Sunday Musings: That Iconic Picture of Nigeria's Living Heads of State
by
Mobolaji E. Aluko, PhD
March 2, 2014
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My People:
Amidst the many controversies of the List of 100 Awardees of Nigeria's Centenary of 2014 - of names undeservedly included and omitted - comes this gem of a picture above of living Heads of State of Nigeria - present and past - taken during the Centenary celebrations of Friday, February 28 in Abuja.
The order as seen in the above picture is Abdusalami Abubakar (Head of State from June 9, 1998 - May 29, 1999; as a soldier), Muhammadu Buhari (December 31, 1983 - August 27, 1985; soldier), Yakubu Gowon (August 1, 1966 - July 29, 1975; soldier), Goodluck Jonathan (May 6, 2010 - date, after acting from February 9, 2010; civilian), Olusegun Obasanjo (February 13, 1976 - October 1, 1979, soldier; then May 29, 1999 - May 29, 2007, civilian), Shehu Shagari (October 1,1979 - December 31, 1983;civilian), Ibrahim Babangida (August 27, 1985 - August 27, 1993; soldier) and Ernest Shonekan (August 27 - November 17, 1993; civilian) - all male; three Southerners (of who one is a Minority), five Northerners (of who three are minorities); five military dictators and four civilian heads of state (with Obasanjo doubly counted). Missing from this pantheon are Tafawa Balewa (Prime Minister October 1, 1960- January 15, 1966, civilian), Nnamdi Azikiwe (President October 1, 1960- January 15, 1966,civilian), Aguiyi-Ironsi (Military Head of State January 15 - July 27, 1966, soldier), Murtala Mohammed (Military Head of State July 29, 1975 - February 13, 1976, soldier), Sani Abacha (November 17, 1993- June 8, 1998), and Umaru Musa Yar'Adua (May 29, 2007- May 6, 2010), Moshood Kashimawo Olabiwonnu Abiola (June 12, 1993 - ?, an elected Presidency aborted by Babangida) and Chief Obafemi Awolowo (the best President Nigeria never had, quoting Emeka Odimegwu-Ojukwu) - all in the Greater Beyond, exact location unknown.
If all Heads of State who actually presided were alive and required to stand together in chronological order, it would have been: Azikiwe (110 years old today; 56 years old at assumption of HOS)/Balewa (101 years old; 47 years old) - Aguiyi-Ironsi (90 years old; 42 years old) - Gowon (79 years old; 31 years old) - Murtala (75 years old; 35 years old) - Obasanjo I (about 76 years old; 38 years old) - Shagari (89 years old; 54 years old) - Buhari (71 years old; 32 years old) - Babangida (72 years old;44 years old ) - Shonekan (77 years old; 57 years old) - Abacha (70 years old; 50 years old) - Abdusalami (71 years old; 55 years old) - Obasanjo II (about 76 years old; 61 years old) - Yar'Adua (62 years old; 55 years old) - Jonathan (56 years old; 52 years old), with an average of 47.3 years old upon assumption of duty, with Gowon the youngest at 31 and Obasanjo the oldest at about 61 at his Second Coming. Only Azikiwe and Balewa might have by now been truly naturally dead by now - and even that is arguable. Besides, we should have avoided the military interregnum, including mercifully skipping Abacha altogether.
Anyway, I tried to see the significance of the arrangement in the picture, and I could not help but notice that no one who militarily-couped the other stood close to each other - at least not on the same side to the left or to the right of the host President GEJ. However successor Shagari, facilitated by Obasanjo, and Shonekan, facilitated by Babangida, were quite happy to stand next to each other.
Curiously, Babangida's head was bowed - and his Centenary certificate curiously hidden away - while Obasanjo, Shagari and Shonekan clutched their certificates fervently with both hands, leaving none to be free, unlike Abdusalami, Buhari and Gowon, whose free hands were raised in celebratory acknowledgement.
Finally only Abdusalami, Buhari and Shonekan joined Jonathan in a smile, with GEJ's smile quite broad indeed as a proud, worthy and appropriately sartorially-attired host, with Obasanjo looking a little glum - but giving the lowest and most humble bow to GEJ in accepting his award just before this picture was taken - with a dash of head-moving Obasanjo-esque comicality.
Am I reading too many tea leaves into this picture? Maybe, maybe not - but watching the celebration on TV from far away Bayelsa State was fun. However, I am happy it is over, and not much more money would be spent for the rest of the year on the Centenary celebrations, abi?
Let me turn briefly to the USA, where the greatest number of Living Presidents have been six (the two Bushes father George HW and son George W, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan in our times; as well as James Buchanan, Franklin Pierce, Millard Fillmore, John Tyler, Martin Van Buren and Abraham Lincoln in their time) but they have NEVER been photographed together before, except in groups of five, most often four, or three,....
But six Amerian First Ladies beat their husbands to it:
With Nigeria, we would need a wide-scan camera for our living First Ladies....or separate sessions to prevent a fracas....
Moving on....
Now in the next 100 years, I will be watching Nigeria from Heaven, DV: where you will be, inquiring minds want to know.
There you have it.
Bolaji Aluko
Ducking
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