NO THANKS TO ABDULLAHI BY JULIUS OGUNRO

When Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi was dropped from the federal
cabinet a few weeks ago, the consensus was that he was one of the best
ministers in the Federal Executive Council and that competence was sacrificed
on the alter of politics. Even the sports media, notorious for its caustic pen
and for being the albatross of more than one minister, praised Abdullahi for
bringing stability to the sector and as the best minister of sports Nigeria had
had in a while. Nothing best describes the affection of the sports community
for Abdullahi than the soppy headlines, ‘Thank you, Abdullahi,’ ‘Bowing out
with pride’, and the likes, which became common in the days after his sack.

I worked with Mallam Abdullahi for more than two years, first in
Youth Development and later in Sports, so I think I know what makes the man
tick. I know that the adulation that followed his exit from the FEC was well
earned and well deserved. I know too what it cost Mr. Abdullahi to follow the
narrow path to build a reputation as a competent manager of men and resources.
It is essential to tell the Abdullahi story, it is a story which suggests that
Nigeria is redeemable, that in a society where mediocrity is often celebrated,
there could be competent, honest and detribalized folks in government.

I first met him in 2008 in Lagos where I was the editor of a
magazine and he a Commissioner for education in Kwara, becoming famous for
radical reforms. After interviewing him, I left with the impression that he was
very knowledgeable and cut out for greater things. The next time we met was in
July 2011 when I was invited to be part of his team soon after he was appointed
Minister of Youth Development. That began the journey with him, at the end of
which I have come to admire him deeply as an innately good man imbued with rare
qualities.

Abdullahi is a handworker who has a single-minded pursuit of
results. No matter how difficult or complex the matter was he didn’t let go
until it was resolved to his satisfaction. And he is not easily satisfied. Not
with mediocrity. Not with a job half-done. I recall his first task in sports.
It was to find peace in the troubled football sector, where factions and
litigations were crippling the administration of the beautiful game. The sector
was so crisis ridden that our senior national team, the Super Eagles had failed
to qualify for the 2012 Nations Cup in Gabon/ Equatorial Guinea. Some of the
parties quarreled with the election that brought in the current board of the
FA; others faulted the change of name from NFA to NFF. Others were annoyed over
some indeterminable issues, but very angry nonetheless. The FA board led by
Aminu Maigari was clearly distracted by the numerous court cases and increasing
number of parties spoiling for a fight. Abdullahi knew that achieving peace and
stability was essential in creating the right policy environment for sports
development. Without it, all efforts would be tantamount to fetching water with
a basket. So he went about it, setting up meeting after meeting, sitting down
with one aggrieved person and the other. At a point, I felt it was a wasted
effort and it was impossible to achieve any kind of rapprochement among the
numerous aggrieved parties. First, they were so many and secondly, and perhaps
more important, it seemed the parties thrived in a crisis environment. And
their demands were numerous, some ridiculous, others irreconcilable with any
genuine effort for peace. But Abdullahi worked at it, and after several
exhaustive meetings, soothing big egos, made the parties to agree to a comprehensive
peace deal.

This open-minded nature and willingness to take on difficult tasks defined the
‘ministeralship’ of Mallam Abdullahi. He is very modest too and does not live
above his means. I was a bit taken aback when as a newly appointed minister of Youth
Development; he was busy looking for a rented apartment in Sun City, at the
fringe of the Abuja metropolis. He got a modest apartment there and was the
only minister living in the neighborhood. Yet this is the same country we hear
that some ministers spend billions on air travel, with a chartered jet at their
beck and call. But not Abdullahi, he would not spend above what he can
personally afford and reminds us, his assistants that the job was temporary,
which would come to an end someday. But that does not mean he does not like the
fine things of life. He does. His suits are often dapper and his babariga, well
cut. It is just that he would not steal or misappropriate funds to acquire
these things. However, like he often said, being poor does not indicate
integrity, just as being wealthy does not mean one is a thief. Unbelievable as
it may seem, I know that as minister, he relied heavily on funds from his
businesses in Ilorin- a farm and digital photography studio, among others – to
supplement his living expenses, which ballooned when he became minister.

For Abdullahi, work came first. And, boy, was he good at it? You
bet! With a degree in Mass Communication from the University of Lagos, several
leadership courses across the globe, Abdullahi crowned his education with a
master’s (he made a distinction) in Development Studies from the University of
Sussex. So he seemed well prepared for the leadership roles he has played since
2003 when he left journalism. In each of this position, whether as special
assistant, commissioner for education or double-barreled minister, he served
with distinction, initiating policies and implementing them with passion.

But of all the good qualities of the Mallam, what I admire most
about him is his knack for being confident in his own skin. He never tired of
saying that his first job in life was as a bus conductor. He talked too about
the humble beginning of his parents, a tailor father who supplemented the
income of his family doing odd jobs, and a mother who was a petty trader. Even
more, he didn’t mind or shy away from visiting poorer relatives in their houses
with his assistants in tow. Abdullahi seemed so sure of himself and was never
ashamed of his past or the background that produced him. That’s probably why he
didn’t mind playing football every other Saturday with his assistants, cook,
drivers, security details and mobile policemen attached to him. Real hard
football, in which there’s no distinction between cook and minister. It is the
same attitude he had in his appointments, and nominations for government
boards. It was about what the nominee or appointee could offer, not where they
came from or the faith they professed. It is not surprising then that all his
special assistants are Christians from the south.

When I asked Abdullahi, what shaped his philosophy and why he
has turned out the way he has, he said his life was shaped by his belief in
Islam and the upbringing given to him by his parents, who though poor instilled
in him the ideals of Omoluabi, Yoruba for a person of integrity, a person of
excellent character who is loyal and true to himself. I think the media got it
wrong in their adulation of Abdullahi; all thanks should go to his parents, who
still live in a small apartment in Ilorin, for producing such a fine man, an
Omoluabi.