Even the governor thing was an accident. He was an innocent teacher plucked from the classroom to be running mate to Alams of infamous memory, only for GEJ himself to be saddled with the governorship power proper when Alams went in and under. Then Obasanjo plucked GEJ, again providentially, to become Umaru Yar’Adua’s running mate for president of Nigeria!
All that could be dizzying, I admit, to a poor village boy.
But that’s not why I can’t knock him entirely. Ebele surrounds himself with some of my old time pals and aburos, aside from the fact that I have a son whose mother comes right from GEJ’s neck of woods and I had journeyed to Turofani (boat miles from Patani) about 20 years ago for my father-in-law’s funeral and bear witness to the horrors of neglect and suffering those from that deep in the creeks undergo.
But, for Christ’s sake, how long will it take Ebele to shake off the innocence and reverie of creek life and realise that he is now Mr. President for real? And with that comes an expectation of carriage and presence of mind.
Not for the first time, neither of that was present out there in Ibadan on Monday (February 9) when he went on his campaign — his first, to earn our vote in his own right. What I heard on radio live broadcast (no, I wasn’t at Mapo Hall and I didn’t watch it on TV — thank goodness!) was not good enough.
Although I also admit that “godfather” Obasanjo’s babysitting and loquacious presence could be confusing, if not intimidating, still… wetin?
First, was President Jonathan referring to himself and his running mate, Sambo, as being in Oyo State to ask for the people’s vote in “our governorship race as we did last year for the PDP primaries?”
What? Did I hear right? Governorship race? But our President carried on, his voice not the most assuring, until some minutes into his speech, someone could be overheard whispering to him to correct the blunder:
“You said governorship, sir, you meant presidential race.”
“Oh, I did?” said our President. “Of course, I meant presidential race. We don’t want to take Akala’s job o.”
Well, at least, he tried to joke it off nicely.
But was that a mere faux pas or a Freudian slip? What state of mind would make a President, even “momentarily,” forget he was running for president and not governor? Something tells me GEJ hasn’t truly in his heart grown beyond the guber-level dreamland. This presidency thing is damn too big a shoe to wear.
And, GEJ went on further in his long, winding speech that qualified to be described as rambling were I to knock him, to commit the most reckless and inexcusable of opposition ridiculing: He called the governors and the political parties controlling the majority of the states in the West “rascals.” Each time he, like a child stuck on a new word, pronounced it, I cringed. And I cringed six times.
If GEJ and his handlers think that was a smart talk, they are wrong. Nothing could be dumber, uncalled for and inappropriate. You come to a region that, by his admission, is primus inter pares in education and enlightenment and you call their elected leaders (not riggers from the “nest of killers”) “rascals”? C’mon!
The worst thing is that it is out of character of gentleman Goodluck Jonathan that we know.
Who told him to come up with such - to borrow from his own terminology - rascality? Was it a need to be funny? I heard mumblings and not a laugh. Need to be rough on the opposition? Wrong. These are the people he could most count upon to save his neck in rough weather, as they did for him in the turbulent times of Yar’Adua’s last days.
President Goodluck Jonathan has done enough damage to himself talking when he shouldn’t and saying things he shouldn’t have said. And we keep forgiving him because of the “underdog” thing.
If Mr. Jonathan is tired of being the underdog, good; I am also tired of forgiving his gaffes. Shi kenan.
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