In Nigeria, the proliferation of cabals has led to leadership deficit where nitwits are ‘selected’ to work for a government of a few, for a few by a few. While that may be phasing out on account of the growing voting pattern of electorates across the continent, intra administration cabals have indeed come to stay like fleas defiant of pesticides.
From the first coup in Africa in 1963, that witnessed the assassination of President Sylvanus Olympio of Togo to the 2016 coup attempts in Burkina Faso and Libya, the rattling of swords by cabals, for cabals has continued to characterize the political scenery of the African continent. Sadly, many African countries including Nigeria have refused to free themselves of the bad habit handed over by colonialists, Western world. While the era of cabaltocracy in Nigeria can be traced to the first group of coupist’s, political development and administrative management of Nigeria cannot be chronicled without the odoriferous activities of cabals. It is indeed interesting to note that some powerful cabals have been determining the destiny of Nigeria since independence and are very much in control.
It is indeed pertinent to note that cabals have hierarchical superiority. The likes of Gen. Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, Gen. Yakubu Gowon, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar, Gen. Theophillus Danjuma, Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo belong to the ‘Supremo Cabal’ category who have managed to stay in control almost after independence. They determine who rule Nigeria. In fact, they endorsed Buhari’s presidential ambition.
They rule from the sideline and when they decide it’s enough, just like the case of Jonathan, it’s game over for good. The Supremo Cabal class may have their own weaknesses, but they have had fair share of the good, the bad and the ugly thrown at them in our mostly odious journey of our nationhood. Most of them are now matured in mind and age to be patriotic to the extent their businesses or ambitions permit. They are indeed better than most ‘’Power Cauldron’’ after them. In recent time, the most evident activities of cabals was noticed during the fringes of late President Umar Yar’Adua administration. The gluttonous appetite of cabals in civil rule was beyond control. Like piranha’s, they skinned Nigeria’s commonwealth to the bones.
They were not half as noble as the cabals in military uniforms. Cabals ravaged former president Goodluck Jonathans’ administration. The administration suffered set back largely on account of impunity by officials interested only in feeding their gluttonous appetite against duty to serve the country. The President Muhammadu Buhari led administration is also infested by cabals who are already eating into his fight against corruption, by engaging impunity and mal administration to feed the beast of greed in them. Already, the cabals in the Buhari led administration have started to show their fangs and claws feasting on funds meant for government programs. The battle against confirming EFCC acting chairman, Ibrahim Magu is also a classic fisticuff of cabal fire play. Sadly, Magu is alleged to be complicit in some of the highlighted allegations against him. President Buhari has taken the right step though belatedly to probe officials under him. Some may say he was so slow in arriving at the decision, but it is never too late to probe whoever is complicit in any corrupt practice – including “grass cutting” contracts. Sadly, the senate with all claims of allegations against Magu of EFCC and the SGF, Babachir Lawal is divided, staggering in piecemeal according to interests of cabals.
As earlier mentioned, cabals destroy good government. They take decisions that are largely meant to satisfy narrow interests of a few. If the fight against corruption must succeed, it must be generically uprooted. It is illuminating that while government is busy catching corrupt officials in the past administration, some of Buhari’s appointees are busy “re-looting” looted funds.
It is instructive to note that a clique of cabals or a maze of revolving chair of cabals rule successive governments in Africa after weaning colonies of colonialists. From the first coupe in Egypt to the last coup in Mali, it has been a political fountain sustained by a few elites who have arrogated to themselves status of democratic monarchs. These cabal’s own democracies in Africa, they set the standards to suit them and also recruit their stooges to work for them. They manage political structures, platforms like businesses, which must yield a gazillion times what they invested to satisfy personal ambition or that of a stooge.
The social media apocalypse is indeed a very important development fast changing activities of cabals in government. The era where a few steal and destroy countries is over. Already the cabals in Buhari’s administration have been identified and the call for probe on social media platforms is already yielding results. Once again, the Lee Kuan Yew prescription for political appointees must be administered now. Let the Singaporean treatment take full effect.
Written by Israel A.
Ebije.ebijeo5@gmail.com or ebijeisrael@yahoo.com
