Red card for the godfathers?

Could the current happenings in Nigeria’s political arena be a signal of the end of the godfatherism or is it only temporary?

When Francis Ford Coppola directed the 1972 award winning film, ‘The Godfather,’ he helped project the ‘godfather’ term into popular culture the world over. The movie might have illuminated the attempt by a Sicilian Family (the Corleones), to dominate the entire drug ring and racketeering in New York.

However, here in Nigeria, political godfathers have gone many inches deeper, taking the game to the next level. For years, these godfathers have remained major power brokers, determining who rules and who does not. Whether you like it or not, they remain a near-constant in Nigeria’s political terrain, ensuring that their candidates of choice get the juicy political offices. It has also grown to become a business enterprise and a capital investment. While many ponder about the influence these godfathers wield, it is a lot more worrisome, that in the long run, it becomes more or less a family empire-which sees the family’s patriarch at the helm of affairs. So popular are godfathers that you can’t rise politically or fulfill a political yearning if you do not have their backing or blessings.

The ongoing elections are crucial to the future of democracy in Nigeria, as such many Nigerians refuse to fold their hands and watch power get into the hands of the ‘unpopular candidates’. The first two set of elections may have come and gone and helped demystify the hitherto ‘powerful’ mini gods, who are gradually losing their clout. It is not until April 26, when the governorship poll takes place that many of the godfathers will know their fate.

The defeat of a son or daughter may jeopardise for life, the influence of the godfather. For former president Olusegun Obasanjo, this retired army general, assumed the position of the chairman of the board of trustees of the Peoples Democratic Party, a strategic post which has seen him control nominations for political appointments and even policy and strategy. With rumors being refuted that the Ogun State Governor Gbenga Daniel-led Peoples Party of Nigeria had gone into alliance with the Peoples Democratic Party in the forthcoming governorship election, Obasanjo is pitched in battle not only against Daniel who is fielding candidates on the platform of the PPN but also the Action Congress of Nigeria in the state.

Obasanjo’s first blow came during the National Assembly election when his daughter, Senator Iyabo Obasanjo-Bello and speaker of the House of Representatives, Dimeji Bankole lost out. If the governorship candidate of the PDP in Ogun State, Chief Tunji Olurin, loses the election, Obasanjo’s political profile would be greatly affected.

Another godfather is Chief Tony Anenih, who held sway in Edo state for many years until he was recently demystified by the state Governor, who was elected on the platform of the ACN, Adams Oshiomole.

Anenih, the self-acclaimed ‘Mr. Fix it’ was unable to fix things for himself during the elections that brought in Oshiomole. The former minister of works and housing also lost it finally when ACN’s Senator Ehigie Uzamere defeated Daisy Danjuma of the PDP to retain the Edo South Senatorial District seat.

Chief Olusola Saraki, who holds sway in Kwara State will also test his popularity at the polls when his daughter, Gbemisola, who wants to take over from her brother, Bukola slugs it out with the PDP candidate next Tuesday. Gbemisola is contesting on the platform of the Allied Congress Party of Nigeria.

Since 1976, Baba Oloye as the elder Saraki is called, has never been on the losing side during any election; this feat makes him the most prolific of all godfathers in Nigeria. So prolific is he, that he holds the enviable record of having installed all past governors of Kwara State, including his son Bukola.

It is not out of place, therefore, that he wants his daughter to succeed her brother in the Government House. A move that is being met with resistance by Bukola.The stage is now set for a battle in which the Saraki siblings will come face to face. Come April 26, when the governorship poll holds across the country, the fate of these godfathers will be known. Perhaps the election will usher in a new crop of godfathers.