Delusion of Power, Political Ambition and Necessary Counsel to Tanimu Turaki

Arthur Bruno Ekwelem

Leonardo da Vinci warned that “The greatest deception men suffer is from their own opinions.”

Robert Lind added that the gravest form of delusion arises when people “persist in their delusions.”

Chinua Achebe, ever a sentinel of truth, also reminded us that life demands clarity of vision, not a naïve surrender to “the mirage of hope.”

These words echo a timeless truth: nothing misleads a man faster than his own unchecked ambitions, and nothing blinds the political class more than their fascination with power.

John F. Kennedy captured this danger succinctly when he observed that “The great enemy of the truth is very often not the lie… but the myth, persistent and persuasive.” Mikhail Gorbachev similarly warned that in politics, the most dangerous falsehood is the one that masquerades as truth.

Tanimu Turaki and the self-styled “National Working Committee” he leads would do well to reflect on these cautionary words. Their recent actions reveal not leadership, but a descent into a dangerous illusion—an attempt to force a lie upon the conscience of the public and repackage it as political truth.

It is deeply disheartening that an individual once regarded as a custodian of legal wisdom would allow personal ambition to undermine decades of legal training, moral discipline, and professional integrity.

No amount of public posturing can rewrite or nullify the constitution of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Yet each passing day, Turaki’s pronouncements expose a conflict within himself—a struggle between legal knowledge and political delusion, between truth and a self-manufactured fiction of authority.

Public scrutiny, once an ally of honour, has become a shadow hanging over his academic and professional claims, an unfortunate development he precipitated by his own actions.

Democracy cannot thrive on impunity, falsehood, intimidation, and political brigandage.

Sadly, Turaki’s conduct has dragged the values of the PDP into disrepute. His recent push to impose himself as National Chairman, in blatant disregard for constitutional order, reflects not ambition but desperation. For a lawyer, the legal implications of such behaviour require no tutorial.

The events of November 18, 2025, when he stormed the party’s secretariat, allegedly with hired thugs to intimidate party members legitimately invited for an official meeting, stand as a tragic testament to this descent. One must ask: By what authority did he act? What locus did he possess to justify such a crude and reckless display?

Ambition appears to have clouded judgement, reason, and decorum. Worse still, Turaki seems oblivious to the fact that the current National Working Committee is still in office. Rather than seek truth, he has allowed himself to be manipulated by internal saboteurs whose interests lie not in strengthening the party but in destroying it. If he is not their pawn, then he may well be their collaborator.

His recent charade of issuing so-called “Certificates of Dismissal” to respected party officials only deepens the embarrassment. These documents, circulated widely, serve as a public confession of ignorance about party administration and the PDP constitution.

It is imperative that Turaki pauses to reflect before speaking or acting further. Diana Nyad once said, “Great ambition is the passion of a great character.” But ambition unguided by wisdom becomes a vehicle of destruction.

Ambition is natural and even commendable, but when guided by responsibility. The PDP is governed by law, not by fantasies or violent ambition. Anyone in pursuit of leadership must do so with decency and not through thuggery, lies, and constitutional infractions.

If Turaki must pursue the dream of becoming National Chairman of the PDP, he must do so with integrity, respect for due process, and fidelity to the rule of law and not through radicalism, self-deception, or instigation of anarchy.