Candidate Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the APC, during the 2023 general election, knew that without the help of then Rivers State Governor – Ezenwo Nyesom Wike, he [Tinubu] wouldn’t have been able to “cross the Sea” of becoming the elected president of the Federal Republic Nigeria.
He appreciated the abracadabra of the Hippopotamus from the Sea, in the way he [the Sea Deity] swingled Rivers State people’s votes in-between two main political parties.
On one hand, Wike “gifted” the People Democratic Party [PDP] – his own confessed political party, all the votes that decided the fate of those that contested to the Rivers State House of Assembly, Federal House of Representative, and the Nigerian Senate.
While in the other hand, in the same election, every vote from Rivers State was given to a presidential candidate of another political party – the All Progressives Congress [APC], a rival political party to Wike’s own political party [PDP].
Only a Hippopotamus from the Sea that could have performed miracle of such diabolical magnitude and could have only achieved this through the instrumentality of wholistic rigging.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu recognised this uncommon feat, and would have vowed, in the totality of his consciousness, to elongate and hold on to this worthwhile synergy. To President Tinubu – himself a great master in the Chessboard of political manoeuvring, Nyesom Wike must be an ally that is worthy of long-time fraternal agreement’s sealing.
It doesn’t matter which camp one belongs, in the Nigerian political marketplace, the reality of appreciating Wike in the application of his trade would always remain sacrosanct.
Who would not appreciate the fact that Wike is notoriously bold – sometimes across the border of sanity, in all things he set out to do?
Who would not appreciate the fact that the man – Wike, has full capacity of prosecuting, to the fullest, his heart desires, even if most of those desires have negative implication on people and society?
Who would not admit, in view of the man’s fullest perfidious movements, at most times, that he has no fear for men, and in fact, his fear [permit me to add respect] for God stands at Zero-point?
Or who will not admit to the fact that this man does not believe in tomorrow’s accountability?
More still, how many people can attest to this man’s character that he believes in giving account of his life’s trajectory to his Creator – beyond the rhetorics of shouting and calling the name of Jesus when there is a problem with aeroplane on a turbulent flight?
Of course, there shall never be wisdom on the part of any individual, denying one salient character of this man, which is, his dedication to projects’ accomplishment. He is an accomplished achiever in that line. It doesn’t matter the cost with which he executes the project or contract, he does the work efficiently – and timely too.
It must be for these reasons, of being an achiever that President Tinubu appointed him as Minister of the Federal Capital Development Authority. And since arriving the place, he has performed, both lawfully and lawlessly too. He has grabbed, and still grabbing, even in his way of distributing patronage – sometime overbearingly.
He has acquired and reacquired. He has stepped rules and regulations down in some places, while in other places, the man has conveniently turned all governing laws upside down.
In all these, his employer has never shown any sign of being unhappy with him. Instead, the President, who draws his powers of administering the Federal Capital Development Authority directly from the Nigerian Senate, and donates part thereof to his Minister of the FCT, is yet to show rage about how his own appointed minister abuses his [the President] powers, in functionality.
Why will the President remain so excitingly silent in the face of these numerous malfeasances? President Tinubu’s amusing silence on Wike should be seen as part of the man’s political acumen – his shrewdness in political calculations. No wonder somebody, recently, made a statement, saying that “Bola Tinubu would always score A1 in political examination, but would score F9 in governance”.
Bola Tinubu’s eyes are on the ball and the goal post of 2027. The big return match of continuing stay in the Aso Rock Presidential Villa is too important to gamble with. And Nyesom Wike is a major dominant factor in guarantying that return in 2027, all things being equal. Wike therefore must be pampered even with obvious excesses.
If you were in the position of Mr President, you wouldn’t have done anything to the contrary. Since President Tinubu, a master strategist himself, dare not check the FCT Minister, and call him to order now, because if he tries that – calling Wike to order, he would have rocked the boat taking him to a likely safe anchorage in 2027.
The president must wait, in time bidding, till after tomorrow’s achievement, before taking the decision of what to do with the man, because the man – Wike, stands the most likely position of delivering him – the president, into the comfort zone of second tenure, both in Rivers State and the Federal Capital Development Authority of Abuja, in 2027.
But here lies the danger.
For now, while Nyesom Wike carries out his bully system of political manoeuvring, abusing and reducing dignities of almost every politician, across the country, to nothing, the truth is that he is accumulating enemies. The accumulation of these enemies cut across frontiers, if the truth must be told. These acquired enemies cut across tribes and political parties.
It stands to reason therefore that these disgraced and discarded individuals would be retreating into their individual cocoons, with total lamentations on their lives. They must be thinking seriously of the area through which they can deliver an everlasting terrible blow on Wike. They must have devised one trap or another for Wike, and don’t forget that Wike – just like every other human being, is vulnerable.
These group of enemies may come together to embark on revenge mission against their target – who in this case is Wike, or they may not come together for action. But where they are not even coming together, that itself may not be diminishing the bitterness of each one of them that the current Abuja landlord has destroyed, or maybe destroying. That day of revenging shall surely come, in whatever form of diversity.
If such happens, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu might be carrying vicarious liability of his Minister, and this shall come in many ways.
Surely, Nyesom Wike has thrown too many stones and dangerous jabs on the Nigerian people [mostly on politicians], and he is still throwing. And by the law of Karma – that beautiful Lady deity that distributes and redistributes NEMESIS, whatever one sows, same shall the Sower reaps, all things being equal.
Why the nemesis coming back to the quarters under discussion would be great – again, all things being equal, is that those that are crying from Wike’s today deadly blows, are most likely to do everything in demystifying the man, and the most likely place to wait for him shall be the place of General Election.
Anyway, this author can never underate the Jagaban of Nigerian politics. He has a way of getting the votes, because he is the master of the game. Neither would I attempt thinking that Ezenwo Nyesom Wike is finished, or might be finishing before 2027, but because there is a limit to every elasticity, the steam could just evaporate – maybe.
However, the fury of any bruised, even over bruised people, engages with the strength of Tsunami at the place of retaliation.
This is where The Guru has his fear.
Godwin Etakibuebu; a Veteran Journalist, wrote from Lagos.
Contact:
Website: www.godwintheguru.org
You Tube Channel: Godwin The Guru
Twitter: @godwin_buebu
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/godwintheguru
Facebook: Godwin Etakibuebu
Facebook Page: Veteran Column
Telegram: @friendsoftheguru
WhatsApp: @friendsoftheguru
Phone: +234-906-887-0014 – short messages only.
You can also listen to this author [Godwin Etakibuebu] every Monday; 9:30 – 11am on Lagos Talk 91.3 FM live, in a weekly review of topical issues, presented by The News Guru [TNG].