Three Hunchbacks And Their Heavy Baggage

Femi Akintunde-Johnson

Among many Nigerian societies and cultures, the hunchback is a perplexing mystery. To some it is a special disability that victims must be protected so that ritualists do not kidnap them to savagely deprive them of the hunches. In others, they are victims of stigmatisation and discrimination, marginalised as a matter of communal belief that hunchbacks are subhumans unworthy of institutional compassion or personal dignity. Hardly do we see them as victims of physiological malfunction – a spinal disorder that modern medicine calls Kyphosis, often as a result of tuberculosis of the spinal cord, hereditary deficiency, among other causes.

  We see the hunchbacks as “beasts of burden” who suffer great discomfort in activities other regular fold take for granted. Now, if the hunchbacks are saddled with extra bags and whatnots to carry from one point to another, the excruciating exercise can hardly be imagined, as you cannot fathom what it is like to be in their shoes. Such is the fate of the three major presidential flag bearers with arguably the most vociferous supportership in this current electioneering season. Our focus will therefore be on Alhaji Atiku Abubakar (henceforth addressed as Atiku), the presidential candidate of People’s Democratic Party (PDP); Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu (BAT), the candidate of All Progressives’ Congress (APC), and the current “rave of the moment”, Mr. Peter Gregory Obi of the Labour Party (LP). 

  We hope to spend quality time reviewing the enormous “baggage” – code switch for unsavoury issues and incidents in their pedigrees they would rather wipe off, but that stand as unshakable reminders of their frailties, possible stumbling blocks, and herculean obstacles their spin-doctors must roll up sleeves to tackle frontally. And their detractors would be joyously smacking their lips to sink their teeth into.

  Let us start with Atiku Abubakar, GCON. The most succulent pie is the “infernal” book of his former boss, President Olusegun Obasanjo (OBJ) published in 2014, “My Watch”. It is a morbidly virulent character attestation. Few excerpts would suffice. In reference to actions that took place before his ascendancy in 1999, OBJ wrote:

  “That night, I settled for Atiku Abubakar. Some of the reasons were: he worked hard for the project, he never indicated interest in the job to me, he had worked closely with Shehu Yar’Adua and Shehu never passed any adverse comment on him… What I did not know, which came out glaringly later, was his parental background which was somewhat shadowy, his propensity to corruption, his tendency to disloyalty, his inability to say and stick to the truth all the time, a propensity for poor judgement, his belief and reliance on marabouts, his lack of transparency, his trust in money to buy his way out on all issues and his readiness to sacrifice morality, integrity, propriety, truth and national interest for self and selfish interest….

  “On a number of occasions, I had told him to his face that I saw him differently from Shehu Yar’Adua, who was partly his political mentor and my second-in-Command during my military administration. Shehu would never lie to me. Atiku would look at me in the face and say no when the answer should be yes. I found it curious and inexplicable.”

 A deft politician and seemingly astute businessman, he has never been convicted, and no charges have stuck on him. But OBJ set the sparks flying in the same book: “…we received a letter dated 22 June 2006 written by the US Department of Justice, Criminal Justice Office of International Affairs, which was brought to me by Nuhu Ribadu, the Head of EFCC, requesting us to investigate a number of Nigerians for suspicion of criminal activities in the US.

  “Atiku Abubakar’s name was among the names sent to us… I gave the green light to Nuhu for the investigation as requested by the US Authorities. He carried out the investigation and forwarded his report to the US. The report was a bit uncomfortable and unsavoury for Atiku and his associates. I thought it was bad enough that the Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria was under investigation for corruption, when my Administration had made fighting corruption one of its cardinal objectives. As it turned out, the investigation in Nigeria and in the US led to Atiku’s house being searched by the US Bureau of investigation (FBI), the arrest and detention of his newly married wife, Jennifer. She was also declared wanted at one time. It was so embarrassing for our Administration and Embassy in Washington under Ambassador George Obiozor.”

  In 2019, OBJ made a volte face, and endorsed Atiku as PDP candidate for the presidential election – a strange decision, made stranger still when a money laundering case was reported in a 13 November, 2019 Punch news report where Atiku’s son-in-law, Abdullahi Babalele, was accused by the EFCC of: “laundering $140,000 in the build-up to the 2019 general elections… The trial began before Justice C.J. Aneke at the Federal High Court in Lagos with the testimony of one Bashir Mohammed, who described himself as a close friend of Babalele.

Mohammed, who was led in evidence by the EFCC prosecutor, Rotimi Oyedepo, narrated to the court how he delivered the naira equivalent of $140,000 (‘to someone in Obasanjo’s library’) on Babalele’s instructions… Obasanjo endorsed Atiku… ahead of the February 23 (2019) presidential election.”

  However, Babalele pleaded ‘not guilty’ to the two charges against him. Before the year ran out, Babalele was off the hook on account of a technicality! A ThisDay report of 22 December, 2020 reveals: “A Federal High Court in Lagos has freed Abdullahi Babalele, a son-in-law to former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar on a two-count allegation of alleged money laundering of $140,000. Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke threw out the charge and discharged the defendant on the grounds that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had chosen a wrong venue. The court held that the charge against the defendant ought not to have been filed in Lagos when the alleged offence was said to have been committed in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.” End of story.

Some folks believe that a man capable of handling his home in a peaceful, orderly and congenial manner would likely succeed in piloting more challenging offices. In this case, Atiku’s detractors would feel a little energised by his performance on the home front. Media reports paint some challenging episodes that had rocked his marriages to a number of women. A 31 January, 2021 report (ThisDay) gives a front-row view of the Turak’s entanglements: “So far, there are about six women who have publicly borne his name (and 29 children): Titilayo Albert in 1971, Ladi Yakubu in 1979, Princess Rukaiyatu Mustafa in 1983, Fatima Shettima in 1986, Jennifer Douglas sometime after, and the Moroccan lady in 2017. However, Atiku divorced Ladi Yakubu much earlier, which ushered in Jennifer Douglas, and now Douglas might be out of the picture, giving room for Lady Morocco – a total of four wives.”

  No wonder, his former boss, no less a slouch in these affairs, could not help pass a sniggering remark in his vitriol on Atiku: “We moved on as all sorts of clouds started to gather around Atiku if not at home, surely in the US, with his newly acquired wife to complete his total Nigerian husband outlook – Yoruba, Hausa, Fulani and Igbo wives. Here, he achieved Federal character.”

  Because of the fumes of corruption swirling around Atiku, many have tried to pin all sorts of heists and warts on him. Some have been comprehensively rebutted. Case in point, fact-checked by TheCable: “The viral social media post (2018) claiming Obasanjo said Atiku stole money that can feed 300 million people for 400 years is false.” Here’s another: “The claim (2019) that Obasanjo said he was forced by Atiku to cede Bakassi to Cameroon is false”.

  Surely, the Turakin Adamawa has his tasks well arranged ahead of him. Time will tell how he meanders through the thickets and barbs.