Why Wike is a very lucky politician

The minister of the federal capital territory (FCT), Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, is a very lucky politician in Nigeria’s political context. He is one of the very few politicians who have been in political office or the other since 1999.

Wike is not one of those who fought the military to a standstill to bring about the current civilian dispensation. He was barely unknown prior to 1999. If not for the current pseudo-democracy, perhaps Wike, as a lawyer, would be struggling to make ends meet.

However, our pseudo-democracy has done Wike a lot of good. He became a local government chairman in 1999 through the sponsorship of his then-political godfather and the current president-general of the Ohaneze Ndigbo worldwide, Senator John Azuta Mbata. He served as a local government chairman for two terms.

After that, he became the chief of staff to then Governor Rotimi Amaechi, from 2007 to 2011. Amaechi later recommended him to President Goodluck Jonathan for a ministerial appointment. He was initially appointed as a minister of state for education and later was elected as a substantive minister in the same ministry before he resigned to contest for the position of Rivers State governor in 2015.

Wike became a governor in the first place due to then Governor Amaechi’s unnecessary political disagreement with then President Jonathan, particularly then First Lady Patience Jonathan. Amaechi’s unnecessary political braggadocio gave birth to the current Wike quagmire in Rivers State. If Amaechi had a good relationship with the Jonathans, Wike wouldn’t have exploited the political disagreement to his own good.

If Amaechi had had a good relationship with the Jonathans, he would have been given the privilege as an outgoing governor to choose his successor just like other outgoing governors at the time did. There’s no way Wike would have become Amaechi’s choice.

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Wike became a governor and served two terms. He also had the liberty to choose his own successor even though things are no longer at ease between both of them now.

Nonetheless, Wike’s political luck as a star is shining brightest at the moment. Wike, in his heart, must be thankful to God Almighty that he was neither the PDP’s presidential candidate nor the running mate. If Wike had emerged as the PDP presidential candidate in the last presidential election, he would have still lost the election. In fact, he wouldn’t have won any state aside from Rivers State considering Peter Obi’s tsunami.

If Wike had paired with Atiku Abubakar, both of them would have still lost the election no matter the amount of resources they had spent. If Wike was Atiku’s running mate, he would have been politically jobless now because President Tinubu wouldn’t have appointed him into his cabinet as a minister.

Wike founded the group of five governors of the PDP extraction known as the G-5 to work against their party in the last presidential election. Today, apart from Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, who scaled a second term, all the members of the G-5 governors are politically jobless and redundant. Only Wike is all over the place. Okezie Ikpeazu, Samuel Ortom, and Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Abia, Benue, and Enugu states, respectively, are in political wilderness. They are all perhaps hoping on Wike to help them secure ambassadorial appointments where they will be accountable and answerable to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Finally, Wike is a very lucky politician, and Governor Siminalayi Fubara seems to be unlucky in Wike’s current ministerial position. If Wike is not a minister, he dares not challenge a sitting governor as he is doing now. How many former governors can do that now? However, those whose palm kernels were cracked for them by a benevolent spirit should never forget to be humble. There are former governors among the current crop of ministers. They are not breathing down on the necks of their successors. Why is Wike different?

Maduako writes from Owerri via [email protected] (08061562735).