Asiwaju Made Easy: 4 Ways Atiku Could Have Gone

Everything following is PURELY a Matter of My Opinion. My jump off is predicated upon the assumption that the opportunity was there to advise.

SO, respectfully and without prejudice to the Governor of Delta State and with the view of the current State of the Players and their Placeholders AND attempts at choosing Running Mates AND the desires of the various VOTING BLOCS AND our customary whims..

ASIWAJU BOLA AHMED TINUBU of the APC is ahead, in my view.

I do not know much about Governor OKOWA or his achievements AND he does not readily come to mind when one thinks of Governors or Political Leaders or Heavyweights in Nigeria.

While ATIKU ABUBAKAR and the PDP have shown by making a FIRM CHOICE within the INEC Timeframe that he is Most Prepared, the choice of the Delta State Governor has made Asiwaju’s task easier.

ASIWAJU has been struggling with nominating a Running Mate. His was the most COMPLICATED ROUTE to such a decision.

The Albatross of a possible/necessary Muslim/Muslim Ticket and like the PDP, a QUEST for POWER regardless of norms and expected shifts in Rotation.

All of that with the looming threat of a Movement which is currently all about PETER OBI, the individual.

ATIKU ABUBAKAR could have made this whole thing even more interesting. He could have made Asiwaju’s task even more difficult. He could have challenged the Peter Obi (note, not the Labour Party) Movement prove itself Nationwide. He could have gone for ANY of the FOUR below.

Assuming ATIKU ABUBAKAR gives the NORTH its required participation of a NORTHERN MUSLIM, he could reach out ANYWHERE for a SOUTHERN CHRISTIAN for the WIN.

1. DONALD DUKE would have brought certain Pluses. Ok, so he is my brother so I could be accused of being biased.. but WAIT!

A ticket which balanced YOUTH and the Generations. Present ability. Name and Face Recognition. A Pointer to a possible Generational Shift in 8 years of less. Political Weight via Experience as 2-time Governor. The SS Region. Challenge THE MOVEMENT.

2. NGOZI OKONJO-IWEALA. She of the delicately Balanced Headgear. Very likeable and Globally acceptable Administrator. Gender Bridge. SE Zone. Peter Obi cannot claim to have greater Experience over her. Assumed Steady Head and Hands. Been here TWICE before.

3. OGBONNAYA ONU. Though currently an APC Party member, he emerged from the recent APC SPECIAL CONVENTION as an acceptable face of the SE. His brilliance and qualities have never been in doubt but his performance as MINISTER remains questionable.

However, the SE needs a face that the whole NATION, not just a region can accommodate.
When he finally showed some BALLS to make his claim for RESPECT not only for the SE but for his unacknowledged CRITICAL ROLE in initiating the Merger which resulted in the formation of the APC, he gained numerous admirers… including me.

A STRONG Party Flagbearer SHOULD be able to NEGOTIATE and CONVINCE a Party that WINNING was everything even if that meant drafting in someone from the OPPOSITION.

4. GOV. NYESOM WIKE. A Rock and a Hard Place. He is not generally accepted as what a Nation’s Leader even as Vice-President, should carry himself or herself like.

Brash, Rude and somewhat Uncouth BUT he would have resonated with many out of the SS and the SE. Strange how we love and adore this Political type but we are who we are.

WIKE holds an important element of our Politics. FUNDING. Some would argue that Delta State offers the same BUT Governor Wike would be less cautious when gunning for victory.

The ATIKU/OKOWA Ticket will rest LARGELY on ATIKU ABUBAKAR the Man. He will carry ALL the weight and expectations. It will be him against the REST. Governor OKOWA in my view does not ADD anything to that.

And IF an OBI/KWANWASO merger occurs in any shape or form, ATIKU, especially, will carry even more LOAD.

As it stands TODAY and solely in my view…

ASIWAJU only needs to manoeuvre through all the LARGE EGOS of the 13 NORTHERN GOVERNORS for his inevitable Muslim/Muslim Ticket and he will be ahead…. AS AT TODAY.

Ivor Ekpe is the CEO of Gradient Hill Nigeria Limited and a socio-political commenter.