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My son, power is attractive indeed. Some of those who have it, by their behaviour, tend to think they have everything. Those with power are like some of the dwellers of the Gorgeous Hill. They tower above all those in the Helpless Valley, and act like they are the hill themselves. Power is like the most craved girl in the village. This most sought-after daughter takes the title of ‘The Beautiful Bride’. Her suitors would be many, and all of the eligible bachelors do everything in their own power to win her. When the arrant bachelor wins, he becomes the talk of the town. He becomes the Lucky One, like “those whose palm kernels were cracked for them by a benevolent spirit.”
Son, know ye that enormous power dwells in The Beautiful Bride. Yes, she has transformed to become the wife of The Lucky One, but she remains the beautiful one still with her imbued powers intact. The Lucky One has his power too, but his power is now subsumed and ingrained in the wrapper, beauty, brain and bosom of his beautiful one. Our forefathers called it “bottom power”. His own power is attached to his consort who has and knows how to use powers. Then, the struggle begins… That’s how Sam Levenson sees marriage and situates matrimony. The hilarious author says “you’re not complete until you’re married; then you’re finished.”
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Beautiful and lucky ones are among the dwellers of the Gorgeous Hill. They act extraneous yet they know that they have restrains. They are cautious and should be because the Gorgeous Hill is slippery. But they stray and bumble, regardless and their impetuous actions deplete the strength of the valley dwellers. The elders, their eyes having receded and sunk from decades of experience, know this very well. They live with this and caution all and sundry. They also know where the tree being hewn by the unchecked lucky ones would fall. The elders know that the result of the bad actions of their unbridled ilk would be deadly for all of the clan.
The dwellers of the Gorgeous Hill also have political power. My son, I must let you know, that is the icing on their cake. They can get things done from their cozy abodes. They could be operating from even an igloo in Greenland. They make things happen at the snap of a finger. The dog reacts to the snap of the fingers of his owner. They run, they jump, and they squat at his command. Dogs attack at the orders of their master and afterwards return to wagging their tails in excitement. The dog is a loyal animal, man’s best friend forever. So, it obeys absolutely. They can be likened to the pigeon, who will not abandon the owner of the house in adversity. It is even more alluring not just because the Gorgeous Hill is made habitable and beautiful by the sweat of the unlucky ones, but also because its costs them no money of theirs to live in.
Dear son, know that the people on the Gorgeous Hill have financial power too. That is one hell of a power in the midst of grinding poverty. It hardly flows down the Helpless Valley, and that, I must admit, is one intriguing mystery. It is a mystery because it defies the law of nature. When water springs from the hill, it flows to the valley. That was the norm, but they have engineered it to become such that it is the other way round. You must be cautious my son, because nature does not change. Nature remains nature and its course will always run. We mortals are the ones that change. So, my dear son, if you have power, any kind of it, do not think that, and act like you have it all; otherwise you are powerless indeed. I tell you that without political power, you are not in a vale.
Adipolo
Adipolo
What my father told me teaches me that the allure of power is, in itself, is not a bad thing. The attainment of power for the sake of it is, for that is when and why holders of power wield it in a way that does not show care or judgement. Thus, they injure everyone else with power. That is one of the many reasons the people who gave power to its holders ask for responsibility, restraint and reason. That is why power comes with leashes. It is nearly enough to know, through the paraphrase of Voltaire’s Questions on Miracles 11th Letter, that “those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit absurdities.”
The recent declaration of his intention to contest the Nigerian presidency has firmly fixed Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu on the front burner of Nigerian politics. He is the “kingmaker who wants to become king.” The man, I’m sure, is primed and fired up enough to face the consequences of his desire. He is also believed to be fully ready to reap its results, whatever they are. He’s verbally strong, eloquent and has the clout – political and monetary. He will see and hear many things. He will give and receive dirt. He wants to eat the honey from the rock, therefore, he will not be worried about the blade of the axe.
There is no popular law that bars a kingmaker from aspiring to be the king. However, in the Yoruba culture, it would amount to breaking an established tradition. Do kingmakers become kings? Tinubu’s ambition to rule Nigeria is one of the worst kept secrets. Tinubu’s presidential ambition has been a public discourse since 2015. The man had kept deflecting questions about his ambition until now, the “right time.”
The Seriki Chieftaincy Line in Ibadan tried to break what many had seen to be a tradition. The chiefs on that line expressed their desire to be considered for the throne too, and made a strong case for it when as the sprawling city geared towards the Olubadanship of Oba Samuel Odugade Odulana. There was a resistance to the desire by the Seriki chiefs. The government of the day supported it.
Kingmaker earl of Warwick, Richard Neville Warwick ruled the British airwaves before he died in 1471. He bestrode England as the kingmaker and he soon became known as Warwick the Kingmaker. He fought successful wars and installed Kings. One of his first beneficiaries was Edward IV to gain the throne in 1461. When his services were needed at the Lancastrian side, he took his army there too. There he also successfully restored Henry VI to the throne, in 1470. Warwick the Kingmaker continued in his altruistic services until he was killed in the battle of Barnet. He was aged 43. At that age, ambition would be rife, an ambitious person would be in his prime, and would still be angling to be the king by himself. Richard Warwick could have helped himself to the throne, being a skillful soldier and a successful leader of men. He didn’t. He remained a kingmaker and that’s what he is remembered by.
Al Capone’s lifelong dream was to be the ‘king of New York’. He did everything legal and illegal; imaginable and unimaginable to achieve that dream. When he eventually became “the King of New York”, safety took flight from nearly everybody. Court judges and all operated under his lethal authority. It took the courage of one judge, who was his ally and who knew what they cooked that got the house burnt, to spill all. The judge paid with his life for doing that, but justice caught up with Al Capone.
https://tribuneonlineng.com/the-kingmaker-who-wants-to-be-king-story-my-father-told-me/