By Eromosele Ebhomele –

Musiliu Obanikoro is one major factor to be considered by both the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and All Progressives Congress, APC, as the 2015 general elections draw near.

If Musiliu Obanikoro, the Minister of State for Defence, were a course of study in Nigerian politics, such a course would be so interesting and fun-filled that at the end, many students could fail an examination conducted on him. Koro, as he is fondly called by his loyalists and sympathisers, remains one politician who knows how to play his game. He carries a soft look that makes him appear a gentleman; his mien at every given time is one that does not show anger easily. But he is what a true politician should be: highly unpredictable. And when he wants to tackle his detractors, he does so without looking back.

To the bewilderment of many Nigerians who had followed his activities closely, Obanikoro sent a congratulatory message to Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola just few hours after he was declared winner of the governorship election in the State of Osun held on 9 August. To the junior minister, the battle had been won and lost: won by the APC and lost by the PDP, and there were some lessons to be learnt from the exercise.

Of all the PDP members that congratulated Aregbesola, two stood out. One of them, Femi Fani-Kayode, a former minister and controversial figure in the eyes of many of his critics, confessed that Aregbesola won the election “convincingly”. The other person was Obanikoro.

Musiliu Obanikoro, Seen as PDP’s trouble maker in South-West

In a statement he personally signed, Obanikoro said Governor Aregbesola deserved the victory he got at the poll and that his re-election was a confirmation of the goodwill he enjoys among the people of his state. “I congratulate the good people of Osun State for once again re-affirming the will of democracy by their exceptional conduct during the just concluded gubernatorial elections. The people of Osun State have consolidated our hope in a democracy where violence-free elections are allowed to thrive. I enjoin all other citizens of our great country to emulate them as we prepare for another round of general elections early next year. I also wish to congratulate the winner, His Excellency, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, for his victory at the polls. His re-election is a confirmation of the goodwill he enjoys among the people of Osun State,” Obanikoro said.

To Omisore, who he called his brother, Obanikoro said it was a good fight the PDP candidate put up during the election even though he lost the fight. “His rare display of maturity and sportsmanship throughout the period of the campaign and the election is worthy of emulation. History will be kind to him,” Obanikoro explained, while he commended the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, and “our Military and other security forces for their professional conduct which ensured a peaceful, free and fair election in Osun State”.
The reaction to Obanikoro’s statement was one of shock from Nigerians. It was more surprising because, to political watchers, Obanikoro is not one to see anything good in the politics of the progressives, as the All Progressives Congress, APC, has termed itself.

Recently, Obanikoro, in an interview gave a hint of what some Nigerians had argued was his mission in President Jonathan’s cabinet. “The victory party is a way of serving a notice to the APC that we are coming to take over the entire South-West. So, what we are doing across the zone is a celebration of victory in Ekiti State. We have a winning formula that we know will win Lagos, Ogun, Osun and Oyo for us. The APC has made our job very easy because of its anti-people policies. In 16 years, you cannot accumulate that kind of debt they have accumulated in few years, especially in Lagos where close to N1 trillion is hanging on the future of our state. We have seen accumulation of debts in the United States, and we saw the consequences on the economy. Some of us being aware of the danger ahead are afraid with what our governors in the South-West are doing,” he sounded.

True, Obanikoro went almost under after losing the 2007 governorship election on PDP’s platform in Lagos. He became the Nigerian Ambassador to Ghana. Yet, as Nigeria’s representative in that country, he never stopped alerting listening ears of his intention to win the South-West and particularly, Lagos for his party. With the end of his tenure as ambassador, the Presidency, which had desperately gunned for Lagos since 1999, saw him as the most capable force to combat Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and wrest the state from him.