POLITICAL PANORAMA with Ola Olateju

 POLITICAL PANORAMA RETURNS: OBASANJO, ATIKU AND THE POLITICS OF VENDETTA AS 2027 LOOMS

By Ola Olateju

After a long and unavoidable lull, Political Panorama with Ola Olateju returns to the public space at a moment when Nigeria's political temperature is rising and the 2027 presidential election is gradually moving from the horizon to the centre of national conversation.

And what better issue to herald this return than the increasingly curious political intervention of former President Olusegun Obasanjo and his renewed public criticism of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar?

                                 

Atiku Abubakar
ADC Presidential Candidate

Nigeria's democracy is once again approaching a decisive crossroads. As political alignments, realignments and permutations intensify ahead of 2027, Nigerians must be prepared to interrogate not only what politicians say, but also why they say it, when they say it, and whose political interests their interventions ultimately serve.

It is against this background that the recent and repeated public castigation of Atiku Abubakar by Chief Olusegun Obasanjo deserves careful scrutiny.

OBASANJO AND THE POLITICS OF RELEVANCE

Chief Olusegun Obasanjo remains one of Nigeria's most consequential political figures. His place in the country's history is undeniable. He has served as a military Head of State, an elected civilian President, and an influential elder statesman.

However, historical significance does not place any individual beyond public scrutiny.

                               

Chief Olusegun Obasanjo

One cannot escape the impression that Obasanjo has, over the years, demonstrated a remarkable tendency to insert himself into the centre of every major political conversation, sometimes in ways that raise questions about personal grievances, political vendetta and the pursuit of continued relevance.

The timing of his renewed attacks on Atiku is particularly striking.

For years, Obasanjo was known for writing lengthy and strongly worded interventions on the state of the Nigerian nation. His letters to successive governments became a distinctive feature of public discourse. Yet, since the emergence of the Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration, his interventions on the many serious challenges confronting Nigerians have not appeared with the same intensity and frequency.

But as 2027 approaches, and as Atiku Abubakar emerges once again as one of the most prominent challengers to the incumbent political establishment, Obasanjo appears to have found a renewed target.

That target is Atiku.

The question Nigerians must therefore ask is simple: Why now?

THE SHADOW OF 2003 AND THE THIRD-TERM CONTROVERSY

Perhaps the answer lies partly in history.

The political relationship between Obasanjo and Atiku was once one of the most formidable partnerships in Nigeria's Fourth Republic. Together, they formed the political leadership that ushered Nigeria into democratic rule in 1999.

Atiku, as Vice President, was not merely a passive occupant of office. He played a significant role in the early years of the administration and was widely regarded as an important political force within the government and the Peoples Democratic Party.

But their relationship eventually deteriorated dramatically.

The most contentious episode was the attempt by President Obasanjo to secure a controversial third term in office. Atiku became one of the principal political figures who resisted the attempt.

The third-term project ultimately failed.

For many Nigerians, the political hostility that followed between the two men never completely disappeared.

Initially, the principal weapon deployed against Atiku was the allegation of corruption. A panel was constituted to investigate him while he was still Vice President. Yet, despite the severity of the allegations and the political consequences that followed, the controversy did not produce the definitive proof that would permanently settle the matter in the court of public opinion.

When that line of attack failed to completely destroy Atiku's political career, other narratives emerged.

Today, the latest allegation appears to revolve around the claim that the late Rt. Hon. Ghali Na'Abba, then Speaker of the House of Representatives, received a paltry ₦5 million from Atiku in an alleged attempt to remove President Obasanjo from office.

If this allegation is being presented as a serious historical fact, then Nigerians deserve details.

What exactly was the agreement?

When was the money allegedly given?

Who witnessed the transaction?

What was the source of the information?

Why was the allegation not publicly disclosed at the time?

Why is it being raised now, more than two decades later?

These are legitimate questions.

If there was indeed a political conspiracy to remove a sitting President, Nigerians deserbeyondve to know the full story, not fragments of it released decades later in the heat of another presidential contest, and after Ghali Na'Abba had transited to the world beyond.

LET OBASANJO OPEN THE BOOKS

If Chief Obasanjo wishes to revisit the political history of the Fourth Republic, then Nigerians should welcome a complete account.

He should tell Nigerians, without selective memory, about the extraordinary political turbulence that characterised his administration.

How many Senate Presidents were removed or forced out during his tenure?

How many Speakers of the House of Representatives faced political battles under his administration?

How many national chairmen of the PDP were removed or replaced?

What were the circumstances surrounding these changes?

And, most importantly, what role did Atiku Abubakar actually play in each of these episodes?

History should not be written selectively.

If Atiku was responsible for political instability during the Obasanjo administration, then let the evidence be presented. But if political disputes were driven by the President's own determination to control the legislature, the party and the political machinery of the country, Nigerians equally deserve to know that.

The Nigerian people are no longer as politically naive as they were in 1999.

THE QUESTION OF DEMOCRATIC CREDIBILITY

There is another question that deserves attention.

If Obasanjo remains one of the world's most respected democratic statesmen, why is it that Atiku Abubakar appears to attract significant international political attention whenever Nigeria's democratic future is being discussed?

Foreign diplomats, international political actors and democracy advocates have frequently engaged with Atiku and other leading Nigerian political figures.

This is not to diminish Obasanjo's international standing. Rather, it raises a legitimate question about how Nigerians perceive the democratic credentials of their former leaders.

A statesman's influence should ultimately be measured not merely by the frequency of his interventions, but by the enduring institutions and democratic values he leaves behind.

THE AFRICAN LEADERSHIP FORUM QUESTION

The history of the African Leadership Forum is another matter worthy of reflection.

The Forum, established by Obasanjo in 1988, was once regarded as an important platform for African leadership development, democratic discourse and continental engagement.

Yet critics may reasonably ask why its influence appears to have diminished significantly since Obasanjo left the presidency.

If the Forum's strength was entirely rooted in Obasanjo's personal international stature, then why has it struggled to maintain the same visibility and momentum?

This question does not necessarily diminish the contributions of the Forum or its founder. Rather, it invites a broader discussion about the sustainability of institutions established around political personalities.

The same question can be asked of the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library in Abeokuta, which remains a major physical landmark and a testament to the former President's legacy.

But perhaps another question is worth asking: Where is Atiku Abubakar's equivalent institutional legacy?

The answer may be found not in a single building but in the institutions, businesses, political networks and philanthropic activities associated with him.

Ultimately, history will judge both men not by the size of their libraries, the number of letters they write, or the frequency of their media interventions, but by the enduring impact of their contributions to Nigeria.

2027 AND THE POLITICS OF BLACKMAIL

The approaching 2027 election will undoubtedly produce intense political warfare.

There will be propaganda.

There will be counter-propaganda.

There will be accusations, revelations, political memoirs, old stories resurrected and new allegations manufactured.

But Nigerians must learn to distinguish between accountability and political blackmail.

If there are credible allegations against any presidential aspirant, they should be investigated through the appropriate institutions. If there is evidence of corruption, let the evidence be presented. If there are crimes, let the law take its course.

But the Nigerian people should not be expected to accept every politically timed allegation as gospel simply because it comes from a former President.

Atiku Abubakar is not beyond criticism. No politician is.

But neither is he beyond the protection of due process, fairness and the presumption that allegations must be supported by credible evidence.

THE POLITICAL PANORAMA CHALLENGE

As Political Panorama returns, our message is simple:

Nigeria must move beyond politics of vendetta.

We must move beyond politics driven by personal grudges.

We must move beyond the selective weaponisation of history.

We must move beyond the politics of personality cults.

The 2027 presidential election should be about Nigeria's future, not the unfinished personal battles of yesterday's political leaders.

Chief Olusegun Obasanjo has every right to express his opinions. Atiku Abubakar has every right to defend himself. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has every right to seek re-election. And the Nigerian people have the right to interrogate all of them.

But the final decision belongs to the people.

No elder statesman, no former President, no political godfather and no political establishment should imagine that his personal opinion can determine the destiny of over 200 million Nigerians.

If Obasanjo believes Atiku is unfit to lead Nigeria in 2027, let him present his case.

If Atiku believes he can provide better leadership, let him present his own case.

Let the people decide.

For those who love Atiku, no amount of political name-calling will change their conviction. For those who oppose him like Obasanjo, no amount of praise will change their minds.

The real question is not whether Obasanjo likes Atiku.

The real question is whether Atiku Abubakar is capable of providing the leadership Nigeria desperately needs at this critical moment in its history. The answer does not lie with Obasanjo but with the people of Nigeria.

That is the debate Nigerians should be having. Not a personal vendetta 

And that is precisely why Political Panorama with Ola Olateju is back.

The political panorama has changed.

The actors are changing.

The alliances are shifting.

The stakes are higher.

And as 2027 approaches, Nigerians must be ready to look beyond the noise, beyond the vendetta, beyond propaganda and beyond the personalities to the future of the Nigerian state.

Welcome back to Political Panorama.

The conversation continues.