But neither his preparation, which was unmatched by his opponents in the presidential poll, nor his hardiness, which is yet to be surpassed by any of his political contemporaries, guarantees the success of his administration. His predecessor has left the economy burdened by debts and misdirection, especially with various factions of the cabal running riot with bewildering last-minute schemes and stratagems. And the country itself has never been more divided in every sphere.
Even after winning the poll by an undisputed margin, his opponents have sought to delegitimise the victory with audacious lies, sabotage and rebellion encouraged strangely but not unsurprisingly by a few influential south-western leaders, retired military and civilian. President Tinubu is accustomed to swimming against the tide, but he will find this peculiar tide bequeathed his administration daunting and corrosive, and he will be tested like no other Nigerian leader has been, no, not since the civil war ended in 1970.
He will rely on his leadership character to make a difference, but he will soon discover that making a success of his administration will require skills subliminally in excess of his famed ability for economic management and political strategy.
Leaders are unremarkable these days; they come cheap, armed only by their passion to rule, and with no other accoutrement. Most are, however, ignorant of the metaphysics of leadership; they equate or even limit great leadership to physical development. President Tinubu’s governorship of Lagos probably reminds him of both the insubstantiality of power and the intangible essence of leadership that differentiate great leadership from ordinary leadership.
He has rarely spoken about this, nor has he so far attempted to explain why he outlasted his Class of 1999 governorship contemporaries. He was perhaps the most outspoken and audacious of them, and was billed for destruction; yet, he survived. And since vacating the governorship mansion, he has hardly put any foot wrong. Indeed, with minor exceptions, and despite betrayal by some of his protégés, not to talk of bitter hatred by his opponents, he has flourished.
Nineteenth century German Chancellor, Otto von Bismarck, pondered this subject and concluded that “The statesman’s task is to hear God’s footsteps marching through history, and to try and catch on to His coattails as He marches past.” It is not clear that as governor, President Tinubu took that lesson to heart or understood its subtle and hugely significant meaning. But, judging from his achievements, he seemed to appreciate the essence of the statement. Now, he must unequivocally treasure it.
In addition to tackling smouldering divisions and comprehensively rejigging education and health, not to mention restructuring the police and security agencies, he must demonstrate a full grasp of the intangibles of power and leadership. The first few months will be intense; but when he reaches cruising altitude, he must turn his attention to those sublime policies and programmes capable of changing the society in ways that make revisionism difficult.
During his tenure, his goal must be that when the curtain is drawn on his presidency, the lives of Nigerians must have been changed in unmistakable and fundamental ways for the better. Beyond laurels from sporting, culinary and other mundane competitions, he must give Nigerians reason to believe in themselves and be proud of their country and identity. He must, therefore, manage and defang the antipathy to his leadership emanating from or two regions. He must also find humour in the constant heckles he will be subjected to, heckles that seek to irritate him and bait his shibboleths.
Fortunately for him, the three geopolitical zones of the North favour him and demonstrated it with their votes, while his few but vociferous opponents from the Southwest, who will remain unamenable to reason or logic for the duration of his presidency, have little or no clout.
And finally he must sponsor fundamental changes in leadership recruitment nationally and at all levels to preclude, as Lagos discovered to its dismay in the last governorship poll with LP candidate Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, inexperienced, unprepared and starry-eyed individuals from assuming sensitive leadership positions.
Tomorrow is President Bola Tinubu’s day, the beginning of a new era of a leadership unfettered by menacing powers and the deathly and iniquitous throwback cultures of the ancient regime. He will be his own man. Last Thursday he was bestowed the country’s highest honour, Grand Commander of the Federal Republic (GCFR).
If he has not already reflected on how far he has come, let him take a few hours before inauguration to ponder his life’s trajectory. It is okay if he lies prostrate on the floor of his bedroom for an hour or two in total submission before God who has helped him stay true to his ideals, who has made him triumph over many enemies, and who has gifted him this day.
He played his part by developing himself, making friends, reaching out to his enemies, and showing courage and strength in the face of odds potent enough to break a dozen gifted men at once. But in the end, he must come to the conclusion that God prospered his politics and gave him the throne.
He will encounter many highs and lows as he goes along, and some of his friends will desert him, even as he makes new friends. And as he tries to navigate between hostile and hugely competitive global powers, some of those countries implacably far-right, and others populists, he must remember that his country is behind him, regardless of the unmitigated criticisms and animosity from his political or regional opponents.
In all this, President Tinubu will find solace in the God who has helped him get so far. But that solace is indefinable, unfathomable. It comes only from a place of deep silence, where a president must learn, like other great leaders, to walk in the woods to await direction and instruction from the maker of the universe; woods where, in the words of Chancellor Bismarck, a leader must struggle to hear God’s footsteps and take hold of His coattails as He marches past.
The new president’s advisers, if he assembles the right and selfless crowd, will do their best to proffer advice to the limit of their knowledge and ability; but it is God who gives infallible directions.
President Tinubu has been tried and tested like no other politician in the past eight years, with venom powerful enough to deflate and ruin him, not to say lure him to respond in kind to his detractors and traducers, hate for hate, and pettiness for pettiness. Instead, he has chosen to allow his victory deliver the message of hope, tolerance and accommodation.
It is the ultimate and archetypal revenge. The test he has endured for many years and the lessons he has learnt should ultimately stand him in good stead. In a manner of speaking, he has been weighed and not found wanting. He will be canonised tomorrow as the first Nigerian leader not to be sponsored or foisted upon the country.
Indeed, seeing how expansively his vision has defied regional constraints, and ethnicity and religion, he always seemed larger than Lagos and the Southwest. His political reflexes demonstrated this. Now, he must prove worthy of, and large enough for, Nigeria.
Courtesy The Nation Newspapers
