“Idan ka sayi kare don ya rik’a haushi, ya koma yana tunkuyi, kaima sai ka yanka shi kamar tinkiya” — Hausa proverb
The sacking of Salihu Tanko Yakasai by Governor Ganduje has vindicated my opinion on his controversial call for the resignation of President Buhari expressed in many forums. We can only ignore or pretend not to know the basics of the tricky business of being a media aide because it will suit political conveniences the situation may offer different categories of stakeholders.
The most ignored basic is, this is not about Yakasai’s right to voice his opinion on national issues as many are misconstruing it. It’s about his limitations while doing so. As an aide to a governor of a ruling party he just shouldn’t be seen as working at cross-purposes with his principal much less, the principal of his principal. Certainly Governor Ganduje will never call on President Buhari to resign because of the concerns raised by Yakasai. Yes, there are serious issues in Nigeria’s security management but, more than his spokesperson, Ganduje is aware in the finest details what’s being done to arrest and reverse the situation. Unless fueled by a sinister motive, I expect Yakasai to clear with his boss before calling on President Buhari to resign. Probably he would have been educated by his principal on why President Buhari should not resign on the basis of his concerns which are not genuine whatsoever as I will explain shortly.
Of course, in today’s Nigeria all it takes one to be a patriot or an activist is to theorize solutions for Nigeria’s problem of insecurity. Even PDP with its badge of dishonor as the founder of the crisis-laden Nigeria we have today, couldn’t resist the cheapness of public gullibility to play doctor. But that’s not saying people must play dummies and fall for easily identifiable tricks like this. For instance, it’s only logical for people celebrating Yakasai’s epileptic courage to “speak for poor Nigerians” to reveal where was his courage to speak for poor Nigerians when he couldn’t ask his principal to resign as a patriotic response to the embarrassing videos of alleged corruption captured right under his nose in the Kano Government House? They may also explain why his patriotism abandoned him when he couldn’t call for President Buhari’s resignation when he raised Governor Ganduje’s hand and offered him for re-election despite a clear proof he’s an impediment to any anti-corruption effort this administration may have in its kitty. Sure, Yakasai’s advocacy is selective and easily identifiable for the mischief it is if he cannot see as good a reason for President Buhari to resign on the basis of the Ganduje videos as he saw in the mutating security situation President Buhari is battling to contain. Or does it make sense for Yakasai to attempt removing a fleck in President Buhari’s eyes while ignoring the log in Ganduje’s? Something is truly missing in Yakasai’s advocacy.
