rewarded Buratai with an ambassadorial posting to the Republic of Benin, a position he occupies to this day. It is a record in the history of Nigeria for a retired service chief to be thus rewarded by the Commander-in-Chief. Some of those who came before him were either disgraced out of office or simply went into oblivion. Nothing much was heard of them post-military career.
It is not hard to see why. They either performed below par or didn’t meet the expectations required of them while in office. For Buratai, it was the exact opposite. Making him the public face of Nigeria’s image in a neighbouring West African country says much for the trust and confidence reposed in him by PMB. So far, Buratai has not disappointed in his mission – another reason, perhaps, for the straight-from-the-gut smile with the president-elect in a photo-op taken about three weeks ago just on the cusp of Tinubu’s electoral victory in the February 25 presidential polls.
As for Tinubu himself, his smiling visage in the picture was just so apt considering the numerous obstacles he has had to overcome on his road to the presidency. Prior to the election last February, Tinubu was fair game for all manner of jibes and put-downs more than any of his political opponents. Critics, especially from the opposition parties, took him to the cleaners serially, asterisking everything from his provenance to his educational qualification and health. Some called him a drug dealer who, at one time, had a case to answer with the American Drug Enforcement Agency. Others carped that he’s had the state he once ruled as governor smack in his pocket for years, starting from 1999.
Tinubu’s traducers grew as the election got closer and they found more ammunition to lob at him following his now famous Emi ‘lokan declaration in Abeokuta last June. What insouciance! What arrogance! And how dare he?
For some time in both the mainstream and social media, Emi ‘lokan became the subject of discussion everywhere in the country. Having made the emergence of PMB possible in 2015, Tinubu had let on that it was his turn to rule Nigeria, and then explained it was his lifelong ambition to become that.
To most critics, nothing smacks of hubris more than that statement, something close to saying Nigeria belongs to a certain class of people of which Tinubu himself is one and now it was his turn to become president. From then on, it seemed all was lost for the man who would be the number one citizen in the country. Though he won his party’s primaries handily, the bigger battle was expected in the presidential election.
With the rising profile and popularity of a previously unknown Peter Obi of the Labour Party, a battle-scarred political gladiator in the person of Atiku Abubakar of Peoples Democratic Party, it was sure to be a keenly contested election with no chances of success for a candidate from the ruling party with a rap sheet hanging on its neck. Nearly everyone – including members of the party – blamed APC for everything from a spiraling economy to unemployment, insecurity and much else.
“Never again,” they swore, often thumbing their noses at the party leadership. “It was this same man who got us into this mess with that unholy alliance in 2015,” others charged, vowing to take their pound of flesh in the forthcoming election. It never got to be.
Instead, the Jagaban of Borgu also known by several aliases won, defeating his opponents by nearly two million votes. Why wouldn’t that victory, against all possible odds, elicit the sweet smile of success you see on his face with the former COAS?
But beyond the smile is Buratai’s unflinching support for the new president-elect, which explains the photo-op. Those in the know say the former COAS had always given a nod to a Tinubu presidency. For instance, when some prominent Nigerians, among them former president Olusegun Obasanjo, faulted the credibility of the polls that brought Tinubu to power, Buratai quickly stepped forward to defend democracy. He didn’t stop there; he was one of the first Nigerians to congratulate the president-elect.
“Let me begin by congratulating Nigerian voters who turned out on the 25th of February 2023 to exercise their civic duty and voted en-masse Asiwaju Bola Tinubu of the APC as our President-Elect,” Buratai said, insisting “It is a clear reflection of the will of the people.”
Continuing, the former COAS declared: “At this juncture, I say with all sense of responsibility that our collective future is assured under the renewed hope vision and mission of Asiwaju Bola Tinubu. I believe the President-elect is a man of capacity, empathy, vision, and all that it takes to lead Nigeria to the Promised Land.”
With Tinubu’s emergence, the general went on, “continuity has been achieved at the Federal level with the emergence of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the President-Elect from the APC.”
To be sure, it is a good thing the former COAS is still lending his voice to matters of national concern. On retirement, some generals in the Nigeria Army, especially those from the northern part of the country, turn their attention to what they’ve always done side by side their military career: farming. Some others are content with being traditional rulers of their natal communities, an emirate council, say, or some such important positions bestowed on them in appreciation of services rendered to the communities.
True, Buratai has his farm to look after post-COAS even while he’s engaged as an ambassador of the Federal Republic. But if you looked at his itinerary in last couple of weeks, the man has been up about, stopping over at communities just on a whim to feel the pulse of the villagers and how they are doing generally.
At the peak of his power in the Abbasid Dynasty in 8th century Baghdad, fifth caliph Haroun Al Rachid used to surprise his subjects with unannounced nocturnal visits thus getting to know them closely. Buratai is not a traditional ruler anywhere in the north. Still, acquainting himself with the wellbeing or otherwise of those in some communities is something that has driven him.
In one such community in Gombe state last week, the former COAS is seen in a one-on-one with the senior citizens of that settlement. With one voice and later speaking for the rest, the oldest among them thanked Buratai for his accomplishment in curtailing and even stopping the Boko Haram insurgents dead on their tracks in the north east then made some comparisons to late Abubakar Tafawa Balewa and Sardauna of Sokoto, Sir Ahmadu Bello for their developmental efforts in the region.
When the guest humbly asked if they meant what they said, they acquiesced by nodding their heads in the affirmative. Smack in the centre of the community with the traditional ruler himself speaking, anyone can be forgiven for mistaking the parley between them and Buratai for a politician on the stump. He wasn’t and neither was the community hamming it the way they welcome those seeking for office prior to elections.
Now that he is a private citizen, farmer, statesman and APC stakeholder, the retired general visited some previously war-ravaged settlements in the north east. He has also visited his own natal Biu where he recently received locals during a visit to his farm. It is typical of a gentleman and an officer who has never lacked the common touch.
One distinctive quality of outstanding leaders everywhere is that, regardless of whether they hold an official position, people just accept their authority and submit to them as a result of their charisma and influence. Even though Buratai has already retired from the army since 2021, Nigerians still regard him as the epitome of the army and turn to him for leadership. Buratai is viewed by Nigerians as someone who can take huge risks to protect them, and I believe that over time, people have come to agree that he represents security and protection.
Only a few years ago as COAS, Nigerians frequently saw Buratai in army fatigues exercising with soldiers under him – effortless push-ups, sit-ups, road work and suchlike workouts to keep body and mind in shape. Now out of service, it is impossible to imagine the erstwhile COAS forgetting his routine morning drills – whether in a private or public gym.
What has also been part of his regular schedule is his active involvement in politics. A high-ranking member of the APC, his early congratulatory message to and support for the president-elect is not for nothing, say political analysts. Will the retired general make a stab at political office in the future?
It is not an unlikely prospect. Today, Air Vice Marshal Siddique Abubakar Chief of Air Staff appointed at the same time with Buratai in 2015 is angling to be governor of Bauchi state under the APC. Given the active participation and involvement of former military brass in Nigeria’s political space, nothing suggests Buratai will not take his turn when that plum opportunity presents itself.
After putting an end to the scourge of Boko Haram, and then served meritoriously as Nigeria’s ambassador to the republic of Benin, pursuing a political career will be a continuation of Buratai’s service to fatherland.
IS WIKE AN ASSET OR A LIABILITY TO TINUBU?
By Rex Akindele
Sahara Weekly Reports That Politics, they say is a game of interest. No permanent friend, no permanent enemy but permanent interest. But in every sphere of life, there’s morality and a man is best respected by his principles and the values he stand for.
There’s this school of thought that says “if you don’t stand for anything, you fall for everything”. This is the crossroad where the former governor of Rivers State and incumbent Minister of the FCT, Ezenwo Nyesom Wike stands.
Loud, brutish and loquacious with a touch of arrogance, the APC as a political Party was always the butt of his not so funny jokes while he held sway as governor of Rivers State.
Wike rose from the ashes of the crisis that engulfed Rivers State in 2007 after the gubernatorial primaries of the PDP in the State which the then president, Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo described as having a K-leg. The winner of that primaries, Rotimi Amaechi with a natural K-leg was not the preferred candidate of the powers that be and he was unceremoniously substituted with Sir Celestine Omeiha to fly the flag of the Party. What ensued after was a pre-election legal battle that went all the way to the Supreme Court. After the general elections which Omeiha won and was inaugurated as governor, the heat became unbearable for Amaechi and he escaped to Ghana on a self-imposed exile. It was Barr. Wike, a former Council Chairman of Obior/Akpor Local Government and close ally of Amaechi that stayed behind to coordinate the legal team and supporters of Amaechi until the case was decided by the Apex Court.
In appreciation of the job Wike did while he was away, Gov. Amaechi appointed him as his Chief of Staff during his first term in office. The Chief of Staff in the current system we practice wields a lot of powers and Amaechi, seeing how powerful and ambitious Wike was becoming, decided to cut him to size by not re-appointing him when he won his second term in 2011. Amaechi in one of his interviews, confessed that Wike was getting depressed and when an opportunity came to nominate a Minister from the State, a mutual friend of theirs pleaded with him to consider Wike in order to save him from a mental crisis. That was when Wike was nominated, and appointed by President Goodluck Jonathan as Minister of State for Education in his government.
When Governor Amaechi and President Jonathan fell apart, Wike took advantage of the crisis to build a parallel structure for Jonathan in Rivers and when Amaechi joined forces with 4 other PDP governors to create a faction within the PDP known as the New PDP, which later joined the APC, Wike, a cabinet Minister, took charge of PDP in Rivers State as the leader being the highest political office holder from the State. With the entire Party structure in his kitty and as the right hand man of President Jonathan who was contesting for a second term in office, the Governorship ticket of the PDP was an easy pick for Wike and despite the opposition from the then incumbent and his estranged friend, Rotimi Amaechi, Wike rode on the South-South sentiment and the popularity of President Jonathan in the region to clinch the governorship seat. This was Wike’s journey to limelight.
I have taken time to explain this to let you see that Wike is a crisispreneur and among active politicians in the country today, he has benefited from crisis the most. That’s why he rejoices whenever he sense a crisis anywhere as crisis to him is like the green grass to the green snake. His involvement with the APC during the last general election was as a result of the crisis that engulfed the PDP after their presidential primaries of 2022 in which he was an aspirant. His role in President Tinubu winning Rivers in 2023 can never be overemphasized but while he presented himself as someone fighting for the interest of Southern Nigeria, he lost what could have been a tremendous goodwill from such act by accepting a ministerial appointment from the president and the Party he had bad-mouthed for 8 years. It means it was all about his personal interest all along, which on its own is not bad if only he can swallow his pride and show some respect for others.
Mr Wike’s brazing use of his vantage position as a cabinet Minister in an opposition government to interfere with the governance of his home State of Rivers without reservation is becoming a moral burden for the Tinubu administration. Crisis of mistrust and disloyalty is common between successive governors and their predecessors in Nigeria since the inception of this democratic dispensation and on all occasions, the sitting governor always have the sympathy of the people.
At present, like Rivers, there’s a cold war in other States between governors and their benefactors, particularly in Benue State where Senator George Akume, a former governor of the State and incumbent Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), and his anointed governor, a Catholic Priest turned politician, Fr. Hyacinth Alia are fighting for supremacy. Senator Akume has maintained a dignified silence and conducted himself in a manner befitting of a high profile government appointee while allowing his men to battle it out with the governor. In the case of Mr Wike, he talks at every given opportunity in a demeaning language directing his missiles not only to his State governor but also to any elder that dare to associate with the governor. Some of those words are not even good enough to be used on an opponent not to talk of members of the same political Party. His supporters continue to abandon him on daily basis as it seems the communities are now turning against those fighting the governor.
Rivers State is a very delicate State. One of the oil producing States in the country that has the privilege of serving as the operational base of most oil companies in the region. It used to be the hotbed of militant activities until the intervention of late President Umaru Yar’Adua who introduced an amnesty programme to appease aggrieved youths fighting many years of neglect and insensitivity to the plight of their people. Today, anything that threatens the peace of Rivers State is a threat to national security and it’s becoming obvious from the tone of Elders, traditional leaders and stakeholders of the region that the Minister of the FCT is seen more as a threat to peace in the State, a character unbecoming of someone who served as Chief Security Officer of the State for 8 years.
On the political side, Wike is lost between the devil and the deep blue sea. After the 2023 general election where the PDP failed woefully due to some decisions and miscalculations of her presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, Wike was supposed to be the rallying point of aggrieved stakeholders and frustrated supporters of the Party. He was being looked upon, along side members of his G-5, to become the new face of the opposition in the country and give the Party new direction until he tumbled from his Olympia height. He had Governor Ortom, the former governor of Benue State who was a torn in the flesh of the Buhari led APC administration with him. But by choosing to serve as minister in an opposition government, he lost the trust of his fellow ‘comrades’ and the first to abandon him was the only remaining governor among them, Seyi Makinde of Oyo State. His appointment as Minister from Rivers, with Mr President not giving extra consideration to the State in order to accommodate someone from the original APC family, threw the APC into confusion. Today, while the national secretariat of the APC dissolved the State Working Committee and installed Wike’s loyalists in a caretaker capacity, Wike remained a PDP member in the day and APC at night thereby allowing both Parties to suffer in the State as he continue to play the double game. Lovers of multi-Party democracy will definitely question President Tinubu’s democratic credentials on the account of this. A virile democracy strives on the foundation of a strong and healthy opposition and the President will do his image in the international community a lot of good if he concentrate on strengthening his Party rather than being seen as destroying the opposition.
Regardless the number of State Assembly members standing with the minister, it’s a near impossibility to impeach the governor as the State will go up in flames. Seen as the first person to emerge as governor of the State from the riverine communities since the return of democracy in 1999, Gov Fubara has played the ethnic card very well to his advantage. He has also succeeded in harvesting all the other former governors who were also at the receiving end of Wike’s arrogance, vindictiveness and winner-takes-all approach to politics.
It has now come to the public that with all the noise from Rivers during his time as governor, Local Government workers were denied the statutory minimum wage of ₦30,000 and for 8 years, their promotion was stagnated. The national leadership of NULGE had to send a powerful delegation to governor Fubara to commend him for righting the wrongs of the past by implementing minimum wage for local government employees in the State and effecting their backlog of promotions. If these and more is been done to ingratiate himself to the people, Fubara has succeeded to a great extent as it continue to eat into any godwill left of Mr Wike as his former trusted allies throng the government house in Port Harcourt on daily basis to pay homage to the governor and pledge their allegiance.
If an election were to be conducted in Rivers State today, can Wike still be able to deliver for Mr President? The answer is a big NO and the situation will get worse with time.
It is therefore high time President Tinubu begin to see Wike as a political liability and social disaster by reaching out to other stakeholders and making new friends in Rivers State in order to safeguard his political future in the Niger Delta.
Akindele wrote this piece from Kubwa, FCT and can be reached at rexakindele2000@gmail.com
*Will Primate Ayodele’s Prophecy On South Sudan Election Come To Pass? (VIDEO)
Although the government of South Sudan headed by Salva Kiir has disclosed its intention to hold a presidential election in December 2024, popular Nigerian prophet, Primate Elijah Ayodele revealed that the election date will be changed.
In a video which went viral, the prophet made it known in 2023 that he doesn’t see the election being held on the proposed date due to security issues that would threaten the election process.
The prophet who has sent several fulfilled prophetic messages to the country stated that the election will cause destabilization in the country and an imminent danger lies in wait if the election holds.
He also revealed that the country will come under international pressure once the date is shifted while reiterating that the election date isn’t realistic.
These were his words
‘The date for the South Sudan election will be changed, the election isn’t realistic because of insecurity in the country. If the nation goes ahead, the election will cause destabilization. Once the election date is shifted, the international community will begin to put pressure on the country. If the election is held, there will be danger. The election isn’t realistic.’’
WATCH VIDEO BELOW:
@primateayodele #africantiktok #africatiktok #African #Africa #iescworldwide #primateayodele #southsudan #southsudantiktokers🇸🇸 #south #English #elections #southsudantiktokers🇸🇸
It’s nine months to the proposed presidential election, there is not much preparation for the election due to the crisis in the country. Will Primate Ayodele’s prophecy come to pass?
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