From Romanus Ugwu, Abuja
The conspicuous absence of the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, last week, in Abuja, at the all-important Peace Accord signing event by the 2023 presidential candidates, was not only the talking point but also another low point for the ruling party and its candidate.
It was the second in a short while after missing the function earlier organised by the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) at his doorstep in Lagos. He was curiously also absent on October 1, Nigeria’s 62nd Independence anniversary event in Abuja last weekend.
Of course, he was represented at the events, as usual, by his running mate, Kashim Shettima, but the flimsy reasons in defence of his absence especially at the Peace Accord signing event were laughable to many. His trip to London for personal motives, according to his managers, has rather fuelled fresh concerns over the real state of his health ahead of the rigorous campaign activities.
Some Nigerians may understandably be angry and apprehensive over Tinubu even though it has nothing to do with doubts over his competence, capability and experience as the perfect man for the job.
And despite the assurance that he is healthy enough to effectively preside over the country, Nigerians have remained skeptical over the state of his health.
In defence, Tinubu had repeatedly assured that as Nigeria’s President, he is not participating in a physically-involving, energy-sapping exercise like the Olympics but the anxiety over his health has persisted.
Periodically, events would rear its ugly head by playing up the doubts about his abilities to cope with the rigours of presiding over a uniquely troubled country like Nigeria.
The recent signing of Peace Accord event involving all the political parties’ presidential candidates where he was the only candidate among the major parties represented by his running mate was one of such.
Expectedly, despite all the takeaways at the carnival-like sensitive ceremony organised by the Abdulsalam Abubakar-led National Peace Committee, Tinubu’s absence trended and grabbed all the attentions of many Nigerians.
The hostile reactions that trailed his absence at the signing ceremony were even more ferocious than that of the NBA organised event in Lagos where many believed he deliberately refused to appear.
Ordinarily, there would not have been anything untoward about his absence at a big event such as the Peace Accord; after all, he is not expected to be physically present at every event, but for the flimsy reasons adduced in defence.
The claims by his media team that he was in his London home, strategizing on the activities to kick-start his campaigns, had heightened the curiosity and anger of many Nigerians. The implication, in the interpretations of many, is that the relaxation in his London home was more important than appearing at such big function as Peace Accord signing.
But from whatever angle one looks at it, his continued absence at big functions and gradually making his running mate his permanent representative, has become serious concerns for many Nigerians.
For critical observers, the apprehension is because Nigeria would not want to pass through familiar rough roads where their presidents had to embark on endless foreign medical trips and subjecting the people to
the trauma of having a proxy leader that will spend a greater part of his administration outside the shores of the country on medical trips.
Since the beginning of the fourth republic in 1999, cases of presidential candidates and presidents with underlying health conditions are replete, with former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Goodluck Jonathan, as the only two that presided over the country without having to go for incessant medical trips abroad.
Still fresh in the minds of many Nigerians would be the ‘Umoru are you dead’ episode of 2007, when then president Obasanjo, put a call across to the then presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Umaru Yar’Adua, in Germany, to inquire about his health.
Yar’Adua had suffered acute pericarditis, a heart condition, and a chronic kidney ailment that kept him in Saudi Arabia for three months seeking a medical solution.
He later won the battle by emerging victorious in that presidential election and even executed his seven-point agenda almost perfectly but he could not win the war, as his health regrettably failed him after some years.
His health challenge actually caused a constitutional crisis that almost paralysed the government. In fact, the situation worsened when the cabal bluntly resisted every attempt to transfer power to then Vice President Jonathan, following Yar’Adua’s state of incapacitation, until the National Assembly invoked the Doctrine of Necessity.
President Buhari’s medical tourism in London, which lasted several months, is another case in point still very fresh in the minds of many Nigerians. In his absence, an alleged cabal hijacked the government against the wishes and desires of many Nigerians. The traumatic setback the country and its citizens went through was better imagined than experienced.
President Buhari may have miraculously survived his ailment, witnessed a dramatic transformation to even re-contest and win the 2019 presidential election but the time he spent in London on medical tourism will remain the ugly side of his administration.
With the two incidents in mind, the anxiety and concerns over Tinubu’s health challenge from many Nigerians is understandable. The argument is that it is not, in any way, a sign of rejection of his presidential ambition or candidacy but a genuine concern to avoid the ugly experience of Nigerians in the past.
Voicing their concerns, many Nigerians have opined that Tinubu sacrificing his long-time presidential ambition would be the best option for the APC candidate.
From the presidential candidate of Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, to political economist, Pat Utomi, among other thousands of anxious Nigerians, Tinubu’s health actually poses a major threat to his presidential ambition.
The first to mock the APC candidate were song members of the Pyrates Confraternity who in a viral video made references to his failing health.
However, the founder of the association, and Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, frowned, disowned and disassociated himself from the controversial song.
“My attention has been drawn to a video clip making internet rounds, of a dancing and chanting group, in red and white costume, purportedly members of the Pyrates Confraternity. The display acidly targets a presidential candidate in the awaited 2023 elections.
“Since the whole world knows of my connection with that fraternity, it is essential that I state in clear, unambiguous terms, that I am not involved in that public performance, or in any way associated with the sentiments expressed in the songs.
“Like any other civic group, the Pyrates Confraternity is entitled to its freedom of expression, individually or collectively. So also is Wole Soyinka in his own person. I do not interfere in, nor do I attempt to dictate the partisan political choices of the Confraternity.
“I remain unaware that the association ever engages in a collective statement of sponsorship or repudiation of any candidate. This is clearly a new and bizarre development, fraught with unpredictable consequences,” Soyinka quipped in a statement he personally signed to describe the distasteful lyrics of the chants from members of the Confraternity.
Also, Professor Utomi, a chieftain of the LP, had clearly claimed that Tinubu is very unfit to lead the country.
Challenging him, Utomi, founder of Centre for Values in Leadership, simply said; “you can see he (Tinubu) is ailing. He should go through medicals and make it public.”
In his own admonition, the presidential candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Rabiu Kwankwaso, urged Tinubu, to take things easy considering his health.
“If you see my friend, Bola, tell him to take it easy, take good care of his health and make sure that… because I love him so much, he is my friend. This campaign is very rigorous; it requires a lot of effort. I hope he will take it easy so that we can continue the struggle to ensure one solid and prosperous Nigeria,” Kwankwaso admonished.
Peter Obi, the LP presidential candidate, equally expressed concerns and advised Asiwaju to sacrifice his ambition and attend to his health.
But reacting on the speculations over Tinubu’s worsening health, Bayo Onanuga, Director of PCC, insisted that he is as fit as fiddle.
“The fake photo of Bola Tinubu is another handiwork of purveyors of deep fake news. Whoever is behind the malicious falsehood will face the judgment of God at the right time,” he cursed, explaining that; “the man in the photo does not look like Asiwaju, except for his baldness. The man is fatter. Tinubu is slimmer. Look at the frame of his glasses; it is certainly not Tinubu’s trademark frame.”
Defending his health status further, Onanuga said: “Let me assure Nigerians who genuinely want to know Tinubu’s whereabouts. He is in London, in his house. Tinubu left Nigeria on Saturday night for a short break and in readiness for what will certainly be a grueling campaign. I saw and spoke with him two hours before he left.
“He was hale and hearty. He was not ill. He didn’t go to treat any ailment. We spoke today at about 2 pm. And he told me how his one-week retreat has not made any difference. He was still working in Nigeria. Today, he still burnt his candle till 4.30 a.m…
“Nigerians should stop spreading rumours about Tinubu, who by the grace of God and fellow Nigerians, will be elected our leader next February. We should learn from the divine fate of the man who wished Tinubu dead,” he warned.
But notwithstanding the warnings and assurances from the campaign council director of Tinubu’s health status, what is however incontrovertible is that his absence has constituted serious setbacks to the ruling party rolling out drums to commence campaign activities after lifting the ban last week.
Among the issues requiring his attention and physical handling is the lingering rift between the APC National Working Committee (NWC) and the leadership of the Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) over the composition of the comprehensive list.
Though his running mate, the leadership of the PCC and concerned chieftains of the ruling party have secretly intervened to resolve the intractable difference concerning the list but the more they tried, the more solutions eluded them.
“Tell me about any of the major political parties without some skirmishes. Let me admit that our party, the APC, is not an exception. In fact, we are perhaps experiencing the larger chunk of the crisis; however, I don’t believe that the crisis cannot be resolved,” a chieftain of the party, who pleaded anonymity, told Daily Sun in Abuja.
“Where it seems that our case is different is in the manner used in solving them and the hostile media reportage of the crisis. Truth be told, the final handling of the party’s problem previously has always rested on the intervention of President Buhari. But the situation has changed and is even expectedly different now because he has little or no role to play in calming down the tension.
“Look at the handling of the issue of Muslim-Muslim joint presidential ticket, up till now, it is still an unresolved issue of serious concern. And whoever tells you that our party is coasting with the arrangement must be deceiving you. We just left it in abeyance pending the time it will rear its ugly head again. Every party member can only pray that the decision won’t hurt the party drastically,” he explained.
On whether the health status of the party’s presidential candidate is also a factor capable of affecting the ruling party, our source said, “my answer to your question will be a yes and no.”
He added: “The big question would be whether Asiwaju’s continued absence at public functions has become a concern, and I will say that it has. Are we also concerned about his health and the speculations about his constant foreign medical trips? I will give you a two-pronged response.
“Anybody can face health challenges whether physically fit or with underlying health conditions and Asiwaju is not an exception. If you ask me, it did not start with him, bearing in mind that we have had such cases with late Yar’Adua and during President Buhari’s first tenure.
“The good news, however, is that despite the speculations and confirmation of their death even before their swearing-in, they still survived and ruled the country for some years. So, is Asiwaju’s absence affecting many things? Yes, because there are many issues that require his final imprint as the candidate of the party.
“For instance, no matter the reason they gave in defence of his absence at the recent important signing event, that will exonerate him and make people believe that it was not about his health challenge.
“However, without trivialising this issue, permit me to crack a joke by saying that Nigerians complained of Yar’Adua and Buhari’s health and even made it campaign issues but they still voted them, perhaps on sympathy; Asiwaju could as well be close to winning the 2023 presidential election. Whether they got it through sympathy or popularity, Asiwaju will also be a beneficiary,” he joked.