BABANGIDA, A DRAMATIC U-TURN?

Is it for real or just another one of his 'maradona-istic' curve-balls, being thrown at Nigerians? Did he just repent and change for the better, or is the Nigerian-Maradona up to something sinister? Is this the final awakening for the toothy Machiavellian "Prince" of Minna, Niger State, Nigeria? Is it the usual "the more you look the less you see and understand" gimmickry of the mirage of Minna, that Nigerians are once again witnessing? What finally struck this 'Saul on his way to Damascus,' to warrant the soothing-heavenly statements currently coming out of his mouth? What is attributable to the sudden change of mind of Mallam Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida (IBB)?

Icheoku ponders whether a man with IBB's capacity and propensity to ferment mischief and cause vicious atrocities, is capable of ever changing and for the better? What actually happened to induce this epochal epiphany in a man as ruthless as IBB, whose toothy smile always masquerades a heart of very cold steel? IBB, who was once aptly framed in an unflattering phrase, "with a friend like IBB, no one needs an enemy"? Really, and the same man is now feigning ignorance of the vicious clamp-down visited by his regime on the people of Nigeria, some of who eventually paid the ultimate price with their lives? May be IBB is counting on the fabled short memory of Nigerians who are always in the present, forgetful of the past and indifferent about the future? But would it work? Icheoku says, not this time! Is his present newly discovered, more civilized and pragmatic perspective on a broad range of issues real or merely a symptomatic ecdysis of a conniving, contriving piece of humanity, a dictator and a killer? Should Nigerians start jumping for joy that at last, the devil-incarnate IBB has repented of his dubious evil ways and turned a new leaf; or should they continue to be very wary that the leopard never changes its spots? If the later is the case, who is he targeting now; with this current germane positions on how things ought and should be, in an otherwise properly-functioning Nigeria?

When, where and why did the present epiphany of Nigeria's only known and self-acknowledged 'evil-genius' take place? Was it on his Minna Hill-top mansion or in one of his estates at Monaco? Was it in a Parisian hospital bed, or while airborne in one of his private jets, which corruption made possible for him to acquire? If only this toothy "evil-prince" of Minna had respected the wish of majority of Nigerians and sworn in Chief MKO Abiola as the then duly elected president of Nigeria; may be and only may be, he would not need all these 'pontifications on rehabilitation', as he would have become the most revered Nigerian statesman now living? But no, his character-flaw made him do it, and now, not all the confessionals from his conceited dark heart can remedy what he had irredeemably damaged - his reputation before Nigerians!

Our recent observations of IBB suggests a man who has 'changed'; or at least, his utterances and apparent new-found humility appear to project that? But whether it is 'a change we can believe in' is totally a different matter for another day's discourse. Or did IBB just recruit new 'on-top-of-their-game' advisers to re-make and re-package him, in a deft manoeuvre to manipulate gullible Nigerians into putting him back in Aso Rock in 2011? Icheoku says, despite all his denials to the contrary regarding his possible come-back, the man IBB is capable of anything including a daring dash for Aso Rock in 2011; afterall a coup plotter and an alleged drug-runner is capable of anything under the sun? Although not scientifically tenable, IBB was recently accused of 'masterminding the cancer that killed Gani Fawehinmi?' So much for a man that Nigerians cannot trust. Granted that a slippery-eel IBB is hard to understand or trust, Icheoku says, provided all the present sanctimony are not geared towards clearing the grounds for another Aso Rock misadventure, Nigerians should consider his confessions and repentance, with a view to granting him a conditional forgiveness based on the understanding that he gets out of active politics forever and for good! Recently, our close marking on the occupant of the 50-room Minna Hill-top mansion, found IBB saying things which sounded self-contradictory to the then 'notorious' IBB? Things which would have then amounted to treasonable felony and could not have come out of his mouth?

Imagine IBB advocating for Nigeria to discard 'federal character' quota system, which enabled his lazy northern-folks to play catch-up with and possibly surpass southerners in Nigeria? It is on record that IBB and his other prodigious renegade comrade, the midget of Kano, late Sani Abacha, through their crass nepotism, widened the gap between north and south in Nigeria? They caused such a loopsided imbalance throughout Nigeria federal service and the armed forces, including the police, customs and immigration that the north practically controls every institution of note in Nigeria? During the last streamlining of Nigeria's federal permanent secretaries it was discoverd that Kano State alone practically have more federal permanent secretaries than the five eastern states combined? And the imbalance permeates throughout other spheres of the Nigerian bureaucracy, courtesy of IBB and his northern cohorts, the adventurous coup-plotters? Look at who is talking - Nigeria's IBB? According to one observer, "IBB's sudden out of the cloud policy-somersault, is very fishy and needs to be thoroughly investigated? It is a bait and Nigerians should not bite it, because it is poisonous?" Suddenly IBB now wants meritocracy as opposed to "northern-ocracy" and/or "Islam-ocracy" to be the guiding principle of the Nigeria of the future, where merit and not a person's last-name or method of worship rules? Icheoku have nothing against it, it is progressive thinking; provided it cuts through all the strata of the society including the presidency, whose present occupant would not have qualified had IBB's position come alive before 2007's charade of an election?

Further IBB canvassed for devolution of powers from the central authority to states and local governments in the spirit of true functional federalism? Icheoku asks IBB, was Nigeria not an absolute "Federal" republic when he was in the saddle of power at both Dodan Baracks and later at Aso Rock? Why did he wait until now to seek to correct a generational aberration of a totalitarian-unitarianism, disguised as a federalism in Nigeria and for so long, since 1966? Icheoku says, this sudden change of direction is suspect; it must be for a reason and there is an intended target somewhere, may be the Igbo presidency of 2016? The Igbos of the south east Nigeria should therefore be very vigilant as the Hausa-Fulanis are up to something, some game to water down their presidency in 2016, and must resist any such devolution of power at this time? If Nigeria wants to devolve the powers of the presidency, which Icheoku strongly favors, they should wait until other zonal blocs in Nigeria have had their 'executive presidencies,' doling out the oil-money however they may see fit.

The Yorubas have had their Aremu Olusegun Obasanjo-led 8 years? The Hausa-Fulani led northern Nigeria had their ways severally since 1960, with some few intermissions and continuing uptil now, and possibly through 2015? Therefore the next in the line of succession, the Igbos, should and must be allowed to enjoy the 'executive presidency in Nigeria' without any let, hindrance, condition, yoke or attenuation of powers whatsoever! After them, then the northern Hausa-Bastards of the north-east, followed by the restive militant South-South minorities and lastly the northern Middle-Belt minorities? Thereafter, at the completion of the assizes, then whatever devolution or reformation of power that IBB is dreaming about, can genuinely come into effect; but it must not be seen as a targeted-ploy to diminish some other people's power over the federal purse? It is called fairness!But any attempt by the northern oligarchs to otherwise, try to change the horse mid-stream, as a forensic interpretation of IBB's suggestion reveals, is totally unacceptable and shall be resisted.

Also IBB harped on the necessity for state police, a position we do not find any fault with and adds, it is about time states in Nigeria are allowed to control their own local security. It will help a lot when a chief security officer of a state, the governor, has a stake on the apparatus of controlling the security of lives and properties within his geographical jurisdiction?

However an over-riding federal police should equally be in place to checkmate excessiveness and/or arbitrariness by some state executives; and to serve as an instrument to forestall and protect any potential abuse. Akin to what obtains in the United States of America, there should be varying tiers or levels of policing in Nigeria with clearly defined functions; and this will greatly help in better and improved policing of the citizens and their properties. The question however is, why didn't IBB take the initiative when he was in power; may be, as a maximum ruler, he desired absolute powers to control his cowering subjects? Just a penny for your thoughts!

Another aspect of life which the occupant of Minna Hill-top mansion touched on, was the rule of law? In his own words, Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida, said, "Indeed, no society can survive if its citizens are not bound by law, the true observance of due process and have confidence in the rule of law?” Icheoku says, ironically, Dele Giwa would have still been alive today if IBB is not a hypocrite; and so was Gloria Okon, Mamman Vasta, Gideon Orka and a host of so many other unlucky victims of IBB's state-terrorism, had this awakening come earlier during his 8 years in power from August 27, 1985 - August 26, 1993? But no, after depriving so many Nigerians their human-rights, jailing and even killing some of them without any trial for any offence whatsoever, IBB's guilty-feelings is now forcing his lips to sing praises for the rule of law? Who in Nigeria really believes any word that comes out of this toothy man's mouth, after their nightmarish experiences of eight years with him as the head-honcho in Nigeria? In short, IBB and the rule of law are at permanent loggerheads, locked up in a mortal enmity; two rival arch-enemies who are in a battle for survival, the death of one being the only assured security-guarantee or panacea that will keep the other alive? Icheoku says, IBB is simply the wrong person to talk on the subject of rule of law; he is not qualified, having murdered rule of law in Nigeria and does not have the moral authority to now advocate its unassailability or its supreme position in the society? Simply put, IBB is the wrong man to do any public relation job for rule of law; he is not 'the one' Nigerians are expecting to talk on that subject area.

IBB also emphasised and reiterated Option A4 as the best political solution for Nigeria's political problems? Icheoku says, this is the same man who annulled the election of Chief MKO Abiola in June 12, 1993, the first ever successful "graduate" of his famed 'Option A4 School of Politicking' in Nigeria? Icheoku says, Nigeria has never had such a bifurcated and conflicted human personality as Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida; who regrettably is his own worst enemy? It is comparable to having a whore preaching about virtue or virginity? Or better still, the $50billion dollar-fraud, Bob Madoff preaching about frugality and prudence? Or even finding Aremu Olusegun Obasanjo preaching against sleeping with one's own daughter in-law, Mojisola Gbenga Obasanjo, if you catch my drift? It is self contradictory for IBB, who is now being dribbled by a strange fate which has held him hostage to himself and for so long, to once again be blabbing his mouth, pretending to have solutions to every imaginable Nigeria's problems, majority of which he brought about?

In summation, Icheoku says, all that has left the mouth of Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida in the recent past sounds plausible, and would have been nicely received but for the strangeness of the man IBB? Who knows if he is merely playing the devil's advocate and for some vested northern interest, preparatory to the eventual power shift to the Igbos of the south east Nigeria in 2016? Who also knows if he is merely taking some pragmatic positions towards repairing his badly damaged reputation, geared towards a planned second missionary journey to Aso Rock in 2011? But whatever be the case, IBB should be aware that Nigerians are waiting, trigger-alert, to protest the daylight out of any come-back attempt, he may or plans to make in the future? Such an added insult will be unacceptable to Nigerians and will be resisted with the last breath of many Nigerians. To many Nigerians, IBB is a bad dream that should just go away and disappear into oblivion. Icheoku says, enough of IBB; and Nigerians should in unison, say to him, none of his confessionals will be enough at his rehabilitation!