By NASIR HASSAN GUSAU Esq
The All Nigeria Peoples Party, ANPP, started in 1999 as an opposition party. Unfortunately, the party is failing to hold its ground as an opposition or can we rightly say the principal actors of the party seem to be in politics not for the interest of the State rather, to find a way of exploiting the resources of the State and when that opportunity failed to materialize they left the opposition party for the ruling party, the People's Democratic Party PDP while some were used by the PDP to destabilize the opposition party through bringing confusion, rancor and misunderstanding among the members, for which they receive payment in compensation for the execution of the hypocritical agenda of destabilizing the opposition party.
Opposition party in a civilized society serves as a shadow government or a watch-dog of the government in power, criticizing their policies where they go wrong and highlighting to the people, better ways of doing things. They follow vigorously the economic policies of government and tell the people the reality about any economic manipulation. They show to people their own stand in every sector of governmental policies that include health, education, works, employment, structural developments, agriculture, power etc and at any length, try to convince people to make a u-turn in the next coming election and vote for them. These are the basic functions of the opposition which ANPP as a party has failed to carry-out with the exception of the TBO, a minority group within the party.
On the contrary, the leaders of the opposition party, right from its birth allowed themselves to be used by the ruling party. It is rather unfortunate that the ANPP has failed to detect the hypocritical scheming and participation of PDP in the election of its executives. History has it on record that all the ANPP Chairmen so far elected are “sheep in wolves' clothes”. This is why Gen. Buhari stood against the election of the current Chairman and the Secretary of the party but the machineries of political Sharia are ready to empty the whole treasury of their states in favor of their agents since they all form part of the rapacious clique.
Due to this hypocritical scheming of the PDP, the ANPP, thus, got divided into about three groups. The first group is the Bafarawa group who were formidable, straight forward, dedicated and committed to the progress of the party but later on realized that the leadership of the party were sell-outs. The other groups, on the other hand have similar and dangerous wicked policies towards the party. Therefore, they at one time merged together in a move to carry out their sell-out agenda. These groups are the Etiebet group and the Yarima group which undoubtedly include the former Governors of Kebbi, Borno, Yobe and the present Governor of Kano State.
Going by the happenings and Bafarawa's achievement in 2003 as ANPP caretaker committee Chairman whereby he seems to the clear and transparent conclusion of successful primaries in which Gen. Buhari against all odds emerged as the ANPP presidential flagbearer, even though, the agents of destruction were given command not to allow Buhari to clinch that nomination which despite all their schemings they failed. It angered the masters of the plot and the boys. As a result, they started strategizing against Bafarawa and his group so that he will be frustrated out of the party which in the short run pays.
Bafarawa as an experienced politician shouldn't have been frustrated out of the party that was his greatest political mistake. And that is where he and his supporters and the array of advisers lost concentration. As Late Chuba Okadigbo said, “In a political football, your eyes must always be on the ball”. The only way out as of that time was that Bafarawa and his group should have merged with Buhari and TBO within ANPP to fight “the crazy ball heads” and chased them out. As it is now, the enemies of destruction have won the battle, they have destroyed ANPP, the party is no more an opposition party but a beggar party begging for position within PDP in the name of GNU and thereby exposing their true nature to the public as unpatriotic, selfish and politicians devoid of ideology. All of these Governors go to their States and see how they exploit the State's resources. But the reciprocal Law of Nature will soon catch-up with them.
Conclusively, today in Nigeria, we have no real politicians with progressive principals and ideologies, in the South no more Awolowos, in the North no more Saudaunas and Balewas, likewise in the East, no more Ziks. The only political group that remains are rapacious clique who give power a new definition and hold strong to it, go to any length to acquire it, use it illogically to the detriment of the State and the masses. They claim to empower youth but used it to spoil the youth. They encourage restiveness, immoralities, racketeering, political killings, homosexuality, lesbianism and all forms of crimes.
In this regard, Nigerian politics or democracy has no direction. The ruling class is not ready to relinquish power in the eyes of defeat. The opposition is not formidable and the citizens are not ready to bring change. Only God therefore, in His infinite mercy can intervene on behalf of the masses.■
N. H. GUSAU ESQ lives at Dallatu Rd, Sokoto 08088743246