Interrogating the Buhari phenomenon

That APC convention also achieved a number of major milestones. The first was that the delegates’ votes truly made the difference. The ballot boxes were openly displayed and the counting was transparent. Although the boxes had neither locks nor keys, which usually took charge of the possibility of ballot box stuffing, the delegates were happy […]

That APC convention also achieved a number of major milestones. The first was that the delegates’ votes truly made the difference. The ballot boxes were openly displayed and the counting was transparent. Although the boxes had neither locks nor keys, which usually took charge of the possibility of ballot box stuffing, the delegates were happy that things went as expected. Those who lost left without a grudge.
The second accomplishment is that Buhari’s chronic fear of the ballot box was finally conquered. In his entire political journey, Buhari had either been invited to run or imposed, military style, on the party, in the name of consensus. This has characterized his last three contests between 2003 and 2011. It is important to remember that even the coup that brought Buhari to power on the 31 of December 1983 was said to have been masterminded by officers who later invited Buhari to step up to the plate. So Buhari had always been a beneficiary of social convictions. However, while it had never been his fault, it denied him the vital experience of canvassing for places or for votes. Buhari had always been looked upon as a messiah by the socially-inclined people who believed in his brand of leadership. He does not propagate any written doctrine or ideology. His followership is a product of perception because he is seen as a sincere leader when compared to his contemporaries who staged coups but instead of reviving the economy ended up enriching themselves.
Suffice it to say that Buhari’s popularity also has its roots in the instinct of the ordinary Nigerian. As a people Nigerians like to see perceived looters of their treasury in grief. And this is where Buhari’s persona plays a very crucial role. As a governor of the North eastern state with capital in Maiduguri during the Murtala-Obasanjo era, Buhari, then a colonel, dealt ruthlessly with hot headed Kanuri tycoons. It was during his tenure that some of the most influential Maiduguri businessmen who fell afoul of the law, or operated above it dropped out of their little bubbles to reality. This group included the Kotokos, Kyarimis, Indimis, Mandaras and the Deribes. Of the bunch one was said to have been bold enough to approach Buhari with a welcome token. Buhari bundled the tycoon behind a lorry and ordered him to Lagos to face the music. Minor offenders escaped with hard lashes of the cane.
That was not his only run-in with the people. In 1984 when he took over power in a military putsche he developed the War Against Indiscipline (WAI), template which took the nation by storm. People queued up, cleaned up and were afraid to act-up. As Head of State, Buhari spared no one, including the Islamic clergy which suffered the most under the period between 1984 and 1985 when he was overthrown. It was to pacify them after, that the issue of a membership of OIC was embraced. Even today, mullahs are said to be not so favourably disposed to Buhari owing to the fatal blow he dealt their preachers during his time as Nigeria’s military dictator.
However, one thing that endears Buhari to the people is his simplicity. Not that Buhari was open and generous, as many expect, but he lives and lets live. For example, when the Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida junta came to takeover power from him, he had simply let them grab it. He was reputed to have simply asked the coupists to “take over if you think Nigeria is an easy country to run.” He simply walked.
This aloofness and his unwillingness to solicit for support personally, many say, has been his undoing when it comes to winning elections or making new friends and keeping the old ones. In spite of his near cult-like following in many parts of the country, there are those who argue that Buhari’s social competence is highly imperilled by his rigidity. Many well known adherents of leftist philosophies are said to have fallen out with Buhari because of his inability to meet their expectations on the social plane. Not that that impedes his competence as a leader but some people argue that to whom much is given, much is expected. The argument that if you do not share in peoples joy by attending their ceremonies when they name their child or share their sorrow when they bury their loved ones, you do not deserve their support and following has been used against Buhari so effectively. It is, to most Africans, Buhari’s major drawback and many say why he has been unable to draw a followership beyond those that have stood with him through thick and thin. Merry Christmas.