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Rimi - Exit of a Glamorous Politician [column]Lagos, Apr 13, 2010 (This Day/All Africa Global Media via COMTEX) -- It was with the rudest shock that the nation was awoken last week Monday to the disturbing news of the untimely death of Alhaji Abubakar Rimi the previous Easter Sunday following an encounter with armed robbers along Bauchi-Kano road. The colorful politician was said to be returning from Bauchi that fateful night where he had attended the wedding ceremony of his daughter when somewhere close to Kano, he ran into a road block mounted by some bandits known in Hausa language as Kwanta-Kwanta. According to news reports Rimi, with some of his aides, was driving to Kano when they were suddenly stopped by the gangsters. They were dispossessed of their valuables while Rimi's brother who was sitting in front of the vehicle was allegedly battered. The robbers were said to have recognized Rimi, a populist politician with a cult-like following in Kano, and refrained from attacking him. He was, however, reportedly dispossessed of his telephone handsets to prevent him from alerting the Police and Security personnel. Overwhelmed by the incident, Rimi immediately relapsed into a state of shock and was subsequently rushed to Aminu Kano University Teaching Hospital in Kano for emergency treatment. The response of the medical staff on duty that night was rather slow and in the process this foremost and outspoken politician was lost. To underscore the state of decay in our health institutions, Rimi was reportedly carried by his aides in their bare hands into the emergency ward of the hospital as there was no single wheel chair or stretcher to move him. This is unbelievable! Just like that Rimi is gone and never to be seen again. Since this unfortunate incident, the media have been awash with tributes and testimonies from Nigerians from diverse walks of life on the eventful life of this great patriot spent in the service of the talakawa and the nation. It is difficult to believe that Rimi is no more. His death is in deed regrettable and lamentable. I join millions of his admirers nation-wide to pay tribute to the memory of this political icon whose outstanding performance in office as the civilian governor of old Kano State still remains a benchmark for measuring quality service delivery and good governance. Abubakar Rimi came into national prominence in the Second Republic when he joined Malam Aminu Kano, the father of progressive politics in Nigeria, to form the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP). He was elected the first Deputy National Secretary of the Party at its maiden National Convention in Lagos in 1978. In the ensuing General Elections in 1979, Rimi was fielded by the Party as its gubernatorial candidate in Kano State. The Party enjoyed massive following in Kano and neighbouring Kaduna State. Against the serious challenge mounted by the National Party of Nigeria (NPN), Rimi won the election landslide and was sworn in as the first civilian governor of Kano State which today comprises the present Kano and Jigawa States. Irrespective of where you stand on the political divide, Rimi was an admirable politician with courage of conviction. He had the breath of vision and presence of mind. He was fearless and highly gifted with the power of oratory almost to the point of being a demagogue. With fellow radical compatriots like Dr. Junaid Mohammed, Dr. Bala Mohammed, Alhaji Sule Lamido and Hon. Sidi Ali, Rimi massively mobilized and radicalized the political consciousness of the electorate in Kano State. As part of a deliberate effort to liberate the people from ignorance, poverty and disease, Rimi introduced mass and adult literacy program which attracted awards and recognition by UNESCO as the best of its kind on the Africa continent. As a foremost achiever, he was credited with the establishment of the first television station known as CTV in Kano. He also established the Triumph Newspaper, a must read at that time because of the depth and incisiveness of the editorial content. The whole idea behind these projects was to create an informed citizenry so as to ensure effective mass mobilization for development. All these efforts including the abolition of some oppressive taxation laws brought Rimi into collision with the traditional institution and the powers that be at the centre. An innocuous query by Rimi to the Emir of Kano, Alhaji Ado Bayero in 1982 provided the opportunity for those opposed to Rimi's style to stage a violent protest against his government. That protest claimed the life of his Political Adviser, Dr. Bala Mohammed who was burnt to death by the protesters. He was a moving spirit within the club of progressive politicians in the Second Republic when ideologies and principles mattered. He played a major role in the coalition of progressive governors that wanted to wrest power from the NPN and re-align the political equation in the country. The governors were twelve in number and came from the Aminu Kano-led PRP, Nigerian Peoples Party (NPP) of Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN) founded by Chief Obafemi Awolowo and Great Nigerian Peoples Party (GNPP) led by Alhaji Waziri Ibrahim. They included the following: Alhaji Lateef Jakande (Lagos State), Chief Bisi Onabanjo (Ogun State), Chief Bola Ige (Oyo State), Chief Michael Ajasin (Ondo State) and Professor Ambrose Alli (Bendel State). They were all from UPN. From NPP came Chief Jim Nwobodo (Anambra State), Chief Sam Mbakwe (Imo State) and Chief Solomon Lar (Plateau State). The GNPP governors were Alhaji Mohammed Goni (Borno State) and Alhaji Abubakar Barde (Gongola State, now Adamawa and Taraba States). Rimi and Alhaji Balarabe Musa (Kaduna State) came from the PRP. Of this vanishing club, only five are still alive with the recent exit of Rimi. They include Nwobodo, Lar, Goni, Balarabe Musa and Jakande. Rimi and his colleagues played politics of principles which gave meaning to political contest. Their politics was rooted in principles unlike the crass opportunism that has become the hallmarks of our present day politics. It is significant to note that Rimi, on account of principle, resigned as a governor from the PRP following an ideological disagreement with Malam Aminu Kano. He joined the NPP and ran for the governorship of Kano for a second term in 1983 on its platform. His campaign slogan which was very popular then was "Change 83". Although he lost the election in controversial circumstances, he remained very popular with the masses till the end. He was knowledgeable, glamorous, flamboyant and gregarious. He will be remembered for the powerful role he played in the victory of Chief MKO Abiola in the annulled June 12, 1993 Presidential Election. It was through his singular efforts that Abiola defeated his sole opponent, Alhaji Bashir Tofa, an indigene of Kano, in Kano State. A no-nonsense politician, when Abiola's Yoruba kinsmen reduced Abiola's mandate into a tribal ticket following the illegal annulment of that popular mandate, Rimi abandoned ship and teamed up with the usurper, General Sani Abacha who appointed him as Minister of Communications. He was however to play a major role in the emergence of Olusegun Obasanjo as President in 1999. He later disagreed with Obasanjo and became a strident critic of his government. Their irreconcilable differences forced him to leave the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the Action Congress (AC). Before his death, he had returned to the PDP and was working towards the return of the Party to Government House, Kano. With his death, the nation has lost one of its most constructive and engaging politicians. He will be sorely missed by the masses for whom he lived and worked hard and the political class, which he was a privileged member. Adieu Abubakar Rimi. May his soul rest in peace. |