Nigeria And The Precariousness Of The Pendulum Of Power

Nigeria And The Precariousness Of The Pendulum Of Power

By Bala Ibrahim

Life comes with a lot of consolations, especially to those who believe in the saying that, no condition is permanent, because, all situations in life are temporary, whether good or bad. With resilience, difficult times would pass, while those who chose to become arrogant or complacent when the going is good, should be reminded about the non permanence of positions. Things are always susceptible to change, because, change is inevitable. And here, I want to talk about the ease with which positions of power change in Nigeria, with special bias to the situation of the office of the minister of Defence.

Until yesterday, Monday 1st November, His Excellency, Badaru Abubakar, was the one calling the shots in the office of Nigeria’s minister of Defence. By evening of that day, news filtered in that he had submitted his resignation letter to the President, and the resignation was received by the President with thanks. The implication is that, effective from that minute, his position as minister of Defence, in the Federal Republic of Nigeria, has expired. The pendulum of power has swong in the other direction. And in Nigeria, such swings are regular because of the precariousness of the pendulum of power.

Nature has been very kind to H.E Badaru Abubakar, because, long before his sojourn into politics, where he served twice as the elected Governor of his rural state, Jigawa state, Badaru had gone into business and excelled. He can easily be counted among those whose trajectory in life has been positively upward, and in that journey, he touched the lives of many, particularly his peers, positively. The critics may disagree, but that is life, where, like the pendulum of power, people’s perspective always differ.

There are those who would say bad of you, no matter what you do. Another group of people would say good of you, no matter what you do. While a third group exists, and that is the group of the indifferent. One philosopher said, because of this inevitable triangular or tripartite classification, no one can escape antagonism, or the resentment of criticism. The solace is that, no matter what happened, at no time, will two, out of the three groups, team up to form a majority against the third. So, in whatever position you find yourself, do your best according to the dictates of your conscience, and leave everything to God. Those who would abuse you, will abuse you, while those who would applaud you, will applaud you. Period.

Shortly before the news of the resignation of H.E. Badaru Abubakar hits the streets, something paradoxical happened that same Monday evening. My colleagues around the Presidential Villa, popularly referred to in the media parlance as the paparazzi, commenced circulating pictures of the former Chief of Defence Staff, Gen.Christopher Musa rtd, saying he has arrived at the Villa that evening, wearing a traditional northern attire. The reason for his visit was not given, but he was said to have been immediately ushered in to meet with the President in his office.

The story of his visit was particularly interesting because, it was his first visit to the State House, since he was relieved of the responsibility of the Chief of Defence Staff by the President in October this year. Musa’s unexpected exit from the military came to many also as a shock, because, like Badaru Abubakar, he has been very good to many. But the critics may disagree, because, that is life, where, like the pendulum of power, people’s perspective always differ.

By the beginning of work today, the media space was filled with the news that former CDS Musa’s name has been submitted to the Senate by the President, for the replacement of Badaru as the minister of Defence. That is Nigeria and the precariousness of the pendulum of power. Conditions are not permanent everywhere in the world, no matter how good or bad you are, Nigeria inclusive.

The ambition of this article is not to articulate the merits or the demerits of Badaru or Musa in power, but to pinpoint the irony that could come due to the precariousness of positions. In their characteristics comical display of amusing and bemusing events, at every availed opportunity, Nigerians have since taken to the social media, comparing and contrasting the positions of the newly nominated minister of Defence Musa, and the sitting minister of state, Defence, H.E.Matawalle.

The mission is to pinpoint the irony of life, pursuant to the precariousness of the position of power in Nigeria. Until his unexpected exit as the CDS, Gen. Musa was taking instructions from the minister of state, Defence, H.E. Matawalle. Now, if confirmed by the Senate, to replace H.E. Bdaru Abubakar, Gen. Musa would be the boss of H.E. Matawalle. That is the irony of life, as pushed forward, by the precariousness of the pendulum of power in Nigeria.