Simon Kolawole Live!

Email : simon.kolawole@thisdaylive.com

This story often summons a smile to my face. About 20 years ago, we took my little cousin, Motunrayo, to a studio for a photo session. She sat in front of the camera and we started applying some make-up to her pretty face. Make-up done, lights on, camera ready, preamble finished, she innocently stood up and headed for the exit door. We laughed and informed her that she was yet to do what we actually came for – a photo shoot. The three-year-old girl probably thought we only came to glamorise her face. This, tearfully, reminds me of Nigerian politicians. They so often fail to understand that the main reason for getting political power is not the glamour of sirens and convoys. Power is not an end in itself; it is, alas, a means to an end.

While Nigerian governors were busy meeting and strategising non-stop on who should be the next chairman of the Political Billionaires’ Club, popularly known as the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF), the Ruler of Dubai – a state in the United Arab Emirates – was busy unveiling plans to build three world-class hospitals and 40 new clinics to promote “medical tourism”. His Highness Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum said the plan was to build hospitals comparable to any medical facility anywhere in the world. They will also build five-star hotels next door to the facilities for the relatives of patients. The objective is to add another dimension to the Dubai story – trade, travel, real estate and now medical tourism. That is vision. That is leadership.

About the same time in my dearly beloved country, our multi-billionaire governors and other politicians were meeting day and night and night and day over who controls the meaningless Political Billionaires’ Club.

Their disagreement was not about building world-class hospitals and world-class schools. It was not about fixing the potholes that litter our roads all over the federation. It was not about ending infant and maternal mortality. It was not about making Nigeria a land of trade and tourism. It was not about turning Nigeria to an exporter of mobile phones, like South Korea, or dairy products, like the Netherlands. The goal of political power, as far as theycan see, is intrigues. Politics starts and ends with elections.
Development is a distraction.
And we keep asking why Nigeria is like this.

I have been very amused – let me use the word bemused – by the NGF intrigues. If you believe what you are reading in the media, President Goodluck Jonathan,who wants a second term in 2015, is trying to stop Governor Rotimi Amaechi from getting a second term as chairman of NGF. To complete the irony, Amaechi, who is serving a second term as governor of Rivers State and also seeking a second term as NGF chairman, is against a second term for Jonathan. And so a civil war has broken out. It has now been presented to the gullible public as a fight between democrats and dictators, a battle between principled men and unprincipled men.

You believe that crap? So our politicians are now symbols of credible elections and role models of integrity? Seriously? Since when? Many Nigerians are selling and buying that line. Have we been so bewitched to forget that this fight is but a mere disagreement between soul mates? These same politicians will soon meet over bottles of expensive champagne and thereafter announce to the world that they have “resolved” their “differences” – while millionsof Nigerians will continue to wallow in poverty and disease. Why do we always allow these politicians to foolus? I hereby officially announce that I, Simon Gbenga Kolawole, refuse to be hoodwinked. I have seen all this drama before. I don’t know about you.
Instead of the rest of us to gather and pelt these overfed politicians with rotten tomatoes for always placing political intrigues above good governance, we are taking sides. Can’t we all see that this NGF thing is all politics? Can’t we see that this political game is not about the progress of Nigeria? Why are we so easily excited in this country? Why do we always allow these politicians to distract our attention from the purpose of politics? How I wish all the energy being dissipated by these pot-bellied politicians was for the comfort of Nigerians! How I wish it was about how to provide safe water tothe poor and jobs to the millions of youths who are hopelessly and haplessly roaming the streets! How I wish Nigerian politicians were quarrelling over how totackle guinea worm, malaria, diabetes and kidney failures!

If these politicians devote just 10 per cent of their intrigues to making our country a better place, I bet Dubai would be like a ghetto compared to Nigeria. With all the trillions of naira that the three tiers of government have shared since 1999, we should not be here lamenting about electricity, education and health.

But here we are, stuck with leaders who think only for themselves, who think that getting political power and playing high-wire politics are all that should count. Of all the troubles afflicting Nigerians today, NGF chairmanship and 2015 should be the least of our worries. But our politicians, like my innocent little cousin, like to adorn the make-up of political power and then walk away when it comes to the real reason they are in office – to turn Nigeria to a civilised country.

Now, with all the emotion and passion being exerted inthe polity in the past few weeks over the NGF election, I will not be surprised if many of these politicians endup with high blood pressure and stroke by 2015. Well, I’ve got news for them. By then, Dubai will hopefully have opened one of their world-class hospitals, complete with the best equipment andthe best medical personnel the world has to offer. Nigerian politicians can go there to receive treatment after the elections. With no world-class hospital in Nigeria, Dubai will eagerly welcome our leaders with open arms. After all, are these chubby-cheeked politicians and their fronts not the ones buying up the choice property in Dubai while millions of Nigerians remain homeless?

http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/fellow-nigerians-it-is-all-politics-/149100/

God bless Simon Kolawole. I have never and will never post any comment in support or against any faction of that USELESS, NEEDLESS and WASTEFUL body called NGF. The kind of attention devoted to the NGF in the last few weeks further confirms how Nigerians as a people have gotten their priorities WRONG.

Sincere 9gerian: God bless Simon Kolawole. I have never and will never post any comment in support or against any faction of that USELESS, NEEDLESS and WASTEFUL body called NGF. The kind of attention devoted to the NGF in the last few weeks further confirms how Nigerians as a people have gotten their priorities WRONG.

Thank you my brother...Simon Kolawole is one columnist I admire..he delivers his analysis with precise depth and grasp of issues without taking sides..he has clearly reminded we Nigerians about how we do get our priorities wrong..He just reminds me of Ehiedu of Raypower's POLITICAL PLATFORM

awodman:
Thank you my brother...Simon Kolawole is one columnist I admire..he delivers his analysis with precise depth and grasp of issues without taking sides..he has clearly reminded we Nigerians about how we do get our priorities wrong..He just reminds me of Ehiedu of Raypower's POLITICAL PLATFORM

I miss Political Platform. The Ray Power FM station that began operation here in Enugu sometime ago suddenly went off air. Even the one on DSTV is always noisy. I hope the management can fix those problems so those of us in Enugu can enjoy Political Platform once again.

Jonathan is smart after all. With all this, he might just clinch the PDP ticket. As I have always said, the PDP ticket is Jonathan's main problem, if he wins the primaries, he will return as president.

Before now, the question was how especially when he had Overambitious governors from the North, the likes of Lamido, Aliyu etc. and the South South guy. These guys have huge PDP presence in their state and can sway their delegates to vote their interest. The Govornors forum just exposed the ambitious in these ways

1. NO GENTLe MAN AGREEMENT .
Jonathan will be going into the PDP primary knowing his enemies, unlike Akpabio and yaguda and Jang that foolishly agreed to an election hoping on a gentle man agreement.

2. SUSPENDED PDP GOVORNORS CAN'T PARTICIPATE IN THE PRIMARIES

The likes of Wamako and and Amechi if they remain suspended wont vote and be voted for. It will mean delegates from these state will mostly likely be in Jonathan's control. The Niger state Governor should read in between the lines and keep quite just like Lamido is doing to avoid being suspended. At the moment Jonathan prefers Govornors loyal to him than those that aren't. The reason is simple, that's the only way he will win.

3. THE WAY FORWARD FOR JONATHAN IS NOW CLEAR AND EASY

The road to victory is now clear and I will add very easy for Jonathan in the primaries and the general election. From the NGF election, it has clearly shown who is for who. Jonathan has secured his friend. Also, from the data we have of those that voted, more PDP Govornors voted for Jang. The same PDP governors that voted Jang will vote for Jonathan in the primaries. Do the Maths .Though a number in the North and of course the ACN did not, this will be inconsequential in the primaries. Now projecting forward to the presidential election proper, the North is lost, it can not be swinged, APC will clearly win there by votes and rigging. pDP will only pick up crumbs from states like Sokoto, Kastina, Zamfara, Adawama, Gombe etc. Kaduna with a voting strength of 1M will be 50-50.The North Central will be all PDP, including Nasarawa state. The SS and SE will be 101% PDP including rivers and IMO both by votes and rigging. Depending on the APC candidate the SW may just be 50-50. At least Lagos will be. This is what will matter for PDP. APC should think very well here. The big difference here is, while PDP will pick crumbs in APC/ACN states, APC would not pick up anything in PDP states (SS & SE). Also, apart from Kano, PDP will win all the states with 1M + votes or at least share the votes 50-50.


In summary, it is a big shame that pDP will return in the federal level, the opposition and the over ambitious are playing catch up. Nigeria will have another 4 years of darkness.