The Nation Newspaper

Tag: PRESIDENCY

  • 2015 Presidency: Fading hope of Ndigbo

    Very often we say it is unimportant where the next president comes from, what should be paramount is his ability and capacity to deliver democracy dividends. But we are compelled to tag along with the whims and caprices of self-appointed godfathers, men of means and ways, who have turned power houses by virtue of straying into corridors of power.

    Take it or leave it, issues like rotational presidency or zoning in the interest of equity and fairness, will continue to be a big part of Nigeria’s politics and election process for a long time to come.The famous Ndigbo axiom of urinating together so that the much needed foam will form has become implausible as distinguished persons of Igbo extraction have so far, failed to work together.

    Make no mistake about it, the Igbos are respected for their entrepreneurial skills but all too often derided for perceived lack of unity and inability to articulate their position in matters of collective interest. This perception is now aimed at subtly disparaging and marginalising them.

    In the light of this, news making the round that a presidential largesse have torn the Ohaneze apart, tearing the zone’s ambition to shred becomes credible. It is a cinch that the Igbo presidency has been auctioned. The cacophony of voices mouthing the ambition of the geo-political zone from the rooftop every four years is now hackneyed. It usually starts with the pronouncement that it is the turn of the Ndigbo’s by some eminent Igbo politicians , then resonated by Ohaneze and amplified with subtle threats by MASSOB – bluffing to unleash fire and brimstone if it does not come to fruition. They harp their agitation for the presidency from the rooftop but
    when it matters most they fail to do the needful – coalesce.

    The best chance the Igbos had to occupy the highest seat of democratic power was first in 1999 and four years later in 2003, when a founding member of PDP, Dr Alex Ekwueme, contested the party’s primaries with Olusegun Obasanjo. South-East governors and their delegates voted instead for the Ota farmer. It was a shame that governors from the zone could not rally behind their own.

    Only Mbadinuju (governor of Anambra state at the time) and his delegates,polled for Dr Ekwueme in 2003. Orji Uzor Kalu, protem coordinator of Njiko Igbo (a group working for the actualisation of an Igbo presidency) did not support an Igbo when he had the opportunity. Isn’t this the height of hypocrisy? On two occasions, Kalu saw Ekwueme’s name on the ballot but voted Obasanjo. Many Ndigbos still believe the Igbo presidency project died with the defeat of Dr Alex Ekwueme at the PDP national convention
    because if he had won any of the primaries, he would have gone on to win the general elections and become President!

    The Igbos can learn a lesson in unity from other zones who have ruled the country. In 2011, within the PDP, we witnessed how five northern presidential candidates surrendered their personal ambition to scrutiny by the panel set up by the Arewa Consultative Forum to decide who represents the North. Who would have thought a political heavy weight like Ibrahim Babangida would bow out for the consensus candidate of the ACF? It is wishful thinking to imagine this scenario among Igbo aspirants. However, it
    is not asking for the impossible for same from them.

    The perceived lack of ambition of governors of the South-East has not helped the cause of the region. The fear of the EFCC or the Rivers-Amaechi treatment, for them, is the beginning of wisdom. They have chosen to file behind the self acclaimed “chairman” of the NGF, Gov. Jonah Jang in absolute loyalty to President Jonathan. Compare them with their colleagues from the North – all of them thinking they have a realistic chance at the presidency. For the Igbos, what we hear is the discordant tune of the PDP governors singing President Jonathan’s ambition, forming all sort of alliance with South-South governors. Leaders of the zone, for selfish and pecuniary
    reasons, are preoccupied with canvassing and building support base for Jonathan. It is indeed, sad, that they have auctioned the collective ambition of the Ndigbos.

    The death of Odimegwu Ojukwu, the former Biafra warlord, to a large extent has hushed the voice of the Ohaneze, the foremost Ndigbo socio-political forum and direct opposite of the boisterous ACF of the north. In recent time, the agitations of the Igbos have been distant and unconvincing. The Ohaneze seem to have given up on their dreams, choosing to grope and gloat in the back and forth of the northern groups with Ijaw leaders.

    But then, some argue that there is a dearth of Igbo leaders who are sellable on a national platform. A visit to some of states in the east will convince you why none of the state governors is being muted as a potential presidential aspirant. Underperformance and mediocrity has been taken to a whole new level. Physical infrastructure is decrepit and social amenities are frebile. Only Enugu and Imo bear a semblance of states with governors.

    Juxtapose them with their colleagues in the South-West where you have the likes of Governor Fashola who has transformed Lagos. Even the SouthSouth can boast of an Oshiomhole who is making giant strides after 10 years of comatose PDP leadership in the state. Some governors in the north have turned the economy of their states around in spite of the meagre allocation
    from the federal government.

    Furthermore, South-East governors do not share the same vision on the 2015 Igbo presidency project like the northerners do. Gov Peter Obi is more interested in who controls the APGA machinery. He is at loggerheads with
    Rochas Okorocha. The latter leads a faction into the opposition coalition, APC, believing the Igbos can mount a serious bid for the presidency, or at least a VP ticket. Sullivan Chime has never shown any kind of support for the Igbo presidency project. Same with Abia state governor, Theodore Orji, apart from his occasional rhetorics about an Igbo president, has shown little commitment.

    For a region that has not benefited from the largesse the government doles out to quell violence from youths in other parts of the country, they truly deserve the highest office in the land. Anytime MASSOB speak in hash tone, they are quickly hushed with threats of treason by security agents.

    Terrorists in the north have crippled the economy of some states, yet government is begging them and other dreaded sect in the north to accept amnesty. Militants in the Niger Delta plundered the economy of the nation with sustained attacks on oil installation until they were granted amnesty.

    Till date, same region is safe haven for oil bunkering, like never before in the country’s history.  If for nothing at all, the Ndigbo must be commended for the manner their youths have conducted themselves over the years.

    MASSOB and other groups have remained law abiding even in the face of provocation that would have triggered reprisals like the recent killing of Igbo traders in the north by suspected members of Boko Haram. All of the restiveness in the Niger-Delta and northern Nigeria have not resonated in the East. That the region have not produced the president of the country is enough reason to resort to violence, afterall, the orgy of blood shed that morphed into terrorism sprang up after the 2011 elections, when some politicians of northern extraction threatened to unleash mayhem if the results of the elections did not go their way. Same northerners who have
    produced the leaders of this country for over 30 years since independence!

    The usual reframe that has left the Ndigbo where they are today has been, the South-East should support other zones, this time the South-South for Jonathan, and in another four years time, it will be their turn.

    Regardless of whether Ndigbo present a consensus candidate for the general elections barely two years away, Nigerians hold the ace, as they are to decide, through the ballot, who becomes the next president.

    The writer can be reached via; theophilus@ilevbare.com

  • Presidency, Atiku trade words over PDP split

    Presidency, Atiku trade words over PDP split

    The Presidency and former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar yesterday traded words over the outcome of the mini convention of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    The Special Adviser to the President on Political Affairs, Ahmed Gulak, said Atiku was indebted to the PDP and should not spearhead its fictionalisation.

    Atiku said he would not dispute Gulak’s claim, adding that the best way to continue to pay the debt was to protect PDP.

    He said: “That is exactly what I’m doing: Protecting the PDP.”

    Atiku and seven aggrieved governors walked out of the Eagles Square venue of the 2013 Special National Convention on Saturday to form a parallel exco for the PDP.

    Speaking with State House correspondents in Abuja yesterday, Gulak said Atiku should be grateful to the party for reabsorbing him and giving him waiver to contest the presidential primary election in 2011.

    According to him, Atiku is expected to protect the party at all times.

    He said: “I was surprised because Atiku is supposed to know more than another person that there is no party like PDP. He left PDP and went to ACN and he came back to PDP, because he discovered that outside PDP there is no party.

    “So, he had to come back and he was even given a waiver to contest the primaries in 2011. Atiku should be grateful to PDP. Atiku is indebted to PDP and the best way to continue to pay the debt is to protect PDP.”

    Speaking on the meeting at the Presidential Villa to resolve the crisis, he said: “The president is the leader of the party and the governors came and the president and other leaders had useful discussions with them and God willing these things will be things of the past.

    “That is why I said politics is about interests and whatever somebody says, it is how his interest can be protected and they have put on the table what they want, or put on the table what it should be and the leader has carefully listened and analysed it and we keep on talking.”

    On whether the governors insisted on the removal of PDP chairman, Bamanga Tukur, he said: “You cannot remove the national chairman like that. He was elected and you will remember that of all the offices, INEC observed that only the position of the national chairman and the financial secretary was properly done and that is why we had gone to the special national convention to properly elect the other officers.

    “There are processes; there are provisions of the constitution; there is the Electoral Act, we should not act outside the laws. We must act within the extant laws of the land. Because the PDP is a law abiding party, we must entrench internal democracy. You cannot come and say, remove Mr A or Mr B and you cannot say, for example, remove Governor A. There are processes of removal. The constitution is clear about it.

    “And I want to plead with all PDP leaders and members, especially the senior stakeholders, to continue dialoguing. You don’t win war at the battle front, you win war on the table. We want to plead with all members of this political party to keep on dialoguing, discussing, because the opposition out there wants the party to split and there are moles and they sent moles in the cloak of PDP. We have discovered them and Insha Allah, all PDP stakeholders, especially our field commanders who are the governors, have discovered this and we are talking.”

    He continued: “It is all politics and politics is about interest and we are harmonising. We are talking, we are dialoguing, because the PDP as a family will not allow any of its members to go away, and even the members that want to go away, we will make bold to tell them that out there, there is no party as good as PDP.

    “So, it is a matter of dialogue. It is a matter of discussion and God willing these problems will be surmounted. It can never be the end of PDP. PDP has been there from 1998, it is only PDP that has still maintained its name and identity. The other people you are talking about, started as AD, transformed to AC, transformed to ACN; you know they have lost their identity. It is only PDP that has consistently maintained its identity and its name. So there is no party that can beat PDP.”

     

  • 2015: Onoja, Presidency plot to checkmate Mark

    2015: Onoja, Presidency plot to checkmate Mark

    The expected move by a chieftain of the defunct Arewa Consultative Forum  (ACF), Maj. Gen. Lawrence Onoja, to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) if not well handled, could rupture the current relative peace in Benue State politics, reports Remi Adelowo

    Former Military Governor of Plateau State, Lawrence Onoja, a retired two-star general of the Nigerian Army has been in the news lately.

    After two years of being in a political hiatus of sorts, Onoja, a former Principal General Staff Officer (PGSO) during the regime of the late General Sani Abacha, suddenly reappeared from the blues to drum up support for the speculated second term ambition of President Goodluck Jonathan.

    Prior to the 2011 general elections, Onoja was constantly in the news. He had contested the Benue South senatorial election on the platform of the defunt ACN against the incumbent senator, who is also the Senate President, David Mark of the PDP.

    It was a bitter electoral contest that nearly threatened the peace of Benue State.

    The first battle between the two generals was fought in the primaries of the PDP to pick the senatorial candidate for Benue South. Mark secured 1,680 votes to Onoja’s 317 votes.

    Not satisfied, Onoja left PDP for ACN where he was handed an automatic ticket to challenge Mark at the general election.

    The ‘war’ got so messy that on a particular day after the end of a campaign rally, Onoja escaped death by whiskers after some unidentified political thugs allegedly shot at the Toyota SUV conveying him, shattering the glasses in the process. Though he was alive to tell the story, Onoja sustained injuries on his right hand and was subsequently hospitalised.

    It was a baptism of sorts for Onoja in the politics of his home state. Not unexpectedly, Onoja pointed accusing fingers at Mark as the alleged mastermind of the attack on him. The spate of violence in the state during this period culminated in the invitation of prominent politicians in the state by the State Security Service (SSS).

    The anti-climax of sort was Mark’s victory at the general elections defeating Onoja by 149,923 votes to 79,433 votes.

    Onoja cried foul and challenged the election result up to the Appeal Court, which finally affirmed Mark’s victory.

    With his fate finally sealed by the apex court, Onoja recoiled into his shell, perhaps to wait for another opportunity to actualise his political ambition.

    Some weeks ago, Onoja, who is also the Chairman of the Strategic Mobilisation Committee of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), granted media interviews where he declared the support of the Middle Belt region to the alleged second term ambition of the president.

    In a statement that clearly contradicts the position of the ACF, which has been at the forefront of the return of the presidency to the North, Onoja was quoted as saying, “Middle Belt of today is different from the Middle Belt of the 60s when we were categorised as part of the core North.”

    Onoja, who is also a member of a political pressure group, Congress for Equality and Change, added that Jonathan was constitutionally qualified to run for a second term in office if he so wishes.

    According to him, the Middle Belt region would back the president for a second term in office.

    His words: “There could be anger in certain parts of the North. But there is no anger against Jonathan in my own Middle-Belt part of the North. We support Jonathan for his second term. Every group has the fundamental right to agitate for power.

    “The groups that are talking, the Northern Elders, Arewa, are not political parties. They are socio-political cum cultural associations. So, they probably cannot install a president. At best, they are talking of supporting a candidate from the North. You don’t blame me for saying that my own people support Jonathan.”

    Speaking further, Onoja, an Idoma, said his people were not regarded as core northerners even by the so-called North.

    He voiced his conviction thus, “Assuming the power comes to the North today, would you tell them to concede power to the Idoma people where I come from? This is because I am a minority in the North and Jonathan is a minority from the South-South.”

    The retired general added, “I want to say categorically that it is not yet time for power to shift to the North. Mr. President has not done his second term. All the other presidents were given opportunity to do their second terms and Mr. President, by virtue of the fact that he is a minority like me, it would be unfair and an injustice to stop him from doing his second term. If he finishes his second term in 2019, then other areas or blocks can now begin to agitate for power shift.”

    These were, no doubt, sweet music in the ears of the power brokers in the Presidency.

    Speculations that Onoja may be on his way back to PDP further heightened when he was part of the delegation of the Middle Belt Elders Forum (MBEF), led by a former Senate President in the Third Republic, Ameh Ebute, on a recent visit to the president. During the visit, the support of the Middle Belt to Jonathan was further reiterated.

    Sources say the stage is set to receive Onoja in PDP any moment from now after the Benue State Governor, Gabriel Suswam, reportedly received a directive from the Presidency to that effect.

    A few days ago, Suswam met with some Benue PDP stakeholders to intimate them of Onoja’s return to PDP.

    The Nation, however, gathered that not all the major PDP stakeholders have bought into this plan. One of them is Senate President David Mark, who has yet to reconcile with Onoja over their political differences.

    Sources in the state revealed that Onoja’s planned return to PDP was part of the Presidency’s alleged plan to checkmate the influence of Mark, whose relationship with the president has been described by sources as lukewarm at best.

    The Presidency, according to findings, is allegedly not happy with Mark, the reason which may not be unconnected to the hardline stance of the Senate and the House of Representatives on certain government policies.

    Some members of the president’s kitchen cabinet are also not happy with Mark over the proposal by the Senate Committee on the Review of the 1999 constitution, which recommended a single term of six years for the president and governors.

    Though the proposal did not scale through eventually, it generated an angry reaction from the president’s Special Adviser on Political Affairs, Ahmed Gulak, who fell short of accusing the Senate of plotting to frustrate his boss’ alleged second term ambition.

    According to sources, not a few of the president’s men believe that Mark is secretly nursing a presidential ambition in 2015, a development that has compelled his being placed under a close watch.

    Currently in his fourth term as a senator, a record by any Nigerian politician, Mark is also serving a second term as Nigeria’s longest serving Senate President.

    The Idoma-born retired one-star general of the Nigerian Army Signal Corps, is allegedly positioning himself as a compromise candidate in the event that power shifts to the minority tribe in the North, as it is being canvassed in certain political quarters.

    But the big poser is: does Onoja who is allegedly still interested in contesting for the Senate in 2015 has the political weight and structure to dislodge Mark?

    Also, will the Presidency sacrifice Mark, who has not openly spoken in support of the president’s alleged second term bid for Onoja in its calculations for the 2015 general elections? These puzzles will surely be unravelled in the months ahead.

  • Presidency blasts Kwankwaso, Wamakko, Lamido, other govs

    Presidency blasts Kwankwaso, Wamakko, Lamido, other govs

     • Okupe alleges plot to unseat Jonathan

    • Labels Amaechi tyrant

    Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe, yesterday accused Governors Sule Lamido (Jigawa State), Babangida Aliyu (Niger), Aliyu Wamakko (Sokoto), Murtala Nyako (Adamawa) and Rabiu Kwankwaso (Kano) of plotting to block President Goodluck Jonathan’s re-election bid in 2015.

    He said the governors’ visits to some past leaders ostensibly to defuse the tension created by the crisis in Rivers State were nothing more than a smokescreen to shield their true intention.

    Okupe spoke on the Kaduna-based Liberty Radio.

    Dismissing the governors’ peace initiative as a joke, he wondered why they failed to show the same zeal over the Boko Haram insurgency happening at their door steps.

    He said while President Jonathan has not told anyone of his intention to seek re-election in 2015, the governors are already gripped by fear that he would contest.

    According to him, “Jonathan has not told me and has not told anybody that he wants to run again. But all this heat that is in the country is because of the fear that he would run. But normally nobody should stop anybody from exercising the right that is guaranteed under the constitution.

    “If Jonathan wants to contest and you are not happy about it, go to the poll and defeat him….Nigerians must wake up. What is four years in the life of a country? Is it worth burning a country? Is it worth destroying our democracy?”

    Okupe, who was apparently reacting to the statement made on the same radio a week ago by former FCT Minister, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, on the same programme, said: “you heard about five governors who said they were motivated to go round the whole country because of Rivers crisis. Is that not a national joke? It is like watching Africa Magic.

    “What is the crisis in Rivers? Who is Amaechi and what is the issue that the whole country is being disturbed because of something that happened at the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF).

    “What is Nigeria Governors’ Forum to the destiny of this country? What has it got to do with us? The Rivers crisis is something that people just latch unto to fan the embers of this anti- Jonathan emotion and to continue to promote hatred against Goodluck Jonathan.

    “And of course, Amaechi is a willing tool, very rich and is very useful to the opposition. What you are seeing is an over- dramatisation of the preparations for 2015. Period.

    “These governors that were so motivated, so passionately concerned about the ultimate destiny of Nigeria, were not motivated when the Boko Haram crises were raging in the north to go round the north and plead on how to solve the problem.

    “They were not concerned enough for the thousands of people that were being bombed, killed in their mosques and churches in their domains, under their nose. I feel like crying, people are opening their doors to hypocrites.

    “Let them leave the Rivers State police commissioner alone. I don’t know how people got my number. I have text messages from ordinary people who are not politicians, people whose families have suffered grave injustice in the hands of Amaechi in Rivers. I am telling you this, God Almighty is my witness, I will show you these text messages so that you can confirm it.

    “Amaechi used the police and power to harass, intimidate and punish people unjustly. Mbu has refused to be a tool in the hands of Amaechi and has refused to bend to his unjustified high handedness. However, because he is supported by the opposition, he now presents Mbu as a villain. It is not true. He is a professional; he is a man of dignity who has remained steadfast……

    “People must find the truth. The Holy book says you shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free. Nigerians are becoming too gullible, they swallow anything hook, line and sinker. I am glad that Chief Obasanjo as an elder statesman is trying to mediate; he has mediated in many international conflicts and has recorded successes, but in his own country people cannot listen because the stakes are higher than Obasanjo’s intervention. People are looking for power in 2015.

    “So am not surprised that there is no result. How will these five governors be at a meeting and they will not rally round Obasanjo and solve the problem. The elite in this country are only after their own interest.”

    While admitting that there are lots of challenges facing the country, Okupe said “yes there are a lot of challenges in the country: there is high unemployment; there are insecurity issues. There is no doubt about that. But to say that nothing is being done about them is absolute nonsense. It is not true, it is not correct.

    “It is just fiction. These are the people who, two years ago, told the whole country and the world that Goodluck Jonathan was clueless. If you say Jonathan is clueless, he is fixing the economy. Today our indices are the best in Africa. Today Nigeria is number one for foreign direct investment.

    “The Nigerian railway system that has been abandoned for decades is coming up. Before, we were generating 2800 megawatts of electricity, today, we have more than doubled that. Yet they said the man is clueless.

    “There was insurgency that engulfed about 11 states of the federation, today it has been reduced to three states and yet the man is clueless. There was a time when bombing was a daily occurrence, people were dying in numbers. It was impossible to do anything in the northern part of the country. All that is gone. For the first time in four years, a durbar was organised to celebrate Eidel Fitri in Borno State”.

    Okupe denied that President Jonathan awarded ex-militant Tompolo a contract to police the pipelines, saying “I don’t know of any deal or contract between Tompolo as a person. I am not aware. Whether Tompolo is involved in a company that is operating security issues on the Nigerian waters is a different matter and I will not comment on something that is fallacious.

    “I have heard so many things that Asari Dokubo, Tompolo and people who have contracts on oil pipelines, it is a fallacy. It was the late President Yar’Adua, as part of his good will for the Amnesty programme, who felt that it was better to use people who are local, people who know the terrain rather than outsiders to police those terrains. So he gave those guys those contracts.

    “The contracts expired during the time of President Jonathan and up till today, those contracts were never renewed.”

     

     

  • AfDB’s report devoid of truth, political – Presidency

    The Presidency on Saturday faulted the African Development Bank (AfDB)’s report on Nigeria’s poverty reduction efforts.

    The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, said the report was “devoid of truth and political.”

    Abati said it was inconceivable that AfDB’s report came barely a month after the United Nations gave an award to Nigeria for its efforts at reducing poverty significantly in the country.

    He recalled that the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO), a UN body, at its 38th Session in Rome in late June gave an award to Nigeria as one of the nations that made significant progress in reducing hunger.

    He stated that the Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina,  received the award on behalf of Federal Government.

    The News Agency of Nigeria recalls that Adeshina presented the award to President Goodluck Jonathan during a Federal Executive Council  meeting.

     

     

  • Presidency is not for kindergarten, says Akande

    Presidency is not for kindergarten, says Akande

    The Interim National Chairman of the All Progressive Congress, Chief Adebisi Akande, yesterday said only a thinking leader can take Nigeria to the Promised Land.

    He declared that President Goodluck Jonathan has proved to be incapable of ruling the nation, saying the presidency is not for kindergarten.

    Akande spoke with reporters at his Ila-Orangun country home.

    He also dismissed newspaper reports that Jonathan was welcome to contest the 2015 Presidential election as the standard bearer of the newly registered mega party.

    According to Akande: “What the country needs is a thinking leader not a kindergarten president with no solution to the myriad of problems plaguing the nation.”

    He accused Jonathan of using the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to chase perceived enemies rather than concentrating on good governance.

    Akande said he had spoken and written several proposals to Jonathan on solutions to national issues without the president acknowledging any.

    A serious leader, he noted, would rather be passionate about solutions to the nation’s problems rather than fighting perceived enemies.

    Describing Jonathan as the nation’s problem, Akande said his government was reactionary rather than being progressive and visionary.

    Jonathan, he said, had shown lacking courage and strong will on most national issues.

    “When we say progressives are not in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and other parties what we mean is that progressive politics is a matter of political environment. The All Progressive Congress is a platform for many politicians to learn what it means to play progressive politics. We don’t encourage you to think of yourself but about the people. The PDP is a reactionary party and not progressive. So, you can flock with those who think only of self and say you are progressive.”

    He added: “Look across the south west and beyond now, you will see progressive politics of Fashola, Aregbesola, Fayemi, Ajimobi, Oshiomole, Amosun and others.

    “They think more of the people than anything else. They are busy rebuilding infrastructure abandoned by previous governments for many years. But look at Jonathan and his men, they would rather remain reactionary than being visionary, courageous and progressive.

    “They prefer to abuse and witch hunt non existing perceived enemies. So many times we had tried to help him on national challenges but he was never ready. They are riggers.”

    On insinuations that the APC is willing to adopt Jonathan as its presidential candidate, the APC chieftain said: “I only said the doors of our party are open to all interested people, including President Jonathan to join if so they wish.

    “I said what pre-occupy us as a party is to build a formidable structure ahead of the forthcoming general elections. We are ever ready to welcome defectors but we will use our political platform to afford them to learn democratic principles.”

    Akande said the APC, more than any parties in merger or alliance, is ready to help the nation out of comatose.

    He said the lack of trust and political education was the bane of successful merger, stating that APC had overcome such challenges.

    Akande added: “Obasanjo, by those who know him well, described him as a cowardly soldier and undemocratic politician.

    “He is a rough politician. But those who know Buhari said he was fine soldier, a man of few words. Buhari was once a leader of military junta who today freely chooses to be in politics and today he is learning fast all the democratic principles. Today, Buhari is getting used to debate and dialogue on issues.”

     

  • APC’s joke irks Presidency, PDP

    APC’s joke irks Presidency, PDP

    The Presidency and the leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) appear to be flying off the handle over the All Progressives Congress (APC’s) joke on President Goodluck Jonathan and the PDP.

    Interim chairman of the APC, Chief Bisi Akande had, in a lighter mood, extended invitation to Jonathan to join the APC if he was tired of the myriad of crises rocking the ruling party.

    Akande spoke at the inaugural meeting of the APC Interim National Executive Committee in Abuja on Tuesday where he went jocular on basic issues in party politics.

    But the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe and the PDP have gone bellicose over the joke.

    In a statement yesterday, Okupe retorted that the invitation to Jonathan was enough proof that the APC lacked the human resource to provide good and effective governance for the nation and would always have to depend on the PDP for leadership in all ramifications.

    Okupe said: “While it is not out of place for political parties to make overtures to those they believe have the capacity to assist them gain greater acceptability among the electorate, it is noteworthy that this invitation is being extended to a sitting President who was elected on the platform of another political party and whose unquestionable performance in the last two years have often been derided by this same political cynics.

    “It is noteworthy that in extending its invitation to the President, the National Chairman of the APC made reference to what he called “crisis rocking the PDP”; forgetting that the real test of leadership is not in running away from crisis but in resolving them firmly and fairly.

    “The very nature of democratic politics envisages conflict of ideas, interests and aspirations which must be aggregated for the overall good of the public and which all true leaders must be mentally and emotionally prepared to tackle.

    “This is why Mr President has continued to pursue the Transformation Agenda with zeal, focus and unequalled determination despite the enormous security challenges mostly orchestrated by elements in the opposition political party who had hoped that the ship of the Nigerian nation would not stay afloat under the first President ever produced from a minority ethnic group.

    “Unlike the APC whose chairman confessed, was just putting together its manifestoes and leadership structure, the PDP which produced the President has pursued and currently executing a definite blue print to take Nigeria out of the woods of economic stagnation and social deprivation, with verifiable degrees of success in the last two years”

    The President’s publicist added that the APCs invitation to the President was the party’s open declaration of its unpreparedness, adding that “it should be apparent to Nigerians that this new political party is directionless, lacking substance, and without a clear purposeful leadership”.

    Echoing Okupe, the PDP, in a separate statement, said the invitation to the President suggested that the APC does not have a presidential material in its fold.

    The statement, signed by the party’s Acting Publicity Secretary, Mr. Tony Okeke interpreted the action of the opposition party to mean that the party did not believe in the ability of its own leaders to pilot the affairs of the nation.

    The statement reads: “The attention of the leadership of the PDP has been drawn to the call by proponents of the opposition APC for President Goodluck Jonathan to join their fold.

    “By so doing, the APC has clearly admitted that it has looked within itself and discovered the bitter truth that it has no presidential material.

    “By calling President Goodluck Jonathan to join it, the APC has shown that it has no confidence in the leadership abilities of its prominent leaders such as General Muhammadu Buhari and Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.

    “The party has looked inwards and has realised the bitter truth that none of those in its fold has the required credentials, charisma and competence to be president hence they have been seeking to poach from the PDP.

    “The APC has clearly vindicated the PDP by openly showing that it is a confused and clueless party, lacking in ideology and in dire need of leadership. It is only a gathering of confused persons that will at one moment falsely condemn somebody as inept and incompetent and the next moment they are begging the same person to come and join them”.

    Also yesterday, the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, viewed the invitation as a compliment.

    He told State House correspondents in Abuja that the APC’s invitation of Jonathan by Chief Akande has shown the leaders of the opposition party recognised the fact that Jonathan is presently the best man for the job.

    Ruling out the possibility of President Jonathan joining the APC, Abati criticised the party leaders for forming a party only to realise later that they do not have a credible candidate.

    He said: “I think it (the APC’s invitation) is a compliment. What Chief Akande has said in essence is that President Jonathan is the best man for the job.”

    “They formed a party only to realise they don’t have a candidate. We thank him for his acknowledgment of the President’s leadership qualities, but he (the President) is happy where he is.”

    “We thank Chief Akande for his expression of confidence in President Jonathan’s credibility but the President is happy where he is, as a member and leader of the PDP to which he remains loyal, and under the umbrella of which he is leading a transformation agenda for the betterment of the lives of Nigerians.” Abati said.

  • Boko Haram: Emergency rule is working – Presidency

    Despite the recent attacks and killings by the Boko Haram sect in northern part of the country, the Presidency on Tuesday claimed the emergency rule declared in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe is effective and working.

    Speaking on FRCN Network programme on Tuesday, the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the President, Dr. Reuben Abati, said that normalcy is returning to the areas and the terrorists are being uprooted and dislocated from their enclaves.

    He said: “The first point to note is that before the declaration of state of emergency, the situation in the affected states was really bad, socio-economic activities had practically ceased. There was anxiety in the communities and other affected parts of the country. On a regular basis, there were either cases of detonation of bombs or harassment of people. There was a state of fear.

    “But since the declaration of state of emergency by President Goodluck Jonathan, a lot has been achieved. It was a very good tactical and strategic move, as well as a very good demonstration of leadership, determination and focus by this present administration.”

     

  • Rivers political crisis: ‘Presidency must not shield Bipi, Nwogu’  

    Rivers political crisis: ‘Presidency must not shield Bipi, Nwogu’  

    A Port Harcourt, Rivers State lawyer, Uche Okwukwu, has advised the Presidency not to shield the self-acclaimed “Speaker” of the Rivers House of Assembly, Evans Bipi, and another lawmaker, Kelechi Godspower Nwogu from the police probe of the Assembly fracas.

    He described as unfair, Rivers police’s declaration of only the Leader of the House of Assembly, Chidi Lloyd, wanted for attempted murder, conspiracy, wounding and wilful damage in the fracas of July 9.

    Okwukwu, said yesterday in Port Harcourt, the police must not take sides in the deepening political crisis .

    Lloyd, a lawyer, who represents Emohua Constituency, during the exchange of blows in the main chambers of the Assembly, used a fake mace procured for the attempted impeachment of the Speaker, Otelemaba Dan Amachree, to hit the representative of the Obio/Akpor II Constituency, Michael Okechukwu Chinda.

    The five anti-Amaechi lawmakers: Bipi, Nwogu, Chinda, Martins Amewhule (Obio/Akpor I) and Victor Ihunwo (Port Harcourt III) are loyal to the Minister of State for Education, Chief Nyesom Wike, who wants to be governor in 2015.

    Wike, penultimate weekend, supervised the transfer to London of the injured Chinda, from a private hospital in Port Harcourt, where he was treated for three days, to ensure better treatment.

    Lloyd, a loyalist of Amachree, stood firmly against his July 9 attempted impeachment and prevented Bipi from being forced on the Assembly as the speaker.

    The Rivers Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Felix Obuah, a Wike acolyte, however, described the police declaration of Lloyd wanted over the attempted murder, as a welcome development.

    Obuah also urged the police to invite and investigate the Governor of Rivers state, Rotimi Amaechi, who is also the Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), for allegedly supervising the “show of shame” in the hallowed chambers of Rivers Assembly on July 9.

    The Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Mohammed Abubakar, also invited Lloyd; the Aide-de-Camp (ADC) to Amaechi, Debeware Semeikumo (ASP); and the Chief Security Officer (CSO), Tony Iwelu; but it was not clear as at press time, if the Assembly’s leader would honour the invitation.

    Bipi was later hosted by President Goodluck Jonathan at the State House, Abuja and took time to interact with journalists, while insisting that he remained the “speaker” of the Rivers House of Assembly.

    Okwukwu said: “I am surprised about the attitude of the police for declaring only Chidi Lloyd wanted, when it is very clear that Bipi and Nwogu were also deeply involved in the July 9 fracas on the floor of the Rivers House of Assembly.

    “Bipi was proudly saying: ‘I blow Chidi Lloyd, I beat am, I kick am, I punch am, I box am very well,’ while Nwogu directed his security aides and thugs to shoot at Governor Amaechi on the floor of the Rivers House of Assembly. These are criminal offences.

    “Bipi also attempted to seize a rifle from a policeman and struggle ensured between them in the House of Assembly. Police should also investigate it.”

    The lawyer said the police’s investigation must not be one-sided but holistic, in order to get to the root of the matter, for peace to reign in Rivers state.

    Okwukwu’s position was corroborated by a member of the Rivers House of Assembly, Victor Amadi, who represents Etche constituency 1 and the Rivers Commissioner for Information and Communications, Ibim Semenitari, who stated that Nwogu ordered that Amaechi be shot on floor of the Rivers Assembly.

    Amadi added that Bipi slapped the duly-elected speaker (Amachree), after punching Lloyd.

    The representative of Andoni-Opobo/Nkoro constituency of Rivers State in the House of Representatives, Dakuku Peterside, maintained that the ADC and the CSO to Amaechi were duty bound to protect the governor, whose life was threatened in Rivers Assembly.

    Rivers Commissioner of Police, Mbu Joseph Mbu, said Lloyd was declared wanted after he failed to respond to police invitation, which elapsed on July 16.

  • Igbo presidency feasible under APC, says Okorocha

    It was cheering news from Imo State Governor Rochas Okorocha yesterday when he announced to the supporters of the All Progressives Congress (APC) that the age-long agitation for an Igbo presidency would soon come to fruition.

    Okorocha, who spoke during the inauguration of the APC Southeast Ward Mobilisers and Supporters Club, at the weekend, said the new party has become a rallying point for Ndigbo.

    He insisted that the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has relegated the zone, despite its contribution to the growth and success of the party.

    “I am happy that our people are responding to this clarion call that has to do with our collective destiny and aspiration. It is a clear fact that Igbo have been relegated to sixth position in the political equation of our nation; not minding the fact that we form one of the tripods upon which the nation stands.

    “In a situation where no Igbo man is president, vice president, Senate president, Speaker and chairman of the ruling party gives credence to the fact that we have been relegated by the PDP.

    “But my assurance today is that our tears would be wiped away in APC as we have started well and will definitely finish well.

    “Let me state categorically that Igbo presidency which appeared impossible in PDP would be actualised under the APC. Therefore, I make bold to say that APC is truly an Igbo party and should be embraced by Ndigbo.”

    The governor added that APC has metamorphosed into a rallying point for the Ndigbo, adding that the party has rekindled the hope for the much-desired Igbo unity.

    Okorocha posited that with the successful inauguration of the club, “the party is now prepared to demonstrate its winning strategy in the November 6 Anambra governorship election”.

    The governor said he plans to meet with Senator Chris Ngige and Senator Annie Okonkwo to ensure a smooth and peaceful emergence of the party’s governorship candidate in Anambra State.