<h4>February 25</h4>
<p><em><strong><a href="https://openlife.ng/">OpenLife Nigeria</a></strong> reports that Wole Oladipo, a journalist, public affairs analyst and social commentator, in this piece, draws a contextual and inspirational analogy amongst President Muhammadu Buhari, Atiku Abubakar, Frederik Willem de Klerk and Ian Douglas Smith in the developmental process of Nigeria, beginning from the presidential choice on February 25</em><br />
<strong>Their Excellencies, Atiku Abubakar and Muhammad Buhari, belong to the Hausa-fulani of Northern Nigeria ethnic extraction, while late Frederik Willem de Klerk and Ian Douglas Smith were white racist South African president and Rhodesia, (now Zimbabwe), prime minister, respectively, from the then apartheid political enclave.</strong><br />
<strong>In essence, Atiku, Buhari, F. W. de Klerk and Ian Smith, naturally emerged from those two widely known, influential and politically entrenched groups of different divides.</strong><br />
<strong>Racism and Fulanisation are the two words, often negatively used either genuinely or otherwise, but, worldly orchestrated as oppressive minority cum majority, discriminatory and domineering ruling classes.</strong><br />
<strong>The correlation and complementary presidential memoirs and tenures of Buhari, de Klerk and Ian Smith, in their respective countries, with Atiku&#8217;s presidential candidacy in the February 25 Nigeria general elections, should be of utmost interest to discerning Nigerian voters, and general public, as a template for a historical reminder of the repetition of a case study or past event, this time around, please!</strong><br />
<strong>At the peak of Ian Smith tenure, he tried to prolong white minority rule, engaged in guerrilla warfare against the black majority, and he deeply entrenched the apartheid doctrines, rules, laws, to the detriment and discomfort of the majority black Rhodesians, (now Zimbabweans), and the detained black freedom fighters.</strong><br />
<strong>Juxtaposing the above conservative racist Ian Smith oppressive rule, with what Nigerians have been going through, since 2015, up till now, in the hands of an Hausa-fulani conservative oligarchic president Buhari, has made the whole saga much more refreshing to the already premonitions, and the seriously bad political memoirs and antecedence of historical events, in the lives of the people living in the two African countries!</strong><br />
<strong>On the other hand, the emergence of another white minority racist president de Klerk, in South Africa, was expected to escalate the already tense situation, left behind by his predecessor, equally a white minority president Pieter Willem Botha, but miraculously turned otherwise, with the various reforms and repudiation of the extant apartheid laws, leading to black majority freedom, peace and the release of Nelson Mandela, and other political detainees, from the prisons by de Klerk, without going to war or continuous armed struggles and conflicts. </strong><br />
<strong>The Almighty Father, the Creator, in His infinite mercy, always intervenes, divinely, in human affairs, but most often, we allow our emotions and ethno-religious sentiment to becloud the good sense of reasoning, understandings and judgments, resulting in our subsequent frequent lamentations, blaming and calling on Him, when we often fail to understand His ways or looking towards His divine direction and directive !</strong><br />
<strong>A leader, in a troubled nation, like Nigeria, should not be chosen because one likes, hates or loves the person. Neither because such a person is a friend nor from one&#8217;s ethno-religious group, or out of any emotional and extraneous issue. But, because the person has the capacity, capability and ability to move the nation in crises forward, away from the precipice- hence, president de Klerk, despite being a white south African racist, was divinely used to move South Africa forward. </strong><br />
<strong>Juxtaposing the above to the Nigeria present precarious situation, the only way forward, therefore, is restructuring by a political party and a presidential candidate that are experienced, maturely capable, and so passionate about restructuring this country &#8211; Baba Olusegun Obasanjo, Afenifere, Ohaneze, PANDEF, and the Middle belt, once supported PDP and Atiku Abubakar in 2019; why now reneging on this unifying issue-based, for a divisive ethno-religious sentiment, and emotional choices that have divided and polarized Afenifere and others, including the so called G5, till now?</strong><br />
<strong>APC, as a political party, promised restructuring, in 2015, and even set up Mallam Nasir El-Rufai&#8217;s Committee, in 2018, to no avail, but just as a bait for the 2019 general elections.</strong><br />
<strong>PDP, as a political party, has a soft spot for RESTRUCTURING, and once embarked on such fantastic constitutional reforms in 2007, and CONFAB 2014- the two beautiful babies were, however, thrown out with the bath water, because of president Olusegun Obasanjo alleged third term agenda, and president Ebele Jonathan&#8217;s lack of political will to implement the 2014 CONFAB, but merely used it as a bait for his 2015 failed presidential ambition!</strong><br />
<strong>Atiku Abubakar, is the most vocal 2023 presidential candidate on restructuring and devolution of powers. He has delivered series of papers, since 1992, the climax of which was a book he wrote on it that was launched last year in Abuja. And equally having restructuring as one of his outstanding 2023- 5 point political agenda.</strong><br />
<strong>Apart from Atiku&#8217;s divine mission, like de Klerk of South Africa, Atiku, the Waziri of Adamawa, as the most experienced, detribalized, matured, and determined candidate, will be braking the jinx of having a reluctant president, since independence- Nigeria will equally be having, for the first time, a highly resourceful business icon as Nigeria president, since independence- judging by the present enormous both internal and external debts, in trillions, by the present government.</strong><br />
<strong>Atiku may not necessarily, and immediately take us to the promised land or Eldorado, but he&#8217;s going to take us away from the precipice, and lay the foundation for the future, like presidents F. W. de Klerk and Nelson Mandela of South Africa.</strong><br />
<strong>In order to change a system, one needs to be part of the system, as a serious willing instrument, and determined catalyst part of the whole, which His Excellency, Atiku Abubakar divinely represents!</strong><br />
<strong>Nigerians cannot afford to make any mistake, this time around, please!!</strong><br />
<em>Wole Oladipo, a journalist, public affairs analyst and social commentator can be reached via</em><br />
<em>08033598528, oladipooluwole21@gmail.com</em></p>
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