by Michael Orodare

 The story of Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte is enough for Emperor Jagaban to learn from, one day the Grande Armee will be utterly damaged and the mighty will fall.

“Leadership is a privilege to better the lives of others. It is not an opportunity to satisfy personal greed.” –  Mwai Kibaki, former Kenyan President.

‘Many have gone!’ I saw that inscription on a Lagos commercial bus many years ago and what came to my mind was that If only some of our ‘leaders’ could have on the tablet of their hearts that no one can be in a position of authority till eternity; If only some of them could realise that many have gone before them and many will still come after them, ‘soldier go, soldier come, but barrack go stay’ taking a cue from the popular Nigerian cliché, then greed would never be found in the dictionary of Nigerian leadership.

The word ‘familitocracy’ as coined by Kayode Ogundamisi, was used to describe the imposition of Tinubu’s daughter as the new Iyaloja of Lagos after the demise of her grand-mother. Familitocracy took me back to the days of Olusegun Obasanjo who as the number one citizen of Nigeria, also made her daughter Iyabo Obasanjo-Bello, an influential person to be reckoned with in the country. on her father’s influence, she was appointed a Commissioner and later got the Ogun Central Senate ticket under PDP on a platter of gold, becoming a one term Senator who despite the allegation of bribery against her and many other government officials was not prosecuted.  Who dare challenge the daughter of the President? But Where is she today? She’s gone with her father’s political influence which is fast losing its hold on the Nigerian political terrain.

However, Obasanjo’s practise of familitocracy doesn’t seem so deep rooted like that of former godfather of Ibadan politics, late Chief Lamidi Adedibu, whose son was a Senator while the father was the one in charge of Oyo state and was ready grooming his son as the next governor before the long claws of death thwarted the arithmetic.

Tinubu must have learnt enough from Adedibu on how best to practise the system of ‘familitocracy’ and it is believed that the student must be greater than his teacher.

To everything, there is a time and season, and no doubt this is Tinubu’s era but its quite unfortunate that Jagaban is not learning from history. He doesn’t seem to understand that the mighty also fall easily, because if he does, he would be threading softly.

Greed and self-aggradizement seem to have taken over his heart and he seems to be swayed by the numerous newspaper adverts in his honour from his followers, congratulating him for sneezing successfully whenever he sneezes. Unfortunately, it seems he has forgotten that there is a time in the life of a leader to look back to see whether he or she still has people behind him and not the ‘majo lo mo’n weyin re’ (continue dancing, I’m watching your back) type of followers. Popularity is not leadership, says Richard Marcinko.

The mighty should take heed, the floor is slippery again emphasises a Yoruba adage as there comes a point in the life of a leader when people will desert him or her no matter how friendly the disposition; even Jesus was deserted at a point in his earthly ministry.

What’s the essence of democracy, if the men and women in the market place cannot choose for themselves who represent their interests. These same lords were frontliners in the fight against military rule in Nigeria. what an irony!

Even the market men and women seem to have been silenced, none of them is saying anything and the tiny minority who spoke through a press release written in their names for them to sign, said it was the wish of the late President-General that her daughter be appointed after her demise.

One day popularity will vanish, wealth acquired at the detriment of the masses will no longer bring succour and comfort to the owners, rather it will bring pains and thorns, that day is just not too far.

I am not a member of PDP, but it’s only in that party that a ward chairman can challenge the authority of its national chairman, but no one dare try such in some of these ‘progressive’ parties and live to tell the story. What’s the essence of being a leader if your followers cannot stand beside you to tell you the truth. The truth is, those surrounding Jagaban have idolised him to the level where they never see any fault in him, a bad omen for impending destruction.

I just hope we will not wake up one day to hear that the newly APPOINTED governor of Lagos State is now another Mr/Mrs Tinubu, when ‘baba sope in Lagos, who can say no?’

History told us that. After a streak of victories, France secured a dominant position in continental Europe countries as French client states and Napoleon Bonaparte also appointed FRIENDS and FAMILY members to rule other European countries.

The story of Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte is enough for Emperor Jagaban to learn from, one day the Grande Armee will be utterly damaged and the mighty will fall.

“One day the rivers will overflow. And there will be no where for us to go and we will run wishing we have put out the fire…” says a line in Asa’s there is fire on the mountain.

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Michael Olanrewaju Orodare has worked in the Office of the Chief Press Secretary to the Ondo State Governor as a Media Assistant. He has garnered experience writing in the The Nation Newspaper working with the paper’s Sunday Desk. He leans towards the Labour Party. He blogs at www.michaelorodare.blogspot.com and tweets from @MichaelOrodare

 

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