Photo by Kevin M. Baerson
President Olusegun Obasanjo (left) and Governor Victor Attah enjoyed each otherís company throughout the presidentís historic three-day tour of Akwa Ibom State. |
By James Overly and Kevin
M. Baerson
Squeezed in the bumper-to-bumper traffic, pedestrians
dodged hundreds of Akwa Ibom’s ubiquitous mopeds.
In turn, the mopeds weaved in and out of a stream of
official and unofficial vehicles. All honked their noisy
way along the spanking new road to the dedication site.
Official passes identified some autos; others sported
only hand-lettered signs taped to the inside of windshields.
Some did not bother with such trivia—the expensive
new sedans with darkened glass simply announced "VIP"
with understated elegance.
As we passed, the clamor of thousands penetrated the
closed windows, rose to a crescendo, and faded as it
was displaced by the next cacophony. Ordinary citizens,
conspicuous visitors from other Nigerian states, brilliantly
costumed dancing ensembles, drummer bands and musical
groups, massed political supporters of one candidate
or another, waving school kids in their blue and white
uniforms, all lined the road.
Everywhere the crowds were in motion, swaying in unison
to the High Life music, singing in strong African harmony,
dancing, yelling, shouting. This is Africa, and no one
stands still or quiet for very long, especially at great
events.
For, on this day—amid the backdrop of pulsating
African rhythms and the hot kiss of the African sun—a
welcome sense of triumph and vindication wafted through
the air. Governor Victor Attah of Nigeria’s Akwa
Ibom State was about to whisk Nigerian President Olusegun
Obasanjo on a whirlwind tour to commission, or dedicate,
more than 30 unlikely "superstructure" development
projects throughout the state. A host of critics, who
had long labeled these projects as "white elephants,"
or claimed the projects did not even exist in reality,
were about to be undone.
Photo by James Overly |
More than theater
To be sure, this was Governor Attah’s day in the
sun. No one could overshadow Nigeria’s larger-than-life
president, and his historic decision to spend two nights
in Akwa Ibom. But for the governor, the three-day presidential
visit is sure to silence—at least for a lasting
political moment—the critics who would do anything
to keep him from winning the Nigerian presidency. And
with President Obasanjo commissioning project after
project after project, any critic would now be impugning
the judgment of Nigeria’s president, too.
But the day was more than just political theatrics.
The president’s visit also sent a strong message
to the Nigerian populace that Governor Attah’s
feud with President Obasanjo – a testy row over
the percentage of oil revenue the federal government
would give back to Nigeria’s impoverished southern
states – was history.
Moreover, President Obasanjo saw first-hand that, at
least in the case of Akwa Ibom, the extra cash flowing
to the South-South region was being well spent. And
while the president avoided public comment about the
upcoming election that would choose the next president
of Nigeria, many saw an implicit message in the visit
itself that President Obasanjo was warming to the notion
of Governor Attah’s presidential aspirations.
Backroom politics aside, to the casual observer, no
one could glean from the two men’s interaction
that they were anything but old friends and tested political
allies.
Behind the crowds and above the road, billboards and
banners proclaimed, "Welcome Mr. President,"
or extolled the president’s record, or saluted
the governor’s presidential ambition. This was
no trumped up demonstration by coached or hand-selected
participants. This was a real, spontaneous demonstration
of pride in accomplishment, and genuine respect for
democratically elected leaders.
As sirens announced the arriving official motorcade,
protocol officials lined up the commissioners, first
in one spot, and then in another, as they tried to guess
where the principals’ vehicle would stop. We positioned
ourselves strategically as best we could, knowing that
the crowd would rush in as soon as the motorcade arrived.
Photo by Dr. Allison
Anadi |
A loving chaos
First to arrive were carloads of SSS men, Nigeria’s
secret service. They emulated their American counterparts,
dressed in Western suits, white shirts and ties, trademark
plastic tubes trailing from earphones, their faces hidden
by dark sunglasses. They were every bit as serious as
the U.S. Secret Service, glaring at individuals as they
sized up the crowd.
The SSS agents immediately tried to push people back,
particularly the horde of aggressive Nigerian press, but
it was like poking fingers in a wet sponge. Nevertheless,
once satisfied no threat appeared imminent, the SSS allowed
Governor Attah to emerge first from the official car,
then the president.
Had this been the scene of arrival for an American president
in an American city, the Secret Service would have aborted
the appearance in a heartbeat. But Nigeria is not as rife
with firearms as America—private ownership of guns
is outlawed—and acts of violence by average citizens
against politicians are almost unheard of here. It’s
rival politicians that pose the greatest threats in public
life.
"We love our president like a king," explained
one local attending the festivity. "And we love our
governor like a father."
Now rewarded for their patience, the crowd roared to see
their president and governor at last. "Welcome, Mr.
President!" screamed some. "Baba," yelled
one, voicing a presidential nickname. "God bless
you, Governor Attah," shouted another voice from
the crowd. Always, the crowd surged in closer, making
it difficult to frame a camera shot.
Handed a microphone from a portable public address system,
the president greeted the crowd briefly; thanking them
for coming and saying that he was looking forward to the
working visit Governor Attah had promised him.
Then the two dignitaries quickly proceeded to the ribbon
to pose for the cameras. Taking up the scissors from the
pillow held by a pretty Nigerian girl, the president cut
the ribbon, commissioning the first of a dozen or more
new roads he would dedicate in the next two days.
The ribbon cut, the dignitaries proceeded along the red
carpet as the press rushed to position themselves at the
commemoration marker. There, the president removed the
bunting, unveiling the historic marker. Again handed the
microphone, he read the inscription—that he had commissioned
the road on that date—aloud to the fawning crowd.
It was then quickly to the cars, and on to the groundbreaking
ceremony for Akwa Ibom’s science park, the first
state-owned science park in all of Africa. For all the
hours of waiting and planning, the road commissioning
had taken all of six or seven minutes. The scene reported
here would be replicated more than 30 times during the
next 48 hours, as the president witnessed the realization
of Governor Victor Attah’s vision for his state.
‘Things are happening’
By the three-day visit’s end, President Obasanjo
would commission or inspect progress in Nigeria’s
first independent power plant, an erosion control project,
an electrification project, a new general hospital, a
model school, Africa’s first registered science park,
a new international airport with West Africa’s first
major maintenance facility, an industrial park, a new
motor park and bus terminal offering traveler amenities
unmatched in Nigeria, mass transit buses, and a new secretariat
which will soon house for the Akwa Ibom state government
staff.
The president saw first hand the complexity of projects
such as the power plant and the airport. And he would
have to travel all over the state to see these results,
for Governor Attah insists on spreading out development
projects throughout the state, not just in the capital
city.
Having taken it all in, President Obasanjo could not help
but declare: "Things are happening in Akwa Ibom."
Akwa Ibomites tell us that no other state in Nigeria can
say that 85 percent of its rural local governing entities
are electrified, or that 40 percent are now receiving
potable water through a new distribution system. The people
of Akwa Ibom, they say, had resumed their historical place
as standard setters for Nigeria.
And for nearly 72 hours, Akwa Ibomites felt like their
humble state had become the center of the universe.
|
