By Prisca Sam-Duru

The race to Aso Rock in 2023 is getting intense and quite fiery by the day, as more politicians throw their hats into the competition for who becomes Nigeria’s next president.

Their desperation to occupy the coveted seat of power for reasons best known to them, is alarming! Following the abandonment of his throne as a kingmaker to embellish his personality with the crown itself, as king, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu declared interest in the race towards fulfilling his life-long ambition.

His official declaration raised lots of speculations on whether Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, who was already being nudged by his supporters to join the race, would have the liver to compete against his boss. Well, the VP’s official declaration of interest in the presidential election in 2023 few days ago, ended months of such speculations, but, tongues have not ceased to wag ever since then.

Considering the hype on what a president Osinbajo would look like if elected, based on his academic qualifications and experience in public office, one expected that jubilation would erupt nationwide after his official declaration.

It was so in some quarters but not so in many. A large number of Nigerians have taken a swipe at him for just one single reason- his pledge to ‘complete’ his principal’s legacy, an allusion to continue the policies and style of the present government.

Declaring his interest, the VP promised Nigerians that if he becomes president, he would continue from where President Muhamadu Buhari stops. While many have criticised him for what they termed a very watery declaration speech, a lot more are pissed by his pledge to ‘complete’ Buhari’s task.

“Smooth, eloquent operator. His continuing on Buhari’s (Slave & Master) Legacies, is dangerous for Nigeria. He must be stopped!”, Felix Joseph Osaeghemede, wrote on facebook. “Ambition, dead on Arrival! Having so much CV and yet not able to add a drop of value to his unschooled boss, but becoming his serf is an aberration to the academia.

That speech- you want to … ‘Complete’ what Buhari started has killed your ambition, abinitio. Nigerians beware of this man. Your declaration is very annoying and insulting to the sensibilities of Nigerians. . You all played and fingered Nigeria into an orgasm that has almost made her lifeless; must this rape continue again under you? Haba Baba! No way. Osinbajo, you have no conscience!”, Osaeghemede added.

Analysis of the VP’s speech as well as his chances at the polls, as expected, made headlines and reviews in both social and the traditional media across the country. While opening ‘The Morning Show’ on Arise TV on Monday, Tundun Abiola described VP Osinbajo as “unique in the sense that we’ve actually had a taste of what a president Osinbajo might be like because he was acting president for 50 days during which he did get a lot done and earned a name Star Boy, you’d recall.

He has the experience, he knows the terrain, the issues, he has the youthfulness, the intellect, etc. From his address, he’s going to be running on continuity.” Tundun quickly added that, alluding to continuity, “might give a lot of people some comfort”…even though “not everybody would like to see continuity…” The fact is, weighing the impact of the failures of this present administration, particularly, looking at the damning level of corruption in the country, the economy that is comatose, insecurity, etc, it’s obvious that the poor masses may not give anyone who promises to complete president Buhari’s legacy, a chance to make life more miserable for them.  

On Facebook, Ugochukwu E. wrote; “And he plans to market his candidacy with the atrocious record of the present administration- ‘I want to build on the marvellous achievements of president Buhari’… only in Nigeria that such campaigns attract votes only for the same voters to start lamenting a few months after.”

After witnessing the disappointing manner in which this administration has handled the issue of corruption which it promised in 2015 to tackle, Obiora Momife is angry that the VP not only alluded to continuity but also used the word ‘integrity’ for his principal. “Powerful…and still calls his principal a man of integrity.

How can a professor of law not know the meaning of integrity?” The issue here is clearly not about Osinbajo’s candidacy; it’s his constitutional right to contest, besides, as Tundun pointed out earlier, he is qualified to run for the position of president. In fact, his erudition not to talk of his elocution will endear him to anyone any day. “VP Osinbajo comes to the task- his ambition with very strong credentials.

He comes to the job prepared”, Dr. Reuben Abati who was also on the show noted, adding, “But the major challenge is, will he be able to win the primaries when APC goes to the primaries next month? “He has been Vice President for 7 years and he says he wants to continue where his boss stops.

I think his greater loyalty is to 200 million Nigerians, not to one man. “So, the APC is going to hold its primaries next month and he’s going to square it up with his former boss(Asiwaju Ahmed Tinubu), Minister of transportation, Rotimi Amaechi; Gov of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, etc. Our own position is that may the best man win”.

Still on the VP’s eligibility, Dr. Abati added, “In terms of paper qualifications, yes, I think, Vice President Osinbajo, looks good on paper and he has had relevant experience but do Nigerians vote on the basis of resume? Does he have the war chest, will he be able to mobilise support? Does he even have the structure, the political structure in the South West to prosecute this agenda because he has been more of a public intellectual; of an academic rather than politician”.

Now, back to the issue of ‘continuity’. Could the VP’s pledge to ‘complete’ president Buhari’s task if elected president, be mere political rhetoric? A good number of Nigerians believe it was meant to help boost support or obtain favour from the President and the North; an idea Abati opined may really work to Buhari and the APC’s advantage.   

“In his address, he outlined what he intends to do- about twelve items. He used the word, ‘completing’ about four times; he will complete this, one of which is lifting 100 million Nigerians out of poverty. He wants to complete the social investment programme; in other words, he is promising us a government of continuity.

“Now, that may be an advantage. His boss may like to hear that if he encourages Osinbajo to succeed him, then, this is somebody in whose hands the programme of the Buhari administration would be safe. And more importantly, if Osinbajo succeeds his boss, then of course, the Buhari team may not suffer the same fate that the Jonathan team suffered; it means nobody would be chasing them up and down.

So, they will have that protection. But the question is does he have the support of the president? If the president is behind him and the presidents machinery is supporting him, then that will count for something.”

For Patricia Ogunka and so many impoverished Nigerians, they do not give a hoot about that arrangement as it will not add any value to their lives. “Abeg, let him resign, we don’t need the likes of him. 7 years he served, wetin we gain?”

It’s even worse that he has assured Nigerians of his readiness to continue with what people know as nightmare and a failed administration. “What is he coming to do for Nigerians?”, Rufai Oseni, who was also with Abiola and Abati asked. “looking at a grand analysis of what he put down, nothing has impressed me; those are just rhetorics.

May be when we start getting the granular detail of bringing 100 million people out of poverty when more people have gotten into poverty since president Buhari made that declaration on June 12, that he was going to bring 100 million people out of poverty, that the World Bank is saying that… or is it the Social Investment Funds- Trader Moni they only share during elections? Since they shared it in 2019 during elections, what next?, He added.

Wale Abiona feels the same way as Oseni, as he wrote on Facebook; “It’s shocking reality for Prof Osinbajo having acquired all the heavy qualifications and terrifying CV, yet can’t make meaningful impact on the regime he is an active participant. God bless Nigeria but we can’t continue doing same thing and expect different results…!”

Likewise Anote Ajeluorou who also wrote on his Facebook wall; “Mr Yemi Osinbajo lost my vote when he failed to walk away from a bad government but sat put & became its ardent enabler!”

And that, takes us to what Dr Abati described as downside of that VP’s  statement on ‘continuity’. “But on the downside, many then say, continuity of what? Is it of insecurity? Is it of an economy which is comatose?, etc, so it’s both an advantage and something that can work against them at the polls.

“If he loses at the primaries, that effectively, may mark the end of his political career. But in any case, he doesn’t need to worry too much about that; he is a professor, he can go back to his office at the University of Lagos and continue to produce PhD students, candidates and supervisors. So, I guess for him, this is not a desperate thing. He can go and practice law; he can be a consultant. He has his future secured on all fronts.”