Ahmed Abubakar and the Challenges of Leadership

By Ibrahim Bello

Every day in Nigeria, government and its agencies are daily accused of nepotism, bias and negligence in their appointments.

In most cases, individual competence, exposure, better service delivery and loyalty to nation-building – attributes that are supposed to be the yardsticks for government appointments – are easily discarded on the altar of the nebulous “quota system.”

But since he became Nigeria’s President on May 29, 2015, President Muhammadu Buhari has never hidden his intention to make the country great once again, following years of misrule and setbacks caused by the ineptitude of both the military government and subsequent civilian administrations. Buhari came on board on a high pedestal of untainted credibility, high hopes and expectations. So, at every given opportunity and forum, the president has always emphasised his commitment to bringing an enduring change in all the activities of government. He also promised to make all the necessary sacrifices to stop or reduce the corruption scourge to its barest minimum.

In the last 30 months of his administration, President Buhari has always expressed profound interest in employing people who are most qualified, with character and zeal to drive the change mantra of his administration.
And from all his appointments so far, he has remained careful, consistent and pragmatic in choosing the calibre of people that run the government with him. Besides, it is important to say it clearly that as the president of this great nation, Mr. Buhari has the right to appoint any Nigerian who is qualified and competent to hold public office and can also help him achieve the objective of the government.

With the recent appointment of Ahmed Rufai Abubakar as the new Director General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), it is obvious that the president truly meant well for the nation. It is pertinent also to appreciate the voices of many Nigerians who have applauded President Buhari for making the bold initiative and putting the right peg in the right hole. We must also not fail to appreciate the lean voices and feelings of some people who have been going all out to defame the character of the new NIA DG. Not only that, even the man that appointed him had been getting considerable vituperations from those lean voices.
But is Ahmed Rufai Abubakar a versatile and thoroughbred intelligent officer that merits that position? Absolutely!

Abubakar was, for over two years, the Senior Special Assistant to the President (SSAP) on Foreign Affairs/International Relations. His experience with the workings of the Presidency and the President ensured that he understands the Change Agenda of President Buhari’s administration. His technical exposure, expertise and competence in the areas of international affairs, diplomatic practice, peace support operations and mediation is unarguable. A polyglot, he is fluent in English, Arabic, Hausa and French.

This is a man who served as a key adviser to the President for more than two years without blemish. He attended all the president’s meetings with foreign leaders and interprets for the president. He is someone who enjoys the president’s confidence.
Another lie from those who have made criticism of the president their pastime is that Buhari appointed a man that retired from the NIA as an assistant director after failing some examinations. But it has been proved that Abubakar retired honourably as a deputy director. He earned several honours and never failed any examinations.
Some would want us believe that Abubakar’s wife is a Moroccan. How ludicrous! The man has just one wife, and they both hail from the same community in Katsina!
Given his previous experiences and contributions to nation-building, I think he is best prepared to face the challenges of leadership of the new position, bearing in mind how he could use his new position as a platform to drive the change agenda of the Buhari government.

Ambassador Abubakar had a wonderful career, spanning over two decades in the highest quarters of Nigeria’s Foreign Service. And as an intelligent officer, the Kastina-born former university teacher has also paid his dues in the academics as well as the various departments of Foreign Service. His technical exposure and competence in international affairs, diplomatic practice, peace- support operations and mediation was worthy of note. So also are the roles he played as the Senior Political Adviser at the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF). The coalition of countries of the Lake Chad Basin, with headquarters in Ndjamena, Chad, where he offered sensitive advice on how to win the war against the Boko Haram, ensured the protection of civilians and helped in providing general security in the region. He also provided strategic/political support to the MNJTF in the implementation of his mandate, just as he helped the Mission to establish effective monitoring, analysis and reporting mechanism with clear timelines and benchmarks.
Until he was fished out by President Buhari, Ambassador Abubakar had spent many years representing Nigeria, working with the United Nations (UN) and African Union (AU) in places like Morocco, Addis Ababa, Darfur, Dakar, Qatar and others.

So, two years ago when he was appointed the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs/International Affairs, it was obvious then that he would definitely make an indelible imprint. There should be little doubt that it was one of the reasons the president decided to give him a much higher responsibility. And in his capacity as the new DG, he is certainly, in the best position to prove to the world, how best he can transform the agency for Nigeria and Nigerians.

Holding such a sensitive position in the country usually comes with a lot of expectations and challenges. But even that cannot justify the outright falsehoods fabricated by the camp of Buhari haters to keep lambasting the president.
The questions to ask is, is Abubakar deserving of that position? The answer is definitely in the affirmative. And for those querying his nationality, is it possible for an alien to successfully escape the scrutiny of the security agencies between 1993 and 2005 when he served with the Foreign Service and rise to the position of deputy director? After all, Buhari wasn’t president when Abubakar joined the service in 1993.

Nigerians should be concerned with what Abubakar is bringing to the table as the new DG of NIA. I believe the man is bringing integrity to the organisation. He is bringing sanctity and global respect. Nigerians should be assured that his long years of experience, exposure and competence would surely help in discharging his responsibilities as the boss of that sensitive agency and Nigeria would definitely be better for it.
Ibrahim Bello, a public affairs analyst, writes in from Kaduna