Chief Obafemi Awolowo and Ayo Opadokun
Nigeria’s political landscape shook to its roots on 9th of May 1987,
when the most unexpected happened. The earth-shaking occurrence was the
transition to glory of Chief Jeremiah Oyeniyi Obafemi Awolowo (OA). With
such a massive blow, Nigeria’s Progressives on the political divide
lost Obafemi Awolowo, the most priced and valued possession, and the man
for whom Chief Emeka Ojukwu spun the most enduring epithet, “The Best
President Nigeria Never Had”. Indeed, OA was the best President Nigeria
never had, thanks to the deliberate and conscious conspiracy of
ultra-reactionary elements and agents of Right-Wing foreign
socio-economic and political leeches.
With the benefit of hindsight, we cannot but marvel at the last 100
days of OA. He displayed some signs, which we took no notice of at the
Time-T. Lets us commence the journey from his last birthday on March 6,
1987. While OA’s guests were just having the usual breakfast at Efunyela
Hall, OA enjoyed social interaction with those present. Mama, HID was
also seated.
At about 10am, I, as a personal Aide after Rotimi Abe got
incarcerated for appending his name to OA’s convincing response which
proved that contrary to General Idi Agbon’s assertion that UPN’s
Governors have confessed to embezzling state funds to service the UPN
party, none of them had been interrogated by the SIP as at that time I
was called out to meet with a delegation from Oye Community now in Ekiti
State. They brought a gift, a carved statue of OA. It was a spectacular
work of art. It was very heavy, to the extent that it took the
collaborative efforts of about five healthy men to bring it down from
the Peugeot pick-up van, with registration No. OD613AA, used to
transport it to Ikenne. Just as the effigy was successfully placed on
the rostrum, OA indicated that he would like to go and have his own
breakfast.
One amazing thing happened on that day. As I was seeing off OA to
the house, some of the people he had sponsored to Jerusalem on Christian
pilgrimage lobbied me to allow them have personal and group photographs
with him. For several of them, it was a lifelong dream being fulfilled.
And people took that opportunity to be seen together with the legendary
Nigerian leader. Some of those pictures made it into the newspapers. To
enable them enjoy their moment exclusively, I distanced myself from
them and watched the photo session. After members of the last group had
their turn, OA turned to me. He requested me to also pose beside him for
photo session with him. And I jumped at the unique opportunity. Deacon
Ayo Oloruntoyin from the Nigerian Tribune, who was one of the photo
journalists on ground that day, snapped way, and he later obliged me
with a unique copy. In my houses in both Lagos and Offa, that copy
adorns my walls. The photograph remains a cherished possession, a record
of that memborable day in my life. I was thrilled with the array of
colleagues present at the occasion. While I was busy with the OA
birthday, I never knew that my mother, Mrs. Sarah Wuraola Opadokun, had
passed on to glory on the same day, March 6, 1987. It was Dr. Olu
Onagoruwa, his wife and Retired Commissioner of Police Onagoruwa who
came to my house to break the sad news to me at about eight, in the
morning of the following day, 7th March 1987.
When OA returned to Efunyela Hall, he directed that I should
organize a formal reception for the carving from Oye Ekiti. I did, and
the guests were happy. OA in response remarked that if it was the little
contributions that he has made to the society was the reason for the
spectacular love and affection he enjoys from many people and
communities, and particularly from members of Oye Community who had come
to present him with such a unique art work, he would wish that he
performed excellently far much more in life after death. OA informed the
guests that he had lost a book titled “Life after Life” and that he
craved for another copy from anyone who has a copy to oblige him for his
quick reading again. There and then, OA rendered a few extracts from
that book. Blind admirers that we were, all of us failed to realize he
was giving us advance notice of his transition. But we never took
notice.
It was after OA transited to the great beyond that we knew that he
had again prophesied his own death and other events. But we had taken no
notice. Sunday Times, however, provided Nigerians an historical
excursion on OA in order to remind us of some quotable quotes out of
much of what Chief OA said on his last birthday.
Another of those events was OA’s last visit to the University of
Ife, now Obafemi Awolowo University in 1987. OA’s visit was to honour
the doyen of Nigeria theatre, Chief Hubert Ogunde, who was to be given
an Honoris Causa by the University. Along with Mama HID, We arrived at
Ife a day ahead of the event. OA and HID were guests at the palace of
His Royal Majesty Oba Sijuade Okunade, Olubuse II, while he booked me
into a suite at his Sijuade Motel in Ife.
I was the Public Relations Consultant to Chief Ogunde in the last
five years of his highly productive life. And he had broached to me the
need for a stage presentation and film on the life and times of Chief
Obafemi Awolowo. After consulting with OA, I had very refreshing
discussions with Chief Ogunde, who asked me to formally apply for OA’s
permission and approval. Ogunde and I jointly took a breakfast with OA
to further explain why we thought the film was germane towards filling a
void in our situation in Nigeria. Eventually, OA officially approved
our request to do a full- course film on him. Just about the same time,
Dr. Ola Balogun pleaded with me to put in a word for him on the same
project. I pointedly reminded him about the contributions Chief Ogunde
had made to Awolowo’s political life and therefore Ogunde must remain
first choice for executing the project.
Three months after OA gave his endorsement, there was a command
performance on the grand stage of the National Theatre, Iganmu Lagos to
test-run what to expect in the movie. Actors that played the characters
of Alhaji Jakande, Chief Enahoro and Pa Alfred Rewane were adjudged
look-alike carbon copies of the characters they were representing.
However, the actors who played the characters of Alhaji L.K. Jakande and
Chief Bola Ige were the most appreciated by the audience.
Unfortunately, the sudden death of Chief Ogunde himself on April 4, 1990
frustrated work on the production of the full-fledged stage
presentation and film on the life and times of Chief Obafemi Awolowo.
Meanwhile, the award of Honoris Causa conferred on Chief Hubert
Ogunde commanded an immense live audience, a huge crowd of respected
Nigerians, including staff and students of Ife University. Again, we
never noticed OA’s departing conduct after the events. Large team of the
Staff and Students’ Unions and over twenty five thousand crowd again
exhibited their love, affection and loyalty to OA. And for the last
time, OA had to climb the tail-board of his utility six-door Mercedes
Benz to address the huge crowd with his two-finger victory sign. It only
dawned on us after OA’s transition that even though we never realized
it, the sage had given the university community a glorious GOODBYE.
OA’s trip to Warri, which was his last public outing was to honour
the new Olu of Warri, billed to be given the staff of office by the then
Military Governor of Bendel State. It was another momentous event. OA
and HID had enjoyed great relations with OA’s admirers, particularly the
Itsekiri people, who are cousins to the Yoruba. The visit also was
equally to honour a dependable ally of OA, Papa Alfred Rewane who was
the godfather of the Olu of Warri. Papa Rewane and HRM were of the same
lineage and in fact Papa Rewane sponsored HRM to local schools and
University in Europe. In fact, in 1999 and 2000, as the General
Secretary of Afenifere, I had to put the Ijaw people on notice that the
Pan Yoruba political platform had taken note of the outrageous violence
being unleashed on the Itsekiri by Ijaw people. And we notified them
that any further attack on the Itsekiri was an attack on the Yoruba
nation. Such attackers, we said, must be ready for appropriate responses
from the Yoruba nation. Instantly, the combatants shelved their sword
and sanity had prevailed ever since.
On another occasion, OA was present at the University of Lagos
Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, Akoka, Yaba, Lagos for the first
memorial lecture to honour the Late Chief J.F. Odunjo (the writer of the
Alawiye book series). The occasion turned out to be the last time that
OA and the late doyen of public service Chief S.O. Adebo would meet.
Professor Akin Adesola, who was then the Vice Chancellor of UNILAG, was
in attendance. I invited Alhaji Ganiyu Dawodu, Mr.Ojekunle Ferreira,
Professor Afolabi Olabimtan, then Director of COSIT, UNILAG, Chief Taiwo
Alimi, Chief Dipo Jimilehin, to accompany OA. The children of Chief
Odunjo were also present at the lecture.
At the event, Chief S.O. Adebo privately expressed regrets to OA
that the Nigerian Public Service had of late turned a disappointment;
more so as the reported official misconducts were much more for personal
gains rather than for public interest.
There was also the most significant opportunity for OA to meet face
to face with Yoruba leaders of the Conservative political divide. On
February 18, 1987, Awo had his last encounter with Retired Justice
Adetokunbo Ademola, Chief H.O. Davies and Dr. Koye Majekodunmi, the
Administrator of Western Region during the state of emergency imposed on
the region by the NPC/NCNC led Federal Government. This meeting came as
part of the implementation of the resolution of a peace and
reconciliation meeting of Yoruba leaders of various shades of opinion.
From October 1985, Yoruba leaders and captains of industries and
professionals, particularly many in the Metropolitan Club, had
persistently sent emissaries to Chief Awolowo, pleading with him to
intervene over the raw deal they were suffering in their various
business activities. Such emissaries were initially facilitated by
Prince Babs Oyekanmi. For example, they lamented that they were having
difficulty securing government approval for some of their business
requirements, except when they enlisted one or two far Northerners into
their board membership. They sought a meeting with Papa in the greatest
interest of the Yoruba nation.
But first, there came an interregnum.
After General Ibrahim Babangida overthrew his boss, he quickly
returned Chief Awolowo’s International Passport within one week. Col.
John Shagaya, the then Minister of International Affairs, ensured the
delivery of the instrument to OA. General Buhari and General Idiagbon
had unreasonably and disrespectfully seized OA’s passport without any
known reason. To add insult to injury, security operatives of the
government had embarked on a brazen search of Awo’s home. Even though
the Buhari government claimed that the disrespectful searching OA’s
house was not authorized and that it was the work of filth Columnist,
their explanation remained feeble and condemnable.
Returning the passport enabled Awo to finally travel as he wished.
On the eve of Papa’s annual leave and medical check-up abroad (which the
Buhari-Idiagbon regime blocked for one and half years), Papa instructed
that on his return, he would be willing to consider another meeting
with his rivals, Yoruba leaders on the other side of political
philosophy. OA asked me to compile a list of two leaders of our own per
each Yoruba state. Based on my list, he would hold a preliminary meeting
with these dignitaries. They were Senator Abraham Adesanya and Chief
J.A.O. Odebiyi from Ogun State, Chief Adebayo Adefarati and Dr.
Nathaniel Aina from the old Ondo State, Alhaji Busari Raji and Canon
Emmanuel Alayande represented the old Oyo State, Alhaji Ganiyu Dawodu
and Alhaji Rafiu Jafojo represented Lagos State. Chief C.O Adebayo
joined me from Kwara State. On Papa’s return, Prince Oyekanmi and I
exchanged notes, and we fixed the meeting for January 21, 1987. The
Metropolitan Club big shots choose Chief Molade Okoya Tennis Club House
at Onikan for the meeting.
A very significant resolution of that meeting was that the two broad
political divides in Yoruba nation should collaborate on any major
matter, which affects the Yoruba nation. The meeting therefore decided
that a meeting between leaders of the two groups was imperative and a
necessity in order to unite the Yoruba folds. A unique reconciliation of
the followership was intended. An interesting part of the proceedings
of the meeting was the contribution of Chief Ayorinde, the Ekerin of
Olubadan Ibadan land. He proverbially stated that OA should know that it
was time that he stopped being in opposition. He said in Yoruba: “Ma
ja, ma sa laa makikanju l’ogun; Akikanju to moo ja ti ko moo sa, iru won
maa mbogun ibomiran lo ni”. Literally, he meant that he who fights and
runs away lives to fight another day. And that a great warrior who does
not know when to retreat is most likely to be part of the spoils of war.
Befittingly, Senator Adesanya retorted “Mi o le w’aku, k’oni je oye
ile baba e”. in English, that translates into: Anyone who fears death
when a throne is at stake can never lay claim to a hereditary throne. At
a breakfast talk with Papa the next morning I informed him (OA) of the
eagerness of one of his former close lieutenants from Ogun State, who
began to pile pressure on me to be allowed the hosting of the meeting.
Information reached us has confirmed to me that this man was a mole, an
undercover police informant secretly reporting Papa to his paymasters. I
was sensitive to the fact that it was possible for this double agent to
install electronic gadgets at his proposed venue to make a full
recording of the meeting for instant transmission to Dodan Barracks.
Determined to frustrate the mole’s evil plan, I sought the permission of
His Royal Majesty, Oba Sijuade Okunade, Olubuse II, to allow us utilize
one of his Ikeja houses to hold a series of possible meetings. He
obliged. The said mole was a former parliamentary secretary that was
close to (OA) as the Premier of the Western Region. OA as a Finance
Federal Commissioner under Gowon became curious when he suspected a
voucher he was to sign for payment. On investigation, it was established
that the mole had always been a police informant.
Tactically, His Royal Majesty Oba Sijuade privately wrote to inform
Gen. Babangida that the Yoruba people were preparing for reconciliatory
parley; that peaceful co-existence among Yoruba people would generate
greater peace and reconciliation in the country altogether; and one of
his Ikeja’s houses was going to be the venue for all such meetings.
Thus on the 8th of February 1987 Rtd Sir Justice Adetokunbo Ademola,
Chief H.O. Davies, Dr. koye Majekodunmi and Prince Babs Oyekanmi, on
one side, and had Chief Obafemi Awolowo, Senator Abraham Adesanya, Chief
C.O. Adebayo and I, on the other side. Senator Abraham was asked to
moderate the dialogue.
Two Metropolitan Club leaders spoke at the occasion. First, Sir
Ademola spoke, followed by Chief Davies simply said they were totally
committed and willing to work for the unity of the Yoruba nation and
that they will be willing to make reasonable sacrifices for the
achievement of peace, mutual trust and unity among the Yoruba people.
Chief H.O. Davies said they had always known and accepted that OA
was in control of over 90 per cent of the Yoruba nation, but that they
were in control of the traditional rulers, along with the remaining 10
per cent of the people. He therefore recommended that it will be in the
greatest interest of the Yoruba nation for the two groups to unite and
begin to build enduring good legacies for posterity. The moderator of
the dialogue, Senator Adesanya, then requested Chief Awolowo to respond.
The Sage initially hesitated to speak. Eventually, however, Chief
Awolowo, in his usually gifted oratory, took on each of the trio. First,
OA addressed Justice Ademola. Let me paraphrase.
“Justice Ademola, you will remember that you made frantic efforts to
literarily eliminate me physically and politically. You will also
recall that you came to talk to me in Calabar Prison where you suggested
to me to renounce Egbe Omo Oduduwa and the Action Group, promising that
you will thereafter ensure my immediate release from prison? Of course,
you will remember that I totally rejected your offer. And I said that
Egbe Omo Oduduwa, unlike your Egbe Omo Olofin, was not a private club
owned by Awolowo. You will recall also that after I was released by the
government of General Yakubu Gowon, Yoruba elders organized a
reconciliation meeting to reunite us. I accepted that the political
difference between us was over. Furthermore, I would also like to remind
you that on your retirement from office as the Chief Justice of
Nigeria, I organized a reception to celebrate you. In spite of my
practical demonstration of love to you since then, I will like you to
tell this gathering what further offence I have committed to warrant
your renewed and total opposition to me in the 1979 general election. In
the polling booth very close to your house, it was proved again by eye
witnesses that you voted for the NPN? Also, if its true that you want
the progress of the Yoruba people, why should you again spearhead deep
enmity between your very small group and me?
Chief Awolowo again went on to remind his Yoruba kinsmen at the
meeting that other nationalities never tired of blackmailing him with
suppositions that if Awo were to be elected President or Prime Minister,
he would concentrate more developmental programmes on Yorubaland. When
such suspicions continued to remain a stumbling block to his life-long
aspiration for national leadership, why should he again suffer “multiple
jeopardy” with the high level opposition marshaled against him within
the Yoruba nation leadership?
Mesmerised by eloquence of Awo’s address, Justice Adetokunbo only
suffered to make one interjection, asking: “Was the lady (Adetokunbo’s
wife) present at the party you organized for me”?
Chief Awolowo replied in the affirmative and, to prove it, he
directed me to hand over to Justice Adetokunbo a copy of the photo album
produced of the reception. Justice Ademola was visibly dumfounded as he
browsed through the collection. In preparation for the meeting, Chief
Awolowo had asked me to visit his Library (now donated and managed by
the Obafemi Awolowo University) and requested the Senior Librarian to
assist me in locating the particular photo album and other related
photograph of that reception. I got the Album of that reception and it
was handy. It was a coup de grace. It effectively deflated Justice
Adetokunbo’s ego. There and then, he apologized for the unnecessarily
stress that their relationship had suffered.
OA then took on Chief Davies. OA reminded the Chief that after the
reconciliation meeting, which he also attended, there have not been any
issue between them that could have warranted the renewed bitter enemity
that Chief Davies harboured against him. OA now threw a bombshell. “You,
Chief Davies, were the Originator and Author of 122/3 to be interpreted
as 12 states and 2/3 of a state. Chief Richard Akinjinde was just the
mouthpiece as the official advocate of the NPN and later became the
Attorney General and Minister of Justice of the NPN Government.
Chief Davies neither admitted nor denied OA’s accusation. Instead,
he reiterated his position that the meeting was conveyed to settle out
dispute and wrongs causing disharmony between the elder statement. He
promised that in the twilight of his life, he would be committed to
giving everything within his power for total realignment of forces among
Yoruba leaders.
Finally, OA turned to Dr. Koye Majekodunmi. Awo wanted Dr. Koye
Majekodunmi to reveal if he had again offended the Medical Doctor after
the major Pan-Yoruba reconciliation meeting. Reminiscing, OA asked the
Former Administrator of Western Region to remember that as a political
detainee, Awo had requested that the Administrator should not yield to
the propostion of the NPC top hierarchy to detain him at Lekki, Epe
area, reputed to be teeming with various killer insects and dangerous
reptiles. In spite of the Administrator’s promise never to send Awo to
such a place, a few days later, OA was restricted to the most dangerous
quarters of the Lekki Island waterside. OA also revealed that in spite
of his underserved travails, as orchestrated by the conspiracy of the
NPC and NCNC, he readily forgave the apologetic Yoruba leaders at the
major reconciliation meeting.
Recalling that he and his entourage, including Alhaji Ganiyu Dawode
and Chief Ojekunle Ferrewa arrived very early for the opening ceremony
of St. Nicholas Hospital, established by Dr. Majekodunmi, OA reminded
the Doctor that people who sighted him at the venue took offence and
questioned why he had honoured the invitation of a “traitor” who had
collaborated with the evil agent of the NPC to humiliate and oppress
him. This angry horde mobilized to burn down St. Nicholas, but for OA’s
strong and laborious appeal that Yoruba Leaders had reached a resolution
for forgiveness and unity among the leadership and the followership. OA
also wanted Dr. Majekodunmi to tell the meeting why the Physician
should be part of another gang-up against him. Dr. Majekodunmi also
simply responded that bygones be bygone, as the current meeting had been
called to broach a reconciliation among them as identified Yoruba
greats.
With all the dirty linens put away, the atmosphere took a friendly
and lively turn, with free-dealing of jokes and banters amongst these
doyens of the Yoruba race. The leadership of the two sides decided that
the meeting should adjourn and they should leave there to brief their
different camps. They reached a resolution to regroup for a follow-up
meeting on April 18, 1987. Subsequently, OA and I guided Chief Davies to
his car, as he had already lost his sight by then.
Unfortunately, the follow-up meeting for April 18, 1987 never
happened. Just two weeks after the primary meeting, Chief Davies lost
his first child, the Chief Executive of Rod Publicity, an advertising
agency. To stabilize him from the devastation that his son’s death
inflicted upon him, Davies himself was rushed abroad. To make matters
worse, there came the paralysing death of OA himself. The efforts geared
towards re-uniting the Yoruba nation thereafter hung in limbo until
Papa Micheal Adekunle Ajasin naturally took over as the Leader.
Awolowo’s excellence in planning and executing policy decisions
remain unequalled. That was why he blazed the trail or scored first in
the formulation and execution of spectacular matters; first to introduce
free universal primary education in Nigeria; first Television in
sub-sahara Africa; first standard stadium (now Obafemi Awolowo), first
tallest storey building in Nigeria (Cocoa House, Ibadan), biggest firm
settlements in Nigeria etc.
Awolowo’s leadership qualities include unequalled industry and
intellect, courage, value for time and choice of excellent thinkers.
Always, he surrounded himself with experts in various disciplines. That
way, he never lacked resources for the purposes of getting an
all-inclusive position on any particular subject matter. The positive
and negative sides of every viewpoint were keenly debated and finally
resolved before he or his organization took a position. OA remained
current on contemporary matters till the end. I was always amazed at
OA’s consciousness of modern trends. In fact, before anyone else, OA in
1986 one early morning, as soon as he cited me, from his normally closed
window informed me of the newly-released Christian lyrics of the
Ilesha-born Evangelist Niyi Adedokun titled “Amona Tete Wa”. OA’s
notable thinkers which included the University of Ife collectives among
others were: Prof. Hezekiah Oluwasanmi, Prof. Sam Aluko, Prof. David
Oke, Prof. S. Banji Akintoye, Prof. Akin Mabogunje, Prof. Ambrose Alli,
Chief Wumi Adegbonmire and others to mention a few which my memory can
instantly recollect.
The reality was that once Awolowo spoke on a subject matter on
Nigeria, public opinion writers and leaders, as well as University
academics, would usually break into two broad divisions – for and
against Awolowo’s particular viewpoints. But he never did deliberately
stir up the hornets’ nest of controversy. Awolowo utilized the value of
silence to the maximum effect. Except his commentary would improve or
advance positively the topical issue of the day, Awolowo would not
speak. That was why whenever he chose to address the media, they would
severally declare that “Awolowo has finally broken his silence” upon
such-and-such a matter. After any speech, the development has always
been that his contribution quickly turned into the subject of analysis,
debate, criticism or commendation for long. For example, when in his
Chancellor’s convocation address at Ife in 1973, he scientifically
discredited the population census count of that year and proved that the
result was fraudulent and unacceptable, the caption of that speech by
the most widely read Sunday Times then was “CENSUS, A BARREN EXERCISE”
BY OBAFEMI AWOLOWO. Positive reaction to his speech was wide and
instantaneous. The Sunday Times in those days when Chief Gbolabo
Ogunsanwo was the Editor was selling over 250,000 copies daily.
There is no doubt that Awolowo, for all he was, generated passionate
love and hatred in equal measures. For example, a significant segment
of the Igbo community will, till tomorrow, continue to accuse him of
instigating cross-carpeting just so that he could prevent Dr. Azikwe
from leading an NCNC Government in the Western Region in 1951. Alhaji
Ganiyu Dawodu’s book has reasonably provided evidence to discredit their
ridiculous claim. The Ibadan Peoples Party and or the Mabolaje Grand
Alliance were never in any written and or official alliance with NCNC.
When the then Electoral umpire officially asked all political parties
contesting in Ibadan election to submit the names of their candidates,
the NCNC never submitted the names of the IPP or the Mabolaje Grand
Alliance as contesting on their platform.
One wonders, where is the sense of fairness, justice and equity of
the anti-Awolowo rabble, when Dr. Azikiwe’s party had already formed an
NCNC Government in Eastern Region. What the NCNC party attempted to do
was to rubbish the Yoruba Nation by trying to make it looks as if the
Yoruba nation could not find one of her own best materials to lead a
government for the Western Region. You can appreciate what would have
been the implications of such reality on the psyche of the Yoruba folks.
During the 1979 campaigns, the windscreen of OA’s helicopter was
stoned, forcing him to hurriedly leave Igboland because of the
hostility. Part of this hostility sprouts from some elements from the
Igbo platform, who apart from other private reasons, have claimed that
Awolowo pauperized their people during the Civil War by directing the
Central Bank of Nigeria to give natives of defeated Biafra enclave, just
one or two pounds in compensation for all their deposits in banks.
Serious-minded people know that if there was government policy to that
effect, OA was just implementing such policy and should not be held
guilty for such because he was then Deputy Leader of the Federal
Executive Council and the Federal Commissioner of Finance. Finally on
these allegations, they claimed that OA said that starvation was a
weapon of war. They equally took that out of context.
The Yoruba people have proven time and again that they can be
accommodating to other Nigerian nationalities that have come to ply
their trades and businesses in Yorubaland. It is only in the Yorubaland
that some State Governments appoint Igbo and Hausa people into their
prominent cabinets positions or make them heads of various departments.
What Yoruba rejects are the instances of where people they have
graciously accommodated subsequently trying to lord it over our people.
It is equally typical of an average Yoruba offspring that one of the
greatest Yoruba Military Leaders Col. Adekunle Fajuyi offered to be
assassinated along with his Commander-in-Chief, General Aguiyi Ironsi
when the mutineer came to Ibadan Government House to take away Ironsi.
Is there anything more than the supreme sacrifice a Yoruba leader can
pay in defence of his Igbo boss?
Many of the established far Northerners have, individually and in
groups, in private discussion and at important meetings involving me,
admitted that they never doubted that Awolowo was the best presidential
materials; but they did not work for his victory because Chief Awolowo
had always formed his political parties (the Action Group and Unity
Party of Nigeria), before inviting them to come and join, with the sole
purpose of getting him elected as Prime Minister and or President.
Awolowo is the only former Nigeria leader whose name has repeatedly
opens and closes doors in the Nigerian political firmament, even after a
quarter of century of his transition to the great beyond. And for all
intent and purposes, the Awolowo’s phenomenon will continue to shape the
political divisions among the Yoruba people and their cousins in Delta
and Edo States as well as among the Yoruba people of Kwara and Kogi
States because of the unprecedented life of discipline, courage,
enterprise and development that were vintage Awolowo.
The absence of Awolowo has led to the emergence of political parties
without ideological leanings and preferences. It is difficult to
differentiate between the political parties philosophy and actions,
except with the star like excellent performances of Raji Fashola, Adams
Oshiomhole, Rauf Aregbesola, Kayode Fayemi, Abiola Ajimobi, Ibikunle
Amosu of the current ACN Governors and two or three PDP Governors like
Rotimi Amaechi, Sule Lamido and the likes. Nowadays, contestants merely
talk about their 12 or 10 or 9 or 7 or 6 or 5-point programmes. There
is virtually no prescribed benchmark against which elected people are to
be assessed by the voters as either having performed or not. In fact,
within the same political party, each candidate will usually present
individualized promises, leaving the voters confused. For example, it is
difficult for any positively disposed person to reproach or contradict
the Four-Cardinal Programmes of the Unity Party of Nigeria, (UPN)
namely:-
Free Education Programme;
Free Medical Services;
Gainful Employment; And
Integrated Rural Development;
All that any UPN Candidate needed to do was just to subscribe to the above and work towards executing them while in office.
There is no diligent general discussion, debates and conclusions on
party policy options. Party supporters ordinarily should be well
equipped with the party’s policy on the economy, power, education,
welfare programme, agriculture so that they will be foot soldiers to
propagate and popularise the party’s positions etc. In the UPN days, we
spent two to three days discussing and concluding on the party’s
policies. We equally used to have goodwill messages and contributions
from social democrats political parties globally.
Since 1999, party conventions have become nauseating scenarios,
where government and party bigwigs exhibit personal wealth. Elective
Conventions are much more bizarre because there is usually the presence
of out-spent and out-bribed delegates who usually become praise singers
at these events. For example, there were revelations of how delegates to
the last PDP convention to choose presidential delegates were bought.
The story, as revealed by some delegates, was that one of the aspirants
bribed each delegate with 10,000USD while his less-endowed rival could
only afford 2,500USD.
When Awolowo was here, the choice of candidates for political
offices were democratic and at very little cost. Till 1982/83 for
example, none of the UPN governorship candidates could claim that he
spent N20,000 of his own money to become a Candidate and a
Governor-Elect. The party searched among its ranks and adopted the
relatively best candidates to run. Interested party men only needed to
formally notify the party of their interests. In fact, Chief Bisi Akande
in 1998, (now National Chairman of ACN became the Alliance for
Democracy (AD) Candidate for Osun in that same manner. He was not
interested to run, but Chief Bola Ige literally forced him to run
because he (Akande) remained such a decent, principled personality. His
legacies in Osun remain yet to be beaten. The utility and befitting
Secretariat he built remains an enviable contribution of unimpeachable
leadership in public service and without borrowing a dime. Until the
arrival of Oranmiyan and the symbol (Aregbesola) into the coveted office
of governor, those who rigged him (Akande) out have no significant land
mark as their legacy except ruins and hopelessness. But with the
emergence of Aregbesola, an unusual governor, governing in an unusual
style, the fortune of Osun people had started to change for the better.
The symbol (Aregbesola) and his other collegues, Fashola, Oshiomhole,
Fayemi, Ajimobi and Amosu have turned their states into construction
sites on roads and schools. Each one is positively taking concrete steps
to uplift agriculture to a promising level so that each state can
become self sufficient in food production and generate employment for
the young people. I have it on good authority that they are all
embarking on scientific and technologically driven agriculture works so
that our country will on its own produce the raw materials and process
them into semi and or finished products that can also be exported.
But today, anyone with cheap money just needs to establish his own
structure within a party on which he wishes to run. Sometimes you may
have up to 30 aspirants for one particular post- particularly the
executive ones. Thus, there is the usual factionalisation within the
party along the aspirants’ various structures. Reconciliations sometimes
are difficult to achieve.
Elected government officials who ran under the UPN, acted in fact as
party representatives in government offices. It may be unbelievable,
but it was true, that Alhaji L.K. Jakande, as Governor of Lagos State,
fortnightly, always showed up at the UPN State Secretariat in Mushin to
interact with Lagosians of all political leaning. Anyone in Lagos, who
had any matter to relate with the Governor, had the right to personally
talk to the Governor about it at that forum. The policy was
first-come-first served. The interaction usually lasted till late in the
night sometimes, Chief Bisi Akande, as Osun State Governor between
1999-2003, devised his own IDI ODAN, a sort of PEOPLE’S PARLIAMENT, to
interact with the voters and the electorate. His other collegues,
Tinubu, Adesina, Osoba, Adebayo and Adefarati, devised other methods to
regularly interact with their constituents who genuinely put them in
office.
It was a fact that in 1978/1979, there were incidences of bitter
rivalries and unending confrontations in the UPN party primaries. With
particular reference to the case in Oyo State; delegates’ primary was
repeated thrice before Chief Bola Ige emerged as the party Candidate.
Arch- Deacon Emmanuel Alayande, who among others contested and lost
against Bola Ige, later became the Special Adviser on Education to the
Governor.
In Lagos, Alhaji Ganiyu Dawodu who had become the political talisman
of Lagos politics (the G-O-D of Lagos), simply read the mood of OA,
realizing quickly that perhaps the sage would prefer to compensate any
of those who had suffered with him in the unjust prison incarceration of
the First republic. G-O-D, therefore, tactically withheld his hat from
the ring; even though he was the next senior active politician after
Chief Akanbi Onitiri, who by then had lost steam. Thereafter, Alhaji
Jakande, a distinguished journalist and renowned editorial writer, was
nominated and won election as the Governor of Lagos State. OA gave him
an appellation; he usually called him “Habour Master”.
Also as early as 1981, there had been whispering campaign by deputy
governors who wanted to succeed their governors in the UPN in Ondo, Oyo
and Bendel states. Because of such ambitions, those states literally
became war zones within the UPN states.
In Ondo State, Chief Akin Omoboriowo wanted to replace Chief Michael
Adekunle Ajasin; in Oyo State, Chief Sunday Afolabi was rooting to
replace Chief Bola Ige; and in Bendel State, Chief Damas Akpofure wanted
to replace Professor Ambrose Alli. There was also the political
war-like scenario in Kwara State playing out between Chief J.S. Olawoyin
and Chief C.O. Adebayo, the latter wanting to replace the former. The
conflicting interests of the gladiators led to some spectacular negative
consequences. The events of the 1982 UPN National Executive which
witnessed the “NIGHT OF THE LONG KNIVES” in Yola remain a painful
recollection. The fact that both Chief S.M. Afolabi and Alhaji Busari
Adelakun (“Eruobodo”), had alleged that Chief Ige enlisted General
Obasanjo to help settle their intra-UPN dispute generated emotion and
bad blood over whose turn it was to run for governorship, remains one
event that one will not want to remember a fresh.
Chief Omoboriowo, from October, 1, 1979, was reportedly hoping that
Chief Ajasin would not last more than two years before passing on. In
fact, it was believed that when Chief Ajasin had to travel to England
for medical treatment, Chief Omoboriowo had so positioned himself to be
sworn in as the Governor just in case of any eventuality.
In fact, Chief Omoboriowo had successfully cultivated most members
of the Ondo State House of Assembly through falsehood and various
dubious claims. It became known that Omoboriowo had told the legislators
that as Governor, he would turn around their fortunes positively by
granting them various kinds of allowances which Ajasin had denied them.
Also, the legislators attempted to impeach Chief Ajasin as a result of
Chief Omoboriowo’s prompting.
OA political declarations were usually taken seriously because they
were not made whimsically. Except this one. There was an emergency
National Executive meeting of UPN in December 1982 at the National
Theatre, Iganmu and I was the Recording Secretary. OA in his address
said that of all the Deputy Governors except Akin Omoboriowo who were
insisting on party primaries for the sole purposes of unseating their
governor bosses were so vehement because they wanted to replace their
bosses so that they would be able to steal public funds. Unfortunately,
Omoboriowo disappointed OA and decamped into the NPN along side of Chief
S.M. Afolabi from Oyo state. Omoboriowo recently died unsong and
unheralded. He turned out to be an unfaithful Awo’s adherent who even
wrote a book titled “AWOISM”. It was a painful realization that he was
never genuine even as many of his likes have been even today.
The fact remains that OA’s August 1983 statement is gradually
proving prophetic, to the effect that if the general election of that
year was rigged, it would be unlikely that our generation will ever see
democracy again. The total corruption and perversion of politics
generally, and the political institutions established by President
Babangida with their ultimate objective to help him succeed himself,
have done extreme damage to our corporate body polity. This has been
followed by President Obasanjo’s “politricks” that saw him single
handedly dismissing and appointing four PDP party chairmen, namely Chief
Solomon Daushep Lar, Chief Audu Ogbe, Engineer Banabas Gamade and Dr.
Ahmadu Ali, within his eight-year tenure illustrates the tempestuous
state of the party under Obasanjo’s watch. The brigandage with which he
engineered removal and replacement of the chairmen of other political
parties were sufficient evidence to reasonably state that for Obasanjo,
party cohesion, resilience and popularity were strange commodities that
the PDP President did not give any significant regard.
One can state, without any reservation, that, what Nigerians have
today (in terms of political parties) are no more than party platforms
for electoral contests. And that is why, since Babangida commercialized
and monetized politics, aspirants have been compelled to source and
steal (where possible) to win their elections, because they will have
the key to the public purse once they get into office.
The fact of the matter is that Nigeria’s academic, analysis and
writers have failed to do enough to unravel and dissect Awolowo as a
mystical phenomena, deserving of painstaking study and analysis by all
manners of scholars without forgetting the good works of Rev. Father
Francis Ogunmodede and a few others. Nigeria unfairly deprived him (OA)
to utilize his divine and personal gifts, talents and endowments to help
Nigeria establish an egalitarian and developed society. I cannot but
salute the governors of the South-West, Edo State and a few other
states, who are doing a yeoman’s job to improve the quality of lives in
their states. However, reeling from the hangover of IBB’s 1990s
monetization of politics, the current Fourth Republic finds itself
incapable of delivering genuine democratic credentials because the
process of contesting election is predicated on the depth of
contestant’s pockets. Once such Candidate wins, he becomes
uncontrollable and unaccountable. Such elected public servants usually
disregard the electorate they believe has received its dues,
pre-election; and they free themselves of their worries until another
election is close by. It is for that purpose that the more petro-dollars
our government receives, the worse the living conditions of Nigerians
become.
To redeem the country of our birth from imminent revolt by the
marginalized, the cheated and the disadvantaged, Nigerians should stop
their opportunistic collaboration will evil regimes and their evil
pastimes. Chief Awolowo had always reminded us that when the people are
ready to take their destinies in their hands, leadership will emerge. No
society can achieve development or progress when the preponderance of
its elite and its people are pleasure-lovers and fun-seekers.
The emerging Young Turks in Yorubaland, who are currently adding
some values to what Awolowo did and left, should not relent. They should
radically turn their given spaces and spheres of authority into genuine
democratic governance. The fact that they are already establishing
Nigeria’s First Welfare Programme e.g– N5, 000 each for people over
65years old and other variants of elders who are not on any pension
scheme, “Itoju Agba” and the likes – represent a quantum leap from the
recent morass of unproductive governance. The spirit of Awolowo lives
on. The fact that my brother and friend, Ogbeni Aregbesola, has, from
Day One of its administration, mobilised the people of the State of Osun
with the Anthem of the Unity Party of Nigeria (whose words were written
by Chief Awolowo himself, with lyrics supplied by Chief Hubert Ogunde)
rekindle our hopes and aspiration. Our people at the present are being
galvanized for popular participation in governance and execution of
lofty programmes to improve on their well being.
With such promising glimpses, Awolowo will smile from beyond on
performing governors and those who, despite the whimsical phase of
corrupted Nigerian political contests, help to assist quality people get
into offices.
Saharareporters.
