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Tag: BUHARI

  • Buhari to deal with killers

    President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday talked tough on killings, vowing to fish out perpetrators and bring them to justice.

    He said no fewer than 75 people were killed in the latest orgy of violence in Kaduna

    The President spoke during a visit to Kaduna which has been the hotbed of killings since last weekend, forcing Governor Nasir El-Rufai to impose a curfew on the state capital and other towns.

    Expressing profound sadness at the huge loss of lives and property in Kasuwan Magani and the unrest around Kaduna metropolis, Buhari demanded an end to wanton killings.

    “If in the past they got away scot-free, we shall now hold everyone to account for these latest killings,’’ the President said at a meeting with senior government officials, security chiefs, traditional rulers, religious, political and community leaders at the Musa Yar’Adua Sports Complex.

    ‘‘It is unacceptable that criminal elements can visit on citizens the wanton killings recorded in the Kasuwan Magani incident of 18th October and the unrest around Kaduna metropolis a few days later. This must stop,’’ he said.

    He directed the police to remain vigilant in securing communities and be diligent in prosecuting criminal offences.

    ‘‘The Nigerian police are in the frontline of securing communities. For the judiciary, unless the investigations are credible and rapidly done, there is nothing they can do. From now on, the Nigeria police, you better watch it; I am going to watch you closely,’’ the President said.

    Buhari urged community leaders, including ward heads, village heads and traditional rulers, to be closer to their people and not to shield from the law those planning to cause violence.

    Warning that the world may have been tired of killings in Nigeria, the President said while the whole world monitored closely developments in the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi inTurkey, the situation in Kaduna had not attracted any attention.

    ‘‘I observed that more than 75 people were killed in Kaduna alone and I haven’t seen anything about it.

    ‘‘It means we are pushing ourselves as a nation and a people towards irrelevance, seen by the world itself,’’ he said.

    Commiserating with the government and people as well as families who lost their loved ones in the incidents, the President paid tribute to the late Agom Adara, Dr. Maiwada Galadima, eulogising the traditional ruler of Adara chiefdom for serving his community and Kaduna State with dedication.

    He urged all who call Kaduna home to do their best to uphold peace in their communities, warning that anarchy worsens whatever issues are troubling a community.

    Buhari noted that Kaduna, which was once home of Premier of Northern Nigeria and New Nigerian, must not earn itself a new name, “home of violence”.

    ‘‘Violence shatters and divides people and stifles the prospect of any community that succumbs to its tragic logic.

    ‘‘The Federal Government commends the efforts of the Kaduna State Government in responding to and managing the crisis. More Federal security assets are being provided at the request of the Kaduna State Government to help uphold and keep the peace.

    ‘‘The Federal Government will continue to work to ensure that more security assets are recruited and deployed across the country to protect all citizens going about their lawful business and to reinforce the authority of the government,’’ he said.

    President Buhari also welcomed the decision of the Kaduna State Government and its local governments to build and provide facilities for the take-off of more police divisions and Civil Defence offices.

    ‘‘On their part, Citizens also have a duty to be law-abiding in their conduct and within their communities. There is a need to avoid violence as a tool of negotiation or obtaining advantage, and learn to listen to each other and commit to resolving differences through peaceful means.

    ‘‘Kaduna, once the home of the Premier and home of the “New Nigerian” must not earn itself a new name – home of violence. The Federal Security Agencies will hunt and prosecute all those who sponsored these acts of violence,’’ he said.

    The president reminded individuals and communities that they have obligations to comply with the law and uphold peace.

    ‘‘These obligations include respecting the rights of others to live wherever they choose, to worship freely and to pursue lawful livelihoods anywhere in this country. These are constitutional and human rights that we as a government and people must uphold and defend,” he said.

    The President told the meeting that his administration would continue to do its best to develop human capital and address poverty and inequality in all parts of the country.

    ‘‘Providing decent education and health are my priority goals. I am delighted with the successful collaboration between federal institutions like the Bank of Industry and the Kaduna State Government to provide vocational and entrepreneurship skills, and low-interest credit to expand economic opportunities,’’ he said.

    “We cannot kill and burn our way out of poverty and inequality. Strife can only deliver more pain and more strife. It is time to break out of mind-set that limits us from collaborating productively for the common good. Let us continue to work together, to put our people first and make their lives better,” the President said.

     

  • Buhari congratulates Brazil’s President-elect Bolsonaro

    President Muhammadu Buhari has congratulated Mr. Jair Bolsonaro on his victory in Brazil’s presidential election run-off on Sunday.

    The President, in a statement by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, also felicitated with the people of Brazil for successfully going through the two rounds of the election and making their choice, thereby enhancing the democratic credentials of their country.

    Noting that Nigeria shares historical and cultural ties with Brazil, Buhari said his administration looks forward to deepening such relations as well as expanding present political, trade and military ties with the South American powerhouse.

    As President-elect Bolsonaro takes office in January 2019, the Nigerian leader wished him a successful tenure in confronting his country’s socio-economic challenges.

  • Buhari: vote fraud era gone

    The era when votes were awarded to favourites of the authorities and the shortchanged told to go to court is gone, President Muhammadu Buhari said yesterday.

    “I emphasise free and fair elections at all times,’’ he said.

    The President spoke along the same line at two events at the State House in Abuja yesterday.

    He received members of the Joint United Nations, African Union and ECOWAS Good Offices Mission on Elections as well as Mrs Julie Payette, Canada’s governor-general.

    Speaking on free and fair elections, Buhari said: “I am highly qualified to talk on this, having ended in Supreme Court three times, after participating in elections with disputed results.

    “Where will a man looking for where his next meal would come from have money to hire lawyers, particularly senior advocates?” the President said.

    He reassured all that the 2019 polls would be free and fair.

    President Buhari said: “The President has only one vote, governors have a vote each, just like anybody else.

    “Let the people vote for whoever they choose, without their will being tampered with.’’

    According to him, multi-party democracy gives many choices to the people, and Nigeria has a vibrant young population, who trust his administration to handle their affairs and resources well.

    “A lot depends on leadership,’’ he said.

    Buhari thanked the joint team for being in touch with the nation’s institutions, particularly the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

    He said the 2015 elections were run with three campaign objectives –  securing the country, reviving the economy and fighting corruption”  – and the opposition has not succeeded in faulting us. We are doing our best with the resources available to us.”

    President of ECOWAS Commission Jean-Claude Brou, said the team came on a solidarity visit to Nigeria before the forthcoming elections, as it did with other countries, such as Senegal, Mali and The Gambia, among others which recently held polls.

    He appreciated the strong role Nigeria played in the sub-region and thanked Buhari for his strides in the fight against corruption and terrorism.

    Dr Mohammed Ibn Chambas, who spoke on behalf of the UN, appreciated what he called “the strong leadership of President Buhari in Nigeria, West Africa, and Africa.”

    He said: “You’ve always played politics according to the rules. We will do all that we can to strengthen the institutions.

    “We’re convinced that INEC is ready to provide free and fair elections.’’

    Receiving the Canadian GG, President Buhari said Nigeria’s democracy is steadily improving, with deeper understanding of the culture and tenets among the people, and strengthening of the institutions that guarantee free and fair elections.

    Buhari said he saw the evolving strength of democracy in the country by contesting elections three times before winning at the fourth trial in 2015.

    According to a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, the President told the Governor General that Nigeria had been learning from the mistakes of those who practised democracy for a longer period, and by looking inward at its own peculiarities.

    “I emphasise free and fair elections at all times,’’ he said.

    The President said Nigeria’s bilateral relations with Canada will continue to be improved, considering the huge interest of the country in Nigeria and growing economic ties, with many Nigerians schooling and working in that country.

    He said Canada played a brotherly role in helping displaced persons in the Northeast, following the Boko Haram insurgency.

    Hon. Payette said Nigeria and Canada enjoy a warm and strong partnership that has translated into ease of migration, large trade relations and cultural exchanges.

    Hon. Payette, who is an astronaut, said it was important for nations to pool resources together to start exploring the benefits of space in providing solutions to some problems on earth.

    The Governor General noted that the world would achieve more by de-emphasising geographical differences and refocusing its energy on the commonality of humanity, pointing out that from space one can only see an earth without borders.

    Hon. Payette said her visit was about showcasing “youth, innovation and technology’’, adding that Canada would like to partner with Nigeria in the ongoing diversification of the economy.

    “We wish you free and credible elections in 2019,’’ she said.

    Speaking with journalists at the end of the meeting, Hon. Payette disclosed that the two countries had resolved to deepen bilateral relations in trade and commerce, education, security, science and space technology advancement.

    Payette, who is accompanied on the visit by eminent Canadians, including government officials, members of parliament and members of the business sector, noted that Nigeria and Canada had been friends and partners for decades.

    Describing Nigeria as her country’s largest trading partner in Africa and largest investor in Canada, she said Canada had a strong base in Nigeria as the number of companies doing business in the country had grown significantly in recent years.

    She said: “Many opportunities exist for deeper cooperation as you mentioned to me during our conversation. There is a lot of room for growth for the bilateral relation between Nigeria and Canada.

    “Fortunately, we already have a strong base and we will continue to build on this.

    “Nigeria is Canada’s largest trading partner in sub-saharan Africa and as well Nigeria is the largest investor from Africa in Canada.

    “The number of Canadian companies doing business here has grown significantly in recent years and we really hope that this delegation would foster even more trading and commerce between our two countries,’’ she said.

    Hon. Payette said that, at the height of the Nigeria – Canada relationship, more than 10,000 Nigerian students were studying in Canada.

    Over 5,000 Nigerians residing in Canada have been contributing positively to the growth of the Canadian textile industry, according to her.

    She said that one of the priorities of her visit to Nigeria was to meet and celebrate the vibrant youths of this country.

    Hon. Payette said the visit would also focus attention on the National Space Research and Development Agency in Abuja.

     

  • Buhari lashes PDP again over poor infrastructure

    PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari said yesterday that it was sad that the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) allowed the country’s infrastructure to rot completely when there were enormous resources at Nigeria’s disposal between 1999 and 2014.

    Speaking while receiving the outgoing British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Paul Arkwright, in a farewell audience at State House, Abuja, the President said: “Our focus now is on infrastructure; roads, rail, power and others.

    “How I wish we had fixed all those when we had money. What we earned between 1999 and 2014 is on record, but nothing was done to infrastructure.

    “Now, we are doing a lot more, with a lot less resources. And we shall continue to do our best.”

    Buhari, in a statement by the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, hailed the outgoing High Commissioner for his warm and pleasant disposition, which has seen him traversing almost the entire country.

    “I always see you all over the place,” the President noted.

    Arkwright, who spent over three years in Nigeria, said he visited 30 of the 36 states and found the people quite enterprising and engaging.

    He added that the British government would be glad to offer a helping hand as required in any part of the country.

    He thanked President Buhari for his support, adding that the relations between Britain and Nigeria have improved tremendously in the past three years.

    Buhari also said yesterday that Nigeria’s democracy is steadily improving with deeper understanding of the culture and tenets among the people and strengthening of the institutions that guarantee free and fair elections.

    The President, who spoke while receiving Governor-General of Canada Julie Payette at the Presidential Villa, said he saw the evolving strength of democracy in the country by contesting for elections three times before winning at the fourth trial in 2015.

    Read also: Buhari towers above Obasanjo, Atiku in integrity, says APC spokesman

    Buhari, in another statement by Adesina, told the Governor General that Nigeria had been learning from the mistakes of those who practiced democracy for a longer period and by looking inward at its own peculiarities.

    “I emphasise free and fair elections at all times,” he said.

    The President said the bilateral relations with Canada would continue to be improved on considering the huge interest of the country in Nigeria and growing economic ties, with many Nigerians schooling and working in the Commonwealth country.

    He said Canada played a brotherly role in helping displaced persons in the Northeast, following Boko Haram insurgency.

    The Governor General said Nigeria and Canada enjoyed a warm and strong partnership that has translated into ease of migration, large trade relations and cultural exchanges.

    Payette, who is an astronaut, said it was important for nations to pool resources together to start exploring the benefits of space in providing solutions to some problems on earth.

    The Governor General noted that the world would achieve more by de-emphasising geographical differences and refocusing its energy on the commonality of humanity.

    She noted that from space, one can only see an earth without borders.

    Rt. Hon. Payette said her visit was about showcasing “youth, innovation and technology”, adding that Canada would like to partner with Nigeria in the ongoing diversification of the economy.

    “We wish you free and credible elections in 2019,” she said.

    Speaking with reporters at the end of the meeting, she stated that the two countries have resolved to deepen bilateral relation in the areas of trade and commerce, education, security, science and space technology advancement.

    Payette, who is accompanied on the visit by eminent Canadians, including government officials, members of parliament and members of the business sector, noted that Nigeria and Canada had been friends and partners for decades.

  • Buhari, travel ban and the Nigerian project

    Sir: One of the issues that dominated the political space in the past few weeks is the travel ban on fifty Nigerians by the federal government.

    This is a fall out of the Executive Order 6 signed by President Buhari recently as part of instruments to tighten the noose on looters of our commonwealth who virtually brought Nigeria to her knees by massively looting her resources.

    Naturally, there has been a lot of noise about the propriety or otherwise of the ban on this group of people who have been most uncomfortable with the policies and programmes of this administration. Curiously, the said list has been a matter of conjecture as the federal government has not made the list public. What it did was to hand it over to the appropriate agencies of government for implementation.

    On such a sensitive matter, it is unsurprising that Nigerians are divided, depending on who is speaking about the development.

    For the PDP, it is natural that they are the wailing wailers because there is no way the sword of Damocles of the anti-corruption fight will not hit them as President Buhari has always blamed the PDP severally for mismanaging the nation’s resources.

    Would it not have been crazy to overlook 16 years of massive corruption that the party was in power, at a time we made so much from oil?

    Didn’t PDP members own up to more than half of the humongous money both in naira and other foreign currencies retrieved from them by this administration?

    Critics may condemn some of the strategies employed by this administration, but the message to all is that this administration remains committed to that which is promised.

    It is even commendable that the court of law has validated what the opposition cried against, which is a pointer that this government is on track.

    Those who feel aggrieved by the EO6 travel ban have also been given a window of opportunity to approach the court if they feel their rights have been trampled upon.

    Thankfully, some members of the opposition some time ago approached the court over the publication of their names on the looters’ list.

    The position of the court on the matter has even vindicated this government of any wrong doing.In our recent history, the war against corruption has never been fought this way it’s been done by the present administration because there is no doubt that the PDP serially raid Nigeria for close to two decades.

    It is therefore an uncommon battle that this administration is fighting in view of the fact that corruption remains our greatest enemy today.

    It is also not an accident that all manner of innuendoes are been thrown at the Buhari government for facing the battle with so much energy.

    This is quite so when considered the quantum of resources in the hands of those whose are been targeted by the government for prosecution.

    Such people will go to any length and use all means to thwart whatever means government is using, not minding the cost involved to keep what they stole from our collective patrimony.

    What is however gratifying is that the Buhari administration has not slowed down a bit despite our closeness to the next elections.

    In the recent past, the anti-corruption agencies are always quick to apply the brakes whenever election is approaching for fear of losing election. This was a major feature of the feeble efforts put into fighting corruption, if any, in the 16 years of the PDP, not so for President Buhari.

    That he has demonstrated that the fight against corruption must go on despite his second term bid is legendary and has shown he is a leader for now and the future.

    This is what separates him from his adversaries who have or would want to rule Nigeria, but would not want to discuss corruption which we either kill or left to kill us and the unborn generation.

    The Buhari we know has taken up the anti-corruption gauntlet and would not drop it for anything, as he has shown since he came on board as President in 2015.

    Thankfully, Nigerian will not allow themselves to be articulated back to the era when stealing is not corruption. Never again.

     

    • Emmanuel Umohinyang,

    Lagos.

  • Why Buhari deserves second term – Lai Mohammed

    The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed has said that President Muhammadu Buhari deserved second term election because, in the past three and half years, he has impacted positively in the lives of Nigerians.

    The minister who was a guest on Channels Television programme “Politics Today” on Sunday night said the President had leveraged his legendary integrity and acumen in managing resources both human and materials to reinvent governance.

    He stressed that Buhari had delivered on the three campaign promises he made which were, fighting corruption, tackling insecurity and revamping the economy.

    “Today, under President Buhari, Nigerians can dream and hope because he has rebranded governance and put the country on the path of sustainable growth and development.

    “He is investing in infrastructure and reinventing the most ambitious social programme in the history of the nation.

    “The President is ensuring that the people do not loot the common resources and ensuring that Nigeria is self sufficient in food production

    “Above all, he has brought honour and respect back to the country and fighting all sorts of insecurity in the country,” he said.

    Reacting to the allegation of non submission of the President’s certificate to INEC, the minister said it was “a non issue and a mere distraction”

    “We have moved beyond that. Let me quote what former President Olusegun Obasanjo said in 2015 during this saga of the President’s certificate.

    “Obasanjo said that it is an insult on a man, who rose to the echelon in Nigeria Army, attended the War College in the US and Staff College in Nigeria, for anyone to start asking whether he has a certificate or not.

    “I think I want to rest this case on that because it is a non issue,” the minister said.

    Speaking on the President’s health, Mohammed said that the President had fully recovered and fit to discharge his duties.

    The minister also said they were not worried by the endorsement of Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, the PDP presidential candidate, by Obasanjo because “it is Nigerians that will decide who will govern them”.

    Read Also: Olawepo-Hashim: we’ll stop recycling of leaders

    “It is Nigerians that are going to vote at the 2019 elections.

    “They will make a choice between going back to the era of inefficiency, looting, decay in infrastructure and the era of integrity, when the economy is being revived and insurgency is being tackled.

    “It is not what Obasanjo says that matters because I am sure Nigerians will make the right choice,” he said.

    The minister also denied the allegation that the government was intimidating the opposition .

    He expressed the confidence that President Buhari would be reelected in 2019 because of his track record.

  • Why Buhari should be re-elected, by BOMG

    NIGERIANS have been urged to vote massively for President Muhammadu Buhari as he is the best candidate to take the country to greater heights.

    Buhari/Osinbajo Mandate Group (BOMG), Lagos State Chapter, made the call in Lagos at the weekend at a news conference..

    According to its coordinator, Yomi Oyedeko, an engineer, it is important to re-elect Buhari into power, as “continuity begets productivity”.

    Oyedeko said: “As a team, we are convinced about our candidates. We wish to express that we have resolved to mobilise registered voters in Lagos State and Nigeria to support the laudable aspiration of President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo.

    “The administration since its assumption on May 29, 2015, has implemented many social economic and welfare programmes to the advantage and benefits of the downtrodden, one of which is social welfare and school feeding programmes. More importantly is the impact that the N10,000 trader money loans has created in the lives of the beneficiaries.

    Chairman of the Southeast Forum of the All Progressive Congress Chief Anslem Njoku said it is important for the zone to massively support Buhari, so that it would be realistic for the Southeast to attain power in 2023.

    He called on interest groups in the Southeast to give the present administration the opportunity to complete projects it began in Igboland.

    Arewa Group leader  Sheriff Abubakar Mohammed said the Arewa group is strongly behind the President.

  • Bukar: Buhari can’t win in Northeast

    Senator Bukar Abba Ibrahim (Yobe East),  said at the weekend that President Muhammadu Buhari cannot win in the six states in the Northeast in the presidential election.

    Ibrahim, who spoke at his book launch in Abuja on Saturday, said Nigerians are worse off under the Buhari administration in the last three and half years than they were throughout the 16 years reign of the Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP).

    The 70-year-old senator’s outburst was, however, a clear departure from his earlier assessment of President Buhari’s chances in 2019.

    Ibrahim, while interacting with members of the Senate Press Corps in May spoke glowingly about the virtues of President Buhari and his big strides in security, the anti-corruption war and the economy.

    He predicted a straight win for the Buhari/Osinbajo ticket, stressing that he had decided to shelve his own 2019 presidential ambition in recognition of President Buhari’s performance.

    Ibrahim, who is serving a third term in the Senate, was seeking to return to the upper legislative house in 2019, but pulled out of the Yobe East ticket bid for outgoing Governor Ibrahim Geidam.

    He was governor of Yobe State three times from 1991 to 1992 and from 1999 to 2007.

    Senator Ibrahim’s wife Khadijat, is Minister of State (Foreign Affairs) and a candidate of the APC for House of Representatives in Yobe State. She defeated one of Senator Ibrahim’s sons for the ticket.

    The senator pointed out that the 2015 election was the very first time that the Northeast opted to support Buhari, who is from the Northwest zone.

    According to him, the two zones had never been in the same political camp since the time of political party formation in the 1950s.

    Ibrahim said: “In fact, the politics of the Northeast has always been different from the politics of the Northwest and it was under the APC that we all united for the first time.

    “As we move towards the elections, I have to give a dire warning to the APC that things are no longer the way they were in 2015 when we rode to power on a cloud of euphoria believing that things would change for the better.

    “Simply put, things have not changed and many things are getting worse and the people are bitter. We should not assume that we can win even with massive rigging.

    “The economy has gone down because of our actions and inactions and we are blaming the past too much rather than solving the present problems .

    “I am going to give a dire warning; let the Northeast not be taken for granted that we must support APC.

    “Our interest in the Northeast has always been progressive and I will personally be watching for required improvements in the APC before the elections.

    “Improvements that can guarantee victory, such as respecting the rule of law and releasing political prisoners as well as unselective war against corruption as against one sided witch hunt”.

    He described the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2019 election, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, who hails from Adamawa State in the Northeast zone, as a possible option.

    Continuing, the senator said: “I shall sit back and continue encouraging my party do the right thing. But if we don’t, I still reserve the capacity to ask my people to go our separate ways and do what must be done for good governance to reign in Nigeria”.

    “At my age, I have no reason to lie about being a socialist progressive over the years as against capitalist conservatives that dominate the other zones.”

     

  • Atiku no match for Buhari, says senator

    Senator of the All Progressives Congress (APC) said yesterday that the party will emerge stronger from the crises arising from its primaries.

    It is also his position that Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate Atiku Abubakar cannot defeat President Muhammadu Buhari in February’s poll.

    Senator Abu Ibrahim (Katsina South), who x-rayed the crisis in some state chapters of APC, traced the cause  to the burning desire of many Nigerians to secure APC’s tickets for the 2019 elections.

    He noted that APC being the ruling party made it attractive to those seeking elective positions in 2019.

    Ibrahim also said the crises stemmed from the “high interest and high stake” most people placed on the primary election as “the main thing” before the general election in 2019.

    Ibrahim said, “The APC is a governing party. Everybody believes once you have the ticket, APC will do it for you.

    “Obviously, the interests are high, the stakes are so high. Everybody wants to take APC ticket.

    “Everybody wants to be APC candidate. Many people were shocked when I bought APC form and decided to opt out of the primary election. I said I will not contest again. They said, you are Mr. President’s man, you will get it. Why do you want to leave?

    “Everybody believes that taking the ticket of APC is a sure way of winning election. People believe that once you have the ticket of the party your work is done.

    “The primary election is the main thing, once we are through with it, every other thing will fall in line.

    “It was easier for me to secure nomination when I was in opposition in Katsina State. For those who were in PDP it was difficult because then PDP was government party.

    “We were only two people that bought the form while PDP had close to 10 people. So it is always like that with the governing party, the government party.

    “You can see, even those of us who are not contesting, there is pressure. But our duty is to make sure that the right persons take over.”

    In the Katsina South senator’s view,  nobody is happy with the crises rocking the party, but he is hopeful that APC will emerge much stronger from the crisis.

    He applauded the national chairman of APC, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, for working assiduously to institutionalize democracy in the party.

    For him, anybody working to effect positive change in any system would face the kind of challenges Oshiomhole is facing in APC.

    He said: “I salute the national chairman, Adams Oshiomhole, for putting a lot of his time to the party and for working to institutionalise democracy in the party.

    “That is what he is trying to do, let democracy take root in the party. Oshiomhole wants to change the system to allow proper democracy to work in the party.

    “Anybody who wants to change the system will face the kind of challenges Oshiomhole is facing. In the end, people will begin to see the benefits. It will be easier for future politicians.”

    On the way out, Ibrahim said that there might be need to institute reconciliation committees at all levels to consider and reconcile issues.

    He said: “Of course it is; yes I agree with you, the election is between Buhari and Atiku. Atiku is certainly not a pushover, but Atiku is not a match for Buhari in terms of political records, commitment to the nation, fighting corruption and fighting insurgency.

    “Buhari formed a new political party that is moving the nation forward but Atiku has moved from all the political parties. Do you call that a leader?

    “But I know the challenges are huge, I agree. All the restructuring he is talking about is a gimmick. He was a vice president in this country but he did not talk about restructuring.

    “Because he has seen that the South said they want restructuring, he wants to use it. What restructuring is Atiku talking about. Bring any detailed documents where Atiku espoused the restructuring he is talking about.

    “We have not seen such documents anywhere. I haven’t seen any written detailed document of Atiku on restructuring. So he is just deceiving Nigerians. We will answer him, let him start talking, he will get answers blow by blow. Let us see his plans, let him start talking, we will answer him in full dose.”

    On why he opted out of the senatorial primary in his state, Ibrahim said it was his personal decision to give younger people opportunity to play their part.

    He noted that withdrawing from the race was also to allow him concentrate on his commitment to ensuring President Buhari’s victory next year.

    He said: “It is not that I’m tired of the Senate. I like the Senate but I have successfully done my own part.

    “The world is like a stage, you play your part and allow others to play their parts. So I decided to allow the younger ones to come into the system and play their part.

    “I will continue to impart my knowledge to them and allow them to play their part. I will continue to guide them and collaborate with them to continue to move our state and the country forward.”

  • Buhari towers above Obasanjo, Atiku in integrity, says APC spokesman

    ALL Progressives Congress (APC) Deputy National Publicity Secretary Yekini Nabena said yesterday that former President Olusegun Obasanjo and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar cannot beat President Muhammadu Buhari in an integrity contest.

    Nabena said Obasanjo’s sudden endorsement of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate has brought to question his real nature as a national leader.

    The APC spokesman said Obasanjo’s previous statements about the credibility of his former deputy when he described Atiku as a corrupt, disloyal and unpatriotic leader, who was not fit and proper to handle the mantle of Nigerian leadership, were enough to rubbish any sudden endorsement from him.

    In a statement in Abuja, Nabena said it was a big contradiction on the part of the former President when he made a volte face and suddenly told Nigerians that he has forgiven Abubakar and now sees him as the best President for Nigeria.

    He said: “Throughout their second tenure in office, (2003-2007) and until recently, former President Obasanjo had described Atiku as a corrupt, disloyal and unpatriotic leader, who was not fit and proper to handle the mantle of Nigerian leadership.

    “Only recently, Obasanjo vowed that God would not forgive him if he supported the presidential aspiration of Atiku as “it would amount to handing Nigeria over to sharks and looters”, only to make a U-turn to announced that he had forgiven Atiku and that he had decided to also support his presidential aspiration.

    He maintained that Obasanjo’s message to Nigerians, therefore, was that his former deputy, whom he had accused of various acts of corruption, had suddenly become clean, credible and prepared to lead Nigeria.

    Nabena added that it was surprising that Obasanjo who had accused Atiku of corrupt tendencies, suddenly turned around and declare the sinner forgiven and eminently qualified to govern Nigeria.

    “It is this tendency towards indecision, insincerity, double talk and deception that has made Nigeria ridiculed in the eyes of the international community. A statesman is known for his principles and his statements are based on the strength of his convictions.

    “When a supposed national leader makes declarations that are subject to change at any time based on his mood, such a leader loses his integrity and reliability,” he said.