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Ogun 2015: Jonathan, Fayose unite Daniel, Kashamu

The almost five-year rift between former governor of Ogun State, Gbenga Daniel and Prince Buruji Kashamu, the Chairman, Mobilising Committee of the South West chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has been finally resolved.

The national leader of the party, President Goodluck Jonathan and the Ekiti State governor, Ayo Fayose, brokered the truce some days ago; a development sources in the party said was quite timely, with the April 11 governorship election just about four weeks away. The first leg of the peace meetings, which was held in Lagos at the instance of Fayose, commenced Saturday evening at about 9:30pm till about 5am penultimate Sunday.

The delegation later moved to the State House in Marina, Lagos, to brief the president on the decision reached. Members of the delegation include Fayose, Daniel; PDP governorship candidate in Ogun State, Prince Gboyega Nasir Isiaka; former Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Elder Godsday Orubebe; Chairman, Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA), Engr. Jide Adeniji; Ogun State PDP Chairman, Engr. Adebayo Dayo and Kashamu. At the parley, the president expressed delight at the rapprochement and reportedly urged them to work together in the interest of the party.

Following the resolution, sources say Daniel will now lead the party’s campaigns in the state ahead the 2015 general elections. Speaking on the development, Kashamu blushed, “I am the happiest person today. I am delighted that I and my leader and brother, His Excellency, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, have resolved our differences. As a two-term governor of our dear state, His Excellency remains our leader and by God’s grace, he will lead us to victory in the coming elections.” Now the big poser:

Does the Ogun PDP have what it takes to dislodge Governor Ibikunle Amosun next month? Ripples’ take: only time would tell.

March 8, 2015
Which National Conference Report is Jonathan brandishing in South-West?

Fragmented pan-Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, recently endorsed President Goodluck Jonathan for a second term, pinning their support on the president’s assurance to implement Yoruba agenda at the last National Conference. Group Political Editor, Emmanuel Oladesu, reports that the declaration is generating ripples in the South-West geo-political region.

The decision of a section of the polarised and fragmented pan-Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, to support President Goodluck Jonathan’s second term bid is still generating ripples in the South-West geo-political region. The elders have resolved to mobilise support for the President in Yorubaland, based on his promise to implement the report of the 2014 National Conference, if re-elected at the general elections.

Question mark on endorsement:

But, other prominent Afenifere leaders and critics, who were taken aback, have raised some puzzles: Which aspect of the ‘Yoruba Agenda’ is contained in the National Conference Report that has warranted the uncritical endorsement of a leader that has marginalised the South-West for six years? Is the support for Dr. Jonathan’s re-election bid by some acclaimed Awoists motivated by pecuniary motive? What is the ideological basis for the inexplicable fraternity between frontline progressive and anti-mainstream politicians and their conservative rivals at a critical election period? Would Afenifere, led by the late Chief Adekunle Ajasin and Senator Abraham Adesanya, have endorsed the President under the current circumstances? Is the President a fan of advocates of radical economic and political restructuring? Why has the Commander-In-Chief not made the conference report implementation a campaign issue in other zones?

At a conference in Akure, the capital of Ondo State, with the theme: ‘National Conference, 2015 elections and the Yoruba Nation,’ Afenifere chieftain, Chief Ayo Adebanjo said: “We are supporting Jonathan because of the consistency of the Yoruba to have this country restructured so that it can develop. People are calling for change. I want a change in the constitution of Nigeria. Only a change in the constitution can truly bring about the change we need.” The host, Governor Olusegun Mimiko, who is the Southwest Coordinator of Jonathan/Sambo Campaigns, said the President will implement the conference report. When it is implemented, he said it will create room for each state to own its own constitution, prison service, police, create its own local governments, build airports, seaports and railways.

Also, Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC) founder, Dr. Fredrick Fasehun, and its Coordinator, Otunba Gani Adams, said the implementation of the report will enable the South-West to actualise the Yoruba dream of a prosperous South-West. To make this possible, he urged the people of the region to vote for the President. While Fasehun described the President as the answer to Nigeria’s problems, Adams said that six million members of the group will vote for Dr. Jonathan at the polls.

To further legitimise the controversial endorsement, there was a follow-up conference at Ibadan; the political headquarters of the South-West. It was attended by the Yoruba Council of Elders (YCE) chieftains led by its President, Gen. Adeyinka Adebayo, and many Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftains. At the meeting were Adebanjo, former Ogun State governor, Gbenga Daniel, former Anambra State governor, Peter Obi, Otunba Iyiola Omisore, Dr. Doyin Okupe, Chief Olu Falae, Alhaji Yekini Adeojo, Chief Isola Filani, and Mr. Tony Uranta. Participants endorsed the President for re-election, saying it is in the “enlightened interest” of the Yoruba race.

Adebanjo, one of the delegates to the conference, maintained that Jonathan is committed to the restructuring of the country through the implementation of the confab’s report. Echoing him, Chief Olu Falae, another delegate, said: “Throughout the conference, Jonathan did not try to teleguide us. He said he will implement the report of the conference in the first year of his second term of office.” The Minister of State for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Chief Jumoke Akinjide, said the President had already commenced the implementation of the report by setting up an inter-ministerial committee of which she is a member representing the South-West.

To many Yoruba, the endorsement may not shape the voting pattern at the general elections. Many stakeholders perceived it as another futile attempt to spite the All Progressives Congress (APC) National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, who has fallen out with the factional Afenifere chieftains since 2003. Ahead of the National Conference, the former governor of Lagos State described the conference as a decoy and Greek gift, predicting that it will lead to nowhere. When it was inaugurated, many Southwesterners were reluctant to show interest in the conference proceedings. There was only a semblance of re-awakening of interest in the region when Gen. Alani Akinrinade, Dr. Amos Akingba and Mr. Femi Falana (SAN) accepted to participate as delegates.

Besides, Yoruba, according to stakeholders, believes that the Buhari/ Osinbajo ticket will restore its sense of belonging. The thinking is that, if the President is re-elected, no Yoruba can occupy any of the first seven leadership positions in the country. This in contrast with the consequence of power change, which will pave the way for the ascension of a Yoruba into Vice Presidency. Thus, many observers point out that the APC presidential candidate, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, has favoured Yoruba by picking his running mate from the South-West. Besides, many people are wondering what has happened between last year and now when the leader of the factional Afenifere, Pa Rueben Fasoranti, cried out over the marginalisation of the zone in the distribution of federal appointments and social amenities.

According to observers, many questions are begging answers: Has the marginalisation been halted? Has the inequality been addressed? Apart from the piecemeal rehabilitation of Lagos/ Ibadan Expressway, what other important federal project is on-going in the South-West? When did the President, who described some Yoruba leaders as rascals, change his perception? How sincere is the President now that he is using the conference report as a carrot?

Gap between expectation and reality:

Former Afenifere Secretary Mr. Ayo Opadokun said that the premise for the endorsement by Afenifere is faulty, stressing that explanation by the chieftains were unjustifiable. He conceded to pro-Jonathan campaigners in Afenifere, the right to their freedom of association. But, the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) Secretary said the report being brandished by them does not reflect the popular yearnings of the Yoruba. Emphasising the curious gap between expectation and reality, Opadokun added: “The Yoruba Agenda did not see the light of the day at the conference. The agenda was defeated. It was not upheld on the floor. So, I don’t know what they mean when they are saying that the President will implement the report.”

A delegate to the conference, Falana, chided the 13 Afenifere chieftains who endorsed the President for peddling falsehood and confusing the public. Apart from Pa Rueben Fasoranti, Adebanjo, Olaniwun Ajayi and Chief Olu Falae, other chieftains include Chief Seinde Arogbofa, Chief Duro Duyile, Chief Iyiola Omisore, Dr. Segun Mimiko, Prof. Akin Onigbinde, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, Okunrounmu and Mr. Jimi Agbaje. Falana said all the positions canvassed by Afenifere at the conference, except state police, were rejected. To that extent, he said the chieftains made fraudulent claims, stressing that what the conference achieved had nothing to do with ethnic champions. The lawyer said the Yoruba Agenda, which encompasses restructuring, regional autonomy, parliamentary system; unicameral legislature, devolution of power, fiscal federalism and resource control, special status for Lagos, and the removal of the Land Use Act were rejected. “For them to now come out and say that the President will implement the report is fraudulent. I am challenging them publicly to tell us which among the agenda is contained in the report,” he fumed.

Falana lamented that, after receiving the report, the President set up another technical committee to study the recommendations.

“The President received the report, promised heaven and earth and said he will send a bill to the National Assembly. He set up another committee of seven headed by the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Adoke to make recommendations on the report,” he added. Falana said Afenifere leaders were trying to trivialise delegates’ collective success at the conference.

A critic, Joseph Amoru, said Afenifere chieftains have acted in bad faith. “Okurounmu called for a Sovereign National Conference in 2002 at the National Assembly. It was shut down. But, he agreed to preside over a non-sovereign national conference,” he said, adding that Yoruba will not take the President’s endorsement seriously in the South-West.

Adebanjo’s colleague in the defunct Action Group Youth Association and Afenifere Deputy Leader, Senator Ayo Fasanmi, also objected to the purported endorsement. He said the pan-Yoruba group should know that Yoruba will not vote for an incompetent leader. He said his colleagues spearheaded the endorsement without sparing a thought for the future, adding that they are not leaving behind worthy legacies. Fasanmi said, if any Awoist has urged the people of South-West to support the President, he has mocked his antecedent as a fighter for a better Nigeria. He said since their leader, the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, never supported any inept leadership, his colleagues have not done justice to his memory. “The purported endorsement is unfortunate, illogical, embarrassing, and misleading. What legacy do we want to hand over to the next generation?

Fasanmi challenged Afenifere to list the achievements of President Jonathan in the South-West that could warrant their endorsement of his candidature. He said the Federal Government has marginalised the region in the distribution of appointments. “They said they are supporting Jonathan because he has promised to implement the National Conference report. Jonathan cannot implement it. It must go to the National Assembly. When Buhari wins, APC legislators in the National Assembly will do the job,” he added.

Revisiting Yoruba Agenda:

Since 1991, Yoruba and their compatriots across the federation have been in the vanguard of the demand for a Sovereign National Conference. The goal is to discuss the basis for peaceful co-existence in the heterogeneous country. In a document by the Pan-Yoruba Assembly titled: Yoruba Agenda for 2014 National Conference, Yoruba canvassed a federal and democratic country built around certain fundamental values. These include the sovereignty of the people, respect for human rights, equal political, economic and social opportunities for all citizens; equity, justice and fair play on the basis of politics and national unity; and transparency and accountability as the basis of governance.

According to the document, the South-West Obas and leaders set up the Yoruba Agenda Committee to collate Yoruba positions and prepare the Yoruba Agenda for last year’s conference. Highlights include:

Political restructuring:

Yoruba called for the restructuring of the federation into six federating zones and regions, with each region exercising the power to create states as allowed by the regional constitution. The states will be responsible for the creation of local governments. Any ethnic group or groups in a state wishing to align with any other state or region shall be allowed to do so, if confirmed in a plebiscite by the affected people.

Regional autonomy: Yoruba proposed a new Nigeria made up of a Central Union/Federal Government and six regional governments, based on the six geo-political zones. But, the proposed Southwest zone must include Yoruba outside the imposed artificial boundaries, including Yoruba in Edo, Delta, Kwara and Kogi. Thus, there must be federal and regional constitutions.

Parliamentary system: In the view of Yoruba leaders, a return to the Westminister model of parliamentary democracy will lead to a cut in the cost of governance and reduce acrimonious campaigns and bitter struggle for power. The implication is that, at the federal level, there will be President and Prime Minister and at regional level, a governor and premier.

Unicameralism and part-time legislature: According to Yoruba leaders, a unicameral legislature at the centre and the region, with part-time legislators as members, will reduce the cost of governance.

Fiscal federalism: This revolves around the agitation for a just and equitable taxation system that will make the federating units equal and coordinating at the federal level to eliminate the current “rentier syndrome.” To Southwest, ideal resource management makes true fiscal federalism and resource control more compelling. The implication is that a substantial part of the proceeds accruable from every region will be domiciled in the region and an agreed percentage contributed to the centre by the federating regions for the responsibility of the Federal Government.

Self-determination:

Yoruba also proposed the right to self determination on and up to the right to secede. Based on this proposal, Yoruba leaders have always reiterated that the unity of Nigeria is negotiable.

State police: Yoruba demanded for state police. Its argument is that security, including policy, has its environmental dimension as language and culture play a role in criminality and crime control. Also, it is illogical for state legislature to make laws which the state executive lacks the power to enforce because the police is centralised. However, the terms of cooperation between the federal and regional police should be clearly defined.

Decentralisation of elections: All elections shall be organised and conducted by regional, zonal electoral commission in the regions. The commission shall be composed of representatives of contesting political parties, religious bodies and civil society groups.

Status of Lagos: In view of the enormous pressure on the infrastructure of Lagos and because of the fact that Lagos will continue to be the economic nerve-centre of Nigeria and West African region, there shall be an appropriate budgetary provision that is part of the first line charge in the Federation Account for Lagos.

Immunity: The immunity of President, Prime Minister, regional governors and premiers and their deputies from court processes during their tenure of office should be circumscribed and made only to cover civil processes. These public officers should be made amenable to court processes on charges bordering on commission of crimes. Where a prima facie criminal case has been established against a holder of any of these offices by a court of competent jurisdiction, such officer shall vacate office, until the proceeding is concluded. His or her deputy shall hold the position in acting capacity, until the matter is concluded.

Defective lobbying:

However, despite the pre-conference parley between Afenifere and some compatriots from the South-South Peoples Assembly (SSPA), it became increasingly difficult for “Afenifere delegates” to convince other delegates to reflect deeply on agenda. A delegate said, despite Afenifere’s sustained agitation for true federalism in the media, the conference presented a different ball game.

Giving insight into the clash of interests, a delegate to the conference said, right from its inauguration, there were indications that the government was not interested in a Sovereign National Conference. He stressed: “There was a clash of agenda at the conference. The Federal Government had its own agenda, which was to divert attention and convey the impression that it was a listening government. The conference was to keep some people busy. Another agenda, may be, was to re-introduce the proposal for a seven-year single term. But, it could not scale through.

“Then, the President knew where he was going. He made the conference a South-West affair by appointing Senator Okurounmu as the head of the pre-conference advisory committee. Then, he made Prof. Bolaji Akinyemi the deputy chairman of the conference. During the conference, he started courting delegates from the South-West, especially Afenifere members, who have been critical of his government. To spite Tinubu, who personally objected to the conference, Afenifere members started fraternising with the President. So, apart from pursuing Yoruba agenda, it can be said that they were also pursuing anti-Tinubu agenda.

“But, the Afenifere chieftains at the conference, as old as they are, have never participated in any similar conference before. They have not served as members of any constituent assembly or constitutional drafting committee before. Therefore, they lacked that lobbying skills. They believed that the Yoruba Agenda is so beautiful and appealing, but they lacked the skill to persuade delegates from other zones to buy into it. To get things done in that kind of conference, there is the need for behind-the-scene negotiation and lobbying. Even, delegates from the South-West, those who opposed Awo in his life time who were part of the conference, did not take Afenifere delegates seriously at the conference. They held contrary views.”

The only proposal that scaled through was the state police. Falana said Afenifere cannot take credit for the marginal success.

Collapse of agenda:

It is an understatement. In the 763-paged National Conference Report, delegates rejected regionalism, re-affirming the states as the federation units. To delegates, regionalism is old fashioned. But, the report conceded to any group of similar and contiguous states the right to create self-funding Zonal Commission to promote economic development, good governance, equity, peace and security in accordance with the constitution. Already, APC states, through the South-West Integration Agenda or Development Agenda for Western Nigeria, have put in motion development initiatives. On page 201 of the report, it is stated that “Conference maintained that geo-political zones should not be the federating units of our federation.”

The Conference also rejected parliamentary system proposed by Afenifere. It called for a modified presidential system, but the elements do not significantly differ from the model already being practiced. The suggestion that ministers and special advisers should come from the parliament under the proposed home-made modified presidential system will be difficult to implement.

On resource control, the Conference asked the Federal Government to set up a technical committee to advise it on the sensitive matter. The only allusion made to it was that the percentage of revenue allocation to oil-producing states should be reviewed.

Other issues – special status for Lagos, power decentralisation, regional autonomy, unicameral legislature and political restructuring – did not see the light of the day.

Which way forward for Jonathan in Southwest?

A group, ‘Concerned Yoruba,’ said that the promise by President Jonathan to implement the report is a gimmick. There is no pro-Yoruba conference report to implement, said the group, which comprises of Mr. Felix Adenaike, Adetowo Aderemi, Tokunbo Ajasin and Kayode Oyediran. Dismissing the post-conference summit at Akure and Ibadan as a fraud, the group added that the summit was very presumptous, misleading and delusional.

The group has two grudges against the Jonathan administration. It is irked by the reluctance of the president to make the confab report implementation a campaign issue. Also, the president has not taken any concrete action on the report beyond the setting up of a diversionary inter-ministerial committee to deliberate on the report. The group said Yoruba will not vote for the president because of the dummy.

Falana shared this line of thought. The lawyer said the electoral battle transcends ethnic jingoism. He also said that those who will vote in the South-West will not look up to Afenifere for direction and guidance.

“As far as elections are concerned, most of the voters are young. They have no nexus whatsoever with these ethnic or faith-based organisations,” Falana stressed.

The legal luminary predicted hard electoral times for the ruling party at the centre. He noted that, for the first time in 16 years, PDP leaders, who have boasted that the party will rule for 60 years, were running from pillar to post. He said two things may continue to work against the party. These are the growing enlightenment among voters and the consequence of media scrutiny of the candidates. “The critical segment of the media has since dismissed President Jonathan for unprecedented incompetence, grand corruption and official impunity. This is the reason why the President was in Lagos to extend largesse to some selected leaders of interest groups,” Falana added.

The Concerned Group also doubted the success of the fronting by Afenifere for the PDP. It said that, while restructuring of Nigeria is desirable for the stability and survival of Nigeria, other problems militating against the welfare and development of the country cannot be ignored. According to the group, these problems include endemic and pervasive corruption, a culture of impunity and the debasement of the institutions that undergird the nation such as the police, judiciary and the armed forces. “These problems have worsened steadily during the Fourth Republic, particularly under the current administration. The best interest of the Yoruba, and indeed, all Nigerians, dictate that it should be arrested and reversed before it is too late. This is the change being sought,” it added.

March 8, 2015
2015: ‘How South West will assess Jonathan’

The Osun State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has said the people of the South West will assess President Goodluck Jonathan strictly on his performance in the last six years and not on the basis of his new promises ahead of the next presidential election.

In a statement issued in Osogbo, the state capital, the party’s Director of Publicity, Research and Strategy, Mr. Kunle Oyatomi, accused the president for allegedly neglecting the zone and its people in the provision of dividends of democracy.

This act, according to Osun APC, amounted to “sordid ingratitude and contempt for a people who did the most to help him become President.”

The party added, “If in the last six years, President Goodluck Jonathan has down-graded the Yoruba from the first three positions to below the 15th in Nigeria either in political or civil service structure, and in particular, in Nigeria’s rating of expertise and valued contributions to the country’s development, then he does not deserve, and will not get the Yoruba votes this time around. All his promises to the Yoruba people are empty and deceitful; our people not only know it, they feel it and they will act appropriately on March 28, 2015.”

March 8, 2015
Jonathan, the photo op ‘General’

Four weeks ago, President Goodluck Jonathan and his Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), using the service chiefs forced Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, into acquiescing to a six-week postponement of elections that the entire country had been primed for.

The military ostensibly needed the time to finish off Boko Haram – or at the very least degrade its fighting capabilities. So they fired off a missive to Jega informing him they would be unavailable for middling assignments like general elections. Boxed into a corner, the commission did the pragmatic thing rather than expose its ad-hoc staff and potential voters to unknown hazards.

But it was also a badly kept secret that the ruling party desperately needed breathing space to stave off what would have been a St. Valentine’s Day electoral massacre had the polls gone ahead on February 14 as scheduled.

So, while the army would be busy bruising the head of the insurgents in the North East, the PDP would take the six-week breather to equally degrade the surging momentum of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its presidential candidate, General Muhammadu Buhari.

In that time, the ruling party hoped its monetary advantage would come to tell as the opposition depleted its resources. It would have more time to destroy the credibility of INEC and its leadership as well as besmirch the reputation of APC’s leading lights through negative advertising. But more importantly, it hoped that positive spin-off from a successful military campaign against the insurgents would work to the advantage of the incumbent.

Everything that has happened since the fateful night of February 7 when a doleful Jega announced the movement of the polls, confirms that the postponement was forced through to buy time for Jonathan and PDP. So have their chances been dramatically improved over the last four weeks?

It’s been a long time since the nation enjoyed any measure of sustained success against the insurgents. The gains achieved in the military campaign in the North-East, in conjunction with multinational support from Chad and Cameroon, are heartening. Boko Haram have been forced out of places like Baga, Mubi and Monguno, and for the first time in a long while they are the ones turning tail and running.

That marks out the liberation of territories as the signal achievement of the last month. It lines up with the expectations of the administration.

But any expectations that Jonathan and his party would not seek to make political capital out of the military gains were swiftly dispelled when barely days after the battles the president showed up in fatigues on the frontline for photo opportunities. The victories quickly became PDP’s property and not a national achievement to be owned by the whole country and its people.

Given that these gains happened on his watch, no one can restrain him from dashing to claim credit. But he should also be ready to take responsibility for allowing the mess to fester to the point that a huge chunk of sovereign Nigerian territory was seized by the insurgents. If he wants to take credit for cleaning up a mess that developed under him, he’s welcome.

However, he must understand that it is the electorate who would determine whether he deserves any credit for what the military has accomplished so far. As for me, I am sufficiently impressed with the speed with which Jonathan sewed his Nollywood General’s uniform.

If only he had acted with such alacrity in confronting the insurgency as it evolved over the last five years, we may not be where we are today. Did 15,000 have to die, did millions have to become Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), or tens of thousands become refugees in Cameroun? Did the rural economy and local governance structures of the North-East need to be devastated before the Nigerian state could be roused from its slumber? And for this the president is proudly strutting around with a walking stick!

All the election-focused frontline photo shoots cannot obliterate the fact that the president had all of five years to do the needful, but he dithered at critical points.

How can we forget that years ago when many were canvassing the very tough action that is now being taken, Jonathan was against dealing with Boko Haram harshly because he didn’t believe we should unleash the military against ‘our own people’? What is he doing now?

How can we forget that when in 2012 the United States wanted to declare the sect a Foreign Terrorist Organisation (FTO) in order to target and cut off its financial supply, this administration sent very senior officials to the State Department to lobby strenuously against the move? They found listening ears in the then Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton.

At that point, a delegation of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) led by its president, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, fed up with its members being murdered by Boko Haram arrived Washington to push for FTO designation and tougher measures against the insurgents. Imagine their shock when they found officials of their own government lobbying furiously for the very opposite.

Today, Jonathan and his party put the gains of the military down to the arrival of recently purchased armaments. The president has been accusing all his predecessors of not equipping the armed forces. At a campaign stop in Lagos not too long ago he alleged that Buhari didn’t buy a single rifle for the military when he was Head of State.

What he was inferring was that the military were not properly equipped. Now it is fashionable to admit the truth in order to project the image of ‘the great armourer’ of the Nigerian military. But anyone who has not been afflicted by political amnesia would recall that Borno State Governor, Kashim Shettima, said the same thing eons ago. For having the temerity to suggest that the insurgents were better armed than our soldiers, the Presidency unleashed a barrage of verbal attacks against him.

How many recall that at some point the wives of a group of soldiers posted to the frontline staged an embarrassing public protest insisting that their spouses wouldn’t move an inch unless they were properly equipped?

How many lives were lost before the president finally accepted that truly our soldiers were outgunned? Today, the president sends delegations to go and appease the parents of the Chibok girls. This is the same man who with his wife made public statements claiming that the abductions never happened! In one of the lowest points of the Jonathan tenure, the First Lady wept theatrically and claimed that the whole episode was the work of her husband’s political foes.

The truth is that the Jonathans don’t do empathy very well. Today, the president is posturing as the champion of communities like Baga. But many will recall that when news first broke that Boko Haram had massacred an unprecedented 2000 persons in the community, not a peep was heard from the Presidency. Instead, Jonathan was busy sending condolence messages to the people of France over the killing of 12 people at the offices of Charlie Hebdo magazine!

If he truly loved the military he would not have waited until the election week to do what he claims his predecessors left undone. People are not fooled. They can tell that this love-in with the armed forces is election-flavoured. It is just too late in the day to start to show leadership in this critical area.

A tired old cliché says that the hood does not make the monk. It is action, not a well-cut uniform, that makes a credible Commander-in-Chief. When President Barack Obama signed off on the execution of Osama bin Ladin he didn’t need to dress up like General Norman Shwarzkopf of the Iraqi Desert Storm war fame.

It is going to take more than the two-week military offensive in the North-East to alter perceptions about Jonathan’s performance as it concerns insecurity. Voters are going to be asking themselves: between General Buhari and ‘General’ Jonathan who will do a better job in guaranteeing national security? You are that voter: decide and vote wisely!

March 8, 2015
Photo: Physical walk exercise for Jonathan in Abuja

President Goodluck Jonathan and other government officials during the Physical Walk Exercise in Abuja on Saturday

President Goodluck Jonathan and other government officials during the Physical Walk Exercise in Abuja on Saturday

President Goodluck Jonathan and other government officials during the Physical Walk Exercise in Abuja on Saturday

President Goodluck Jonathan and other government officials during the Physical Walk Exercise in Abuja on Saturday

President Goodluck Jonathan and other government officials during the Physical Walk Exercise in Abuja on Saturday

President Goodluck Jonathan and other government officials during the Physical Walk Exercise in Abuja on Saturday

March 7, 2015
Jonathan in jogging session, promises special fund for sports

President Goodluck Jonathan on Saturday promised to set up Special Intervention Fund for management of sports in the country if re-elected for a second term.

He made the promise at the Eagles Square, Abuja, after walking and jogging exercise from the Presidential Villa to the venue.

The physical exercise was organized under a private initiative by the Legends of sports men and women in Nigeria towards appreciating President Jonathan’s transformation achievements in the sports sector.

Jonathan noted that there were abundant opportunities in sports that needed to be properly harnessed and funded.

He said: “When we come back, we are going to set up Special Intervention Funds for management of most special sporting activities.”

The President identified six key areas where the funds will be channeled to.

The areas, he said, included funding of some special ‎sports, sponsorship of sports men and women for training programmes, taking care of injured sports men and women, assisting retired sports men and women who had done the nation proud during their active years, and encouraging sporting activities nationwide.

Applauding sports men and women in the country, he noted that Nigeria was blessed with abundant young and skilled sports men and women whom he exp‎ressed optimism would continue to do the nation proud.

He assured that sports must be encouraged and developed because it constitutes a uniting factor among Nigerians and creates jobs for talented youth.

Speaking earlier, Vice President Namadi Sambo and the Senate President, Sen. David Mark appreciated the Legends of sport men and women and urged them to ensure that they register, obtain their Permanent Voters Cards ( PVCs) in order to make sure “that on 28th March, Presidential election, it will be Jonathan carry go.”

The sports minister, Tammy Danagogo applauded Jonathan as the only President who had shown interests in sports transformation and development in the Country.

Coach Augustine Eguaveon said “We are identifying with a man who have the interest of sports at heart.”

“The youths have future hope in sports as long as President Jonathan remains in office.” He added

The Former Super Eagles Captain, Joseph Yobo said, “Mr. President you have a mission and we will not let you go until you accomplish your mission and that will be until 2019.”

“All of us have united for you and we have formed team which is Team Jonathan.” He said

Other sportsmen and women at the occasion included Kanu Nwankwo, Mary Onyali, Peter Rufai, and Chika Chukwumerijie.

March 7, 2015
Fallacy of Jonathan’s Southwest endorsement

The Yoruba Council of Elders (YCE) has joined a section of the pan-Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, in drumming support for President Goodluck Jonathan’s second term ambition. Assistant Editor LEKE SALAUDEEN examines the futility of the campaign in a region that has a reputation for rejecting inept leadership and its implications for the elections.

The Yoruba Council of Elders (YCE) has joined the train of President Goodluck Jonathan’s promoters in the Southwest, when it endorsed his re-election bid recently. Previously, the council had maintained a neutral position, saying the presidency.

But, members of the group led by Major-General Adeyinka Adebayo paid a surprise visit to President Jonathan at State House, Marina, Lagos, apparently to express its support for his second term bid. During the visit, members of the delegation commended the president for offering good leadership to the country. Besides, Gen. Adebayo-led a powerful delegation to the post-National Conference Summit organised by the leaders of the Afenifere and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) at Premier Hotel, Ibadan.

Analysts have described the sudden volte-face of YCE as ridiculous, saying it has seriously undermined its integrity. They reasoned that YCE is supposed to be apolitical adding that aligning itself with a political party will make it lose its dignity.

Afenifere and YCE hinged their decision to support the President on their desire to see the recommendation of last year’s National Conference implemented by the man who convened the conference. But, the Deputy Leader of Afenifere, Senator Ayo Fasanmi, was not swayed by that reasoning. He asked whether it is only Jonathan has the exclusive ability to implement the report.

Fasanmi said: “Those who endorsed President Jonathan based their decision among other reasons on his commitment to implement the outcome of the National Conference. However, the outcome of the conference will require a constitutional amendment. Hence, it is the national and states assembly that have the power to incorporate the conference resolutions into the constitution. So, the President has minimal not pivotal role to play in this matter.”

Former Senate Minority Leader Olorunnimbe Mamora, aligned himself with Fasanmi’s position that the President does not have the exclusive right of implementing the recommendations of the conference. “The implementation cannot be done outside the National Assembly. The report is a public document that can be implemented by whoever wins the presidential election. The issue of true federalism, devolution of power and fiscal federalism recommended by the National Conference are contained in the All Progressives Congress (APC) manifesto. I can assure you that if Buhari is elected, he will ensure that the report is implemented.

On the directive that the Yoruba should vote for Jonathan in the re-scheduled March 28 presidential election, Afenifere chieftain Senator Biyi Durojaiye said it is illogical. He said, he could not understand the criteria or the rationale for the endorsement of Jonathan by both the Afenifere and the YCE, which directed the Yorubas to cast their votes for him.

He said: “I cannot understand the basis for endorsing an administration that had been criticised by the Afenifere leaders for marginalising the Southwest. What has changed now that they want the Yorubas to overlook? Is it because Jonathan has engaged some Yoruba elements to castigate former President Olusegun Obasanjo?

“I am amazed that some Yoruba leaders are asking our people to support a government that lacks good morals, that has the tenacity to hold on to power at all costs, that changes the rule of the game at its convenience, that plots to remove the chief electoral umpire.”

Fasanmi said it was too late for Jonathan to be making promises of appointing a Yoruba person into a high position after his re-election. “Despite the fact that Jonathan won five states in the Southwest in 2011 with 2.7 million votes, the people from this zone play minimal role in his administration. Even when he appointed Southwesterners into his cabinet, they were not assigned strategic portfolios,” he added

The Second Republic senator regretted that his colleagues, including Chief Reuben Fasoranti, Sir Olaniwun Ajayi and Chief Ayo Adebanjo spearheaded the endorsement without sparing a thought of the future. He said the Awoists calling on the Southwest to vote for President Jonathan have mocked their antecedent and rich history of struggle for a better Nigeria.

He challenged the Afenifere leaders to list the achievements of President Jonathan in the Southwest that could warrant their endorsement of his candidature. He said the Jonathan administration has marginalised the region in the distribution of appointments and amenities, wondering why the Afenifere chieftains are rooting for his re-election.

President of Yoruba Consultative Group (YCG), Chief Ayo Adegoke, advised President Jonathan not to be deceived by the political jobbers, who have been assuring him that they would win Southwest votes for him. He said President Jonathan should not expect bulk vote from the southwest in 2015. According to him, what happened in 2011 will not play out this time around.

Adegoke stated: “Jonathan got sympathy votes in the Southwest in 2011 not because of the PDP, but because he came from the minority group that had never ruled this country. The same Jonathan has squandered that opportunity and relegated the Southwest to the background in the scheme of things. When he was not allowed to take over the leadership of the country at the time the late President Umaru Yar’Adua travelled abroad for medical treatment, it was the people of Southwest that fought for him.

“Despite the goodwill the people of Southwest accorded him in 2011, what did they benefit from his government? Instead most Yoruba holding senior positions in civil service lost their jobs. Jonathan should not be misled by the self-serving groups like the Afenifere and the YCE that the Yoruba would vote for him. The so-called leaders lack electoral value; some of them cannot win in their wards.”

Adegoke described the Southwest as the traditional home of the progressives. I don’t see a situation whereby the Yoruba would for any reason this time around abandon the APC, which was co-founded by their leaders and other like minds across the country. He said the politics of the Southwest is based on principle and peoples interest. It is not possible for the people of this region to vote for the PDP, given the performances of the APC governors in the zone, he added.

A PDP chieftain confided in our correspondent that it will be herculean for the party to score the required 25 per cent in Southwest states during the presidential election in the Southwest let alone winning the states. He agreed that the Jonathan administration marginalised the region, in spite of the goodwill of the people towards him during the 2011 presidential election.

He said: “I share the view that we do not deserve Yoruba support this time around. The people of the Southwest voted massively for Jonathan in 2011. It is a general cake that has to be shared among those who contributed to its baking.

“We went to Abuja on this issue. All the PDP governors and leaders were there to confront President Jonathan. He promised to rectify the anomaly after 2015 elections. Apart from ministerial appointment, which is constitutional, what have we gained from Jonathan’s administration so far? We have nothing to show for the massive support he got from Southwest in 2011.”

A lawyer, Tolu Afolabi, said the self-appointed leaders of the Yoruba should know their limitations. He said: “Nobody appointed either the Afenifere or the Yoruba Council of Elders to speak on behalf of the Yoruba race. The Yoruba know what is good for them. They can decide for themselves. Those promising Jonathan Southwest votes are on their own.”

Afolabi noted that the leadership of the Afenifere and the YCE have betrayed the Yoruba race by endorsing an administration that marginalised their region in terms of appointments and infra-structural development. “At a time when the people of Southwest like other progressives across the country are yearning for a change they are asking us to vote for a government that has failed,” he said.

“The political setting that made people to vote for Jonathan in 2011, irrespective of party affiliation, has changed. The political leadership of the Southwest at that time interacted with their colleagues in government to give him solid votes, but that situation does not exist today. Jonathan and his foot soldiers should face the reality that the Southwest is a no-go area.

“The new political leadership in the Southwest represented by the APC has been consistent with the principle of protecting the general interest of the Yoruba, which Chief Obafemi Awolowo stood for all his life. That principle made him more popular in death. Awo is revered because of his landmark achievements in education, health, agriculture and rural development that stood him out among his peers. The so called Awoists should retrace their steps and stop ridiculing themselves.

On the claim by the Afenifere that they are supporting Jonathan because he is from the South, the lawyer said the group has betrayed Awo’s philosophy and his political approach. Afolabi said: “Awolowo never discriminated against the North in expanding his political empire. “Awo’s Action Group (AG) went into alliance with the United Middle Belt Congress led by the late J.S. Tarka and the Borno Youth Movement in the First Republic. The political horizon of the late sage widened in the Second Republic when he signed a pact with the Concerned Citizens of the North led by the late Major General Shehu Musa Yar’Adua in 1983. That explains why Awo was able to pick a Fulani man, Alhaji Muhammadu Kura, as running mate. The Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN) performed better in the presidential election in the North in 1983 compared to 1979.

“It will be wrong of the Afenifere leaders to describe the coming together of the mainstream politicians of Yoruba extraction and their counterparts from the North as a sellout. Awo started it and he even predicted that the progressives of the North and the South would come together one day to rescue the country.”

March 6, 2015
Is Baga visit boosting Jonathan’s reputation?

Faced with declining brand and reputation equity, President Goodluck Jonathan hopped onto an aircraft and headed for Baga, one of the Northeast towns retaken from Boko Haram. Will the visit raise the Commander-in-Chief’s profile? Brand experts are divided on this, writes ADEDEJI ADEMIGBUJI.

A brand analyst and blogger, Ugochukwu Ezeagwula, foresaw in his article on January 17, 2012 that by 2015, President Goodluck Jonathan would lose his reputation equity and thwart his party’s chance in for the general election campaign.

Ezeagwula wrote against the backdrop of Jonathan’s unimaginable share of minds in the 2011 elections victory, especially among the youth whom he captured through the social media. But certain policies, which the President undertook some years ago and their chain reactions appear to have been his Achilles’ heels in the campaign.

“The implication of this loss of brand equity will definitely reflect in the performance of his political party at the 2015 general elections. Even if Mr President does anything remarkable and tangible to redeem his image within the next three years, it will only take the grace of God, the sheer forgetfulness of Nigerians and the bite of luck that he has experienced all through his life to regain this lost brand equity,” Ezeagwula wrote.

“A brand that has lost the trust and loyalty of its consumers cannot think that the best way to earn back these key ingredients of its brand equity is to increase the price of its product without improving on its functional attributes. Neither is it sensible to attempt to increase the price of the product before improving on its functional attributes, which is exactly what the Federal Government has done,” he concluded.

Four years down the line, the brand loyality that gave him huge votes seemed to have dwindled going by a growing dissonance among his brand consumers in some key geo-political zones.

For instance, Jonathan pulled over 2.7 million share of votes in Southwest as against Buhari’s 321,609 in the same geo-political zones. His dwindled reputation obviously stemmed from the removal of subsidy on January 1, 2012, when Nigerians were in festive moods of Xmas and the New Year. His action led to nationwide protest and made those who voted for him feel betrayed like a consumers, who had parted with money for a product and ended being dissonance.

The reputation loss was further worsened by the inability of his team to suppress raging insurgency and its attendant bombing. The series of kidnapping of young boys and girls, loss of lives to Boko Haram until the kidnap of the Chibok girls saga dragged the government global perception rating into the red line, prompting world leaders, the media and celebrities to cry out with an # tag BringBackOurGirls.

However, these issues undoubtedly are making it difficult for the President to a roller-coaster re-election bid this year as predicted by Ezeagwula.

Two weeks to election, Jonathan’s new military offensive on the insurgents appeared to be shoring his image after the military had been equipped with more weapons and strategic cooperation with neihgboruing countries such as Chad, Niger and Cameroun to end the militants’ tenancy in the Sambisa forest.

Will the onslaught reverse Jonathan’s reputation?

To some of his loyalist, the success being recorded is key to his bid, especially with the postponement of the election, which gives the President an ample time to regain his lost reputation that gave him the seat four years ago. The commendation that came after the military bombardment of the insurgents has been torrential, even from members of the opposition party. Prompted by a motion of urgent national importance moved by Hon. Muhammad Tahir Monguno of All Progressives Congress (APC), Borno State, the House praised the military for its bravery and steadfastness, noting that in the previous months, Boko Haram nearly overrun Borno State. The tide, according to Monguno, is now turning against the insurgents as a result of the gallantry of the soldiers.

Also, Jonathan is being scored high by some economic experts. “The truth is that when placed on a dispassionate measurement platform, President Jonathan has recorded more accomplishments than people are willing to give him credits for,” said the Chairman, African Centre for Business Development, Strategy and Innovation, Sam Ohuabunwa, in his article in a business paper. “In the years Jonathan has been president, our economy has grown between six and seven percent per annum. This is one of the highest growth rates in the world,” Ohuabunwa said.

Against his renewed efforts to rebuild his reputation, brands and communication experts are divided if the efforts will rejig his brand equity. A top manager at Caritas Communication, a reputation management and brand development agency, Robert Utiko, said the president has regained his reputational equity. “It has helped GEJ regain lost reputational equity. The military has been proactive, posting updates on it successes in the campaign. GEJ has visited the troops on the battlefield to encourage them. GEJ is gradually being projected as a leader, who can take tough decisions,” he said.

But a Managing Partner at Radi8, a PR agency, Mr. Toni Kan, believed otherwise. “There are many things that can erode a brand. In Jonathan’s case Chibok and Boko Haram have been key brand erosion. So, it follows that winning the war against Boko Haram will help with his brand equity. What the Boko Haram insurgency has done is to show the CEO of Brand Nigeria as an incompetent and incompetence has a negative impact on public perception, which then affects the brand.”

While the efforts appeared enough to redeem the president’s reputation equity, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer at Ashton&Layton and former communication manager at Cadbury, Mr. Gbenga Adebija, said GEJ renewed positioning has limited gain because the timing is late. “Timing is a critical factor in any brand building initiative and so it is difficult to forsee any significant benefits to the GEJ brand, especially because in the view of major stakeholders, the military onslaught against the insurgents is obviously orchestrated for political reasons.

“A brand equity is significantly enhanced when it’s objectives are seen as altruistic or at least not so transparently driven by personal motives. Brand GEJ also brought the bells and whistles with the military attire, dark shades and swagger stick, but the dysfunctional timing means limited gains to the brand Jonathan. At best, the Sambisa military initiative provided a platform for GEJ supporters to cheer, but in terms of actually winning over doubters and increasing the number of GEJ brand ambassadors, the benefits are definitely at lilliputian levels,” said Adebija.

A manager at Hi-Media Network, Mr. Sanjo Oyekan, said it was too late for anyone to judge the result on the president image building effort because this has worked for some personality brand in the political sphere in the past.

Wether the onslaught will add up and contribute little or nothing to his reputation and brand equity, time will tell on March 28 when the election holds.

March 6, 2015
Why Jonathan can’t implement Conference Report, by Fasanmi

Some Yoruba elders believe their endorsement of President Goodluck Jonathan’s re-election bid will spur him to implement the report of the 2014 National Conference and earn their kinsmen plum positions in the next administration. But second Republic Senator Ayo Fasanmi says it is delusional to expect the President to unilaterally implement the report without Constitutional amendment by the National and States’ Assemblies.

Some Nigerian newspapers have reported the endorsements of President Goodluck Jonathan by some groups in Southwest geo-political zone. A variety of reasons, including a desire to promote Yoruba interests, were given for the endorsements . Yet, when critically analysed, these reasons are spurious. Indeed, the arguments for the endorsements mask the selfish interests of the endorsers.

No doubt that the South-West geopolitical zone has several interests. Among these interests are the desire for security; genuine federation with greater autonomy for the federating units; rule of law; effective governance under a democratic and accountable government; drastic reduction of corruption and economic and social development including infrastructural development. These interests are shared with some other geopolitical zones who want a Nigeria that is truly federal and where government will put the interests of the citizens first. Majority of the people in the South-West and indeed the whole of Nigeria want to live in a functioning and strong state not a state that is fragile and on the brink of failure under a kleptocratic Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) administration. Above all, majority of people in the South-West want a progressive government.

Those who endorsed President Jonathan base their decision among other reasons on his commitment to implement the outcome of the National Conference. However, the outcome of the Conference will require a constitutional amendment hence it is the National Assembly and states of the federation that have the power to implement the conclusions of the Conference (Chapter II Section 9 of the 1999 Constitution). The President has minimal not pivotal role. Going by recent political trends in which APC is ascendant, PDP may lose control of the National Assembly. Indeed, it may become a minority party with fewer state governors and legislatures. Consequently, it is delusional to think that Dr. Jonathan can implement a conference when he might be out office and when PDP becomes a minority party. This, of course, assumes that the re-scheduled election is held and that PDP does not engage in electoral shenanigans and manipulations.

Further, President Jonathan has a gaping credibility gap. In 2011, he promised to provide electricity, ensure security, create jobs, transform the economy and combat corruption. None of these promises have been fulfilled to the satisfaction of Nigerians. That is why Nigerians want change.

A second reason given by those who endorsed Dr. Jonathan is his promise to end Yoruba marginalisation. He has, we are told, agreed to appoint Yorubas to important positions. The 1999 Constitution in Chapter VI Section 147(3) states that each state of the federation is entitled to one Ministerial position. However, portfolio assignment is the prerogative of the president. Despite the fact that Dr. Jonathan won five South-West states in 2011 with a vote tally of 2.7 million, people of the South-West play minimal role in his administration except of course in rigging elections and participating in the plunder of Nigeria. It should not be forgotten that it was a Yoruba man who paired him as vice-presidential candidate to late President Yar’adua. He has fallen out with his mentor who has been trenchantly critical of his mismanagement of Nigerian affairs.

Even when President Jonathan appoints South-Westerners into ministerial positions, his choice do not reflect the best Yoruba can offer. Indeed, some of the people from the South-West serving in the Jonathan administration have questionable integrity. Several of them face accusations of corruption while others have used their positions to suborn security forces to commit electoral crimes in favour of the PDP. The revelation of the rigging of the June 2014 gubernatorial contest in Ekiti State is an eye-opener to the misconduct and abuse of office of Jonathan appointees. Certainly they cannot be considered as “Omoluabi.”

Appointments to political post in Nigeria benefit mainly the appointee, his/her relations and a few followers. South-Westerners have not benefitted from these appointments. It is therefore forlorn hope to think that there will be improvement.

My appeal is for people of the South-West to ignore the self-serving endorsements by a few in the region. The people of the South-West should, consistent with their progressive tradition, vote for Buhari who will adopt and implement policies that will benefit South-Westerners and all Nigerians.

March 5, 2015
Buhari campaign accuses Jonathan of using religion for polls

THE All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Organisation (APCPCO) has accused President Goodluck Jonathan of using religion to gain sympathy and remain in office at all costs.

The organisation asked the people of the Southwest to ignore the promises of the president to implement the report of the National Conference, saying it was incapable of protecting their interests.

Its Director of Media and Publicity, Malam Garba Shehu, said it was surprising that the President had turned worship centres into platforms for making official statements or announcing government policies.

Shehu said the strategy defied the norms of government practices, stressing that the president was deliberately doing so “in the belief that the manipulation of religious sentiments would cover up the multitudes of his epic failures.”

According to him, using worship centres as platforms for making major official statements could create precedents that the country could not handle in future.

The campaign spokesperson added that if predecessor presidents did not use the mosques or churches to make official statements of public importance, it was wrong for Jonathan to start something that was already sending the wrong message.

He noted that with the exploitation of religion for political gains, the president and his Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)-led government have lost any basis to accuse its presidential candidate, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, of being a religious “bigot” or “fanatic”.

The APC presidential campaign said it was scandalised by reports of money being allegedly shared to religious leaders by President Jonathan “to buy their conscience”.

He said it was incredibly embarrassed as to why a government would allegedly seek to bribe religious leaders to cover up its misdeeds and win re-election, despite its “incompetence and non-performance”.

It regretted that bribing religious leaders would not only bring them into disrepute, but also make nonsense of Jonathan’s claim to fight corruption.

Asking the Southwest to ignore the promise by the President to implement the report of the National Conference, Shehu said while they were not averse to any group supporting any candidate for the rescheduled general elections, it was important to state that the purported endorsement of Jonathan by former Confab conferees from the Southwest was predicated on spurious and utterly dishonest reason.

Shehu said: “It is necessary to state that all points of the Yoruba agenda that could have favoured the Southwest, including regional autonomy, restructuring, devolution of power and parliamentary system, could not sail through at the conference.

“These people knew that though they deceived Nigerians, particularly the Yoruba people, with the ostensible reason, but the real reason for the endorsement was because of their personal economy. Some of them have had their personal finances transformed by way of juicy, but dubious security contracts and handsome cash largesse by the government of Dr. Jonathan at the expense of Nigerian people.

“We consider it asinine that any group can predicate its support for Dr. Jonathan on his promise to respect any agreement. The antecedents of Dr. Jonathan speak eloquently of a serial promise-breaker, unreliable keeper of gentlemanly agreement and unabashed turncoat.

“It would be recalled that the first real show of Dr. Jonathan’s immense capacity for not keeping to pacts was when he, in 2010, conveniently walked away from his party’s North/South zoning arrangement, of which he was signatory to, with indescribable villainy.

“There is virtually a litany of reports from committees, which he empanelled, that have remained unimplemented in his four-year presidency thus far. Dr. Jonathan, as President, who refused to assent to the Bill that will empower Nigerians with disabilities, is doubtful would ever contemplate supporting better life for Nigerians without disabilities.

“It is a known fact that of all the four hundred and ninety two (492) members of the National confab, none was elected by the people. A comparison of this arrangement with that of the Constituent Assembly of 1977 revealed a conference that had most of the members elected by the people and which naturally brought on the 1979 Constitution.

“We are appalled that despite the pretences of members of this group to democracy, they thought it fit to attempt to stampede a nation to giving assent to a piece of document that bore the imprimatur of a negligible minority. Truth be told, the conferees of the confab were not representatives of the people.

“It is on the basis of the foregoing that we believe that the purported endorsement of Dr. Jonathan by members of this group was infernal, jejune, and meaningless. We urge the people of the Southwest to discountenance this as another distraction from the stable of the utterly despicable, but desperate regime of Dr. Jonathan”.

March 5, 2015