Fani-Kayode: Saying “Yes”, When You Mean To Say “No”

When the All Progressives Congress (APC) was formed, one of its immediate challenges that came up wasdealing with the ultra-conservatives elements that have found their way into its ranks. At that point the party could not provide satisfactory answers to the question of the presence of reactionary elements like Femi Fani-Kayode within its fold. Perhaps, the party leadership thought they could be reformed and reconstructed into the party’s ideological dispositions only to be proven wrong before long. This was why I wrote in my article, “APC CRISES: TURNING TABLES?” that apart from the unifying ambition of defeating former President Goodluck Jonathan, it appears the party has no further ambition.

Even though my views, like many Nigerians at that time, were in tandem with the APC, I have never been confortable with persons like Fani-Kayode in the party. To me his presence can only guarantee monumental embarrassment (which I think he represents) to the party. I told my friend KitanOmole, who like me, was aBuharisympathiser but unlike me he admired Fani-Kayode for his attack on Jonathan in the early days of the party that the man is only on holiday in the party and should be taken seriously. My friend will not agree with me because as he was carried away by his (Fani-Kayode) criticisms of President Jonathan on social and print media and was enjoying his undeserved popularity. On this FFK, as he is known among his admirers, is a very smart guy who knew what he was doing!

Everything worked for him in the APC. He used that platform to rain personal abuses on president Jonathan(not sparing the Igbos who support him). His diatribes against the Igbos in no small ways contributed to the branding of the APC as an “anti-Igbo” party. Surprisingly, many pro-Jonathan’s Igbo writers who earlier criticised FFK and APC, saw wrong in his views anymore when he started “revealing APC secrets” later on. All was well to these ones as long as you supported Jonathan even if you had earlier insulted their mother. Like I said, FFK is a smart man, or a con man if you like, who knew well what he was doing. All these he did till he had a strange dream-the APC fielding a “Muslim-Muslim” ticket for the 2015 presidential election!

I am not aware till this day, which position the APC gave FFK for him to be privy to such information. I am equally not aware that the APC that I know like my palms, will ever take FFK so seriously knowing fully his antecedents, will ever give his any serious position in that party. When FFK slept and had such a strange dream remains a mystery to me till today. Well, not only did APC field a respected staunch Pentecostal Christian Pastor , Professor YemiOsinbajo as its Vice Presidential candidate( as against FFK’s strange dreams), but also won the March 28 presidential election.

This leads me to my main point-FFK is the baby that will not grow. Babies cry for everything especially for food. You can easily know when baby FFK wants to eat. He cries the loudest when he is hungry. He dances at his bestwhen his belly is full. He does not know how to call it quit when it comes to eating. This was why former President Obasanjo beautifully describes him as a dog that will bark at his boss’ enemies (real or imagined) and shake his tail or sing your praises when he is given food. It hurts, but very true!

Only recently did FFK made into the news again. He has largely been quiet since the presidential election. He has been busy going from one Court to another for trial over his money laundering charges. As though in victory mood (from his money laundering case), he launched attacks (as he usually does when he feels like eating) on the Buhari administration for its inability to tackle the challenge of Boko Haram. He restated his traditional argumentthat Buhari was in fact a “silent sympathiser” and financier of the deadly group. It takes no less a person than FFK to manufacture such Made-in-Ife revelations!

I will say this for the records. FFK told the world as at the time he re-joined (?) the People’s Democratic Party(PDP), that it was General Buhari, one of his several lies he told about the General, that is the prime sponsor of the dreaded group. He opined that the North was using it to frustrate the Jonathan administration when he wrongly said it was the General that said he would make Nigeria ungovernable for former President Jonathan. Fact does not matter to FFK, (just like it didn’t matter to his role model, Joseph Goebbels, Adolf Hitler’s Minister for Propaganda) as long as the lie sounds good and big enough.

One would have expected that this baby will grow from breast sucking to at least chewing solids. If Buhari, taking FFK’s infantile logic, was the one behind Boko Haram to frustrate Jonathan, except FFK stays in the Mars, he would have known that the terror activities continuing under Buhari clears him of his previous allegations of the General.

My unsolicited advice to President MuhammaduBuhari is to be aware of this hungry baby now that he is idle with no food in sight. This is his natural way of seeking employment and the President be on guard against considering his uninviting resume. This is exactly what his recent attacks on the Buhari administration is intended to achieve. This was on record to have led several opportunistic attacks on former President OlusegunObasanjo before he was invited to join the latter’s administration as Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs and later as Minister for Aviation. This tool was the deployed to get former President Jonathan’s attention before he was appointed Presidential campaign spokesman for the 2015 election. He can at best be ignored; those who have learnt to do so he largely left alone. President Buhari should consider taking Obasanjo’s advice but taking him as a dog which barks and when it tires out, it maintains its peace!

Perhaps, FFK did not properly understand the lyrics in the old school matching song which goes thus:

“Wherever you go;
Wherever you be;
Do not say “yes”;
When you mean to say “no”.
In parenthesis, please don’t add “Baba Ibadan”, which is usually the most exciting part of song.Can we still recall that the same FFK when on air even before the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) could commence collating the election result, “INEC Chairman” FFK announced that his party, PDP, was leading in 23 states of the federation? Need I say more that he says “yes” when he means “no”?

If he tells you it’s raining, it is imperative that you go outside to check the weather yourself. Like Squealer in George Orwell’s Animal Farm, if he calls something white, it’s time to check well to see if it’s not black. This exactly is why no responsible person should take him seriously because is known to say yes, when he means no!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
OlalekanWaheed ADIGUN is a political risk analyst and an independent political strategist for wide range of individuals, organisations and campaigns. He is based in Lagos, Nigeria.

His write-ups can be viewed on his website http://olalekanadigun.com/

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