Buhari should display magnanimity in victory — Akanbi

How would you react to the outcome of the presidential election?I’ve always held the view, just like Professor Jega has always said, that there is no perfect election but by every standard, we have done well to hold a peaceful, free, fair election. The figures that came out from various states are not surprising. Definitely, […]

How would you react to the outcome of the presidential election?
I’ve always held the view, just like Professor Jega has always said, that there is no perfect election but by every standard, we have done well to hold a peaceful, free, fair election. The figures that came out from various states are not surprising. Definitely, the lines of campaign have created an impression of Nigeria being ethnic and tribally oriented. You will find out that it was like a battle between the North and West on one side and the South-South and South-East on the other. But the good thing is this; most of the northern and southern states had a reasonable balance in the voting pattern.
What happened in the South-South particularly in Rivers State created a bit of a problem. And I think it was good that the INEC chairman maintained his cool despite provocation. I remember somebody (Godsday Orubebe) went to him talking in a manner that is shameful and disgraceful but he still maintained his cool.
I have been vindicated. In almost all my speeches, I have said that I have known Professor Jega from his early days as chairman of ASUU; that he is a man of integrity, he has conscience and he is a man who would do his best. If you put an angel there, an angel cannot do more than what he has done and he has demonstrated, despite all these provocative statements, insults being heaped on him by people of lesser calibre and we have to thank God, though it is Jonathan who appointed him, it is God that directed him. He has done his best.
Elections held in every state. There were surprises. For instance, I thought in Nasarawa, it would be APC but PDP won there, that shows clearly that things were being done fairly, it cannot be 100 per cent perfect. But what we have achieved, this is the first time we are having somebody being removed from office democratically, through democratic process. I think that is a good thing for Nigeria. We are improving and Jonathan has done a very good thing by congratulating Buhari, in the sense that that would calm down frayed nerves. Secondly, those hawks, those who are fanning embers of violence in every state would be disarmed, where the victim of the decision has conceded victory to the other man and I am sure Buhari would equally display magnanimity to appreciate what he (Jonathan) has done. For me it is a good omen for us.
Those of us who see beyond Nigeria, who think of Africa and the world at large, we are happy. In fact, the foreign observers have had good things to say before now. In the case of Rivers State, they made a complaint but whatever is the case, I think what we encourage people to do, nobody can be satisfied with everything but let’s borrow a leaf from what happened between George Bush and Al Gore in America who even when Al Gore was the vice president and had to preside over certain things before the handing over showed magnanimity; it showed that he was a nationalist, he loves America. I only hope Jonathan would display the same thing.
For me, it is great that we have held this election. When they complained of card readers failing or not failing, I, myself when I went to get my number in the bank, they used the same machine, it took me 40 minutes before they could get my fingerprint. When I went to get my passport when we were going to Hajj, I had the same problem. So it can fail but as we progress, we would improve on it. I want to believe that if we want to encourage people to accept public office, we should not run them down, we should not try to discourage them. I heard that Buhari said he is going to spend just four years, I believe that within four years, you can achieve a lot. I have tried it. I left office before my time was due and I knew I achieved whatever I wanted to achieve for the Court of Appeal and I left. At ICPC, I was given a second tenure, I turned it down because I believed I had laid a solid foundation for whoever cares to take over and work hard, he should be able to have a smooth sail in doing this thing. Government is a continuum. Somebody starts, he does his best and hands over to another person. So by and large, I think we should thank God. People were worried. My friend called me and said, ‘we are worried about this election’, I said God is in control. God is in control even where people planned and plotted evil, Allah’s plan would overcome and this is exactly what has been demonstrated during this exercise.
What is the major task before General Buhari when he finally assumes office as president?
Buhari himself has spoken about the major task ahead of him. For me who has been an anti-corruption czar, tackling corruption is very important. Because Jonathan has not been strict in fighting corruption, Buhari must tackle it head on immediately and the way he can do it is that he must get somebody who fears no foe, who is prepared to lay down his life to fight corruption, appointed as the head of the bodies. As the president, the impression which people have is that when you are in charge, you cannot perform. There may be good people but you need a government that is dynamic, that is positive, that has the political will to get you to do the job. And I think Buhari has the political will from his manifesto; he should be able to get the right people and encourage them. Then number two, you see poverty, people think when people are poor, they are susceptible to corruption, that is not true; poverty may want you to falter but if you are determined that good name is better than silver and gold, if you are determined that you would do what is right, you can suppress that. It is the duty of government to encourage people, to fight poverty, to empower people to achieve and get things done properly. Thirdly, don’t put square pegs in round holes. When you want to appoint people, appoint those who are capable, who are competent; nepotism should be ruled out. And then ensure a total commitment and nationalistic approach in all decisions. I want to believe that the party has men of intellect, they should use them and play down the craze for money, acquisition of wealth; they should lead people in the path of honour and rectitude. We also know that we have insurgency, if he applies the same method which he used in quelling the problem in Chad, let them work hard.
Then I want to believe that unfortunately  enforcement agencies have been made to look like they are agents of the government – they are not. They must work for Nigeria, not question of the president. Our pledge is to the Nigerian nation, not to the leader, the leader should be respected and encouraged to achieve and fulfil his dreams, not necessarily becoming a political jingoist who people would worship.
Given the ethnic and tribal dimension which this election took, how can we further solidify our national unity?   
The reason was because the political campaign was based on tribalism, ethnicity, religious bigotry. You can ask your imam or cleric to pray for you but you don’t have to do it in such an ostentatious manner that would make those who don’t belong to your faith to feel that these people are against us. So it is the leadership and the party line. Let the political parties realise that what matters most is the destiny of Nigeria, the future of Nigeria and they can set up even political schools where they can educate the people on nationalism, on citizenship, what will make us appreciate that the future of this generation and the generations yet unborn depends on how nationalistic and how committed we are to these people who would build the nation.
What is your suggestion towards improving the conduct of the governorship election coming up on April 11?  
Well you see the result of this election is enough lesson for anybody to know that hate campaign, abuses, insults would not solve anything. It has also shown that everything is not about money. So between now and that time, those who have been wasting money, fanning the embers of violence must realise that what is important is to assess the individuals who have been put forward by what they have been able to achieve or what we believe they can achieve and I think we should reduce tension, we should avoid overheating the polity so that we can have a more peaceful and fulfilling election.