Abdulsalami Abubakar: Rising profile of a retired General.

Abdulsalami Abubakar is not run-of-the-mill. He is exceptional. The distinction is critical when discussing the man widely acknowledged as one of Nigeria’s finest elder statesmen and political revolutionaries. His foray in Nigeria’s civic years emphasises his value as a representative of new realities and possibilities. Indeed, those remarkable forays have conferred upon him what towering audacity and individuality usually lacks: prudence, superior acumen and irrefutable authority.

In his acceptance speech, he promised to assist in lifting the university to the next level. He also used the occasion to warn political leaders to avoid making frivolous promises to the people in the face of the prevailing difficulties facing the country and for the credibility of our fledging democracy. He noted that promises unkept often act as poisonous seeds that eventually germinate into chronic public frustration, which ultimately destroy the political environment.  He also said that the only solution to the country’s myriad of challenges was Nigerians to unite and pursue collective solution to the challenges confronting the nation.

He said: “Promises unkept often act as poisonous seeds that eventually germinate into chronic public frustration, which ultimately goes to destroy the political environment. Keeping of promises by political leaders enhances the credibility of leadership and raises the integrity profile of such leaders.” He maintained that, in times of difficulty, leaders would be measured by the promise made and kept.

Abubakar urged Nigerians to be moderate in their expectations, stressing that there could be no quick fixes to all our national challenges. He pointed out that challenges like these were not strange to the country but noted that our resolve to collectively find solution to them would see the nation through. He said: “We must accept that Nigeria has always had social, economic and political problems and it will continue to have them to varying degrees of intensity; and the real joy lies for us in our determination to pursue them and solve them as brothers.”

He also called for Federal Government’s continuous monitoring of academic performances of all tertiary institutions, especially the privately-owned ones in order to improve the quality of education and make our certificate competitive on the global scene.

It could never be hyperbolic no doubt, to pay glowing tribute to the statesmanship of Abdulsalami Abubakar. The former President and retired Military General’s enviable tact, diplomacy and statecraft is indeed deserving of such fulsome compliments and more. Wrought from an uncommon breed that puts to rest, the politics of traditional public officers, Abubakar is abundantly adept in assimilating and perpetuating every detail of the rule book for good governance. He displays very good grasp of citizenry-centred governance and this is reflective in the way he steered the country away from the brink of violence and destruction and actualised Nigeria’s transition to democratic civilian rule.

Born June 13, 1942 in Minna, Niger State, to Hausa parents, Abubakar was educated at Native Authority Primary School in Minna, the Provincial Secondary School in Bida, and finally the Technical Institute, Kaduna. Afterwards, he joined the military. Abubakar led Nigeria’s contingent in the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon and eventually rose to the position of Chief of Defence Staff.

The retired Army General was military Head of State of Nigeria from June 9, 1998 until May 29, 1999. He succeeded Sani Abacha upon the latter’s death. It was during Abubakar’s leadership that Nigeria adopted its new constitution on May 5, 1999, which provided for multiparty elections. Abubakar thus transferred power to president-elect Olusegun Obasanjo on May 29, 1999.

Prior to his emergence as military Head of State, Nigeria had been ruled by military leaders since Muhammadu Buhari seized power from Shehu Shagari in a 1983 coup. Although democratic elections were held in 1993, they were annulled by General Ibrahim Babangida. Reported to have had an initial reluctance to accepting the position, Abubakar was sworn in as president on June 9, 1998 after the unexpected death of Abacha. He declared a weeklong period of national mourning.

Abubakar is, indeed, a lucky man; he is one of the few military leaders in the world that ascended to power without a coup. When he was chosen by his military colleagues to step into the shoes of General Sani Abacha who had just died suddenly, he was not exactly a happy man. He thought of turning down the offer but he knew he could not forgive himself nor the nation forgive him. It was a call to national duty at a time of national distress. Now, his profile is still rising like a meteor. There is no gainsaying that Abubakar commands the tribute of interminable cheers in the wake of his daring exploits. These days, his exertions on the plains of politics reverberate far and wide, eliciting fervent deference and applause for his extraordinariness and finesse in teaching Nigeria and the African continent to trust in his depth and citizenship of humanity. And he does not have to force it.