<\/p>\n
The responsibility of the Vice President is to be ready at a moment’s
\nnotice to accept the Presidency if the President is unable to perform his
\nduties for any objective reason, and Namadi Sambo, certainly can fulfill
\nthis responsibility, having been in his current position since 2010.<\/p>\n
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has chosen the 71-year-old retired
\narmy general, Muhammadu Buhari, the iron fisted and no-nonsense
\ndisciplinarian, to challenge President Goodluck Jonathan for the
\npresidency next year.<\/p>\n
Buhari, as we know, ran in 2003, 2007, and in 2011 unsuccessfully; now he
\nwants to kick out President Jonathan, who has been in power since 2010,
\nalong with vice president, Sambo.<\/p>\n
Buhari, as we all know, is an honesty-driven man, a fierce fighter of
\ncorruption, and has been known to very quickly silence drug dealers,
\npunish white collar criminals, chastise compromise-minded media, and
\ndisplay the fear of God in him on behalf of the people.<\/p>\n
Buhari, given his unique personality and style, should go ahead and select
\nhis running mate from an oppositional party, like the People\u2019s Democratic
\nParty (PDP).<\/p>\n
Yes , it sounds odd, but under a country like Nigeria, with its unusual
\ncircumstances as it relates to our current state of polity, there is
\napparently no constitutional law that would prohibit Buhari, as a
\npresidential candidate, from selecting a running mate from the opposition,
\nthe PDP or any other party. In practice, of course, it’s extremely
\nunlikely that a PDP-type would consent to run on an APC ticket, or vice
\nversa.<\/p>\n
However, should Buhari move boldly and select the current deputy to
\nJonathan, he, Sambo, would be seen as a traitor among partisan allies,
\nespecially Jonathan, to the point where he would be forced to switch
\nparty affiliation.<\/p>\n
Although the odds are slim to none that Buhari would be willing to invite
\nvicious ridicule from his political associates, it should be remembered
\nthat to a man like Buhari what matters most is putting the people and
\nNigeria first.<\/p>\n
It’s also possible that some in APC ‘s rank-and-file would coordinate a
\nrevolt and try to work to subvert the presidential nominee’s unusual
\nchoice.<\/p>\n
Yes, we know that a vice presidential nomination is supposed to be
\naffirmed by the stakeholders of a party like the APC, but today in our
\nyoung democracy, we live in a bitter time and in one of the worst moments
\nin our nation. As such, let\u2019s do the unusual during this extraordinary
\ntime.<\/p>\n
A conflict-time coalition between an APC and a PDP against the swelling
\nproblem image of the current ruling party would provide a sigh of relief
\nto the people who are yearning for a major offensive against the present
\npowers that be. But silently, are they in fear of the all-powerful PDP
\nwith their super military back up?<\/p>\n
We should not be perturbed about Vice-President Namadi Sambo being a
\nNortherner, a Muslim, and a long standing devotee of PDP. Sambo, an
\narchitect by background, is a silent political heavyweight, who may even
\nharbor his own presidential ambitions.<\/p>\n
As a possible vice president to the aging Buhari, he is well positioned to
\nbe President in the future, if not sooner. Perhaps in private, he may be
\nexperiencing mixed feelings that President Jonathan did not keep his
\nreported oral promise to leave office in 2015.<\/p>\n
As a Governor of Kaduna State, we all remember Sambo\u2019s 11-point agenda
\nthat was focused on empowering the youth and women of the community, and
\nhis full attention in addressing the issue of insecurity for his state.<\/p>\n
Sambo, by appearance and history, is not too partisan; he is more a man of
\nthe center, and already has the finesse for a vice-presidential
\nrelationship, as he has a very warming face with the public. He is
\nanti-indiscipline and a serious person when it comes to the people\u2019s
\npriorities.<\/p>\n
Sambo is grounded in a mind of independency. He is all about reality
\nrather than wide open fantasy. He is a man of character. He is not an
\nultra-Muslim, but certainly a man of tolerance.<\/p>\n
Sambo, if truth be told, would take off in speed from the PDP, based on
\nPDP\u2019s soiled name locally and globally. But for now, he must continue to
\ngrapple with this type of problem as he is generally deemed to be a
\nloyalist.<\/p>\n
Why would Nigeria not welcome and bring in such a man to a new Nigeria, if
\nBuhari boldly asked him to join the APC , especially when we know Sambo as
\none of the most passionate advocates for the youths, lay people, the
\nelderly, and a friend of the professional and business world?<\/p>\n
By appearance, it is quite easy to see a personal chemistry between Buhari
\nand Sambo, as it relates to a mindset for a disciplined and healthy
\npolitical atmosphere. Above all, Sambo is bathed in confidence,
\ntruthfulness, and selflessness. He is a strikingly different Nigerian
\nfrom Jonathan, who reportedly ruminates on a notoriously close
\nrelationship with some questionable political and religious associates.<\/p>\n
Like every great story, the opinion here may be an exercise in fantasy,
\nbut if the party elders in the APC really want the best for Nigeria, let
\nthem allow Buhari to secretly reach out to Sambo as a possible vice
\npresidential candidate and, should both of them agree, the non-ending
\nembarrassment that the PDP and the APC have created in the eyes of the
\npeople will be lessened, as we will be repositioning Nigeria with two good
\nmen from the so-called oppositional parties.<\/p>\n
Dr. John Egbeazien Oshodi is a Forensic, Clinical and National
\nPsychologist and a former Secretary-General of the Nigeria Psychological
\nAssociation.Jos5930458@aol.com<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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