The Economist: Many Nigerians prefer to give Buhari another chance

“Sometimes there are no good options. Nigeria goes to the polls on February 14th to elect the next president, who will face problems so large—from rampant corruption to a jihadist insurgency—that they could break the country apart, with dire consequences for Nigerians and the world.

“And yet, as Africa’s biggest economy stages its most important election since the restoration of civilian rule in 1999, and

perhaps since the civil war four decades ago, Nigerians must pick between the incumbent, Goodluck Jonathan, who has proved an utter failure, and the opposition leader, Muhammadu Buhari, a former military dictator with blood on his hands (see article). The candidates stand as symbols of a broken political system that makes all Nigeria’s problems even more intractable.

In this section

“Start with Mr Jonathan, whose People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has run the country since 1999 and who stumbled into the presidency on the death of his predecessor in 2010. The PDP’s reign has been a sorry one. Mr Jonathan has shown little willingness to tackle endemic corruption. 

When the governor of the central bank reported that $20 billion had been stolen, his reward was to be sacked.

“Worse, on Mr Jonathan’s watch much of the north of the country has been in flames. About 18,000 people have died in political violence in recent years, thousands of them in January in several brutal attacks by Boko Haram, a jihadist group that claims to have established its “caliphate” in territory as large as Belgium. Another 1.5m people have fled their homes.

“The insurgency is far from Mr Jonathan’s southern political heartland and afflicts people more likely to vote for the opposition. He has shown little enthusiasm for tackling it, and even less competence.

“Quick to offer condolences to France after the attack on Charlie Hedbo, Mr Jonathan waited almost two weeks before speaking up about a Boko Haram attack that killed hundreds, perhaps thousands, of his compatriots.

“The single bright spot of his rule has been Nigeria’s economy, one of the world’s fastest-growing. Yet that is largely despite the government rather than because of it, and falling oil prices will temper the boom. The prosperity has not been broadly shared: under Mr Jonathan poverty has increased. Nigerians typically die eight years younger than their poorer neighbours in nearby Ghana.

Goodbye Jonathan

“Voters have ample cause to send Mr Jonathan packing. In a country where power has often changed through the barrel of a gun, the opposition All Progressives Congress has a real chance of winning through the ballot box.

“Yet its candidate, Mr Buhari, is an ex-general who, three decades ago, came to power in a coup. His rule was nasty, brutish and mercifully short. Declaring a ‘war against indiscipline’, he ordered whip-wielding soldiers to ensure that Nigerians formed orderly queues.

“His economics, known as Buharism, was destructive. Instead of letting the currency depreciate in the face of a trade deficit, he tried to fix prices and ban ‘unnecessary’ imports. He expelled 700,000 migrants in the delusion that this would create jobs for Nigerians. He banned political meetings and free speech. He detained thousands, used secret tribunals and executed people for crimes that were not capital offences.

  “Should a former dictator with such a record be offered another chance? Surprisingly, many Nigerians think he should. One reason is that, in a country where ministers routinely wear wristwatches worth many times their annual salary, Mr Buhari is a sandal-wearing ascetic with a record of fighting corruption.

“Few nowadays question his commitment to democracy or expect him to turn autocratic: he has repeatedly stood for election and accepted the outcome when he lost. He would probably do a better job of running the country, and in particular of tackling Boko Haram.

“As a northerner and Muslim, he will have greater legitimacy among villagers whose help he will need to isolate the insurgents. As a military man, he is more likely to win the respect of a demoralised army.

  “We are relieved not to have a vote in this election. But were we offered one we would—with a heavy heart—choose Mr Buhari. Mr Jonathan risks presiding over Nigeria’s bloody fragmentation. If Mr Buhari can save Nigeria, history might even be kind to him.”

Source: The Nation

The Economist: Many Nigerians prefer to give Buhari another chance

“Sometimes there are no good options. Nigeria goes to the polls on February 14th to elect the next president, who will face problems so large—from rampant corruption to a jihadist insurgency—that they could break the country apart, with dire consequences for Nigerians and the world.

“And yet, as Africa’s biggest economy stages its most important election since the restoration of civilian rule in 1999, and

‘Earthquake’ to hit PDP as five governors set to join APC, says Oyegun

All Progressives Congress (APC) National Chairman Chief John Odigie-Oyegun has predicted “earthquake” in the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) 72 hours to next week’s general elections with the defection of five of its governors.

Odigie-Oyegun said the governors will join the APC, saying he had finalised plans to receive them into the opposition’s fold
The APC chairman told supporters in Benin yesterday that his party was poised to win the general elections.

“Let me reveal to you today that very soon, you will hear of an earthquake that will consume the PDP in this country. As I’m talking to you, I have held meetings with the governors. Let me not release the cat out of the bag. But let me assure you that a few hours to the presidential and national assembly elections, the PDP’s canoe will sink.


“You can see that our President and his party have engaged in one character assassination and the other; yet we are looking at them, focusing on our campaign of issues and not name-calling.
“The hand writing is so clear, February 14 is Lovers’ Day , that is a special day for our party. As from that day, Jonathan will start to pack his belongings out of Aso Rock .


“The elections cannot be postponed at this hour and they cannot rig it either. Just go there that day and vote, protect it, it is evidently clear that the PDP and Jonathan are running scared.
“Can you imagine a Col. Sambo Dasuki (the National Security Adviser) who cannot advise the President on how to tackle insurgency, calling for elections postponement? ” Oyegun

Source: The Nation

‘Earthquake’ to hit PDP as five governors set to join APC, says Oyegun

All Progressives Congress (APC) National Chairman Chief John Odigie-Oyegun has predicted “earthquake” in the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) 72 hours to next week’s general elections with the defection of five of its governors.

Odigie-Oyegun said the governors will join the APC, saying he had finalised plans to receive them into the opposition’s fold
The APC chairman told supporters in Benin yesterday that his party was poised to win the general elections.

“Let me reveal to you today that very soon, you will hear of an earthquake that will consume the PDP in this country. As I’m talking to you, I have held meetings with the governors. Let me not release the cat out of the bag. But let me assure you that a few hours to the presidential and national assembly elections, the PDP’s canoe will sink.


“You can see that our President and his party have engaged in one character assassination and the other; yet we are looking at them, focusing on our campaign of issues and not name-calling.
“The hand writing is so clear, February 14 is Lovers’ Day , that is a special day for our party. As from that day, Jonathan will start to pack his belongings out of Aso Rock .

How Obanikoro, Fayose, Chris Uba And Brig. General Momoh Rigged Ekiti Governorship Election -- Sahara Reporters

The 37-minute recording details the conversation between these PDP leaders and politicians as they bribed Brigadier General Momoh with a promotion for his assistance in carrying out election fraud in Ekiti. In it, Obanikoro is clearly heard informing the group of men, “[I] am not here for a tea party, am on special assignment by the President.”

Authentication of Audio Recordings and Proof of Election Fraud
The audio recordings were analyzed and authenticated by Guardian Consulting, an independent US-based security consulting company. According to a report authored by Guardian Consulting, also in the possession of SaharaReporters, the independent company used Forensic Voice Frequency Comparison technology to identify all voices on the recording with audio available in the public domain.

The then Deputy Defense Minister, Obanikoro clearly states to General Momoh that he was not only sent to the meeting by President Jonathan, but “you can’t get a promotion without me sitting on top of your military council. If I am happy tomorrow night, the sky is your limit.”


Governor Fayose revealed that he had already bribed an official of the Independent National Election Commission (INEC), the non-political commission charged with organizing elections in Nigeria, to bring copies of voter ballots with the INEC logo to him that day. Fayose, upset that his INEC contact was caught in traffic, narrated his day’s frustrations: “Where are we supposed to be collating the thing INEC gave to us? Soft copies we now printed? Why is my [INEC] contact not with [the ballots]…my contact man [was] sitting in the check point…it took me more than two hours to get this man.”

As the plotters began to argue, Omisore, who was running for Governor of Osun State on the PDP ticket, tried to calm the room: “I would just say that we don’t have to argue so much, we have seen some lapses [today] yes. It’s just this evening, there is nothing happening now that we cannot contain before tomorrow morning.”

Plans to Rig Elections in Favor of PDP
The eyewitness testimony and sworn affidavit by Capt. Koli corroborates the audio recordings of the PDP officials’ plans to manipulate the Ekiti elections. The plotters devised several plans intended to bring about an unlawful victory for PDP candidates in Ekiti State races, including the forging of INEC ballots, the use of the military to facilitate access for PDP operatives and supporters, the creation of a list of APC members to be arrested, and the deployment of a Special Team of military personnel to prevent APC voters from reaching the polls.

The PDP officials told General Momoh that those soldiers on election duty “must work hand-in-hand with the PDP agents” and ordered the arrest of selected APC stalwarts as that could “greatly assist the party during the election including DG campaign organization for Dr. Fayemi, Mr. Bimbo Daramola,” Capt. Koli said in his affidavit.

General Momoh, confronted with criticism by the group, defended himself by saying that “we have done a lot of [APC] arrests.” It would be recalled that there were arrests of APC members in Ekiti during the period. It would also be recalled that many members of the security offices paraded around Ekiti in disguise.
The PDP collaborators also demanded that the military block APC members’ access to the electorate and that moles should “be careful because the consequence will be severe.”

Soldiers were instructed set up roadblocks leading to the polling stations and prevent APC supporters’ access. Additionally, vehicles and individuals with a special sticker labeled “National Security Task” were allowed movement anywhere, and were only distributed to PDP agents.
General Momoh informed the group that there were “about 6 special teams. I have one strike force. I have almost forty soldiers after deployment,” evidently an organized system being used to manipulate voter turnout.

Capt. Koli’s statement explained that based on these strategies, “they succeeded in rigging the Ekiti State election with victory in all the 16 Local Governing Authorities (LGAs). These really inspired them and they were with the euphoria that same would happen in Osun State.”
Indeed, leading into the Osun State elections the Brigadier General posted there was told to take a three-week leave during the elections. His position was temporarily filled by General Momoh, who then repeated the same fraudulent tactics in Osun.

Retaliation Against Captain Sagir Koli
SaharaReporters was provided with additional evidence that proves the military retaliated against Capt. Koli when he released this information. Capt. Koli fled before he was arrested, but the military arrested, secretly detained, and chained his brother Adamu to a bed for nearly five months at the Adekunle Fanjuyi’s Cantonment.

In an exclusive phone interview with from his hideout outside Nigeria, Capt. Koli told SaharaReporters that his brother was starved for periods of time and sometimes “fed worms.” Adamu was only released after a petition, which is also in possession of SaharaReporters, was submitted to the National Human Rights Commission by Barrister Chief K. Akinola Ajayi.

The treatment of Capt. Koli’s brother was so poor during his illegal confinement that he had to be hospitalized due to malnutrition.
SaharaReporters contacted Nigerian Defense spokesperson, General Chris Olukolade as well as Nigerian Army spokesperson, Col. SK Usman, for comment on this story. Both officials promised to get back to us but never did.

Source: Sahara Reporters

How Obanikoro, Fayose, Chris Uba And Brig. General Momoh Rigged Ekiti Governorship Election -- Sahara Reporters

The 37-minute recording details the conversation between these PDP leaders and politicians as they bribed Brigadier General Momoh with a promotion for his assistance in carrying out election fraud in Ekiti. In it, Obanikoro is clearly heard informing the group of men, “[I] am not here for a tea party, am on special assignment by the President.”

Authentication of Audio Recordings and Proof of Election Fraud
The audio recordings were analyzed and authenticated by Guardian Consulting, an independent US-based security consulting company. According to a report authored by Guardian Consulting, also in the possession of SaharaReporters, the independent company used Forensic Voice Frequency Comparison technology to identify all voices on the recording with audio available in the public domain.

The then Deputy Defense Minister, Obanikoro clearly states to General Momoh that he was not only sent to the meeting by President Jonathan, but “you can’t get a promotion without me sitting on top of your military council. If I am happy tomorrow night, the sky is your limit.”

60 reasons I won’t vote for Jonathan – Soyinka

NOBEL Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka

NOBEL Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka has, distanced himself from internet interview, which claimed he has endorsed President Goodluck Jonathan for re-election, saying he has 60 reasons why he will not vote for the continuation of this regime.

Soyinka who spoke yesterday during the presentation of 60 finalists of the Vision of the Child Competition entitled: Road to Sambisa at the Freedom Park, Lagos, also urged Nigerians to search their conscience and be objective before casting their votes for any of the candidates.

Addressing the students from various schools across the country, Professor Soyinka said: ‘’It is impossible to talk of today’s election without thinking of what happened to your colleagues, your siblings, your peers in the village called Chibok. It is not possible to think of the future of this nation in the sense of responsibility without that albatross called Chibok. Coming to the fore of our contemplation, I think that why I was being killed on the internet is probably because of this very event because those who began to advertise my death on the internet probably know already what I stand for over the election which is also why all kinds of statements have been made.’’

Soyinka used the occasion to clear the air on statements credited to him about the elections. He said ‘’I have never spoken a word about this election so anything which you read on the internet as interviews or recent statements is not mine. Don’t believe it. The reason is this, they advertised on the internet that I am dead, so why should you believe it?’’

He continued: ‘’I have at least 60 reasons for not voting for the continuation of this present government and those reasons are here.

Why I will not vote for this government or encourage anybody to vote for the continuation of this present government is simply because your colleagues, numbering over 200 were kidnapped; we sent them on a mission – education, enlightenment, examination, to rub minds with their peers and they disappeared and the government of the nation failed to show leadership. So, anybody who says that I will vote or cast my vote or encourage anyone to vote for this regime must be living in Sambisa forest.

‘’There has been failure of leadership. Our children who you represent today have been betrayed. They were betrayed because no action or appropriate action was taken to retrieve your colleagues who were stolen from under our noses, 10 days before this government even accepted that they were missing.”

 Source: Vanguard

NOBEL Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka has, distanced himself from internet interview, which claimed he has endorsed President Goodluck Jonathan for re-election, saying he has 60 reasons why he will not vote for the continuation of this regime.
Soyinka who spoke yesterday during the presentation of 60 finalists of the Vision of the Child Competition entitled: Road to Sambisa at the Freedom Park, Lagos, also urged Nigerians to search their conscience and be objective before casting their votes for any of the candidates.
Addressing the students from various schools across the country, Professor Soyinka said: ‘’It is impossible to talk of today’s election without thinking of what happened to your colleagues, your siblings, your peers in the village called Chibok. It is not possible to think of the future of this nation in the sense of responsibility without that albatross called Chibok. Coming to the fore of our contemplation, I think that why I was being killed on the internet is probably because of this very event because those who began to advertise my death on the internet probably know already what I stand for over the election which is also why all kinds of statements have been made.’’
Soyinka used the occasion to clear the air on statements credited to him about the elections. He said ‘’I have never spoken a word about this election so anything which you read on the internet as interviews or recent statements is not mine. Don’t believe it. The reason is this, they advertised on the internet that I am dead, so why should you believe it?’’
He continued: ‘’I have at least 60 reasons for not voting for the continuation of this present government and those reasons are here.
Why I will not vote for this government or encourage anybody to vote for the continuation of this present government is simply because your colleagues, numbering over 200 were kidnapped; we sent them on a mission – education, enlightenment, examination, to rub minds with their peers and they disappeared and the government of the nation failed to show leadership. So, anybody who says that I will vote or cast my vote or encourage anyone to vote for this regime must be living in Sambisa forest.
‘’There has been failure of leadership. Our children who you represent today have been betrayed. They were betrayed because no action or appropriate action was taken to retrieve your colleagues who were stolen from under our noses, 10 days before this government even accepted that they were missing.”
- See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/02/60-reasons-wont-vote-jonathan-soyinka/#sthash.2ovt1XNx.5CNPl1AX.dpuf

NOBEL Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka has, distanced himself from internet interview, which claimed he has endorsed President Goodluck Jonathan for re-election, saying he has 60 reasons why he will not vote for the continuation of this regime.
Soyinka who spoke yesterday during the presentation of 60 finalists of the Vision of the Child Competition entitled: Road to Sambisa at the Freedom Park, Lagos, also urged Nigerians to search their conscience and be objective before casting their votes for any of the candidates.
Addressing the students from various schools across the country, Professor Soyinka said: ‘’It is impossible to talk of today’s election without thinking of what happened to your colleagues, your siblings, your peers in the village called Chibok. It is not possible to think of the future of this nation in the sense of responsibility without that albatross called Chibok. Coming to the fore of our contemplation, I think that why I was being killed on the internet is probably because of this very event because those who began to advertise my death on the internet probably know already what I stand for over the election which is also why all kinds of statements have been made.’’
Soyinka used the occasion to clear the air on statements credited to him about the elections. He said ‘’I have never spoken a word about this election so anything which you read on the internet as interviews or recent statements is not mine. Don’t believe it. The reason is this, they advertised on the internet that I am dead, so why should you believe it?’’
He continued: ‘’I have at least 60 reasons for not voting for the continuation of this present government and those reasons are here.
Why I will not vote for this government or encourage anybody to vote for the continuation of this present government is simply because your colleagues, numbering over 200 were kidnapped; we sent them on a mission – education, enlightenment, examination, to rub minds with their peers and they disappeared and the government of the nation failed to show leadership. So, anybody who says that I will vote or cast my vote or encourage anyone to vote for this regime must be living in Sambisa forest.
‘’There has been failure of leadership. Our children who you represent today have been betrayed. They were betrayed because no action or appropriate action was taken to retrieve your colleagues who were stolen from under our noses, 10 days before this government even accepted that they were missing.”
- See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/02/60-reasons-wont-vote-jonathan-soyinka/#sthash.2ovt1XNx.5CNPl1AX.dpuf

NOBEL Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka has, distanced himself from internet interview, which claimed he has endorsed President Goodluck Jonathan for re-election, saying he has 60 reasons why he will not vote for the continuation of this regime.
Soyinka who spoke yesterday during the presentation of 60 finalists of the Vision of the Child Competition entitled: Road to Sambisa at the Freedom Park, Lagos, also urged Nigerians to search their conscience and be objective before casting their votes for any of the candidates.
Addressing the students from various schools across the country, Professor Soyinka said: ‘’It is impossible to talk of today’s election without thinking of what happened to your colleagues, your siblings, your peers in the village called Chibok. It is not possible to think of the future of this nation in the sense of responsibility without that albatross called Chibok. Coming to the fore of our contemplation, I think that why I was being killed on the internet is probably because of this very event because those who began to advertise my death on the internet probably know already what I stand for over the election which is also why all kinds of statements have been made.’’
Soyinka used the occasion to clear the air on statements credited to him about the elections. He said ‘’I have never spoken a word about this election so anything which you read on the internet as interviews or recent statements is not mine. Don’t believe it. The reason is this, they advertised on the internet that I am dead, so why should you believe it?’’
He continued: ‘’I have at least 60 reasons for not voting for the continuation of this present government and those reasons are here.
Why I will not vote for this government or encourage anybody to vote for the continuation of this present government is simply because your colleagues, numbering over 200 were kidnapped; we sent them on a mission – education, enlightenment, examination, to rub minds with their peers and they disappeared and the government of the nation failed to show leadership. So, anybody who says that I will vote or cast my vote or encourage anyone to vote for this regime must be living in Sambisa forest.
‘’There has been failure of leadership. Our children who you represent today have been betrayed. They were betrayed because no action or appropriate action was taken to retrieve your colleagues who were stolen from under our noses, 10 days before this government even accepted that they were missing.”
- See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/02/60-reasons-wont-vote-jonathan-soyinka/#sthash.2ovt1XNx.5CNPl1AX.dpuf

NOBEL Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka has, distanced himself from internet interview, which claimed he has endorsed President Goodluck Jonathan for re-election, saying he has 60 reasons why he will not vote for the continuation of this regime.
Soyinka who spoke yesterday during the presentation of 60 finalists of the Vision of the Child Competition entitled: Road to Sambisa at the Freedom Park, Lagos, also urged Nigerians to search their conscience and be objective before casting their votes for any of the candidates.
Addressing the students from various schools across the country, Professor Soyinka said: ‘’It is impossible to talk of today’s election without thinking of what happened to your colleagues, your siblings, your peers in the village called Chibok. It is not possible to think of the future of this nation in the sense of responsibility without that albatross called Chibok. Coming to the fore of our contemplation, I think that why I was being killed on the internet is probably because of this very event because those who began to advertise my death on the internet probably know already what I stand for over the election which is also why all kinds of statements have been made.’’
Soyinka used the occasion to clear the air on statements credited to him about the elections. He said ‘’I have never spoken a word about this election so anything which you read on the internet as interviews or recent statements is not mine. Don’t believe it. The reason is this, they advertised on the internet that I am dead, so why should you believe it?’’
He continued: ‘’I have at least 60 reasons for not voting for the continuation of this present government and those reasons are here.
Why I will not vote for this government or encourage anybody to vote for the continuation of this present government is simply because your colleagues, numbering over 200 were kidnapped; we sent them on a mission – education, enlightenment, examination, to rub minds with their peers and they disappeared and the government of the nation failed to show leadership. So, anybody who says that I will vote or cast my vote or encourage anyone to vote for this regime must be living in Sambisa forest.
‘’There has been failure of leadership. Our children who you represent today have been betrayed. They were betrayed because no action or appropriate action was taken to retrieve your colleagues who were stolen from under our noses, 10 days before this government even accepted that they were missing.”
- See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/02/60-reasons-wont-vote-jonathan-soyinka/#sthash.2ovt1XNx.5CNPl1AX.dpuf

NOBEL Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka has, distanced himself from internet interview, which claimed he has endorsed President Goodluck Jonathan for re-election, saying he has 60 reasons why he will not vote for the continuation of this regime.
Soyinka who spoke yesterday during the presentation of 60 finalists of the Vision of the Child Competition entitled: Road to Sambisa at the Freedom Park, Lagos, also urged Nigerians to search their conscience and be objective before casting their votes for any of the candidates.
Addressing the students from various schools across the country, Professor Soyinka said: ‘’It is impossible to talk of today’s election without thinking of what happened to your colleagues, your siblings, your peers in the village called Chibok. It is not possible to think of the future of this nation in the sense of responsibility without that albatross called Chibok. Coming to the fore of our contemplation, I think that why I was being killed on the internet is probably because of this very event because those who began to advertise my death on the internet probably know already what I stand for over the election which is also why all kinds of statements have been made.’’
Soyinka used the occasion to clear the air on statements credited to him about the elections. He said ‘’I have never spoken a word about this election so anything which you read on the internet as interviews or recent statements is not mine. Don’t believe it. The reason is this, they advertised on the internet that I am dead, so why should you believe it?’’
He continued: ‘’I have at least 60 reasons for not voting for the continuation of this present government and those reasons are here.
Why I will not vote for this government or encourage anybody to vote for the continuation of this present government is simply because your colleagues, numbering over 200 were kidnapped; we sent them on a mission – education, enlightenment, examination, to rub minds with their peers and they disappeared and the government of the nation failed to show leadership. So, anybody who says that I will vote or cast my vote or encourage anyone to vote for this regime must be living in Sambisa forest.
‘’There has been failure of leadership. Our children who you represent today have been betrayed. They were betrayed because no action or appropriate action was taken to retrieve your colleagues who were stolen from under our noses, 10 days before this government even accepted that they were missing.”
- See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/02/60-reasons-wont-vote-jonathan-soyinka/#sthash.2ovt1XNx.5CNPl1AX.dpuf

NOBEL Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka has, distanced himself from internet interview, which claimed he has endorsed President Goodluck Jonathan for re-election, saying he has 60 reasons why he will not vote for the continuation of this regime.
Soyinka who spoke yesterday during the presentation of 60 finalists of the Vision of the Child Competition entitled: Road to Sambisa at the Freedom Park, Lagos, also urged Nigerians to search their conscience and be objective before casting their votes for any of the candidates.
Addressing the students from various schools across the country, Professor Soyinka said: ‘’It is impossible to talk of today’s election without thinking of what happened to your colleagues, your siblings, your peers in the village called Chibok. It is not possible to think of the future of this nation in the sense of responsibility without that albatross called Chibok. Coming to the fore of our contemplation, I think that why I was being killed on the internet is probably because of this very event because those who began to advertise my death on the internet probably know already what I stand for over the election which is also why all kinds of statements have been made.’’
Soyinka used the occasion to clear the air on statements credited to him about the elections. He said ‘’I have never spoken a word about this election so anything which you read on the internet as interviews or recent statements is not mine. Don’t believe it. The reason is this, they advertised on the internet that I am dead, so why should you believe it?’’
He continued: ‘’I have at least 60 reasons for not voting for the continuation of this present government and those reasons are here.
Why I will not vote for this government or encourage anybody to vote for the continuation of this present government is simply because your colleagues, numbering over 200 were kidnapped; we sent them on a mission – education, enlightenment, examination, to rub minds with their peers and they disappeared and the government of the nation failed to show leadership. So, anybody who says that I will vote or cast my vote or encourage anyone to vote for this regime must be living in Sambisa forest.
‘’There has been failure of leadership. Our children who you represent today have been betrayed. They were betrayed because no action or appropriate action was taken to retrieve your colleagues who were stolen from under our noses, 10 days before this government even accepted that they were missing.”
- See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/02/60-reasons-wont-vote-jonathan-soyinka/#sthash.2ovt1XNx.5CNPl1AX.dpuf

NOBEL Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka has, distanced himself from internet interview, which claimed he has endorsed President Goodluck Jonathan for re-election, saying he has 60 reasons why he will not vote for the continuation of this regime.
Soyinka who spoke yesterday during the presentation of 60 finalists of the Vision of the Child Competition entitled: Road to Sambisa at the Freedom Park, Lagos, also urged Nigerians to search their conscience and be objective before casting their votes for any of the candidates.
Addressing the students from various schools across the country, Professor Soyinka said: ‘’It is impossible to talk of today’s election without thinking of what happened to your colleagues, your siblings, your peers in the village called Chibok. It is not possible to think of the future of this nation in the sense of responsibility without that albatross called Chibok. Coming to the fore of our contemplation, I think that why I was being killed on the internet is probably because of this very event because those who began to advertise my death on the internet probably know already what I stand for over the election which is also why all kinds of statements have been made.’’
Soyinka used the occasion to clear the air on statements credited to him about the elections. He said ‘’I have never spoken a word about this election so anything which you read on the internet as interviews or recent statements is not mine. Don’t believe it. The reason is this, they advertised on the internet that I am dead, so why should you believe it?’’
He continued: ‘’I have at least 60 reasons for not voting for the continuation of this present government and those reasons are here.
Why I will not vote for this government or encourage anybody to vote for the continuation of this present government is simply because your colleagues, numbering over 200 were kidnapped; we sent them on a mission – education, enlightenment, examination, to rub minds with their peers and they disappeared and the government of the nation failed to show leadership. So, anybody who says that I will vote or cast my vote or encourage anyone to vote for this regime must be living in Sambisa forest.
‘’There has been failure of leadership. Our children who you represent today have been betrayed. They were betrayed because no action or appropriate action was taken to retrieve your colleagues who were stolen from under our noses, 10 days before this government even accepted that they were missing.”
- See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/02/60-reasons-wont-vote-jonathan-soyinka/#sthash.2ovt1XNx.5CNPl1AX.dpuf

NOBEL Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka has, distanced himself from internet interview, which claimed he has endorsed President Goodluck Jonathan for re-election, saying he has 60 reasons why he will not vote for the continuation of this regime.
Soyinka who spoke yesterday during the presentation of 60 finalists of the Vision of the Child Competition entitled: Road to Sambisa at the Freedom Park, Lagos, also urged Nigerians to search their conscience and be objective before casting their votes for any of the candidates.
Addressing the students from various schools across the country, Professor Soyinka said: ‘’It is impossible to talk of today’s election without thinking of what happened to your colleagues, your siblings, your peers in the village called Chibok. It is not possible to think of the future of this nation in the sense of responsibility without that albatross called Chibok. Coming to the fore of our contemplation, I think that why I was being killed on the internet is probably because of this very event because those who began to advertise my death on the internet probably know already what I stand for over the election which is also why all kinds of statements have been made.’’
Soyinka used the occasion to clear the air on statements credited to him about the elections. He said ‘’I have never spoken a word about this election so anything which you read on the internet as interviews or recent statements is not mine. Don’t believe it. The reason is this, they advertised on the internet that I am dead, so why should you believe it?’’
He continued: ‘’I have at least 60 reasons for not voting for the continuation of this present government and those reasons are here.
Why I will not vote for this government or encourage anybody to vote for the continuation of this present government is simply because your colleagues, numbering over 200 were kidnapped; we sent them on a mission – education, enlightenment, examination, to rub minds with their peers and they disappeared and the government of the nation failed to show leadership. So, anybody who says that I will vote or cast my vote or encourage anyone to vote for this regime must be living in Sambisa forest.
‘’There has been failure of leadership. Our children who you represent today have been betrayed. They were betrayed because no action or appropriate action was taken to retrieve your colleagues who were stolen from under our noses, 10 days before this government even accepted that they were missing.”
- See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/02/60-reasons-wont-vote-jonathan-soyinka/#sthash.2ovt1XNx.5CNPl1AX.dpuf

NOBEL Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka has, distanced himself from internet interview, which claimed he has endorsed President Goodluck Jonathan for re-election, saying he has 60 reasons why he will not vote for the continuation of this regime.
Soyinka who spoke yesterday during the presentation of 60 finalists of the Vision of the Child Competition entitled: Road to Sambisa at the Freedom Park, Lagos, also urged Nigerians to search their conscience and be objective before casting their votes for any of the candidates.
Addressing the students from various schools across the country, Professor Soyinka said: ‘’It is impossible to talk of today’s election without thinking of what happened to your colleagues, your siblings, your peers in the village called Chibok. It is not possible to think of the future of this nation in the sense of responsibility without that albatross called Chibok. Coming to the fore of our contemplation, I think that why I was being killed on the internet is probably because of this very event because those who began to advertise my death on the internet probably know already what I stand for over the election which is also why all kinds of statements have been made.’’
Soyinka used the occasion to clear the air on statements credited to him about the elections. He said ‘’I have never spoken a word about this election so anything which you read on the internet as interviews or recent statements is not mine. Don’t believe it. The reason is this, they advertised on the internet that I am dead, so why should you believe it?’’
He continued: ‘’I have at least 60 reasons for not voting for the continuation of this present government and those reasons are here.
Why I will not vote for this government or encourage anybody to vote for the continuation of this present government is simply because your colleagues, numbering over 200 were kidnapped; we sent them on a mission – education, enlightenment, examination, to rub minds with their peers and they disappeared and the government of the nation failed to show leadership. So, anybody who says that I will vote or cast my vote or encourage anyone to vote for this regime must be living in Sambisa forest.
‘’There has been failure of leadership. Our children who you represent today have been betrayed. They were betrayed because no action or appropriate action was taken to retrieve your colleagues who were stolen from under our noses, 10 days before this government even accepted that they were missing.”
- See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/02/60-reasons-wont-vote-jonathan-soyinka/#sthash.2ovt1XNx.5CNPl1AX.dpuf

60 reasons I won’t vote for Jonathan – Soyinka

NOBEL Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka

NOBEL Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka has, distanced himself from internet interview, which claimed he has endorsed President Goodluck Jonathan for re-election, saying he has 60 reasons why he will not vote for the continuation of this regime.

Soyinka who spoke yesterday during the presentation of 60 finalists of the Vision of the Child Competition entitled: Road to Sambisa at the Freedom Park, Lagos, also urged Nigerians to search their conscience and be objective before casting their votes for any of the candidates.

Addressing the students from various schools across the country, Professor Soyinka said: ‘’It is impossible to talk of today’s election without thinking of what happened to your colleagues, your siblings, your peers in the village called Chibok. It is not possible to think of the future of this nation in the sense of responsibility without that albatross called Chibok. Coming to the fore of our contemplation, I think that why I was being killed on the internet is probably because of this very event because those who began to advertise my death on the internet probably know already what I stand for over the election which is also why all kinds of statements have been made.’’

Soyinka used the occasion to clear the air on statements credited to him about the elections. He said ‘’I have never spoken a word about this election so anything which you read on the internet as interviews or recent statements is not mine. Don’t believe it. The reason is this, they advertised on the internet that I am dead, so why should you believe it?’’

He continued: ‘’I have at least 60 reasons for not voting for the continuation of this present government and those reasons are here.

Soludo’s tenure as CBN gov, a disaster – FG

 

The Federal Government on Wednesday described the five year tenure of Prof Chukuwma Soludo as the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria as a failure and a disaster to the banking sector.

Soludo who was the apex bank governor between May 2004 and May 2009, had on Monday written an article where he claimed that the Nigerian economy under President Goodluck Jonathan had performed woefully.

But the Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala while reacting through a statement issued by her Special Adviser Communications, Mr Paul Nwabuikwu said Soludo through his article has committed what she described as “intellectual harakiri.”

The Minister noted that not only was the article littered with abusive and unbecoming language, it shows Soludo, whom she described as an “embittered loser in the Nigerian political space” can get so derailed by misquoting economic facts and maliciously turning statistics on their head to justify a hatchet job.”

Source: Punch

Soludo’s tenure as CBN gov, a disaster – FG

 

The Federal Government on Wednesday described the five year tenure of Prof Chukuwma Soludo as the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria as a failure and a disaster to the banking sector.

Soludo who was the apex bank governor between May 2004 and May 2009, had on Monday written an article where he claimed that the Nigerian economy under President Goodluck Jonathan had performed woefully.

But the Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala while reacting through a statement issued by her Special Adviser Communications, Mr Paul Nwabuikwu said Soludo through his article has committed what she described as “intellectual harakiri.”

The Minister noted that not only was the article littered with abusive and unbecoming language, it shows Soludo, whom she described as an “embittered loser in the Nigerian political space” can get so derailed by misquoting economic facts and maliciously turning statistics on their head to justify a hatchet job.”

Source: Punch

Muhammadu Buhari Lied Under Oath...By Femi Aribisala

Femi Aribisala

These are interesting times. Muhammadu Buhari, the APC presidential candidate whose only policy plank is that he will fight against corruption without wavering, is not the straight-forward man he would have Nigerians believe. Buhari lied under oath. He perjured himself claiming his school-leaving certificate is with the military. This has now been revealed to be a tissue of lies.

This is a scandal of immense proportions in an aspiring presidential candidate. Under no circumstances should it be swept under the carpet. For this blatant perjury, Buhari must be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. It should also lead to his disqualification from contesting for election as president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

In the language of Buhari’s own anti-corruption rhetoric, Nigeria must be shown to be a nation of laws and of the rule of law. No man, no matter how highly-placed, no matter his ethnic or political pedigree, should be shown to be above the law. For this reason, a public example must be made of Buhari.

Non-existent certificates
Buhari has run for the presidency on three earlier occasions. On those occasions, he did not contravene any law with regard to his non-existent certificates because there were no provisions for them. However, with the new Electoral Act, there is now a requirement for proof of credentials. But instead of providing his certificates to INEC, as now required by law, Buhari deposed in an affidavit at a High Court in Abuja that: “All my academic qualifications documents as filled in my presidential form, President APC/001/2015, are currently with the Secretary, Military Board as of the time of presenting this affidavit.”

This affidavit has turned out to be false. The military board says it does not have Buhari’s academic qualification credentials. That means Buhari committed perjury when he swore on oath that the military has them. As a matter of fact, the military board does not even have the photocopies of Buhari’s credentials because he did not submit them when he enrolled into the Nigerian Army.
Maybe Buhari expected the military to let sleeping dogs lie about this. However, the Nigerian Army released the following statement which quickly gave the lie to Buhari’s affidavit:

“It is a practice in the Nigerian Army that before candidates are shortlisted for commissioning into the officers’ cadre of the Service; the Selection Board verifies the original copies of credentials that are presented. However, there is no available record to show that this process was followed in the 1960s. Neither the original copy, Certified True Copy (CTC); nor statement of result of Major General M Buhari’s WASC result, is in his personal file.”

Guilty of perjury
This denial by the army that it has Buhari’s certificates has put the APC presidential candidate on the horns of a dilemma. As I said, it shows Buhari committed perjury. In the bid to repair this damage, Buhari cobbled together a press conference during which he said the following: “I had assumed all along that all my records were in the custody of the Military Secretary of the Nigerian Army. Much to my surprise, we are now told that although a record of the result is available, there are no copies of the certificates in my personal file.”

This excuse is hogwash. An experienced politician like Buhari who is running for president surely has a panoply of aides, assistants and advisers. He should know that it not acceptable for a man to swear an oath in court based on assumptions “all along.” Oaths are sworn as certification that what is said is true. Truth is not amenable to assumptions. Section 118 of the Nigerian criminal code reads: “Any person who commits perjury is liable to imprisonment for fourteen years.” This is the fate that must now befall Muhammadu Buhari who must not be allowed to be above the law.

Buhari stated in his affidavit that his academic qualification documents: “are currently with the Secretary, Military Board as of the time of presenting this affidavit.” However, the evidence indicates that Buhari must have known that this was not true at the time he swore on oath to this. This is because Buhari was the Military Secretary, Army Headquarters, from 1978-1979.

That means Buhari should not be believed when he says: “I had assumed all along that all my records were in the custody of the Military Secretary of the Nigerian Army.” On the contrary, Buhari knows from his experience as Military Secretary that certified true copies of the credentials of military men are not kept with the military board. Nobody keeps the originals of their credentials with the organizations where they worked: only photocopies are kept there. Therefore, Buhari was just being disingenuous when he claimed his certificates were with the military.

New gambit
Having been thrown under the bus by the military brass, Buhari came up with another gambit. He now declared that Provincial Secondary School, Katsina (now known as Government College, Katsina), which he attended over 50 years ago, would make available to the public the school’s copy of his Cambridge/WASC certificate. In doing this, Buhari blundered yet again.

He shows that, in spite of his highfalutin campaign on the platform of integrity, he does not believe in transparency.
Buhari failed to explain the contradiction in the letter of recommendation from his school principal to the military which suggests he had not graduated from school before he opted out to join the military. The principal said: “I recommend him fit for military commissioning. I consider that he will pass the WASC examination in English, Math and three other subjects.”

If you want to confirm your exam credentials, you don’t write to your school asking for a copy of your result; you ask the relevant examinations council to provide you with a copy of your result. Instead of Buhari to ask for his result from Cambridge/WASC, he asks for his primary school in Katsina to tell us his result. The primary school then presents a result that is inadmissible as evidence of Buhari’s result. It presents a result headlined “Katsina State Government,” when Katsina State did not even exist in 1961 when the result is alleged to have been given.

Inadmissible credentials
A statement of result by Katsina Provincial Primary School is inadmissible, according to Buhari’s INEC affidavit. To repeat: Buhari said in an oath to INEC that “all” his academic qualification documents are with the military. When that did not work, he turned to his primary school. But what his primary school provided is not his academic qualification document. It provided what is ostensibly a photocopy. However, in law, you cannot authenticate a document by providing the photocopy. You must provide the original.

The credentials Buhari needs to rest his case are with Cambridge/WASC; and only Buhari can apply to get them. Therefore, if he is really interested in putting this matter to rest, he should stop wasting time. The military board cannot apply for his credentials on his behalf; neither can Government College, Katsina.

The University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate (UCLES), now known as Cambridge Assessment, affirms this position on its website. It says: “We can only confirm or verify results at the direct request of or with the permission of a candidate. This is in accordance with the provisions of the Data Protection Act 1998 and section 40 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000.”

In short, Buhari should apply for and get his certificate by himself. That way, he would not have to go through the dubious circuitous routes he has been following to his detriment. If Buhari truly wants all the brouhaha over his certificate to die down, he needs to request for his certificate from Cambridge/WASC with the utmost urgency and quickly present this to INEC as proof of his compliance with electoral regulations. Otherwise, APC has a big problem in its hands.

Suspect documents
The document Government College, Katsina has presented is suspect. It contains an obvious alteration on the Mathematics column which effectively renders it invalid. Indeed, the document itself states that: “any alteration or erasure renders this Statement of Results invalid.” Other anomalies evident in the statement include a recent photograph on an old document; a wrong name (Mohamed instead of Muhammad); and the absence of the principal’s name.

There are other nagging questions pertaining to the validity of the results published by the Katsina State government. How come the expectations of Buhari’s grades as expressed by his principal turn out to be virtually the mirror-image of his alleged results? This suggests the likelihood Katsina State might have fabricated the Statement of Results to fit in with the grades predicted by the principal.

In effect, the evidence suggests that what Buhari has asked Government College, Katsina to present to INEC as evidence of his credentials is a forged certificate. According to Section 137 (10) of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution: “A person shall not be qualified for election to the office of President if he has presented a forged certificate to the Independent National Electoral Commission.”

Forgery is implied in this case because the Katsina Ministry of Education issues the transcripts of an examination it did not conduct. The Ministry of Education, Katsina, did not conduct WASC exam in 1961. Therefore the ministry could not have issued Buhari a WASC certificate in 1961.
INEC cannot address this matter because in the precedence established in the case of Atiku Abubakar in 2007, only the judiciary has the power to ban a candidate. However, the courts are on strike at the moment. Nevertheless, Buhari needs to save himself and his party future embarrassment by coming clean now.

Many of us, knowing Buhari’s antecedents, have always insisted his anti-corruption stance is a ruse. Buhari “talks water but drinks wine.” He preaches anti-corruption but is surrounded and sponsored by the corrupt. This scandal of his non-existent certificate has again confirmed our fears. Buhari is not fit to be president of Nigeria. As soon as the judiciary strike is over, Buhari must be prosecuted for perjury to the full extent of the law.

Source: Premiumtimes

Muhammadu Buhari Lied Under Oath...By Femi Aribisala

Femi Aribisala

These are interesting times. Muhammadu Buhari, the APC presidential candidate whose only policy plank is that he will fight against corruption without wavering, is not the straight-forward man he would have Nigerians believe. Buhari lied under oath. He perjured himself claiming his school-leaving certificate is with the military. This has now been revealed to be a tissue of lies.

This is a scandal of immense proportions in an aspiring presidential candidate. Under no circumstances should it be swept under the carpet. For this blatant perjury, Buhari must be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. It should also lead to his disqualification from contesting for election as president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

In the language of Buhari’s own anti-corruption rhetoric, Nigeria must be shown to be a nation of laws and of the rule of law. No man, no matter how highly-placed, no matter his ethnic or political pedigree, should be shown to be above the law. For this reason, a public example must be made of Buhari.

Non-existent certificates
Buhari has run for the presidency on three earlier occasions. On those occasions, he did not contravene any law with regard to his non-existent certificates because there were no provisions for them. However, with the new Electoral Act, there is now a requirement for proof of credentials. But instead of providing his certificates to INEC, as now required by law, Buhari deposed in an affidavit at a High Court in Abuja that: “All my academic qualifications documents as filled in my presidential form, President APC/001/2015, are currently with the Secretary, Military Board as of the time of presenting this affidavit.”

This affidavit has turned out to be false. The military board says it does not have Buhari’s academic qualification credentials. That means Buhari committed perjury when he swore on oath that the military has them. As a matter of fact, the military board does not even have the photocopies of Buhari’s credentials because he did not submit them when he enrolled into the Nigerian Army.
Maybe Buhari expected the military to let sleeping dogs lie about this. However, the Nigerian Army released the following statement which quickly gave the lie to Buhari’s affidavit:

The Ugly Side of Buhari and Jonathan ..By Atedo Peterside

Opinion polls commissioned by ANAP Foundation and conducted by NOI Polls (using Gallup methodology) show that President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan (GEJ) and his main challenger, Major-General Mohammadu Buhari (Buhari) are currently running neck-to-neck in the 2015 Presidential race.

The difference between them in terms of potential votes nation wide is statistically insignificant because it is dwarfed considerably by the much larger percentage of voters who remain “Undecided” - and so the race is truly too close to call. This election will therefore not be decided by the loyalists. It will be called by the large number of undecided voters (these are the swing voters) and they have one thing in common - they do not like GEJ, but then they do not like Buhari either (they want change but see Buhari as the type of change that is both alarming and worrisome).

In such circumstances, efforts by both candidates to sell themselves forcefully to their core constituencies may simultaneously alienate the swing voters. When Hausa/Fulani elders and/or retired Generals and Muslim leaders shout forcefully that Buhari must have it, the rest of the nation recoils in horror.

 

The same thing happens when misguided elements from the South-South zone and Christian leaders insist that their zone (or a Christian) must have two full terms in Aso Rock. The truth is that the Presidency is not anyone’s birthright and so it is naive and downright foolish to go down that route. Indeed some of these bold declarations by core supporters are akin to a kiss of death with swing voters.

 

Buhari publicly declared in 2011 that he will not contest again. Jonathan is said to have privately declared in 2011 that he would only stay for a single term. Let us therefore assume that they have both broken their word by contesting in 2015 and so there is little to be gained with the swing voters by dwelling on this.

 

Swing voters are moved more by what they do not like about either candidate. At the end of the day therefore they will vote “against” the candidate that they dislike more and their collecive actions will determine who wins. That is why this article focuses on the ugly side of Buhari and GEJ and not on their strengths.

Many of the swing voters are upset. They feel that our two major political parties have “cheated” them by forcing them to choose between the devil and the deep blue sea.

 

During the course of the 2014 National Conference, where I was a delegate, I made a contribution to the effect that past military rulers, who toppled democratically elected governments, should still be tried for treason so as to serve as a permanent detterent to young and ambitious military officers who will the understand that the long arm of the law may get them even in their old age and even after they claim to have repented. Buhari dethroned a democratically elected government in order to become a military head of state at the end of 1983

 

Many of the swing voters are true democrats who abhor authoritarianism. Buhari was not a benevolent dictator either. He was a vicious and wicked one who used retroactive decrees to sentence youths to death and to jail journalists who dared to publish the whole truth. Can the leopard shed it’s spots overnight as some would have us believe?

 

Wickedness and callousness are not matters of style and/or fashion they are a reflection of a real personae. Buhari’s unguarded utterances about him supporting the institution of sharia nationwide and his “famous” statement that Muslims should only vote for Muslims and his threat that the baboon and the dog will be soaked in blood if elections were rigged are all consistent with his unelectable personae, hence his persistent search for devout Christians (with little or no political clout) as Vice Presidential candidates while he is on the capaign trail. Is he simply hanging on to political lightweights that he knows he can devour the day after he gets elected?

 

On the economy, Buhari was a disaster first time around. He was clearly an economic illiterate and thought he could run the complex Nigerian economy by controlling rations as was done in a military cantonment. He placed everything under import licence and empowered some individuals under him to prescribe what quantity of every good Nigeria needed and also sought to prescribe which individuals would import the item and in what quantity.

 

Ignorance was on display all around and it was exploited through massive racketeering by persons in his government who called the shots. That he was deemed to be personally honest became irrelevant and so many of us cheered when soldiers (not known for honesty) put him out of his misery by kicking him out of office in less than 18 months and before he could torture the nation any further.

GEJ is unliked by many because he is seen as being weak and unable to control the excesses of some of his close aides and party chieftains.

 

YES, he eventually stood up to ex-President Obasanjo (who tries to dictate to every serving President), but then who wouldn’t? All future Presidents (including those unborn) now know to avoid Obasanjo like a plague. What manner of ex-President will divulge details of his one-on-one meeting with a serving President to the general public ( in a book), without getting the latter’s prior consent?

NO, GEJ’s vulnerabilities are from the party chieftains and a few dodgy aides that he accommodates and/or tolerates. He also believed too much in assurances from our Security Agencies, Defence Ministers, Chiefs of Defence Staff, National Security Advisers etc.

 

This entire group have lost credibility in the fight against Boko Haram. His most recent utterances suggest that he has realised now, how deadly Boko Haram are, but it is rather late in the day as the elections are a little more than a couple of weeks away. My own position on Boko Haram (BH) has remained consistent. The entire Nigerian elite continue to under-estimate BH at our peril. I would love to wish them away, but history and my head tell me that, like Colombia’s Farc Rebels, BH will still be around in some form or the other for decades.

 

Presidents who aspire to have a second term in Nigeria face this paradox; if they stand up to all the party Chieftains, over-bearing Governors and Security Chiefs, they will not get re-elected because the Party will throw up a Challenger. If they succumb to this motley/unholy lot, they will slow down economic reform, secure their Party nomination but alienate swing voters nationwide.

 The only reason for the swing voters to vote for GEJ therefore is if he can convince them that he will be free himself from this motley crowd next time around. Afterall, a second Presidential term is a final term and nobody (except Obasanjo) will ever dream about a third term. In effect, GEJ must convince swing voters that, if they give him a second term, he will be man enough to bite many of the grubby hands that lurk around the higher echelons of his party.

 

Further complexities in the Presidential race arise because some of the ambitious and highly educated politicians from the North East (in particular) do not want an ageing and not so capable Buhari to ascend a throne which they aspire to occupy in 2019. Buhari was rejected consistently by some of his newer supporters when he was younger and more capable. Ironically, the older and less capable he becomes, the more he appeals to them because they hope to usurp his authority. He has agreed to be dressed up in sheep’s clothing now, but they should beware of the wolf in sheep’s clothing. They might be shut out of Aso Rock if he wins.

 

Ironically, if these power brokers (who are not known for honesty) come out now to publicly affirm that they will have continuing relevance if Buhari wins, then again the swing voters get turned off because they see corrupt persons surrounding an old and infirm “honest” man who is driven by a blind ambition to re-occupy a seat from which he was booted out prematurely in 1985, even though he recognises that he is not clever enough to understand 21st Century economic and financial transactions through which some of his new and unscrupulous friends hope to loot and/or corner the national treasury under his lazy and ineffective watch.

 

GEJ has also gathered all sorts of renegades unto his campaign ship. The enemies of his enemy have all become his friends overnight. They are strange bedfellows. In his second term (if he wins) he will need to cut off many of these hangers-on. If he does that they will try to resist, but a second term President is hard to bully. GEJ needs to convince the electorate that he can continue with his bold agricultural sector reforms, his power sector roadmap, overhaul and reform of the transportation sector (beyond the celebration of token and/or paltry railway services) etc.

 

GEJ’s biggest failure on the economic front was his inability to introduce earth-shaking reforms to trim our recurrent expenditure budget at the Federal level by instituting the massive lay-off of idle civil servants. He did not confront the National Assembly either on this thorny issue. Ironically many of those who accuse him of guilt in this area are guilty of the exact same allegation in their respective States and Local Government Areas.

 

I am sad that GEJ did not simply go all out to transform our economy in his first term at the risk of being a single term President. Instead he slowed down on some economic reform because he was pandering to power brokers within his political party, who would have a say in helping him to secure a second term.

 

I am sad that an ageing and incapable Buhari refused to play the role of a King-maker by identifying a single well educated and well meaning younger person 2 or 3 years ago (even if he narrowed his search to his own North West zone) whom he could have groomed and backed to challenge GEJ.

If I vote for GEJ in this election it is because his ugly side is less ugly than Buhari’s known and well-documented uglier side and nothing more.

 

If you disagree with me please note that there is no need for us to fight - our only weapon should be the ballot paper and how we decide to cast it. Those who think they can intimidate swing voters, by threatening mayhem if their candidate does not win a close election, do their candidate a massive disservice because their careless utterances send the swing voters in the opposite direction in a race that is currently too close to call.

 

Before anybody dismisses ANAP Foundation’s opinion polls again, let me add that similar polls commissioned concurrently by us (using the exact same methodology) show Nasir El-Rufai of the APC with a significant lead over the incumbent PDP Governor (Yero), while the PDP’s Nyesom Wike currently leads APC’s Dakuku Peterside in Rivers State, but there is a large “undecided” element in the case of Rivers State.

 

ANAP Foundation will release more information on all the Polls we commissioned (including Lagos Governorship) over the course of the next few days, using a multitude of media channels.

• Peterside is the President and Founder, ANAP Foundation

The Ugly Side of Buhari and Jonathan ..By Atedo Peterside

Opinion polls commissioned by ANAP Foundation and conducted by NOI Polls (using Gallup methodology) show that President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan (GEJ) and his main challenger, Major-General Mohammadu Buhari (Buhari) are currently running neck-to-neck in the 2015 Presidential race.

The difference between them in terms of potential votes nation wide is statistically insignificant because it is dwarfed considerably by the much larger percentage of voters who remain “Undecided” - and so the race is truly too close to call. This election will therefore not be decided by the loyalists. It will be called by the large number of undecided voters (these are the swing voters) and they have one thing in common - they do not like GEJ, but then they do not like Buhari either (they want change but see Buhari as the type of change that is both alarming and worrisome).

In such circumstances, efforts by both candidates to sell themselves forcefully to their core constituencies may simultaneously alienate the swing voters. When Hausa/Fulani elders and/or retired Generals and Muslim leaders shout forcefully that Buhari must have it, the rest of the nation recoils in horror.

 

The same thing happens when misguided elements from the South-South zone and Christian leaders insist that their zone (or a Christian) must have two full terms in Aso Rock. The truth is that the Presidency is not anyone’s birthright and so it is naive and downright foolish to go down that route. Indeed some of these bold declarations by core supporters are akin to a kiss of death with swing voters.

 

Buhari publicly declared in 2011 that he will not contest again. Jonathan is said to have privately declared in 2011 that he would only stay for a single term. Let us therefore assume that they have both broken their word by contesting in 2015 and so there is little to be gained with the swing voters by dwelling on this.

 

Swing voters are moved more by what they do not like about either candidate. At the end of the day therefore they will vote “against” the candidate that they dislike more and their collecive actions will determine who wins. That is why this article focuses on the ugly side of Buhari and GEJ and not on their strengths.

Many of the swing voters are upset. They feel that our two major political parties have “cheated” them by forcing them to choose between the devil and the deep blue sea.

 

During the course of the 2014 National Conference, where I was a delegate, I made a contribution to the effect that past military rulers, who toppled democratically elected governments, should still be tried for treason so as to serve as a permanent detterent to young and ambitious military officers who will the understand that the long arm of the law may get them even in their old age and even after they claim to have repented. Buhari dethroned a democratically elected government in order to become a military head of state at the end of 1983

 

Many of the swing voters are true democrats who abhor authoritarianism. Buhari was not a benevolent dictator either. He was a vicious and wicked one who used retroactive decrees to sentence youths to death and to jail journalists who dared to publish the whole truth. Can the leopard shed it’s spots overnight as some would have us believe?

 

Wickedness and callousness are not matters of style and/or fashion they are a reflection of a real personae. Buhari’s unguarded utterances about him supporting the institution of sharia nationwide and his “famous” statement that Muslims should only vote for Muslims and his threat that the baboon and the dog will be soaked in blood if elections were rigged are all consistent with his unelectable personae, hence his persistent search for devout Christians (with little or no political clout) as Vice Presidential candidates while he is on the capaign trail. Is he simply hanging on to political lightweights that he knows he can devour the day after he gets elected?

 

PDP will ground MAKU for the rest of his life – Ahmadu Ali

Labaran Maku, Former Information Minister

The Director-General of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Presidential Campaign Council, Ahmadu Ali, on Tuesday said his party will make sure the former Information Minister, Labaran Maku, fails for the rest of his life for defecting to the All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA,.

Mr. Ali said Mr. Maku is a “dangerous boy” who the PDP helped groom from nothing, adding that his defection will cause a reduction in the number of votes the PDP will garner in Nasarawa state.
The Director- General who stated this at the PDP presidential rally in Lafia, explained that the former minister benefited from the PDP-led Federal Government only to defect to another party.

“We have a young man who from nowhere was a Deputy Governor of this state for four years, from nowhere he was made a Minister at the federal level for six years, decided to leave the party for another party and keep telling lies that by being in that party, he is helping us.
“He is only going there to reduce our votes. He is a dangerous boy.

“We must make sure that now that he has shown his colour, he will continue failing for the rest of his life unless he retraces his steps back to the elders like us and we will forgive him.”
Mr. Ali then urged the electorate in the state to vote for President Goodluck Jonathan and other candidates of the party at both federal and state levels.

In his remarks, the President also denied lending any form of support to Mr. Maku’s gubernatorial aspiration under the platform of the All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA.
Mr. Jonathan said lending such a support to the former minister would amount to anti-party behaviour.
He, therefore, expressed his support for all the PDP candidates in the state in the February 14 and 28 general elections.

“We are told and everybody spoke about that the former Minister of Information that is in another party and saying that it is the President who asked him to go to another party. Definitely I cannot play anti-party.
“PDP is my party and all those who want to help us should come to PDP and work for PDP so that PDP will be in control of Nasarawa State so that government of PDP in Nasarawa State and the Federal Government that will be in the hands of PDP and work together to move Nasarawa State forward,” Mr. Jonathan said.

Also speaking , the President of the Senate, David Mark, urged Mr. Maku to desist from dropping the name of Mr. President in his quest to achieve his political ambition.
He advised him to apologise to the PDP ”if he is willing to return to the party”, saying that the PDP would wholeheartedly accept him into its fold.

“People of Nasarawa State, don’t be deceived by any ungrateful son of yours, who goes round saying he is in another political party because Mr. President has put him there.
“That is absolute lie, you must never believe it. We said so few days ago and we are emphasising it again.
“And we want to emphasise it; (the) President is body and soul PDP.
“He can’t, therefore, put somebody in another political party to be campaigning on behalf of another political party.

“How can you be in APGA and be campaigning for the PDP presidential candidate?
“Return to PDP with apology because before we even take him he has to apologise to all the good people in PDP.’’

(NAN)

PDP will ground MAKU for the rest of his life – Ahmadu Ali

Labaran Maku, Former Information Minister

The Director-General of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Presidential Campaign Council, Ahmadu Ali, on Tuesday said his party will make sure the former Information Minister, Labaran Maku, fails for the rest of his life for defecting to the All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA,.

Mr. Ali said Mr. Maku is a “dangerous boy” who the PDP helped groom from nothing, adding that his defection will cause a reduction in the number of votes the PDP will garner in Nasarawa state.
The Director- General who stated this at the PDP presidential rally in Lafia, explained that the former minister benefited from the PDP-led Federal Government only to defect to another party.

“We have a young man who from nowhere was a Deputy Governor of this state for four years, from nowhere he was made a Minister at the federal level for six years, decided to leave the party for another party and keep telling lies that by being in that party, he is helping us.
“He is only going there to reduce our votes. He is a dangerous boy.

“We must make sure that now that he has shown his colour, he will continue failing for the rest of his life unless he retraces his steps back to the elders like us and we will forgive him.”
Mr. Ali then urged the electorate in the state to vote for President Goodluck Jonathan and other candidates of the party at both federal and state levels.

APC replies Soludo with civility and In-depth analysis

Professor Chukwuma Soludo

We commend Professor Chukwuma Soludo’s for his insightful and incisive article published on January 26th in the Vanguard Newspaper, The Nation Newspaper and major online news platforms 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 do 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 delusional.

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 like-minded 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 wastage 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.

Dr. Kayode Fayemi heads the Policy, Research and Strategy Directorate of the APC Presidential Campaign.