By Festus Ogunseitan
THE MAN WIKE in the politics of Nigeria – fighting and dancing to power shows him as the future “Emilokan” of Nigeria for the South East region.
Politics in Nigeria, a multiparty system in a multiethnic and multireligious nation is obviously not bread and butter.
Nigerian politics dated back to her independence days of the patriachs; Ahmadu Bello, of the North, Nnamdi Azikwe of Eastern region and Obafemi Awolowo of the Western region when Nigeria was just three regions.
The trends of political events since independence had been stories of upheavals, disagreements, conflicts, civil wars and military interventions. It was never a story of calmness and continuity.
In its early years after gaining independence in 1960, The First Republic was established in 1963, and was short-lived, ending with a military coup in 1966. The nation then experienced a prolonged period of military rule, punctuated by the devastating Biafran War (1967-1970) and subsequent attempts to transition back to civilian rule.
The Biafran war of over three years led by Col. Odumegwu Ojukwu caused a serious setback for the people of the Eastern region morally, and socially and in areas of reintegration to the nation.
At the end of war in 1970, Nigeria government began to express a lost of trust and confidence in the Eastern region politics and it has not been the same with the region who produced the first President of Nigeria through Nnamdi Azikwe.
Different political dispensations subsequently passed bills for rotational presidency, for power shift and for equation to enable power equity at the central seat of Nigeria but after sixty years of independence, aside Nnamdi Azikiwe being a ceremonial president, the South East has only succeeded once in producing Nigeria’s leader, once in the person of Goodluck Jonathan from Bayelsa State.
Even with military incursions, apart from General Aguiyi Ironsi’s ill-fated 6 month rule, the South East had not been lucky to rule nigeria possibly and partially by virtue of recurring fear of secession from the nation.
Many years into democracy in Nigeria, a convention in Geneva held by the United Nations rules out incursions by military junta globally to ensure civilian peace, functional human rights and freedom, peace and advocacy and it provides sanctions against nations under military rules..
Against all these, yet, the battle for the mantle of President had continued to elude the South Eastern region as an igbo man could only vie for second or third fiddle in the same manner of lost confidence and trust and that subsequently led the igbo youths back boiling for dissolution of Nigeria, cesession plans, self government and for a renewed creation of Biafran nation.
The game of politics in Nigeria however is naturally and technically not of exclusive zonal rotation, a representative must go through screenings and campaigns to compete with others from other Zones and to fight for the position of power to win all other contenders, the office of the president is competitive, it goes through the national ballots, never given a la carte, it is not a serve yourself buffet. It means for a candidate to win, he must be truly democratic, intelligent with records of performance, competent, strong mentally and emotionally.
That informed the 2023 electioneering campaign for a first time, when the youths of South East went out with a height of enthusiasm to chose a representative who had featured as a credible actor in the politics of Nigeria with an outstanding record and impeccable character that would win the hearts of diversified Nigerians and not only of his people.
So, a one time governor and an industrialist par excellence, in the person of Mr Peter Obi, was put forward and widely supported across the nation, Youths group recruited him on basis of not too young to rule agenda.
Religious groups recruited Christians for him, daring monopolistic politics .
The Ohaneze Ndigbo went out en masse to ensure that recurring scourge of discrimination, maginalisation and calumny against Ndigbo was a thing of the past.
The hottest chase in the history of Nigerian politics, but it was as well peaceful, well conducted, relatively and free and fair.
Included in the support for Ndigbo was a pan African cultural, political group, the Yoruba Afenifere under the coordinating wing of late Yinka Odumakin who came forward to show support for the Igbos in the spirit of Southern region support claiming they had suffered enough undue maginalisation.
Unfortunately for Peter Obi, and for the Labor party which he represented, he came third. Tinubu won and became the new President.
The politics of South East then went a milestone backward with key players cross carpetting from losing political parties to the winning party APC.
Conspicous was a gameplayer among giants, a political juggernut from the South East zone, erudite, a politician of timber and caliber, an audacious and resilient leader who had always moved forward steadily in all dispensations with attitudes of effontery and against dictatorship in politics, a man of unbending loyalty to his political party the PDP ( People’s Democratic Party of Nigeria.)
Ezenwo Nyesom Wike, former State Governor of the Rivers State and a one time Federal Minister of Education. His tenures in all his assignments have been known for achievements and developments yet controversial because of the complex nature of Nigerian politics..
As the former Governor of Rivers State, Rivers state witnessed a lot of transformations.
In 2023 Nyesom Wike intended to vie for the post of the President of Nigeria in the primaries of PDP with power transiting to the South under the legislated zonal rotation system but he was dissapointed via a conflict of interests with the very powerful former Vice-President of Nigeria, Atiku Abubakar from the North who was also interested in the same office despite that it was a South’s turn.
Wike was not cowed, nor moved, neither was he caged, he kept talking sanity, educating people in and out of his political party on sanctity of practice among the PDP with resilience and effontery and threatening to wreck havoc against the success of his party unless the truth is told.
The in-house altercation was an unusually dramatic time in the history of elections, as Wike stood bold on one end and Atiku, the Turaki of Adamawa stood equally firm on the other end, holding on to the Northern creed of born to rule.
Subsequently, at election, the situation spoilt chances for PDP at the verdict as many members availed to lack of respect for rule of law by Atiku and refusal to bow to sanctity to break off from PDP in a way that showed support and loyalty not just to Wike, but to true democracy and against the politics of born to rule, ethnicity and money power.
The resilience of Wike sent a message to the country, and to the whole world against corrupt leadership, rights oppressions and power monopoly, particular of the age-long northern oligarchy through absolute resilience, effontery, confidence, sacrifice and competence of one man.
That also shows that we can change our world, and we can end all forms of nepotism, oppressions and money politics for the actualisation of truth and righteousness in our nation.
Wike was honored for his bravery, intelligence, erudition, truth, sacrifices, risks taking, and faith and was rewarded with a portfolio in the cabinet of the ruling party being the current minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), where he continues to exercise the same control without fear or favor and winning wars against his own people of the South-East in ensuring that the masterplan of the FCT which hitherto had been made impossible by the uncontrolled migration, is made a reality against all odds.
For what he is doing presently in Abuja and for all his previous detribalised work ethics, he is much hated among many of his own family and friends who would rather see things from the ethnic point of view, than see from national perspectives.
Nevertheless, haters, the whole eyes of the nation, and of the international minds are watching and recording the man Wike in the eyes of the storm, and posterity is also watching him.
The Bible talked about the stone that the builder rejected which has become the pillar of the house.
Many Nigerians are seeing the antecedents of Wike and his tall, strong, resilient, outspoken and un-comforming personalty as a steady goal getter, similar to the same found in Emilokan of Nigeria whose unique personalities made Lagos what it has become today and now working Nigeria through the same transformations.
Will Wike become the arrowhead of South Eastern politics to in future, notwithstanding though being a rejected stone for now?
Let us leave the time to tell.
