by Lucas TOGAN

GEJ is a good and decent human being. I believe that he never thought he'd come so far so soon in his lifetime. But he has. I also believe that the body took office but the mind never came. GEJ is a nice and sincere guy - I truly believe that. But the problem is that "nice" is not a fruit of the holy spirit (my christian adherents can relate) and my corporate juggernauts know that "nice" guys don't get the corner office and they often finish last. I have never been a supporter but he especially disappointed me repeatedly with his unguarded utterances over the years. Also whatever empathy he had before taking office has since evaporated.

Buhari on the flip side rides on his past records. These records attest to his uncompromising nature and also his genuine distaste for corruption. Despite these laudable achievements, a few questions bother me:

1. Can he repeat same milestones without his formidable team mate - Idiagbon? - Who knows?

2. Are his 30+ year old credentials and modus operandi relevant in the face of modern day Nigeria? - Hard to tell.

3. Can he understand that while decrees go from table to street (pronouncement to implementation) in no time, bills can sometimes take years to pass? - I hope so.

Truth be told I have not seen a Nigerian leader who impresses me. Fashola came close but he did nothing special. Between the 2 described above, who is my man? Neither. But I'm gunning for Buhari - not because he has given me any clear cut blueprint about his plans for Nigeria but because I know there will be less sycophants around the president. I'm gunning for Buhari not because APC is less corrupt than PDP but because with APC, I believe one key sector will be handed to Fashola - I imagine POWER - and he will turn it into a "Lagos". I want Buhari because though some of his efforts might be frustrated by the national assembly, other sectors will function much better while he wrangles with the "big belly" men. I will vote Buhari because if he is the same man as 30+ years ago then his technocrat running mate will have a lot of input in governance. If Osinbajo does to Nigeria what he did to Lagos judiciary then my vote would have truly counted.

Buhari's pointe majeur is to fight corruption. The funny thing is that corruption will fight back and fight hard - very hard. Corruption needs to be starved. When you starve corruption, it dies a natural death. That's the Osinbajo style. That's how he approached the corrupt Lagos judiciary and won the war. Though I fear some of Buhari's ideas might be archaic and his methods border-line mundane, because of his choice of running mate, I am convinced they make a formidable team.

Having said all these, I, however, only want Buhari for one term. I want him to be a bridge to the future. A future where intelligence supercedes sentiments. A future where a performer like Fashola can be rest assured that what he did in Lagos for 8 years will guarantee him the Aso Rock residence. A future where people like El-Rufai will not be victimized after the outstanding job he did in Abuja. The list goes on. That future is not today; so Fashola should settle for a ministerial portfolio. El-Rufai should go and govern Kaduna. But the future belongs to the intelligent and Buhari is a safe bridge to that future.


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