Nigeria: Who is Playing Politics With the President’s
Health?
30 December 2009By Abdulazeez Abdullahi
Those who describe the calls on President Umaru Musa
Yar’adua to resign as a result of his ill health as
unpatriotic and assert that those who do so are
playing politics with the serious matter of the
president’s health miss the point. In my opinion, it
is those who insist that the president continues to
hold the reigns of power despite his apparent failure
to do so effectively who are actually guilty of
playing politics with the matter. I fail to see any
other way to explain the great length members of the
Federal Executive Council had to go to convince
Nigerians that all is well in the country and telling
us that the Vice President, Goodluck Jonathan is in
charge and capable of running the affairs of the
country other than politics at play. Some may describe
the ministers’ actions as patriotic – and I concede it
may be - .but I am swayed by the argument to the
contrary. Despite the seeming outward display of
patriotism, the imprint of politics is still glaring.
Politics and nothing else has certainly taken center
stage when, in their show of support for the vice
president, the ministers – including the secretary to
the government of the federation fail to see the
glaring violation of the constitution by the
Presidency. Section 145 of the 1999 constitution
states that: “Whenever the President transmits to the
President of Senate and the Speaker of the House of
Representatives a written declaration that he is
proceeding on vacation or that he is unable to
discharge the function of his office, until he
transmits to them a written declaration to the
contrary, such function shall be discharged by the
Vice President as Acting President”. What this section
means in clear and unambiguous terms is that for
Goodluck Jonathan to constitutionally take full
command of the affairs of state, a letter must be
written to the leadership of the National Assembly.
Because Nigerians have not been told this has been
done, we will correctly assume it has not. The only
correspondence that perhaps Nigerians were officially
informed of was that in relation to the botched 2010
Budget presentation before the president’s hurried
departure to Saudi Arabia. The group of 55 eminent
Nigerians who earlier last week took the courageous
move of asking the president to resign have asked the
federal executive council to prevail on the president
to send that letter to the National Assembly, whether
the council will put politics aside and take this
advice to uphold the tenet of the constitution is left
top be seen.
Politics is indeed at play when the Federal Executive
Council, the ruling Peoples Democratic Party and other
apologists of the present administration equate calls
for the president’s resignation with wishing him dead.
After giving reasons why the party felt compelled to
offer special prayers for the president during its
National Working Committee meeting last week, Vincent
Ogbulafor, the party’s chairman said: “We should form
the habit of praying for our leaders and praying for
their good health so that they can discharge their
duties. So we feel very sad for the Nigerians who are
calling for the resignation of the president. I advise
them to refrain from it. When it was announced that
Zik was dead, those who announced Zik’s death
eventually died before him”. Chief Tony Anenih, also
joined the chorus in a statement issued last week
condemning what he called “insensitivity, derision and
ungodly wishes” by those calling for the president to
throw in the towel.
As I see it, those calling on the president to resign
are actually demonstrating a patriotic stand on the
matter. Their point being that by doing so he would
have sufficient time to attend to his health without
the distraction of presiding over a complex nation
like Nigeria with its myriad problems. Indeed the
nation’s problems are sufficient to even make a fully
fit person begin to lose his well being let alone
someone like our president who we all knew right from
the days of the campaigns in 2007 that all was not
well with him. President Yar’adua has certainly done
his bit to move this country forward and he will
without doubt be remembered for it. After all it is to
the eternal credit of his administration that the
militant crisis in the Niger Delta has been
successfully brought to an end – for now - through the
amnesty programme. This, he was able to do just two
years into his tenure whereas his predecessor,
Olusegun Obasanjo failed woefully in arresting the
situation for the eight years he was in power.
While I see absolutely nothing wrong in praying for
the president who truly needs the prayer of all his
well wishers to overcome his affliction, I am worried
by the way those calling for the prayers are making a
show of it. As a rule, I am skeptical about any
endeavor spearheaded by politicians because in most
cases, their intentions are underpinned by political
motivation. The media is awash with reports of all
manner of associations, political groups and notable
politicians calling for prayers for the president to
get well. The question I ask myself is: do those who
genuinely wish the president well need to announce to
the world that they are praying for him? Religious
scholars have admonished that prayers held in the
privacy of one’s heart have the greater tendency of
being answered by the Almighty. I expected the PDP to
have held its prayer session for the president behind
closed doors and away from the glare of cameras and
microphones rather than use the opportunity to score a
political point. That was exactly what they succeeded
in doing as far as I am concerned.
The president’s condition is indeed critical and our
hearts are with him and his family in these trying
times. This however should not distract from the fact
that the issue is not about the individual but about a
nation of over 140 million that needs the strong
presence of a leader who not only inspires but also
provides the strategic direction that will move the
country out of the doldrums. It will take a long while
for President Yar’adua to achieve these goals even
when he becomes fully fit again which we hope he does
soonest.
©
EsinIslam.Com
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