Tag: do-or-die

  • “Do-or-die” Obasanjo tars INEC

    Olusegun Obasanjo, author and finisher of “do-or-die” 2007 (which winner got utterly ashamed of his “victory”); and creator of ace election magician, Maurice Iwu, is pointing fingers at the current INEC!  Ridiculous, isn’t that?

    At long, long last, the self-over-rated Ebora Owu of Nigerian politics is unravelling so fast, it is so, so dizzy!  Suddenly, one of the so-called owners of Nigeria has suddenly found out his beloved “Nigeria” (in which he has an unrestrained sense entitlement) may finally have slipped from his sticky fingers!  The panic is real!

    Obasanjo’s is tantamount to the tale of the tortoise, who swore he wouldn’t return from his travel until he was disgraced.

    Since the late Benjamin Adekunle aka Black Scorpion did all the work but Obasanjo plucked all the Civil War glory, he has developed a tragic sense of entitlement.

    He loves Nigeria more than the rest of us.  And like the scoundrel tortoise, who greedily renamed himself “All of you”, in Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, Obasanjo has developed an “All of You” syndrome!  So, whatever he does, even if it’s a bare-faced swindle like his so-called Presidential Library, he is doing it because of  his “love” for Nigeria — some avid love of the cat for the rat!

    That is why Obasanjo would release his latest rigmarole, ringing with self-indictment, half-truths, wild rumours, pure fantasies, raw gossips which put good old old wives’ tales to shame, all sewn together by a steady flow of name-calling, absolutely unbecoming of a former elected president, military head of state and a self promoted statesman, who also happens to have a PhD!  Where is the class?  Where is panache?

    “Trader moni” is skewed against the rural poor!  But which category of people, rural or urban, did the Obasanjo era empower, beyond “Keke NAPEP”, which was nothing but a PDP racket?

    An illegal third term hustler is dreaming “self-perpetuation” in another working hard to earn a legit second term!

    The president has surrendered his campaign to “Jagaban” — but how is that Obasanjo’s headache?

    All of sudden, asking the CJN to “remember” his “forgotten” assets; and account for them has become virtual persecution.  Yet, Baba Iyabo is the holy Pope of Nigerian politics, before a serious smear like the CJN’s ceases to matter!

    And the sheer cheapness of invoking Abacha!  Did Obasanjo think that also would wipe out his grand political miscalcutions, of backing what is turning out to be a wrong horse, after the dismal collapse of his so-called Third Force?

    Which other inanities did Obasanjo pile as cards, in his grumpy, pitiable attempt to cry wolf when there was none?  So, the election would be rigged simply because Obasanjo said so?

    And the so-called “international community” would just barge in and do exactly what?  Because the candidate he endorsed, for which he himself said God would never forgive him, might just taste bitter defeat?  But perhaps all these are early manifestations of a self-imposed curse from God?

    Obasanjo has always been petty and graceless.  But this letter hit the very nadir of it all.

    Still, nobody should forget its sinister motive.  Four years ago, everything was pointing to a loss by sitting President Goodluck Jonathan.  The trick back  then was to postpone the election.

    Now, another presidential election is only three weeks away.  But all Obasanjo wants to do is scuttle it, by crying wolf, all because he’s mortally scared his camp might suffer a crushing loss?  Nice try!

     

  • ‘I don’t believe in do-or-die poll’

    Former Senate Deputy Minority Whip Gbenga Aluko,has urged All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship aspirants in Ekiti State not to see the primary election as a “do-or-die affair.”

    He said: “Developing the attitude of sportsmanship at the primary will allow the party to form a united front to defeat Governor Ayo Fayose and his preferred candidate, Prof. Kolapo Olusola.”

    Aluko, who is one of the aspirants, said he will make sacrifices to ensure that his party wins the promosed governorship and presidential polls.

    He said Ekiti will be motivated to prepare for the presidentila elections, if the APC wins the July 14 governorship election.

    Aluko spoke in Ode Ekiti, headquarters of Gbonyin Local Government Area, during a meeting with eligible delegates.

    He warned against triviliasing the zoning of governorship ticket to the South Senatorial District, describing it as a big issue in Ekiti politics  .

    Aluko said: “I am not seeing the governorship ticket as a do-or-die affair, but I know I am an aspirant to beat anytime. But, we must do President Buhari proud and enhance his second term with this election, that is what I believe in.

    “I am close to the grassroots and I see the delegates as the owners of the party. This is why I have always been treating you with respect. I know there are leaders in the party, but your voices count and can override the power of anybody.

    “I know you are going to vote at the primary, I will support whoever you vote for because you own APC and that is the sacrifice we can make for our party to survive. But I am sure that you will vote for me to the fact that I have the capacity to win for you.”

    He warned against dividion in the chapter, there is life after a political  contest.

    Aluko added: “This election is an opportunity for us to defend our common interest, which is to reclaim power from PDP  and not an opportunity to fight one another.

    “The election is important to APC because it will go a long way in deciding many things. It will help President Buhari’s second term bid and also dispel the allegation from PDP that Nigerians have rejected our party”.

    The Director -General of the Gbenga Aluko Campaign Organization, Hon. Dapo Karounwi, said zoning is sacrosant, describing those canvassing against zoning as selfish individuals.

    He added: “Two or three of the APC aspirants are from my town. They came to me and I told them it is not yet time, because they are from the central.

    “In the spirit of justice , fairplay and oneness, we must all support someone from the south to get the ticket and win for our party and hat person is Senator Aluko.”

  • We must shun ‘do or die’ politics, warns Jega

    We must shun ‘do or die’ politics, warns Jega

    The immediate past Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Attahiru Jega, has urged politicians to desist from the “do or die” mentality.

    This, he said, has characterised the political process in the country for a long time.

    Admitted that conduct of elections in the country is a difficult task, Jega advised them to always abide by the rules guiding the conduct of elections.

    He praised the Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission (LASIEC) over the last July 22 Local Government elections.

    Noting that there are no perfect elections, the former INEC boss said the best of the commission was good enough.

    Jega spoke yesterday during a visit to the Yaba LASIEC headquarters.

    Accompanied by a former INEC Commissioner, Prof Lai Olurode, he stressed the importance of voters’ education by Election Management Bodies to make the electoral process more inclusive.

    He, however, added that funding civic and voters’ education programmes requires a lot of finances, which many electoral commissions might not have the capacity to undertake.

    He urged Electoral Management Bodies to partner donor agencies for assistance, adding that everybody should be concerned about the integrity of the electoral process.

    LASIEC Chairman Justice Ayotunde Phillips (retd) hailed Jega for introducing the Card Reader for the conduct of elections.

    The commission, she said, is planning to use it in the future election.

    This, she said, will enhance the transparency and credibility of the electoral process.

    According to her, the commission would have acquired the necessary technological infrastructure and expertise which would be deployed to modernise the electoral process in the state.

  • ‘Election not a do-or-die affair’

    ‘Election not a do-or-die affair’

    Senate Deputy President Ike Ekweremadu at the weekend urged Nigerians to unite against electoral violence. He said the general elections should not be a do-or-die affair.

    Ekweremadu spoke at the conferment of an honorary Doctor of Laws (LL.D) degree on him by the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN).

    The Special Adviser on Media to the Deputy Senate President, Uche Anichukwu, in a statement in Abuja, said Ekweremadu urged higher institutions to rise up to the task of restoring the dignity of man through quality research projects that would address the nation’s security and development challenges.