Sun Tzu, in his acclaimed book, The Art of War, offered one timeless advice: “If a battle can’t be won, don’t fight it.” Tzu wasn’t an ordinary folk. He was a Chinese general, military strategist and philosopher.
In Robert Greene’s The 33 Strategies of War, he offered another practical advice. “We all have limitations – our energies and skills will take us only so far. You must know your limits and pick your battles carefully. Consider the hidden costs of war: time lost, political goodwill squandered and an embittered enemy bent on revenge. Sometimes it is better to wait, to undermine your enemies covertly rather than hitting them straight on,” he wrote.
Mr. Greene in the same best-selling book offered another classical advice. Hear him: “You are judged in this world by how well you bring things to an end. A messy or incomplete conclusion can reverberate for years to come. The art of ending things well is knowing when to stop. The height of strategic wisdom is to avoid all conflicts and entanglements from which there are no realistic exits.”
I am not a politician. At least, not for now. But as a political reporter, who constantly interacts with politicians, I have come to understand certain things. Politicians are liars and I say this without any apologies. They tell you one thing and do another. They are self-serving. For them, the end justifies the means. What happens thereafter is always immaterial.
Beyond that, I strongly believe that some people are not built to play politics and this is where Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, who represents Delta Central in the 8th National Assembly, comes to mind. Omo-Agege may not know this yet, but he may have ignorantly ended his political career.
Last Tuesday, February 20, something happened on the floor of the Senate. Dino Melaye, Bukola Saraki’s son (according to Remi Tinubu), executed what he is best known for.
Citing Order 14 of the Senate Standing Rules, Melaye, called on his colleagues to allow the Senator Samuel Anyanwu-led Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions committee to investigate Omo-Agege and nine others.
Melaye said: “I am heavily worried. President Muhammadu Buhari is not only my party man, he is a president we all laboured to vote for. My colleague, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege addressed the media last week. He said the decision taken by this Senate is targeted at President Buhari. I cannot be part of any group of persons to move against the President. The allegations are weighty. I followed President Buhari to 35 states of the Federation during the campaigns.
“When I was following the President round the country, Omo-Agege was in the Labour Party. To now allege and put the integrity of the Senate under check that the amendment was tailored towards the President is unheard of. It is in bad taste.
“I want to ask that this statement made by Omo-Agege, among other statements, be investigated by the committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions. They need to find out if our actions were targeted at the President. Another interview was granted by the same senator.”
As expected, Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu, who presided, subjected the issue to a voice vote. “He (Melaye) came under Order 14. If it is your wish that the issue be referred to the Ethics committee, let those in support say ‘aye’,” Ekweremadu said.
If the Ethics committee is able to establish that the claims made by Omo-Agege and nine others were false, the affected lawmakers may be suspended.
Now, let’s take a walk to the past. On Wednesday, February 14, former chairman of Northern Senators’ Forum, Abdullahi Adamu, whose farm was invaded by monkeys and N70 million was carted away, led nine other lawmakers to the Senate Press Centre.
They had one mission: to protest the adoption of the Conference Committee Report on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), which approved the reordering of election sequence in the country.
The 10 lawmakers took their turns to lampoon the Senate. According to them, the new reordering is targeted at President Muhammadu Buhari. While real politicians offered their thoughts, they were very careful. But not so for Omo-Agege. He displayed his political inexperience and spoke like a neophyte that he has turned out to be.
Hear him: “When this bill was passed in the House of Representatives, only 36 members were present. This cannot stand in a House of 360 members. This amendment needs to be debated before it is passed. There is a section in our standing rules that if a bill is sent to the House of Representatives and it makes any inputs, the Senate shall dissolve into a committee of the whole.
“We are supposed to determine if the decision of the House is in tandem with what the Senate passed. That was not done. We are 59 senators who are opposed to Section 25 of the Electoral Act. We cannot stand and allow a law passed against Mr. President to stand.”
Omo-Agege, swallowed his own vomit 48 hours after his initial gra gra. The son of a former chief judge of Delta State and a man old enough to be Melaye’s uncle, almost prostrated to apologise to him. Omo-Agege was fidgeting when he got up to tender his apology which was eventually rejected.
A deflated Omo-Agege mouthed: “On Tuesday, I was not here. My colleague and my brother, Senator Dino Melaye brought a motion under Privileges, which is in Order 15 of the Senate Standing Rules. Mr. President, I rose as a consequence of the debate on the sequence of elections in the Electoral Act amendment, which was passed recently.
“In the course of that debate and consequent upon that, I addressed the media at the press centre. I made certain remarks during that interview which my attention has been drawn to. The comments are offensive, not just to Senator Dino Melaye, but to the entire Senate.
“I rise to apologise to the leadership and the entire Senate for those remarks. I take back whatever I said. Thank you Mr. President.”
Now, let me offer my pragmatic thoughts. I don’t know who are his advisers, but Omo-Agege behaved without proper insight.
Unknown to the man, who hurriedly jumped ship recently and joined the All Progressives Congress (APC), the Senate President, Saraki, like any other politician, does not forgive easily. If you are in doubt, ask Ali Ndume.
Omo-Agege took up a fight he had no business with. The man he is ignorantly fighting for, Buhari, has not officially announced that he will seek for another term. What is Omo-Agege’s business with Buhari? Buhari’s kinsmen did not protest when Senate adopted the report. Wetin concern agbero with overload?
Other senators are sponsoring bills, motions and making other interventions.
But not so for Omo-Agege.
He has elected himself as Buhari’s spokesman. The annoying irony is that this same man did not come to the Senate on the platform of APC. Few months after he was sworn in as the only member of Labour Party (LP), he ditched the platform and embraced APC. Legally, there is nothing wrong with that.
I am not a big fan of Saraki and I have my reasons. Saraki understands power and he knows how to maximise it.
Despite several attempts to oust him, he has maintained his strong grip on the Senate. He floored his biological father and installed the current governor of Kwara State in 2011.
He is firmly in charge of Kwara politics. Without his blessings, it is haram to run for any political office in the state. In 2015, he stopped a Buhari-Bola Tinubu’s joint ticket. Ask Tinubu and he will tell you.
He survived an unprecedented political war with the Federal Government. In the end, the man at the centre of his political travails and former Secretary to Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr. David Babachir Lawal was disgraced out of office.
Saraki has converted his once-diehard critics like Senator Kabiru Marafa. Today, Marafa is an obedient scribe.
Under his firm grip, the Senate has refused to confirm nominees of sensitive government agencies, citing utterances made by the Vice President Yemi Osinbajo. He recently punctured the anti-corruption war of Buhari, when he described it as a sham.
For such a man who can crush any threat to remain relevant, you must chose your fights carefully before you go to war with him. But not so for Omo-Agege. He thought he had the presidency behind him. Now, he is like an orphan. Unless a miracle happens fast, Omo-Agege will be suspended and I will love to see that.
If you were not ready for a dirty fight, you ought not to have addressed the media. As a politician, you must and should defend your position. Again, ask Ndume. When he was suspended, he refused to apologise, despite pleas from every quarter.
Today, he is back to the Senate, with his head held high. He recently won a decisive victory against the Senate and his suspension was declared null and void.
That is a real politician. Ndume may not be Saraki’s darling anymore, but I am certain that the Senate President secretly holds him in high esteem.
When next you see real politicians engaging in state matters, kindly look the other way sir.
Good luck Senator Ovie Omo-Agege. You are going to need it.