OBJ – The Rocket Man

By Joseph Edgar…

It was Donald Trump who for want of any other name called the North Korean juggernaut Rocket Man for his penchant of shooting off missiles all over the place. The same acronym can also be used to describe elder statesman and all round issue in Nigeria today- Olusegun Aremu Obasanjo. His penchant for throwing missiles in the form of letters have never ceased to amaze me.

Just as we were rounding up celebrations of his achieving an academic feat by acquiring a Doctorate at the ripe old age of 80(?), he suddenly launched a massive explosive towards Aso rock. The missile came without warning and hit the bullseye, leaving the presidency reeling and shooting off alarm bells leading them to repond with a tepid response, that they will not respond just yet.

Nobody takes OBJ’s letters lightly. They are usually perfectly timed and designed to inflict maximum damage. During the Jonathan era he launched so many missiles that at some point, Jonathan had to go beg but like his North Korean counterpart, all efforts to get him to cease fire only served to fire him up as he continued to launch missile after missile. What can you do with an opponent like this?

Today, the country is all united in reading, analysing, forwarding and discussing this latest missile. I did not want to read it off my phone but printed the whole thing out to be filed and kept for my grandchildren. But let me attempt an intellectual dissection of this letter.

He had called it, ‘a clarion call for coalition for Nigeria movement’ a long and tiring title but I am sure cunningly designed to deceive us as to its content. He started by tracing his retirement from active politics, talking about his infamous public desecration of his PDP membership card and from there traced his humanitarian work both internationally and locally.

From there, he dared anybody to come after hm stating his days in prison showing that he had killed fear. His former party, PDP, was next as he carefully took aim and blasted them once again, not pitying President Jonathan in words that continue to marvel me as to how he it was who delivered the Presidency to this same person he was almost referring to as a minion. Today is not for Jonathan.

And then the crux of his letter. He talked about Buharis weaknesses especially his ‘lack of understanding of the economy’ and the fact that the economy did not listen to military instructions. This made me chuckle a bit but then again he felt that Buhari would most likely build a team that would mitigate that. He also talked about his lack of understanding of internal politics and once again gave us a mitigant. He hailed him for his fight against corruption and insurgency but nailed him on the altar of nepotism stating that the ‘nepotic deployment bordering on clannishness ‘ and inability to discipline errant members of the nepotic court. Passing the bulk was another weakness that angered OBJ.

He sympathised with Buhari on his illness and prayed fervently for his good health, thanking him for giving his deputy leeway to operate in his absence and then concluded by slamming Buhari seriously. ….’President Buhari needs a dignified and honourable dismount from the horse……’ admonishing him to join him and other leaders at the side-line where we can now tap from his experience , influence, goodwill and wisdom in nation building.

He had some mean words for his former people in the PDP stopping shot of calling them morons- my words- and ended this package asking for a coalition of middle wheel Nigerians drawn from the Professions offering to join the coalition whenever it is formed.

This letter like all of his letters has come in at the best of times for OBJ and the worse of times for Buhari, not when we are facing a crippling fuel scarcity, the herdsmen are still rampaging and other issues that is taking all the wit of the presidency. What I like is the fact that the presidency has said, they will not respond just yet. Perfect response.
You do not hurry to respond to something like this.

This is a full blown mad cow in a china shop. Any attempt to handle it any how will lead to a complete destruction of the shop. The presidency should just leave the letter for now and go to bed and come back to it, forming a special committee to split open the letter and see how they can mute the devastating effect of this letter.

Read also: Buhari, You Roared Like A Tiger, Stop Biting Like A Squirrel

But what I want to ask at this point is, why should we even listen to OBJ? He gave us Yar’adua and we all know how all that ended. After that, he gave us Jonathan. This same Jonathan! Then, he turned against him and worked to deliver Buahri and after two years he is throwing rockets. Na wa, that is all I can say at this point. Don’t we all think that OBJ is the problem with all these his dancing chairs habit. Today, he is calling for a coalition and tomorrow he will fire them. I think he too should rest a bit and let us even try to see road as they say in Shomolu.

For Buhari, well all I can say you had it coming. These seeming helplessness with the herdsmen, Maina and all these very powerful people around you with all sort of corruption things on their neck and yet still going round with the full paraphernalia of government.

Is it too late for Buhari. I think not. He still has enough time to take decisive steps before the next letter. If I know OBJ very well, this is a first in a series. Like a Mike Tyson blow, he will bounce back and watch you waddle and drunkenly stumble back to your feet before he launches another one. The best thing to do, is to stylishly dance away from him and lean on the ropes while praying for the bell so that you can get a much more deserving rest to catch your breath and attempt a come back.

OBJ carries a huge moral weight, strong international influence and a powerful opinion moulder. That is why his strategic incursions into public discourse is not something you handle lightly. Jonathan threw FFK at him and lived to regret it. Basically how do you handle a porcupine like OBJ? If you beg, you will only be ridiculing yourself, if you use force you will lose international support. So what else can you do than do the right thing. That is all. Buhari, just do the right thing, I beg of you. Heal Nigeria, we are suffering oooooooo!!!!!!!!.

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