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Who is President Muhammadu Buhari? What sort of leader is the man at the helm of affairs in Nigeria today? What is his idea of a peaceful and united Nigerian state vis-à-vis his unflinching faithful commitment to his ethno-religious community and identity? Where does his greater loyalty lie, with the Nigerian state or his Fulani ethnic side? What is his leadership preference or principle, ethnic nationism or nationalism? How does he see other ethnic nationalities in Nigeria? As partners or rivals? Is there anything to learn from his leadership principle and practice? Join me in this journey of analysis as we try to find answers to these questions.
Buhari will, without controversy, go down in Nigeria’s chronicle as the ‘iron-clad’ but disarmingly smiling handsome Fulani, whose administration ‘changed’ Nigeria, made the people, in their ‘extremities,’ to ‘remember their God,’ caused the nation to stand in ‘studied’ and reflective trepidation, and awakened an unprecedented chain of reactionary, anti-reactionary and Orwellian reactionary episodes.
With pure obeisance to history and times of ‘time,’ I dare say, unequivocally, it will take only a man or woman devoid of proper education, bereft of dispassionate characterisation and lacking in sense of history to fall short of discerning and appreciating something very characteristically challenging in Buhari as an unabashed leader and lover of ‘his’ people. Love for ‘your’ people is an enviable sacrificial quality in leadership. And leadership is a very context-defined phenomenon.
Buhari, as a ‘selfless’ leader, is worthy of measured admiration and emulation. He is a trusted, true lover of ‘his’ people, an unpretentious but situationally tactful and principled actor in the political theatre of our ethno-religiously defined and crisis-ridden Nigeria. His uncommon love and struggle for ‘his’ people have endured to an awesome magnitude, though discomfortingly unaccommodating to ‘outsiders’ (hence he is ever accused of celebrated nepotism). It spans decades, culminating in a democratic executive ascendency in 2015 consequent upon his importunity and tenacity of purpose. And a self-supervised re-enthronement in 2019.
I call on our President to imagine the bleeding wounds that would heal, the flowing blood that would cease, the trust that would be built, the peace that would reign, the greatness that would be achieved, and the greater honour he would have, if he could extend the same love to all sections of the nation. His leadership is a process and product of unalloyed commitment to ‘unwritten ideals’ supremely ‘engraved’ in the heart.
Buhari is a truly context-construed general, who, in my admiration, studies and observes, understands, tests, and stimulates his ‘enemy’ in times of ‘war’ for response analysis, and properly analyses the weaknesses and strength, and possible strategies of this ‘enemy,’ and knows how to win not just the battle but the entire war, for preservation and posterity. His ‘magical’ strides of March 2015 that gave him the discipleship and ballots of hitherto political ‘foes’ and a controversial repeat four years later represent eloquent testimonies.
He knows when to use subtlety. He understands the times and seasons for measured entreaty. He is acquainted with the ‘tables’ and tides necessary for ‘diplomacy.’ He accurately interprets the ‘hour’ to use veiled compromise. He discerns the proper moment to deploy disguised strategy, even by proxy. He understands when to beat a seasonal retreat for a bigger treat, and bid for unassailable reinforcement. Again, he knows when to adopt a transactional approach and hold the line, waiting to advance with minimal liability or collateral in order to achieve a higher pre-determined goal. He penetrated churches and ‘synagogues,’ patronised ‘convents’ and ‘monasteries’ and ‘politicked’ within ‘seminaries’ and ‘sanctuaries’ for political ascendency.
As a well-trained ‘multi-regional’ warrior, conversant with the ‘tropics’ and the ‘coastals’ and versed in conflict and austere order, he knows when to operate ‘under cover,’ and when to adopt the ‘guerilla-tude.’ Also, in the reputed manner of the king of conquest, the lion, he proudly squats with faithful members of his confident, hopeful and determined but cautious pride, and patiently waits for an opportune time to pounce on and devour all ‘enemies’ of progress and political advancement.
Buhari has confounded the so-called educated, and has proved with subtlety, strength and strategy that he is in a better position to teach those ‘educated’ individuals how to achieve whatever they want. Many regard him as clueless. But so far, there is nothing that indicates that a man who has left no one in doubt, that he knew what he wanted from the outset, and has been mindfully pursuing (such) towards the realisation of such objective(s) in the manner that promises and guarantees him victory or success, according to his own definition of success.
A man of principle and ‘candour’ is a man of ‘honour.’ Buhari is a man of ‘honour.’ A man whose thinking can be conjectured, whose interests can be foreseen, and whose actions and agenda can be predicted is the simplest man to deal and relate with. For those whose intellects are active, Buhari is a man, a ‘nationalist,’ a crusader, a champion of a kind that can be predicted based on his antecedents. Why do we, as a people, as a nation, whine and complain about this honourable, principled, ‘unpretentious,’ predictable and simple man? After ‘supporting’ and electing him. Why?
Our President, for all intents and purposes, has always remained the man he is. He is consistent. And consistency is revered. I would rather be identified with a man whose word is his bond, and who can neither be dissuaded nor swayed from his personal convictions and pre-determined goals, informed by backgrounds and experiences of many years, than ‘co-journ’ with a ‘comforter’ who is ever given to change and inconsistency, for the former would give me a sure way of survival and safety.
This, by no means downplays the importance of flexibility and dynamism in leadership. But that is for the globally minded. Not for the ones who believe in the sanctity of building the home where charity should begin, those who believe that leadership without an enduring home base is a baseless legacy.
Buhari has never changed, never compromised, and never pretended, between December 31, 1983, and August 27, 1985, and after. He never pretended to be whom he was not for political gain, while in detention and even in the days of the late General Sani Abacha. And for the 12 years he was unwaveringly contesting for the presidency, from ANPP to CPC, to APC, he never changed. He never compromised. He never gave political excuses for what he did or failed to do, while in khaki and boots. He never apologised for whatever his traducers and accusers called the ‘crimes’ he committed. ‘Crimes’ of nepotism and extreme ethnicism, fanaticism. ‘Crimes’ of dictatorship, mindless detention and imprisonment of people, disobedience of the rule of law, etc.
Buhari is one of the very few men in present-day Nigerian politics who truly play the unmistakable politics of ideology.
And ideology is never exclusively defined by morality, equity or fairness. It is a people-oriented issue, circumscribed by uncompromising objective and undaunted tenacity, pursuit and focal consciousness towards a policy. It is of the people, about your people, and for your people. It is about their projection, penetration, preservation and perpetuation. The survival and future of ‘your’ people. We all need to learn something from him.
However, again, imagine the wounds that would heal, the trust that would grow, the peace that would reign, the unity and greatness that would be achieved, if he could extend the same love to all sections of the nation. We may not agree with the political ideology and leadership styles he promotes, as they are ever-running counter to transformative leadership that underscores global citizenship ideals. But he is a faithful and genuine leader of ‘his’ people in his position as the President of Nigeria, a military gladiator, or a private citizen. There is something admirable and worthy of emulation, situated in context, here.
I may not be his supporter, but I respect and admire President Muhammadu Buhari, the lover of ‘his own’ people, and the
Commander-in-Chief, Federal Republic of Nigeria.
•Onyedi is founder and president, Diamond-Crest for Youth Education Foundation
