Former President Olusegun Obasanjo
Following the theatrical exit of former President Olusegun Obasanjo from the Peoples Democratic Party, TOBI AWORINDE examines the implications for the party
Last Monday, the nation witnessed how former President Olusegun Obasanjo, in a dramatic fashion, dumped the Peoples Democratic Party, which brought him to power in 1999.
Obasanjo, while hosting officials and members of the party from Ward 11, Abeokuta North Ogun State at his Hilltop residence, officially cut ties with the party by having his membership card torn to bits.
Last Monday, the nation witnessed how former President Olusegun Obasanjo, in a dramatic fashion, dumped the Peoples Democratic Party, which brought him to power in 1999.
Obasanjo, while hosting officials and members of the party from Ward 11, Abeokuta North Ogun State at his Hilltop residence, officially cut ties with the party by having his membership card torn to bits.
The road leading to the ex-President’s renouncement of the ruling party has been all but smooth. Political observers point to a letter by Obasanjo dated December 2, 2013, which severely criticised President Goodluck Jonathan’s government, as the genesis of his recent exit.
In the 18-page letter, Obasanjo accused the President of, among other things, not honouring his words and taking actions calculated at destroying Nigeria.
Entitled ‘Before it is too late’, the former President’s letter accused Jonathan of pursuing “selfish personal and political interests” based on advice from his “self-centred aides.” He also alleged that the President had failed to deliver on his promises to Nigerians to curb insurgency and corruption in the country.
“Nigeria is bleeding and the haemorrhage must be stopped,” Obasanjo fumed, adding that Jonathan had “betrayed God and Nigerians” who voted him into power.
Obasanjo further alleged that Jonathan had not only placed more than 1,000 high-profile Nigerians on a watch list, but that he had succeeded in destroying the PDP and polarising the country along regional and religious lines. The one-time military ruler also accused President Jonathan of being involved in anti-party activities.
The former head of state, in his letter, claimed that Jonathan reneged on his promise that he would not seek a second term and that his ambition had worsened the crises in the PDP.
“Up till two months ago, Mr. President, you told me that you have not told anybody that you would contest in 2015. I quickly pointed out to you that the signs and the measures on the ground do not tally with your statement. You said the same to one other person who shared his observation with me. And only a fool would believe that statement you made to me judging by what is going on. I must say it is not ingenious. You may wish to pursue a more credible and more honourable path,” the ex-President had said.
He added that before the 2011 general elections, the President told some governors and the PDP stakeholders that he would not seek re-election.
On November 11, 2014, Obasanjo was conspicuously absent at Jonathan’s declaration to contest the 2015 presidential election in Abuja. His absence was noticed because in 2011, the President had received an unequivocal endorsement from the former party chieftain.
Two weeks after, during an encounter with book writers in Abeokuta, Ogun State, to mark the popular Ake Festival, Obasanjo described Jonathan’s performance as below average.
Asked to assess the current administration, the ex-President said, “His (Jonathan’s) performance is below average. I will not accept responsibility for his performance. There is nobody that gets to such a position without being helped.”
A few days after, Jonathan responded by describing himself as the best leader produced by Nigeria. The President said no other leader since the country gained independence in 1960 had done better for the country.
A statement by his Special Assistant on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe, said, “Our attention has been drawn to comments made by a former President of this country, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, regarding the performance of the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan.
“We aver that Obasanjo’s comments are untrue, misleading and clearly do not tally with the facts on the ground. We therefore wish to assert without equivocation that in terms of performance and achievements, no administration since 1960 when Nigeria gained independence from Britain, has done as much as that of President Jonathan.”
Okupe, who once worked with the former President while in office, added that every discerning and unbiased Nigerian would attest to Jonathan’s feats “as the evidence stares all of us in the face.”
Later in November 2014, the Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Ayo Fayose, challenged Obasanjo, strongly criticising the former commander-in-chief for his assessment of Jonathan’s administration on corruption and insecurity.
Fayose, at a summit in Ile-Ife, Osun State said Obasanjo had no moral justification to criticise Jonathan’s administration because the former President’s government was “far more corrupt.”
The governor said, “We need to hit the nail on the head. We are dealing with monsters and we need to treat them as monsters.”
Fayose then beseeched Jonathan not to lobby Obasanjo for support: “Even if you give your blood, your being, your strength and your life to Obasanjo, he would not support you. We know him more than you know him. He will not want a man with independent mind. Mr. President, you have refused to toe the path of unconstitutionality. You have refused to level Borno and other states like he levelled Odi in Bayelsa State.
“You are taking your time to respect human rights by not committing crime against humanity; he won’t like that. Your Excellency, the more you try to curry Obasanjo’s favour, the more he would continue to disparage you. If you continue to curry his favour, we are not going to curry him. He doesn’t like people that give him respect. Your Excellency, your second term has been concluded in heaven. Fear not!”
The intra-party feud continued into December 2014, with Fayose calling on the PDP to immediately suspend the former President for alleged anti-party activities, saying, “Nobody should be treated as being bigger than the party.”
He urged the PDP to raise a panel to probe Obasanjo’s anti-party activities for castigating Jonathan and to discourage other members from emulating him.
According to the governor, visiting the former president to plead with him to rescind his decision not to participate in the party’s activities was capable of encouraging other party members to openly disrespect the office of the President.
A few days later, while launching his autobiography, My Watch, Obasanjo explained that he resorted to writing open letters to Jonathan after finding that the avenues he sought to ventilate his observations and positions with Jonathan were frustrated.
He said, “I opened communication channels with my predecessors. You will see a few letters I put in the book, how I described my frustrations.”
Obasanjo stated that he had no regrets helping Yar’Adua and, later, Jonathan to become presidents. The former President also highlighted his infallibility and advised that people should learn from his actions.
The tension between the PDP heavyweights seemed to wind down, early this year, when Obasanjo made a surprise appearance at the wedding of Jonathan’s daughter. Pundits even expressed hopes that their sour relationship was over.
This emotion was further heightened when, a few days after, Obasanjo hosted President Jonathan at his Abeokuta residence. The meeting was reportedly centred on Jonathan’s re-election bid and the need to resolve their disagreement.
Later in January, a former Governor of Ogun State, Gbenga Daniel, pleaded with Obasanjo not to abandon Jonathan ahead of the presidential election.
Daniel, while addressing members of the PDP at the inauguration of a campaign group for Jonathan in Lagos, said Obasanjo gave the people of the South-South region a sense of belonging by ensuring that Jonathan emerged as vice-president in 2007 and as President in 2011. He, therefore, begged Obasanjo to finish what he started by ensuring that Jonathan completes his second term as President.
The same day, the Presidency similarly noted that Jonathan was ready at all times to appease former President Obasanjo, echoing the latter’s views that candidates in the forthcoming general elections should be judged by their performance.
Speaking in Jonathan’s stead, Okupe said, “Obasanjo is right. I want Nigerians to vote for the next President based on performance. (The presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Gen. Muhammadu) Buhari should tell us his performance and Goodluck Jonathan should tell us his performance. Obasanjo is correct; there is nothing wrong with that. That is very statesman-like of him.”
But things turned sour yet again, penultimate Saturday, when Obasanjo told journalists at his Hilltop residence that Jonathan had a grand plan to scuttle the coming elections for fear that Buhari, the PDP’s biggest opponent, would be elected and have him incarcerated.
Obasanjo said, “I believe the President’s fear is particularly motivated by whom he sees as his likely successor, that is, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari. I believe people would have been telling him that Buhari is a hard man; he will fight corruption and he (Jonathan) may end up in jail, if not in the grave. I think people would have told him that sort of thing and he is not the only one afraid of Buhari.”
The Presidency, through its Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, replied: “We find the false claims and allegations reportedly made against President Goodluck Jonathan by Chief Olusegun Obasanjo on Saturday in Abeokuta very odious and repugnant.
“As we have had cause to say before, it is most regrettable indeed that a man like Chief Obasanjo, who should know better, chooses to repeatedly, wantonly, and maliciously impugn the integrity of a sitting President of his country for the primary purpose of self-promotion.”
What has been described as a highly anticipated climax to the drawn-out dispute eventually came with Obasanjo’s exit from the party on Monday.
The ex-President claimed that Jonathan’s administration had almost run the country aground, stating, “They said they want to expel me from the PDP, although I have not been told that; I have my ears to the ground. We have been trying to run away from a mad man but he pleads we wait for him at the other side of the river.
“I have told you before that I became President on the platform of the PDP and once I leave the party, I will not join any other party. I will only be a Nigerian; I am ready to work with anybody regardless of political affiliation. Why would some people say they want to send me away? They don’t need to bother themselves. Here’s your membership card.”
Obasanjo then handed his card over to the leader of the Ward 11 delegation, the chairman of the ward, Mr. Usman Oladunjoye, who tore it up.
Handing the pieces of the card to his visitors, Obasanjo said, “From today on, in the presence of all of us and with your support, I am not going to be in any political party in Nigeria. I am no more a politician but a statesman, both internally and externally.
“This Nigeria belongs to all of us and we must not allow anybody to destroy it. Wherever they come from, if they destroy it, it becomes a burden to us, our children and the incoming generation. The question asked is: Which party am I? I belong to the group that believes that Nigeria must not be destroyed.”
About two hours after the ex-President said he had dumped the party, the Ogun State PDP executive council, headed by Mr. Adebayo Dayo, announced the latter’s expulsion over what it termed his “series of unabated anti-party activities.”
Similarly, a party member in Gombe State, Mr. Abdullahi Muhammad, who is also the Senior Special Assistant on Security to the Governor of Gombe State, Ibrahim Dankwambo, followed suit by similarly tearing up his membership card.
The erstwhile PDP stalwart said he decided to renounce his affiliation with the ruling party because he was fed up with the way it was running the affairs of the country. He further stated that only a few of the nation’s population benefitted from the resources.
The Head of Department, Political Science, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Prof. Jonah Onuoha, told SUNDAY PUNCH that there could be more of such acts of defiance by PDP members.
He said, “There is no point arguing the fact that Obasanjo is a big asset to Nigeria and the PDP. He is a big fish and he is widely recognised internationally and nationally. His exit from the PDP is a big blow to the party, particularly the way he left. He didn’t leave like other people who want to leave the party. Instead, he tore his party membership card in public. Leaving the PDP is a big minus in my opinion.
“What he did is a signal to his supporters all over the country that he is no longer with the party. Besides, Obasanjo has been president and has promoted a number of people and mentored others. A lot of people idolise and follow him. Very soon, I expect his followers not just to leave the PDP, but to tear their membership cards.
“With the general message now associated with tearing membership cards, I would not be surprised if in the next few weeks or in the next month, we get a reaction from supporters who will also leave en masse and tear their cards to impress him.”
According to the political expert, the PDP is a big party that has dominated the country for 16 years. He, however, noted that whatever has a beginning must have an end.
Onuoha stated that the PDP could only surmount its challenges by adopting a new strategy to co-opt new people in order for it to remain relevant. Otherwise, he adds, the PDP may never again come close to controlling the polity.
“It appears the end of the PDP has come. If bigwigs are leaving the party in droves, it shows that people are tired for the party,” he said.
Similarly, the Executive Director Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, Adetokunbo Mumuni, expressed certainty that the PDP had been dealt a severe blow with Obasanjo calling it quits with the party.
He said, “In my opinion, Obasanjo making an open declaration that he is no longer with the PDP would negatively affect the PDP as a party. Obasanjo was the first elected president under the umbrella known as the PDP.
“Having been the first and major beneficiary of the party, that is the reason why I say he is giving them a major disadvantage. For such a person to now leave this group, it speaks volumes and negatively of the PDP.”
The Head of Department, Political Science, University of Lagos, Prof. Solomon Akinboye, however, expressed doubt that the ex-President’s departure from the party would have much of an effect on the party.
According to him, Obasanjo was simply a card-carrying member of the party and had not played an active role in the party since stepping down as the BoT chairman in 2013.
“He (Obasanjo) had already stopped participating in party activities, so, I don’t see how his exit from the party can affect the party significantly,” Akinboye said.
BY TOBI AWORINDE
