A rather unusual but interesting piece of news that seems to be trending
this morning is that of the former Vice President of Nigeria, Atiku
Abubakar, kneeling down to greet his former boss, Olusegun Obasanjo.
Atiku
and Obasanjo, who served as Vice President and President of Nigeria
respectively, between 1999-2007, had an estranged relationship during
the last lap of their second term in office. However, in a surprising
turn of events, Atiku was reported to have knelt down and bowed his head
to greet his former boss at a public function yesterday.
According to Daily Times, the act took place at the venue of the 2012 Comptroller-General of Customs’ conference in Katsina.
Both
men were among a retinue of VIPs invited to the opening of the week
long Comptroller-Generals’ conference held at the newly inaugurated
auditorium of Katsina State University.
Obasanjo, who arrived
ahead of Atiku, was seated next to second republic President Shehu
Shagari and the Ooni of Ife, Okunade Sijuwade.
Atiku, who arrived
nearly 40-minutes after his former boss, first greeted the Emir of
Gwandu, Muhammad Iliyasu; Emir of Katsina, Abdulmimini Usman; the Ooni
and Shagari who were seated at the podium.
When
he got to Obasanjo, the former Vice President knelt down and bowed his
head to greet his former boss. The delighted crowd followed the mild
drama with applause.
I wonder where all the cameras were at this time. This is one picture I would have really loved to see.
Many
have said the unusual public display by Atiku is an attempt to win
favours for his political ambition in the 2015 General Elections. Others
have said it is just a publicity stunt.
What do you say? What do you make out of this public show of “respect”?
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