Presidency Nad Buhari

8/10/2019 Presidency Nad Buhari

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2015 Presidency: Buhari, Tinubu, Amaechi

ruled out by APC

NIGERIAN PILOT

All Progressives Congress seems to be having its

first major headache since the successful merger

of all the parties. The party, it is understood, is

locked in the battle of getting a credible and

nationally accepted presidential candidate aheadof the 2015 elections. This, according to insiders

has not been very easy as the party wants to

factor in many things before arriving at whoever

will fly its presidential flag.

Such things as ethnicity and religion are the twomajor areas the party wants to iron out amicably

in order to minimise the expected rancor and

division it may create post-party primary.

According to a very reliable insider source,

though General Muhammadu Buhari is one namethat keeps on resurfacing whenever the

presidential ticket of APC is mentioned, but the

odds are stacked against him because party
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chieftains say that his impressive followership

has not been able to translate into electoral

victories since 2003 that he has been contestingfor the presidency.

A Buhari/Tinubu ticket was mooted sometime,

but I can tell you that the idea has been quickly

jettisoned. One, it is a Muslim/Muslim ticket,

which may not sell in a religiously combustiblecountry like Nigeria. Moreover, since 2003 that

General Buhari has been contesting the

presidency, despite the mammoth crowd that

throng out at his campaign rallies, he has not been

able to translate that into concrete victory and

the party hierarchy has looked at the scenarioand are convinced that throwing the General into

the fray in 2015, may not be in the interest of

the partys ambitionwinning the presidency in

2015. And moreover, age is no longer on his side.

So, the search continues and it is not an easyone. What the party is looking at really is a

younger Northerner, preferably a Christian. This

is mainly to assuage the grievances of the


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minorities in the North who have been murmuring

it aloud that the core North has not treated

them fairly.The issue of a Christian Northerner is not all

that sacrosanct, but the most important thing is

that whoever the party selects in 2015 must be

saleable across the various national divides, the

source said.While on the surface, the defection of the G5

governors may be a welcomed development,

insiders say it is most likely to open another

round of trouble for the party. It is learnt that

the defected governors are insisting on GovernorRotimi Amaechi of Rivers State being the partys

running mate to whoever will emerge as its

candidate, most probably from the North.

However, the party seems very uncomfortable

with this arrangement, knowing that as it standsnow, Amaechi does not have any political

stronghold that he can deliver, should the party

concede the vice presidential slot to him. The


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party knows that Governor Amaechi cannot

deliver South-South to the party as long as

President Goodluck Jonathan is in the race. Evendelivering his home state of Rivers is in doubt.

This explains why the party is seriously looking at

the South-East, the source said.

Analysts are of the opinion that with this initial

selection crisis impending at the party, whicheverway the APC decides to go, whether a Northern

Christian or Muslim, it is most likely to alienate

itself from a large voting population.

If the party decides to settle for a Northern

Christian, choosing a running mate from theSouth becomes very difficult and moreover, the

large Muslim population in the North will feel

cheated and protest votes may arise. If on the

other hand the party decides to go for a

Northern Muslim, which is most likely, theminority Christian population in the North will

feel dumped as usual and protest votes may also

arise.


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2015: APC in dilemma over Buharis

candidature

Two years ahead of the 2015 presidential

election, the leaders of the yet-to-be registered

All Progressive Congress, APC, are already in

dilemma over the ambition of the former Head

of State, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari.

Already, Buhari has indicated interest to contest

the 2015 poll, for the fourth time.

Impeccable sources told National Mirror that

while some major stakeholders in the Action

Congress of Nigeria, ACN, are keen in picking a

northern candidate, particularly from the North-


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West to confront President Goodluck Jonathan

in the election; they are averse to Buharis

candidacy.

But another major plank in the coalition is

rooting for Buharis candidacy on the strength of

his electoral value as demonstrated in the 2003,

2007 and 2011 presidential elections.

A competent source in APC told our

correspondent that the major stakeholders in

the All Nigeria Peoples Party, ANPP, and the

Congress for Progressive Change, CPC, believed

that Buhari is a sellable candidate.

Even before the takeoff of the APC, the choice

of who to be the flag bearer in the 2015


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presidential election had been a major source of

concern to us.

A major plank in the ACN does not want Buhari

while the majority views his electoral value as an

asset to the APC in the quest for the

Presidency, the source said.

Another source said that a prominent leader in

the ACN had earlier made a move to prevail on

the former ruler not to contest the 2015

election.

It was, however, gathered that Buhari was

unyielding which informed his recent statement

that he would once again contest the election.


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In 2015, if given the mandate, I will uphold your

trust, he had said penultimate week.

A top member of the CPC said the leadership of

the party was aware of the subterranean moves

to prevent Buhari from being the APC

presidential candidate in 2015.

He, however, vowed to resist any attempt to pick

the APC candidate through undemocratic means.

We are all democrats and equal partners in the

merger process. So, every stakeholder has equal

rights to vie for the presidential ticket. Buhari is

eminently qualified and he will pick the APC

ticket through open and democratic process, he

said.


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Some stalwarts in the ACN, however, reasoned

that Buharis outing against President Jonathan

in the 2011 election is a major factor to

consider.

They said that if the former ruler could defeat

President Jonathan in 12 of the 19 states in the

North, he was a sure bet for the APC in his

quest to win the 2015 election.

In the 2011 presidential poll, President Jonathan,

as an incumbent, polled 22, 350, 242 votes to

defeat Buhari, who got 11, 914,953 votes.

Out of the 19 northern states, President

Jonathan won in seven states of Kwara, Kogi,

Plateau, Benue, Nasarawa, Taraba and Adamawa.


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Buhari, as the CPC candidate, defeated the

President in 12 northern states of Bauchi,

Gombe, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi,

Niger, Borno, Sokoto, Yobe and Zamfara.

The performance of Buhari in the 2011 election

and previous presidential elections has put some

stakeholders in the APC in dilemma.

Dont forget that Buhari won in 12 states

against Jonathans seven. So he is no pushover.

We want to know which better candidate the

coalition intends to produce outside Buhari, a

source said.

But the National Publicity Secretary of the CPC,

Mr. Rotimi Fashakin, in an interview with

National Mirror, said no permutation could stop


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Buhari from contesting the 2015 presidential

election.

He said: He has told everybody that when he is

given presidential ticket, he will contest the

election. Gen. Buhari, as a democrat, will run for

the Presidency.

Any creature can aspire to deliver his country

from the shackles of bad governance.

Dont listen to speculation. There is nothing like

permutation on issues like age. Nobody is using

age in the presidential contest. General Buhari

remains qualified. How old was Ronald Reagan,

Nelson Mandela when they became presidents of

United States and South Africa respectively?


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Buhari will be 73 by 2015. Critics believe that

age may be a factor against his candidacy.

Even the National Chairman of the Peoples

Democratic Party, PDP, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur,

has expressed fears that the APC will be torn

apart on the altar of ambition.

Dont worry, this is not the first time Nigerians

would hear about merger. Let elections come and

everyone will see the problems within them. They

will be torn to rags because of ambitions, he

had said.

In another development, many governors of the

PDP have retraced their steps in their opposition

to the second term ambition of President

Jonathan in 2015.


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It was learnt at the weekend that a couple of

the recalcitrant governors have visited President

Jonathan to beg for forgiveness and pledged

their loyalty in the face of the awesome powers

of the president and an uncertain political future

of some of them.

The president needed to demonstrate he is in

charge and that no governor can challenge his

authority. This is the reason why the president

is baring his fangs against Amaechi, a source

said.

According to a source in the Presidency, only

three governors Rotimi Amaechi (Rivers), Rabiu

Kwankwaso (Kano) and Babangida Aliyu (Niger)


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are still adamant on their opposition to the

president.

The volte face was unconnected with the

decision of President Jonathan to wield the big

stick on Amaechi, the chairman of the Nigerian

Governors Forum, NGF.

Already, the party structure had been taken

away from Amaechi in Rivers State. Besides, his

aides are being discreetly probed by various

agencies of government.

It is against this background that the governors

have embarked on reconciliation with the

president.


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We are in a comfortable position with the

governors today. In the past weeks, many of

them in company of prominent leaders have

visited the President where they pledged to

work with him in his transformation agenda and

in his re-election bid.

The game has really changed, an aide of the

president told National Mirror.

An aide of a northern governor told our

correspondent that his governor stands in a good

stead working with the President.

It is true that we have issues with the

Presidency, but now reason has prevailed. So, we

lose nothing being in the good books of the

president. Being in opposition to the President


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doesnt pay us. This is why we have made

amends, the aide, who pleaded anonymity said.

Meanwhile, contrary to several denials by the

Presidency that it has not begun campaign for

the 2015 polls, there are indications that

associates of the president and some of his

trusted aides have put machinery in place to sell

the candidacy of President Jonathan.

A source in the know told National Mirror that

the Presidency is reaching out discreetly to

prominent northern leaders and Emirs to curry

support for the 2015 Presidency.

Serving ministers and public office holders have

been the link of the President in the North.


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In the South-West, President Jonathan has met

with a couple of leaders, traditional, political and

religious from the zone. Also, several political

groups are being formed to sell the Jonathans

candidacy in the zone.

Amaechis defection to APC a mistake, I know

team Tinubu & Buhari very well Tonye

Princewill

Posted On21 Dec 2013

Prince Tonye Princewill is a member of the ruling

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), a prominent
http://www.africanspotlight.com/2013/12/21/amaechis-defection-to-apc-a-mistake-i-know-team-tinubu-buhari-very-well-tonye-princewill/http://www.africanspotlight.com/2013/12/21/amaechis-defection-to-apc-a-mistake-i-know-team-tinubu-buhari-very-well-tonye-princewill/http://www.africanspotlight.com/2013/12/21/amaechis-defection-to-apc-a-mistake-i-know-team-tinubu-buhari-very-well-tonye-princewill/http://www.africanspotlight.com/2013/12/21/amaechis-defection-to-apc-a-mistake-i-know-team-tinubu-buhari-very-well-tonye-princewill/http://www.africanspotlight.com/2013/12/21/http://www.africanspotlight.com/2013/12/21/http://www.africanspotlight.com/2013/12/21/http://www.africanspotlight.com/2013/12/21/amaechis-defection-to-apc-a-mistake-i-know-team-tinubu-buhari-very-well-tonye-princewill/http://www.africanspotlight.com/2013/12/21/amaechis-defection-to-apc-a-mistake-i-know-team-tinubu-buhari-very-well-tonye-princewill/http://www.africanspotlight.com/2013/12/21/amaechis-defection-to-apc-a-mistake-i-know-team-tinubu-buhari-very-well-tonye-princewill/


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player in the politics of Rivers State and the

governorship candidate of the defunct Action

Congress in the 2007 general elections. In thisinterview, the Prince of Niger Delta politics

confirms speculations that he has finally parted

ways with his erstwhile bosom friend, Governor

Chibuike Amaechi. He traces the genesis of it all

and declares the governors recent defection to

the All Progressives Congress (APC) a mistake.

Tonye Princewill also speaks on burning national

issues, why he chose to remain in, and President

Goodluck Jonathans perceived 2015 presidential

ambition. Excerpts:

Question: What is your take on Governor

Amaechis move to APC and are you moving

with him?

The short answer is No. Moving to APC is a

mistake for him which has become inevitable. SoI call it the inevitable mistake. The governor

boxed himself into that position almost

deliberately and so if it looks like beer, smells


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like beer and tastes like beer, then let us all

acknowledge that it is what it is. He chose the

path he is walking. Talk of him being forced totake it is for those who dont know any better.

Mr. President loved Amaechi but Amaechi put

that love aside to perform his first love which

was Chairman of the Governors forum and his

performance of it undoubtedly brought them into

conflict. He naively thought that it wouldnt. Manyof us advised him against it but he said, The

President is the Commander in Chief, I am just a

Chairman; there will be no conflict. Now we can

see how wrong he was. The President may have

made peace with Amaechi but the Presidents menand women wouldnt, especially considering the

media approach he (Amaechi) employed. The

insults were too much and it only made a bad

situation worse. People who have tried to kill the

President have made peace with him so why not

Amaechi? The answer comes from the lack of asufficient desire for peace.


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Very few people have the authority to talk on this

matter like small me. I understood the internal

workings of Amaechis mind on this issue; I amvery familiar with the Presidents personal view

on this matter; I have worked with the heads of

the current APC family (Tinubu and Buhari) at

close quarters and I understand the pulse of both

teams very well. So when I, who understand this

in and out, say Amaechi was wrong, I know what Iam saying and when I who have been there before

say dont go, I know also what I am saying.

Asking me to go there is like asking me to return

to secondary school after leaving university many

years later. A big mistake! It is the governorssupporters I feel sorry for. He has been Speaker

for eight years and will be leaving as governor

after eight years, so he cant complain. But

thanks to his decision, his inevitable mistake,

many councillors, LGA chairmen and other political

office holders will have their political prospectscut short. It is them I pity. They are the real

victims, alongside Rivers people. Amaechi will be

fine.


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People are wondering where you stand. Is it

with PDP or PDM?

They shouldnt. I am in PDP. I have been theresince 2010 and I am staying there. Many of them

wonder because I speak for the people first

before the party. Unlike most politicians, for me

my state comes first. I will not blindly follow a

party that does not have the interest of my stateat heart. So if my views are seen as anti-PDP, it is

only in the spirit of correcting the one you love

whenever they deviate. After all, when Amaechi

and I were working together I publicly criticised

him. My loyalty has always been to the people. If

Amaechi or PDP does not walk the path of mypeople, I will not hesitate to remind them. Having

said this, PDP is still the best of the rest, the

only party with a national interest and people who

you can go to war with. I would rather go to war

with (Nyesom) Wike than with some of these two-faced politicians. With him and his faults, you

know where you stand with him. I can deal with

that. Same applies to Jonathan: If he cant do


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something, he will not say he can. He may be slow

to decide but when he does, that is it. He keeps

his word. That has not been my experience withmany of them.

If I take you through the new APC arrangement,

the story is different. Since political parties have

refused to have a unique ideology of their own,

despite some of us coming close to insulting themon the subject, you are better of pitching your

tent with a team going somewhere and with your

peoples interests at heart. I make bold to say

that, for me in Rivers, that team is PDP. With

respect to PDM, it is a party close to my heart

and many good people uncomfortable with theaggressive style of politics played in PDP have

sought refuge there. They are organised,

respecters of internal democracy and a roof for

those, who cant see the difference between APC

and PDP but want to get involved in party politicsto make a difference. My dream is for PDP to

make them allies. It will not be easy but it is


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possible. They have a bright future, if not now

in 2019.

My commitment to the youths has made me keepone eye on PDM and its progress. I believe the

youth can use it to take control of their future.

Their website pdm.ng is proof that they are the

first political party in Nigeria to effect online

registration. At the rate they are going withmanual registration kicking off next week, they

are set to become a serious force in Nigerian

politics. Their pedigree guarantees it. I tell

people that my heart is with PDM but my head

and my legs are firmly in PDP. PDM will make

change tomorrow, PDP can make change today.They should work together.

How is your relationship with Amaechi now?

It is no longer what it used to be but that is also

inevitable. I have supported him at my ownexpense and it was no longer wise to continue to

do so. Each man to a box, they say. Most of the

negativity I get today was because I decided to


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support Amaechis government in 2007. Some

accuse me of doing it for money, others accuse

me of lacking the fighting spirit, some go as faras calling me a sell-out. All that because I

decided after fighting a good fight that I should

allow what I saw as a divine decision to stand. I

sold all I had to fight the 2007 election but after

I supported Amaechi, I had to leave the state to

survive because I was not a government pickinwho survived off government leading up to 2007

so why should I be lazy and become one now?

Amaechi knows this. I did some work but it was

not at all commensurate with my input and even

though I finished it after one year, it took themover two years later to pay me. But I never

complained. Amaechi was a good man and I know

he appreciated me.

Amaechi was like aradite, anyway, so empowering

me was not his first, second or third interest. Inoticed this and went about my business. Many

say I was involved in Silverbird, the 1,000-bed

hospital, waste management and many other


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things but the truth is not what it seems and one

day it will all come out. In 2011, I engineered over

half a billion naira of contributions to Amaechiscampaign. Majority of the contributors came with

money from outside Rivers State. Did Tonye

Princewill see one contract worth that much? No.

Yet I still stood by him. because I was there for

the states interest, not my pocket. That support

I gave Amaechi cost me politically but I didntlook back. I gave it. In the end God will judge us.

My people supported him tooth and nail but yet

they were not acknowledged. I asked and asked,

they were promised and promised but even after

he told them in public and on national TV that helikes to keep his word as an example to his

children, he didnt. Still I supported him. He

removed our commissioners in his cabinet, still I

supported him, he promised other appointments

and failed, still I supported him, because I wasnot there for me. If I was interested in me, I

would have done things differently, had a deal

with Omehia and collected N1.5 billion from him.


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All this I did because I believed Amaechi came

from God. I never knew him before October

2007, yet I was more useful to him than peoplewho grew up with him in politics. Many of my

supporters felt that my refusal to fall out with

him signified I was eating fat and content. This

was not the case.

I saw my support as a stabilising force. TheRiverine were agitating for a governor after eight

years of an Odili upland regime. People like me

deciding to stand by Amaechi gave him credibility

and soothed the Riverine /Upland divide that has

dogged our state for so long. One day I sincerely

hope that Amaechi looks at my role and realisesthat he lost a friend given to him by God. It

might be too late for us, but let him not do this

to others. Eventually it catches up with us. The

same man he called corrupt a.k.a Mr. Consumables

and not wanting to do politics with is now theinterim Chairman of APC in my state; the same

man he called an irritant and refused his calls is

now his spokesman and the list goes on. He


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deliberately poached members of my team

without the courtesy of my consent and did it

only when he needed them. But I am not bitter.They are good men and deserve recognition. I am

glad for the role I played in their lives. Good luck

to them. I only wish he had recognised them

sooner.

Can you still be governor in 2015 now?Why not? I am free of all encumbrances. I have

stood in Amaechis shadow for too long and now I

am once again my own man, free to talk for me

and free to speak for my people without worrying

about relationships and allegiances. Even though Iwas still quite blunt, I was a lot more measured

than I would like and a lot less critical than would

have pleased me. Now I can talk about what is

still wrong, what is not right and what needs doing

without suspicions about me wanting to be

governor. Many people say I won in 2007, 2015will be an opportunity to find out how popular I

really am. I have never held a political office

before, yet I have touched more people than


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hope it is not true. But I will ask him. I have

never abused him or insulted him. In fact, I have

even prayed for him. But I will not fight ourPresident and I will not go for Senate in 2015.

This I will not do. We have agreed to disagree. I

hope agreeably.

What is your view on Atiku and Jonathan? Who

will you support for President?I will support the President for a continued four-

year term in office. Let me make that absolutely

clear. As much as Atiku in my mind is a brilliant

politician and a great presidential material, I am

afraid that his route to the presidency is unclearto even a nuclear strategist like myself. He cant

get the PDP ticket and the APC ticket is not

aimed in his direction either (thanks to the G7).

He cant keep jumpingjust to get a ticket, so I

believe he should stay in PDP. Who knows, if he

stays there anything can happen tomorrow; 2019is there and his chances are still quite good.

Jonathan can acknowledge his support, Nigerians

can or maybe just maybe he wasnt destined to be


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President. I dont know. What I do know is I am

not going to APC, Atiku should not allow himself

to be used by those G7 Governors. I have noreason to do what would amount to impeaching

the President by denying him a second term.

What is his crime? Granted he has not done

fantastic in many areas but I am not fooled by

the finger pointing especially because of the

grubby fingers that are doing that pointing.

They are no better, they have a selfish agenda

and do not mean well for my country either. Id

rather have four more years of this certainty

than eight more years of their own version of it.

Politics should be about compromise. Honour

amongst thieves. Help Jonathan to go again for

the sake of the country and help him rule. He

needs all the help he can get because many good

people are fooled into abandoning him so the bad

people around him are gaining relevance. ThePresident is a good man. Ive seen many

acknowledge this. They complain about the people

around him. So why not come around him, too? If


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you are kept at a distance, maybe it is because of

your actions and your body language. Open it up to

dialogue and compromise. Do what Mandela wouldhave done. Talk to your oppressors, dine with your

enemies and seek a way forward knowing that the

interest of the nation come first. The voice of

the people is the voice of God. Jonathan didnt

get there by his might, so maybe God has a

reason. Let us think about it. Everything I havesaid here, I have told Atiku in private. Without

divulging his response, let me say that he

acknowledged that Jonathan is the only President

that has not attempted to destroy his business.

All other successive Presidents have. Does thatnot tell you something? Nigerians have heard the

phrase, Its the thought that counts but let

them remove the and use its thought that

counts. We need to start thinking.

I rest my case. That is the kind of man you aredealing with. A GEJ/Atiku alliance would so

gladden my heart. It would be a dream come true

for my nation. If Mandela and de Klerk could work


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together, why not them? The answer is leadership

and these elders God gave us. Ego and ambition

cannot come before us the people. My comfort isthat God knows best. Only one person can occupy

that seat at any one time. For now it is Jonathan.

I advised Amaechi not to support him in 2011,

Amaechi ignored my advice. Now he wants me to

help him clean up the mess? I wont do it. You lie

in the bed you made. Jonathan may not supportme for governor but I will support him for

President especially seeing the forces that have

mounted against him because it is right. I try not

to put my interest first. It helps me sleep better

at night.With PDP in such disarray, how can they win

the Presidency in 2015?

Because what you see as disarray is really just a

cleansing. Those that leave were never meant to

be there. Granted PDP has a structural problemhighlighted by this recent drama but now PDP is

free to address it without distractions. PDP is a

formidable machine. I know. I have come up


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against it before and so I pity those who start to

read its obituary. They underestimate it and

underestimate Jonathan. I did that in 2011, but Iwill not be repeating that mistake. Listen, PDP

Governors controlled the party until Jonathan

came along. Obasanjo and YarAdua had tried to

rebalance the control but they failed.

We have a string of memorials for PDP Chairmenwho fell at the hands of the governors but GEJ

changed all that. How? You can trace it to the

Governors Forum election. A masterpiece in

political sleight of hand. Now you see it, now you

dont. While all of us were complaining that 19 is

more than 16 and quite rightly so, the forum diedand governors were suspended by the same party

they controlled. People should go and study what

is happening in Nigerian politics today and they

will see that acting foolish is the new wisdom

because Nigeria is full of wise people. Busyanalysing the problem so much that a silent

listener who actually focuses instead on solutions


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can make progress where other so called smarter

ones have failed.

In the end the majority know that APC is nobetter than PDP and if they sense that PDP and

Jonathan are ready to listen, they will give them

another chance. If President Jonathan wants to

come back in 2015, he has a lot of work to do. But

he can do it. Some of us will help him do it. Thereare many young Nigerians that see the 419 in our

politics. How can APC absorb the same PDP

governors they were abusing last month and hand

over the party in their states to them as if

people were not there before. And they say they

are different? Is that democracy? Is Nyakochanged? The original APC members in Rivers

State are about to defect en masse to PDP and

PDM in sheer disbelief. Tell me who is in

disarray?

Is the level of corruption in Nigeria today notan indictment on Jonathan?


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It is an indictment on all of us, especially him.

Yes. But Nigerians need to move beyond

complaining to actually doing. We complainedabout Obasanjo assigning national assets to

himself and what happened? Jonathans hasnt

done that. Did corruption end? Did it go

underground? So why do we keep doing the same

thing and expect different results?

Complaining about GEJ is not the solution. He has

done a couple of things that suggest he can do

more. The PDP Chairmans son hasbeen remanded

in custody. Haba! That was never possible in

Obasanjos PDP. But it has happened. Tambuwal

complained the other day that Jonathans bodylanguage encourages corruption; Amaechi

complained that trillions are missing and Dino

Melaye set up an anti-corruption NGO. Who are

we kidding? Can we please stop the drama? The

political class is knee-deep in corruption, soforgive me if I dont fall for that particular game.

They want Jonathan out and somebody else in. So

they can control the key to the CBN vault. Sorry.


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Now we know. If good people surround Jonathan,

bad people involved in corruption will be

expendable. Now you ask him to chuck out thefew who stood by him and he feels exposed. Let

us understand them even if we dont agree.

Obama said of Mandela that he sought to

understand where his opponents were coming

from. We should learn from Mandela.

Nigerians should be wise. The truth is bitter.

There are no saints in the political space

anymore; just serial sinners. Let us find the ones

who accept they need help and see if we can save

them. Jonathan needs help. He has only four more

years. He is a much better option than a full eightyears of these other ones. The damage political

drama does our nation is beyond belief. In the

end, they all settle and resume casual affairs,

while the people remain casualties. Never again! I

dont see 2015 as change; I see it as apreparation for change. I see that change in

2019.


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Where do you see the state of the nation

come 2015?

I see it stabilising. The critical year for me like Isaid is 2019 when Jonathan is on his way out. If

the North do not support him now, they will lose

the Presidents support in 2019 and that may tilt

things in favour of the South East politics. That

would isolate the North and drive their politicalprospects deeper underground. Knowing the

history of our country, that will open up many ugly

possibilities. Containing that situation in 2019 is

my concern not 2015. If the President does

what he needs to do, 2015 will pass peacefully and

there is nothing to suggest he wont.

Mandela pulled South Africa from the brink;

what can be done for Nigeria?

Nigeria can move forward in leaps and bounds if

they are given the right leadership. Mandela wasa fighter and a defender of democracy but he

was willing to speak with even his oppressors to

move his country forward. This is what is lacking


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Presidency Nad Buhari

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