Re: Canonisation of el-Rufai at 60

You have enemies? Good. That means you have stood up for something –

Winston Churchill

Idowu Akinlotan is a confirmed loathing hater of Nasir El-Rufai, an attribute that virtually every columnist or presenter working in the Bola Ahmed Tinubu media empire has in commonality. But the columnists of the various titles of the Nation are clearly the worse with their propensity to peddle falsehoods against Malam Nasir El-Rufai, Governor of Kaduna state. The unprovoked malice towards El-Rufai by the Nation newspapers will expectedly get worse and more reckless by 2021 when political activities are expected to heat up. This is understandable, considering that the stakes are high and the fact that the Nigerian Press Council, regulator of the press, hasn’t lived up to expectations like the Nigerian Broadcasting Commission (NBC), which has considerably curbed the rascality of the electronic arm of Tinubu’s media empire. So, while the television (TVC) presenters are more restrained in their attacks on El-Rufai, the three newspaper titles are increasingly reckless, vicious and relentless in their blistering attacks.

Tinubu’s media empire has consistently waged a concerted media war against El-Rufai, whose only crime is the perception that he is a stumbling block to the presidential ambition of Tinubu, their mentor. Of the lot Idowu Akinlotan is apparently the most notorious with several anti-El-Rufai articles to his credit and certainly deserves the “Defender of Asiwaju Award”. There is “The Waspish El-Rufai”, “El-Rufai’s Political Gambit and Kajuru killings”, El-Rufai’s Hate Speech Signposts Danger” and “Who Will Rein in APC’s Little Tyrants”, etc. The common thread in Akinlotan’s satanic pieces, which invariably informs his conclusions, is El-Rufai’s defeat. In “ El-Rufai’s political gambit and Kajuru killings” he not only called for the defeat of El-Rufai in the 2019 elections, but that Kaduna voters deserve to have their heads examined if they ever made the mistake of returning him to power. “If he is returned to office on March 9, Kaduna state will have indicated beyond a shadow of doubt that they are inspired by values that leave a majority of Nigerians befuddled.” The Nigerians that were befuddled were certainly the members of the Tinubu political family, who had sponsored the likes of Shehu Sani to ensure the actualisation of that wish.

Other columnists of the Nation newspapers who have used and continue to use El-Rufai to prove their unalloyed loyalty to the ultimate godfather -Bola Ahmed – are Festus Eriye (El-Rufai the godfather slayer”), Segun Ayobolu (El-Rufai’s thoughts and non-thoughts on godfatherism”) and Sam Omatseye (A divider-in-chief of Kaduna politics – El-Rufai double talk”). But Akinlotan is certainly in a class of his own and deserves commendation for admitting that the acerbic articles by him and his other colleagues are their corporate reaction to “Nasir El-Rufai’s inflammatory remarks against Bola Ahmed Tinubu”, especially his manuscript on how godfathers can be defeated.

The template for the defeat of godfathers was not directed at Tinubu, so how members of his political family concluded that because El-Rufai delivered the speech in the godfathers backyard, it was targeted at Tinubu?Unknown to the Nation columnists and reporters is that by fighting real and imaginary battles of their master, Tinubu, they have not only disabused the common assumption that the media can be neutral, but also confirmed that serving public interest is most often secondary. As political activities heat up, the prayer of most politicians is that the Nation columnists should continue to burn the bridges that Tinubu needs if he is to actualise his ambition, so that by 2022 he would have further ostracised a substantial number of party members, who, in the first place, have problems with his leadership style.

The irony of Re: Canonisation of el-Rufai at 60 written by Idowu Akinlotan is that while Tinubu, the ultimate godfather of Lagos state and the man whose determination to succeed Muhammadu Buhari, wrote a beautiful tribute, congratulating El-Rufai on his 60th birthday, the likes of Akinlotan were left with the task of viciously savaging him. Like the popular saying, don’t fear the enemy that attacks you, but the fake friend that hugs you – who the cap fits,let him wear it. The motive behind the strident attacks on El-Rufai is the 2023 presidential election, which is in spite of his unequivocal support for a Southern president after eight years of Buhari. Tinubu has not hidden his “ambitious desire” to contest and wage a war against anyone that he perceives to be an obstacle. It is obvious the unrelenting attacks by the Tinubu political camp are a product of fear that some “certain” political realities might make El-Rufai run.

The root of the problem the Nation columnists have with El-Rufai, which they have refused to disclose to their readers, is the refusal of El-Rufai to endorse the presidential aspirations of Tinubu. And most unfortunate is their refusal to accept that endorsing or refusing to endorse Tinubu is well within El-Rufai’s fundamental rights. The apparent lack of political awareness explains the resort to intimidation, rather than marketing Tinubu, a strategy that is not only dumb, but counter-productive as they ought to know that El-Rufai is not the kind of person that orchestrated and vexatious articles would browbeat into submission. So rather than intimidate El-Rufai, their attacks have further widened the political differences between both men. It’s a shame that the Nation columnists have by their apparent lack of strategy caused Tinubu the support of El-Rufai -a man whose word is his bond, who when the chips are down can be counted upon to stand up for what he believes is right.

Akinlotan asserts as usual without any evidence, that “Of all the country’s governors, it is doubtful whether any of them has become a cynosure of attention like him (El-Rufai), not even the daring and confrontational Godwin Obaseki of Edo state”. Of course, the answer is obviously because El-Rufai took many daring decisions, what political analysts call second term decisions in his first term, due to his deep convictions. And in taking what analysts describe as very “unpopular” decisions, El-Rufai made the point that deceit should not be the hallmark of governance, and his refusal to toe the line of other governors who postponed crucial decisions to their second term for electoral purposes.

Akinlotan made several false statements, but the most laughable is that El-Rufai “carefully screened out his critics from his birthday celebrations, but those who felicitated with him in person or on newspaper advertisements knew it would be impolite to seize that fleeting birthday moment to excoriate his failings.” The first point of correction is that no deliberate effort was made to screen out any perceived enemy, because enemies don’t exist in El-Rufai’s world. Even Adams Oshiomhole, the embattled chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), with whom El- Rufai had some minor disagreements over Adams’ attempt to subvert the will of the people, was welcomed with open arms. Nor was anyone encouraged or forced to say kind words which they know that El-Rufai who sees things in white and black would never condescend to, in order to make them feel good. So, if Akinlotan is telling us that his master Tinubu engaged in sycophancy, by paying glowing tributes to El-Rufai which he didn’t mean, then good luck to him and his ilk.

Akinlotan is certainly right that “At 60, Malam el-Rufai cannot and will not change. Age has nothing to do with his style, his person, or his politics.” Why should he change, change to what and to what end? By change, is Akinlotan urging El-Rufai to abandon his principles and convictions?

Post script: Akinlotan like William Barr the Attorney General of the United States fudges the truth.

Ado writes from Kaduna

Leave a Reply