That Nigeria is in a state of paralysis is no longer in doubt. The country has been inundated by the news of functions, which the President is required to perform but could not, due to his state of health. The papers are also full of anecdotes which suggest a diminishing capacity of the President to run the affairs of the country.
Even if the dailies and magazines, both domestic and international, have not informed us, observers of the African political scene could not but arrive at the obvious conclusion that all is not well with Nigeria given the way power is concentrated in the hands of leaders on the continent. More so in Nigeria. And there would also be many pointers. Many contracts may not be awarded, those already awarded for which no money has been advanced will not be executed for the fear of the unknown, many appointments cannot be made, public servants may not take any initiative for fear of being misunderstood, those perceived to be members of the inner circle, or have the ears of the president may take advantage of the vacuum created by his absence to commit untold atrocities in his name. The seat of power will be engulfed by dirty games. Important political appointees will be looking over their shoulders; they will talk in hushed tones for fear of being labelled disloyal. There will be false smiles for the camera at the end of fruitless Executive Council meetings. Ms Rebranding, Ms Dora Akunyili, will raise her voice, the more, to tell the nation that all is well, the Attorney General Aondookaa will continue making legal abracadabra with serious issues of governance. Ministers and other top government functionaries will be making contradictory statements.
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More concretely, if there are still doubting Thomases as to the fact that the country is in a state of paralysis, they should hear what the Vice President Goodluck Jonathan was reported to have said some few days back.
“We have lot of challenges. Look at what happened during the swearing-in of the Chief Justice of Nigeria. Before then, when we were confronted with that situation, few days to December 31st, the Thursday the Chief Justice of Nigeria was supposed to retire, we were worried. As vice president, based on our laws I do not have any powers to swear-in the Chief Justice of Nigeria. It is a ceremonial responsibility and ceremonial functions are sometimes more serious than the real work we do. I do not have the powers to swear in the Chief Justice. I was worried that if we get to that Thursday and the Chief justice of Nigeria is not sworn-in, that means one arm of government has no leader and that would have been an invitation to chaos. As at that time even the lawyers around, because the tradition has been there for 51 years where Mr. President swears in the Chief Justice, no Nigerian or even senior lawyers cared to look at the other aspect of the law. In fact, I even had to approach the former Chief Justice, that look, I have the powers to extend your period of stay in the office, since I cannot swear-in a new Chief Justice. Can’t I extend your stay in office so that there will be no vacuum? But he said it was not possible because the constitution says at the age of 70 he must go. But he promised he was going to re-examine the laws. I got back to my office; I was terribly worried within that period. Few days to the time, the Attorney General came and showed me the Act that says either the President or the Chief Justice of the Federation can swear-in the new Chief Justice”.
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If the above quotation is correct and that it was said by Vice President Goodluck Jonathan then the obvious conclusion one could draw from it, is that we are living in dangerous times in this country. And, if care is not taken, the chaos that the judicial vacuum averted by the last minute swearing in of the new Chief Justice, Justice Katsina Alu, by his outgoing predecessor, could manifest sooner than later, unless those who run the affairs of this country address themselves to the issues raised rather than their reckless pre-occupation with intrigues and with self-aggrandizement.
One may not be wrong in interpreting the speech by Vice President Jonathan to mean an appeal to Mr President, and his handlers to do the right thing by handing over to him even if temporarily, in order that the ship of state could get out of turbulent waters. This is required of an ailing President by section 145 of the Constitution which states that, “Whenever the President transmits to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives a written declaration that he is proceeding on vacation or that he is otherwise unable to discharge the functions of his office, until he transmits to them a written declaration to the contrary such functions shall be discharged by the Vice President as Acting President”.
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Vice President Goodluck Jonathan is also telling Nigerians that should the country be faced with serious situation which requires the prompt action of the President only divine intervention could save us. He has no powers. He revealed because no power was transferred to him, for days the government groped in search of a way out of what seemed to be an imminent crisis to be triggered by the departure of Chief Justice Legogi Kutigi before the President resurfaces. Solution was found only in the last minute. Had a diligent lawyer not dusted the Oath Act of 2004 in the nick of time, according to the VP, the country would have been plunged into chaos because another arm of the government of the federation - judiciary -would have been headless or leaderless. This important revelation by the Vice president belies what the Attorney General, the Minister of Information and host of other government functionaries have been telling the nation, that the administration is working smoothly.
The speech is also telling us that the administration is dysfunctional. This dysfunctionality is exemplified by the fact that no member, either of the Federal Executive Council, or the Council as a body, or the Secretary to Government of the Federation, or the Head of Service, or any of the numerous powerful and useful advisers of Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar’Adua could do what they are expected to do, advise the president on what to do, in this case, hand over temporarily to the Vice President as is done in any civilised democracy. President Bush transferred power to his Vice President Dick Cheney when he had to undergo minor surgical procedure requiring anaesthesia. The whole process, from induction to the actual surgery and recovery lasted only half an hour. And when Fidel Castro, who led what has been characterised as an authoritarian regime was admitted into hospital, he transferred power first, temporarily to Raul Castro, the Minister of Defence and later, permanently, to the same person when it became obvious to him that he could no longer continue in office. Unlike the on-going handling of President Yar Adua’s illness, Cuban state television periodically beamed to Cubans the picture of the ailing president sometimes on his hospital bed, sometimes trying to walk and sometimes receiving foreign dignitaries – President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela and Lula of Brazil for example. Castro himself, as if to re-assure his compatriots that he was still alive and in control of his faculties, wrote some articles which were published in Granma, the official news organ of the Cuban Communist Party. Similarly, and long before Castro, aides to the absolute ruler of pre-democratic Spain, General Franco, were on top of the situation when he fell sick in the last few months of his draconian rule. They did not hide the fact that he was seriously sick and when he fell into comma and was kept on a life supporting machine, not only the Spanish but the whole world was kept informed of his conditions, until he breathed his last. In so doing the handlers of the generalissimo, spared their compatriots the agony and the paralysis our country has been plunged into by the rather unprofessional, incompetent and near irresponsible handling of the sickness of President Umaru Yar’Adua. Here in Nigeria when President Ibrahim Babangida had to travel out to seek medical treatment for his radiculopathy, the whole country was informed of his departure and how long he was going to be absent. Rear Admiral Aikhomu took over. He even signed the letter of appointment of Justice Mohammed Bello as the Chief Justice of the country. The heavens did not fall. Hell did not break loose.
The incompetence of the President’s handlers could hardly be justified in these circumstances. This, for the simple reason that, long before he became President and during the presidential campaigns, he Alhaji Umar Musa Yar’Adua, had served notice to all that what he is now going through was not going to be a distant possibility. He is prone to sickness. That alone should have been a strong and unequivocal call to them to be proactive, think ahead, develop scenarios in anticipation of what seems to be his frequent relapse and then put in place appropriate plans to deal with it. This is all the more important given the constitutional issues that arise when a president becomes seriously indisposed and the security implications. We live in a dangerous world. But as things are now, President Yar Adua’ have been merely acting on the spur of the moment, issuing uncoordinated, incoherent and contradictory statements, which unnecessarily fuel speculations, heighten anxiety and deepen the palpable paralysis in the administration of the country.
If the President’s health is indeed improving, the refusal by both himself and members of his inner circle to give evidence of that, as was done by the Cubans, could be explained only, perhaps, by their disdain and contempt for Nigerians. So far Nigerians have been treated to Tukunbo information: the Minister of Information claimed that the Vice President has spoken to the President very briefly on Tuesday evening, precisely at 8.00 p.m; the Chief Economic Adviser, to President, Alhaji Tanimu Yakubu, went further, by claiming that the President spoke with not only the Vice President, but also with the Senate President David Mark, Speaker of the House of Representatives Mr. Dimeji Bankole and himself. Alhaji Tanimu was also reported to have said that the President directed him to get the Attorney General of the Federation to intensify lobby for the passage of the Bill on Terrorism in the National Assembly. Perhaps to please the US administration, apprehensive about the state of affairs in the country. It is curious that the President would choose to speak to a junior officer to relay instructions on very important matters of state to a very senior Minister in this instance the Chief Law officer of the country. Were the Attorney General’s land lines – if they still exist - and GSM or Blackberry switched off at the time? It is equally curious that the President would speak to the Economic Adviser on matters of terrorism instead of the National security Adviser. Are we being told that General Sarki Muhktar is not so important in the present scheme of things? What an absurdity! This is another evidence of the dysfunctionality of the Yar’adua administration. It is doubtful if majority of Nigerians believe such stories. If indeed the President did have the strength and health to speak to these four persons in one night why did he not address the nation very briefly? We are not living in the dark ages. This is what Nigerians are demanding . For example, The Save Nigeria Group, in a communiqué issued at the end of their meeting at the Sheraton Hotel, Ikeja, demanded that “President Umaru Musa Yar’adua address the nation publicly through Radio Nigeria, Nigeria Television, or any authoritative medium, for we are out raged with the story that he talked to some key officials, for God’s sake he is the President of the country”.
But how does one explain this terrible and potentially explosive situation.? Some have opined that it is in the nature of Alhaji Umaru Yar' Adua. He is mistrustful of people. An incredibly suspicious political animal. For this reason delegation of authority is an anathema to him. The combined effects of these is that an unstable environment has been created for the constant hatching of series of conspiracy theories by a handful of his lieutenants who have established various intrigue weaving mills around him and actively fending off each other for supremacy. These aides have so far succeeded in isolating and alienating the President from men of good will and considerable experience, for fear that these men will tell him the bitter truth that all is not well with the country.
It is also not implausible that these shadowy lieutenants of the President, who have performed poorly not for themselves, but for the country, have an interest in keeping the lid on the President’s health in order to be in a position to influence the turn of events reminiscent of the Soviet communist era, in case of any eventuality such as his permanent incapacitation or that which every human being will eventually succumb to – death. Keeping information to themselves gives them latitude for manipulation and advantage in the on-going power struggle and the future direction of the country. And which direction has to be decided upon sooner than later if the country has to forge ahead.
So far there are three broad tendencies. There are those who want Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar Adua to resign and properly take care of his health so that the country could be given the much needed impetus to face the serious challenges facing it, abject poverty, de-industrialisation partly by the lack electricity and other important infrastructure, endemic corruption, lackadaisical implementation of the country’s foreign policy, which is diminishing its stature, chronic insecurity, etc. In such a situation Vice President Goodluck Jonathan constitutionally takes over. Some of the members of the inner cabinet of the President - not the pack that assembles every Wednesday in the Council Chamber - are seriously opposed to this for obvious reasons. Power will slip from their hands and they may be left to face their nemesis. Vice President Jonathan will have to reconstitute his team for effective running of the country.
There are others who would prefer the Federal Executive Council to initiate the move, to remove the President if he becomes incapacitated according to section 144 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria which states that:
(1)The President or Vice President shall cease to hold office if-
(a) by a resolution passed by two-thirds majority of all the members of the executive council of the Federation it is declared that the President or Vice President is incapable of discharging the functions of his office; and
(b) The declaration is verified, after such medical examination as may be necessary, by a medical panel established under sub section (4)of this section in its report to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
(2)Where the medical panel certifies in the report that in its opinion the President or Vice President is suffering from such infirmity of body or mind as renders him permanently incapable of discharging the functions of his office, a notice thereof signed by the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall be published in the Official Gazette of the Government of the Federation.
(3) The President or Vice President shall cease to hold office as from the date of publication of the notice of the medical report pursuant to subsection (2) of this section.
(4) The medical panel to which this section relates shall be appointed by the President of the Senate, and shall comprise five medical practitioners in Nigeria –
(a) One of whom shall be the personal physician of the holder of the office concerned; and
(b) four other medical practitioners who have , in the opinion of the President of the Senate, attained a high degree of eminence in the field of medicine relative to the nature of the examination to be conducted in accordance with the foregoing provisions.
(5) In this section, the reference to “executive council of the Federation” is a reference to the body of Ministers of the Government of the Federation, howsoever called, established by the President and charged with such responsibilities for the functions of government as the President may direct.
So far the Federal Executive Council has seen no reason to go that far. Political observers are not surprised. For one, someone has to initiate the move in the Council. Given the way power is concentrated in the presidency no one in the Council would risk being singled-out as disloyal with the attendant consequence of losing his or her plume job. It could also be that by rejecting this option, the Council is trying to assure that country that the President will weather the storm or members are privy to some information about his health which is not in the public domain.
There is yet another group which prefers the President to hand-over power temporarily to Vice President Goodluck Jonathan. This position is preferred by some power brokers within and outside the administration. Those within the administration, especially some advisers may prefer such an arrangement in the belief that it could help them secure their positions until the end of the tenure of Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar'Adua. More importantly it will give them sufficient time to make their peace with those they have maligned or alienated because of their arrogance and provincialism.
As for the Vice President his message is clear and its delivery sophisticated. He has so far remained loyal, mindful of his position and secure in his unstated belief that sooner than later the Constitution would have to be respected. He has demonstrated that he is as patient as a vulture waiting to swoop on the political carcasses that may sooner than later litter the political landscape, when the political hyenas would have finished themselves and begin the task of sanitizing the administration of the country.
Culled from Analysis Magazine.
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