Videos of President Buhari at the just concluded 41st summit of G7 nations in Bavaria Germany have gone viral. This would be Buhari’s first major appearance on the world stage since he was inaugurated president on May 29. Nigeria is not a member of the G7, an elite group of world’s leading advanced economies. President Buhari was in Germany on invitation – a recognition of Nigeria’s strategic relevance in the current geopolitical scheme of things. So, Buhari’s invitation and attendance with powerful world leaders to the G7 summit was a huge boost to Nigeria’s image and profile as a member of the comity of nations.
Videos and pictures of President Buhari in photo ops with the likes of President Obama of the United States, Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany, Prime Minister David Cameron of the United Kingdom, President Francois Hollande of France, Prime Ministeer Stephen Harper of Canada, Prime Minister Matteo Renzi of Italy, and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan, were indeed powerful – even if just symbolic. But it wasn’t just still pictures that came out of Germany; videos of President Buhari in press conference also came out of this summit. And it is this latter group of videos that has gone viral and dominated the post-summit discussions and analyses in Nigerian circles.
As is commonly the case with most videos that have been shared with unsolicited gusto and generosity, these post-summit videos of Buhari are not particularly ennobling; in fact, they are crushingly damaging. They expose Buhari’s unpreparedness for the world stage. In these videos, President Buhari committed three major gaffes: he does not seem to recognize that the Berlin Wall has since tumbled in October of 1990 – resulting in the glorious reunification of East and West Germany; and, he not only butchered the host leader’s name, he also messed up her official title. There is no longer West Germany, it is now simply Germany. Germany does not elect a president, it elects a Chancellor. The current German Chancellor, the chief host of the summit, is a lady by the name of Angela Merkel, not Michelle (or Mitchell). Buhari flunked on all three counts.
Question now is what do you do with a freshman student who flunks his first general course quiz? What do you do with a freshman medical student who fails a first week, first semester, first year pop quiz on world civilization – not human anatomy? Throw him out of medical school? Put him on academic probation? Notify his parents? Assign him a tutor and give him a make-up quiz? The last would seem like the only rational and charitable option. But even before that option is initiated, it is important to ask why this student was so soon rushed into a quiz room without adequate preparation?
Did the possibility of a press chat in Germany suddenly spring up on Buhari’s close circles? Was there never a time or two during preparations for Germany that Buhari mentioned West Germany to the hearing of his close aides and handlers? Is it remotely conceivable that Buhari did not once or twice misstate the name of his would-be host as Michelle to the hearing of his aides and handlers? Is it possible that throughout the build up to G7 summit, Buhari never mentioned President (as opposed to Chancellor), in reference to the leadership of Germany, to the hearing of one or two of his aides?
To all these questions, the possibility exists that these possibilities exist and do not exist at one and the same time. It is possible that Buhari never mentioned West Germany to the hearing of his aides; it is also possible that he did. It is possible that Buhari misstated the name of his would-be host to the hearing of his aides; it is also possible that he did not. It is possible that Buhari committed the misnomer of a German president (as opposed to chancellor) to the hearing of his aides; it is also possible that he did not.
But what Buhari did or did not do, what he said or did not say to the hearing of his aides and handlers, preparatory to Bavaria, Germany, his first appearance on the world stage as a freshly minted Nigerian president, is the wrong inquiry. The right question is: what did Buhari’s aides and handlers do in preparation for the G7 summit? How did they prepare him for Germany? Did they understand the magnitude of the moment? How much of their boss did they even know? Did they fail him? Yes. Now you see where my title is taken from. It is not that Buhari has failed; it is that he has been failed as president – by his aides and handlers.
You see, there is something I have noticed about Nigerian leaders – from presidents down to local council mayors. They retain insane retinue of personal aides, personal advisers and personal assistants, often categorized into hierarchies of special assistants and senior special assistants. Yet, the simplest of assistance, the most mundane aid, and the commonest advice are rarely given. This leads you to wonder whether there is a fundamental understanding of what the roles of these aides, assistants, and advisers are in the first place. When a male governor retains a horde of women as special aides and assistants, you are left wondering whether he is the commandant of the Girls Guide. Your curiosity is not lessened by the fact these governors, even with an army of special and senior special aides and assistants, fail, almost woefully, on social service delivery. There must be a disconnect somewhere.
Only a disconnect could explain why Buhari’s aides and advisers did not have a pre-summit session with him. A pre-summit session would have preempted a few areas that needed Mr. President’s special attention. Buhari’s aides should have used simple matrixes to prepare their boss for the G7 invitation: Who is inviting him? Where is he invited to? What is he invited for? Why is he invited? What is the context of his invitation? What does he plan to achieve at the summit? How could they not tutor the poor guy on the proper name and official title of his chief host? How could they not remind him that Germany has changed since October 3 of 1990? What aid and assistance did they provide their boss, right combinations of caftans, hats, and shoes to wear? Again, I ask: did they fail him?
Moving forward: There are two options to avoid a repeat of the faux pas in Bavaria. President Buhari, assisted by his aides and advisers, could hunker down and study up on current global etiquettes, or his aides and handlers could take proactive measures to shield him from unnecessary exposure. The first option would have been the most attractive except that, as the idiom goes, you can’t teach an old dog new tricks. Given his rustic, austere, simple, and quiet lifestyle, it is possible that Buhari has not paid adequate attention to contemporary matters of harmless diplomatic finesse. And at his age, it may be dangerous information overload to try to jam up his head with too much stuff.
Look, Nigerians elected Buhari for one reason, and one reason only: to fight corruption in the land. Nigerians believe, rightly, that corruption has been the bane of its growth and progress as a nation; fix it and every other thing falls in place. And frankly, President Buhari does not need to be the prom queen on the international stage to fight corruption at home. So, this makes the second option the more appealing. Buhari’s aides and handlers must recognize his deficiencies and work to shield him from the adverse effects of those. Yes, he is a tall, handsome, man, but Nigerians did not elect Naomi Campbell to catwalk the international runway. Nigerians would rather their president went into the trenches to duel with corrupt ninjas who have sworn to cripple a great nation.
Buhari does not have to accept every invitation – local or international; he does not have to be a media darling; he does not have to be on the stage. Nigerians and the world just need to hear what measures Buhari is taking to combat the monster of corruption in the land. His aides and handlers should ensure that Buhari is not exposed unnecessarily to situations that cause him avoidable embarrassment and ridicule. His speeches should be mostly written and delivered using teleprompters. President Obama, even as gifted with oratory as he is, uses teleprompters. If he must have press exchange with reporters, his aides must prep him properly for it. That is what aides do; that is what assistants are paid taxpayers’ money to do.
This is the age of camera phones; nothing is allowed an unnoticed and quiet passage – not even LeBron James’ split second flashing. This is also the age of the internet; everything captured in cameras are published and shared in real time. There is no hiding place for those who expose themselves. Such exposures could be costly, exerting huge tolls on personal reputation, by way of public ridicule and downright caricature. What Nigeria does not need in this new era is another Patience Jonathan moment. And quite frankly, there is a Patience Jonathan in everyone of us. The difference is how we manage it. For those in public offices, aides and handlers are paid to manage such moments. Buhari’s aides and handlers must not allow another G7 summit moment to repeat.
As he officially names his cabinet, including his aides and assistants, President Buhari must ensure that he assembles a team of competent and tested experts who understand not just the dynamics of an internet-driven contemporary world stage, but also the need to shield their boss from needless and avoidable exposure to its menace. Buhari does not have to be on TV and on the stage to do great things. He does not have to be a talker; he just needs to be a doer. Let his savvy media aides and cabinet staffs do the talking. Let Nigerians and the world see, hear, smell, taste, and feel what actions their president is taking to combat corruption. If he could deliver on that, President Buhari would have won the hearts and minds of his teeming admirers. In a nutshell, let him be guided by the age-long aphorism: actions speak louder than words.
Way louder!
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•Dr. Ozoke wrote from Maryland, USA.
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