I was a guest at the launch of Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi’s latest book in Abuja last Tuesday. The unveiling of The Loyalist: A Memoir of Service and Sacrifice drew leading opposition figures from across Nigeria, reflecting Abdullahi’s own political journey and his movement across party lines over the years.
From Rauf Aregbesola to Rotimi Amaechi, from Aminu Tambuwal to Emeka Ihedioha, and from Atiku Abubakar to Peter Obi, they were all there in solidarity with Abdullahi, who now holds the mantle as the publicity secretary of the African Democratic Congress (ADC). The odd man out was Dr. Kayode Fayemi, a leading APC figure and former governor of Ekiti State, who has been a close friend of Abdullahi for decades.
Expectedly, the events at the launch have caused a ruckus and public debate. Many newspapers led with the proceedings from the book launch on their front pages the following day. Even before the launch, a small storm had occurred on social media, especially Facebook, where I had seen posts critical of Abdullahi, alluding to disloyalty.
Apparently, some people had read the book’s preview and taken with the fact that Mallam (as close associates call Abdullahi) now has a frosty relationship with Bukola Saraki, his former political mentor, to speculate that the book portrays Saraki in an unpleasant light.
These people probably do not have full knowledge of the relationship between Mallam Abdullahi and Saraki, and even more importantly, why the relationship went south. But I do. I could even say I was a witness to the making of The Loyalist, having been a close associate of Abdullahi for years and his side man during the critical events post-2011 that shaped his relationship with Saraki.
My professional relationship with Mallam began in 2011 when I worked as his assistant on media and strategy when he was appointed Minister of Sports. At that time, his bond with Saraki was strong, and not merely that of a political mentor and mentee but more that of a guru and a devotee.
Mallam was in awe of Saraki, absolutely subservient, loyal and committed. He rarely had a conversation without mentioning Saraki or referencing something he had done or said in the past. And for us, his associates and staff, nothing could invoke his wrath more than saying something perceived as uncomplimentary about his mentor.
A few months after we resumed office, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the ruling party at that time, had a convention at Eagle Square, which was about 100 metres from our office at the Federal Secretariat. From our windows, we could see other ministers and party top shots, dressed in PDP colours, dancing and giving speeches at the event.
Mallam wasn’t there. He was locked in his office, treating files and attending to visitors. Some of us, his close aides, went up to him to ask why, as Minister and PDP leader in his state, he was not attending the important political event. Being a minister is not only an administrative role, but also confers some political responsibilities on you as the president’s go-to person in your state.
But he laughed at our suggestion. He explained that politics – local or national – was the exclusive turf of Saraki. He had been sent to represent the state in the cabinet to contribute to national development, not to play politics.
Several times, he sent representatives to events in Kwara rather than attend himself so as not to be accused of trying to build political clout in the state. Although he was in the President Goodluck Jonathan cabinet, there was no doubt about who Mallam Abdullahi considered his true leader. That man was Saraki. We used to joke that if his mentor asked, Mallam would gladly kill for him.
Therefore, the events that followed Saraki’s defection to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2013 were unsurprising to me. Mallam was a marked man, and his days in the Jonathan cabinet were numbered. But he wasn’t the only minister who came under scrutiny after the large-scale defection from the PDP to the APC that year. All the Ministers from the states where these defections took place, especially the five where the PDP governors left the PDP for the APC, came under close watch.
Many of these ministers quickly switched sides, ditching their political mentors who had left the PDP and affirming support for President Jonathan to keep their jobs. A few even took up the fight with their godfathers to demonstrate commitment to the PDP and Jonathan. Nyesom Wike, who was Minister of State for Education at that time, epitomised this. He fought Governor Amaechi, who had nominated him for the ministerial role, to a standstill.
But not Abdullahi. For him, it was Saraki or nothing. He was eventually sacked, and I recalled Saraki hosting a big homecoming event for him in Ilorin. At the event, he was variously called Omoluabi, Yoruba for a loyal, kind and trustworthy person. A person of good character.
When Saraki nominated him for the APC Publicity role in 2016, Mallam was reluctant to take the job but eventually did because his leader said so. After his term expired, he sought Saraki’s permission to contest for the role again and won after a keenly contested election. It was after this that his loyalty was tested again.
Saraki was defecting from the APC back to the PDP, and rallied his troops again. The then Kwara Governor and all his loyalists in the APC, including Mallam, were expected to leave the ruling party to the opposition, yet again, the second time Saraki would be doing this in a few years.
In Mallam’s case, Saraki had sweetened the deal, promising him he would only have to resign when their political group had decided on him for the Kwara governorship in 2019. So when he was asked to step down from his role, Mallam assumed his mentor had zeroed in on him to lead their group’s charge in the next gubernatorial election.
So he left his position in the APC and began priming to run for the PDP primaries the following year. His wife and I were members of his inner caucus and were part of the meetings to strategise on how to make him win the PDP ticket. I recall at those meetings, Mallam was always enthused about Saraki, assured that his word was creditworthy.
I was not that sold on him, and expressed my scepticism on one occasion. I should say that before that, I had never seen Mallam get angry like the way he did on that day, when I suggested that we should have a Plan B and not put all our eggs into the Saraki basket, trusting him to give us the ticket. He was furious with me for suggesting this and walked away from the meeting, which ended abruptly.
He didn’t speak with me for a few days after that incident, and I subsequently kept my mouth shut and followed his lead on strategies for winning the PDP gubernatorial primaries, particularly Saraki’s place in the scheme of things. When it was time for the primaries, Saraki declared he had no anointed candidate and that all the aspirants should work hard to win the ticket.
This was unusual and unprecedented in the group. Being the scion of Olooye, Saraki had followed the pattern the patriarch established to anoint his choices and then ask everyone else to step down and rally behind them. But for the 2019 gubernatorial primaries, he asked all the contenders to go to the field and woo primary voters. At least, on the surface, that was how it seemed.
On the day of the primaries, rumours started circulating that Saraki had anointed Razak Atunwa, a member of the House of Representatives from Ilorin, as his choice for the governorship. At the election venue, it was obvious this was the case. Party leaders were openly instructing delegates on how to vote and sharing US dollars to ensure they complied. Even worse, some of the ballots had been printed with only Atunwa’s name, giving the other aspirants no chance. The primaries were eventually disrupted and ended in chaos.
Saraki eventually showed his hand in a private meeting with the aspirants, where he asked all of them to step down for Atunwa, who went on to ‘win’ the primaries and was declared the PDP governorship candidate. So, if this was what Saraki wanted, why didn’t he make his intentions clear to his followers? Why achieve through subterfuge and deception, what he could have easily accomplished by asserting authority and influence?
It appears that Saraki, who was contesting the PDP primaries for President, didn’t want to be perceived as an autocrat who didn’t give others a chance in Kwara, yet was asking national PDP primary voters to consider him on his own merit. In any case, the news that came out after the vote was shocking, including that Saraki had instructed an aspirant to ensure Mallam never got the primary ticket. This suggested that he could have tolerated anyone else but Mallam.
This raises a fundamental question about their relationship and Mallam’s own assumption about it. It would be suicidal to close one’s eyes to all the treachery and maintain the relationship as if those things never happened. No one, absolutely no one, should be expected to remain loyal to a king who sent you to war, yet had instructed your colleagues to stab you in the back at the warfront.
In my view, it was Saraki’s own actions that caused the deterioration of their relationship. Loyalty should not only be vertical but horizontal, based on shared interests and respect. While the mentee needs to show gratitude, the godfather also has a responsibility to be fair and just, and to put the group’s interest above his own narrow pursuits. Loyalty should be a two-way street.
In conclusion, I don’t think the relationship between Mallam and Saraki is over. In politics, we never say never. Both men are heavily invested in a game where there are no permanent friends nor permanent enemies.
