The African Democratic Congress (ADC), the political party that is highly favoured to take over the reins of governance from the failed All Progressives Congress (APC), is passing through what it usually takes to arrive at one’s ultimate destination. That road, in whatever guise it comes, is never an easy road. Saul who, according to Bible narrative, was converted on the road to Damascus, witnessed a radical life change to become Apostle Paul.
In the case of the ADC, the transformation which it underwent following its takeover by a different group of politicians, was just a tip of the iceberg. What has been manifesting after the rebranding of the party speaks volume about the fact that there is no easy road to freedom, as the legendary Nelson Mandela tells us.
We are familiar with the antics of the APC-led federal government in its bid to undermine the ADC. We are also conversant with the machinations of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as it schemes to render ADC impotent and ineffectual. The overall objective is to ensure that the party does not have a strong footing that will enable it dislodge President Tinubu and his APC. Regardless of all that, the ADC is trudging on. It is navigating through the land mines that have been stacked up against it in its quest for the ultimate goal.
Some of the odds that it had to grapple with in the build-up to its National Convention point to the fact that the party is being hunted like a game. The electoral commission fired the first shot when it withdrew recognition from the ADC, purporting that a faction exists within the party. It then advised the party not to hold its scheduled Congresses and the National Convention. The ADC cried foul. It read the handwriting on the wall properly and stood up against the destabilization plot of INEC.
Then, hours before its National Convention, there were surreptitious manoeuvres by agents of the federal government to deny it access to the venue of the Convention. The Rainbow Events Marque which hosted the Convention was rendered unusable for the greater part of the day of the convention because the owners of the facility were under pressure from external forces to cancel the agreement that it had earlier entered into with the ADC. I was a witness to how delegates to the convention roasted under the scorching heat on that fateful day before the air conditioners were released from inactivity. In the end, the convention held despite the state of uncertainty that presaged it.
But the hurdles besetting the ADC are not entirely external. Some are within. The party, as a matter of fact, is grappling with inhibiting divisions within its rank. I had pointed out in this Column in the recent past that the ADC is yet to make that expected leap of fortune that will launch it into stardom because two presidential giants are pulling the party from opposite spectrums. Whereas Atiku Abubakar parades the credentials of a former Vice President in his struggle for the party’s presidential ticket, Peter Obi’s supporters are not persuaded by what Atiku is flaunting. Atiku’s selling point, according to his supporters, is that he is of the moslem north which claims to have more voting strength than the predominantly Christian south. But those behind Obi are not persuaded by this. They argue that Obi’s support base transcends religion and ethnicity. They also argue that Obi represents that paradigm shift that could take Nigeria away from its crippling past. The argument goes on. Indeed, the push for the party’s presidential ticket between these two tendencies is intense. None seems to be yielding any ground to the other.
But political watchers are not comfortable with this sharp divide. They fear that it could lead to an implosion within the party. The ADC can surmount this dilemma if the contending forces take off the toga of entitlement mentality in their various pursuits. This much was preached at the just concluded national convention of the party. At the event, some concerned leaders preached unity of purpose. They enjoined the presidential aspirants to shun any act of personalization. In the light of the foregoing, those who mean well for the party are working on the presidential aspirants with a view to getting them to close ranks and make the party the viable alternative that has what it takes to shove the APC by the wayside.
Much of this work is being done on Atiku for a number of reasons. The first is that a proper reading of the political barometer shows that the odds are against him. It is believed that his candidacy has the dangerous capacity to polarize Nigeria politically along north-south divide. The reason is simple. The turn of the south to produce the next president is still subsisting after Tinubu’s four-year tenure. Only a southerner can complete the remaining four years of the south. An intrusion by a northern candidate will lead to a disruption, and this will not augur well for the country’s political stability.
The second revolves around the capacity to win votes. Who, between Obi and Atiku is likely to garner more votes in a presidential election? More people believe that the equation tilts in favour of Obi. They believe that Obi has a cult following which Atiku cannot boast of. They further argue that it is for this reason that Tinubu is scared stiff of Obi. Nigerians are unanimous in their acceptance of the fact that Peter Obi stands head and shoulder over Tinubu and would defeat the seating president decisively if both of them are squared up in an election. The same verdict does not hold true of Tinubu versus Atiku in an election. An election between Tinubu and Atiku will throw many Nigerians into ambivalence. Making a choice will be difficult as the choice you make would look like the one you did not make. What this means is that, in terms of perception, Tinubu and Atiku look almost alike. But there is a world of difference between Obi and Tinubu as well as between Obi and Atiku.
Analysts believe that ADC needs that option that will bring about a clear and unambiguous difference. When the difference is clear, choice becomes easy to make. Thus, in the search by the ADC for that candidate whose image looms large and whom Tinubu, the seating president, is scared of meeting in an election, the party should shun petty considerations and settle for the big picture. That big image in this case is Peter Obi. The ADC must be properly guided as it marches towards its Damascus. A state of nirvana, as Buddhists tell us, does not come about by chance. It is a product of a disciplined life that eventuates in transcendence. In other words, the ADC cannot arrive its Damascus through uncoordinated and unreasoned choices. It must be strategic. It must be wise. Above all, it must have its eyes on the ball.
QUOTE:
“In terms of perception, Tinubu and Atiku look almost alike. But there is a world of difference between Obi and Tinubu as well as between Obi and Atiku…
ADC needs that option that will bring about a clear and unambiguous difference. When the difference is clear, choice becomes easy to make.”
