A few years ago, Diezani Alison-Madueke, a former Minister of Petroleum Resources, was not only powerful but influential. She was the go-to person if you wanted anything done. She was also constantly in the news as one of the few cabinet members who had the ears of former President Goodluck Jonathan.
It was no surprise, therefore, that her exquisite detached house in Lekki Phase 1 Estate, Victoria Island, Lagos, was heavily guarded by mobile policemen and naval ratings.
But as the popular as the saying goes, the only thing constant in life is change. Today, the number of boats anchored near the garden have dwindled – the available three boats lack the splendour of the former large vessels that used to grace the entrance of the property.
Also, unlike in the past when the security around the building was so tight that residents had to keep moving until they got past it, there are currently only one or two unarmed naval ratings carrying out sentry duties at the site.
So out of power and weighed by illness and all sorts of charges, Dickson who was handpicked by Jonathan and backed by Diezani started to see himself the new godfather of Bayelsa politics. He disrespected all the elites, but when push came to shove, he proved to be a clay footed godfather. He lost. Maybe if Diezani was still very much around Dickson would not have dared. But who knows, power they say corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Truth be told many in Bayelsa miss her power and influence.
There is a lesson here though for all mortals. No condition is permanent. Wherever one finds himself he should always remember there is tomorrow. For Dickson the Okro plant never grows taller than the man who planted it. When it does all he has to do bend it down and pluck it.
