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Tag: President Muhammadu Buhari

  • I’ll take tough decisions in next four years – Buhari

    President Muhammadu Buhari hinted yesterday of his resolve to take tough decisions in the four years he will remain in the saddle as the nation’s number one citizen.

    He gave the warning while receiving members of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) who came to congratulate him for winning the presidential election held on February 23. Buhari, who flew the flag of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the election, secured another four-year term after scoring 15,191,847 votes against the 11,262,978 scored by the candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji  Atiku Abubakar. Buhari said that he will intensify efforts in the three areas of security, economy and war against corruption.

    He also disclosed that he campaigned in all the 36 states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory to prove to his critics that he was fit. He said: “First, I am pleased that members of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) are collectively meeting here today where we play our weekly role to congratulate me. If I have lost the election, I don’t know how many of them will be here. “Secondly, during the campaigns, I tried to visit the 36 states and Abuja, firstly, to prove to the other side that I am fit. I tried to cover two states per day. And secondly, in order not to make anybody feel that any state had been left out. “So, I thank God that He gave me the strength and health to see through my plan, and I think it is appreciated. “My last lap of four years, I think it is going to be tough because people are being forgetful.

    “That was why wherever I went, I reminded them of the campaign promise of our party, particularly security, as I kept on saying that you have to secure the country well and institutions. “If you don’t secure the country, you can’t achieve anything, no matter how many programmes you put in place. “Secondly, on the economy, unemployment is a problem of this country as a whole. “More than 60 per cent of the youths, they need to be kept busy. “I realised that God heard our prayers. It had been two good rainy seasons and we had the foresight to get the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and Central Bank to try and give soft loans to farmers so that everybody that is educated and looking for white collar jobs and cannot get it, can go back to the land. “We are lucky the rainy season had been good.

    “I think we are also lucky that through the governors in some states like Lagos, Ogun, Kebbi, Jigawa, Ebonyi, in particular, we don’t import rice, but we have savings from rice in terms of foreign exchange which we put in the budget and use for infrastructure. “That is a very good thing because the oil sector is becoming very difficult to predict. It is becoming unpredictable and depending on it makes us materially insecure. “But, thank goodness, agriculture has come to save it and people are appreciating it.” At the brief ceremony that started around 12 noon, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, spoke on behalf of the public service and congratulated the President and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo for winning the election. According to him, the President’s victory was well deserved, as it was a referendum of honesty and sincerity.

    He said that the public service totally align itself to the millions of Nigerians who voted for the President. He said: “I am delighted to speak on behalf of members of the Federal Executive Council and the leadership of the Public Service of Nigeria on the courtesy visit, to congratulate Your Excellency on the historic reelection as the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. “Your victory with a huge majority of votes cast is indeed a well-deserved success because it was a referendum on honesty, integrity, uprightness and sincerity. “Your Excellency, the change you promised four years ago to put the Nigerian economy on a sustainable development path, restore security of lives and property and fight corruption has laid the firm foundation for growth. “Your commitment, dedication and purposeful leadership has indeed become the springboard that has taken us to the Next Level.

    “Members of the Federal Executive Council are particularly delighted because Nigerians have validated and rewarded the long, rigorous hours we spent in this Council Chamber to deliberate on matters of national importance. “You led us with assured calmness, understanding and ensured that we gave account of our stewardship openly.” He said that the leadership of the Public Service is also happy because the re-election will deepen the on-going reforms aimed at strengthening its capacity for the delivery of good governance. Apart from the ministers, others in the council chamber included the Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Chief of Staff Abba Kyari and Head of Service Winifred Oyo-Ita. Congratulatory cards were presented to the President by Mustapha and Oyo-Ita.

  • PMB, the principalities and powers

    Twice on Wednesday, President Muhammadu Buhari displayed an uncommon generosity of spirit. We had set forth at dawn, shortly before 5 a.m, to visit the presidential campaign office in Central Area of Abuja.

    The purpose was for the President to read his victory speech, having been pronounced winner of the February 23 election by Professor Mahmood Yakubu, Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

    This portion resonated loudly in the speech, and was widely applauded by the All Progressives Congress (APC) stalwarts in attendance: “I will like to make a special appeal to my supporters not to gloat or humiliate the opposition. Victory is enough reward for your efforts.”

    Holy Moses!

    Was the President telling his supporters not to stick out their tongues in derision, to mock those who had fought a bitter, if not acrimonious electoral war? Is all not fair in love and war again? Surely, the millions of Buhari supporters were raring to do the Dino Melaye stuff, open their eyes to the widest, and say ntorrrrr, or oooobiiii, to those who just lost the election. But the President said; no, please don’t do it. They are your brothers and sisters.

    So dissatisfied with the instruction was one of the President’s greatest online supporters, that she was ready to start a rebellion on Facebook. Jewel Ifunnaya is a dyed-in-the-wool Buharist. She loves the President to the marrows, and proclaims it from the rooftops anytime. But on Wednesday morning, she was  almost embarking on civil disobedience. She kicked like a wild horse, querying why the President must tell her not to gloat, when she was ready to embark on a gloating party against the Atikulators (as the online supporters of Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, the greatest challenger in the presidential election, are called). I read the protest by Jewel, and appealed to her to respect the wishes of our principal. She then agreed.

    Again on Wednesday, President Buhari showed that he meant what he said. By 2 p.m, he was at the International Conference Centre, in Abuja, to receive his Certificate of Return, from INEC. Hear the President in his speech again: “Now that the elections are over, and a winner declared, we must all see it as a victory for Nigeria, our dear country. That was why I encouraged my teeming supporters, in a speech I read earlier today, not to gloat. Our God-given victory is enough cause for joy, without deriding those who were in the opposition. All Nigerians, going forward, must stand in brotherhood, for a bright and fulfilling future.”

    Jumping Jehoshaphat! What generosity of spirit from the President. This was time to preen like the peacock, swagger like a man of war just returning from battle, hunch up your shoulders in pride, and tell the members of opposition to hug the nearest electricity transformer, if they were not happy. But President Buhari chose to play the true father. What an enduring lesson. I know one of his predecessors in office, who would never have done that. When that man was president, and he won re-election despite the fact that university lecturers had been on strike for many months, he came out after the polls to say he had broken the back of ASUU (Academic Staff Union of Universities) irredeemably. That same predecessor was publicly opposed to President Buhari running for a second term in office, and had engaged in a campaign of calumny both locally and internationally for more than a year, and if he had been the one who won at the polls, gloating would have been endless. But our political hero said: don’t gloat.

    This reminds me of a story I’d told in a piece I did in 2017, when President Buhari just came from medical vacation. Permit me to repeat the story, as it is quite germane.

    In 1998, when the country was groaning under the jackboot of Gen. Sani Abacha, I was deputy editor of National Concord, a newspaper owned by Bashorun Moshood Abiola, who Abacha held in military gulag for five years. Abiola’s offence was that he sought the actualization of a mandate freely given to him by 14 million Nigerians to be president in an election held on June 12, 1993. Gen Ibrahim Babangida, then military dictator, had annulled the result without explanation.

    One bright June afternoon, news wafted out that Abacha was dead. It turned out to be true. Every newspaper house was buzzing with activities, seeking to be the one to report the news with best perspectives the following day. My editor, Dele Alake (later, Commissioner for Information and Strategy in Lagos for eight years) was away, and the lot fell on me to edit the newspaper. I relocated from my office upstairs, to the compugraphy room on the ground floor, where I could treat the stories faster. It was not yet the era of computer then.

    Dr Doyin Abiola was Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief of Concord Press. She was wife to the  detained president-elect. On her way home about 7 p.m, she stopped over in the compugraphy room to see me. And what did she say? “Editor, please in your treatment of the story, don’t gloat!”

    If anyone would gloat that Gen Abacha was dead, should it not be an Abiola? But my boss said: “Don’t gloat!. And I learnt an eternal lesson about generosity of spirit towards even those who have treated you spitefully and disdainfully. Never gloat if anything untoward happens to them, or you come into a better station in life than them.

    See how the principalities and powers of Nigeria had arrayed themselves against President Buhari. Some former military rulers and leaders turned themselves into an evil confederacy, acting as if they owned Nigeria. They had always determined who aspired to certain offices in the country, and who should not. They had held the country by the jugular for ages, almost asphyxiating her. But this time, they met their match. The President looked at them straight in the face when they told him not to seek a second term, and told them to pick one: get lost, or go to hell. They chose not to pick any, but rather turned themselves into an opposition force. Formidable they were, but not with a man that had the true army behind him. The ordinary people. So, last Saturday, President Buhari and his peculiar army gave the opposition a bloody nose.

    The retired generals were not alone. They recruited pliant members of the international community, who had their eyes on a slice of the Nigerian economy, which Atiku had vowed to run along Western principles. Thank God for China, which charted a separate course, saying Nigeria should be left alone to resolve her internal matters without interference.

    Also with Atiku were many questionable characters, who had questions to answer on what they did to the public treasury, when they had access to it. Nigeria would simply have been done for, if they had regained the levers of power again.

    The ordinary people fought valiantly behind Buhari. And the impending army of occupation was worsted. Given a drubbing. Yet, no gloating?  Very noble.

    On Wednesday last week, during the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, the President had told members about millions of dollars seized by security agencies at the various entry points into the country: air, land, sea, all towards compromising and manipulating the election. They wanted to buy each and every electorate, and possibly the electoral officers. But the plans were thwarted. The President also told of a more sinister stratagem they had, which I’ll rather keep close to my chest for now. Desperate people. All due to lust for power. Bashorun Abiola used to say you don’t urinate inside a well you would later fetch drinking water from. These ones not only urinated, they also did the ‘big job’ inside the well. But God proved greater.

    Yet, don’t gloat? Strange and curious. Human dictum is ‘an eye for an eye.’ You don’t brook principalities and powers. Rather, you take the battle to them, and cast them out into the dry desert places. But  President Buhari now says an eye for an eye makes the whole world go blind. They don’t seem to make them like this older and less ruthless  Buhari anymore. We continue to learn. Sai Baba!

     

    • Adesina is Special Adviser to President Buhari on Media and Publicity

  • Victory, nemesis and reality

    The  Nigerian  presidential  and National Assembly elections  of February  23 have come and gone and President Muhammadu Buhari  has been reelected by a margin of about  4m votes.

    His  defeated opponent Abubakar  Atiku  has  not conceded  defeat and  has not congratulated the winner and  his excuse  is that  ‘the election was not free  and fair  but was marred by many  irregularities’.

    In the senate, the Senate President was defeated  and lost  his seat while the Speaker  was reelected.  It  is in the context of the victory  of the reelected president, the defeat of the Senate President and the inability  of the defeated presidential  candidate in these  elections  to  accept  defeat  that,  I  have  couched today’s headline.  I enjoin you  therefore  to come along with me as I    dilate  on a victory  that the winner  must  savour  for several  reasons. It  comes  alongside  a defeat  for a Senate President that    I call  Nemesis.  Which  is inevitable retributive justice  for  a member  of the ruling APC  who  threw spanner in the works  for  the party  whilst  it  was  savouring  its    2015 victory    and  was preparing to go  over to the Legislature  to take power four years  ago.

    It  is necessary    first  and foremost  to congratulate  the winner on his reelection. Quite  typical  of his levelheadedness  and magnanimity in victory  however  he has asked his followers  not  to gloat or  humiliate  the losers  of  the opposing  party  in their celebration of  victory. That  is  how  it  should  be although there is  no denying  that  in politics,  as in  life, failure  is an  orphan  whilst  success  has many  fathers. The  defeated candidate  has  promised to  go to court  to contest  the election results  and the Secretary  to the Government  of the Federation –SGF –  has  said    at  a victory  party  of the,  that the  victorious and re-elected  government  is  not  afraid  of  any litigation  on its  victory  because Nigeria  is a democracy.  Which  again  is  a positive development  for  our  democracy, as  in any  meaningful democracy  the majority  must  have its  way  whilst  the minority must  have  its  say.

    It  follows  therefore  that Abubakar  Atiku who  lost  the  election by  4 million  votes must  be allowed  to have his day in court  and air  his grievances in open court for the courts  to pronounce  judgement  one way or the other. Even  all  the way  to the Supreme  Court for  a final  and incontestable  decision of the highest  court  of the land.  That  is the way  and manner  our presidential system  of  government works,  according to our constitution  and  under  the rule  of  law. It  follows  that although  victory  has  been  lost  and won, it is not over until  it is over for  the Nigerian  presidential  elections  as the battle  has shifted  from  the  polling  booths  to  our temples  of  justice. There  they    will  proclaim on the legality, acceptance, or otherwise  on the way  and manner  the elections were  conducted  on February  23,  2019,  nation  wide.

    It  is therefore necessary  and pertinent  to  consider  the nature of victory, the manner of    retribution  or indignation    on  it and  the  reasons  for  rejection of  the presidential  election by the loser. In  pursuit  of this  we draw on the actions and utterances of the  political  actors  who  participated  in the postponed  election  which  had  Nigerians  very  apprehensive and anxious on  a peaceful  outcome  which  has however  materialized even  though  some  30  Nigerians  lost their lives  to  election

    violence.

    Let  me state clearly  that  I am  happy  that  I predicted  that the deterrence order on election  riggers by  the president    would  work positively  for his  re election. It  surely  has worked  for  him and his party  as it  showed they  had a stake  in the integrity of the Nigerian  electoral  process  as well  as  a peaceful  and fair election  which    the  president  has successfully supervised.  It is necessary  to remind  the reelected  president that he promised  to take  up  INEC  on  the unexpected  postponement after  the elections.  It  is necessary  to do  this  and not allow  it  to be forgotten  in the euphoria  of  victory,  no matter  how  sweet.

    Undoubtedly, the president’s  victory  was due  to massive turn out in Kano, Kaduna  and Katsina  his  home  state. These  three  K states-  3K –  have shown  that they  are  the crown jewels of  the Nigeria’s  participatory  democracy  as they  showed  that  even  as voter  turn out  was minimal  nation  wide  the turn out in the 3K states  was  stupendous  and  was the reason  for  the victory  and reelection of  the winner.  In  effect  then  the energetic, nation  wide  campaign  of  the winner was  not  in vain.

    Similarly his campaign  strategists  seem  to know  their  onions well  and can enjoy  their  victory  which  they have earned. There  is  no denying that they know Nigeria like the palm of their hands  and know  where voter  registration and  turn  out  matter  and they  zeroed in on that  and the result  has  been  productive  in the scale of  victory of their  presidential  candidate and their  party.  Surely  they can  afford to beat their chest  and  pat themselves on the back  for a job well  done.

    Nevertheless  it is necessary  to look at  the other  side of the coin, which  is the losing side in this election. In  a published speech, the loser  Atiku  Abubakar  lamented that  in his three decades long involvement  in Nigeria’s  politics he has ‘  never  seen our democracy  so  debased ‘ as it was  in the February  23  presidential  election. According to him  – democracy  will  not be emasculated in Nigeria ‘as  he insisted that  there  were predetermined  malpractices in several  states.  He  reportedly wondered  why  states  that were  ravaged  by  terrorism  had  more voter turn  out  than  those  that  were  not. He  said that  would seem  to endorse  the view  that insecurity  guaranteed  larger  voter turn  than  security.

    On  that score  the loser  seems  to  have  missed  the point especially  as a  Nigerian leader  from  the  North.  Repeated census  figures in Nigeria, on which  parliamentary  seats, local governments  and states  have been  created, have  always  favored the  North  and  census  is  a sore  point  for the  Nigerian  state and  its  politics. For  someone who  was a Vice  President  and has benefitted  from this  arrangement politically, it  is like crying  wolf  when  there  is  none  on  the 3K  states  large voter  turn out, or  terrorism  and  immense  voter  turn  out this  time  around.  The  census  figures  are  there  for  all to  see. Whether  they    correspond    with  North  –  South migration,    climate  change,  ecological  or  demographic  reality in our  large  and diverse nation, is another  matter. For  now the election results  reflect  our  legal  demographic  realities and the loser  should  go  to court  as he has promised. Nevertheless  in  my  view,  he has shown  more guts  and    sincerity  in airing  his dissent,  far  better  than  the peace  of the grave yard  that  was secured after  the  2015  elections.  Once  again, long live the Federal Republic  of  Nigeria.

  • Support Buhari to build a stronger country –Lawmaker tells Atiku, others

    Chairman of the Public Accounts (State) Committee of the Lagos state House of Assembly, Moshood Oshun, has admonished Atiku Abubakar and other opponents of President Muhammadu Buhari, to see how they can support the government of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the next four years to build a stronger nation.

    Oshun, who reacted to President Buhari’s victory at the polls as announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), noted that Nigeria has several challenges before it, adding that it is the time for leaders and followers to unite ahead of the next four years.

    Noting that Buhari has remained magnanimous in victory, Oshun urged the opposition to congratulate the winner of the election and support the move to build a Nigeria of everyone’s dream.

    He congratulated the president and the APC for the victory, describing it as well deserved.

    The lawmaker also commended the co-chairman of the Buhari campaign council, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and all the various groups who championed the battle for the success of the APC at the polls.

    He expressed optimism that the next four years would make better impacts on the lives of Nigerians, arguing that the government would simply continue from where it would end the current dispensation.

    “Currently, the government has made several marks on various sectors of the country including agriculture and physical infrastructures. It is, therefore, going to be a smooth continuation of already planned goals,” he said.

  • UK Prime Minister, Turkish Leader felicitate with Buhari over election victory

    President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday received more congratulatory and goodwill messages from world leaders following his victory in the February 23 presidential election.

    The Nigerian President received separate telephone calls from UK Prime Minister Theresa May and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, congratulating him on his re-election and wishing the Nigerian people progress and prosperity.

    President Buhari, according to a statement by the Special Adviser on Media and publicity, Femi Adesina, thanked the two leaders for their unflinching support to Nigeria and her people.

    He pledged commitment to continue working with them to advance various areas of cooperation.

  • Peace Committee glad Atiku is heading to court

    President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday met with the members of the National Peace Committee (NPC) headed by former Head of State, General Absulsalami Abubakar at the presidential villa, Abuja.

    At the closed-door meeting, the Committee presented the issues raised by the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Atiku Abubakar over the outcome of the February 23 election to the President.

    President Buhari was declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as winner of the election after polling 15,191,847 votes to defeat the candidate of the PDP, Atiku who scored 11, 262, 978 votes.

    Briefing State House correspondents after the meeting, Abdulsalami noted the results of the presidential elections have raised a lot of dust with grievances expressed across various divide.

    He said that he was pleased to hear that the PDP has decided to approach the court to seek redress instead of resorting to violence.

    He said: “As much as we have grievances, l’ m glad that the PDP say they are going to court to challenge the process.

    “l think this is the right way to go about it, and l hope and pray that we will maintain this.”

    The former Head of State also confirmed that members of the committee had met with Atiku, who raised concerns over the conduct and outcome of the presidential election as well as the forthcoming elections.

    He, however, explained that what the former Vice President raised were concerns and not conditions as being speculated in some section of the media.

    He said: “The Presidential election result has raised a lot of dust and the people feel aggrieved.

    “Yesterday l met the PDP Presidential candidate and his party in other to ensure that this peace committee ensures that really, our concern is about Nigeria.

    “Atiku presented his grievances and his observations, he did not present any conditions, he gave his complaints, which we have come to presented and discuss with Mr. President to see what can be done.

    “And to listen to their grievances and what they think has gone wrong and we are here today to see his Excellency the President in other to relay the fears and concerns of the PDP and Mr. President he listen to us and has taken note of what we have told him.

    Read also: No deal with Peace Committee to halt legal action, says PDP

    “Nigerians should please on behalf of this country and all of us, regardless, we need peace.

    “This country is very, very important to all of us. We are not talking about self-interest. We are talking about the interest of the country.

    “I keep saying whenever there is violence, we are not going to see violence in Ikoyi, in the Villa and you will not find violence in the various government houses in this country.

    “It is always the poor man that gets to kill themselves and so on,” he added.

    Other members of the committee that attended the meeting with the President were the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto, Mathew Hassan Kukah, His Grace, John Cardinal Onaiyekan, Catholic Bishop of Abuja Archdiocese.

  • Buhari would have received more northern votes, says Marafa

    President Muhammadu Buhari should have received more votes from northern states in the February 23rd poll but for insurgency and insecurity, Senator Kabiru Marafa (Zamfara Central) has stated.

    He also welcomed the decision of presidential candidate of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar to go to court to challenge the result.

    He spoke on Friday with State House Correspondents after a parley with President.

    On criticisms that have trailed votes from the north, Senator Marafa said: “If you ask me I will tell you that I am not even pleased with the votes that came from my state because I believe we could have done much more.

    “We have 1.4million registered voters and we recorded only about 650,000 votes, so what is the big deal about it?

    “If you look at all the states, I think the overall performance is below 60 percent. African leaders congratulate Buhari on his re-election in most of the states.

    “We have more than 80 million registered voters and out of that figures how many voted?

    “In fact we are supposed to lament because the situation was supposed to be much more than that.

    “Nigerians are supposed to be more politically aware and they are supposed to turnout in their numbers to vote much more than we have seen. So I don’t see anything unusual about that.”

    On the March 9 governorship election, he said: “Well, the most important thing now is that we have finished the presidential election which a lot of people are united on the candidacy of president Muhammadu Buhari but when it comes to the governorship election, there are a lot of disparities across the states which the President himself has reckoned by actions.

    Read also: No deal with Peace Committee to halt legal action, says PDP

    “So I will urge people to vote for people they trust that can protect their lives and properties, people that will bring about prosperity to them.

    “The President has shown that he is a great democrat and we have seen what he did in Ogun State. We have seen what he did in Imo State and so on and so forth.

    “This is to tell you that the president is ushering a new brand of democracy without bitterness. People should be allowed to choose.”

  • US, China congratulate Buhari

    The United States of America and China have sent congratulatory messages to President Muhammadu Buhari for winning the 2019 Presidential election.

    A statement by the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, said that Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday extended congratulations to President Muhammadu Buhari on his decisive win in the February 23 presidential election in Nigeria.

    In his congratulatory message, President Xi said: ‘‘On the occasion, of your re-election as the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, I would like to, on behalf of the government and people of China and in my own name, extend to Your Excellency warmest congratulations and best wishes. I wish you continued success in fulfilling the lofty mission.’’

    President Xi said, through joints efforts with President Buhari, Nigeria and China in recent years have significantly enhanced political mutual trust and secured fruitful outcomes in practical cooperation, which have delivered tangible benefits to both countries.

    ‘‘I highly value China’s relations with Nigeria and stand ready to join hands with you to follow through on the outcome of the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation and take the China-Nigeria strategic partnership to a new height, to the greater benefits of the two countries and two peoples,’’ President Xi said.

    In another statement, the U.S. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo congratulated the people of Nigeria on a successful presidential election, and President Buhari on his re-election.

    Secretary Pompeo commended all Nigerians who participated peacefully in the February 23 Presidential and National Assembly elections and condemned those whose acts of violence harmed Nigerians and the electoral process.

    ‘‘We note the assessments of international and domestic observer missions affirming the overall credibility of the election, despite localized violence and irregularities.

    ‘‘We also congratulate all the other candidates for their peaceful participation in the electoral process.

    “We call on all Nigerians to ensure successful state elections next week. Going forward, the United States remains committed to working together with Nigeria to achieve greater peace and prosperity for both our nations,’’ Secretary Pompeo said.

  • Atiku’s agents plan Lagos takeover

    Recruit Agbakoba, Odumakin, Afikuyomi, CSOs

    A FORCEFUL takeover of Lagos is a “consolation prize” being contemplated by the camp of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate Atiku Abubakar after a crushing defeat by President Muhammadu Buhari in last Saturday’s presidential polls, it was learnt last night.

    The move was one of the resolutions at an emergency strategy meeting held by the Atiku team when it became apparent that President Buhari had won by a wide margin, the first being a formal rejection of APC’s victory as announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

    Buhari polled 15,191,847 votes to defeat Atiku, who scored 11,262,978.

    Even as the PDP flagbearer is still mulling his legal team to challenge Buhari at the tribunal, his strategists believe that taking over Lagos, the nation’s commercial never centre, will enable the opposition party become an effective countervailing force to APC controlling Abuja, the political headquarters.

    A similar bid was launched for Lagos in April 2015 by the then President Goodluck Jonathan with the deployment of dollars to induce voters after the PDP lost the presidential poll to the APC. The bid failed.

    “To actualise the new plot, we can confirm that a huge war-chest has been mobilised by Atiku’s camp to finance ahead of the March 9 state election a vicious smear campaign against the National Leader of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, believed to have coordinated PDP’s defeat as the Co-Chairman of the APC Presidential Campaign Council,” a source said last night.

    The source went on: “Specifically, Atiku’s hatchetmen are to spread anti-Tinubu messages in the traditional media and social media, deploying any ‘means necessary’.

    “The first leg of the strategy meeting, it was reliably gathered, held at highbrow Intercontinental Hotel on Kofo Abayomi, Victoria Island, Lagos Saturday night where the PDP governorship candidate in Lagos, Mr. Jimi Agbaje, met with Senator Tokunbo Afikuyomi and a few others to perfect the plan to recruit a faction of Afenifere and willing human rights activists to create a facade that the anti-Tinubu campaign is the initiative of civil society organisations (CSOs).

    “The support of the likes of Olisa Agbakoba, SAN, Mr. Yinka Odumakin has been secured in this connection.

    “In fact, the inaugural press conference is to be addressed by Mr. Agbakoba and Odumakin, whose relentless media offensive against Buhari had failed to sway Yoruba votes to Atiku across the Southest last Saturday.

    “Afikuyomi, described last night as a ‘Judas’ after benefitting politically from Tinubu in APC, was said to have been part of the ‘Dubai retreat’ hosted late last year by the Atiku camp after winning the PDP presidential ticket to draw up a ‘war plan’ against Buhari.

    To evade public scrutiny or being accused of ‘anti-party activity’ by APC, Afikuyomi was said to have opted out of the Dubai-Abuja flight and rather adopted a decoy by flying to Lagos through Uganda.

    “Interestingly, Afikuyomi had been the chief coordinator of the second term bid by the outgoing Governor Akinwumi Ambode of Lagos which crashed in the APC primaries held in October in 2018.

    “Furthermore, the involvement of another Ambode’s core supporter, Mr. Wale Oluwo, in the latest plot against APC interest in Lagos set tongues wagging again last night.

    “Oluwo, who resigned as the Lagos State Commissioner for Energy, has been described as commander in the anti-Tinubu plot, having superintended over the multi-billion Naira street lights projects exclusively under

    Ambode and has serially been fingered as the secret ‘emissary’ between Ambode and Agbaje.”

    After his exit from the Lagos cabinet last October, Oluwo declared support for Agbaje’s governorship ambition.
    But Governor Ambode has consistently denied any link whatsoever with the funding of Agbaje’s campaign.

    Party elders, it was further learnt, were incensed following startling revelations of mouth-watering patronage Ambode had doled out to Afikuyomi even while most of them were shabbily treated.

    “Among Ambode’s largesse to Afikuyomi is an eye-popping mansion located in the highbrow Ikeja GRA, the furnishing of which was said to have cost nothing less than N400 million”, the source claimed.

  • Reflections on the 2019 presidential election

    The 2019 presidential election is over. President Muhammadu Buhari has been offered a second term of four years. The reelected president deserves our congratulations. Of course, he must be the first to admit that there are numerous challenges ahead. But before we go into this, there are some takeaways from the concluded elections.

    First, it is pleasing that the nation is tending toward a two-party system as indicated by the performance of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in the elections. This means that each of these two parties has a good chance of becoming the ruling party every four years, ensuring a keen competition for the endorsement of the electorates, thus raising our hope for good governance.

    I am not suggesting that a multi-party system is bad for the country. But in this matter, “the more, the merrier” is not in the best interest of the country’s nascent democracy. This election featured more than seventy political parties contesting for the presidency. That is simply ridiculous. There must be more stringent criteria for registering political parties.

    Second, from intra-party competition for nomination to inter-party electoral contests, our elections are still bedeviled by the influence of money and wealth. This prevents talented individuals without deep pockets or godfathers from having a good chance to serve. Worse, it gives an undue advantage to proven thieves and corrupt individuals, who have illegally and immorally appropriated the wealth of the nation, to exploit the system. To combat this unwholesome trend, there must be a collective endeavor to curb the influence of money with necessary legislation. More importantly, such legislation must be back by strong enforcement measures.

    Third, while it cannot be denied that regionalism or ethnic nationalism is alive and well across the land, its role in this last election is debatable. For one thing, both presidential candidates are from the same ethnic nationality and their tickets show that they have inroads into other zones. And though their running mates are of different ethnicities, it didn’t appear to have made much of a difference.

    For rising above bigotry and chauvinism, we could pat ourselves on the back. The heavy presence of PDP in the Southeast and South-south predated the choice of Obi as Atiku’s running mate. It even predated the presidency of Goodluck Jonathan. And while Osinbajo is from the Southwest, PDP showed a footprint in Oyo and Ondo. On the electoral map, you could see a red island on a sea of green from Northeast to Southwest. That island is Oyo. Hopefully, the era of ethnic politics and the politicization of ethnicity is passing.

    Fourth, to the credit of the contestants, this election has been fought most effectively on issues, including the state of the economy, candidate integrity, political restructuring, and party reputation. These are legitimate issues that will always be relevant in our politics going forward. And while the victorious party may rightly claim vindication of its positions by its victory, there is good reason for it to take a good look at the people’s complaints, which the opposition had tried to tap into.

    Fifth, intra-party crisis, fueled by indiscipline, especially within the rank of leaders, played a decisive role in the conduct and outcome of the elections in some states, including Oyo, Ondo, Imo, Rivers, and Ogun, where the governor was implicated in an attack on the presidential election campaign rally in the state. The loss of APC in Oyo, Ondo, and Imo, where the party is in power, and the failure of APC to present National Assembly candidates in Rivers state, are direct outcomes of intra-party crises.

    Sixth, every citizen who has faith in popular democracy and in the ability of our people to choose wisely based on their interests must be happy that the cabal of retired generals who seek to impose their will on the nation are now truly disgraced and retired for good. You do not have to be a sympathiser of Buhari or the ruling party to appreciate the fact of his victory despite the vindictive campaign orchestrated by former President Obasanjo who has constituted himself as the kingmaker.

    How is it ever fair or decent that General Obasanjo would choose voluntarily to support a candidate for election and within a year later, he turns against him with public letter-writing. What good does that practice accomplish? Even the Almighty gives his creatures a longer time period for them to change and repent. Yet every aspiring candidate runs to this “all-knowing” human for endorsement. Now that for the first time, the candidate he ridiculed publicly has won reelection and the one whose sins he forgave on our behalf has lost, it is time for Obasanjo to honorably retire from active politics, if he has any honor left to preserve.

    APC and Buhari must be pleased and be thankful to God that despite their rejection by the military cabal and the generality of the elite whose fortunes have been damaged by their policies, they are beneficiaries of the undiluted devotion of the masses, the poor and working class, whose support made the President’s victory possible.

    For the reason of the support from the poor and downtrodden that puts the president on top, it’s only fair to expect, and indeed, urge that the second term will come up with policies and programs that put the masses in the driver’s seat. This is especially urgent if the party and the president still adhere to their progressive ideology. Fortunately, the party would still have a majority in the National Assembly, one that one hopes is more aligned with its progressive mandate.

    Read also: PDP calls for cancellation election in Kwara

    To this end, it is fitting to bring to memory the advice of this column to President-elect Buhari in 2015: “General Buhari has a mandate that comes with great expectations. It is not an easy spot to be on. But….there is a lot of goodwill, considering the ecstatic jubilation across the land…. The people’s general cannot afford to disappoint!!!! He must build trust. And he must satisfy the yearnings of the youth and the elderly for the dividends of democracy.”

    Continuing, I noted that “the APC manifesto is the political Holy Book of President-elect Buhari. He referred to it incessantly and campaigned on the three priorities that the manifesto highlighted. He promised that he will provide adequate security of life and property for citizens; that he will attack corruption at its root; and that he will reboot the engine of the economy and will diversify it to tackle youth unemployment.”

    That was four years ago. There is no doubt, however, that the same advice is apt today. While APC has moved from “Change” slogan to “Next Level”, the party has not changed its priorities which remain focused on anti-corruption war, economic recovery, and security.

    The Next Level slogan, which also should be the administration’s mantra going forward, is a nod to its modest achievements on the three fronts in the first term, and a dedication to up its act in the new term. The election has been cast as a referendum on the president’s performance in the last four years. That he won is evidence that the electorate gave him a passing grade.

    However, while the victory is not undeserved given the progress in the key areas, especially infrastructure, there is always good reason for introspection and retrospection. On top of the agenda of the party leadership and the presidency must be party discipline, without which it would again start on a wrong foot. Recall, how Saraki and Dogara defied the party and got away with it in 2015. Every challenge that the administration had to struggle with emanated from the way that gross indiscipline was handled. A hands-off approach by the President will most certainly lead to the same unfortunate outcome this time.

    President Buhari “must not be tempted to surround himself with sycophants who only tell him what pleases him. He must tap into the wise counsel of those who will boldly disagree with him with good and unselfish reasons. The bulk stops with him now.” These last words from me in 2015 are still valid in 2019.