I don’t envy the job of image makers of politicians, especially image makers of Nigerian politicians. On one hand they are mostly professionals equipped with an excellent sense of right and wrong with tons of integrity and credibility to match. Image makers are mostly picked for exhibiting excellent capacity to balance the actual and political images of their employers. Public respectability of image makers is not only an added advantage but a critical requirement in their line of business as its expected to rub off on their principals while they jointly sail through the controversies usually attached to the business of officiating public affairs.
On the other hand, image makers, especially in Nigeria, frequently get trapped with principals operating with a distorted or even nonexistent sense of public responsibility, impunity, overblown egos and unhealthy sense of entitlement to match. Managing the image of a Nigerian politician is undoubtedly among the most challenging jobs in the world. It’s with this in mind that I bumped into the trending pictures of the graduation ceremony of President Buhari’s daughter-in-law, Mrs. Zahra B. Buhari, from a UK university as splashed by First Lady, Aisha Buhari, on her official Facebook page. Mrs. Zahra B. Buhari is the daughter of Emir of Bichi, Alhaji Nasiru Ado Bayero and wife of Mr. Yusuf Buhari whose celebrated wedding was the talk of the nation and the nightmare of the image makers of the first family not so long ago.
Let me make it clear, this is not to question the right and affordability of the first family and the Emir of Bichi’s family to give their children the best life they have in mind. There’s no law preventing them from doing so. But, no doubt, doing so and making a habit of publicizing it with seeming impunity is a costly aberration and a very avoidable gaffe that’s eating up the goodwill of the administration while denying it the needed connectivity with Nigerians to not only be able to upload its responsibilities but to be seen as having done so.
Only recently, President Buhari was in the news lamenting the poor image of his administration as being suffered largely due to poor showcasing of his achievements by officials appointed to do so. Sure, the Buhari administration is a subject of constant mockery and negative reportage. However, the poor rating of the administration viz-a-viz its impressive performances given the harsh situation is not entirely the fault of the image makers of administration. The bad image of the administration could easily be traced to the actions or inactions of some close associates of the administration. With regular flagrant display of insensitivity like this who will blame the opposition for cashing on such gaffes to hide their inadequacies while proving the poor signals connecting this administration with Nigerians or downplay its achievements to gain political mileage? Which parent with 3, 4 or 5 children locked at home for months because of ASUU strike would not be angry with the trending pictures of the first family in UK celebrating their kids having what other kids are denied here in Nigeria?
Truth is, there couldn’t be a better time than now for government officials and associates to be modest and sensitive to the political temperature and public temperament. This is more a burden on Mrs. Buhari, the matriarch of the first family and the symbolic mother of the nation, than on other government officials. Whether we like it or not, her actions or inactions are a reflection of the actions or inactions of the administration. And the fact is, if the First lady is happy being the symbolic mother of the nation, she MUST not only waive away some of her rights and privileges to exhibit the compassionate traits mothers are known for but be seen as doing so.
The bad image of the administration could easily be traced to the actions or inactions of some close associates of the administration. With regular flagrant display of insensitivity like this who will blame the opposition for cashing on such gaffes to hide their inadequacies while proving the poor signals connecting this administration with Nigerians or downplay its achievements to gain political mileage? Which parent with 3, 4 or 5 children locked at home for months because of ASUU strike would not be angry with the trending pictures of the first family in UK celebrating their kids having what other kids are denied here in Nigeria?
No mother will have the composure and emotional convenience to celebrate one child while her other children are in coma and barely hanging to life? Nigerian youths are at home, locked out of Nigerian universities by the FG/ASUU imbroglio which end is still nowhere in sight. It’s insensitive for the First lady to be seen as oblivious or aloof to this misfortune. It’s a clear proof of disconnect with the predicament of millions of her symbolic children. Overly celebrating the wife of her son in a foreign land, far removed from a challenging crisis she should be seen as deeply involved in trying to resolve put to question her symbolic role as the mother of the nation. If anything, it only symbolizes a serious disconnect between the administration and Nigerians beside telling Nigerian youths they are on their own.
The first family, like other Nigerians, have the right to exploit available alternatives anywhere in the world to avoid the poor quality of Nigerian universities while deleting persistent ASUU strikes off the academic calendar of their immediate and extended families. This, however, should be balanced with a heavy sense of responsibility. The First family could afford sending their children to any institution on planet earth if they so wish but, it’s out of order for the family to flaunt this privilege as if deliberately intended to taunt the millions of youths with whom they signed a pact to change the way things are done in Nigeria complete with promises of equal opportunities for all.
What will it cost the first family to downplay rights and privileges like this in the midst of prolonged crisis like the ASUU strike action that has kept millions of Nigerian youths at home for 6 months and still counting? Absolutely nothing! On the other hand, this avoidable gaffe has reduced the present administration to somewhat an offshoot of the insensitive Obasanjo/Atiku administration which achieved infamy by the recklessness of Obasanjo and Atiku supervising the decline of Nigerian universities with one part of their brains while supervising the establishment of their individual private universities with the other part. Bell University and AUN were both established by Obasanjo and Atiku respectively in 2003, almost midway into their 8-year covenant with Nigerians to check the declination of Nigeria.
Like I said earlier, it wouldn’t cost the first family anything to have a low keyed celebration of the educational feat achieved by their daughter. Not displaying the feat on the social media will not reduce the quality and integrity of the first class certificate the family celebrated. The feat would have passed unnoticed; without reminding millions of Nigerian youths of being denied the right to attend obscenely dilapidated and overpopulated Nigerian universities to acquire just enough education to qualify them for a permanent slot on Nigeria’s unemployment exchange.
There are more than enough tricks in the book to make it easy for a Nigerian politician to dance with the devil with one part of the body while praying with saints with the other part. One half of the first family could be in London, privately celebrating the graduation of Mrs. Zahra, and the other part of the family could be in Nigeria blocking roads to airports alongside angry Nigerian youths who were protesting their prolonged stay at home as imposed on them by ASUU. Quite an easy way to gain cheap political mileage for the family. This is Nigerian politics 101.
This is the most challenging period of this administration and certainly the administration could do a lot better with less display of crass insensitivity like this. No gainsaying Nigerian youths are angry; very angry. Actually they are a ticking bomb which explosion could be triggered by a lot less. This is wake-up call for the first family and indeed all elected and appointed public officials to be alive to their covenant with Nigerians. The need for government officials to remain deeply connected with Nigerians and seen as so cannot be overemphasized. There’s no better time than now for those in leadership positions to be more introspective, compliant and fully subscribed to local inconveniences even if symbolically.
* Dammallam is a public affairs commentator based in Katsina
