“Three deadly plagues I have always despised: Donald Trump, COVID-19, and Muhammadu Buhari.” —Anthony Obi Ogbo

I am not a sadist, but all through my life, there have been three deadly plagues I have always despised: Donald Trump, COVID-19, and Muhammadu Buhari. So in 2017, I spent seven days fasting and praying, asking God directly to take away the life of Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari. I knew that was the right thing to do, and I will explain why along the line.

Buhari came in as president in early 2015, all mean and angry. Most surprisingly, his ignorance and total lack of competence to lead such a complex economy were exposed less than one year into his term in office. He started by using his executive powers to victimize regions he accused of not voting for him; he then went after the opposition with unfounded allegations of embezzlement. He created animosity among tribes and religions and totally ignored all the election promises he had made. He was so dumb to matters of governance that, under his watch, his economic team plagiarized a budget. The budget he presented turned out to be a carbon copy of the one made by his predecessor, Goodluck Jonathan.

Unemployment was growing and spreading like a California wildfire, and insecurity grew out of hand as Boko Haram terrorists outnumbered the national army. Buhari exonerated thousands of apprehended Boko Haram and ISIS terrorists and recruited them into the Nigeran Army—a move that has currently crippled the country’s security intelligence. Indeed, I knew the country was headed toward total anarchy if something was not quickly done to stop this man. Impeachment was off the table, especially with the Nigerian lawmakers who are stakeholders and partakers of a fraudulent administrative structure. So, as a concerned Nigerian citizen who was equally affected by Buhari’s stupidity, I had to do something.

Impeachment was off the table, especially with the Nigerian lawmakers who are stakeholders and partakers of a fraudulent administrative structure.

He was very sick at the time and was a sorry tenant in an obscure hospital in London. He was emaciated to the bone and looked like a cornfield scarecrow; it was obvious that his life was grinding closer to a final rest. Rumors of his death had clouded social media with unsubstantiated news and analysis, and his camp was not just communicating; rather, they babbled with watery explanations about his ailment, and at some point, they claimed he was just on vacation. This was when I had to do the right thing to save millions of lives put in harm’s way through Buhari’s reckless and tyrannical governance.

I gathered my all-time spiritual warfare, including Psalms 109:8–15. Fasting for seven days was a little challenging because I had to appease my addiction to Ethiopian Sidamo coffee. It’s a wet-processed Ethiopian espresso known for its complex flavor and rich acidity.

I resumed my prayer request invoking Psalms 109:8, that his days would be few and that another man (Vice President Professor Yemi Osinbajo, I guess) would take his place of leadership. I meant every word. I chanted verses 8–15 severally in a loud voice and ended by asking God squarely to kill this man by granting him everlasting rest from his sick bed. I did this every day with six-hour fasting. If I may confess, I fell short on the fasting part and often accidentally violated the process with my routine coffee and granola bar addictions. I asked God for forgiveness each time I mistakenly broke the fasting. I ended my prayer-and-fasting event with the same theme—kill this man and set Nigeria free.

I thought my prayers had worked for a moment, but then I could not figure out why God did not grant my request.

Exactly three days after my prayer revival, when I was already celebrating victory, the news of Buhari’s return from his medical trip radiated through the airwaves and on social media. I saw him on the video, and he looked healthier and stronger, walking without support, shaking hands, and talking. I felt like a yahoo-scam victim, then realized I did this all by myself. I thought my prayers had worked for a moment, but then I could not figure out why God did not grant my request. Could it be the coffee and granola bars that often interrupted the fasting moments? I have no clue.

Before you judge my actions, it may interest you to know that Buhari is not just an ordinary man. He is a rare creature who is never happy but whose sadness is dependent on making the lives of those he does not like miserable. In my book on how he bastardized his executive mandate, I described him as the most dangerous killer bee: one that would perch wheezing on the scrotum for a destructive sting. Punch it and smash the manhood; leave it, and he would sting one to death.

He was groomed in an uncultivated military confraternity where a constitutional system and civil liberties are taboo. All his life, as a privileged Fulani breed, he has lived through a system where mediocrity outruns excellence; this explains why, under this ugly culture, a man who has no proof of a high school certificate could rise beyond the law, his country, and the entire masses.

Currently, Buhari has about eight months left in his eight-year hellish regime. And please note that I have no regrets about my kill-Buhari prayer actions and would do it again against any leader that threatens my communal interest with ignorance of mandate, meanness, and idiocy.

♦Publisher of the Guardian News, Professor Anthony Obi Ogbo, Ph.D. is on the Editorial Board of the West African Pilot News. He is the author of the Influence of Leadership (2015)  and the Maxims of Political Leadership (2019). Contact: anthony@guardiannews.us

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How can a lame-duck president with zero legislative support lead a people out of system inequality in a predominantly hostile political environment? In a democracy, the president does not have the authority to make laws or facilitate major structural transformations.  The Igbo community is yearning for equal justice and equity through sweeping governance restructure. So, what kind of candidates or parties should they be looking for? Are they better off backing an immobilized president with Igbo DNA or negotiating with a congressional majority to push their agenda?

In the past six years, major Igbo political leaders encouraged the combative agitation for statehood stirred up by a separationist group, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB). Elected Igbo representatives or officials used IPOB and their often extremely divisive crusades for political convenience. However, they did not weigh some long-term political implications of those messages.

For instance, IPOB championed violent “no-referendum-no-election” operations that unleashed bloody violence at political rallies and polling stations where election workers and individuals were simply participating in the process. IPOB also recklessly destabilized the commercial sector in the Southeast. Most Igbos ignored numerous warnings from political observers about the long-term destructive nature of the trend of pushing forward their agenda of a national system that would serve their communal interests.

Astonishingly, just recently, a few months before the general election that would usher in another regime, the Igbos have been all over Nigeria’s political scene grappling with how to align themselves to attain relevance. The group has been unsuccessful in its negotiations to attain a presidential ticket in the two major political parties. However, Peter Obi, a charismatic former governor of Anambra State, defected a few days before his People’s Democratic Party primaries to become the Labor Party’s flagbearer.

Obi’s candidacy soon picked up unprecedented momentum among the youth, especially those of his Igbo ethnicity, who are now mobilizing themselves for a historic voter-registration drive to push his candidacy. Strangely enough, the same activists who championed the movement to isolate the Igbo youths from the political process because they wanted a Biafra are now flying the Labor Party flag and leading the “Obi-kere re nke” campaign mantra in a push for an Igbo president. It was precisely this cause that they had opposed for over six years. So, where does this leave the Igbos?

The purpose of this article is not to predict the electability of any candidate, nor is it to sugarcoat the prevailing rocky political environment; rather its goal is to provide some empirical insights as well as lay a more realistic foundation to enable competent Igbo thinkers to explore the prevalent political options before making any meaningful decisions about the 2023 general election.

In a democracy, interest, not tribe, drives party affiliation and support

Politics facilitates communal interests. In a democracy, interest, not tribe, drives party affiliation and support. In other words, communities look for candidates who have the capacity to make decisions not just on their behalf but also in accordance with their interests.  Therefore, it would be worthwhile to first identify the interests of the Igbos.

The majority of the problems Igbos are facing today originate from the country’s constitution and its current governance structures. In a nutshell, their demands focus on the following:

• Reconstruction of the current constitution to impartially address revenue and resource allocations, electoral maps, the structure of state and local governments, and the draconian federal character.
• Reconstruction of the current constitution to overhaul the current security structure and decentralize internal security.
• Laws to protect Nigerian citizens, their families, homes, and businesses in every part of the country.
• Laws to address marginalization or quota and guarantee equal opportunities to all Nigerians

With the aforementioned crucial needs, how could voting for a lone candidate without considerable legislative support help the Igbos? In Nigeria’s organizational structure, the executive function does not make the laws; it carries them out. The judiciary evaluates the laws but often has the power to preside over very crucial decisions. The National Assembly,  which consists of a Senate with 109 members and a 360-member House of Representatives, exerts much power in making structural changes. In fact, should the President reject a bill, the Assembly could pass it by two-thirds of both chambers and overrule the veto —in which case, the President’s consent would not be required.

Under the current legislative structure, in the Senate (109 seats), the All Progressives Congress (APC) has 66 seats; the People’s Democratic Party occupies 38 seats while others have 2 seats and 3 vacant seats. In the House of Representatives (360 seats), the APC occupies 227 seats; the People’s Democratic Party has 121 seats while others have 11 seats with one vacant seat.

There are Igbos advocating for individual candidates and others embracing the Labor Party to appease their strong desire for an Igbo president. The latter needs to bear in mind that, currently, the Labor party has no seat in the Senate and only one seat in the House of Representatives. Is the Labor party projecting to win significant seats in the forthcoming election? If not, how could a president of Igbo descent, with one shaky legislative seat out of 360 help the Igbos under the current constitutional structure?

It may also be interesting to note that anytime a national election is polarized along tribal lines, the first major loser is the Igbo tribe because they do not have the numbers to succeed nationally, and they are not trusted by other regions to collaborate in good faith. The much-hyped rotational presidency is not a constitutionally mandated process but an arrangement by political parties. Thus, legislative support is needed to enshrine most of the demands of the Igbos in the constitution.

It might be hard to swallow, but the truth is that the problem of the Igbos is not in Aso Rock but lies within the legislative axis. The current get-out-and-register exercise inspired by Obi is commendable, but a harsh truth remains: it is going to be a rough and bumpy ride to 2023. Igbos must set aside their emotions and put on their rational, critical-thinking caps to play hardball politics.

♦Publisher of the Guardian News, Professor Anthony Obi Ogbo, Ph.D. is on the Editorial Board of the West African Pilot News. He is the author of the Influence of Leadership (2015)  and the Maxims of Political Leadership (2019). Contact: anthony@guardiannews.us

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“Obi’s latest political move contradicts his own gospel of being indispensable, and it hurts his credibility moving forward.”

Just a few days before his People’s Democratic Party (PDP) was due for its national convention, Nigerian presidential hopeful Peter Obi shocked his camp with an announcement. Mr. Obi announced his resignation from the party and also his withdrawal from the presidential race on his party’s slate. There were, however, rumors that he would join the Labour Party (LP) to continue his presidential ambition.

So, what are Mr. Obi’s excuses? Here is an excerpt from his resignation letter addressed to the party’s National Chairman Iyorchia Ayu:

“It has been a great honor to contribute to the nation-building efforts through our party. Unfortunately, recent developments within our party make it practically impossible to continue participating and making constructive contributions…Our national challenges are deep-seated and require each of us to make profound sacrifices toward rescuing our country. My commitment to rescuing Nigeria remains firm, even if the route differs.”

The next question would be: Why would front running presidential candidate resign just a few days before the national convention, where his party would choose a presidential candidate to run in the election less than 10 months away?

It might suggest that this candidate is not ready for primetime; that he has no clue about his politics and cannot coordinate the complex reins that suffuse Nigeria’s political terrain. It contradicts his “holier than thou” electioneering gospel, leaving himself as the main enemy of his own philosophy. To make matters worse, his argument that disparities within the party would not deter his mission to rescue Nigeria further opens up his ideological anguish. He is simply professing that he could run in an election under any party, including the incumbent All Progressive Congress (APC)—a party he has spent months lampooning as a failed entity.

Days prior to his resignation, Obi arrived at the British Prime Minister’s residence at 10 Downing Street. He claimed that he was there to meet with officials but did not share the outcome of the meeting. Rather, he circulated photos of his visit on social media as campaign material.

He was recently busy in London doing a photoshoot with Prime Minister’s staff.

In my last article regarding this subject, I cited one of Obi’s flaws: he runs a weak campaign that lacks in strategies but feeds the audience with messages incompatible with situational reality. Where other contenders are focused on the politics of winning delegates, Obi is busy, trotting through states and cities promoting his self-proclaimed sainthood. He was recently busy in London doing a photoshoot with Prime Minister’s staff.

The delegate politics in any party primary election is crucial. In Nigeria, it’s hardball. According to Dr. Doyin Okupe, a senior special assistant for public affairs to former President Goodluck Jonathan, “Delegate elections are devoid of conscience, rational thinking, patriotism, or the principles of right or wrong.” (Guardian, May 23).  Dr. Okupe also noted that 70–80% of delegates vote according to the dictates of their leaders. Most often, it has nothing to do with their personal convictions.

Indeed, Obi’s camp might still be waiting on him to open up in sincerity, that he resigned because he was convinced that he had lost the battle for winning delegates. He did not only lose the delegate battle but was completely subdued by the collaboration of Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers and Chief Chris Uba. This development was rightly echoed in a publication of ThisDay: “Uba is working for Wike. They want to influence the election of ad-hoc delegates, as this will help Uba himself, who is a senatorial aspirant…and [he will] also be able to influence the process enough to get delegates who will be loyal to his candidate, Wike, against Peter Obi.”

Delegate politics is simply an amoral process involving raw cash, influence, and egotism.

Obi is not new to Nigerian politics, nor about delegates and political parties. Definitely, it does not matter how many trips a candidate makes to 10 Downing Street. Delegate politics is simply an amoral process involving raw cash, influence, and egotism. Noted Dr. Okupe, “In the last PDP convention in Port Harcourt in 2019, most delegates went home with between $8,000 and $10,000. This year, the figures are bound to be higher. The big spenders are prepared to go as far as $10,000 per delegate.”

An average Nigerian politician is a dishonest soul with one mission—to defraud the system.

Please do not get me wrong. There is nothing right about an election process structured in bribery and corruption. Unfortunately, this has been the culture espoused by the Nigerian political sector. Also, there are no innocent politicians in Nigeria. An average Nigerian politician is a dishonest soul with one mission—to defraud the system. Consequently, an aspiring politician is a part of a potential scam risk waiting for an opportunity to do the same damage. Obi is not a saint. He is a Nigerian politician.

Analysts argue that his current position might earn him a position as a running mate for a major candidate. Others in his camp vow to support him irrespective of his decisions. Again, in Nigeria’s political arena, anything is possible. But Obi’s latest political move contradicts his own gospel of being indispensable, and it hurts his credibility moving forward.

♦Publisher of the Guardian News, Professor Anthony Obi Ogbo, Ph.D. is on the Editorial Board of the West African Pilot News. He is the author of the Influence of Leadership (2015)  and the Maxims of Political Leadership (2019). Contact: anthony@guardiannews.us

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Texas Guardian News

INTERNATIONAL GUARDIAN is the boldest and brightest issue-oriented international newspaper published in Houston, Texas. Strategically, it strives to promote private enterprise, support responsible government and advocate social justice.

Latest posts by Texas Guardian News (see all)

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