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OBASANJO AND AFENIFERE: AN UNHOLY ALLIANCE

by

Enefa Douglas

MR. Nduka Obaigbena, the Editor- in -Chief of This Day newspaper was the other day lamenting the gross ineptitude of President Olusegun Obasanjo and was wondering what legacy his crass incompetence will leave to after he is through with us. That Mr. Obaigbena himself had to put pen to paper (This Day Newspaper of Monday, December 18, 2000) regarding the Nigerian situation under President Obasanjo is a testimony to the fact that even the big boys, and indeed all sensible Nigerians, have to contribute in saving the sinking ship that is Nigeria. But in doing that we should be sincere in our analysis and not to sell a dummy to the unsuspecting public.

In his analysis, it is either Mr. Obaigbena is part of the grand conspiracy (which I doubt as he does not belong) or he is yet to appreciate what is at hand. I am surprised. To quote him, "it's time to think". And I want to believe that he must have given a thought to the unfolding scenario in Nigeria. The issue is that President Obasanjo is a performer who has refused to perform for primitive reasons.

Prior to 29th May 1999, Obasanjo was the hope of Nigeria. Here was a man who could do it; I need not go into the oft-repeated qualities of Mr. President who has left us sorely disappointed now. But the moment he got the Presidency, he allowed himself to be hijacked by Afenifere, the Yoruba tribal irredentists who see themselves as the best of mankind. Consequently, Obasanjo, an international figure and a statesman, diminished himself by subordinating the National interest to that of the Afenifere. That is the tragedy of the Nigerian situation.

All the confusion in the polity like the removal of the Leaders of the National Assembly is to divert attention from the surreptitious execution of the Afenifere agenda. The Oputa panel has added yet another fillip after Nigerians began to see through the vendetta and duplicity in the Abacha-Almustapha-Bamaiyi saga. Another distraction is that, while Obasanjo is canvassing for a united Nigeria, Afenifere is agitating for a sovereign national conference. No. These people are not that unintelligent not to know that their zone represents just one tribe out of over 250 ethnic nationalities for them to achieve anything meaningful at the conference. The script is to achieve another diversion of our attention. They will yet come with other distractions.

Hmnn. Nigeria has never had an unpatriotic leader like Obasanjo who has metamorphosed into an ethnic champion. Added to this, Afenifere under Obasanjo is settling the Yorubas who have lost out materially during the Abacha regime. That is why we have massive corruption via anticipatory approvals, etc, to source for funds. Indeed, in the matter of the construction of the National Stadium at Abuja, even the World Bank complained of over- invoicing. But in their shameless arrogance, the Afenifere-led government did not even deem it appropriate to debunk the claims of the world body. Instead, the Afenifere leader, Obasanjo, is busy denigrating Nigeria all over the world asking for debt forgiveness.

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Also, look at the 2001 budget in which the southwest got a very disproportionate share of the national cake where they bake none. In all these, the idea is to let Yorubas get as much as possible before the eventual break-up Afenifere is engineering. What goes to the Niger Delta where the national cake comes from? Afenifere has held up the implementation of the Niger Delta Commission bill just because an Obasanjo lackey must be the Chairman of the board. And to think Ugochukwu doesn't even come from an oil producing area!

The quest for resource control is becoming more imperative by the day and the Kaiama Declaration must be actualized! Really, "it is time to think". Foreign exchange is also being accumulated for a smooth take-off of Odu'a republic via NNPC, which has been hijacked by the Obasanjo family and their cronies. Look at the desperate bid of the Executive branch to stop the oversight functions of the House of Representatives as it affects the NNPC. They had to blackmail Hon. Nwuche (the Deputy Speaker) by digging up a six year old case involving his father's Company, Klifco, which had nothing to do with the matter at stake. Even after Chief Clifford Nwuche had won the arbitration regarding the case they are still bothering the old man, threatening to ruin him financially and send him to an early grave. Meanwhile, most other Hon. Members had their lives threatened. Many were compromised to destabilize the leadership of the House for their principled stand against Afenifere dictatorship.

What is the matter with ? All these Afenifere insolence is about making an issue of 2003 elections; if Obasanjo doesn't get a second term they will opt out of Nigeria.

Even if he gets that, like the professional blackmailers and agitators that they are, the Yorubas will still agitate to opt out of Nigeria at the expiration of his 2nd term. They have made up their mind to opt out of Nigeria. We have a war situation at hand and they are working towards it while Nigeria is asleep. To wit, things are not working with the Obasanjo presidency that was foisted on Nigeria by the arrogant, selfish and rapacious Northern oligarchy, with the shameless collaboration of a defeated, docile and = impotent East. They have belittled the man and didn't realize that they have turned him in to an unforgiving monster who didn't believe that vengeance was the Lord's; don't mind his pretences to being born-again.

Unfortunately, apart from dealing with the entire North and thoroughly marginalizing the East which he hates with a rabid passion, he is also taking vengeance on other Nigerians. That is why we have the Nigerian scene as captured by Mr. Obaigbena's lamentation. What is happening is that Obasanjo has contemptuously jettisoned the mandate of Nigerians freely given to him and is working assiduously towards the successful take off of Odu'a Republic, which is the ultimate objective of the Afenifere goons. The unfolding scenario is an affirmation of the thesis of (the Afenifere injustice minister) early in the life of this administration, that President Obasanjo was implementing Afenifere agenda. It was a divinely inspired slip which is just dawning on us.

The Afenifere under the disguised leadership of Obasanjo has a firm and total control of the security apparatus of the Nation. The experience of the North with OPC, the Afenifere-led Judiciary and Police in the recent massacre of thousands of Northerners in should make other Nigerians shudder as the point has been made that the yorubas can do anything and get away with it.

The carnage occurred after the Afenifere leader gave a fake shoot-at-sight order on the OPC. Now, such audacity has extended to Mrs. Uche Azikiwe who was humiliated by the security details of the wife of the Afenifere leader at Awka in Anambra State. As if that was not enough, the Afenifere's unbridled act of brigandage was visited on nearby Okigwe in Imo State; they sent in armed troops to fish out Barrister Ralph Uwazuruike, the Biafra protagonist.

They left in their trail several dead bodies and a bruised citizenry whose only crime was to have

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come from the same place with the respected Barrister. Meanwhile they could not fish out carpenter Ganiyu Adams of the OPC who they declared wanted for over a year now. While they could also send their troops to rape our women in Choba and level Odi because of the miserly lives of their policemen, the OPC in Lagos could get away with the murder of innocent traders at mile 12, Ijaws at Ajegunle, Igbos at Idumota, Agboju and Alaba, and kill policemen with impunity. They even threw a dead DPO they killed into the lagoon for effect! But the heavens did not fall!

I don't know what our lame ducks in the National Assembly are doing about this security imbalance that is a national security threat. They appear contended with their furniture allowances and other largesse and will think of nothing about rampaging tribalists bent on making others second class citizens and refugees in their own Country. As the grand design unfolds they will find out too late that the Afenifere devils will not spare them.

What will those who hold the unity of Nigeria sacrosanct do? Resist Afenifere of course. But Afenifere is prepared. Dupe Adelaja, the daughter of the de-facto leader of Afenifere, Pa Abraham Adesanya, has emptied all armouries in the North, East and South-south; they have learnt from the mistakes of Biafra in 1966. Arms and ammunitions have been moved to Lagos and Ibadan. By the time the patriotic Nigerian Military want to stop the partition of Nigeria ala Afenifere, they will have a serious handicap. Also it is not a coincidence that Yoruba officers head virtually all the command positions in the Nigerian army including the Directorate of Military Intelligence (DMI); the Inspector General of Police and 3 AIGs are Yorubas; the Ministers of Police Affairs, Internal Affairs and that of Justice are Yorubas; the Director of the State Security Services (SSS) is also Yoruba. How then can the Afenifere secessionists be checkmated?

Added to this, American mercenaries have been stationed in some Northern cities and there is massive deployment of troops to the Niger Delta area. So, what can anybody do? Nobody is losing any sleep over the break away of Afenifere. But the issue is that no such thing had ever happened peacefully anywhere in the world. It is so painful that Obasanjo who we all thought could lead us to the Promised Land has, yet again, joined the list of the disappointments ordinary Nigerians have to contend with just because we were cursed to be Nigerians.

But, mercifully, Obasanjo had cursed himself too before God in the context of his failure to deliver; Obasanjo, it was, who asked God to remove him from the job if he did not deliver. He surely will with ignominy. We still remember Abacha who invoked Allah to sort out whatever that was the problems with Nigeria; he was sorted out and is there giving account of his stewardship. Oluwa is still in Nigeria and Obasanjo should watch it. With all his pretensions to being born again, I don't believe Obasanjo realizes he will one day stand before God to give account of his stewardship or lack of it.

His tribe is his god above his God if he believes in any.

Enefa Douglas wrote in from Surulere, Lagos

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