HAVING worked closely in the last three and half years plus, and even closer in the last ten months or so when President Goodluck Jonathan became the substantive President,  not many people thought  Dr. Bukola Saraki, the governor of Kwara State, will seek to contest the presidency against President Jonathan. But he did.

While the pre-primaries campaigns lasted, Saraki made a good show of his political portrait and temperament. He campaigned round the country, especially the northern part. Then the moderators of the politics of the northern bloc opted for a search of a northern consensus candidate.

One who could stand for the collective interest of the north, and for whom the entire north can offer its bloc support.  The nine-man committee which screened and evaluated the aspirants, eventually settled for Alhaji Atiku Abubakar. And when the consensus arrangement turned out the way it did, Saraki simply soldiered on. He neither sulked nor complained. He just moved on.

His astuteness in politics has been demonstrated in more ways than one. Besides his ability to effectively manage the Governors’ Forum with such cohesion and maturity, his sportsmanly approach to partisan politics recommends itself as a model. Despite his young age, Dr. Saraki’s management of the forum has proved to reinforce public confidence in his ability to handle situations.

A case that readily testifies to this is how Saraki, as leader of the Governors’ Forum, had to break the legislative logjam that held down the nation last year when late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua was ill, and then Vice President could not be made to function as President or even as acting President.

It took the Governors’ forum to broker a meeting with the National Assembly leaders to secure what was then called the Doctrine of Necessity, which paved the way for the Acting President capacity; which eventually led to the present post of a full status  President Jonathan.

That all his other fellow governors consented to it shows that Saraki is verily, a consensus builder and a team leader. It is even more remarkable that for the over four years that he has held the forte as chairman of the forum, none of his colleagues has complained about his management of the body.

Even when he recently wanted to give up the office because of his  presidential ambition, the uproar that greeted the process forced the body to return to status quo ante.

Yet another example of his high leadership acumen is the fact that all through the nearly eight years in office, he has had a warm and robust relationship with his deputy, a point that can no longer be taken for granted given the myriad of problems so far witnessed between governors and their deputies across the nation. Given the  usual animosity that follows post election  relationships  in politics, it is commendable that Saraki has well imbibed the famous  charge of  late  Waziri  Ibrahim to play politics without bitterness.

In the pursuit of his presidential goal, Saraki did not get himself helmed in. If his pre-primary contest got some  of his doors closed, there  was yet an aperture, with which  he  looked at the larger picture of the Nigerian polity. He surely left a window open. That explains why today, he has seemingly blended very well into the Jonathan campaign council which was recently inaugurated.

His devotion and loyalty to  party directives is  manifestly clear, as he neither bickered nor begrudged the party leaders either for losing out on the consensus  flank or even for letting a region other than the north to win the PDP presidential ticket, despite his earlier convictions. It marks him out as one with a large heart. What Saraki has shown is that he is not rigid.

That he is amenable to a larger group  interest, as  he could easily rise  from the drawback of the failed attempt  to now work for the larger interest of the party. More importantly, it demonstrates that Dr. Saraki is not a desperate politician as many of his ilk are.  That explains why Saraki is now in the vanguard of those campaigning for the victory of a man, who only few weeks ago, was  his rival.

Saraki thus typifies  the  new orientation  needed in the Nigerian political space. A political environment that accommodates neither selfishness, nor hosts alchemic hatred for the opposition. Of course, there are quite a number of younger folks  involved  in the  nation’s political process, but not many of them have  managed to live above social reproach. Saraki has been avidly involved, yet has kept his head high and sane.  No doubt, the PDP will be far less a party at war with itself if there were more members with the Saraki’s sportsmanly attitude. He has  thus  identified himself as a politician of the future in this country.

What’s more, Saraki, 48, has also given credence to the campaign for a generational shift in the Nigerian political environment.

He has doubtlessly given a fair account of himself and a defined a standard and befitting postcard for the argument in favour of generational shift. He did not fail the youth; not even the elders. His feats in Kwara State may well be the subject of another day.

By joining the Jonathan campaign team, Saraki will, ipso facto, draw the attention of the Federal Government not only to Kwara State, but also the entire Middle Belt, where Saraki has proven to be an emerging regional leader. On the other hand, his synergy with the campaign team will win Jonathan many more friends and votes in the entire Middle Belt.

The Kwara State governor thus has a niche, which the President Jonathan campaign organisation has recognised and is determined to maximally explore.

But in all these, the large heartedness of the Jonathan campaign organisation also deserves some commendation. By offering to  woo the likes of Saraki, Raymond Dokpesi right into his campaign Council speaks volume of a new spirit which is anti winner-take -all approach. All said, by his conduct, carriage and disposition, Governor Saraki has proven to truly be a competent manager of men and materials. That is why many analyst believe winning Saraki to the Jonathan campaign team will further buttress the incredible come-back ability of the PDP.

Mr.  STEVE IGBEKE, a public affairs analyst, writes from Abuja.