The Nation Newspaper

Tag: BUHARI

  • Buhari’s media chat

    Buhari’s media chat

    •The President did well to address the Nigerian media last week.
    He needs to be circumspect in volunteering information

    As President Muhammadu Buhari faced the Nigerian media for the first time since he assumed office in May, last year, he seized the opportunity to allow a peep into the working of his mind. He had been criticised by many for giving preference to the foreign media in announcing and enunciating public policies. It is commendable that he acceded to the demand that charity should begin at home.

    In all, the President came across as one sincere in his aspirations and pronouncements. He was forthright in addressing issues that could be considered complex or controversial.

    He deserves a pat on the back for putting the cards on the table on such issues as the petroleum subsidy regime, devaluation of the Naira, the war against corruption, profligacy of the legislators, alleged disregard for the judiciary and the plans to boost security and secure Nigeria’s territory.

    We hasten to point out, however, that the President is yet to come to terms with the change in his standing. He is still struggling with realising that he is no longer General Muhammadu Buhari who could freely express a personal opinion on any issue. As President, in which capacity he was being interviewed, he was expected to be more circumspect in considering and volunteering information. On the arrest, detention, arraignment and trial of Mr. Nnamdi Kanu for treasonable felony, for example, the President could hardly contain his annoyance. He referred to the campaigner for resuscitation of Biafra as “that one you call Kanu”. He did not deny having a preference for continued detention of the man, despite a bail order by the court, thus giving the impression that he has no respect for the judiciary and its decisions.

    President Buhari should note that no arm of government is necessarily superior to the other. Under the Rule of Law that should prevail in a democracy, supremacy of the executive is a strange doctrine. No man or institution of state has the right to be complainant and judge in its own case.

    While noting the President’s angst at the monumental corruption in the previous administration, he should take caution about setting the executive over which he presides against the judiciary on the matter. His view on the handling of former National Security Adviser Sambo Dasuki by the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation falls short of expectation. However serious a case against an individual is, he deserves fair hearing and his fate should be left to the judiciary. When, after evaluating the evidence before it a court of law decides to grant an accused bail, only a superior court could lawfully set the order aside.

    Similarly, the President’s pungent views on the National Assembly budget might not help the cause of promoting good relations with the legislature. We appreciate that he could not bear with the mere suggestion that the 469 members of the Senate and House of Representatives would want to secure unearned income and privileges for themselves during an economic downturn, it would have been sufficient if the President had said he would discuss the issue with the leadership. It is not strange that the legislature and the executive would disagree on fundamental matters of state policy and preferences, but it takes tact and maturity to resolve such differences. In the interest of the state, President Buhari should cut down on sanctimonious preachments and righteous indignation. Diplomacy could serve the cause of the administration better.

    As leader of a country in economic dire straits, President Buhari should come across as one who has a good grasp of the task before him. He was right in reiterating his view that decentralisation of the sources of revenue has become inescapable, but his prevarication on management of the foreign exchange, possibility of removal of the petroleum subsidy regime, stimulation of local production and purchase of cars for the presidency leaves much to be desired. It does not show him as a man on whose desk the buck stops.

  • Subomi Balogun urges prayers for Buhari

    Subomi Balogun urges prayers for Buhari

    The Asiwaju Omoba of Ijebuland and the founder of the First Monument Bank, (FCMB), Otunba Subomi Balogun, has urged Nigerians to pray  for President Muhamudu Buhari for betterment of the country.

    The octogenarian, who spoke yesterday during the 2016 annual prayer he organised in conjunction with the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in his Ijebu-Ode country home, said it was the duty of all Nigerians to make Nigeria great again.

    According to him, Nigeria leaders and the country need prayer at this critical time.

    Balogun said: “Let us be prayerful that the good lord will guard and protect our president. We should pray for Nigeria particularly our president and other politicians to be successful. We need to pray for God to motivate our leaders to do their best for Nigeria.

    “We should also pray for those who are community leaders. We should ask God to infuse the spirit of aspiration to make Nigeria a better place for their followers to live in them. All what we aspire in life is God’s given, and we can only beg Him to give us.”

     

    “The generality of Nigerians should continue to be prayerful for greatness of this country. But we should not forget to thank God that he has spared our life till date. Above that, our country needs prayers. Our president needs prayer. We should pray for him that the good God should assist him  to bring us out of this unfortunate mess we found ourselves.

    “Pray for you president. Pray for those who are in position of governing the country. Pray for all the politicians. Pray for the God to imbibe in them the spirit to make this country a better place for people to live than they met it. Let us be prayerful. Let us believe that there is a superhuman person that is conducting all our lives and showing us direction. Let us pray to find solace in Him. Let us pray to be protected and guided in the right way to live as a community.

    “We should also pray that the good lord should enter those who want to cause confusion or hardship to other people. Let’s make God our cornerstone.”

     

  • We’ll look inward to tackle economic challenges – Buhari

    We’ll look inward to tackle economic challenges – Buhari

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    President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday said his administration will look inwards, enforce regulations to stop financial leakages and adopt global best practices in generating more revenue to mitigate the effect of dwindling oil prices on the Nigerian economy.

    He made the remark while receiving the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Ms Christine Lagarde, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

    Buhari, in a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, said his administration will also enforce greater discipline, probity and accountability in all revenue generating agencies of the Federal Government.

    He said: “We have just come out of budget discussions after many weeks of taking into consideration the many needs of the country, and the down turn of the economy with falling oil prices and the negative economic forecasts.

    “We are working very hard and with the budget as our way forward, we will do our best to ensure that our country survives the current economic downturn.

    “We have also told all heads of Ministries, Departments and Agencies of government that on our watch, they will fully account for all funds that get into their coffers.”

    The President said the Federal Government was reviewing its operational costs and had directed all the Ministries, Departments and Agencies to cut down on their overhead costs.

    He said the Federal Government will welcome the technical support and expertise of the IMF for its plans to diversify the Nigerian economy and further unleash its growth potentials.

    In her remarks, Ms Lagarde said the IMF will be willing to assist the federal government in plugging revenue leakages, tracing stolen funds and restructuring its tax system.

  • IMF chief arrives in Nigeria for talks with Buhari, others 

    IMF chief arrives in Nigeria for talks with Buhari, others 

    Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Ms. Christine Lagarde, yesterday arrived in Nigeria on a four-day official visit.

    Ms.  Lagarde’s private aircraft touched down at the Presidential Wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja,  some minutes before 3pm.

    At the airport to receive her, among other dignitaries, were Minister of Finance Mrs. Kemi Adeosun and the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele. She went  into a brief close-door meeting with the Nigerian team.  Thereafter she was driven out of the airport in a convoy.

    Ms. Lagarde will engage with policy makers and other stakeholders to underline the IMF’s strong relationship with its African member countries. The visit  would provide the IMF an opportunity to strengthen its partnership with Nigeria, the largest economy in sub-Saharan Africa.

    In Abuja, Ms. Lagarde will meet with President Muhammadu Buhari and other senior government officials, along with business leaders, prominent women, and representatives of civil society groups. She will also meet with the legislators.

    She said: “I look forward to productive meetings with President Buhari and his colleagues as they address important economic challenges, most importantly the impact of low oil prices.

    “Nigeria is working hard to improve its business environment, promote opportunities for growth in the private sector, and strengthen social cohesion in all areas where the government has an important role to play.”

    Ms. Lagarde would leave the country on Thursday for Cameroon, where she would meet President Paul Biya and his economic team, as well as private sector executives, women leaders, and other members of the Cameroonian society.

    She is expected also to meet with Finance Ministers from the six member countries of the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (CEMAC), delivering a speech to the group on January the eight.

  • Buhari urged to declare emergency in agric sector

    Buhari urged to declare emergency in agric sector

    A member of the Seventh House of Representatives, Bamidele Faparusi , has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to declare an emergency in the agriculture sector owing to dwindling oil revenues.

    He also backed the removal of oil subsidy as mooted by the Federal Government and supported by the All Progressives Congress (APC) National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.

    Faparusi described the fund as opportunity for some fraudulent Nigerians to amass ill-gotten wealth.

    Speaking in Ado Ekiti yesterday, Faparusi praised Buhari for the proposal to develop agriculture, mining and tourism sectors to fund the budget, adding that prompt declaration of emergency in agriculture would make the seemingly tall dream to come to fruition.

    Faparusi, who represented Ekiti South Federal Constituency 2 between 2011 and 2015, said the declaration of emergency in agriculture would afford the government an opportunity to give the sector an attention as an alternative to oil and to create more job opportunities for Nigerians.

    “Declaration of emergency in agriculture is long overdue. The President is facing two challenges now. One, oil revenue is fast dwindling and two, he proposed to finance the 2016 budget through other sources apart from oil and agriculture is the better alternative.

    “The emergency will help in voting more money to revive the sector. The late Obafemi Awolowo developed the Western Region depending on proceeds from cocoa, palm oil, rubber and coffee and looking at the vast opportunities in agriculture across Nigeria, the country tends to gain more if there is more investment in agriculture,” he said.

    Faparusi  lauded the Federal Government for saying that savings from oil subsidy removal would be used to develop agriculture and mining sectors.

    He described the proposal as the best for the country for now.

    The ex-lawmaker said every state in the country must join the fray to develop agriculture, tourism and mining sectors following the country’s plummeting economic fortunes.

    “Government pays more than one trillion naira annually on oil subsidy, despite what we witness is scarcity. The pump price is now sold for between N120 and N150 naira.

    “If the Federal Government can remove the subsidy and use it to fund agriculture, mining and tourism, this will palliate the sufferings of the people , because there will be employments, food security and low food price.

    “Payment of oil subsidy has not in any way paid off, except we are deceiving ourselves. With this dwindling oil revenue in the international market, the best option is to remove oil subsidy and develop other critical sectors to re-energise this dying economy,” he said.

    Faparusi appealed to all the civil servants at the state and federal levels to fully embrace farming programmes to be initiated by the federal government, to make Nigeria a beacon in food production globally.

  • Buhari and Christmas homage

    Prior to Christmas Day, it was as if the Muslim and Christian homage to the Presidency have gone with the last administration of ex-President Goodluck Jonathan.

    During the last era, Jonathan, like former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and the late Umaru Yar’Adua, normally received Muslim and Christian delegations from the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) who paid him homage at the seat of power as the President of Nigeria.

    Under the military regimes, prior to the year 1999, every member of the delegation on such homage always go home with one type of gift or the other from the President.

    Most often, the leaders always leave the same day for their hometowns to celebrate the festivals of their faith as soon as they were done with the homage.

    If it was a Muslim festival, the delegation from the FCT, which represents all Muslims in Nigeria, always have some Christian clergymen from the city as part of the delegation, which demonstrates the unity and love between the two religions.

    The same practice goes for a Christian homage to the Presidency during festivals such as Easter and Christmas celebrations.

    Such homage always offer the visitors opportunity not only to dine and wine with the number one citizen of the country, but they also have a rare and cherished physical contact with the President and the Vice-President.

    During such homage, residents in the city and some staff of the State House always look forward to the opportunity of posing for pictures in handshakes with the leaders.

    Some of the visitors do not fail to take full opportunity of the homage by bringing their children to participate in the homage, especially posing for pictures with the leaders.

    But some FCT residents felt that the change mantra of the present administration has swept away the Christian and Muslim homage.

    Their fear then was anchored on inability of the Eid-el-Kabir Muslim homage to hold on September 24, last year; being the first festival after the inauguration of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration in May.

    The President then had to spend his Eid-el-Kabir Festival in his Daura hometown of Katsina State.

    As last year’s Christmas was approaching, some FCT residents, in their further calculation, completely ruled out the possibility of the Christmas homage holding.

    Their thinking was that it will be impossible for the President, who is a Muslim, to hold the Christmas homage for the Christians when the Muslim festival homage was not held in September.

    But President Buhari penultimate Friday proved that he was a detribalised Nigerian and a father of all Nigerians irrespective of their religion.

    Buhari, clad in white Babanriga and white cap to match, was not only on ground to receive the representatives of the Christian community on Christmas homage, he ate snacks and took soft drinks with the visitors.

    He also shook hands with each of them as they posed for photographs. The President was assisted by the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, as the Vice-President, Yemi Osinbajo was absent.

    Speaking during the homage, an elated Buhari said: “I am very pleased that the political leadership and religious leadership are well represented here.

    “I am pleased that all the communities are well represented. I don’t know what kind of host I am as I don’t have to move around freely.”

    The President also received three giant cards from the Minister of the FCT, Muhammadu Bello the Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) FCT chapter, Rev. Israel Akanji and the Chaplain of the State House.

    The Christmas homage has, no doubt, proved to the residents that the FCT has not seen the last of the Muslim and Christian festivals’ homage.

     

    Timeline versus deadline

     

    Majority of Nigerians definitely want total peace and security in the country and as such do not want any element of insurgency and criminal acts perpetuated anywhere around the country.

    To them, the bloodshed and killings, especially in the Northeast by the Islamic sect, Boko Haram in the last five years should be brought to an end.

    It was in line with their thinking and love for peace and development of the country that President Muhammadu Buhari gave a three-month deadline for the defeat of Boko Haram.

    That deadline expired on December 31, last year.

    Although former President Olusegun Obasanjo, a retired General in the Nigerian Army, few weeks back had declared that not all Boko Haram members need to be killed for Nigeria to win the war.

    So, it was not surprising penultimate week for the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed to declare that the war against Boko Haram has been largely won by the Federal Government.

    He said: “Today, I can report that the war against Boko Haram is largely won. I can confidently say this because just recently, I led a group of 33 journalists from both the local and international media to the hotbed of the insurgency, that is, Maiduguri, Kondugua, Kaoure and Bama.

    “Today, I can report to you that the more than the 70-kilometer stretch from Maiduguri to Bama and all the way to Banki, which leads to Cameroon and the Central African Republic (CAR), are in the hands of our gallant troops.

    “They have so degraded the capacity of Boko Haram that the terrorists can no longer hold on to any territory just as they can no longer carry out any spectacular attack.”

    Noting that the insurgents are now engaging more in attacking soft targets, he said: “Unlike a war between two armies, an insurgency never ends with arms victory. Even in countries such as Colombia, where insurgency was supposed to have ended decades ago, attacks such as this still happen.”

    In the same manner, the Minister of Defence, Monsur Dan-Ali told State House correspondents that military operations are in timelines and not deadlines.

    Whatever the case may be, Nigerians are anxiously waiting for total peace and security to return to every part of the country.

    They are looking forward to when the millions of internally-displaced persons (IDPs) will be returned to their various villages with their infrastructure rebuilt in a secured environment.

    As in the past, everything should be done for their security to be guaranteed in those villages. They should be able to live their normal lives without fear, let alone bloodshed.

     

  • Buhari, IMF chief hold talks Tuesday

    Buhari, IMF chief hold talks Tuesday

    President Muhammadu Buhari will hold talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) managing director, Christine Lagarde, on Tuesday as Nigeria seeks to find its way out of an economic crisis fuelled by plunging oil prices.

    The IMF said on Monday Lagarde would meet Buhari and his Finance Minister, Kemi Adeosun.

    “I look forward to productive meetings as they address important economic challenges, most importantly the impact of low oil prices,” Reuters quoted Lagarde as saying in a statement.

    The statement gave no other details, but the meeting suggests an acknowledgement of Buhari’s efforts to revive Africa’s largest economy.

    He was elected in March after a campaign in which he promised to clamp down on the endemic corruption that has left many Nigerians mired in poverty despite the country’s enormous energy wealth.

    He then announced a record budget for 2016, forecasting a doubling of the deficit to 2.2 trillion naira ($11 billion) and a tripling of capital expenditure intended to help the country adjust to the downturn in oil, which has lost around two-thirds of its value since mid-2014.

     

  • ‘Buhari’s social package not one-off scheme’

    ‘Buhari’s social package not one-off scheme’

    The social welfare intervention programme of the Muhammadu Buhari administration, for which N500 billion has been allocated in this year’s budget, is not a one-off scheme, the Vice President’s  spokesman, Laolu Akande, said yesterday.

    Akande, who is the Senior Special Assistant (SSA) on Media and Publicity in the Office of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, spoke in an interview with reporters in Abuja.

    He said the scheme “is a combination of several well-thought out programmes emphasising direct connections with the extremely poor, and the needy, among other categories of the masses of this country’’.

    A breakdown of the welfare programme is contained in the 2016- 2017 and 2018 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) submitted to the Senate for consideration and approval.

    According to the document, the Federal Government will collaborate with state governments to institute well-structured social welfare intervention programmes such as: School feeding programme initiative, conditional cash transfer to the most vulnerable and post-National Youth Service Corps grant.

    Under special intervention including cash transfer, home grown school feeding programme and micro credit loans (SMEs, market women etc), which is also covered by the social intervention programme, the government provided the sum of N300 billion for 2016, N339.05 for 2017, and N338.93 for 2018.

    According to the spokesman, the plan of the Buhari presidency is comprehensive and has taken into consideration some of the factors that led to the failure of past poverty alleviation schemes.

    “One of the major differences here is that the social intervention programme such as the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) would be a direct transfer of N5000 monthly to the extremely poor among us.

    “And this is a safety net that several advanced nations had put in place a long time in their history, and most often at times of economic challenges.”

    The SSA said that the money would be paid directly to the people concerned on the condition of school enrolment and immunization.

    “This way, we are expanding school enrolment and also assuring physical well-being.

    “The home-grown school feeding programme will commence in public primary schools in 2016, providing adequate nutrition to school children, promoting local farming, boosting agriculture, and creating jobs and wealth locally.

    “We have experts working in the presidency, collaborating with experts from global bodies who together bring to bear international best practices working on how best to implement these programmes.”

    “I can tell you that no sooner than President Buhari resumed work, many of these experts have been meeting and planning on how best to implement these plans.

    “We are not talking here of something hurriedly put together or a programme where some consultants would take the huge chunk of the resources.”

    Akande also said that as part of the half a trillion Naira to be spent, there is in the budget proposals, a provision of no fewer than one million jobs in 2016, including 500,000 graduate-youths to be engaged as teachers.

    “There is another 500,000 non-graduate unemployed people who will be trained as artisans, making a total creation of about one million direct jobs.’’

    He added that the presidency was determined not to repeat the past failed efforts at alleviating poverty.

    “As the President disclosed during the budget speech, he has asked the vice president to coordinate the programmes and I can tell you that serious work is already apace,” Akande added.

    He reiterated that for the first time in Nigeria’s budget history, the Federal Government would be directly intervening in lifting people out of poverty through a series of measures already proposed totalling N500 billion, representing nearly nine per cent of the budget.

    “Through these measures and for the first time, the budget is paying attention to the problem of poverty in a proper and direct way,’’ he said.

    The spokesman added that another one million extremely poor and disabled Nigerians would also benefit from the first phase of the CCT Scheme proposed in the 2016 appropriation bill to enable them to live decently.

    “There will also be the provision of affordable, very low cost loans to market women and artisans to enable them enlarge and expand their trades,’’ he added.

  • We didn’t ask for severance package from Buhari’s admnistration, says Shekarau

    A former Minister of Education, Malam Ibrahim Shekarau, has said neither him nor some of his former colleagues asked for severance package from President Muhammadu Buhari.

    He said since they joined the administration of ex-President Goodluck Jonathan at a later date, they knew they would not benefit from severance allowance.

    Shekarau made the clarification in a statement through his Special Adviser on Media, Sule Yau Sule.

    The statement reads: “Malam, like his other counterparts in Jonathan’s cabinet did not request for severance package from this administration. Therefore , the question of their being refused does not arise.

    “For the avoidance of doubt and to set the records straight, the ministers who joined the Jonathan administration at a later date were aware they were not entitled to severance package since they did not meet the two-year benchmark.

    “They were aware of the extant laws on compensation as they affect public office holders and did not request to be paid what they were not entitled to, either while in office or after they left.

    “Therefore, the claim that the former ministers may forfeit their severance pay is both inaccurate and presumptuous.

    “It must be reiterated here that the primary motivation for Malam in accepting appointment into the Federal Executive Council was to serve this country for which he remains grateful and harbours no regrets.”

  • PDP to Buhari: You think you’re god

    PDP to Buhari: You think you’re god

    The opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday launched a tirade at President Muhammadu Buhari and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) for “their inability to accept, with equanimity, constructive criticisms of their administration.”

    The PDP in a statement in Abuja claimed that the President “has directed security agencies to be more vicious in dealing with our members and has continued to subtly coerce the Judiciary to convict those being charged to court. But what gives us joy is that President Buhari is not God and we will not worship him.”

    Chief Olisa Metuh , National Publicity of the PDP who signed the statement, also alleged that   President Muhammadu “is persecuting Sambo Dasuki, former national security adviser (NSA), out of suspicion that he is nursing a 2019 presidential ambition,” and that Dasuki has vast political and security network, hence the president’s bid to stop his ‘suspected’ ambition.

    It said: “it is unfortunate that the APC and its leaders, who gleefully and unjustifiably poured invective on former President Goodluck Jonathan in the guise of playing the role of an opposition party, would now not want to condone criticisms.

    “Unlike the APC that denigrated the office and person of former President Jonathan by wrongly depicting him as ‘clueless and incompetent’, the PDP remains the most decent, mature and constructive opposition party in our democracy and we have evidenced great respect for the person and exalted office of President Muhammadu Buhari.

    “During the Goodluck Jonathan presidency, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, while in the saddle as interim Deputy National Secretary of the APC, in a post on his twitter page, described President Jonathan as ‘lazy, docile, incompetent, clueless, hopeless and useless leader.’

    “Other APC leaders made raining abuses on Jonathan a past time.

    “The PDP is a very responsible opposition party; our leaders are mature; and we have demonstrated so in our critique of the president’s responses during the maiden Presidential Media Chat.

    “We have reviewed President Buhari’s performance and concluded that it was uninspiring.

    “The entire world listened to President Buhari during the chat and went away with different impressions. We did and came up with the theme of our initial reaction that portrayed him very appropriately as a tyrant. And for purpose of clarity, a tyrant is a ruler who has complete power over a country and who uses the power in a cruel and unfair way, which was why we recommended the suspension of the operation of the constitution so he can rule for the next four years as a maximum ruler.

    “In its reaction, his party’s National Chairman, John Oyegun, magisterially and dictatorially warned that ‘we (APC) may not condone such anymore.’ Our position in the PDP is that we are in trouble as a nation. All we hear from the APC regarding our freedom is ‘we won’t tolerate’, ‘we won’t condone.’

    “Are these words used by democrats or tyrants?

    “So, the PDP too is being warned and coerced on what to say as opposition party. The PDP must be commended for the civil, responsible, mature, issue-based opposition it has played. The nation knows how the APC rained insults on former President Jonathan and that the PDP, during that time, never used words like ‘it would not condone…’

    “Some have even criticised the PDP style of opposition as being too civil considering the tyranny we are facing. That is why Chief John Oyegun could term a dictionary word-‘tyrant’- as insulting. Nigerians do not need the PDP or anyone else to make them decide if President Buhari’s APC government fits the definition of a tyrant.

    “The real trait of the President was unraveled during the media chat. He has repeatedly shown his scorn for the Legislature, an independent arm of government, while sanctioning security agencies’ disrespect for court orders and the impunity of continuous incarceration of people who have been granted bails by the courts.

    “Also from his responses, the president has even pronounced a guilty verdict on Col Sambo Dasuki and Nnamdi Kanu of Radio Biafra even before the hearings by the courts. Sadly, even the international community has noted this brazen scorn and disdain for the independence of the judiciary. “Furthermore, how do we describe a president who openly denigrated an entire race as he did in the media chat when he suggested that the Igbos were insatiable with the appointments his government has so far given to them? Indeed, the timing and the tenor of the president’s comment, given the security and political situation in the land, remain worrisome, especially at a time a nerve-soothing statement from the father of the nation could have reassured the agitators of the need for peace and unity in the nation.

    “Besides, it is sad and embarrassing that President Buhari’s anti-corruption crusade has now been reduced to a war between the APC and the PDP as declared by the Office of his spokespersons. Since they have confirmed that this is what the anti-corruption crusade is all about, the APC is obviously seeking to destroy the PDP so that it can push through Buhari’s second tenure in 2019 without opposition from the PDP.

    However, the APC National Chairman, Chef John Odigie-Oyegun in a swift reaction yesterday said the PDP should blame itself for the current state it found Itself, describing as childish and laughable the conspiracy theory being handled by the party. He dismissed as laughable, claims by the PDP that Dasuki is being persecuted for eyeing the presidency in 2019.

    Chief Oyegun said: “Whoever the PDP picks as its candidate for the 2019 presidential election is not the business of the APC.