Days have passed since I read the story. Though I do not trust the obscure blog that published it, I still read it; for two reasons. First, those who published it mentioned the respected Guardian newspaper as their source. That was sufficient motivation for me to read it. In other words, the news was first published in the Guardian, while others simply copied without permission. Since the advent of online newspapers in Nigeria and the infiltration of the industry by quacks, “copy and paste” has become the new brand of reporting. Most of the fraudulent online publishers simply invade websites of credible newspapers, copy whatever appeals to them and run with it in a most unprofessional manner.
My consolation is that I can still identify some online newspapers published by tested and reliable professionals.
The second reason I read the report was because I could not step out to buy a copy of the Guardian newspaper – I read it from the hospital bed. The straight-faced nurses were kind enough to allow me access to my mobile telephone. Today, they have gone a step further by allowing me to use my laptop computer for a few minutes. That’s why I can write this.
Two names mentioned in that report instantly attracted my attention. I saw the name Senator Ben Obi, the Ojeligbo. It was followed by that of Senator Ken Nnamani, the man, who, as Senate President, never liked my style of reporting. At that time, I was the National Assembly correspondent of the Punch newspaper.
These two people, in my estimation, are great Nigerians. Senator Obi, an excellently media-friendly and fine gentleman, combined his cerebral disposition and excellent political organisational skill, with that of the late propagandist extraordinaire, Senator Uche Chukwumerije, to usher third term into an early grave. They did it alongside the late Idris Kuta, Olorunnimbe Mamora, Seidu Dansadau, Udoma Udo Udoma, Shuaibu Lawal and Tokunbo Afikuyomi among others.
For those who are not familiar with the expression, third term, it also means tenure elongation. It describes an attempt by political supporters of the former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, to manipulate an amendment of the 1999 Constitution so that he could stay in office beyond the constitutionally approved two terms of four years each. They almost succeeded. Even state governors invested heavily in the project, because they would also have benefitted if it succeeded.
Obi and his team mounted an unprecedented opposition campaign against a sitting president; supported by the patriotic Nigerian media; and dismantled the third term agenda despite all intimidations. The campaign was so fierce, well-coordinated and finely executed that both the roaring, well-funded presidential publicity machine and the almost ruthless ruling party, with its arm-twisting approach, were left breathless.
On face value, everything would have ended in favour of Obasanjo and the ruling party except for two reasons. First, most of the senators and Members of the House of Representatives who opposed third term were from the then ruling Peoples Democratic Party. So, the house was divided. Senator Udoma, who was the first and perhaps the only person to issue a public statement dissociating himself from the political absurdity, was a Principal Officer of the Senate.
So, the battle started from inside the party structure. None of these people left the party. They fought from inside. They were called unprintable names by the leadership of the party; and equally threatened – not by their constituents, but by the party and even their state governors who wanted a taste of the cake called tenure extension. The clawing fangs of both the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission were unleashed on them. Still, they stood their grounds.
The second reason for the success of the anti-third term campaign in the Senate was the uncompromising role played by the then Senate President, Nnamani. He refused to take sides. At a certain point, just before the commencement of debate, the respected Senator Idris Kuta challenged him to declare his interest in the exercise. Nnamani publicly stated that he had no personal interest and that he had made no commitment whatsoever to anybody; not even his party.
For those of us who covered the Senate for our respective mass media at that time, we observed that Nnamani simply played the traditional role of a presiding officer – moderating the business of the floor through strict application of the rules of debate. He went a step further when he, alongside the leadership of the Senate, agreed that for purposes of transparency, the debate should be transmitted live on television.
This decision did not go down well with agents of the third term project, comprising the PDP, Presidency, State Governors and top entrepreneurs, who were part of the ill-fated project. They fought back, and threatened to withdraw the license of any broadcast media that would do so. The threat failed.
In addition, the Senate under Nnamani stood its ground against voice votes. It agreed that the debate and the voting procedure would be done individually and not collectively. In the words of Senator Udoma, everyone was expected to answer his or her father’s name publicly.
Throughout the debates and all the processes that led to the eventual defeat of third term in the Senate, there was nothing to indicate that Nnamani was a member of the group that fought against the project. It could also not be established, even remotely, that he supported the party or the presidency.
About three days after third term collapsed, Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba, on request, personally took me to Nnamani for an exclusive interview. One of the straight questions I asked Nnamani was: why did you kill third term? His answer, as though rehearsed, was: I did not kill third term. He went ahead to explain that even if he did not like third term, as a presiding officer, he could do nothing to it because his hands were tied by the traditional functions of the office he occupied.
Between that time and today, I have interviewed Nnamani on this and other issues several times. He has never given me any impression that he personally masterminded and executed the death of third term. His response has always been that if by applying the rules of debate, which is exactly what he was expected to do, and third term project was defeated, then no one should accuse him of killing it, because he was simply doing his job.
Recently, he published a 500-page book about his tenure as Senate President. It is entitled: “Standing Strong—Legislative Reforms, Third Term and Other Issues of the 5th Senate,” which I have read; and a review is already in the making. Maybe, I need to read it again because I have not seen where Nnamani stated in the book that he was the arrowhead of the move that led to the death of third term. He couldn’t have been!
What Nnamani actually stated in the book, perhaps for the first time, is his hatred for the third term project, which he tried to keep to himself at that time. He has also revealed how he was approached by the party leadership to influence the rules, but he refused. There is no assumption whatsoever in the book that he deliberately manipulated the process and thus, personally, caused the death of third term. That would be a lie.
I was therefore surprised to read the copied report which quoted Senator Obi as faulting Nnamani’s claimed role in scuttling Obasanjo’s third term bid. The report cited the Ojeligbo as saying that such claims were misrepresentation of facts. I have not seen such direct claims in the book and I would be surprised if Nnamani were to make such claims.
However, I personally believe that Nnamani’s stubbornness in applying the Standing Rules of the Senate and certain Parliamentary Precedents in the debate; the decision to have the debate aired on live television; and the resolution that each senator stood up to speak and also vote individually instead of voice votes, must have unconsciously or unintentionally contributed to the defeat of third term on the floor of the Senate.
Does that imply that he was directly responsible for the death of third term? No, he was not. Or has he ever claimed to have done so? Not to my knowledge. All the initiatives introduced in the tenure elongation debate as indicated above, were agreed to by the Senate. They were meant to add credibility to the process by making it transparent. There was no indication that they were introduced by Nnamani to kill or sustain third term.
Akpe, a seasoned journalist who covered the Senate for several years, writes from Abuja.