It is unfortunate that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential campaign rally that held in Kaduna, witnessed a very low turnout. With this development, I only doubt if the Nigerian ruling political party would carry the day in the forth coming presidential election slated to hold on February 14, 2015. I stand to be corrected though.
PICTURE CREDIT: OsunDefender
The main Nigeria's opposition All Progressives Congress (APC), today had its presidential rally in Ilorin the Kwara State capital to seek the people's vote. Have a feel yourself.
PICTURE CREDIT: OsunDefender
In life, every human being is sentimental and it is nobody,s fault. But former Lagos State governor and leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu maintained that he decided to sacrifice his ambition to becoming Nigeria's president in the interest of the country. It Is only Tinubu who knows how sincere he is, going by this statement. Here is what he said, "People define patriotism as putting the country first but this is what the ‘Poverty Development Party’ refuses to understand. We chose Buhari not because Bola Tinubu is not interested in the Presidency.
"I am capable, competent, qualified, younger and richer but there comes a time that people must make sacrifices for their nation. I prayed that Nigeria would get better and we would not need a man like him (Buhari). But today, we are in a great crisis; we face a lot of challenges.
"When South Africa was in a great dilemma and was about to disintegrate, they called Nelson Mandela of 74 years old. He used his wisdom to save his country. When the United States was in economic depression, they called 73-year-old Ronald Reagan because he was frugal and incorruptible.
"When America was faced with depression and war, they called a retired General, Dwight Eisenhower, to rescue the country and the country was returned on a path of success. When France was faced with war and economic depression, they called a retired General, Charles De Gaul, to rescue the country. Whether Buhari presented a certificate or not, he is still qualified to rule the country.
“So what do we need now? Buhari. This is the time for us. General Buhari, whether you are qualified or not qualified, we are calling you to come and rescue us in Nigeria."
In life, every human being is sentimental and it is nobody,s fault. But former Lagos State governor and leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu maintained that he decided to sacrifice his ambition to becoming Nigeria's president in the interest of the country. It Is only Tinubu who knows how sincere he is, going by this statement. Here is what he said, "People define patriotism as putting the country first but this is what the ‘Poverty Development Party’ refuses to understand. We chose Buhari not because Bola Tinubu is not interested in the Presidency.
"I am capable, competent, qualified, younger and richer but there comes a time that people must make sacrifices for their nation. I prayed that Nigeria would get better and we would not need a man like him (Buhari). But today, we are in a great crisis; we face a lot of challenges.
"When South Africa was in a great dilemma and was about to disintegrate, they called Nelson Mandela of 74 years old. He used his wisdom to save his country. When the United States was in economic depression, they called 73-year-old Ronald Reagan because he was frugal and incorruptible.
"When America was faced with depression and war, they called a retired General, Dwight Eisenhower, to rescue the country and the country was returned on a path of success. When France was faced with war and economic depression, they called a retired General, Charles De Gaul, to rescue the country. Whether Buhari presented a certificate or not, he is still qualified to rule the country.
“So what do we need now? Buhari. This is the time for us. General Buhari, whether you are qualified or not qualified, we are calling you to come and rescue us in Nigeria."
Imagine what Nigerian politicians are turning into. This is actually the Osun State governor, Rauf Aregbesola of the All Progressives Congress (APC), on his way to the APC campaign this afternoon, spraying cash and recharge cards to his supporters. Should this type of a thing be tolerated in this country? I feel sorry for Nigeria.
PIX CREDIT: Naij.com
Presidential flag bearer of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Goodluck Jonathan was today at the U.J Esuene Stadium, Calabar, Cross River State, during the party's presidential campaign rally waving to party members.
PIX CREDIT: Naij.com
The All Progressives Congress (APC) is currently holding its presidential campaign rally at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Surulere Lagos State, Nigeria. Have a feel of happenings at the venue.
PIX CREDIT: Naij.com
This monkey, named the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) monkey was chained by the presidential campaign team of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Benin, the Edo State capital on Thursday.
In order not to be seen as attempting to dabble on the intelligence of all Nigerians, one is of the strong contention, that moves by the presidential flagbearer of the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC), Muhammadu Buhari to boycott the presidential debate organised by the Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria (BON) should be shelved.
The reason is so that Nigerians would not be denied the opportunity to hear from the presidential contenders what plans they have for this country if eventually voted.
The excuse that he alongside his running mate, Professor Yemi Osinbajo are pulling out of the event because of what they termed the unhidden bias and campaign of calumny by key organisers of the programme, against the corporate political interest of the APC may not be tenable.
What should be important to the duo of Buhari and Osinbajo is the interest of Nigerians and not their own interest.
Specifically, APC campaign organisation in a statement signed by its Director Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, argued that the Nigeria Election Debate Group -powered debate, was fraught with fundamental errors from the outset, by wearing the toga of government control, especially being composed mainly of agencies and allies of the incumbent People’s Democratic Party’s administration.
The statement reads in part: "A salutary inspection of the composition of NEGD brings into focus the Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria, National Television Authority, Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria and the Africa Independent Television (owned by a PDP chieftain).
"And going by the avalanche of inflammatory statements, misinformation and blatant lies being propagated by some of these media against our Party and candidates contrary to the Koffi Annan brokered Abuja Peace Accord, and the failure of these aggressors to desist and apologise, have left the APC Campaign with no option than to steer clear of any premeditated smear campaign that could be inimical to our prospective electoral success."
Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State, addressing party supporters in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital on the need to vote for the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), retired Major General Muhammadu Buhari come February 14, 2015. PIX CREDIT: Thisday
Our attention has been drawn to a statement credited to the President and founder of the Living Faith Church worldwide, also Known as Winners’ Chapel, Bishop David Oyedepo, which has gone viral.
He was reported to have made the statement last Sunday when the President of the federal republic of Nigeria, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan came to worship at Faith Tabernacle, which is the headquarters of the ministry.
The falsehood that is being spread around by mischief makers is that the Bishop, while praying for the President, said, “I will open the gates of hell to anyone who oppose you.” A little later, some others who in an attempt to “defend” the Bishop, came up with another quote purportedly said by Dr. Oyedepo, which is: “I will open the gates of hell to those who oppose the peace of this nation.”
Well, let’s set the records straight: The Press and Publicity Unit of the church, publishers of Faith Tabernacle News, was at the 3rd service and recorded (on tape), the President’s 6-minute speech, the congregational prayer for him and the Bishop’s blessing on the President.
Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, who is also the presidential candidate of the ruling party – the PDP, came to the church as the President of this country, not as a candidate in the forthcoming elections.
And Bishop Oyedepo prayed for him, as instructed in the Bible book of 1 Timothy 2:1-2, as the President of Nigeria not as a PDP standard-bearer.
HOW THE BISHOP AND THE CONGREGATION PRAYED FOR THE PRESIDENT
Even though we have published it on this platform, for those who are yet to read it, these were the exact words spoken by the Bishop while he was leading the congregational prayers for the President. As always, he took his bearing from the Word of God: “1st Timothy 2:1-2: I exhort you therefore, that first of all, supplications, prayers and intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men.” Then on the priority list is “For kings and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.”
“I only had an idea of the President’s visit just yesterday. It wasn’t there last Friday when we had the One Night with The king. So we are going to be praying for our President.
Let prayers and supplications and intercessions be made for all men; first of all, for kings, and for them that are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.
And after that I will do what the priests are asked to do. It says “Speak to Aaron, that after this manner shall ye bless.” Proclaim blessings as a priest of God over our President, and the blessings will answer, in the name of Jesus Christ.
READ ALSO: PVC: What Bishop Oyedepo told Church Members To Do
In Numbers 6:23-26, The Lord said to Moses and the children of Israel saying “On this wise shall ye bless the children of Israel saying: The Lord bless thee and keep thee; the Lord make His face to shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee; The Lord lift His countenance upon thee and give thee peace.”
When that blessing comes to stay, something happens. You see, the generation of the Old Testament knew the value of blessings; they would even cry for it. Every blessing proclaimed upon you today must answer on your life.
I like us to be on our feet and lift the President up to God. Whatever you desire to see God bring about in his life; bring about in our nation, begin to pray that prayer right now.
Father, release your grace upon the President to manage the demands of his office.
Release unusual grace in increasing dimensions, to manage the demands of his office.
Cause your face to shine upon him.
Lord, grant the desires of his heart.
Grant Nigeria peace.
Under him, grant Nigeria greater advancement.
Thank you father, in Jesus’ name we pray.”
THEN THE BISHOP ALONE PRAYED FOR THE PRESIDENT
“This entire church proclaims the President blessed today
Blessed with divine wisdom to manage the demands of his office
Blessed with keys to see the miraculous in his life
Blessed with grace that will advance His cause in our nation
Every time we pray here, God hears. The Bible says “Wherever 2 or 3 are gathered, I’m there in their midst, and if we agree concerning anything, it’s done for us.” Therefore, in the name of Jesus, our President is declared blessed.
His going out is blessed, his coming in is blessed.
The will of God is blessed in his life.
Thank you father, blessed be your name, in Jesus precious name.”
And the whole congregation shouted “Amen.” That was it!
NOTE:
1. There was no mention of “hell” in the prayer
2. There was no mention of “the gates of hell” in the prayer
3. There was no mention of “opposition” or “oppose” in that prayer
4. It is very clear that these mischief makers were waiting for an opportunity, which presented itself in President Jonathan’s visit to the church in the heat of the campaigns. And with what we have seen, most politicians can do just anything to whip up sentiments and score cheap political points.
5. The church has never been involved in partisan politics but has been prayerfully active in ensuring that the Nigerian ship doesn’t sink
6. The church has always obeyed the biblical injunction to pray for those in authority and the “peace of Jerusalem.”
7. This is not an attempt to defend the church or Bishop Oyedepo, as we already know that no matter how far a lie has travelled, the truth will definitely overtake it.
8. This is also not an attempt to defend God, because the Almighty God is more than able to defend himself.
9. As you read this, no one has even called to confirm from the ministry the veracity of this claim and a video recording of the service which is equally online has been labeled “doctored” by those who are bent on dragging the name of the church into partisan politics.
10. For the record, this is exactly what happened; whatever is being peddled was obviously created by those who want to benefit politically from the controversy; and promoted by bloggers who want to drive traffic to their sites; and spread by those who already think they have an axe to grind with their perceived lifestyle of Bishop Oyedepo.
Jesus is Lord!
See Lagos State All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship campaign rally.
PIX CREDIT:
Pix 1: Nigeriatell
Pix 2: Gistmania
Pix 3: Facebook
Pix 4: Gidipost
Peoples Democratic Party presidential rally in Akure, Ondo State on January 28, 2015.
PIX CREDIT:
Pix 1: Daily Mail
Pix 2: Nairaland
Pix 3: Vanguard
Pix 4: Premium Times
Rivers Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Presidential Campaign rally in Rivers State on Wednesday January 28, 2015.
January 28, 2015
CERTIFICATE SAGA: BUHARI SINKS DEEPER WITH LIES!
Yesterday, General Muhammadu Buhari made a shocking and belated disclosure that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has his documents. He has not been specific about the documents he is referring to but it is very clear that this is yet another squalid attempt to give the Nigerian people the impression that INEC has his certificate. If this is true, it represents a somersault from his original position which was that INEC has his affidavit and it once again reveals General Buhari for what he is.
With this latest antic, General Buhari is obviously trying to smuggle a newly acquired certificate into INEC through the backdoor. If this is true and if INEC allows such a thing to happen, it would put a serious question mark on its impartiality and credibility. It would mean that it has collected his newly acquired certificate, 40 days outside the stipulation of the Law.
We say this because Section 31(3) of the Electoral Act says INEC “shall within 7 days of the receipt of the receipt of the personal particulars of the candidate, publish same in the constituency...”
Buhari’s words are as follows: “Well, I am not surprised. This is Nigeria. If people are “serious” about this issue, they ought to have listened to the LEGAL ADVISER of INEC” (Is Buhari saying Nigerians are unserious by seeking to know the truth?)
Continuing, he says: “This is the first time, INEC by law has got those documents and they said they have got them. So anybody who has different view should go to court. So let them remain there.”
Those were the words of General Muhammadu Buhari (NOT MOHAMMED BUHARI), the APC presidential candidate.
It appears as if the more our alleged “Mr. Incorruptible” attempts to wash himself clean, the more he digs deeper in the pit of falsehood and perjury.
Now, below are facts already in the public domain, which are incontrovertible:
1. That Muhammadu Buhari (Not Mohammed Buhari) neither submitted nor attached any personal document to form CF001 he filled to INEC.
2. That the INEC form part C specifically stated that PERSONAL (i.e. Certificate) documents should be attached but Buhari did not attach any as of 18th December, 2014, the last day according to INEC guidelines for submission of form CF001.
3. That Buhari was the only candidate whose documents were not published like other presidential candidates as stipulated by law, having not attached any certificate previously.
4. That INEC had acknowledged that fact after publication of particulars of all candidates last year and had not controverted these facts, having itself published the documents attached by all other candidates except Buhari who did not submit any document apart from INEC's own CF001 form and an affidavit, a court document all of which do not represent PERSONAL DOCUMENT of Buhari.
5.That as at 12 midnight on 30th December, 2014, the expiration of time provided by law for the substitution of candidates, APC did not avail itself that opportunity of substituting the unqualified Buhari for a duly qualified presidential candidate.
6. That Buhari's only response in his affidavit form in the public domain and displayed by INEC in the 774 LGAs that form the single constituency for presidential contestants was to the effect that "All my academic qualifications and certificates are currently with the secretary of the military Board as at the time of this affidavit dated 24/11/2014." This affidavit, a very arrogant and whimsical response that his credentials were with the Military Authorities, is in the public domain. If Buhari’s assertion is true, the question is, what is INEC now up to collecting new documents from him through the backdoor, 40 days after the requirement of law?
7. That the military authorities came in the open to clarify that the only document in respect of Buhari's WASC was an anticipatory letter by his principal that "Buhari would pass" - NOT THAT BUHARI PASSED.
8. That Buhari's imperial response at a later press conference was that his alma mater, Government College Katsina, would publish his result when available. How come he now says that INEC has collected his document and why should INEC do so after the statutory time limit?
9. That what Government College Katsina published was at best a hand-written result of one MOHAMMED BUHARI and not MUHAMMADU BUHARI or at worse a complete forgery.
Fellow Nigerians, Why should General Muhammadu Buhari refer Nigerians to hear from one legal adviser in INEC? The same INEC that its Director of legal services, one (Mr. Ibrahim Bawa) who, earlier in response to numerous inquiries shortly after on December i8, 2014, told the press that INEC had published all that presidential candidates submitted which in the case of Buhari are just FORM CF001 (no certificate attached) and affidavit which is court papers and not personal document.
It will be interesting to know at which point the affidavit transmuted into additional documents or when additional documents were provided to INEC in line with law as noted above.
What Nigerians Should Note
By Buhari's latest statement, we want to alert Nigerians to the following questions which the INEC Chair, Attahiru Jega, the so-called legal adviser whom a consultant, duly contracted by INEC, had recommended for redeployment and the APC, must HONESTLY answer:
A. WHEN DID INEC AND THIS LEGAL ADVISER RECEIVE THE DOCUMENTS GIVEN THAT THERE WAS NOTHING ON RECORD FOR HIM AFTER 18TH DECEMBER 2014?
B. WERE THESE MYSTERIOUS DOCUMENTS RECEIVED WITHIN OR AFTER THE TIME FRAME SPECIFIED BY THE ELECTORAL GUIDELINES?
C. Could this be the source of Buhari’s renewed arrogance that anybody not satisfied should go to court?
D. HAS INEC PUBLISHED THESE DOCUMENTS AS REQUIRED BY LAW?
E. Who is in breach of the Electoral Act, Section 31:3- Buhari or Ibrahim Bawa?
The Electoral Body must come clean on this matter; otherwise we will be compelled to pass a no-confidence vote in it. If INEC is complicit in the desperate and despicable attempt to extricate General Buhari, without compliance with the provisions of the law, from this lingering embarrassment, we will have no other choice than to harbor the suspicion and fear that the Electoral Body is already compromised and can lend itself to the ungodly agenda of truncating our victory when our candidate wins.
We also want the election observers to keep watch of the unfolding events regarding General Buhari’s qualification or otherwise. In other countries, it is about obeying the rule of law and not about protecting the political interest of an individual, especially since a free, fair and credible election is not about the day of voting alone but also the processes leading up to it.
I thank you for listening.
It was meant to be a presidential campaign rally, but presidential flag bearer of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and sitting President, Goodluck Jonathan decided to sermonise the event, calling on all waring members of the ruling party in Ondo State to sheath their sword and embrace peace.
He also used the opportunity to appeal to politicians to make the citizens the focus of their political pursuit, with a call on the party leaders to resolve their differences.
Particularly, the president called on the state governor, Olusegun Mimiko, Olusola Oke and business mogul, Jimoh Ibrahim to enter into discussions that would resolve the crisis rocking the party in the state.
In the words of Jonathan, "For the PDP family, what I will use this platform to request is that, yes, we have issues in Ondo State.
"The party will work very hard to make sure that Jimoh Ibrahim and the Governor will sit down together and talk about the interest of Ondo State.
"Iroko himself, Jimoh Ibrahim and Olusola Oke, he is my SAN, three of them must sit down to discuss the development of Ondo State.
"They must not sit down to discuss personal things or individual interest. They must work together to make sure that collectively we attain the development of Ondo State and the nation.
"Everything about politics is the people, not self. I know how I came into politics. Politics is about the people, but for the people, we wouldn’t have been here today.
"I did not join politics because I wanted something for myself. So I am encouraging every politician to think about the people."
The question I asked some group of people when I had the privilege of having a discussion with them, is that is there any evidence to backup the statement credited to Nigeria's main opposition All Progressives Congress (APC), alleging that the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), alongside the Presidency
orchestrated the ongoing campaign for election postponement.
One would be right to say that, it would completely be unfair for the APC to continue accusing the ruling PDP of such moves, when already the ruling party had come out openly to deny such allegation. There is no need, preempting one another due to the quest for political powers.
In the words of APC's National Publicity Secretary, Lai Mohammed today, "There is no clearer indication that the PDP and the Presidency are the puppeteers behind the election shift campaign than Wednesday’s newspaper advertorial plainly campaigning for the polls to be shifted.
"This advert, which has the picture of President Goodluck Jonathan and the logo of the PDP – meaning they will be the sole beneficiaries of the postponement they are seeking – leaves no one in doubt that the ruling party and the presidency are pathologically dishonest, deliberately deceptive and chronically terrified about the elections."
"The campaign, which is hinged on the fact that many Nigerians have not collected their Permanent Voters Cards (PVC), is not sincere. If it is, the PDP and the Presidency would have instead been urging Nigerians to go all out and collect their PVCs so the election can hold.
Why is this so impossible for them to do? Like we said earlier, what prevents the federal government from declaring a three-day public holidays to give Nigerians the opportunity to collect their PVCs? Why is it that only the PDP and its sponsored groups and individuals are the ones leading the campaign for election postponment, even as our party, the APC, has been campaigning for Nigerians to go and collect their PVCs?
"Is it not instructive that at least 26 political parties have joined the no-postponement campaign, while the PDP/Presidency, as well as the lick-spittle individuals and groups who have been compromised one way or another, continue to beat the drums of election shift?."
It is instructive therefore to say at this point, that the mere fact that PDP in the purported advert suggested that many Nigerians have not collected their PVC, is not enough to say the PDP and the Presidency is behind the plot.
The Kogi Central Senatorial candidate of the Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA), Senator Nurudeen Abatemi-Usman has described the call for the postponement of the general elections billed to hold on February 14 and 28, 2015 as completely unnecessary, warning that such action should not be contemplated by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
In a statement issued by his Special Assistant on media and publicity, Michael Jegede, the Senator who recently defected from Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to PPA, said the consequence of any delay beyond the already stipulated dates for the polls will be too grave to imagine.
The statement reads in part: “I wish to condemn in very strong term the call by some people for a postponement of the general election scheduled to hold on February 14 and 28, 2015.
"Rather than call for a postponement at this stage of our preparation for the election, on the ground that some electorate are yet to get their Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs), all that ought to be done should be done for all registered voters to collect their PVCs before the election.
"Postponement should not be contemplated at all with all the preparations and planning that have been done by the various political parties and their candidates and even the electoral body, INEC.
"Honestly, it is just too late in the day to think of postponement. It will portray us as unserious people in the eyes of the international community and this will not speak well of us as a nation.
“From what we have seen in the campaign field Nigerians are eager and anxious to see the election come and go for them to know who their next crop of leaders would be.
"The Federal government could go by the suggestion of the Inter-Party Advisory Council (the body of all registered political parties in the country), to declare a public holiday to enable those yet to collect their PVCs to do so before the election.
"Or better still, let those set of people who will be unable to get their PVCs before the election be allowed to use their Temporary Voters Cards. It will just be too costly to contemplate postponement at this point in time. It is only those who are anticipating loss and not sure of victory for their parties and candidates in the coming election that will support such an unreasonable call for deferment of the election.”
Can there be anything wrong in the peace accord signed on Wednesday January 14, 2015 in Abuja, by the fourteen presidential candidates contesting in the February 14, 2015 presidential election in Nigeria.
As far as one is concerned, the peace pact would atleast assuage to a reasonable extent any form of violent moves before, during and after the February elections.
But I wonder why the coalition of civil society groups, under the aegis of No Campaign Nigeria, suggested that the peace bond entittled "Abuja Declaration Accord", was unnecessary.
The group did not stop at that, as it maintained that it does not supersede the constitution and laws of the country, which included, the Electoral Offences Act, which stipulates punitive measures for breach of peace in elections.
Specifically, Convener of the group, Ezenwa Nwagwu posited that, "A ceremony of signing peace accord in Abuja can never take over the existing laws of this country. Our laws are very clear on hate speeches.
"We have laws called Electoral Offences. So, a ceremony where people sign a peace pact can not make the law work.
"Anybody who breaches the law should be made to face the wrath of the law. I don’t think an accord can settle that. An accord can not settle the fact that someone’s house was burnt.
"When someone’s house is burnt, that is arson according to our law and it has its own punitive measures. If someone is beaten mercilessly, that is battery and assault, and our laws have punitive measures for this crime.
"For the fact that an accord has been signed does not mean people should go about misbehaving."
Today, presidential candidate of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and incumbent Nigeria's President, Goodluck Jonathan was endorsed by the Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere to contest the presidency for the second time.
The reason for the endorsement is not far fetched. According to the Spokesman for the group, Yinka Odumakin,
the endorsement was predicated on the President’s commitment to implementing the recommendations of report of the National Conference 2014.
In the words of Odumakin, "Afenifere supports the President’s reelection because he had the courage to convoke the national conference and we hope that he will implement the report.
"The President expressed the commitment that he will adopt the report within 12 months of returning to office."
If the recent revelation made by Nigeria's main opposition political party; All Progressives Congress (APC), that it has uncovered a fresh plot by those it called anti-democratic forces to use the courts to postpone or scuttle next month’s general elections, then serious moves should be made to ensure that it did not happen.
However, if there are cogent reasons why the court should be approached to possibly seek redress on issues that are not clear, then it is better in order not to experience anarchy in the country.
But in the light of its purported findings, the opposition party charged the country's judiciary to protect the nation’s democracy.
According to a statement signed by APC's National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party charged all Nigerians to, "Repudiate the desperadoes and their allies who are behind the plot."
While making reference to the case currently initiated at the Federal High Court in Abuja, seeking a declaration that Buhari lacked the requisite qualification to contest the February 14 presidential election, as being the first in a series of court cases to be instituted to stop the polls, APC argued that, "We are not surprised at this, because these desperadoes are so predictable.
"They are following the footsteps of the infamous Association for Better Nigeria, which helped to annul the 1993 elections and which threw Nigeria into a crisis from which it has yet to fully recover, over 20 years later.
"We can only appeal to the judiciary not to become a willing tool in the hands of those who will stop at nothing to scuttle the elections, just to perpetuate their firm grip on power.
"An ally of presidential aide Doyin Okupe has revealed that President Jonathan will rather have the military take over than hand over to the APC candidate.
"Though Okupe has made a tepid denial, the revelation has exposed the thinking and the desperation within the Presidency, ahead of the elections.
"We are also aware that up till this moment, the President has yet to repudiate the ex-militants in the Niger Delta, who have threatened the country’s very existence if he(Jonathan) is not re-elected, as if elections are won by fiat.
"When this is added to ongoing moves to depopulate the North-east, which is an opposition stronghold, using scare tactics, one can see that this presidency and the PDP are as terrified and desperate as they can be."
By Dr. Kayode Fayemi
We commend Professor Chukwuma Soludo’s for his insightful and incisive article published in the Vanguard and Nation Newspapers of January 26th under the above title.
We agree with Professor Soludo that if the political parties, including ours, must justify the overwhelming enthusiasm of Nigerians about the 2015 elections, we must remain focused on the issues that matter most to them, which is the progress of our country and the well being of our people.
Indeed, this has been the driving conviction of our party and our campaign all along. While we accept his critical comments on our party, more for the intentions than for the letters, we believe some clarifications would be quite necessary.
We wish to emphasise that our party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), presents a real option to Nigerians. Professor Soludo expressed the sentiments of most Nigerians when he spoke about the incalculable damage that the PDP under President Jonathan has done to the Nigerian economy and the unprecedented hardship that his six years of the locust has brought upon Nigerians.
However, the APC does not intend to ride into power on a mere rhetoric of ‘change’. The change that we propose is fundamental in many ways as it is critical to the very survival of our country.
This in itself presents a major distinction between our party and the PDP. Perhaps, the most compelling argument against the People’s Democratic Party today is that its government and leadership does not even see that Nigeria is in trouble.
While majority of our people wallow in abject poverty, and the gap in inequality gets ever wider by the day, yet PDP has basked in self-celebration of imagined accomplishments. How can a party or a government even begin to solve a problem that it does not believe exist? Like in all things, PDP is stuck in denial.
APC does not promise Eldorado. Neither our candidate nor our manifesto has made such promise. Our programs are based on the critical awareness of the difficult task ahead, while holding out a ray of hope to our people. The promises that we make reflect our innermost belief that the people must be at the centre of development.
Especially, we believe that any economic growth that leaves the majority of the people behind, and does not protect the weakest and the vulnerable among us, is merely delusionary.
Professor Soludo has drawn our attention to the striking but unfortunate similarity in the nation’s economy in 1982-1984 period and what we are experiencing today.
Back then, a period of sustained high crude oil prices had also ironically led to unsustainable debt levels and introduction of the austerity measure. Just as it happened more than three decades ago, it is difficult to explain how a sustained period of oil boom should ultimately lead to austerity measure except to say that huge opportunities that the period of boom presented were frittered away by mindless profligacy, wanton corruption and bad economic choices made by the PDP government, which has rewarded a protracted period of boom with uncertainty and austerity and is still asking for another mandate to do more damage.
If we sound upbeat in our manifesto, it is because we recognise that this crisis period also presents us a great opportunity to restructure the economy in a way that improves the quality of lives of our people by ensuring that our economic growth is job-led. Our party has identified job creation as a critical priority of government.
We have noted with concerns that Nigeria’s unemployment rate of 23.9% should be seen as a national crisis. And if this government was more sensitive to the enormity of the challenge that this presents, it would be reluctant to jump all over the place in self celebration while so many of our youths are wasting away.
In the immediate future, our priority is to tackle unemployment and provide good jobs by embarking on a massive programme of public works, building houses, roads, railways, ports and energy plants. Over the long term, we believe we must wean Nigeria off its dangerous addiction to oil, which currently provides 80% of our spending leaving us at the mercy of volatile international oil prices. Even as a federalist party, we believe that an economy that is dependent on a commodity that is so dangerously exposed to price volatility must always prepare for eventuality through savings and investments once the agreed thresholds are met.
What we disagree with is the unilateral and arbitrary deductions in accruable revenues in a way that hampers the development of the federating States.
Going by the government’s own statistics, is it mere coincidence that the three States with the lowest unemployment rate – Osun, Lagos and Kwara – are all APC States? This is evidence of our Party’s ability to tackle this problem head-on. APC’s policy thrust will create an enabling environment and incentives for the formal and informal sectors to lead the quest for job creation.
This will be done in addition to skills acquisition and enterprise- training to ensure our youths are equipped with the appropriate skills to take these jobs. Merely introducing a National Qualification Standards would power a whole new world of opportunities for our artisans by launching them into the international job markets. We note the issue that Professor Soludo picked with our figure of 720,000 jobs. We need to clarify that this is limited to immediate direct employment opportunities from public projects and maintenance works only.
Our manifesto actually promises a lot more jobs but we see that as the product of the enabling environment we seek to create for private sector-led job creation, especially in high opportunity sectors like agriculture, construction, entertainment, tourism, ICT and sports. APC economic policy is driven by an overwhelming concern for the level of inequality in our country today. Specifically, to quote from our manifesto, we intend to achieve our job-creation agenda through:
•Massive public works programme especially the building of a national railway system (complete with tramline systems for our major cities), interstate roads, and ports.
These projects must commence early in the life of the new administration.
•Establishing a new Federal Coordinating Agency – Build Nigeria – to fast track and manage these public works programmes with emphasis on Nigerian labour.
•Embarking vigorously on industrialization, public works and agricultural expansion.
•Diversifying the economy through a national industrial policy and innovative private-sector incentives that will move us away from over reliance on oil into value-added production especially manufacturing.
•Reviving textile and other industries that have been rendered dormant because of inappropriate economic policies.
•Reinvigorating the solid mineral sector by revamping our aged mining legislation and attracting new investment.
•Developing a new generation of domestic oil refineries to lower import costs, enhance our energy independence and create jobs.
•Working with state governments to turn the country into Africa’s food basket through a new system of grants and interest free loans, and the mechanization of agriculture.
•Encouraging and promoting the use of sports as a source of job creation, entertainment and recreation.
•Creating a knowledge economy by making Nigeria an IT /professional/Telecom services outsourcing destination hub to create millions of jobs.
•Filling the huge gap in middle level technical manpower with massive investment in technical and tradesmen’s skills education.
•Ensuring that all foreign contractors to include a plan of developing local capacity (technology transfer).
•Creation of six Regional Development Agencies covering the country with representatives from the Federal Government, States and the private sector to manage a new N300billion growth fund.
Our obsession with job creation stems from the fact that we believe we must focus on actions that would serve the twin purpose of closing the gap in inequality and creating opportunities for our people, especially the youth.Our current situation is dangerous for the stability of the country.
The Human Development Index position ranks Nigeria 152 of 169 countries surveyed. This is incompatible with the present administration’s insistence on celebrating GDP growth and our absolute economic size hinged on a routine rebasing exercise.
As many commentators have pointed out, rebasing the GDP is not an achievement. Rather, it is a mere statistical adjustment that does not impact on the real or imagined standards of living of the people. So, we also wonder what this PDP government is celebrating.
And maybe it is not that difficult to explain when one discovers that a small elite has captured the state and converted our commonwealth into private gain, becoming disproportionately rich from massive corruption while poverty has deepened. The income gap and illicit capital flight are growing alarmingly.
Instead of investing in modernizing our economy, massive theft has starved the country of desperately needed resources for infrastructure and public services and left us dangerously dependent on fluctuating global oil prices for our economic survival.
For the ordinary Nigerian, the much-touted economic growth cited by the present administration has not translated into employment or development. Over 100 million Nigerians are struggling to make ends meet on a regular basis.
Furthermore, we understand Professor Soludo’s concern on the cost of implementing our various programmes, especially those relating to social welfare. The enormity of this challenge is not lost on us. We also know that sometimes, going into government is like buying a “no testing” electronic equipment. You may never know the true state of what you are buying until you get in. We want to assure Professor Soludo and other likeminded Nigerians that our policy team is looking at all the options – including the worst-case scenario of a completely empty treasury.
We are however confident that by blocking avenues of wastages and corruption alone, savings could run into billions of Naira that could be deployed for productive use. Even so, we agree with Professor Soludo that savings from corruption alone will not tackle the enormous challenges we are likely to confront in government.
We are however comforted by the fact that a four-year period provides opportunity for phased implementation while growing the resource base as well as changing the culture of graft while reducing the cost of governance.
Quite significantly, we know that periods of economic downturn also potentially provide opportunity to lay the foundation for real economic restructuring and development; and we can reflect on how Singapore under Premier Lee Kuan Yew and the United States of America under President Franklin Delano Roosevelt used historic moments of economic downturn in their countries to launch a period of sustained development and a new deal for their people.
General Buhari has never claimed to have the magic wand nor the answers to all of the country’s problems. His greatest assets would be his moral authority borne out of his self-sacrificing integrity, his sincerity of purpose and his patriotic zeal to return Nigeria to the path of progress and genuine development.
He is committed to utilize competent and committed people of integrity wherever he may find them. This is precisely why he promised when flagging off his campaign in Port Harcourt on January 5, 2015 that if voted into power, it would be an opportunity to, in his words, “finally assemble a competent team of Nigerians to efficiently manage this country”.
This is a clear sign that a meritocratic process will govern the appointment of those that would be entrusted with managing our economy and country. His stint as Head of State shows a track record of using self-sacrificing professionals in his governance team.
His previous cabinet included the likes of Dr. Onaolapo Soleye, Professor Tam David-West and Professor Ibrahim Gambari.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) is determined to lead Nigeria in the direction of change that is so urgently required. And even as we prepare for the immediate rescue mission in 2015, our minds are also set on building the necessary democratic institutions that would entrench our ideological conviction as a progressive and people-centred party.
A National Progressives Policy Institute is part of this plan in the near future but we are very clear about the enormity of the task ahead. We would not seek to underplay it. We are supremely confident that we are equal to the task and we appreciate the commitment of majority of Nigerians to this quest for change.
It is imperative to state, that in the process of embarking on electioneering campaign, serious care must be expended in the use of language.
The use of derogatory word such as challenging the mental stability of an opponent in a bid to run down such a person before the electorates should be condemned.
Imagine a situation where, Secretary of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party’s Presidential Campaign Team in the South West, Jide Adeniji, saying presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), retired Major General Muhammadu Buhari does not possess the mental capability to rule Nigeria in the 21st century.
He today argued that Buhari did nothing worthwhile, staging a coup and unseat a democratically elected government of former President Shehu Shagari in 1983.
Adeniji said, "I respect General Buhari; he is an elderly man, but Buhari does not have the mental capability to rule Nigeria.
"Some people ruled Nigeria and did not build anything, they did not do anything to uplift the standard of education.
"No way, President (Goodluck) Jonathan won’t hand over power to an S75 holder. His certificate is in doubt. Is that the kind of leader Nigeria needs now? No."
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was reported to have rejected the governorship candidates of seven political parties without proffering any tangible reasons.
Interestingly, same INEC refused to disqualify the candidacy of presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), retired Major General Muhammadu Buhari who clearly failed to abide by electoral guideline which suggests that any candidate running for the presidency should attach copies of his credential to his nomination form before submission.
This move is unfare. Atleast, Nigerians deserve to know why those governorship candidates were rejected by INEC so as to have an informed opinion.
According to INEC, political parties and states affected includes; the Peoples Party of Nigeria (PPN) in Delta State; Labour Party (LP) in Niger State; the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) in Ogun State; and the Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN) in Oyo State.
Others are the United Democratic Party (UDP) in Rivers State; and the Peoples Democratic Movement (PDM) in Sokoto and Zamfara states. The names of the affected candidates were either not released by the commission.
There is no doubt, that the advice given by the
Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega, that all the 37 Resident Electoral Commissioners in the country, should remain focused as the 2015 election draws closer remains a good step in the right direction.
It shows that the commission is doing all possible within its powers to ensure that the election is not marred in any way.
Specifically, Jega today argued that it was unfortunate that Nigerian politicians were dragging the commission into their campaigns.
While asking the RECs to remain impartial in their duties, the INEC Chairman stated that, "We have to have this meeting because it is important as we approach (2015) elections and put heads together and review where we are, so that we can take stock as we prepare adequately for the very daunting and challenging task ahead.
"This meeting is very crucial as we prepare for the conduct of the 2015 general elections. As we approach the elections, obviously all sort of things are happening; politicians are very busy with their campaigns and quite often, the commission gets dragged into the politicisation of the campaigns.
"I have said consistently, what we need to do is to remain focused and to busy ourselves in terms of ensuring that (2015) general elections are remarkably much better than the 2011 general elections.
"We have to continue to ensure that whatever we do, we remain impartial and non-partisan and that we create level plain field for all political parties, candidates and contestants."
A Lagos based non-governmental group under the aegis of 'Lawyers4change' today asked political leaders in Nigeria to desist from violent and uncivilized mode of electioneering in the country.
Addressing the media on pre-election violence and attacks on supporters of rival groups involving grievous bodily injuries and wanton destruction of properties, National Coordinator of the group Adesina Ogunlana, argued that quest for political office is a warfare among barbarians, adding that people who are genuinely interested in serving a community cannot be interested in destroying the same community.
Ogunlana posited that, "Our politicians must not be allowed to turn our country to a war zone and a killing field."
He also charged security agencies to eschew partisanship and embrace professionalism in the discharge of their duties.
"Let all the security heads and officials know that they are agencies set up for the protection of the state and not to serve the interests of any political party." he said.
Today, an Abuja based lawyer, Chike Okafor approached a Federal High Court in Abuja to disqualify presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), retired Major General Mohammadu Buhari from contesting the 2015 presidential elections.
The case is Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/01/2015. The suit is filed pursuant to Section 131 of the Constitution which prescribes a minimum qualification for nomination to participate in Presidential Elections and Section 31 of the Electoral Act that stipulates that all presidential candidates to depose an Affidavit in proof of compliance with constitutional requirement to be President of Nigeria.
The lawyer is claiming that Buhari failed to prove that he has the minimum educational qualification to run for President.
It was the contention of Okafor that Buhari’s Affidavit that he possesses the West African School Leaving Certificate (WASC) are false, as not only did he not attach it to his nomination form, as compulsorily required, but his claim that the Certificates are in the custody of the Military has been denied by the former Director of Army Public Relations, Brigadier General Olajide Laleye.
He then asked the court to disqualify Buhari from contesting the 2015 general elections.
I laughed with amazement, when I read the statement credited to the Nigeria's opposition All Progressives Congress (APC), accusing ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), of sponsoring the attacks on its flag bearer, incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan in Katsina and Bauchi states as part of its plan to “demonise the opposition” and force a postponement of next month’s general elections.
I see this statement of the APC with respect, as a most unreasonable way of criticising its opponent.
Imagine the impetus with which National Publicity Secretary of the APC, Alhaji Lai Mohammed argued in a statement in Lagos that, "The coordinated hysterical reactions to the attacks by the Presidency, Senate President David Mark and the leadership of the Ijaw nation, had exposed the sponsors of the attacks.
"Those who had raised their voices in condemning the attacks should direct their anger at the PDP which hired the hoodlums, who attacked the President in Katsina and Bauchi and gave them brooms in a bid to make them look like APC supporters.
"Information is now in the public domain that these attacks were self inflicted, with the aim of demonising the APC and instigating retaliatory attacks in the southern states, thus precipitating chaos, which the PDP and the Presidency will then use as an excuse for the postponement of the elections.
"Apparently, they did not envisage that the information about their complicity over the attacks will leak to the public. It is common knowledge that the security around the President is such that no hoodlum can come close enough to pelt him with stones."
Mohammed further stated that the Presidency distorted facts when it accused the APC of breaching the Abuja peace accord that was signed by the presidential candidates of the various political parties, positing that the PDP and “its band of thugs” did not allow the ink, with which the agreement was signed to dry, before they started breaching it.
The APC image maker said, "The second attack on our offices in Rivers took place after the pact was signed, just like the serial attacks on our supporters in Sokoto, organised by a PDP stalwart in the city and aided and abetted by the police.
"The death-wish-for-Buhari advert by the incautious Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State in the name of President Jonathan, which could have triggered unimaginable violence if not properly managed by the APC, also breached the agreement.
"Where was the Special Adviser to the President on Political Affairs, Prof. Rufai Alkali, when all these breaches were taking place? Not once did he issue a statement to say ‘this nonsense must stop’.
"Where was the Senate President, David Mark, when these breaches were taking place? He was never on record as condemning the attacks on the APC offices and its supporters or the irresponsible and downright repugnant advert by Governor Fayose.
"Are those in the opposition not Nigerians, who also deserve the care and attention of the nation’s number three citizen?’
"Mr Senate President, sir, if any party is guilty of ‘despicable desperation’ as you claimed, it is your party, the PDP. Which party has been using all the cheap tricks in the books to postpone the elections at all cost? Which party has been sponsoring attacks against itself to demonise the opposition and force a postponement of next month’s election? Which party has deviated from issues and become fixated on the person of the APC presidential candidate, savaging and lying against him at every point?
"Mr. Senate President, remember the saying that he who must come to equity must come with clean hands.”
Regardless of the hot exchange of words between the PDP and the APC as a result of their quest for power, the intelligence of right thinking Nigerians must not be toyed with.
Both political parties, should at best be constructive in their criticism of each other.
By Niran Adedokun
A disclosure is expedient from the outset: I am not a fan of General Muhammadu Buhari. I think he is overrated. That he really doesn't possess some of the qualities attributed to him and that the attributes that he has, are not enough to make him President of a 21st Century Nigeria.
However, since the All Progressive Congress (APC) picked him as its flag bearer in the 2015 elections, I have waited to see how this man would sell himself as able and capable of steering the ship of state.
Unfortunately, aside from the bandwagon frenzy on the need for urgent change, I do not find anything remarkably enticing in the candidacy of the retired general either from his campaign rallies or documented manifesto.
Take the issue of corruption which is perhaps the most formidable credential upon which his campaign is based.
Buhari does not appear to understand the manifold dimensions to corruption in Nigeria not to talk of how to tackle same.
Speaking at the opening of his campaign in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, he promised that all corrupt people would be sent to Kirikiri if he wins the elections.
He sounded like he would supervise the arrest of these people, put them on trial himself and then decide the prison facility where they serve their term.
How does an elected President ever achieve that? In any case, this would imply that people can cheat the country so far they do not get caught?
I agree that law enforcement is an important part of dealing with corruption but there are various sociological factors associated with the problem of corruption that no knee jerk approach would permanently solve.
Questions like why people steal in Nigeria, Is corruption really our most serious problem and how countries like china, Malaysia and Indonesia make economic leaps in spite of the level of corruption in those societies must be asked by anyone serious about tackling corruption in Nigeria.
I query the point that Buhari is courageous enough do anything to move the country forward without fear or favour. And I am going to explain. When he was asked about some of the draconian legislations of his military leadership in an interview, he attributed the promulgation of those laws to the collective decision of the Supreme Military Council (SMC).
Understandably, he was just the head of the junta with only one vote and even if he stood against anything, the odds are that his colleagues would outvote him. That is fair enough.
But then there was one decision, possibly the only one left to Buhari to take by himself and Nigeria has had to pay enormously for his choice.
By his own admission, the former head of state got to know that his colleague and friend Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida (IBB) was planning to topple his administration.
Buhari claimed to have invited IBB, “… sat and discussed it with him in my office.… I said Ibro ─ I called him Ibro because I was just senior to him by a few months ─ I said whoever wants to sit on this chair, let him come and sit here. And he decided to do it…” And that was it! That was how Buhari literarily vacated his seat for Babangida.
I cannot tell what informed Buhari’s casual treatment of this infraction, one which was against the nation In my view, the decision to let IBB go on with his plan is due to either of two things namely, failure of leadership on the part of Buhari or some level of collaboration or acquiescence to this conspiracy.
Either way, I do not see any display of courage at this very important moment and I wonder how many such infractions would be overlooked in event of a Buhari presidency.
Then the most confounding of all is the issue of Buhari’s school certificate which has raged for the better part of the last three weeks.
I get the point that Buhari did nothing legally wrong by not physically presenting his school certificate. The sworn affidavit in support of the attainment of the qualification and the fact that the “assumption” that the evidence is in the custody of the Military Board is weightier than even the certificate in question- as he would be guilty of a more serious criminal offence- perjury, If he is found to have lied on oath, as the incidence of his not having attained the qualification would portend.
I however do not get the levity with which the former head of state treated the issue. Even when he addressed the press on Wednesday, Buhari carried on in this dismissiveness.
Hear him: “I only consented to address you this morning because of the genuine concern expressed by many supporters and other well-meaning Nigerians that the issue be addressed.
"Otherwise, I would have dismissed it for what it is – sheer mischief and would not have…considered it an issue worth the nation’s while…”
This reaction, which has also been aired by a lot of his followers is apparently borne out of the feeling that the rival Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is at the lead of those raising arguments about Buhari’s eligibility for the elections.
But even then, having become public knowledge, the General has the moral obligation of explaining the correct situation and going ahead to prove his qualification to Nigerians whose mandate he is seeking.
This is more so for man whose main proposition to Nigerians is change anchored on his much advertised integrity. Asking questions from leaders whether aspiring or incumbent is a basic responsibility of the electorate while providing answers to those questions is central to leadership requirement seamless interaction between the two forces is a major lubricant for democratic growth.
Apart from denting the image of the General, failure to address the issue would have been very disrespectful of Nigerians and totally contradict the transparency which should be part of the transaction of change which Buhari and his party promise Nigerians.
I am not sure he sees that yet.
BY ABDULRAHMAN B. DAMBAZAU CFR PhD Lieutenant General (Rtd)
The theme “2015 Elections: How to make Nigeria the Winner” appears simple, but I found it very complex and thought-provoking. Certain assumptions could be made with regard to our theme today: first, that although most of the elections conducted in Nigeria in the past had presented some serious challenges, the 2015 elections are likely to present much more serious challenges that could jeopardize national security interests unless plans are made to ensure hitch-free elections; second, that going by what has been speculated within and outside Nigeria, there is the possibility that the country will disintegrate, and the 2015 elections would probably be the platform for it unless it is handled with care; third, that there is hope the 2015 elections would provide the opportunity to strengthen Nigeria’s unity and uphold her integrity; and fourth, that the 2015 elections would provide opportunities to elect good leaders that would clear the path for peaceful co-existence, security, and national development. Since this is a dialogue, I will be raising a lot of questions in an attempt to provoke discussions on how to make Nigeria the winner after the 2015 elections, which are just around the corner.
Winning itself in the context of the 2015 elections has its own implications: what stage of winning are we referring to, such as prioritizing into short, medium and long terms; or are we looking at winning in terms of successful conduct of the elections in 2015 in which they not only would be free, fair, all-inclusive, and credible, but also free from the type of post-elections violence we witnessed in 2011; or that the 2015 elections would lead to the long awaited consolidation of democracy in which good governance would be evident through accountability and transparency, and the respect for the rule of law and human rights; or ensuring that the aftermath of the 2015 elections does not lead to the disintegration of Nigeria as earlier predicted by some US security analysts? Would the 2015 elections bring about a radical change leading us to economic growth and political stability? Would they improve Nigeria’s corruption image in which the Transparency Corruption Index (TCI) depicts Nigeria as one of the most corrupt nations on earth? Would they improve Nigeria’s poor governance image as depicted by the 2013 Mo Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG)? IIAG defines governance as “the provision of the political, social and economic public goods and services that a citizen has the right to expect from his or her state, and that a state has the responsibility to deliver to its citizens.” The framework comprises four categories: safety and rule of law; participation and human rights; sustainable economic opportunity; and human management. Nigeria’s 2013 ranking was 41st among the 52 African countries assessed. Or would the 2015 elections provide the opportunity to improve Nigeria’s status in the UN Human Development Index (HDI) from being among the low developed to highly developed countries in the world? The 2014 Human Development Report (HDR), the latest in the series since 1960, ranks Nigeria 152nd out of the 185 countries assessed. In the context of human security, what would be Nigeria’s post-2015 development agenda? To what extent would the outcome of 2015 elections significantly reduce the risks of terrorism to which Nigeria presently occupies the 4th most risk position (even ahead of Somalia) in the world according to the 2014 Global Terrorism Index; or to turn things around in the world of cyber crime in which a computer crime and security survey ranked Nigeria as the most internet fraud country in Africa and the 3rd in the world. In other words, what is our target of Nigeria being the winner in post-2015 elections? And at what point after the 2015 elections should we feel comfortable that Nigeria is the winner, assuming we are able to identify the winning parameters and thus map out her winning strategy?
There is no doubt that as we move towards the 2015 elections the political environment in Nigeria has been anything but stable, accompanied by high tension signaling warnings of impending political instability and violence, added to the criminal violence resulting from such crimes as kidnapping, armed robbery, ritual murders, and rape occurring all over. Already, over the past five years the nation has been struggling with the Boko Haram insurgency in the northeast that is threatening our peace and stability, and to a very large extent, Nigeria’s sovereign and territorial integrity, bearing in mind that some parts of her territory are already under the control of the insurgents (according to recent reports, 20 out of the 27 local government areas of Borno State are under the insurgents, with the flag hoisted).
There is also the issue of recognition and ownership of Nigeria, and one may not be far from reality to assume that Nigeria is still struggling to be recognized as a nation by those who reside in her territory. To be the winner at anytime, Nigeria requires collective ownership to the extent that the approximately 170 million “citizens” see themselves first as Nigerians rather than clinging to their various ethnic and/or religious identities. We identify ourselves on the basis of our religion and ethnicity, and the only time we are Nigerians is when we identify ourselves at international borders holding the travelling passport. No wonder we find it difficult to conduct successful census that would enable us plan for development as a nation, mainly because we argue over which religious group, section or tribe is more in number, without focusing on the quality of the population.
Today we talk of ethnic nationalities and the urge for self-determination for each ethnic group. No doubt there are people who do not believe in Nigeria as it is currently structured. Similarly, there are those who believe that the amalgamation of the north and south was either a genuine mistake or a deliberate gerrymandering by the British colonial government in line with its interests; still there are others who are convinced that the north and south do not share anything in common culturally, therefore it is impossible to live together as one nation; others feel that Nigeria is too large a country, therefore would prefer an arrangement that would give each region self-determination; and yet there are even those with separatist agenda, such as Boko Haram, NDPVF, MASSOB, MEND, and OPC, who believe that everyone should go his separate ways for whatever reasons they hold. From the foregoing picture, what has become very clear is the fact that the unity of Nigeria has been under intense threat, and with the current divergent political interests and the combative nature of most politicians in pursuant of do-or-die politics, what would likely be the picture post-2015 elections? As a matter of fact there are people who threatened to put the country on fire if their preferred candidate does not win the presidential election. How can Nigeria be the winner after 2015 elections against the forces of anarchy, violence, and disintegration? What should be the strategy for this winning agenda? The 2015 elections represent just the peak or high point of this contest, but there are many other factors that come to play in deciding the “how” to make Nigeria the winner.
The 2015 elections are not going to be the first in Nigeria, but there are signs that they would be the most critical in Nigeria’s history. These elections would hold in a highly charged political environment, a situation that began within the last 15 years but apparently reaching its peak currently. Although there are a number of differences between the current situation leading to the scheduled February 2015 elections and those relating to past elections in Nigeria, the most serious one however is the fact that at no time in the history of this country did we find ourselves so divided along religious and ethnic lines than now. Most politicians rely on the strength and efficacy of using religion and ethnicity as tools for political mobilization by taking advantage of the strong religious and ethnic sentiments among Nigeria’s populace. Hardly do politicians argue on the basis of the issues reflecting national interests and national development, and to a large extent, the bulk of Nigeria’s population neither understands nor appreciates the implications of such political manipulations. Furthermore, capitalizing on Nigeria’s unequal wealth distribution system, a rich natural-resource country but with over 70% of the population living below the universal poverty line, politicians have also introduced money as an additional tool for political mobilization. People are ready to do anything for money, including selling their votes and killing political opponents. It is very clear the extent to which politicians have used money to establish private “armies” used for political violence with the clear mandate by their masters to maim or kill whoever they consider an enemy, using all kinds of weapons (including small arms and light weapons). The last 15 years have witnessed the gradual militarization of politics which gave birth to, for example, the Borno ECOMOG, now transformed to Boko Haram; all manners of armed “cultists” groups, especially in Rivers; the Niger Delta militant groups, such as NDPVF and MEND; the Yan K’alare of Gombe; Ombatse of Nasarawa; the Area Boys of Lagos; the Egbesu Boys in Niger Delta; Sara-Suka of Bauchi; Bakassi Boys of Cross River; Yan Daba of Kano; Kauraye of Katsina; etc.
On the other hand, although one may argue that the process of politicization of the military began with the January 1966 Major Chukwuma Nzeogu’s coup which led to the termination of the First Republic and the beginning of an extended involvement of the military in politics, it is equally worthy to note that the last 15 years of the current democratic dispensation has witnessed a deeper politicization of the military and of course, the police. Both institutions have been distracted from their constitutional and professional responsibilities into carrying out tasks that seem to be geared towards regime security, rather than national security. Though there was an attempt to re-professionalize the military beginning in 2003 using a framework designed to transform the Nigerian Army over a ten-year period, there appears to be a derailment, though not in the form of direct involvement of the military in governance, rather it had to do with the deployments of the military to perform tasks that are outside their constitutional responsibilities. Almost all the states in Nigeria have maintained Task Forces, a combined military and police outfits, funded by the State Governors and deployed to conduct routine policing duties, a situation that is detrimental to the constitutional functions of the military in particular. By and large, if the initial phase of the transformation project designed to end in 2013 had succeeded the army would have improved on its professionalism, culture and values; curbed waste and corruption for greater efficiency; meet both local and international obligations at less cost; repositioned to effectively deal with its traditional roles based on new fighting concepts and broad range of threats; and developed lighter, lethal, sustainable, and rapidly deployable and responsive force (see Framework for the Transformation of the Nigerian Army in the Next Decade, Volume 1). Today the performance of the military against the Boko Haram insurgency has been below expectation, a situation that has been tied to both tangible and intangible factors such as discipline; inadequate or inappropriate equipment; poor leadership; and quality of personnel and troops morale. The professional conduct of our armed forces and police is being questioned by the international community following the accusations of human rights abuses; and our sincerity in dealing with terrorism is being doubted for various reasons. The situation is gradually reversing the position the Nigerian military held in the immediate past as one of the best in the world as a result of the leadership role we played in the Congo, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Chad, Somalia, Sudan, and a host of other countries under regional and UN peacekeeping missions. It was not long ago in 2009 that the UN Peacekeeping Department honored the Nigerian Military with the accreditation of pre-deployment training package at the Nigerian Army Peacekeeping Center, the first in Africa to be so accredited, with the capacity to train two battalions simultaneously. With that accreditation we were in position to train UN peacekeepers from anywhere in the world, but I am not sure if that would be the case now. It is instructive to note that the military is one of the major instruments of national power, and no country can afford losing it. The insurgency in the northeast has exposed our weak capacity and lack of clear political will to deal with the situation. Would the 2015 elections lead us to an era in which this instrument of national power could be strengthened and made robust?
Now to the 2015 elections themselves which are not only central to this dialogue, but also significant in making Nigeria the winner. Of course elections are very important in democracy, especially in emerging democracies, like ours. It was the former UN Secretary-General, Kofi Anan, who said that “when citizens go to the polls and cast their votes, they aspire not only to elect their leaders, but to choose a direction for their nation” and according to him, only elections with integrity can bolster democracy, while flawed elections undermine it. I agree with Kofi Anan’s assertion, but how do we ensure that the 2015 elections in Nigeria would turn out to be of integrity in order to avoid undermining our nascent democracy? How do we conduct elections with integrity using the so-called “stomach infrastructure” by attracting votes with 5kg bags of rice? How do we ensure elections with integrity in a situation in which almost all the outgoing Governors, regardless of party affiliation, anoint their chosen successors prior to elections, thereby disregarding people’s choices? And those who still have the opportunity to seek re-election for another term are given automatic ticket, regardless of their performance, thereby not only blocking other contenders from exercising their rights to participate, but also denying people the right to choose their leaders?
Closely linked to the success of the 2015 elections is the role of INEC in the conduct of free, fair and credible elections. There are quite a number of challenges the INEC is now facing, thus: if we have to count on our past experiences, there is some level of certainty that attempts would be made at various levels to rig elections, and the INEC would have to contend with how best to prevent it; likewise, previous elections were accompanied by logistics inadequacies, and it is hoped that INEC has done a lot of work in this regard so as to avoid delays in the movements of elections materials in particular; already there are problems with the Permanent Voters’ Card (PVC) and the registration of voters, and with the way things are going, there is likelihood that a large number of Nigerians (including me) would be disenfranchised; funding is another area of challenge, and INEC has made this known to the public several times that the government has not be able to provide it with adequate funds; and the fourth challenge has to do with the current insecurity in the country, particularly the northeast. How can Nigeria be the winner if these challenges are not addressed?
I want to emphasize the significance of security during elections, but in particular the 2015 elections. The INEC would conduct the 2015 elections in an environment that is confronting serious security challenges that are unprecedented, due to the insurgency in the northeast where a significant number of Local Government Areas could still be under the control of the Boko Haram as at the period of elections; where a sizeable number of Nigerians have been displaced from the homes and scattered in various make-shift camps and other places. In other places such as Taraba, Plateau, Kaduna, Benue, Zamfara, Nasarawa, and Katsina, there are people displaced as a result of either ethno-religious crisis or clashes between herders and farmers, also resulting in the displacement of significant population in the affected areas. According to a joint report by the Internal Displaced Monitoring Center and the Norwegian Refugee Council providing 2014 Global Overview, approximately 3.3 million Nigerian are displaced due to all kinds of violent crises (the figure must have increased by now). We must note also that there is equally a significant number of Nigerians who are refugees in the neighboring countries of Chad, Niger and Cameroon. Furthermore, the fact that a good number of these displaced persons and refugees are eligible voters, how can Nigeria be the winner of the 2015 elections without these people being able to exercise their rights to vote? How about the over 200 Chibok girls and other abductees who are still missing, and what is their fate? Can Nigeria still be the winner while these girls remain captives in the hands of the Boko Haram terrorists?
Examining the current challenges, particularly the challenges of insecurity in Nigeria as a whole, and the insurgency in the northeast in particular, there are people who think that the elections should be postponed. If this should be the case, then this dialogue we are holding today becomes irrelevant. Therefore, we should also attempt to look at the alternative scenario in terms of the impact postponing the elections would have in the polity. If the elections were not to hold, what would be next line of action in terms of ensuring peace and stability? Would the suggestion of postponing elections not introduce another set of problems? Although some people have suggested an interim government or government of national unity, who would such a government and what would be the nature of its composition? While I do not expect Nigeria to be an instant winner with just the 2015 elections, the elections would certainly lay a strong foundation for ultimate victory if they are violent-free, and perceived to be free, fair and credible. This goal can be achieved through the combination of efforts by INEC, Security Agencies, Political Parties, the Media, and Voters themselves: First, INEC must not only be neutral, but must be seen to be neutral and truly independent, by ensuring that no contestant is shortchanged; that there is a level playing field for all parties, so that no party is disadvantaged; that the electoral laws are fully adhered to and enforced, while violators are sanctioned accordingly; that adequate logistics arrangements are made to ensure that election materials are delivered accordingly, in addition to strict adherence to timings and programs; and any attempt by any participant either as individuals or parties to rig the elections should be rejected. A situation in which the people believe that elections are not free and fair, governance becomes difficult, if not impossible, due to the fact that political leadership would fail to be recognized by those who feel betrayed, as such would continue to struggle for legitimacy until next elections. This is even more serious when complaints are not addressed and resolved either politically or legally. Second, security agencies have a tremendous role to play in support of INEC by ensuring that they not only provide adequate security during the elections, but that they also remain neutral. Not only that security agencies must as a matter of necessity stick to their constitutional role to ensure that law and order are maintained, but they must also not allow themselves to be used to intimidate voters. Third, the role of political parties in driving the campaign in orderly and peaceful manner is very significant in the success of elections process. Where national interests are threatened, for example, parties must put aside their differences to work together towards protecting such interests against violation. Parties must stick to the rules of the game and avoid mud-slinging or casting aspersions against political opponents. It is equally important for the political parties to maintain focus and avoid statements that would overheat the polity. Fourth, the media (both electronic and print) is a very critical and vital institution in this project. As a public agenda setter; a gate keeper on public issues; a watchdog of political transparency and fight against corruption; and a fourth estate which provides the needed checks and balances in relation to the three branches of government; the media has a crucial role to play in national development. However, to succeed in their role, the media must be professional and objective, therefore must avoid bias, sensationalism, propaganda and distortions, particularly in a society like ours with many fault lines. For the 2015 elections, the media must lead the civil society in ensuring that the elections are free, fair and credible in the overall interest of the nation. Fifth, Nigeria will win if the voters themselves vote freely to elect credible people not on the basis of religion, ethnicity or monetary inducements. Voters must not engage in any acts of violence and brigandage that could lead to the destruction of lives and properties. Matchets, knives and daggers are not the weapons of voters, but rather the most potent weapon for the voter is his or her vote which he or she must use wisely to vote for the candidate of his or her choice.
Post-2015 elections Nigeria cannot be the winner if the current insecurity environment is sustained, particularly the threats posed by terrorism and insurgency of Boko Haram in the north. Every day we live with the hope that the insurgency in the northeast would end using multi-dimensional approach so that the future would not experience such threats that have had devastating effects on our lives. How can Nigeria be the winner when the vast majority of people live in perpetual fear? Freedom from fear is not only a fundamental right in human security, but it also compliments the freedom from want. Unfortunately both freedoms are under serious threats. Educational institutions, markets, worship centers (such as mosques and churches), and motor parks, that are the major areas in which the bulk of daily activities of Nigerians are concentrated have become the main targets of terrorist attacks. Such attacks cripple the educational system; immobilize the movement of people; deny people the means of sustaining their lives; deny them their fundamental right to practice their faith; and above all, deny people the right to decent living (the insurgency has taken away their food, housing, education, and healthcare). In the southeast and south-south, people cannot move freely due to the fear of kidnappers and violent cultists. In the south west, ritual killers are lurking around for unsuspecting victims, especially women and children. How can Nigeria be the winner if the people residing in her territory are experiencing such hurtful disruptions of their daily lives? According to the first UN Human Development Report (1994), human security involves a “process of widening the range of people’s choices” in which “people can exercise these choices safely and freely, and that they can relatively be confident that the opportunities they have today are not lost tomorrow.” How can Nigeria be the winner if the choices of the people residing in her territory are narrowing instead of widening?
Beginning 1999, it is now 15 years of democracy in Nigeria, but we are yet to consolidate it. We have already discussed the first step towards consolidating democracy, that is, free, fair and credible elections. Next, is the issue of good governance manifested in clear observance of democratic tenets, imbedded in adherence to the rule of law; respect for human rights; accountability; transparency; inclusiveness; and popular participation. Next, is strengthening of democratic institutions, and ensuring that there are adequate arrangements for checks and balances among the executive, legislature and the judiciary. Although there have been major challenges in the last 15 years, the Fourth Republic has been the longest so far in Nigeria’s democratic experiment. Is there any possibility that the 2015 elections could usher in the path for democratic consolidation in Nigeria? Yes, there is. But this is only possible when the right people are elected: people who are competent and of high integrity; people who are focused and selfless; people who are courageous and loyal; people who respect human rights and appreciate the rule of law; people who would be transparent and are ready to be held accountable; people who understand the essence of human security; people who are ready to once more make Nigeria the giant of Africa; people who appreciate that without peace and security there will be no development; and above all, people who believe in Nigeria as a united, indivisible nation. These are the kind of people that would guarantee Nigeria’s economic, political and social stability to put her on the path of sustained growth and development.
I have attempted to suggest a path to follow in order to make Nigeria the winner come 2015 elections. While this may not be the only path, I believe following what I have provided for this dialogue will go a long way in ensuring that we at least achieve very reasonable level of peace and stability.
