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Tag: 2015

  • 2015 and a peoples aspiration

    2015 and a peoples aspiration

    Senator Ibikunle Amosun of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has commenced his second term in office as Governor of Ogun State. This follows his conquest over Gboyega Isiaka of the Peoples Democratic Party( PDP) at the April gubernatorial election. Amosun trounced  Isiaka with 306, 988 votes against Isiakas 201, 440 votes.

    However, the poll result is particularly of essence to APC  members in Ogun West Senatorial district as they contributed 89,181 votes  or 29.1% of the 306, 988 votes Senator Amosun recorded at the polls.

    The result is particularly important because in the run-up to the 2015 election, sentiment was sky high that the guber election should be the moment for the coronation of a governor of Yewa-Awori origin having failed  in 2011. Hence,two sons of the senatorial district got the tickets of the PDP and the Social Democratic Party (SDP )for the race.

    But at the end of the polls,Amosun  whipped the two Yewa-Awori indegenes in their own backyard in ogun west. The Owu-Abeokuta born governor polled 89, 181 votes while Isiaka,who hails from Imeko/Afon local government  could only muster 69, 380 votes. Odunsi from Ado-odo/Ota got a paltry 9, 200 votes. Indeed the SDP man couldnt muster beyond 25,826 votes in the entire state.

    Contrary to popular believe that Yewa-Aworis didnt vote for Senator Amosun, the governor, in fact secured more than 40% of the total vote cast in each of the five local councils that made up the senatorial district.The result effectively put a lie of the erroneous perception that Yewa-Aworis voted for their sons in the election.

    The result carries a lot of implications for both the people of Ogun west and APC members in the district. Yewa-Aworis have used the vote to say in unmistakable terms that the two candidates raised against Amosun doesnt have their backing. They also said that they will rather wait for 2019 and present a viable personality as the candidate of the area.

    For APC members, it’s a victory of a sort. Despite being overlooked in terms of appointments, APC members braced the odds and defied all obstacles to secure the victory. It was a heroic performance for many reasons. Two distinguished Yewa-Awori sons were overlooked by their people  for the incumbent. It takes a lot of guts and political maturity to achieve that!

    They practically made nonsense of the popular aphorism ‘to whom much is given much is expected’.They were given little but they delivered much. For reasons best known to Governor Amosun, just a handful of appointees were picked from the senatorial district during the first term. The five local governments that made up of  Ogun West had just four commissioners, two Special Advisers, two Senior Special Assistants ,two Special Assistants ,chairman of State Universal Education Board( SUBEB) along with the Speaker of the State House of Assembly.

    In politics, electoral success is measured based on the quantum of trusted personnel on the field as well as the number of projects and level of political patronage on offer.

    The Ogun West experience is in sharp contrast to the array of appointees from Ogun East senatorial district. Ogun East with nine local governments produced the Deputy Governor,10 commissioners, Chief of Staff to the Governor, Secretary to the State Government, Chairman of Teaching Service Commission( TESCOM ) as well as  numerous Special Advisers, Senior Special Assistants and Special Assistants.

    In terms of project siting, Ogun west also holds the short end. The number of projects located in the district are few when compared to what obtain in Ogun East and Ogun Central. Indeed, the poor state of some busy roads like the Ilaro-owode road, contributed immensely to the not too-impressive performance of the APC  in Yewa-South. The choice of the House of Assembly candidate is another drawback in the local government.The presence of the Dr Bolaji Otegbeye,an unfluential indigene ofYewa South on the senatorial turf on the path of SDP was equally a problem.

    Ilaro,the political headquaters of Ogun West,cuts a pathetic figure in terms of deprivation when compared to its peers. case.Ijebu-ode, the headquarters of Ogun East district, enjoys far better patronage and attention than Ilaro.During the first term, Ijebu-Ode,for instance, produced chairman of TESCOM, three commissioners,two Special Advisers and numerous Senior Special Assistants and Special Assistants.It also produced the Deputy Speaker to the state House of Assembly..But only one commissioner,chairman of SUBEB and a Special Assistant were picked from Yewa-South.

    Several landmark projects,including  two 6-lane flyovers that run across the dreaded Sagamu-Benin expressroad and that resolved the usual traffick gridlock at Lagos Garage area of the town,were equally constructed in Ijebu-Ode. The only government project in Yewa -South is a model  secondary school ;and it is yet to be completed! All pleas to get the government to rehabilitate the decrepit Ilaro-owode road fell on deaf ears.

    However,despite  all the patronage and attention,Amosun lost in Ijebu-Ode. PDP won with 11,381 votes to APC’s 10,570 votes.

    Indeed,when placed side-by -side with Ogun East district, APC members in Ogun West should be proud of the feat they attained during the election.

    While Governor Amosun marginally outscored the PDP candidate  in Ogun East votes by 95, 526 to 94, 087, the governor polled 89, 181 votes in Isiakas Ogun West backyard.Isiaka got only 69, 380.

    With the 2015 electoral feat,voters in Ogun West have demonstrated that they believe the governors several avowals to produce a successor of Ogun West extraction in 2019.The ball is now in the court of Mr. Governor to make good his promise by empowering the Yewa-Aworis by appointing several of them into key  positions as he continues his mission to rebuild our state.

     

    •Olabimtan, Ph.D, a public affairs analyst wrote from Ota,Ogun state. She can be reached on saraholabimta@ymail.com

     

  • Nigerians in UK to organise disability day

    Nigerians in UK to organise disability day

    All is now set for the first ever Nigerian disability day scheduled to hold September 19, 2015.

    The event is expected to provide Nigerians in the UK a platform to hold an open day for all disabled diasporans in the country is also aimed at enabling parents of children with disabilities to network with each other and share their experiences.

    Organised by the Central Association of Nigerians in the UK (Canuk), the event has been christened Canuk Disability Day and will take place at the Enfield Town Hall in north London.

    Already several Nigerian charities and organisations that work with disabled people including the Pamela Douglas Foundation Worldwide, Ovo Foundation, Star Children Initiative and the XN Foundation have indicated support and preparedness to be part of the event.

    Speaking on the expectations of the event, Babatunde Loye – Canuk chairman said; “It is expected to attract many Nigerians living with disabilities across the UK and the day has been designed to provide them with a range of activities and entertainment. Starting from 11am and lasting until 6pm, the event will have Nigerians with disabilities at the centre of its activities, with many of them taking leading roles in managing affairs.”

    According to Loye: “This is the first step in a move designed to reach out to our disabled community who we have not really got involved with up until now. As things stand, nobody knows how many Nigerians living with disability are in the UK and we have not put together a programme to involve them in Canuk’s activities.

    “We are hoping that with this event, those with disabilities and the parents of children with disabilities can come together and get to know one another. If they network, get to share their experiences and offer each other support, it will go a long way to help address the isolation many of them feel as well as address the stigma within our community.”

    An earlier event held in April this year, had brought hundreds of Nigerian together in south London.

    The programme titled Poverty & Disability: An Overview in African Context, led to a communiqué on how to address disability within Africa.

    The Nation learnt that this draft is being sent to several African countries with a view to getting them to put measures in place to care for the disabled.

    Former mayor of Enfield, Kate Anolue, who helped book the venue, said that the matter has now become urgent as Nigeria, like a lot of other African countries is doing nothing about the growing number of disabled people among the population.

    She added that with the rest of the world taking the issue head on by providing disability access to all public buildings, visual and hearing aids, as well as training and assessment, it is time to try and catch up.

    Ms Anolue added: “It is unthinkable for a public building to be built in Europe today without a disabled ramp being provided but in Africa, we are not even looking at the basics. Primary things like wheelchairs Braille and hearing aids are not provided for the disabled but hopefully, this open day will kick-start the fight back.”

    On his part, Dr Ife Akintunde, of the XN Foundation, a visually impaired Nigerian harped on why the disabled should know that they can have a fulfilling life like everyone else.

    He pointed out that he ended up getting a PhD despite being visually impaired.

  • May 29, 2015: Scattered, cautiously optimistic reflections on an historic turning point

    May 29, 2015: Scattered, cautiously optimistic reflections on an historic turning point

    It is May 29, 2015. This is the first time since I began writing this column that the subject and the title of the column coincide exactly with the date of the actual writing of the column. The column will of course not appear in print and online until two days later on Sunday, May 31. But for me it is a massively consequential and symbolic fact that on the very day that I am writing about it, a great historical turning point is taking place in our country’s history.

    Physically, I am far away from home but in spirit and imagination, every part of my being is at home. I confess that I am deliberately giving myself over to the sense and spirit of euphoria that the vast majority of Nigerians at home and abroad will be feeling today. Indeed, I will permit myself to celebrate the occasion, sorry that where I am, I will be celebrating alone. If I were in Nigeria today, I would of course not be enjoying the occasion, the historic moment alone. I would be doing so with a small group of friends and comrades who, like me, know only too well that though we have cause to celebrate, we should do fully aware that our celebration, our optimism ought to be cautious. But again I must confess: although the caution is there, it is the celebration, the thankfulness that is the stronger aspect of what I am feeling today, even if one part of me suspects that our cause for celebration may turn out rather short-lived. This brings to my mind, an old sardonic one-sentence joke that Kole Omotoso used to occasionally tell when were undergraduates at the University of Ibadan: “Today, let us eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow, we may diet!”…

    And indeed, many Nigerians will be celebrating today with the crushing weight of present injustices and insecure and uncertain futures on their minds. Hundreds of thousands of workers across the length and breadth of the land have not been paid their salaries and wages for months. With the sharp decline in the generation and distribution of electricity in already vastly inadequate national, regional and local power grids, many factories and enterprises are folding up. For these reasons, joblessness which was already very high has worsened immeasurably. The new Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbanjo, has stated that the outgoing Jonathan administration left a totally ruined economy for the new administration to deal with. And he is right, so right indeed that if Nigeria were a company, it would have had to declare bankruptcy and be put into receivership. In effect, if this is the case, then the outgoing administration not only left behind a ruined economy, it also left a ruined, broken country of millions of souls in the grip of a totally preventable immensity of hardship and suffering. Fela’s bitterly sardonic question comes to mind here: Are we a people forever doomed to be ‘shuffering’ and ‘shmiling’?

    For most Nigerians and perhaps the rest of the world, the case for celebration today even in the midst of the pervasiveness of hardship and suffering in the country is very strong. This rests on the unspoken philosophical premise that hardship and suffering in human life and experience tragically have no limits; when you think you have seen the worst, the abyss in suffering and hardship, other cases emerge as if from the black holes of the universe to tell you that “you aint seen nothing yet”, as the Americans put it.   Translated into concrete terms pertinent to the subject of these reflections, this means that as bad and terrible as life was for most Nigerians in the last years of the PDP/Jonathan rule, things would have been far worse if at the end of the recent elections in our country the world saw yet another African national electoral exercise slide into a savage, fragmenting civil war and the collapse of all institutions of orderly and cohesive governance.

    I accept this rationale for our celebrations today, May 29, 2015. And I add that we ought to celebrate some new and almost unprecedented things that follow logically from it. Of these, two things, two principles which, though distinct are inseparable, are in my opinion, fundamental. One: The principle is now made clear that Nigerians can kick their rulers out of office and elect another set of rulers who can also, if they misrule and despoil the nation, be kicked out of office. Two: Only on the basis of true and not bogus electoral pluralities that reflect the nation’s ethnic, regional and religious diversity can such exercises of effective and consequential electoral choice be realized and consummated. This is the fundamental rationale of all the bourgeois-liberal democracies of the world and of modern political history: if one set of rulers are barawos, you can throw the bums out of office and choose another set, on and on and on until the right group comes into power and does what is right and just by the entire citizenry.

    Obviously, Muhammadu Buhari is the man of the moment. The cheering, salaaming phrase of his most ardent of supporters, North and South, during the electioneering campaigns was “Sai Buhari!” I first tried to count the number of times that I encountered this phrase on twitter accounts on the internet during the electoral season and gave up when I saw that many Nigerian youths, including many in the diaspora, had embraced the phrase as a victory slogan. “Sai Buhari”! The phrase intrigues me almost endlessly. The over-concentration of power and authority in the current presidential order in our country is almost without equal among the liberal democracies of the world. In this column and in other sites and locations of critical political commentary, I have long opposed this over-concentration of power in the Nigerian presidency. I now raise that critique again, prompted this time by this phrase, “Sai Buhari!” “All Hail, Buhari!”

    I once again ask that constitutional and institutional constraints be placed on the over-concentration of power in the Nigerian presidency. It would surprise and delight me no end if the initiative for this comes from Buhari himself. But I doubt that it can and will. It is very rare in the history of human political institutions for rulers to trim down the scope of their power and authority to govern. And let us not forget that though he has now asked that the title, “General” be dropped from all public and private references to him, Buhari was once a military dictator. I may be wrong, but I think he will be nothing like what he was when he was an absolute military ruler. But all the same, the move to curb his power and authority as President will not come from him. Neither will it come from the politicians of both the new ruling party and the opposition parties. This is because almost without exception, all our politicians and political parties live and feed on the patrimonial order that vast concentration of power and authority in the presidency and the state governorships makes possible. Thus, the move to cut down the powers of our rulers, starting from the Presidency, must start from us, the people.

    As we celebrate in moderation and with cautious optimism today, May 29, 2015, let us reflect on the fact that the task of pulling the economy and the country out of the almost bottomless pit of hardship and suffering into which the PDP era has plunged them will demand sacrifices, huge and protean sacrifices. This is indeed the thought that most troubles me in these reflections. Let me explain what I mean by this observation.

    First of all, I do not think that most Nigerians recognize the sheer scale of the sacrifices that need to be made to turn the country and the economy around. Wastefulness and squandermania reside not only among the political and economic elites; they have percolated into the ranks of the masses of our people. There is little appreciation of the fact that the wealth of the nation, when not socially reproduced through the expansion of value-added economic production, is close to the poverty of the nation and all its peoples, the rich and the poor, the elites and the masses. I mean, what is the value of “wealth” for any and all the citizens of a country in which the most elementary amenities of modern life are grossly inadequate, both in supply and in quality?

    The most important point of these reflections is my deeply troubling regret that our peoples and the organizations that stand in solidarity with their hardships and sufferings do not emphasize strongly enough that the sacrifices that have to be made at this historic turning point of our country’s political affairs should come primarily from the rulers. How validly can you ask a people who have been doing nothing else but make compelled sacrifices to their rulers’ endless greed to get ready to make yet more sacrifices? Indeed, what moral authority, what spiritual capital do politicians and political parties in our country have for them to call our peoples to make sacrifices?

    I make this point especially in the context of the cultural and symbolic significance of the value of sacrifice and sacrificial themes in all our religious and metaphysical traditions, both the traditional religions and the Abrahamic traditions of Islam and Christianity. In these traditions, our peoples are perpetually called upon to make offerings, to make sacrifices in order to obtain divine or providential grace and favour. Well, for once and in the real world of this new and historic turning point, let us ask the new rulers what sacrifices THEY will make first before asking the people to get ready to tighten their belts. For believe me, if they haven’t already started to do so, they will sooner or later be asking YOU to get ready to make sacrifices.

    And so today I celebrate – in moderation and with cautious optimism. And I ask: this time around, who will be doing the sacrificing? Who will be the “sacrificer”; who will be the “sacrificed”?

  • 2015: APC, PDP in queer role reversal

    2015: APC, PDP in queer role reversal

    All Progressives Congress (APC), the merger party which was recently hounded by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has finally taken over as the new ruling party in Abuja. Assistant Editor, Dare Odufowokan, traces the journey to the current role reversal

    One fateful day in February, 2013, Nigeria’s four biggest opposition political parties announced their readiness to merge and contest the 2015 elections as one mega party, against President Goodluck Jonathan’s (People’s Democratic Party). Not many Nigerians read any serious meaning to that announcement that is today remembered as the first step in the political transformation of Africa’s largest economy.

    Back then, parties said “we have resolved to merge forthwith and become the All Progressives Congress (APC) and offer to our beleaguered people a recipe for peace and prosperity,” according to a statement handed to reporters on that fateful day. “At no time in our national life has radical change become more urgent,” it added.

    The two biggest parties in the merger were the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), whose governors control most of the country’s southwestern states, including Lagos, the commercial capital, and the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), led by the north’s biggest opposition figure and now President-elect, former military ruler Muhammadu Buhari.

    Happening in a country that is almost evenly divided between a mainly Muslim north and a largely Christian south, as the merger arrangement progress with major gains recorded in a matter of days, many local and international analysts spoke of a significant change in the politics of the Nigeria should the merger succeed.

    That was when the people of the country, politicians and non-politicians alike, started paying attention to the merger talks. Three years earlier, Buhari had lost to Jonathan in the 2011 presidential election, garnering the most northern votes. Jonathan is the third PDP president since 1999, when the country returned to civil rule.

    The initial lackadaisical reaction by the populace to the announced merger was because previous attempts by Nigerian opposition parties to form coalitions have failed. Giving one of the first hint of optimism, Clement Nwankwo, Executive Director of the Abuja-based Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre, had said “I get the sense that there is a serious push toward a united big political party and I think that the merger will happen,” on the day the APC was announced.

    The alliance also includes the northern All Nigeria People’s Party and the All Progressive Grand Alliance, based in the country’s South-East. At least 10 governors from four opposition parties met on February 5 to back the alliance, two days before successful merger was announced on February 7th, 2013.

    “We are extremely concerned about the state of the nation and we put our heads together in the interest of our people to deliberate on what can be done to rescue our country,” the governors had said in a statement e-mailed by the office of Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola.

    APC as the miracle ‘baby’

    Today, following its unexpected victory in the much anticipated general elections of March and April 2015, the APC has become something close to a miraculous baby on the political scene in Nigeria. While many pundits predicted some successes for the new party prior to the election, very few people saw the huge success it recorded across the country, coming.

    Consequently, the party has not only replaced the defeated PDP as the ruling party at the national level, it has also taken over its majority in both the Senate and the Federal House of Representatives. In addition, many states hitherto ruled by the PDP on Friday, May 29, 2015, fall into the hands of the APC as the new governing party.

    APC’s Muhammadu Buhari won the presidential election by almost 2.6 million votes. The party’s victory was so much that Jonathan; the sitting president then, conceded defeat on 31 March, hours before the final result was announced.

    This was the first time in Nigeria’s political history that an opposition political party unseated a governing party in a general election and one in which power will transfer peacefully from one political party to another. Though it fell shy of winning a super-majority to override the ability of the opposition PDP to block legislations, the APC denied PDP legislators a return as principal officers of the National Assembly by winning a simple majority in the federal legislative elections.

    Giving insights into the victory of the APC at the polls, a chieftain of PPDP, Chief Francis Fadahunsi, said the new party benefitted immensely from the leadership crisis that engulfed the ruling party prior to the general election. He also lampooned Jonathan for turning himself to President of Ijaws at a point “rather than President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria”.

    Fadahunsi, who lost the race for Osun-East Senatorial seat to the APC’s Senator Babajide Omoworare, alleged that at a point, Jonathan was cornering all positions in the party to his kinsmen to the detriment of other regions in the country. “Right from the beginning of this administration, the President turned himself to President of the Ijaw rather than that of Nigeria.

    “President Goodluck Jonathan sees himself as the president of Ijaw rather than that of Nigeria. All available positions are occupied by his people. During the time of Obasanjo and Yar’Adua administrations, positions were spread across the country, but in Jonathan era all are meant for his kinsmen. He is told about the lopsidedness, but believes he could manage it, but see where he has landed the party,” he regretted.

    Human rights activist and National Coordinator of Rights Monitoring Group (RMG), Olufemi Aduwo, said the APC won the general elections because Nigerians wanted a change. “It is not because the APC is better than the PDP. Nigerians don’t want to be taken for granted. For instance in Ondo State, when Governor Segun Mimiko returned to the PDP, he met some people who had been building the party when he left.

    It was a suicide mission for the party to have allowed Mimiko to come back and take 100 percent control of the party. If you have a party that is disciplined and the leaders can read between the lines, the position of leadership could have been shared between Mimiko and other members of the party who have labored over the years.

    Also in the days of former National Chairman of the PDP, Alhaji Bamaga Tukur, he disallowed the governors to handle the affairs of the party at the state levels, but when Mu’azu came, the governors were able to hijack the structure at the state level and were imposing or disallowing some to contest.

    Everybody knows that when Tukur left, there was a lot of dislocation in PDP. Five governors left a party at a go and nothing was done about that. A former president, who is on the board of trustees, also left and nothing was done to bring him back. It was a big blow but people around Jonathan thought it was not. If you go to the north and you mention Obasanjo before any governor, they are not comfortable; they see him as a semi God and call him Baba,” he said.

    But the giant killing feat of the new party was not without initial hiccups. In March 2013, it was reported that two other associations, namely African Peoples Congress and All Patriotic Citizens, also applied for INEC registration, adopting APC as an acronym as well, a development interpreted by many observers to be a move to thwart the successful coalition of the opposition parties, ahead of the 2015 general elections.

    So serious was the threat posed to the survival of the new party by these two other associations that it was reported in April 2013 that the party was considering changing its name to the All Progressive Congress of Nigeria (APCN) to avoid further complications.

    Also, the leadership of the All Progressives Grand Alliance denied being a part of the merger and warned the authorities against giving approval to the new party. In spite of insistence by Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State, an APGA governor at the time, that he and his faction of the party are part of the merger, the leadership of the party insisted that it would not merge with any association.

    The party eventually received approval from the nation’s electoral umpire, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on 31 July 2013 to become a political party and the electoral umpire subsequently withdrew the operating licenses of the three predecessor parties (the ACN, CPC and ANPP).

    A peep into the records showed that the resolution that agreed upon by the merging parties was signed by Tom Ikimi, the who represented the ACN; Senator Annie Okonkwo on behalf of the APGA; former governor of Kano State, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau, the Chairman of ANPP’s Merger Committee; and Garba Shehu, the Chairman of CPC’s Merger Committee. Ironically, less than 2 years before the party’s historic victory in the 2015 elections, Messrs Annie Okonkwo, Tom Ikimi and Ibrahim Shekarau resigned from the party and joined the PDP.

    In November 2013, five serving Governors from the governing PDP defected to the APC. The governors who defected to the APC were Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State, Abdulfatah Ahmed of Kwara State, Rabiu Kwankwaso of Kano State, Murtala Nyako of Adamawa State and Aliyu Wamakko of Sokoto State.

    Also, 49 PDP House of Representatives members joined the ranks of 137 legislators in the APC as a result of the prior merger of the smaller opposition parties. This initially gave the APC a slim majority of 186 legislators in the Lower House out of a total of 360 legislators.

    It had been previously reported that governors Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu of Niger State and Sule Lamido of Jigawa State were also set to defect to the APC; however, both ended up remaining with the People’s Democratic Party. As part of APC’s giant killing feats in the 2015 elections, Governor Aliyu, who ran as a senatorial candidate of PDP for the Niger State East Senatorial District, lost in a landslide to the APC’s David Umaru.

    PDP, a ‘giant’ on its kneels

    Today, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), which was founded in August 1998 by members of numerous groups and organisations, including the groups known as G-18 and G-34, and went ahead to rule the country at the centre for 16 years, is preparing to resume its new role as the main opposition party.

    This followed its poor performance at the last general election where it lost not just the presidential but majority of parliamentary seats and governorship positions, even in parts of the country hitherto considered its strongholds.

    Consequently, the ruling party has experienced a mass exodus of its chieftains and members into the winning APC. While political analysts are saying the party’s loss at the general election is responsible for the moves by the defectors, those leaving PDP are citing the unending crises in the party as their reasons.

    Starting from Wednesday, April 8, 2015, about a week after Jonathan’s presidential loss, the outgoing ruling party suffered the loss of several of its top members, who mass-defected to the incoming ruling party, the APC.

    In Adamawa State, the immediate past political adviser to Goodluck Jonathan, Alhaji Ahmed Gulak, who initiated the Jonathan re-election campaign led the pack of defectors. Also jumping ship alongside Gulak were two serving senators, Ahmed Hassan Barata and Mohammed Bello Tukur representing Adamawa South and Central respectively.

    Also in the team of defectors were a former Deputy Senate Leader, Senator Jonathan Zwingina, former Minister of Health, Dr. Idi Hong, among several others. About eight serving state and federal legislators in the state also joined the throng of politicians seeking refuge in the APC.

    In Ondo State, the PDP’s immediate past National Legal Adviser, Chief Olusola Oke, and his two wives joined the APC alongside a member of the House of Representatives representing Okitipupa/Irele Federal Constituency.

    Former Commissioners in the late Dr. Olusegun Agagu administration namely Princes Oladunni Odu, Ayo Ifayefunmi, Olajide Ajana and former Senator Gbenga Ogunniya, amongst other notable PDP chieftains, also led their numerous supporters into the incoming ruling party. A former Head of Service, Alaba Isijola and a former member of the House of Representatives, Abayomi Sheba, among others, were also among the defectors.

    Similarly in Oyo State, PDP lost key members which included a member of the House of Representatives, Afeez Jimoh, a former member of the House of Representatives, Folake Olunloyo-Osinowo, Tayo Sarumi, Dr. Azeez Adeduntan, PDP governorship aspirant, Chief (Mrs.) Ayoka Lawani, Mr. Waheed Adeleke, former Chairman, Iseyin Local Government, as well as other party leaders.

    The defection tales didn’t end in these states as stories from Bayelsa, Kaduna, Ogun, Kano, Katsina, Yobe, Kwara, Kogi, Edo and many more revealed more defections from the embattled PDP into the APC.

    Immediate past National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, attributed the defeat his party suffered in the general election to lack of adherence to internal democracy.

    But, he was quick to add that the party will stabilise and pull surprises soon. Tukur, who spoke to The Nation on phone, said the party is critically studying the outcome of the last general elections.

    He said due to the imminent repercussions inherent in disrespecting internal democracy, he had been advocating for its entrenchment in the party for a long time regretting that the failure to heed his advice led to the unsavoury defeat the party suffered in the last elections.

    “We have been preaching election not selection, internal democracy not imposition. Anywhere it was done, it will leave a bitter pill in the mouth,” Tukur noted.

    Another PDP chieftain, Dr. Dalhatu Sarki Tafida, the Director-General of the Jonathan Goodluck Campaign Organisation during the 2011 presidential elections, who is also a two-time Senate Leader and presently, Nigeria’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, blamed the campaign organisation for the party’s loss.

    “From my personal view, based on what I coincidentally watched on NTA and AIT televisions, the Jonathan Goodluck campaign was centered on personality accusations where the President-elect has been personally targeted. PDP campaign office turned the campaign into a theatre of personality accusations of what happened 30 years ago which should not be so.

    What is important in any electioneering campaign is to tell people what you have done for them in the last four years and what you intend to do for them if you are re-elected. This is my idea about campaign but I don’t believe in ridiculing my opponent,” he said.

    In the 1999 elections, the first following the country’s return to civil rule, the PDP won a majority of seats in the legislature and former Head of State, Olusegun Obasanjo, was elected president. The party also claimed a vast majority of the states into its kitty.

    In the 2003 elections, the party maintained a legislative majority and Obasanjo was reelected president. Based on the party’s policy of zoning, in 2007, the PDP’s candidate was Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, a Muslim and then governor of the northern state of Katsina. The vice presidential candidate was Goodluck Jonathan, a Christian and the governor of the southern state of Bayelsa. Yar’Adua was declared the winner of the 2007 presidential election, although international observers strongly condemned the election as being marred by voting irregularities and fraud.

    In 2010 power shifted unexpectedly to Jonathan, who assumed the role of Acting President in February after Yar’Adua fell ill; he was sworn in to the presidency, following Yar’Adua’s death in May. Jonathan was victorious in the country’s 2011 presidential election, which was deemed largely free and fair by international observers.

    As the 2015 elections drew closer, the longtime ruling party found itself in a weaker position: infighting had resulted in several members leaving the party; Jonathan’s administration was under fire for not doing enough to combat corruption or to eliminate the threat from the deadly Islamic insurgency led by Boko Haram in the northeastern parts of the country; and many Nigerians felt that general living conditions had not improved.

    Buhari eventually defeated Jonathan, signaling an end to the PDP’s grip on the presidency, which it had held since 1999. The party also lost its majority in the Senate and the House of Representatives to the APC in the legislative elections.

    Bounce back dream

    But the embattled party is very optimistic that it would soon bounce back. Amidst heated allegations and counter allegations amongst its leading officials, the PDP says it is going through a restructuring process aimed at re-invigorating the party to return to its winning ways as soon as possible. But observers of the politics of the defeated ruling party think otherwise.

    The uncertainties rocking the PDP took a new turn with the resignation of its chairman, Ahmed Adamu Muazu. The Chairman, Board of Trustees (BOT), Chief Tony Anenih, also threw in the towel and as sources said the move was to allow outgoing President Goodluck Jonathan to succeed him.

    Both Anenih and Muazu, alongside some members of the National Working Committee (NWC) have been under relentless pressure from members to resign, following the party’s dismal performance at the polls.

    Reports hinted that following an exhaustive meeting presided over by Jonathan in the Presidential Villa among key leaders of the party; the two leaders agreed to throw in the towel for the emergence of fresh leadership in the party.

    Muazu, who was in the ?United Kingdom for treatment over an undisclosed ailment, sent in his resignation letter, addressed to the Deputy National Chairman, Uche Secondus.

    Light at the end of the tunnel

    The developments notwithstanding, some party chieftains have said there is light at the end of the tunnel for the troubled PDP. “We lost quite a lot, not only the presidency but almost everything in the elections. We have no option than to go back to the drawing board. We have to feel the way the opposition felt over 16 years.

    “We must learn from our mistakes so that one day we will come up strongly and win all elections again. People should know that there is nothing permanent in politics. The victory of APC is also not permanent; one day, it will be the turn of another party in power not necessarily APC or PDP. I say so because Nigeria is not matured enough to maintain two party systems talk less of having PDP or APC in power for many years,” Tafida assured.

    Happening at a time when the APC, the hitherto “hounded” political organisation, that suffered untold hardships ranging from legal and illegal attempts to deny its registration, to the arrest, detention and prosecution of its leaders, as well as outright impeachment of its governors and deputy governors in some states of the federation, has taken full charge of the administration of the entire country and erstwhile PDP strongholds like Kano, Sokoto, Katsina, Kwara, Adamawa, Niger amongst others, not a few observers of the drastic change in the power equation of Africa’s most populous country are awed by the reversal of roles between the new ruling party and its troubled predecessor.

  • I regret my action, says Orubebe

    I regret my action, says Orubebe

    A former Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Elder Godsday Orubebe has apologized to Nigerians for his infamous act during the collation of the Presidential election results Tuesday.

    Orubebe said he sincerely regretted his action as he allowed his emotion to betray him.

    He pleaded with Niger Delta youths not to perpetrate violence because of the election of the Presidential Candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Gen. Muhammadu Buhari.

    He explained that politics is an emotional thing and that was what happened and it is not something he would want to happen again.

    The former minister had disrupted proceeding for about 30 minutes while also accusing the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Attahiru Jega of being biased.

    Orubebe, who was one of the agents of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) at the National Collation Centre in the discharge of his duties, expressed his regrets during an interaction with newsmen at the National Collation Centre in Abuja.

    He also commended President Goodluck Jonathan for his statesmanship in congratulating General Muhammadu Buhari on his victory.

    He said the President’s acceptance of defeat was the right thing to do.

    He said: ‎”Election is a passionate thing and I really regretted what took place this morning. I was unnecessarily pushed by Jega to get to that level and I did make that statement.

    “I want to apologise particularly to young Nigerians that look up to take politics as a career to say that what happened was not intended to cause them any embarrassment.

    “To Nigerians generally, I regret my actions as even an elder in the Church, and a leader, the young men expected to see a lot from me and I believe that if there was any disappointment they got from me I apologize to Nigerians and to the youths of this country.”

    A sober Orubebe asked Niger Delta youths not to take the laws into their hands on the outcome of the Presidential Election.

    He added: “We have always talked about peace in this country and remember that when there was crisis in Niger Delta, I was one of the architects that sacrificed to go the creeks to tell the militants that we need peace in this country alongside President Goodluck Jonathan.

    “Politics is a process, today it is Mr. A, tomorrow is Mr. B. That is why I am saying that we should be talking about the unity of this country. We shouldn’t be talking about sectional things; we shouldn’t be talking about religion.
    “God has a reason for bringing us together in this geographical area called Nigeria. We should live as one and if we are given responsibility to do anything, we should fair to all and treat everybody equally. But I believe that tomorrow is another day. If today is somebody else turn, tomorrow can be another person’s turn.

    “So I believe in the unity and peace of this country, I believe the young ones that are coming up will learn from us the way these things are handled. We have seen what the president did and we are also following in his footstep. So I speak to them to embrace peace, to look forward to see another great day.”

    On President Jonathan’s sportsmanship attitude, he said: “Two things are in place. The president is the president of everybody, whether he contested with Buhari or not. He has seen the results displayed everywhere and it is only one that is remaining and he has also seen that even if he wins that one the figures as presented by INEC keeps Buhari on lead. As a statesman and as a president he has done what he should do.”

    Orubebe however was not categorical on whether PDP will accept the results of the Presidential Election or not.

    He said the PDP agents had a duty to submit a report of their observations at the National Collation Centre to the headquarters of the party where leaders will make an appropriate statement.

    ‎He said: “I cannot decide, for PDP is a large family, we are sent on an errand you go and be an agent, see what is happening there and come back to report to us. We will go and report to the party and the party will take the necessary action it has to take.

    ‎”The rest is for PDP as a party to get briefing from us and make a statement. You remember what happened in Ekiti recent governorship election, the governor congratulated his opponent and the party went back and said this is what they have seen. The candidate is not the party, he is a candidate and he has acted very well as a statesman, and as the president, the father of all, for us we are agents to be here to see what transpired here and give report to them.”

  • Jonathan’s concession speech

    Jonathan’s concession speech

    STATEMENT BY PRESIDENT GOODLUCK EBELE JONATHAN AFTER THE ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE RESULTS OF PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION 2015

    Fellow Nigerians,

    I thank you all for turning out en-masse for the March 28 General Elections.

    I promised the country free and fair elections. I have kept my word. I have also expanded the space for Nigerians to participate in the democratic process. That is one legacy I will like to see endure.

    Although some people have expressed mixed feelings about the results announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), I urge those who may feel aggrieved to follow due process based on our constitution and our electoral laws, in seeking redress.

    As I have always affirmed, nobody’s ambition is worth the blood of any Nigerian. The unity, stability and progress of our dear country is more important than anything else.

    I congratulate all Nigerians for successfully going through the process of the March 28th General Elections with the commendable enthusiasm and commitment that was demonstrated nationwide.

    I also commend the Security Services for their role in ensuring that the elections were mostly peaceful and violence-free.

    To my colleagues in the PDP, I thank you for your support. Today, the PDP should be celebrating rather than mourning. We have established a legacy of democratic freedom, transparency, economic growth and free and fair elections.

    For the past 16 years, we have steered the country away from ethnic and regional politics. We created a Pan-Nigerian political party and brought home to our people the realities of economic development and social transformation.

    Through patriotism and diligence, we have built the biggest and most patriotic party in Nigerian history. We must stand together as a party and look to the future with renewed optimism.

    I thank all Nigerians once again for the great opportunity I was given to lead this country and assure you that I will continue to do my best at the helm of national affairs until the end of my tenure.

    I have conveyed my personal best wishes to General Muhammadu Buhari.

    May God Almighty continue to bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

    I thank you all.

    Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, GCFR

    President,

    Federal Republic of Nigeria

    March 31, 2015

  • APC will inherit a basket economy if we win – Fayemi

    APC will inherit a basket economy if we win – Fayemi

    Former governor of Ekiti State, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, has said if the All Progressive Congress wins Saturday’s presidential election, it will inherit a basket economy.

    He, however, said the party has the creativity to rebound the economy.

    Fayemi said:”Our agenda for change is not hidden. We have the 2015 manifesto which is a product of research and travel across the length and breadth of the country. That is how we came about our strong focus on security, economy and corruption.

    “Everywhere we went this was an issue that resonated and the way to address it is to help lift the vulnerable. We will reduce inequality between the rich and the poor, so that the resources no matter how limited can be spread widely among our population.

    “Whether you talk of our free meal a day in school or social security benefits for the indigent or free health programme, we are strongly focused about these plans. We are not pretending, there are no challenges or the resources are available, we are going to inherit a basket economy.

    “If by God’s grace, Nigerians give us the mandate to rule, we will meet empty treasury, a debt ridden country and it will require a great deal of creativity and innovation on our part to plug all the leakages.

    “So put in place incentives that would unleash the creative abilities of our people, so we can generate more jobs and wealth for the populace.”

  • Buhari’s wife to Patience: Don’t be afraid of jail

    Buhari’s wife to Patience: Don’t be afraid of jail

    Hajia Aishat Buhari, wife of the Presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), General Muhammadu Buhari has replied the wife President Goodluck Jonathan, Mrs. Patience Jonathan who has been campaigning that General Buhari will jail his political opponents if elected President in the March 28 election, saying Patience Jonathan needs not fear as Nigerians only want a change in the way Nigeria is being run presently.

    Speaking at a mega rally where she interacted with Women in Edo State Thursday, Hajia Buhari said the PDP’s attempt to paint her husband black with the tar of religion is a desperate attempt to hoodwink the people, saying only those who want to loot the treasury campaign with religion which is at variance with politics.

    She said: “each zone of the country has its peculiar problems. For me in this zone, girl-child trafficking should be considered one of our problems, though I know there is unemployment. Unemployment is the major factor that contributes to brain drain and also the girl-child trafficking. General Muhammadu Buhari is a leader who led Nigeria some decades ago and he is coming back now to sanitise the system.

    “For those that are campaigning, saying that he is coming to jail Nigerians, I don’t know what their fear is. But they shouldn’t be afraid, because we are all yearning for change. The insecurity in the country, the very poor healthcare system, lack of education and other basic necessities that people are lacking I believe Nigerians need somebody like General Muhammadu Buhari now.

    “Already, they have painted him black, using religion. I’m happy today that Nigerians realize that they use religion as a cover to loot Nigeria. Any politician who talks to you about religion is a liar, he only wants to loot the treasury and the little resources you ought to enjoy. So say no to politics merging it with religion to deceive the people.

    “I’m here today to let Edo women know that when my husband is elected into office as President, all these will be history. The insecurity, the girl-child trafficking, suffering of the widows in the South East will come to an end. There must be a cultural design that can accommodate the widow. A design that would make the girl-child comfortable wherever she is in this country. She doesn’t have to leave her country to go and prostitute elsewhere, it’s not her portion. Her portion is to have a highly standard and moral society for her to live in. Get married, have children, train them and also mould them to become the future leaders.

    “We are here today to also let you know that the collection of your PVCs is important and don’t ever sell it. It’s like selling your future. If you sell it for N5, 000, you won’t see N5, 000 again until after four years which will be bad. Get your PVC, vote for APC, vote for freedom, vote for a new Nigeria with good security, good education, good healthcare, good roads and all the basic necessities.”

    In his address to the women, Governor Adams Oshiomhole urged them to vote for the APC since the PDP has failed in 16 years to deliver on electricity and other basic infrastructure.

    According to him, the PDP government fleeces even the poor through kerosene sale.

    “In sixteen years, PDP did not provide light, we provide the transformers to the communities but the PDP Federal Government cannot power the lights. They collect fixed charges from the people when there is no fixed light.

    “They say there’s a power reform, however instead of reform, they deform. They advertised to employ people into the Nigeria Immigration Service and use private company to charged the applicant N1, 000 each. The private company collected over N800 million from poor youths and took them to the stadium to conduct an interview, at the end people died. Instead of the Minister in charge to be reprimanded, he was given national honours.

    “You need to understand the issues. Our call for Change and for people to vote for the APC and vote out the PDP is because the PDP has completely failed and deceived the people for 16 years. So they must go home.”

    The people must vote for APC to return Nigeria from darkness to light, from unemployment to employment and from insecurity to security.”

    He flayed some religious leaders who want to polarize the country along religious lines, saying the problems facing the country affect both Christians and Moslems so Nigerians should ignore the attempt to hoodwink them and preach hatred using the religion card.

    In an address of welcome, wife of the state Deputy Governor, Deaconess Endurance Odubu said Nigerians have made up their minds to vote massively for the All Progressives Congress.

    She noted the achievements of Governor Adams Oshiomhole in Edo State and said when voted into power, General Muhammadu Buhari will replicate it at the national level.

    She assured Hajia Aishat Buhari that Edo women will vote massively for the APC.

  • PDP working to plunge Nigeria into war- Group

    Buhari Support Organisation, the umbrella body of all support groups working for the election of the APC Presidential candidate General Muhammadu Buhari has accused the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) of working very hard to plunge the country into a war that will make both Burundi and Rwandan genocide a child’s play.

    In a statement made available to The Nation in Abuja and signed by its Director of Media, Dr. Chidia Maduekwe, the Buhari Support group said the PDP under President Jonathan was a clear danger to the nation.

    Dr, Maduekwe said that Nigerians and the international community should hold the PDP responsible for any breach of security in Nigeria with these open sponsorship of armed militia today under the guidance of the government.

    He alleged that there was a plan by the ruling party, working with anti-democratic elements to ignite another round of confusion aimed at causing stalemate and national emergency as we approach the presidential elections, adding that Information at its disposal suggest that the renewed plan to heat up the polity is expected to provide the presidency and their spin doctors another excuse at ensuring that the Election does not hold as planned and subsequently forcing Prof. Jega out from office.

    He said: “We totally abhor all effort directed at forcing INEC and most specifically the Chairman , Prof Attahiru Jega to jettison the use of card reader that will ensure transparency of this election. We have it on good authority that the INEC Chairman was summoned to the villa and serious pressure and blackmail mounted on him to either resign or stop the use of the globally accepted card reader.

    “We recently witnessed thousands of Odua Peoples Congress and the Coalition of Concerned Nigerians members using armed thugs and gunshots renting the air to intimidate Lagosians. They took over major roads in Lagos on Monday demanding the sack of the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof. Attahiru Jega.

    “We sadly observed that the demonstrators, wielded broken bottles and knives. The National Coordinator of the OPC, Chief Gani Adams, led the protest under the cover of security agents of this great nation.

    “This protest is certainly in line with the N9bn allegedly given to the OPC and the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra by Jonathan to disrupt the elections. The police and soldiers conveniently looked the other way, giving credence to the suspicion that they might have been state sponsored hooligans.

    “The PDP is desperate to plunge the country into a war that will make both Rwanda and Burundi a child’s play considering the mix of the country’s population.  PDP under Mr. President is a clear and present danger and we make bold to alert the world to hold the PDP responsible for any breach of security in Nigeria with these open sponsorship of armed militia today under the guidance of the government.

  • No to military involvement in 2015 elections

    No to military involvement in 2015 elections

    The debate over the deployment of troops for the general elections has refused to go away. It almost snowballed into fisticuffs between Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and All Progressives Congress (APC) members of the House of Representatives. Deputy Political Editor RAYMOND MORDI examines the issues involved and their implications for the general elections.  

    The alleged role of the military in the June 21, 2014 Ekiti governorship election has sparked a debate over the legality, desirability or otherwise of deploying troops to keep peace during the general elections. In spite of the recent Court of Appeal judgment against the deployment of troops for elections, indications are that President Goodluck Jonathan might order the deployment of soldiers for the March 28 and April 11 elections. The Court of Appeal, in deciding the Ekiti election petition, ruled that it is illegal to deploy soldiers for election duties. The judgment validated the decision of a Sokoto High Court that the military should play no direct role during elections.

    The military had always been involved in the conduct of elections in one way or the other. But, the testimony of an Army Captain who was part of the Ekiti assignment, Sagir Koli, on how the military was allegedly used to tamper with the process leading to the governorship election has introduced a new dimension to the role of the military in elections. Though the allegation is still being investigated, the revelation has implications for this year’s general elections.

    The fear of the main opposition party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) is that the military may be used to intimidate and arrest leading politicians opposed to the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The APC is of the view that the ruling party may take advantage of the increasing insecurity in the country to set the stage for the full involvement of the military during the elections.

    Though the involvement of the military appears inevitable, given the security situation in parts of the country, there is a clamour for their role to be regulated. Aside from the alleged Ekiti rigging plot, the image of the military in Nigeria is not the very best at the moment, because of the role it played in the postponement of the general elections from February 14/February 28 to March 28/April 11, 2015. Service Chiefs were believed to have worked in tandem with the Presidency to get the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to shift the polls.

    This has diminished the little faith Nigerians had in the deployment of troops. Although INEC had its own inadequacies that may have marred the outcome of the election, its chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, had insisted that the commission was ready for the poll. Jega said: “A day before the Council of State meeting, the office of the National Security Adviser (NSA) wrote a letter to the Commission, drawing attention to recent developments in four Northeast states of Borno, Yobe, Adamawa and Gombe currently experiencing the challenge of insurgency. The letter stated that security could not be guaranteed during the proposed period in February for the general elections.

    “This advisory was reinforced at the Council of State meeting on Thursday where the NSA and all the Armed Services and Intelligence Chiefs unanimously reiterated that the safety and security of our operations cannot be guaranteed and that the Security Services needed at least six weeks within which to conclude a major military operation against the insurgency in the Northeast…”

    Prior to the Ekiti governorship poll, the Federal Government had deployed troops in 32 of the 36 states of the federation to check ‘security challenges’ or in ‘aid of civil authority.’ As the deployment of troops was spreading, the Nigeria Police, which is constitutionally empowered for internal security, has been missing in action.

    What are the merits for the deployment of troops for election? Following the debate generated over the matter, former president of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Joseph Daudu, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), said the idea is in order, as long as it would not be deployed to participate in the election, but to protect sensitive materials used during the exercise.

    His words: “The military are not deployed to participate, however, because there are certain sensitive election materials to be protected, they would be available, especially in this era of Boko Haram. It is their duty to assist in keeping internal security. However, they won’t be at polling booths to whip people into line like the members of the Nigeria Police Force or the Civil Defence Corps. But, they (the military) should be available for immediate deployment.”

    The Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Prof. Chidi Odinkalu, also backed the call for troops to take charge of security to ensure peace during the elections. Odinkalu is of the view that Nigeria is currently in a state of war, which justifies such action in line with the Geneva Convention Act.

    The Chairman, International Society for Civil Liberties & the Rule of Law, Mr. Emeka Umeagbalasi, also believes that the role of the military in the sustenance of Nigeria’s fragile democracy, including reduction in poll roguery and brigandage, is commendable. Umeagbalasi said the do-or-die mentality of politicians leaves no room for another alternative. Indeed, he said the military’s security roles during polls in the past three years have drastically reduced violence as well as polls’ rigging. He added: “Over 300 citizens died in the 2011 pre-election violence as against 2015’s 60 recorded deaths till date excluding insurgency war casualties. The military’s security and surveillance of poll materials and personnel in recent times have added credibility to polls’ outcomes/results to the extent that most of the 1, 695 elective public office polls constitutionally conducted by INEC in Nigeria from 2011 were sustained and upheld by various polls’ tribunals in Nigeria.

    “It is also globally established that Nigeria is one of the countries noted in notoriety with turbulent and homicidal polls. Its political parties are recently christened as “most corrupt in the world”. While other social climes see public office polls as quest for aristocratic humanitarian services, political parties and actors/actresses in Nigeria see same as business enterprises and ethno-religious regimentation. In all these, the military appears to be the only neutral third party capable of providing last hope for Nigerians numbering over 170 million.

    “This is why the military institution must be supported by all and sundry at all times. So long as Nigeria’s polls remain turbulent and mercantile, the lives and liberties of Nigerians must be maximally entrusted in the hands of the country’s armed forces at all times without judicial, administrative and political excuses.”

    The heated debate for and against troops-for-poll almost snowballed into fisticuffs between members of the opposition and those of the ruling party in the House of Representatives last week.

    Be that as it may, INEC appears to believe that the military has a role to play in the general election. But, it is of the view that they should be restricted to designated checkpoints, to make sure people do not traffic arms, ammunition or engage in any conduct that could tamper with the electoral process. Due to the prevalence of insecurity in the country, the military has been part of the electioneering process in the last 16 years. But, it assumed an embarrassing proportion in the last 12 years. Before the Ekiti election, troops were restricted largely to highways leading to areas considered volatile, to make sure that arms are not moved from place-to-place during elections. But, they were physically present at polling stations, as well as collation centres during the June 21 polls.

    What does the law say? According to legal practitioners, the deployment of troops in “aid” of civil authority is legal and constitutional. But, such a deployment must be approved or regulated by the National Assembly.

    Observers are now accusing the President of deploying the military illegally to monitor the conduct of elections in the last couple of years. Besides approaching the National Assembly for Emergency Rule in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states, there is no record to show that he has approached the legislature for legal instrument to deploy troops-for-poll in any part of the country. While the illegality persists nationwide, some judges have come out openly to deride the recourse to the abuse of the military for election duties.

    A former President of the Court of Appeal, Hon. Justice Umar Abdullahi, JCA (as he then was) in Buhari vs. Obasanjo (2005) I WRN 2000), said: “In spite of non-tolerant nature of our political class in this country, we should by all means try to keep armed personnel of whatever status or nature from being part and parcel of the election process. The civilian authorities should be left to conduct and carry out fully the electoral processes at all levels.

    On his part, another President of the Court of Appeal,  Hon. Justice Ayo Salami, JCA (as he then was) in Yusuf vs. Obasanjo (2005) 18 NWLR Part 956 p.96 said: “It is up to the Police to protect our nascent democracy and not the military, otherwise the democracy might be wittingly or unwittingly militarized.”

    In a courageous pronouncement on Monday, February 16, 2015, Hon. Justice Aboki, JCA, (Chairman, Ekiti State Governorship Election Appeal Tribunal), who was a bit worried by the roles of Armed Forces personnel during the Ekiti State Governorship Election, said: “Even the President of Nigeria has no powers to call on the Nigerian Armed Forces to unleash them on peaceful citizenry who are exercising their franchise to elect their leaders.”

    “In the event of insurrection or insurgency, the call on the Armed Forces to restore order must be with approval of the National Assembly — as provided in sections 217(2) and 218(4 of the Constitution as amended.”

    Until the return to military rule in 1999, the police had always been in charge of providing security during elections. Notwithstanding a few challenges associated with the police during the 1962 crisis in the defunct Western Region and the ex-IGP Sunday Adewusi’s shoot-on-sight order in 1983 general election war between the NPN and the Unity Party of Nigeria, the police had performed fairly well. Most experts are of the opinion that if the police force is well-equipped, it should be able to provide security nationwide. The NPF has 332,756 policemen, 6,693 Traffic Wardens and 11,999 civilian workers in 3,756 police stations nationwide. The only challenge with the force is lack of funds. The Inspector General of Police, Suleiman Abba, who was represented by his deputy in-charge of Logistics and Supplies, Mamman Tsafe told the Senate Committee on Police Affairs in Abuja during the week that out of the N56 billion overhead proposed by the police in 2014, only N8 billion was approved out of which N5 billion was released. He said the force required N24 billion for fuelling and maintaining its vehicles instead of N5 billion proposed. For capital budget, he said that of a proposed N218 billion, N7 billion was approved and only N3 billion was released.

    From the foregoing, the option available to President Jonathan is to approach the National Assembly for an enabling Act to make deployment of troops for election legal. Indeed, the APC, through its Director, Legal of the Presidential Campaign Council, Mr. Chukwuma-Machukwu Ume (SAN), has written a letter to the President on why the judgment of the Federal High Court should be respected to leave troops out of the March 28 and April 11 general election. The letter said in part: “Your Excellency, may I add this: the restraining phrase “… security supervision of elections in any manner whatsoever in any part of Nigeria” is all encompassing including absence of armed forces on the roads and streets on the election days and not discriminatory as to be limited to polling booths, as some may expediently want the public to believe.

    “I, therefore, request Your Excellency, to instruct the Service Chiefs and all relevant State officers to diligently comply with the orders of the Court by ensuring that the Armed Forces are never engaged in the security supervision of the forthcoming elections in any manner and in any part of Nigeria whatsoever. It is the statutory duty of the Nigerian Police Force to carry out this function without having the armed forces instill fear in the citizenry during the elections.”