When he defends her these days, it is
with the passion of a loyal disciple, but what did Reuben Abati, the
president’s spokesman think about the first lady’s alleged meddlesome
attitude when he was ‘speaking for the people?’
Well, we do not know for sure, but this Guardian piece written by Abati in August 2010 might give a pointer.
Clue: He didn’t think very highly of her.
Anyway, enjoy this piece by Reuben Abati.
By Reuben Abati
DEMOCRACY is readily associated with
freedom: the freedom to be free in many respects and increasingly in
Nigeria, many of our compatriots, particularly persons in positions of
privilege and authority confuse this with the right to be disagreeable.
The sober truth is that democracy is about rights and responsibilities, a
democratic dispensation therefore cannot be a licence for disagreeable
conduct as a norm; just as the possession of power in any form does not
guarantee the right to be reckless or to ignore the etiquette required
of office holders. Anyone in the corridors of power, either by chance or
right, or appointment, is expected to behave decorously.
Dame Patience Jonathan, as she is now
referred to, our President’s wife, failed the test this week in Okrika,
Rivers State. It is trite knowledge that there is a critical difference
between Yenagoa and Abuja, and a world of difference between being the
wife of a Deputy Governor/Governor/Vice president and being the wife of
Nigeria’s No 1 citizen. When people suddenly find themselves in such
latter position, prepared or unprepared, anywhere in the world, they
are taken through a crash programme in finishing and poise and made to
realize that being the wife of an important man comes with serious
responsibilities lest they sabotage the same person that they should be
supporting.
If Dame Patience went through such
re-orientation, the course was incomplete. This week, we got a feedback
drawn from her visit to Rivers state to launch her NGO – the Women for
Change Initiative, when she ended up in Okrika, her home town. This
homecoming became an egoistic show-off as she openly contradicted the
state Governor, offering him unsolicited lessons on how to develop the
Okrika water front and school system, in addition to pointed comments on
the use of the English language. The Governor had reportedly insisted
that his administration must demolish some houses which adjoin the
schools in Okrika in order to create a proper learning environment. Dame
Patience disagreed.
She then gave an unsolicited lecture on
the land tenure system telling the Governor: “I want you to get me
clear. I am from here. I know the problems of my people so I know what I
am talking…” The Governor tried to explain his administration’s
policy and the larger public interest. The Dame reportedly cut him
short: “But what I am telling you is that you always say you must
demolish; that word must you use is not good. It is by pleading. You
appeal to the owners of the compound because they will not go into
exile. Land is a serious issue.” Wao! “that word must..is not good.” We
must all commit that to memory as we re-learn Practical English
according to Patience Jonathan!
If it is in the place of the President’s
wife to teach a state Governor how to run his state, it is definitely
not in her place to veto a state policy (the reason the governor used
the word “must”), not even her husband has such powers. It seemed as if
Dame Patience Jonathan was determined to impress her kith and kin. She
told them she had directed the governor not to demolish their houses.
Then, she left straight for the airport obviously having overstayed her
welcome and having behaved like a bad guest. She was scheduled to
visit the prisons to grant amnesty to some inmates (is that really her
duty or something that should be in her itinerary? ); she was also meant
to commission some projects. The face-off between her and the governor
put paid to all that.
On the eve of her arrival, a group which
calls itself “the Okrika Political Stakeholders Forum” and “the people
of Kirikese” had actually placed an advert in the papers welcoming “our
amiable daughter and sister…to Rivers state and your home town Okrika.”
They also brought up the issue of “the land reclamation and shore
protection project at Oba Ama, Okrika being undertaken by the Rivers
state government.” (Daily Sun, August 23, 2010, p. 2). Either on the
strength of this advertorial or private consultations, Dame Patience
must have felt compelled to be a partisan stakeholder and intercessor.
She needed to put Rotimi Amaechi, the state Governor in his place and
that was what did. She recommended “pleading,” – that advice is actually
meant for her. A state Governor is a duly elected official; and in a
Federal system, he is not answerable to the President, and nowhere is
the president granted the powers of a Headmaster over state governors.
In Okrika, Dame Patience behaved so impatiently and spoke to Governor
Amaechi as if he is on the staff of the Presidency. It may not be her
fault though. Amaechi caused it all by bringing himself to such level by
undertaking to debrief Dame Patience about his administration’s
programmes and activities in the misguided hope of getting cheap
political endorsement. He should have asked his wife to attend to her.
On the issue of land, Dame Patience should be reminded that the Land Use
Act, Section 1 thereof, says the state Governor holds the land in trust
for the people. Land matters in the state are beyond the ken of the
wife of the President!
The wife of the President of Nigeria, or
a state Governor, or a local council chairman, is not a state official.
The same applies to husbands if the gender is reversed. He or she is
unknown to the constitution or the governance structure. Recent history
has however made it a convention to have the spouses of persons in such
positions under the guise of providing support, play some ceremonial
roles. This has been routinely abused. Under the Jonathan presidency,
Dame Patience Jonathan even got a special allocation in the original
budget for the 2010 Golden jubilee anniversary whereas she has no
official, financial reporting responsibilities! The international
standard is that spouses in these circumstances must not only appear but
be seen to be above board like Caesar’s wife. They must not misbehave
like Marie Antoinette.
When Cherie Blair, wife of former
British PM, Tony Blair started buying up houses, apartments and antique
furniture, the public raised questions. It didn’t matter that she was a
professional in her own right, a Queen’s Counsel with a traceable source
of income. There were also questions about the scope of Hillary
Clinton’s influence during her husband’s Presidency: Americans wanted to
be sure that it was the man they elected that was in charge, not his
wife. A couple of weeks ago, the American public was up in arms against
Michelle Obama and her poll rating dropped drastically after a visit to
Spain where she and her daughter reportedly stayed in a $7, 000 a night
hotel.
Much earlier, Nancy Reagan was also the
butt of public criticism, with people asking: who is she? And this is
not a female thing. In Britain, Prince Phillip, the Queen’s husband, is
constantly criticized for putting his foot in his mouth. He once said
for example that “British women can’t cook.” He told a visiting
Nigerian President, all dressed up in babariga (name withheld): “you
look like you’re ready for bed.” During a state visit to China, he told
British students: “if you stay much longer, you’all be slitty-eyed.”
Prince Phillip’s supporters insist that he is honest, but the majority
ask: how is the Queen coping with such a man who is perpetually saying
something offensive? There may be persons who defend Dame Patience’s
aggressive style, but some of us ask: how is the President coping?
Since Dr Jonathan assumed office, he and
his wife have been practically on the road. The Dame has travelled from
one state to the other, under the auspices of the Women for Change
Initiative. In every state she tells the women to vote and “make sure
your vote counts if you like my husband.” Is she now a partisan
politician? The Jonathans must be told that Nigeria does not have a
co-Presidency. We have only one president and his name is Goodluck Ebele
Jonathan. And by the way, what does Dame Patience Jonathan do for a
living? She obviously does not have to deal with the challenges of
rotation and zoning in her home, unlike the three wives of the Adamawa
Governor, Murtala Nyako for whom zoning and rotation have become topical
subjects or the wives of South African President Jacob Zuma – that is
why she can afford to be so meddlesome!
When she misbehaves as she did in
Okrika, she creates the impression that her husband is not in control of
his own home. First ladies are prominent figures but their conduct is
an eternal subject of public interest. In Nigeria, there was Victoria
Gowon, there was also Ajoke Muhammed: dignified and restrained. There
was Maryam Babangida – she was influential but no one could accuse her
of verbal recklessness; Mrs Abdusalami Abubakar was a court judge,
totally self-effacing, No major social party was complete without Mrs
Stella Obasanjo, yet she controlled her tongue. Mrs Turai Yar’Adua was
described as the power behind the throne and she proved that during the
period of her husband’s illness but she was carefully reticent. At the
state level, there was Remi Tinubu in Lagos state and Onari Duke in
Cross River state who have both conducted themselves responsibly in and
out of office. The new First Lady likes to travel, party, and talk
outside the script. People are beginning to learn to read her lips in
order to understand her husband. Dame Patience must not push her
Goodluck.
- This Best Outside Opinion was written by Reuben Abati
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