The Nation Newspaper

Tag: BUHARI

  • Garba II reiterates support for Buhari

    FORMER presidential aspirant on the platform of All Progressives Congress (APC) Adamu Garba II has thrown his weight behind President Muhammad Buhari.

    He dismissed the chances of People Democratic Party (PDP) flagbearer Atiku Abubakar.

    In a statement, Garba II, the CEO of IPI Solutions, said the interests of Nigerians were better served under Buhari.

    Garba II said privatization under the watch of Atiku during the Second Republic went awry consequently his support for Buhari is not negotiable.

    “We all thought that we were better off between 1999 and 2015 but it was clear that we were living in a bubble as a nation.

    “But for the first time since the early 1990s, we have a government under President Buhari that dared to press a reset button on those institutions that used to be pipe drains.”

    He noted further that Buhari would take the country to lofty heights with his ‘NEXTLEVEL’ agenda.

     

  • Support FG’s entrepreneurial policy, Buhari urges universities

    President Muhammadu Buhari has urged tertiary institutions in the country to intensify efforts on the actualisation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for economic growth and national development.

    Buhari said this yesterday at the combined 29th and 30th convocation ceremonies of the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA.

    He urged them to key into the entrepreneurial/technology policy of the Federal Government.

    The President, who was represented by the Director of Accreditation, National University Commission (NUC), Dr. Noel Saliu Biodun, said the roles of universities in economic growth and national development cannot be underemphasized.

    According to him, “In this age of ICT, we believe that our universities of technology are pivotal to the actualization of our national development agenda  and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations.”

    He added, that, the training would help produce highly qualified manpower to solve the problems facing the nation such as insecurity and unemployment.

    Buhari said, “It has become imperative for our tertiary institutions to align with the Incheon Education 2030 Agenda which advocates for education for self-reliance, basic skills and competencies needed in the 21st century.

    “I enjoin FUTA and indeed all other universities to key into the entrepreneurial/technology education policy of the Federal Government as enunciated in the Economic Recovery Growth Plan (ERGP) and the Ministerial Strategic Plan (MSP).”

    This, he said, would empower the graduates to become employers of labour rather than roaming the streets in search of white collar jobs, that are not readily available.

    President Buhari reiterated his government’s commitment towards the development of the education sector via infrastructural development and increased funding of universities.

    “The FG will continue to provide necessary interventions for infrastructural development, training and retraining of staff and research through the instrument of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) and other sources,” he said.

    In his remarks, Ondo State Governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, assured FUTA management and students, that his government would continue to partner with them for ICT revolution and development.

  • 2019: ‘Why Nigerians ‘ll vote for Buhari’

    A former Speaker of the Ekiti State House of Assembly, Hon. Femi Bamisile, has called on Nigerians to vote massively for President Muhammadu Buhari in 2019.

    Bamisile, an APC House of Representatives candidate for the Ekiti South Federal Constituency II in the 2019 general elections, told journalists at Omuo-Ekiti that it was insulting for the PDP to wish to return to power.

    He said: “It is insulting and embarrassing for a party like the PDP to come around again  to promise to reposition the country it had earlier destroyed through bad leadership.

    Read also: Support FG’s entrepreneurial policy, Buhari urges universities

    “There is no doubt that the coming general elections would also be another game of integrity and performance test, and the question will now be to compare a four-year term of the APC to a16-year term of the PDP in Nigeria.

    “President Buhari had in the last three and years laid a solid structure for economic recovery and development with infrastructure in all the six geo-political zones”.

    Bamisile said: “The difference is clear and axiomatic. The country will not fold arms and watch  bad people to bring back destructive tendencies of the past into the current reformation strides of President Buhari.”

  • Buhari to attend climate change conference in Poland

    President Muhammadu Buhari is scheduled to leave Abuja today for Katowice, Poland, to attend the 24th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP24) under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)

    The conference is holding from December 2 to 5, 2018.

    The COP24 Summit, which will be held at the International Conference Centre (MCK) and the adjacent Spodek Arena in Katowice, is being convened under the Presidency of Poland.

    Read also: Tackling climate change through innovation

    According to the organisers, the conference is expected to finalize the rules for implementation of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change under the Paris Agreement Work Programme (PAWP) – the rule book for implementation.

    During the Leaders’ Summit at COP24, a statement by the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, said that President Buhari will deliver a national statement highlighting Nigeria’s commitment to addressing climate change by implementing the goals set out in its National Determined Contributions.

  • Buhari swears in new FCSC commissioners

    President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday swore in the newly appointed Chairman and 12 Commissioners of the Federal Civil Service Commission (FCSC) at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

    He charged them to address all obstacles inimical to the image of the service.

    The President also enjoined them to tackle issues detrimental to effective service delivery by the nation’s civil service

    The civil service, he said, must be repositioned to enable it discharge its assigned responsibilities for efficient implementation of government policies.

    He said: “In recent times, government has observed some developments that are inimical to the image of the service and detrimental to efficient delivery of its responsibilities.

    “The Federal Civil Service must therefore be repositioned to enable it fulfill its role in honestly executing government policies.

    “Considering your respective backgrounds, your appointments were predicated on your wealth of public service experience.

    “I, therefore, have no doubt that you are equipped to reposition the civil service to respond efficiently and professionally to its responsibilities.

    “In this regard, you must ensure that government’s recruitment drive is conducted in a transparent and fair manner to attract the appropriate capacity of skilled personnel to the civil service while maintaining and motivating new recruits.”

    He stressed that the civil service is saddled with the onerous responsibility of formulating and implementing policies and programmes of government through which benefits of governance are delivered to the citizenry.

    He said the civil service had remained a central institution to any government and the engine room for helping the executive to deliver good governance.

    “It must therefore put in place a sound system for appointments, promotions and discipline of personnel that will respond to the direction of government,” he added.

    President Buhari reminded the chairman and the commissioners of the three cardinal objectives of his administration, which he said included security, improved economy and fight against corruption.

    He, therefore, charged them to support initiatives aimed at delivering on these and to shun practices that run counter to the delivery of the set objectives.

    The chairman of the FCSC, Alhaji Yakubu Ingawa, who spoke to State House correspondents after the swearing in ceremony, pledged that the new members would discharge their responsibilities diligently.

    Those sworn in along with the chairman included Mr Moses Ngbale from Adamawa; Waziri Ngurno from Borno; Aminu Sheidu from Kogi; Simon Etim from Akwa Ibom and Bello Mahmoud from Jigawa.

    Others were Ahmed Sarna from Kebbi; Iyabode Odulate-Yusuf from Ogun; Shehu Danyaya from Niger; Fatai Adebayo from Oyo; Ejoh Chukwuemeka from Anambra; Joe Poroma from Rivers and Ibrahim Mohammed from Kaduna.

  • Boko Haram: Buhari, other leaders draw new war plan

    Nigeria rallies Cameroon, Chad, Niger against insurgents

    U.S. orders fighter jets for Nigeria

    A fresh onslaught against Boko Haram is on the way.

    President Muhammadu Buhari was in N’djamena, capital of the Republic of Chad yesterday to rally his colleagues for the task at a one-day consultation with Heads of State and Governments of the Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC).

    The meeting was called to address the recent upsurge in terrorist activities in the region. Set for the new assault against insurgents, particularly Boko Haram, are Chad, Niger Republic, and Republic of Cameroon.

    ”Times as these call for quick interventions and measures,” President Buhari stated, adding:

    ”As you are aware and have witnessed in recent times, there are new developments of security concern in our sub-region. The region in the recent past has witnessed increasing attacks, particularly on military formations by elements of the Boko Haram terrorists as well as the renewed kidnapping of people. These activities are aimed at weakening our collective resolve to eradicate them from the region.

    ”We must not cave in. The group’s renewed strategy of increasingly mining the general area as well as its recent deployment of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) for surveillance activities have proved to be critical factors in the resurgence of attacks in the region.”

    Commending what he called the “untiring efforts” of the leadership of the LCBC, and officers and men of the Multi-National Joint Task Force (MNJTF), President Buhari noted that the efforts of those who strive to bring peace and stability to the region would never be forgotten.

    ”We are committed to ensuring that the ideals of restoring peace, stability and viability of the Lake Chad Region to its glorious state, for which some of you have paid the ultimate price is attained,” he said.

    President Buhari, in a statement by his spokesperson , Femi Adesina, said: “We must not relent and allow the enemies of the region to succeed in their quest to destabilize the area. We must reinvigorate our collective will and commitment towards eradicating terrorism from our region.

    ”We must remain focused and true to ensuring sustainable development. To this end, I have requested that bilateral and multilateral platforms of engagements by member countries affected by the conflict be revamped to ensure collective actions towards stamping out the remnants of the terrorists from the region.

    Read also: ‘Our successes still manifest despite Metele setback’

    ”There is no gainsaying that also fueling the crisis are the twin menaces of poverty and the continued shrinkage of the Lake Chad, which have rendered the people of the region vulnerable to terrorist activities. Attention is drawn to the Lake and its resources, which have always been the source of livelihood for the millions of people that live within and around the basin.”

    He urged the Presidents and Heads of Governments to make concerted efforts to ensure the actualisation of efforts to recharge the Lake, through Inter-Basin Water Transfer, from the Congo Basin.

    Buhari stressed that if meticulously pursued, the project “has the capacity to unlock the economic potentials and provide solutions to the myriad of interrelated challenges confronting the region.”

    As chairman of the Summit of Heads of State and Governments of the Lake Chad Basin Commission, Buhari assured of his commitment to providing the required leadership and direction for the actualisation of peace and security in the area.

    He reiterated an earlier promise he made to troops fighting terrorism: “We are committed to ensuring you have the requisite and enabling equipment to optimally function. Your welfare is, and would continue to remain our priority. Together, we shall restore the Lake Chad Region to its glorious days.”

    At the meeting were President Idris Deby Itno (Chad), President Mahamadou Issoufou  (Niger Republic) and Prime Minister of Cameroon Philemon Yang, who represented President Paul Biya.

    In a joint communique, the Heads of State and Governments, resolved to change the modus operandi, collaborate more, and renew assault on all forms of terrorism and criminal acts, till wholesome peace was restored to the region.

     

    U.S. govt places order for Nigeria’s Super Tucano aircraft 

    The United States Department of Defence has awarded the contract for the manufacturing of 12 A-29 Super Tucano combat aircraft on behalf of the Nigerian Air Force.

    The contract was awarded to Sierra Nevada Corporation, an American aerospace contractor, for an initial sum of $329 million. A clause, described as “undefinitised contract action (UCA)”, was, however, added that the contract sum could be varied, but not exceeding $344.7 million.

    A defence contracting explainer said the UCA involves contracts whose terms, specifications, or price are not agreed upon before work commences, an online report said.

    This could be because the negotiation of a definitive contract action is not possible in sufficient time to meet the government’s requirements or a government’s interest demands that the contractor be given a binding commitment so that contract performance can begin immediately, and shall be as complete and definite as practicable under the particular circumstances.

    Six of the aircraft would be equipped with Forward Looking Infrared System, a technology that senses radiation which is then converted to video output.

    As part of the contract for the 12 Super Tucano combat jetliners, the Nigerian Air Force would receive ground training devices, mission planning systems, mission debrief systems, spares, ground support equipment and alternate mission equipment, the U.S. defence department said.

    There would also be a contiguous U.S. interim contractor support, outside of continental U.S. (OCONUS) contractor logistic support, and five field service representatives for OCONUS support for three years, the U.S. Defence Department said.

    The aircraft would be built in Jacksonville, Florida, southeastern United States, and is expected to be completed May 2024.”Foreign military sales funds in the amount of $220,167,735 are being obligated at the time of award,” the department added.

    President Muhammadu Buhari placed order for the aircraft in April, following extensive discussions with the U.S. government that led to the relaxing of a moratorium placed on military equipment sales to Nigeria.

    President Buhari said the procurement would help strengthen Nigeria’s national security, as well as timely end to the Boko Haram war.The Nigerian government transferred $469.4 million to the U.S. government in April, according to a letter he wrote to the National Assembly.

    Lawmakers immediately rejected the move, saying the president flouted the Nigerian Constitution in paying such humongous amount to procure equipment from a another country with appropriation.

    The president described what he did as granting “anticipatory approval” for an expenditure, a term the lawmakers argued was strange to the Nigerian Constitution and the principles of separation of powers.

    During the heated debates about the contract in April, a U.S. senior diplomat in Nigeria briefed reporters in Lagos, telling them, amongst other key benefits of the contract, that the Super Tucanos would be delivered by 2020, a claim that was then regurgitated by Buhari administration officials.

    It was not immediately clear whether the Federal Government was aware the project would not be delivered until 2024, six years away, but went ahead with the narrative that it would come by 2020, anyway.

    Also it was unclear why the contract was being awarded for $344 million (N125.3 billion) when Buhari said he transferred over $469 million (N168.8 billion) to the U.S. for the aircraft.

    That leaves a difference of N43.5 billion yet unaccounted for.

     

  • Buhari orders troops to wipe out Boko Haram

    The President was yesterday in Maiduguri, the engine-room of the Boko Haram war, to cheer up the injured and reassure others that he is committed to their mission – wiping out the insurgents.

    The army suffered some losses — 23 dead and 31 injured — in Metele on November 18. Lawmakers are planning to probe the funding of the war.

    President Muhammadu Buhari, at the Maimalari Military Cantonment Hospital in the Borno State capital, saw injured soldiers on their beds. He comforted them and stressed the fact that their sacrifice was well appreciated, The Nation learnt.

    The Commander-In-Chief was in the city to open the Chief of Army Staff’s yearly conference.

    He assured the troops of Operation Lafiya Dole  of support to defeat Boko Haram and other security threats.

    The President praised the army for stabilising security in the Niger Delta and curtailing clashes between farmers and herdsmen in some parts of the country.

    The President, at the conference, noted the “operational losses” in Northern Borno.

    He advised the troops not to be distracted but to focus on wiping out Boko Haram.

    He said: “The effort of the military has also stabilised the security situation in the Niger Delta and other parts of the country and curtailed the clashes between herdsmen and farmers.

    ”I must commend the selfless sacrifices of our Armed Forces, especially the heroic officers and soldiers of the Nigerian Army who by virtue of their commitment to operations all over the country have brought about the desired peace.

    Read also: Fighting the Boko Haram scourge

    ”There has been a remarkable improvement in the security situation in the Northeast since 2015 when this administration came into government and you are a major part of the successes that have been achieved.

    ”I am, of course, aware that in the recent months and in recent days, there have been some operational losses in the northern part of Borno State, particularly in Jilli, Arege and Metele.

    ”I know that you are doing your best to reverse this trend and I want to assure you that no effort will be spared in providing the necessary support you require to complete the task. We remain committed to ending the crisis in the Northeast and making the entire area safe for all. I urge you all to keep up the good work.

    “I am also painfully aware that some gallant officers and soldiers have paid the supreme price in the course of these anti-terrorist operations. While we remember them and mourn with their loved ones, I must also convey the deep gratitude of the government and people of Nigeria to the late soldiers and their families for their heroic sacrifices.

    Our thoughts and prayers are also with all other victims of Boko Haram’s atrocities and their families,” President Buhari said.

    He praised the professionalism the army and other security agencies employed to unravel the mysterious death of Maj.-Gen. Idris Alkali, stressing that the perpetrators of the heinous act must be brought to book.

    “Let me also commend you all for the professional manner with which the Nigerian Army, in collaboration with other security agencies, unravelled the perpetrators involved in the disappearance of late Maj.-Gen. Idris Alkali. This attests to the capabilities that exist in our security apparatus. I want to assure you that the perpetrators will be brought to book. May his gentle soul and the souls of our departed gallant troops rest in perfect peace,” Buhari said.

    The President, observing the importance of the theme of the conference, praised the army for shifting the conference from Benin to Maiduguri, stressing that the officers and soldiers who are fighting against terrorism in the Northeast deserve all the attention our country’s leadership can demonstrate to them.

    “As President of the country, I am determined to ensure that every citizen feels safe and secure in all parts of the country. To achieve this, the security agencies must rise to the challenge and curb threats to security in our country.”

    ”The Armed Forces play a critical role in safeguarding the country, hence you must all ensure that your plans and programmes meet the challenges we face.

    ”To this end, I am glad that this conference is holding at this time, because it serves as a platform to assess and evaluate your performance for the Year 2018.”

    Buhari observed that the army have kept to one of the cardinal objectives of his administration  – security –  which according to him, has  ”led to the dislodgement of insurgents from areas hitherto viewed as their strongholds, rescue of abducted persons, return of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs)  and the gradual return to normalcy in the Northeast”.

    To boost the morale of the troops, the President announced: “I will be visiting some of our injured troops in hospitals and also talk to others at their bases to assure them of our continued support. It is a must win war. I want to encourage our troops not to be distracted by whatever speculations but to remain focused and committed to the task of eliminating Boko Haram from the face of earth.

    “I want to reassure you that as your Commander-in-Chief, I will do everything within my powers to continue empowering you by providing all the necessary equipment, force multipliers and enablers required for you to prevail on the field. I also want you to be aware that I am currently looking into measures to improve your entitlements and welfare generally.”

    Dwelling on the theme of the conference which is “Optimising the operational efficiency of the Nigerian Army towards safeguarding democracy and national security in Nigeria”, the President said: “The Nigerian Army’s commitment to upholding democracy is appropriately captured in the theme of the conference”.

    He told members of the Armed Forces to be non-partisan in next year’s elections.

    His words: “As we approach the 2019 general elections, I want to urge all members of the Armed Forces to live up to their responsibilities and remain non-partisan. In addition, you must all remain vigilant throughout the electioneering period and alongside other security agencies, prevent every form of violence that could disrupt the process in line with your rules of engagement.”

    The President praised the army in mainstreaming human rights in its operation. This, he said, has reduced the allegations against them.

    ”The Nigerian Army has enriched her corporate identity, organisational commitment and responsiveness. I also wish to acknowledge the drastic reduction in human rights allegations against the Nigerian Army.

    “I urge you to continue to ensure that all troops remain committed to the observance of all International Human Rights Laws and Laws of Armed Conflict”.

    The President recalled the objectives of his administration, saying: “Let me remind the audience that the cardinal objectives of this administration remain the entrenchment of security, restructuring the economy and the fight against corruption, to ensure a steady, sustainable and inclusive economic growth.

    “In addition, our commitment to entrenching purposeful and accountable leadership remains firm because it is the base from which peace, security and national development would be built on.

    “I therefore wish to reiterate that leaders of all strata of society, including our Armed Forces, must embrace the wind of CHANGE that is blowing across the country for good. There must be cooperation at inter-service and inter-agency levels.

    “To this end, the Chief of Defence Staff and Service Chiefs must work closely together as well as with other security agencies to improve on strategies that will defeat terrorism, militancy and other forms of criminal activities in our country.

    ”As you appraise your activities for the Year 2018, concentrate on the contemporary security challenges facing our nation and proffer ways of surmounting the challenges. I am convinced that this conference will renew the vigour and dedication, for which the Nigerian Army is known.

    ”I have gone through the conference programme and it is my belief that the conference will be worthwhile if your deliberations generate new strategies that would strengthen stability in the country.”

    In his opening remarks, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai, thanked the President for his support to the army and other security forces in the fight against insurgency.

    Gen Buratai pledged the commitment of the army to flushing out Boko Haram in the Northeast and other forms of criminalities in the country.

    Host Governor Kashim Shettima praised the gallant troops for their fight against Boko Haram. He called on politicians to stop grandstanding, even as he admitted that there were challenges.

     

    President meets Lake Chad Basin Heads of State today

    President Muhammadu Buhari will today consult with Heads of State and Government of the Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC) in his capacity as chairman of the Summit of the Commission.

    The meeting is billed for N’Djamena, the Chadian capital.

    The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Asesina, said the one-day meeting is to review the security situation in the areas affected by Boko Haram insurgency and adopt measures to enhance the capacity of the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) to meet the challenges of securing the areas.

    The presidents of the LCBC member countries of Chad, Cameroon, Niger and the Central African Republic are to attend the meeting.

    The President of Benin Republic, a troops-contributing country, has also been invited to attend.

    The Multi-National Joint Task Force (MNJTF) and the national operations of the affected countries have appreciably degraded the capacity of Boko Haram terrorists, although the insurgents still retain the capacity to attack isolated targets in desperate search for supplies.

  • Obasanjo’s son: no rift with dad for supporting Buhari

    Former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s son Olujonwo yesterday spoke on his decision to back President Muhammadu Buhari’s second term bid.

    A peep into future of youths informed his support for the President, he said yesterday.

    Olujonwo, who spoke at a media interactive session organised by the All Progressives Congress (APC) Press Corp, said his decision to back Buhari has not created any rift between him and his father.

    He said the Obasanjo family remained a united and loving family despite he and the former president supporting different presidential candidates.

    Olujonwo has pledged support for President Buhari of the APC and the former president is backing his erstwhile deputy Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    The younger Obasanjo, however, said that it will be unfair for anybody to compare the President Buhari administration with the one that was headed by his father.

    According to him, both governments came into office under different circumstances.

    He said: “When we get to certain point in our lives, you are responsible for the decisions you take. With all due respect, my father is my father and will remain my father despite our political differences.

    “At the end of the day, this election will end. Does that stop him being my father? Are you saying we cannot sit down and have dinner together and discuss issues?

    “As a nation, we need to progress mentally and quit looking at politics as a do or die or as something yjat separates us. Politics is meant to unite us. We can disagree to agree; we can have genuine argument. You see things from my point of view, I see things from your point of view and we see how we can work together.

    “That is the type of politics we are trying to promote and the message we are trying to send across. We are looking to promote certain values in politics. That is why we are in politics. It is very important that we rise above religion, ethnicity and primordial sentiments for the interest of this nation as a whole.

    “Politics is not a battle, it is not war. We should stop looking at it from the stand point of who is superior. I have an ideology and an opinion, my father has his and we are not in conflict, we are still a family, a loving family with my dad.”

    On whether his father has tried to influence his decision since announcing his support for President Buhari, he said: “I am as an individual and as an adult. I am here as someone who believe in this government. This government is diversifying the economy from an oil based economy and has made agriculture fashionable.

    “Today, people talk about farming and no longer look at it in a degrading manner. People now look at the value chain when you talk about farming. For me, it is all about the impact that this government has made. As a nation, we must look beyond oil and think outside the box by looking at other areas which is what this government has come to do.

    “Nigeria is a nation blessed in several ways and not just oil and this government is promoting youth involvement in all sectors. As a young man, I am looking at the future and I believe in this government and I am supporting Mr. President. So, I cannot speak for my father.

    “Everybody’s parent wanted them to be one thing or the other, probably different from what they are today. But at certain stage in our lives, we choose our part. That does not amount to disrespecting your parents.”

    On why he chose to support Buhari, Olujonwo said: “We believe that by promoting the ideology of Mr. President, we are also promoting his achievement. We will be putting the facts forward and allow the electorate to decide what is best for them.

    “A lot has been going on in the social media. But, at the end of the day, it is the grassroots that matters. One of the things the President faced when he came into office was the security challenges in this country. Several local government areas were under Boko Haram.

    “We will always have security challenges, but it is important that we have a leader who is sincere, trustworthiness and make sure that our resources are applied towards fighting for this nation. You can see that from the successes we have recorded, Mr. President has done a tremendous job within a short time.”

    On what he will be telling Nigerians who would want him to compare the Buhari government and that of his father, he said: “I think that will be unfair because what each leader met on ground differ and they came in under different circumstances. It will not be an unfair comparison.”

  • Buhari: To debate or not to debate (I)

    Virtually everywhere in the world now democratic nations seek to add electoral value to the democratic process by the phenomenon of pre-election political debates. Quite less frequently, aspirants battling to secure the candidature of their political parties debate between or among themselves in the build up to intra-party primaries. And more often than not they do so also now as ‘candidates’ of their parties especially at gubernatorial and presidential levels. “Men working from notes inside their heads” was the metaphor America’s language maven William Saffire used to describe a typical two-man presidential debate, where candidates attentively answer impromptu questions and also make instantaneous, off the cuff rebuttals to bare-knuckle charges. It is believed that this pre-election phenomenon gives the electorate an opportunity to be informed -so that they, in turn, may make ‘informed’ choices at the polls when they vote. Said Saffire, “Modern debates allow an audience to size up two candidates under the same pressure at the same moment (so as) to reach judgment on which person seems more trustworthy or (more) in presidential command”.

    But whether or not pre-election presidential debates have always achieved these acclaimed ends has been –itself- a subject of intense debate since 1858 when the phenomenon was ignited by a little-known Illinois lawyer, Abraham Lincoln who was said to have challenged his local senator, Stephen Douglas, in a series of seven controversial debates in a bid to replace him. And although Lincoln lost the election, the debates had ‘elevated his national stature and set him up for a successful presidential run against Mr. Douglas two years later’. Now whether or not Lincoln or Douglas won those debates must also have been a subject of debate, because the phenomenon of impartial, independent rating was not available to attend to those encounters. Which is not to suggest that with their existence today, outcomes of political debates, even in the so-called bastion of democracy itself, America, are no longer debatable. Because they still are. Or at least as recently as 2016, they were: in spite of the clear verdicts of independent rating institutions, Trump and his supporters had claimed rancorously that he won at least two of the three debates he had with Mrs. Clinton. Nor were all rating institutions unanimous that he did not.

    And so as ‘beauty’ is said usually to lie ‘in the eye of the beholder’, so is victory in a political debate nowadays, often more in the ‘subjective’ mind of those who have listened to it, than in the ‘objective’ verdicts of so-called independent polling institutions –no matter how impartial we may think they are. This will still be so even if we can prove that those who privately or institutionally rate others have not brought their biases, prejudices and sentiments to bear on their verdicts. Most verdicts especially of keenly contested debates cannot possibly be free from the elements of subjectivity -no matter how infinitesimally so. Yet many self-acclaimed impartial rating institutions are known even to be unable to demonstrate their vaunted impartiality. For example, rather than announce Trump’s triple defeat or emphasize Hillary Clinton’s three-times trumping of Trump, some of these institutions preferred accentuating and even praising the fact that Trump’s performances in the debates had ‘exceeded expectation’ -as if the object of the debate ab initio, was to know by what low or high margin he would lose to Hillary.

    And so, deciding who wins a political debate or who has lost one is not the only problem with political debates. Agreeing on who should be trusted to organize and conduct them is even more major. And so, if even independent, so-called impartial polling institutions cannot be trusted to be objective in their assessments of who has won or lost a debate, what institutions are there with the most minimum potential for bias that can be trusted by all candidates and all political parties to organize, set criteria for and conduct a presidential debate? As we can see again, even in this so-called bastion of democracy itself, America, this species of trust remains grossly at a premium because serious-minded political parties will not risk investing it in any other than themselves! Presidential debates in America are solely the prerogative of a bi-partisan body, called ‘Commission on Presidential Debate, CPD which is jointly owned and run by the country’s two major political parties, the Democratic and Republican parties.

    Established in 1987, the Commission on Presidential Debate, CPD is staffed almost equitably by members of the two political parties and jointly headed too, by their chairmen who mutually by themselves set the criteria for, organize and conduct pre-election presidential debates. This is so as to eliminate any possibility for the subtlest manipulation of the rules or substance of the debate by any persons or groups in favour or disfavour of any candidate or political party. And so if the question arises ‘who should conduct a debate trustworthy enough to be attended?’ America’s Republican and Democratic parties have answered it: ‘Us’! If it is not owned and conducted by us, it will not be attended by us! The moral is clear: Who should own the debate-organizing body? Us! Who should set criteria for the debates? Us! Who should organize the debates? Us?’ The CPD only invites credible media anchors from the outside to conduct these debates using questions mostly transparently sourced from the public to avoid the allegation of bias in their selection -including sometimes the possibility of bias in the manner that they are either couched or even asked.

    Generally, in the United States, attendance of CPD-organized presidential debates is neither a right that candidates of all political parties may claim, nor is it a duty that they are all obligated to discharge. It is a privilege that has to be earned by all candidates –including those of the two major political parties. Being privately-organized, the chance to participate is made contingent upon a rule that only candidates of the Republican and Democratic parties –given their sizes- are pre-eminently opportune, always to qualify for. Qualification is a 15 percent minimum threshold of support a candidate must have in any five national opinion polls in the run up to the debates. Thus there is always room for ‘third-party’ candidate participation from among the many small issue-based political parties that abound in the polity, provided that such candidate meets the 15 percent requirement. It was on meeting that threshold that the Texas billionaire and independent candidate, Ross Perot joined Bush Senior and Bill Clinton, in 1992, on an interesting threesome-debate after he was said to have also led these two pre-eminent candidates in a historic early public opinion polls. It was unthinkable that any candidate of minor political parties could do that; let alone an independent candidate.

    This highly restrictive criterion for participation in the CPD-organized presidential debate was once challenged in court by some of the smaller parties who claimed that it was discriminatory against them. But a District Court judge dismissed the case on the grounds that the ‘Commission on Presidential Debate’ is not a public forum and that the defendants –namely the Republican and Democratic parties who control it- are private entities engaged strictly in a private activity. In other words, the court was suggesting that other parties too were free to create their own debate commissions, organize their own debates, set their own criteria, invite their own participants and conduct their debates however they wished. As candidates have no right to participate in debates organized by other than themselves, so have others no right to impose on candidates the obligation to attend particular debates.

  • Restructuring and Buhari’s place in history

    There are too many people talking lazily about restructuring in Nigeria. Unfortunately people are not asking them individually what they mean by restructuring….And now we have 36 states and the FCT. What form do they want? They are just talking loosely about restructuring. Let them define it and then we see how we can peacefully do it in the interest of Nigerians.” – President Buhari.

    Suddenly, President Buhari, a political adviser’s nightmare who routinely shoots himself in the legs must have forgotten ‘the buck stops at his desk”. With unhidden disdain for public opinion, he speaks as if he is doing Nigerians who elected him a favour. Although many Nigerians believe the president is committed to the Nigerian project, but not a few including some of his ardent supporters, have in the last two years started to fear that this type of gaffe and hypocrisy beyond his inaction may at the end deny him his place in history.

    It is on records that the president sold restructuring as part of his agenda to the electorate in 2015. It is also on record that the committee on restructuring set up by the President’s APC presented its report to the president earlier in the year. The president, feigning ignorance of what advocates of restructuring want, must have no doubt been a source of great anguish to his advisers.

    Undoubtedly, the president knows Nigerian patriots such as the late Pa Tony Enahoro who  until his last breath fought for the country to be restructured  in line with what he and our other founding fathers negotiated at independence, Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka, who served 30 months in detention during the civil war, Emeka Anyaoku, former secretary general of Commonwealth of nations, Balarabe Musa, ex- governor of old Kaduna State, and  ethnic representatives such as Pa Ayo Adebanjo of Afeniifere, Prof Nwabueze and General Theophilus Danjuma speaking for besieged Middle-Belt region  cannot just  be dismissed as  “those involved in loose talk”.

    At any rate, the president is very much aware that the quest for viable federal arrangement is not new. More than half of the nations of the world especially in the multi-cultural societies have adopted the federal arrangement. Europe after two World Wars said “never again” and embraced federal system in order to reduce social dislocation in their societies.

    The struggle in Nigeria started in the 1920s with the colonial power’s recommendation of “a ‘regional government that secures for each separate people, the right to maintain its identity, its individuality and its nationality and its own chosen form of government which have been evolved for it by the wisdom and by the accumulated experiences of generation of its forbearers’.  The constitutional changes of 1954, 1957 and the 1958 Lancashire debate at which October 1, 1960 was chosen as the date for our independence took their roots from this stated policy.

    Unfortunately, the core north’s political elite and their south-eastern counterpart who were opposed to any form of federal arrangement they would not control derailed it in 1962. The core northern political elite preferred a confederal arrangement but cajoled by British umpires to reluctantly embrace federal arrangement having negotiated and secured over 50% of the members of the House and guaranteed a perpetual hold on to power by virtue of higher population than the two southern regions since democracy is a game of numbers. The southeast ‘unitarists’ did not mind this because with a north desperate for qualified hands to man their regional bureaucracy, having just secured self-rule status, the junior coalition partner who according to Nnamdi Azikiwe had been destined by their god “to rule Africa”, a prospect which according to Daddy Oscar Onyeama “was only a matter of time when the Igbos would dominate others in Nigeria”, it was the manifestation of a self-fulfilling prophesy.

    With Tafawa Balewa as prime minister, the southeastern core political elite produced the Chief of Army Staff, the Chief of Naval Staff, the Chief of Defence Staff, the IGP, internal affairs minister, external affairs minister education minister, president of the senate, University of Ibadan VC, and University of Lagos VC. They similarly controlled the Nigerian Airways, the Nigerian Railways among others.

    Political calculations after the 1963 census crisis and the disputed 1964 election result forced the leadership of both groups to lobby the military. The January 1966 military intervention encouraged by southeast core political elite led to Unification Decree 34 of 1966 while the July vengeance coup sponsored by core north political elite resulted in Gowon’s 12-state federal structure.

    Successive northern military leaders  from Murtala Muhammed, Buhari, Babangida, Abacha, and Abdullsalami went on to consolidate northern position by creating in all 36 states and 774 LGAs, all looking up to the centre  that crafted a constitution without a residual list after taking over the sources of economic power of the states.

    Many Nigerians because of President Buhari’s antecedents had thought he is better placed to deal decisively with politicians and economic saboteurs benefitting from the unjust arrangement by restructuring the country along the line of sustainable development.

    Unfortunately, the president upon assumption of office, tried to hide behind one finger by directing advocates of restructuring to go through the National Assembly who, as beneficiaries of unjust order, are not likely going to commit political suicide.  Empire builders in many of the unviable states and LGAs that collect free money from the centre to which they are not accountable are not ready to change the status-quo. Rampaging herdsmen even from across the borders are hiding under the military constitution to justify mindless killing of Nigerians and seizure of territories.  Budding industries collapsed because smugglers of fake products are hiding under the same constitution to carry out their nefarious activities in the name of trading.

    Meanwhile the rivalry between those who destroyed our federal arrangement and have held the nation to ransom since 1962 is being rekindled anew. Professor Ango Abdullahi, former ABU vice chancellor and current spokesman for Northern Elders’ Forum has tried to justify killing and sacking of villages by suspected herdsmen by claiming Igbo traders have not been prevented from carrying out their trading activities around the country.  Professor Nwabueze, the author of the 1966 Unification Decree and 1993 Interim Decree  has proclaimed himself as the chief campaigner for Abubakar Atiku in 2019, a man he said would restructure the country.

    In a bizzare turn of events, President Buhari the messiah many had thought would free the nation from the strangle-hold of the warring enemies of our country, has been accused of taking side with the core northern political elite that did not only refuse to endorse him for his current position but in fact master-minded his defeat during his first three unsuccessful outings. His political foes have also drawn a parallel between his current provincialism and that of southeast core political elite in the first republic and under President Azikiwe Goodluck Jonathan presidency. And because of his slow response to the human tragedies in the Benue basin as well as  to the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association’s threat to resist anti-grazing laws in some 75 local government areas in 21 states, they have accused him of silently waging the late Ahmadu Bello’s unfinished battle against those he once described as his  “ancestors’  properties”.

    Suddenly, being a member of core north political elite has become a threat to the president’s 2019 re-election bid. Those who denied him membership of the group and rigged him out of election in the past have now found in it a potent weapon in the run up to 2019.

    True lovers of our nation however know the country is doomed without restructuring. The president by now should also know he alone cannot be right while all others are wrong. He can therefore  in spite of the theatrics of his political enemies still overcome some of his personal failings  and  save our nation from the impending doom even in the twilight of his first term which ends in May 2019.