Reading through Babafemi Ojudu’s latest rambling epistle with the caption “BIG JEEPS, SMALL IDEAS: NIGERIA’S POLITICS OF MEDIOCRITY”, I could not help wondering why a supposedly grown man — a grandfather at that! — will choose to be roaming the street naked and barefoot literarily speaking.
In Ekitiland where I come from, we place high value on what we call “uyi” (honour). It is a corollary to “iwa” (good character), without which a man is simply branded “oni yeye” (good-for-nothing).
Since he became jobless after Buhari’s tenure ended in 2023, Ojudu has more or less turned the social media to his new office. He churns out epistles almost on a daily basis where he tries to sermonise and posture as the new “moral conscience” of Yoruba politics, even though he is a political nobody.
In Ikere-Ekiti, whenever Ojudu is mentioned most people laugh at his inconsistency. This is beside some claims that his new-found prolificity is based on AI (artificial intelligence) stimulants. In a Facebook post, for instance, one computer engineer had alleged that fact-checking tools revealed that portions of Ojudu’s Facebook musings have genetic fingerprints of AI.
Well, the purpose of my writing is not to question or defend the right of anyone to use AI to enhance his literary performance, the same way some insecure men use sex-enhancing drugs to boost their performance in “the other room”.
Rather, it is Ojudu’s sustained hypocrisy and lack of shame. In the referenced article, he was at his sanctimonious best. Wanting to sound or appear “highly principled”, he began this way:
‘A senior friend and former colleague in the Senate recently asked whom I would vote for as President in the next election.
‘ “I do not know yet,” I replied.’
In the subsequent paragraphs, he went on his usual showmanship, name-dropping and “notice me” antics.
Hear him again: “President Bola Tinubu, as the incumbent, bears a particular responsibility to explain his record and the case for continuing his administration.”
Good. But the striking contradiction is that Ojudu’s name had yet topped the list of those nominated into the Ekiti APC Presidential Campaign Council just last week. It was in form of advertorial sponsored by the Ekiti chapter of the ruling party.
Given that the list was featured in virtually in all the national dailies, Ojudu cannot claim today not to be aware. Of course, the incumbent Ekiti governor, Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji (BAO), is not on the ballot. So, the excuse that “I am in it for only BAO” is not tenable. Therefore, it can be said that the Ekiti APC Campaign Council has a singular mission: deliver Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the forthcoming presidential polls.
At this writing, I am not aware that Ojudu has declined his nomination into Ekiti APC PCC. Afterall, he had boasted in 2022 that “In the unlikely event that Tinubu won the APC primaries and became the flagbearer, I will not campaign for him. I will retire to my farm.”
Then, Ojudu was the arrogant Political Adviser to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and had become so insolent and acidic in attacking Tinubu who, ironically, was instrumental to him becoming Senator representing Ekiti Central between 2011 and 2015. Simply because Tinubu in 2014 was no longer willing to support Ojudu’s second term ambition against popular sentiments in Ekiti Central favouring Opeyemi Bamidele, Ojudu suddenly began to bite the fingers that had fed him politically.
Of course, the treachery and betrayal of the likes of Ojudu could not stop God’s plan for Tinubu at APC primaries in June 2022 and the eventual presidential polls in February 2023.
Were he truly a man of honour, Ojudu should have returned to his imaginary farm. At least, with that, he would be of some value to the country by helping to ensure food security in the area of his self-confessed competency — cassava production.
But Ojudu is not. Rather, he has turned social media to his farm. So, he cannot reject the nomination into Ekiti APC PCC. Because, as a jobless man, he needs that platform to stay relevant in Ekiti and have easy access to Ado Ekiti Government House. So, to accept his nomination into Ekiti APC PCC and still be posturing that “I’ve not decided who to vote for in 2027” is shameless hypocrisy. This is not principle. But sheer “atenuje” (Yoruba for jobbery).
But the story is much deeper than it appears. Those truly in the know will attest that Ojudu cannot afford to reject that nomination openly. That may incur the wrath of Governor Oyebanji. The whispering campaign in Ado Ekiti is that a scheme of “stomach infrastructures” of N10m monthly has been put in place to service some selected “political figures”. That is why Ojudu is shameless enough to attack “national APC”, but is in bed with “Ekiti APC”.
Ojudu, you see your life.
That said, it is therefore high time that Governor BAO stopped this Ojuju nonsense. Feeding Ojudu to be attacking President Tinubu will amount to betrayal of the President.
Otherwise, in the coming days, I personally will be leading a group of concerned Ekiti stakeholders to collect signatures to append a petition to EFCC whose chairman is incidentally an Ekiti indigene to track those collecting the “stomach infrastructure” from BAO monthly.
Ojudu may have some explanations to make.
* Olomilua writes from Ikere Ekiti.
