Wike: Reinventing politics with ideology in Nigeria

By Zeb Ijewa

A keen retrospection of Nigeria’s political history and a careful observation of the nation’s current political situation would easily reveal a sharp contrast in the absence or dearth of political principles and or ideologies in the political play field.

Nigeria’s political forebears engaged the game of politics with a mindset quite differed from what is visible in current times. In those days, even political parties were built and established on veritable principles and ideologies and one had the freedom and chance to filter out the particular political party which would suit one’s mindset and expectations. Then being a member of a particular political party was same as belonging to not only the aspirations and cardinal objectives of the party, but, also, the school of thought of such a party.

The late Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe did not just wake up one morning and coined “Zikism” neither did the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo suddenly started shouting “Awoism”. Dr. Azikiwe, leading the NCNC had his political philosophy and ideology built and established on the principle of a larger Nigeria where each would see any and every part as home and to build trust and confidence in another despite the length of physical separation on accounts of distance. That was the oxygen to his policy of “compromise” – never gaining too much and never losing too much – a win-win situation. That was how he was able to win majority votes at the Western region House of Assembly. His followers created the then very popular political philosophy known as “Zikism” and his followers and students were known as “Zikists”. Story had it that a journalist once asked him the meaning of Zikism to which in answer, he directed the reporter to go and ask the Zikists what Zikism meant.

So also was the popularity of “Awoism” and the “Awoists”. Awoism stemmed from Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s conviction that for one to be a good Nigerian, one needed to first be a good Yoruba man. In other words getting it right at the center should stem from each section or region bringing up their bests. Unfortunately he was grossly misunderstood and was labeled a Yoruba tribal bigot.

Sir Ahmadu Bello, the Sardauna of Sokoto directed his political interests on conserving the religious and cultural peculiarity of the Islamic north, ensuring that no unwanted foreign influence was allowed to contaminate the sanctity of their religious values.
Sadly and very unfortunate, those veritable politico – democratic values had fast eroded at the turn of the political events of the third and fourth republics. Politicians no longer operated with convincing political principles and ideologies.

But, recently, a dynamic wave of a whiff of ideology has played out from the events leading to the 2023 politico- electioneering activities of our political gladiators. The former Executive governor of Rivers state, HE Bar. Ezenwo Nyesom Wike’s political dynamism has merely propped him up as an only politician who has engaged political business with some tinge of political ideology.

This has reflected in his doggedness and tenacity to succeed in his convictions irrespective of the party inconsistencies.
For one, he was the only pillar holding the PDP’s political structure at the party’s loss of presidential elections in 2015. He succeed in salvaging the PDP from the hands of intruders who wanted to ruin and or devastate whatever remained in its structures. To achieve this, he succeeded in enthroning Iorchia Ayu as the National Chairman of the party. Nigeria’s presidency rotates between the north and the south. At the close of President Muhammadu Buhari’s (APC) second tenure, it was turn of the south to produce president for the country and it was expected that the party should take the lead in ensuring that this rotation between the north and the south was not thwarted or sabotaged for the sake of retaining the confidence of the members who are from the south. But the PDP under Iorchia Ayu decided to play to the gallery by its surreptitious support for Atiku Abubakar to become the party’s flag bearer for the 2023 presidential elections. That insensitivity from the party’s leadership indirectly gave expression to Wike’s strong held ideology of fighting for what is right, fair and just.

His belief that it was the right of a southerner to occupy Aso Rock in the 2023 election could not be enhanced without ensuring that presidential ticket should be zoned to the south irrespective of whatever party the candidate came from. That was how he fought to ensure that a more popular candidate in the person of President Bola Tinubu emerged and won the presidential elections.

This is the point where Nigerian keen observers recognized that Wike might be unconsciously revamping the laudable values of playing politics with ideologies.
Despite the fights put up by his own party (PDP), Wike laughed last after the elections were concluded. Many a Nigerian have viewed Wike’s rising profile in politics and there is this conviction that so far as he has never lost political battle, he is worth following. And this is the energy they have summoned to create and build the political school of thought referred to as “WIKE-ISM” – fighting for what is right to a victorious end.

“”WIKE-ISM” and the “WIKE-ISTS.”
The name, WIKE, is unarguably the most dominant name in the Nigerian political space, currently. Popular or not, depending on the angle or school of thought or political shade it is viewed, hardly has any day passed by without a mention of the name “Wike” in our tabloids. As a former Minister of Education and former Executive Governor of Rivers state,Wike had earned popularity as a hard working, result oriented political figure and leader. He is also known to be bold, brave, and resolute. He is not known to take the back seat in any assignment, task, or project he finds interest to do. A good chunk of the national political divide believes that His Excellency, Barrister Ezenwo Nyesom Wike, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (MFCT), has earned the popularity he now basks on. Yes, popularity!

So, the politico- electoral rumbles in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) predating the 2023 presidential elections and which centered around Wike was not his first announcing in Nigeria’s political scene but, unknowingly and unconsciously to him, it was, rather, the remote voice echoing a rebirth of politics of ideology in the nation’s body politics – ideology stemming from an individual’s strong conviction and belief in justice, fair play and discipline – even when the political party’s engine of control and mechanism of discipline run short of this invaluable political mantra.

For one, Wike has distinguished himself as a profound and dogged fighter – his manner of fighting notwithstanding. He is a focused man who believes in the conviction of his heart in pursuit of any worthy political objective. He bears great sense of loyalty – not the ‘loyalty’ which would berate and reduce the very worth of an individual politician, but the ‘loyalty’ that streams from a disciplined heart and what it believes in or committed to. For example, when he believed that former governor Chibuike Amaechi was the rightful governorship candidate of the PDP in Rivers state and as such,the duly elected governor, notwithstanding that the grander political powers that be then had given it to Chief Omeiha, Wike was there solidly behind every move and strategy to ensure that the right thing was done to ensure that HE Chibuike Amaechi was sworn in as the bona fide governor of Rivers state.

More so, he earned the sobriquet “Mr. Projects” as baptized by then Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, because his political philosophy hinges on engendering dividends of democracy, good governance and infrastructural developments. This includes ensuring that good projects whether abandoned or not completed by his predecessors, were completed and commissioned. He revamped the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) at the turn of events following the party’s loss at the 2015 presidential elections. The PDP nearly became an anathema of a party, so vulnerable to be poached by outsiders. Wike was the man who came to the rescue of the party from the precipice of looming implosion and fractionalization. The PDP would have been a dead party but for Wike’s timely intervention and sponsorship.

Let it not be forgotten that he was a Minister of state who brought vibrancy to then less busy Ministry of Education by his frequent visits to schools all over the country while distributing teaching/learning materials free of charge to pupils and students. He is a man who hates failure and he does not leave assignments half way.

Wike likes agreement and he does well to honour them. Reaching accords or agreements are sacrosanct to him. As a lawyer and a clever man, he would always make sure that no agreement or accord he enters would leave him with the short end of the stick. One most important thing of admiration about this rising profile is his deep sense of cultivation of personal political principles and ideology – which is an interesting developmental aspect of Nigerian politics. In days past, our forebears played politics based on party principles and ideologies which, painfully, are lacking in our nowadays politics.

The rate at which Nigerian politicians criss cross the party lines and divides is not only alarming but seemingly irresponsible. No party is a right wing any more. None is a left wing either. Nigerian politicians seem to be more interested in chasing money and political appointments or opportunities rather than pursue the veritable necessities of ideology and principles upon which each and every political party should, of necessity, be formed, known and identified. Nowadays, it is easy to find one politician who had been a Senator from party A, Minister from party B, member of BOT in party C and yet looking to acquire another juicy position in an extra party. Does it then mean that all political parties are the same? Wike might have had issues with the PDP as a party, to the point of working for an APC presidential candidate to defeat a PDP candidate in the 2023 presidential elections, but he has never contemplated dumping the party. This is commendable because it goes further to strengthen the obvious fact that his disagreement with the PDP was purely a matter of principle and ideology – fighting for what one believes is right, fair, and just for the people of Nigeria. So, the absence of principles and ideology in our national politics is the bane of our Nigeria’s political growth and democratic expansion. How politically and democratically correct is such clumsy statement credited to the former National Chairman of the APC, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole to the effect that, “If you decamp to APC, your sins are forgiven” as an inducement to lure politicians and party leaders in other parties to decamp to the APC so as to escape investigation from relevant bodies.

Politics tamfitronics “WIKE-ISM” as political philosophy and the “WIKE-ISTS” as followers.

The above and more underscore the overriding importance of the birth of the “WIKE-ISM “political philosophy and the teeming supporting “WIKEISTS” now making contacts and spreading the good news of the political ideology of His Excellency, Chief Ezenwo Nyesom Wike, the former governor of Rivers state and current Minister of the Ministry of Federal Capital Territory (MFCT). This is a man so erroneously conceived as an overbearing and overreaching political malefactor – a political godfather. This is wrong! Wike had in times past decried the idea of “godfatherism” in Nigeria politics and he is not making any denial of the fact that he stands against anything like godfather in politics. The fact is that the journey to building an enduring legacy of political ideology is never easy. A political leader is like the class room teacher who has to work hard to teach and as well work extra hard to test and evaluate his students or pupils. The way to inculcate and imbibe is tedious; more so that any student who failed a test and goes on to refuse to take corrections needs to be disciplined properly and adequately. So, the play outs in Rivers state between Wike and Fugbara is a mater of a master who seeks to bring up a student in best possible way which will ensure imbibing of the very values meant for inculcation. Wike does not see himself as a godfather neither is he pretending to be so. He is a focused man who is visioned to creating, building, and establishing a fert ile political base and clout which would eventually engender growth and blossom of veritable political ideologies.

Having reasoned that Wike has hardly failed in any of his political endeavors and engagements – the emergence of President Bola Tinubu as a case study – the Wikeists have visioned to champion the course of the “Bola Tinubu Continuity 2027” for a successful second term electoral victory

Ijewa writes from Abuja
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