Ibrahim Babangida: The Military, Politics And Power In Nigeria. Biography of Nigeria’s sixth military head of state and first military president, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, IBB. The author, one of Nigeria’s most gifted writers and editors, carefully takes his readers down memory lane (for those who had been born when the story started) and also into the imagination (for those born mid-way and even at the end) of post-colonial Nigeria. The book documents life and times of the general from birth up to when he “voluntarily” exited as military president in 1993. Most importantly, it is the story of a man who played a major role in the politics of the country and without whom the history and governance of Nigeria from 1966 till date would be incomplete. In the introduction, Agbese declares that the aim of the book is to demystify the personality of the man whom he chose to be the protagonist of the narration: “The key to the Babangida mystique is in his character. He is a complex character, as complex and as complicated as they come.”(Pg xiv) However, many a reader would observe that the narrative is the re-telling of events that were shrouded in controversies, or were deliberately buried in history’s shallow graves and with the legs of the events not even buried at all. In response to this, he says, “We are perhaps the most verbally aggressive people on earth, yet we are generally and inexplicably uncurious about our leaders.” Readers need not be told that Babangida is a master strategist, judging from the fact that he participated in all the successful coup plots that were staged in the country. His maiden broadcast to the nation, when he became president, was laced with grace as he tried to convince Nigerians that the General Muhammadu Buhari era was draconian, insensitive and did not have the right perspective of what governance should be. He went ahead to release many politicians who had been imprisoned and were facing trials that never seemed to have endings. This is not forgetting his commitment towards the academic world, particularly the powerful Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU. He gave academic freedom but how free was it? (Pg 350) Agbese tries to convince his readers without success, to view the trait of over-ambition in the celebrated gap-tooth general in a positive way. He makes use of flowery language to describe the major character, almost making him a perfect being: as he didn’t quite find anything wrong with whatever the general did. He seems to have forgotten that, judging from the verdict of psychoanalysis, every king maker is an over-ambitious personality. They take to the stage through fair or foul means when things do not seem to favour them. Kingmakers might not necessarily be on stage, but they would be characters behind the stage who make things happen. Simply put, king makers are the neck that turns the head. In several chapters, he tries to be careful in his narration. This he comfortably achieves through his narrative techniques which include the omniscient point of view and third-person narrative. The first-person point of view is subdued. He is able to realise this by allowing the characters to speak for themselves, after which he gives analysis of what he feels the case should be. In his quest to demistify Gen Babangida’s traits, the writer deliberately leaves out some salient events that happened during the administration. The reason might simply be related to the sensitivity embedded in the issues, or, because as a writer, he remains a teacher and a prophet. Agbese is fore-sighted enough to see and understand that his book, which he wants to serve as an eye-opener, is likely to be mis-interpreted and probably mis-understood. Rather than see General Babangida from the eye of the author, readers may be forced to be critical about some of his deeds. An example is in the signing of the order to execute his friend and coursemate, Maj Gen Mamman Vatsa. IBB claims that it is one of the painful decisions he has ever made and that the memory of the execution which was shown to him on video was saddening. At this juncture, readers may ask questions like: was it a case of betrayal and not to a state but to an individual? Didn’t he have the right to stop the execution? Afterall, Nigerians pleaded that Vatsa and his co-conspirators should be forgiven. Punishments like forceful retirement wouldn’t have been bad. The author clearly states that “Babangida freely used the sledgehammer to swat whichever flies perched on his presidential nose.”An example of the lopsidedness of the narration lies in Agbese’s inability to inform his readers about the role of IBB in the affairs of the people of the Niger Delta region, particularly in their sufferings and plea for uplift due to the activities of expatriates who spilt oil on their land, which in turn led to severe air pollution, bad and or contaminated water, etc. Gideon Okar, after he was arrested for staging an unsuccessful coup, gave reasons for wanting to topple the Babangida administration. He said it was “ Dictatorial, corrupt, drug- baronish, evil men, sadistic, decietful, prodigalistic and unpatroitic” (pg372). Every reader would expect that if the writer took up the challenge of writing the biography with a sincerity of purpose and not to take sides even with the protagonist, he should have been able to get answers from IBB and the other characters in the narration concerning the claims made by Okar, just as he did in other areas. He cannot pretend not to know or remember that the plane crash of September 26, 1992, raised many eyebrows within and outside the country with several people talking in whispers and pointing accusing fingers at the IBB administration. The victims of the crash were all military officers who died, leaving many widows and fatherless. It is expected that since the case of Dele Giwa was mentioned, even without a conclusive answer concerning the man behind the mask, the death of the gallant officers on active duty should also have been captured. What about the Peugeot 504 saloon cars which were given to officers on loan? It has been rumoured in several quarters that many did not benefit from the cars as most of them died in fatal accidents while driving them, and others spent huge sums of money in maintenance. IBB might not be the right person to answer the question, but the manufacturers of the vehicles should. However, readers would expect that, just as witnessed in virtually all administrations in the country, a panel to investigate the cause of the accidents and a breakdown would have been put in place. The June 12 saga will continue to live in the consciousness of Nigerians, especially as it has continued to raise fundamental issues concerning free and fair elections. and if it will ever happen since the election that declared Abiola as winner. IBB and Abiola were friends and many would expect that Abiola should have succeed him after passing through and fulfilling all the rudiments that were election-concerned. However, this was not to be as even the protagonist could not come out in clear terms to state the exact reason for the annulment. His claim that even the southwest did not like Abiola can be debated upon; many in the southwest have always called for him to be immortalised for his role in the realisation of a free and fair election in the country. Not even the No.2 man in the country could explain what exactly happened, especially when IBB claimed it was a collective agreement which was done in the interest of the country.(Pg 395) This action was only a window to prove that nearly everything goes in a military setting which is purely dictatorial. It will also not be out of place to state that the military rulers have more or less, been responsible for Nigeria’s problems be they political, religious or ethical. The setting of the book shows Nigeria as a country which is delicately divided between two lines: religion and ethnicity. The characters in Agbese’s book do not completely say the obvious; it can be detected that some of them speak with their tongues in check. Agbese takes his readers into the life of the military which is full of suspense and suspicion, intrigues and foul play combined with an atmosphere that is tensed and thick with feelings of resentment and that of the unknown. The themes are numerous and include that of betrayal, war, uncertainty, fear and dictatorship. The cover of the book with its dominant colour, green, can be said to have been deliberately chosen to symbolise Agbese’s love for the green and white colours which speaks a lot about the Nigerian flag. The language is simple. The style is vintage Agbese, a typical West African writer, he isn’t in a hurry to tell his story and therefore has the privilege of using embellishments to make his thoughts admirable. Nevertheless, the book cannot be shoved aside due to its quality. It is recommended for academics. And the general readers who desire to gain from the wealth of knowledge. Leadership. - See more at: leadership.ng/news/060913/ibrahim-babangida-military-politics-and-power-nigeria#sthash.p53HMhAK.dpuf
Posted on: Fri, 06 Sep 2013 17:26:06 +0000
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