By Baron Ike
Those beating the drum of succession for selfish reasons after President Muhammadu Buhari’s eight years may as well have a rethink as those who have the president’s ear say that era is over.
There have been veiled moves by known and unknown politicians within the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) who are making a case for Buhari’s successor in 2023 ahead of the time.
Posters of APC national leader Bola Tinubu were recently circulated in parts of Abuja and other parts of the country, but he distanced himself from them.
But insinuations are deep that Tinubu wants to take over from Buhari, taking advantage of his closeness to him and the numerous political appointees working with the president.
Unconfirmed insinuations within the APC indicates that the race for Buhari’s succession is already alive and the president is conscious of the plots and the implication on his second term administration.
Buhari recently shocked the succession advocates when he said he does not intend to anoint any one.
In the circumstance, the Buhari Media Organization (BMO) has described Buhari’s announced decision not to anoint a successor after his eight year tenure as revolutionary to Nigeria’s unfortunate tradition of godfather politics and an entrenchment of merit driven democracy.
“This points to a leader that wants to improve on the democratic culture he met upon coming to office. And this is the only way democracy can blossom and Nigeria produce quality and proper leadership.”
In a statement signed by its Chairman, Niyi Akinsiju and Secretary Cassidy Madueke, the Buhari supporters said that Nigeria’s democracy cannot flourish and grow under an atmosphere of godfatherism, political interference and imposition of candidates on the electorate.
The BMO stated that the President’s secret of political success is his dedication, honesty, hard work, perseverance and good reputation coupled with his grass root appeal cultivated through years of dedicated political participation.
“We call on aspiring politicians to realize their aspirations by emulating President Muhammadu Buhari, and caution against the pitfalls of shortcut to success through anointment by political godfathers.”
According to the media organisation, the desire to rule at all cost led to the embracing of political godfathers who committed enormous financial resources to getting them into office with the hope of returns on investment which, in turn, leads to large scale looting.
“President Buhari’s position is an indication that the discussion on 2023 is not ripe yet. He is solely focused on delivering on his promises and mandate given to him by Nigerians.” BMO added.