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Tinubu: His road to presidency

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2 years ago

FOR the president-elect, Senator Bola Tinubu, it is an epochal day in his journey of life, as he becomes the seventh elected president of the country in 24 years of civil rule since 1999. The event marks the attainment of a life ambition that dates back almost four decades ago. Though his rise from a seeming obscurity to fame and glory was never devoid of twists and turns, Tinubu succeeded in meandering his way through tenacity of purpose, political brinkmanship, doggedness and guts.

It is, however, pertinent to note that he bears the cross of rekindling the hope of Nigerians for a new dawn after a dizzying season. Tinubu is not lost to those realities, as he has, in the last couple of weeks, spoken on what could be regarded as an admixture of the agenda of his presidency in the coming days and beyond. According to him, some of his policies and programmes are bound to come with some level of pains as part of sacrifice Nigerians must make to take the country out of the woods.

The ecstasy and gusto in the camp of the former Lagos State governor in the last few days have been infectious and exhilarating after the rash of cacophonies that initially trailed the February 25 presidential election. Based on his antecedents in Lagos as chief Executive, his associates, loyalist and followers have promised that Tinubu would unleash and deploy part of the strategies he adopted that repositioned the state.

From the private sector, where the luxury and comfort of the oil and gas are often taken for granted, Tinubu plunged into the perceived murky waters of politics, where the end often justifies the means, and has risen to the pinnacle of power. He had made it clear from the day he joined party politics that he was going out in a blaze of glory. Despite a harvest of travails, he kept his eyes on the ball exhibiting resilience in the face of difficulties, passion for excellence and undying spirit in political contest. His philosophy of Emi lokan, a euphemism for it is my turn, is crystallising in his inauguration into the exalted office of President of the country for the next four years.

The Carrington connection

In 1999, the inauguration lecture for Tinubu as governor was delivered by a former United States Ambassador to Nigeria, the late Walter C. Carrington. He went down the memory lane listing those Nigerian leaders who laid down their lives during the struggle for the de-annulment of June 12, 1993, won by the late Chief MKO Abiola. The ex-US envoy said for those patriots not to have died in vain for their sacrifice, Tinubu must showcase Lagos as the bastion of democracy. His words: “The greatest tribute you can pay to these noble martyrs is to make Lagos a model of the democratic ideals for which they gave their lives. May this state so be governed that it will stand as a beacon for all who value open and honest government?”

In celebrating his 100 days in office, Tinubu had restated his determination and commitment to changing the phase of Lagos through realistic transformational policies and programmes. He declared that the role of the private sector was pivotal in the policy direction of his administration. According to him, “The global trend is the realization by governments that some public utilities are better left to the private business initiative. Such examples are in the areas of the provision of water, electricity, telephone and so on. However, he reminded the people of the state that he had entered a contract with them through the ballot box. Therefore, he was not going to renege on his pre-election promises. He stated: “My dear people of Lagos State, when you elected me on January 9, 1999, you cast with your ballots a lot of expectations and hopes, government and the people are joined in a social contract. We intend to honour our entire contractual obligation to the letter. I want to assure you that by the grace of God, with the cooperation, patience and understanding, your expectations and hopes will not be in vain. You have given me a big challenge. With your support, I will strive to do everything to do everything possible. And by the grace of God, we shall succeed.” According to him, “We have had preliminary discussions with international development agencies and financial institutions, among others, with a view of assessing our state. A very important reason for capital flight in Nigeria is the issue of corruption. Many foreign investors have stopped business activities in Nigeria because of the reported cases of high level corruption in both public and private life. As a demonstration of my commitment towards eradication of corruption in our public life, I shall sponsor an anti-corruption bill in the Lagos State House of Assembly. As a government, we shall live above board. We shall demonstrate probity and accountability of conduct. Since, it takes two to tango, foreign investors themselves should cooperate by keeping to the civilized standard of business conduct. This brings me to what we consider to be the centerpiece of the policy of this administration, our policy of privatisation.”

Inception

In 1992 when Tinubu decided to go into party politics, he had given a number of reasons for taking the plunge. He said it had become necessary for professionals to join the fray as part of conscious moves to rescue the country from the vultures and vampires rampaging the political arena. He was quoted to have said: “We, the professionals, cannot sit back and respond to uncoordinated and poorly implemented government policies which control our destiny.” Tinubu went on to be elected the senator representing the Lagos West district of Lagos State under the platform of the once vibrant Alliance for Democracy (AD) formed by Afenifere, the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) and other pressure groups that led the sustained bitter struggle against the June 12 cancellation by the Babangida regime. Tinubu became the Chairman, Senate Committee on Appropriations, Finance and Banking in the short-lived Third Republic.

Preparations

The Chinese teacher, Confucius, underscores the role of preparation in any endeavour in life. He says it is the antidote for failure. The theory on success is further underscored by another philosopher, James Allen, who propounded that preparations boost self-confidence and reassurance about a set goal. He asserts that, “Whatever a man does, he will do it better and more successfully by utilizing some small portion for his work. The man who gets up early in order to think and plan, that he may weigh and consider and forecast, will always manifest greater skill and success in his particular pursuit than the man who lies in bed till the last moment and only to get up just in time for breakfast.” Tinubu may be an apostle of the theory of early preparations in his ultimate goal in politics. He moved from being elected a senator to governor and now president of the country. He has risen from being a kingmaker to the king proper at the heist scale.

But, his meteoric rise to fame and influence has not been without controversies. Some of the issues bordered on his background, especially his state of origin, age, academic qualifications, accountability. Some individuals and groups latched on these issues to challenge his eligibility at the elections but he has consistently secured favourable judgments from courts of competent jurisdiction. He was arraigned before the Conduct of Conduct Bureau Tribunal over issues pertaining to his assets declaration forms while in public office. His road to becoming the candidate of the All Progressives congress (APC) in the 2023 presidential poll was dogged by a welter of opposition from some powerful forces in the party and the seat of power, just as others tried to stop him by challenging his eligibility in the court. The odds against him apparently doubled even after he had secured APC ticket, as some elements ganged up to frustrate his bid, which also triggered litigation from main opposition parties, especially on the grounds of alleged drug issues, forgery and impropriety.

Having survived those trying moments in his bid to govern the country, his admirers describe him as a man with nine lives and indeed a lone runner. They are convinced that he has worked hard over the years, preparing ground for the veritable opportunity of taking a shot at the office of president of the largest Black Country in the world. A former Minister for Works, Prince Dayo Adeyeye, the arrowhead of one of the main pressure group that led the lobby for Tinubu, the South West Agenda for Asiwaju, said his emergence as president was the final destination of a political journey which began over four decades ago and that he could only up the ante once he mounts the saddle. “Tinubu will not lower the standard of good governance and delivery of democratic dividends, a trend synonymous with him throughout his eight years as governor of Lagos State between 1999 and 2007.” There is a semblance of such view in the opinion expressed by the Archbishop of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto, Matthew Hassan-Kukah on the journey of Tinubu in politics and his gradual rise to the presidency. Speaking during a live television programme recently, Hassan-Kukah remarked that said no President or Head of State in the history of Nigeria “ever came prepared for the job of the number one citizen of the country except the President-elect, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu who had been nursing and preparing for the task decades ago. “You can go all the way down in Nigeria, you’re not going to find one single person who has been President or Head of State in Nigeria that came prepared for the job. Only Asiwaju Tinubu is prepared, because he has been preparing himself way back since 1990 for this act of service as a president, so he knows what to do in making this country to be peaceful, prosperous and industrialized.

“Awolowo was also to perform very well as premier of Western Region then because he was prepared for the job. Awolowo started preparing for this job when he was studying in UK and, at same time studying how UK government was running perfectly well then so he could have a better understanding of how to run a government like that in his own country.”

NADECO years

His real political career began with a link with a political pressure group, Primerose, which comprised political associates of the late political icon, Major General Shehu Musa Ya’Adua in Lagos. The group was part of the nucleus of the Peoples Front (PF), the Shehu Musa YarAdua caucus of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), which paraded Atiku Abubakar, Baba Gana Kingibe, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, Abdullahi Aliyu Sumaila, Magaji Abdullahi, Dapo Sarumi and Yomi Edu. Tinubu eventually won the Lagos Central Senatorial District seat under the SDP and emerged as the Chairman Senate Committee on finance, banking and appropriation.

The annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential election won by the candidate of SDP, the late Chief MKO Abiola was catalytic in the chequered political career of Tinubu. He teamed up with like-minds to lead mass, well-coordinated resistance against the cancellation. As a main power broker in Lagos politics, which is itself considered as the nation’s political headquarters and heartbeat, Tinubu became pivotal in mobilizing human and material resources to galvanise and propel the mass movement that gave rise to the birth of the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) critical mass of the population opposing the military on the travesty of justice and subversion of due democratic process. Despite the stepping aside of the then military president, General Ibrahim Babangida from power when the heat became more unbearable, the choice of a lame duck Interim National Government as part of the plot to torpedo June 12 actualisation aggravated the imbroglio. But, the decision of the late General Sani Abacha, to sack the ING and assume power as head of state compounded the crisis as Abacha decided to unleashed state-sponsored terror on NADECO leaders and other pro-June 12 agitators. While some were killed in curious circumstances, others were maimed, just as other agitators were hounded into jail, NADECO chieftains, including Tinubu, disguised and passed through NADECO routes on self-exile in the United States and Europe.

The main symbol of the struggle, Abiola was arrested and thrown into incarceration. However, Tinubu and other June 12 agitators were not cowed by the antics of feisty Nigerian leader, who ironically had a plot to transmute to a civilian president. But the sudden death of Abacha threw spanner into the works, raising hope that Abiola could shortly be freed from three years of incarceration. Following the mysterious demise of Abiola in detention, the nation found itself in the throes of near anarchy before General Abdulsalam Abubakar became the substantive head of state with a promise to hand over power to civilians within nine months. Tinubu and a number of NADECO chieftains in exile were encouraged to return home and key into the political transition programme of the Abubakar regime. Tinubu became a face in the Alliance for Democracy (AD) which was formed by June 12 agitators and pro-democracy activists. The party, which despised those it called Abacha politicians, won virtually all the elective offices in the South-West, with Tinubu emerging as governor of Lagos State. He was the only one among the six AD governors that was able to retain his position following the electoral upset created by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2003 general election.

Lagos boy

Tinubu was unscathed when the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo decided to withhold the federal allocations to Lagos local government areas following the creation of 57 additional Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) to complement the existing 20 LGAs listed in the 1999 Constitution. Tinubu fought the battle in the courts up to the Supreme Court, which vindicated Tinubu at the end of the day. He is also credited to have embarked on judicial reforms that have made the state judiciary among the best in the country. Other major strides of his administration included seamless traffic management process evident in the activities of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA); rural electrification project that covered over 100 communities. The monthly Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of the state was just over N600 million at the time Tinubu became governor in 1999. He reorganized the Lagos Internal Revenue Service (LIRS), grew the IGR to more than N7 billion monthly. It was also under him that the Lekki Free Trade Zone became investors’ destination, with many top companies having their headquarters there, including the biggest consulate office of the United States, Lekki infrastructure company, Eko Atlantic. Today, the Lekki corridor is regarded as the fastest-growing real estate investment haven in Nigeria. Given the importance of security, Tinubu embarked on a lot of initiatives meant to guarantee the security of lives and property to further boost investment and enhance productivity.

Allegations

There was a report that in 2017, a company owned by President-elect Tinubu’s son, Seyi bought a US$11m London mansion formerly owned, then forfeited, by Aluko after he failed to keep up mortgage payments. At the time the house had been repossessed by Deutsche Bank, Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) was also seeking to seize the property having earlier said it was seeking to arrest Aluko for grand corruption. The news reports emphasise that they don’t imply that President-elect Tinubu has any link to the transactions over the forfeited mansion but they raise several questions about the political wisdom of his son’s association with Aluko’s house when it was being targeted by the state anti-corruption agency.

The Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, was the Chief of Staff to Tnubu as governor. The latter became his successor in 2027. He said none of all the allegations against Tinubu have been proven or backed with evidence. Featuring on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics recently, Fashola said there is no “sainthood” in governance and that the focus should be on performance and efficiency. According to the minister, “I think those issues have been ventilated sufficiently,” he said. “When Nigerians have decided, those issues don’t matter. That is what they have said by these votes. Every time, it gets more difficult, that is his path to success. There is no easy day for him. The more difficult it gets, you can be sure, and it is Asiwaju. I think now that all of these hurdles have been surmounted. Maybe there is a divine purpose. Maybe perhaps, this is where Nigeria begins to turn in the most positive ways forever. Governance is not about sainthood. It is about efficiency, performance, and delivery. You must understand that we should not be looking for saints. All of the allegations that were leveled against him have been either unproven or no evidence offered in support of them but they have run along for a while.”

Post-election promise

Can he replicate those strides at the national level? Are the dynamics not different to a certain degree? Why does he think and believe those encumbrances that worked against his predecessors are surmountable or no longer exist? While acknowledging some issues that characterized the last general election, Tinubu has promised to lead the renaissance that would herald a new Nigeria, where all the people will have a sense of belonging and team for nation building. He believes this is the only way to justify the confidence and trust given to him by the electorate on February 25. His words: “As I have stated previously, the time for politicking is gone. This is time for nation building, a task beyond one individual or a section of the society. We need every hand, from wherever it may come, to be on deck. I am ready to work with you all as your President. I will be a worthy partner you can trust and rely on as we all bond together, in unity of purpose and renewed hope for, the betterment of our blessed country and beloved people.”

Task ahead

No doubt, he has a great task of redirecting the country in the next four years. Many groups and individuals have tried to provide a kind of must-do-list for the incoming administration. Way back in 2018, one of the mass based ethnic nationality groups, the Yoruba Unity Forum (YUF) had lamented the consistent decay in the system, especially in politics. It noted: “What is called democratic politics has taken a weird, chaotic and destructive shape in Nigeria, a monstrous concoction peculiar to Nigeria and largely unknown to most of the rest of the world. Politics has become the place to achieve financial success in Nigeria, to get the easiest chance to share bountifully from Nigeria’s culture of corruption. Consequently, it is difficult for the typical member of the Nigerian elite to stay away from politics.” As a key player in the political arena, will Tinubu go the full hog?

Similarly, former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Professor Bolaji Akinyemi has consistently decried the decadence in the nation’s political culture and proffered how it could wriggle out of the self-inflicted quagmire. He said: “When you look back at our history, we will not be far wrong in concluding that the people have paid a terrible price for Nigeria. The political class therefore, owes the people the Lincolnian concept of participatory democracy. The bonding exercise between the people and democracy should not be an afterthought.” A famous historian, Professor Yusufu Bala Usman, in an academic work, also emphasized the imperative of the leaders bonding with the people to guarantee national stability and progress. According to him, the core issues behind instability is the process of the enrichment of the leaders and the impoverishment of the majority of the people, at all levels, and the consequent insecurity and imbalances this process generates, again, at all levels.” Therefore, the avalanche of allegations raised by certain individuals and groups with vested interest in Lagos politics against the leadership style of the former governor. Some of the issues have also formed the grounds for the litany of litigation either challenging his eligibility with the out making any headway by the traducers.

Booby traps

He is akin to that cat with nine lives that is able to fend off all vicious attacks. He has been able to overcome and survive every plot by political opponents to overcome his political machinery before, during and after major elections. He does not mince words when he engages those perceived adversaries in verbal exchanges over their antics to rubbish his political structures and dominance. Apart from exuding confidence of winning the February 25 presidential election, Tinubu had publicly challenged the governor of Central bank and the clique behind the Naira redesign at the dawn of the election with grueling hardship caused by the exercise.

He is one politician that seems to have friends across board. He has, at one time or the other, formed political alliances with them, worked together to form parties, been co-conveners of pressure groups canvassing for a radical change and reform in the political circle or shared similar aspirations in the quest to form government at the centre. Some of such names include former president, Dr Goodluck Jonathan; former vice-president, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, former president of the Senate, Dr Bukola Saraki; former presidential candidate, Senator Musa Kwankwaso, just to name a few of such political stalwarts. However, he has maintained a single political union or family in the face of stiff opposition and challenge thrown at him by some powerful forces with the political establishment at the central before the APC formed government in 2015. His ability to sustain the political structure has translated into the current state of Lagos economy, infrastructure, security, transportation, industrialization,

Kingmaker

As kingmaker, he has a reversal role having emerged as the king indeed. He has reaped in abundance, the benefits of having built bridges across many barriers within and outside the political space. In the course of doing that, he has made Lagos a model of good governance and leadership, identified many progressive minds, nurtured them to occupy major elective public and appointive offices at the state and federal levels. Most of them constitute part of his army of foot soldiers consolidating the political dynasty of his era.

Self-made man

First president that seem to have prepared, set his eye on the ball and now has his laid his hands on the plough. He had assisted many others to achieve their ultimate political ambitions as individual politicians. He had assisted at least two former presidents to achieve their aim to be the number one citizen of the country. After all, there had been precedents of unwilling presidents, who were dragged out of their closet to be elected first citizens, or were imposed as heads of state or in an interim capacity. Many senators, governors, members of the National Assembly claim their owe their success at the election to become what they became.

Tinubu has never expressed utter frustration over the predicament of the country. He often sees a ray of hope at the end of the tunnel. Regardless of the shenanigan of a few, who he perceives as having created the condition that led to “missed step and opportunity in the past,” he has a word of caution for his fellow countrymen: “We cannot afford to give up on our country. Every country has its own historical challenges. But somewhat, real patriots rally and make the needed sacrifices to confront and defeat evil to make life better for the coming generation. Everyone today hails Barrack Obama as the first black president of the United States of America. But, they easily forget that it took Abraham Lincoln to put his foot down on slavery, abolish it even if, in the end, he lost his life. But, America is better off for all today.”

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