WHEN former President Muhammadu Buhari was in power and most of his appointments went to individuals from the Fulani and Hausa communities, with Fulani individuals prioritized for key positions and Hausa individuals considered when Fulani candidates weren’t available, the South and Middle Belt regions were opposed to the appointments, citing lop-sidedness and unfair representation. Some media outlets, controlled by the Yoruba, criticized the appointments for potentially deepening Nigeria’s fault lines.
A retired Northern military officer, Col. Dangiwa Umar, spoke out against President Buhari’s appointments, highlighting the need for more inclusive representation. In Col. Umar’s letter, entitled: “Mr. President; Please Belong to All of Us”, a sarcastic reminder of a popular quote made by Mr Buhari during his inauguration in 2015 – “I belong to everybody and I belong to nobody”, he tried to underscore the president’s dangerous leadership style.
I have always argued that an ethnocentric politician will never do well as Nigeria’s president. It is unfortunate that in Tinubu’s almost forty-year experience in politics, he did not build network of trusted friends from all ethnic groups and regions of Nigeria. He is afraid and cannot trust other ethnic groups, perhaps because all his investments in human capital are in Yoruba land.
Many Nigerians disagreed with Buhari’s appointment strategy, seeing it as an attempt to empower the Fulani ethnic group at the expense of others. Some people believed that these appointments were part of a larger agenda to promote Fulani interests and dominance.
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Since coming to power in 2023, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has actually continued from where Muhammadu Buhari stopped, just like he did promise during his campaign. He has deepened Buhari’s lop-sidedness in political appointments. In the past two years, most of his appointments went to individuals of Yoruba ethnic group. He appears to be eagerly waiting for the expiration of every board tenure to have it replaced by a Yoruba professional.
President Tinubu’s resent appointment of a Yoruba man as the group managing director of Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd (NNPCL) trumpets to high heavens his administration’s ethnic bigotry. The entire Nigerian economy, criminal justice system and security architecture are in the hands of Yorubas. Even under the military, the people that are not accountable to us, we never had it so bad.
What is worrisome is that the people we expect to criticise this evil of lopsided appointments are all keeping mute. Is there a conspiracy by the president and his ethnic brethren to lift Yoruba above other ethnic groups? The Afenifere that used to be one of the few groups that represent the conscience of the country has kept sealed lips just like the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) did when Buhari was disfiguring Nigeria with his lopsided appointments.
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Remaining silent in the face of evil can be perceived as complicity or tacit approval, which can contribute to the perpetuation of harm. Failing to speak out against evil can lead to a decline in empathy and compassion, potentially eroding one’s humanity. If you laugh and smile over the evil that favours you, one loses moral right, to raise his or her voice against any form of evil.
A Yoruba is the police Inspector General. A Yoruba is the EFCC Chairman. A Yoruba is the Head of the DSS. A Yoruba is the Attorney General. A Yoruba is the Chief Justice of the Federation. And Tinubu, a Yoruba, is the President and overseer of all instruments of coercion. The entire criminal justice system is in the hands of one ethnic group.
I have always argued that an ethnocentric politician will never do well as Nigeria’s president. It is unfortunate that in Tinubu’s almost forty-year experience in politics, he did not build network of trusted friends from all ethnic groups and regions of Nigeria. He is afraid and cannot trust other ethnic groups, perhaps because all his investments in human capital are in Yoruba land.
I expect him to know that in a fractious multi-ethnic nation like Nigeria, the concentration of power in one ethnic group can help to deepen division, cause more disenchantment and mistrust. An ethnic bigot will never be a good president! None has ever been!
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Tinubu has become an unabashed ethnic chauvinist. His style of leadership does not bode well for national unity. It is not impossible that the president is out to empower his ethnic group at the expense of others. It is possible that these appointments were part of a larger agenda to promote Yoruba interests and dominance. I guess that this is what his politics of Emi-lokon – it-is-my-turn or our-turn, is all about.
A Yoruba is the police Inspector General. A Yoruba is the EFCC Chairman. A Yoruba is the Head of the DSS. A Yoruba is the Attorney General. A Yoruba is the Chief Justice of the Federation. And Tinubu, a Yoruba, is the President and overseer of all instruments of coercion. The entire criminal justice system is in the hands of one ethnic group.
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A Yoruba is the Head of the Bank of Industry. A Yoruba heads the National Social Insurance Trust Fund. A Yoruba is the Coordinating Minister of the Economy. A Yoruba is the Minister of Solid Minerals. A Yoruba is the Minster of Petroleum (the president himself).
Nigeria is still grappling with the aftermath of violent and criminal acts perpetrated by certain groups emboldened during Buhari’s leadership. There’s concern that if President Tinubu continues similar methods, it might empower another group, potentially leading to further instability, as witnessed during the 2023 elections.
Amechi, a pro-democracy and trade union activist, lives in Lagos.
