By SONI DANIEL
ABUJA—Second Republic lawmaker, Dr. Junaid Mohammed, has given a
stern warning to the Political Adviser to President Goodluck Jonathan,
Mr. Ahmed Gulak, to desist from hauling insults on Nigerians because of
his selfish interest.
Besides, he has challenged the president’s aide to show to Nigerians
what his boss has achieved so far in office to warrant celebration by
the citizens.
Mohammed and former FCT minister, Nasir El-Rufai, apparently incurred
the wrath of Gulak for recently criticising President Goodluck Jonathan
for not doing enough to protect lives and property of Nigerians
following rising insecurity in parts of the North.
The duo had recently asked the president to step aside if he could not solve the country’s raging insecurity.
Responding to the verbal assaults on the President in the media,
Gulak described Mohammed has having ‘diarrhoea of the mouth’ and asked
him to desist from talking as he was the leader of the North. He also
described El-Rufai as a disappointment to Nigerians.
But in an interview with Vanguard, Mohammed warned the President’s
aide to stop giving the impression that all was well in the country just
because of what he was benefiting from the system while the majority of
Nigerians were languishing in squalor.
Mohammed, who is the National Chairman of the Peoples Salvation
Party, said, “I would not dignify Gulak with a response because he knows
that what they are doing is not good for this country.
“The fact remains that no matter what he says Nigerians can see that
this country is not on the right path. I have gone too far in this game
to waste my time on nonentities. I am a leader of the people. I have no
personal interest in what I am doing.
“Even if it is President Jonathan’s father who is going to do an
objective assessment of the administration, he would not claim that
Jonathan’s Presidency is a success.
“Gulak should stop insulting well-meaning Nigerians who have seen it
all and are selfless enough to advise the administration on how to make
things better for the majority of the people. He should not use his
office to attack innocent persons just because of his personal
interest,” the PSP leader said.
On the alleged attempt by former President Olusegun Obasanjo to
anoint the next president and vice president, Mohammed described the
move as an act that could cause disaffection, if not well handled.
While advising the former president not to take delight in always
presenting himself as a kingmaker, he however said that he would be the
happiest man on earth if the crisis would degenerate further and lead to
an implosion in PDP.
He said, “If this controversy generated by the alleged anointing of
certain persons by Obasanjo or any other one will degenerate and lead to
an implosion of the PDP and it disappears from the surface of the
earth, I would be the happiest Nigerian on earth.”
Monday, 27 August 2012
The Jonathan We Know – A Response To The Antics Of Reuben Abati.
By Dr. Olusegun Fakoya
Reuben, in his desperate article created a strategic divide based on perceived loyalty or otherwise. A very unfortunate division was created based on activism or passivism. His battle line consists of the “They” and the loyalists. Loyalists, by his definition, being those benefitting from the potpourri. Those in the privileged league of the manipulators and beneficiaries of our commonwealth. Those who persistently deny the nation of deserved economic and material development. The thieves who roam the corridor of power and keeps the lock to same in their bulging pockets. These, to Reuben Abati, are the good Nigerians, those who have left Goodluck Jonathan in peace. The “They” according to Abati “refers to all the cynics, the pestle-wielding critics, the unrelenting, self-appointed activists, the idle and idling, twittering, collective children of anger, the distracted crowd of Facebook addicts, the BBM-pinging soap opera gossips of Nigeria, who seem to be in competition among themselves to pull down President Goodluck Jonathan” Obviously, to this exalted company belongs the likes of Sonala Olumhense, Pius Adesanmi, Okey Ndibe and a host of others. I must confess that my humble self also has company in this prestigious group. Reuben, however, belongs to that other group of “good Nigerians” those who sleep and wake up with scandals, those who keep corruption as comfortable bed fellows. We heard of the rumbles of the Abuja plots of land, even when Abati was pretending to be a social critic. This rumble had hardly abated when the opportunity to explore his true identity came by the way of the presidential appointment.
To Reuben, the group of “They” are a “bunch of unintelligent people repeating stupid clichés and too many intelligent persons wasting their talents lending relevance to thoughtless conclusions”. So, our exalted group of “They” consists of either plainly stupid people or naively intelligent people. It is worth restating that Reuben Abati once belonged to this maligned group. Reuben’s insult to the intelligentsia and those Nigerians who have sacrificed so much to ensure that the Nigerian state assumes its true position in the comity of nations is unpardonable. It is bad enough for a hypocrite to denounce his initial constituency, it is criminal to turn around and lambast same for failing to see the sense in your sudden turncoat and imminent disintegration. It is so easy to castigate the same group of “They” who fought to ensure that the Jonathan Presidency becomes a reality. Has Reuben pondered on the causes of the massive evaporation of the uninhibited flow of affection and national support for candidate Jonathan? What turned the almost hysterical Jonathan-mania into rabid Jonathan-phobia? Conscience, they say, is an open wound…. Only truth can heal it.
Reuben’s effort to blow the trumpet of achievement for Goodluck Jonathan sounded very hollow, even on the pages on which they were written. For a previously “shoeless” President (Reuben can never stop us from making reference to this appropriate description) who promised heaven and earth on his campaign trips, the boast of 4,400 MW of electricity in a nation that is still in perpetual darkness went beyond the bounds of pardonable mischief. Reuben’s lukewarm reference to presidential concerns on corruption is nothing but laughable – “That is why he has directed the relevant agencies to get corrupt persons to answer for their misdeeds” Reuben, when the current charade on corruption is over, we hope that genuine convictions would indeed be possible. Farouk Lawan is still a free man, walking and enjoying free sunshine with millions of bribe money yet to be accounted for. Otedola’s cheeks are growing rosier every day while the nation’s Attorney-General is probably the richest Nigerian today courtesy of a lax regime that encourages graft. Furthermore, Reuben’s attempt to speak about his master’s inordinate love for the women folk smirks of nothing but jest. True, Jonathan has loads of females in his government compared to his predecessors. However, the concern of majority of Nigerians is with the innate penchant of this man to surround himself with the most corrupt and despicable Nigerians ever created, whether males or females.
Without wasting so many words like Reuben is fond of doing, the truth about Goodluck Jonathan stares at one in the face. It is not for nothing that he is viewed as clueless. This is a simple English expression within the grasp of even the barely literate. Jonathan has so far demonstrated his lack of understanding of the basic mechanism of governance, the constitutional and moral obligation of a government to the people and the fine etiquettes of Presidential approach. He is an opportunist who jumped at the ship of state without adequate preparation. His government is belligerent; an example is the latest crude and rude articles from Reuben Abati and the unpalatable appointment of Doyin Okupe as a frenzied attack dog. Jonathan is manifestly corrupt and he has no qualms in attempting to brush this under the carpet. It is beyond comprehension, that the President of over 150 million people, people who continue to excel in various spheres of human endeavour, would publicly declare on national television that he does not give a damn about declaring his assets. Reuben Abati is yet to address this sore point in his numerous essays.
Abati has my sympathy in his attempt to refurbish the morally tainted and structurally deformed presidency of Goodluck Jonathan. True, Jonathan is “nationalistic” in orientation in terms of federal appointments (to use the Nigerian phrase, he is a good disciple of national character), nevertheless, former criminals of the creeks are now handling sensitive national security apparatus. The old Ijaw Generals of the ill-famed creek wars are now multi-billionaires, smiling comfortably to the banks every month, courtesy of a truly national President. The likes of General Tompolo et al. Who cares whether Jonathan eats cassava or whole meal bread or even boiled plantain for that matter? The key thing is that in an austere environ when millions are out of jobs, when crime is blooming like the old Onitsha market and when terrorism is sweeping the land like a raging inferno, our belligerent President spends billions annually on food. This is an undisputable fact that Reuben failed to address. Abati has gone miles in his unfortunate academic odyssey of rationalising a bad product. He has thrown terms around, starting with Corporate Social Responsibility, a la the infamous Otuoke Church building, to the new “Saul Complex” in his latest tirade. Whether corporate responsibility or Saul Complex, a decaying product would always stink, no matter the intensity of the advertisement.
The Jonathan we know? The Jonathan we know is a President who promised so much and yet intent on delivering so little. The Jonathan we know is an opportunist. An over-ambitious man toying with the fate of millions. The Jonathan we know is a man who assumes a position of authority fully beyond his capability and comprehension. The Jonathan we know is a President who is so enwrapped in the loin clothes of his wife such that the country is actually confused as to who is in power. He thus brought nothing but baggage into the act of governance. The Jonathan we know is a president who glorifies corruption and embraces its evil warmth – “if corruption does not kill Nigeria, Nigeria will kill corruption” The Jonathan we know is a non-performing President, a colossal failure. This is the verdict of the people, Reuben.
No Nigerian has any quarrel with any part of the country producing the leadership. What we care about is performance. We care less whether the President is an Itsekiri or Ibibio. We have no qualms with the Ijaws (whether the 4th most populous or 10th most populous) producing the President. All we desire is a leader intent on ridding our body polity of its various nuances. A leader committed to emancipating the fast dwindling lots of poor Nigerians. A leader committed to faithfully fighting the strangulating hold of corruption and the endless evils that have truncated our march to greater glory. We need a leader that can go beyond the pretences of party politics and truly be a leader indeed. Our complaints against the lacklustre performance of Jonathan have nothing to do with his ethnic origin, Reuben and mavericks like him do not need to confuse issues. We simply do not want the man because he is not performing. Period.
Yes, great minds like Abraham Lincoln, Mahtama Ghandi, Martin Luther King and Kwame Nkrumah made the world easier. Yet whatever they achieved was with plainness of approach, honesty and integrity. They were not achieved with the purchase of hundreds of porch cars for a frivolous and egomaniac meeting of wives of discredited heads of governments. They were not achieved on the lavish expenditure of state fortune on state banquets or meals. They were not attained with dourness and stupidity. They came out of a vibrant methodology and pragmatic visions. Jonathan lacks these qualities. Comparing the man Jonathan to these great minds is illusory and vain.
Reuben’s attempt is that of a sinking man desperately trying to catch a lifeline of straw.
Boko Haram Are Ignorant “Muslims” – MuslimsAgainstTerror Group Says.
This is information for those who want to think that Boko Haram is fighting an Islamic cause.
Indeed, Boko Haram are simply very ignorant Muslims, even if we can call them Muslims.
We all know that it is haram and highly repudiated for Muslims to kill any innocent person, of any faith. But this is not what we will discuss here. We will simply put forth a few popular statements that Boko Haram use to brainwash the unfortunate, ignorant Muslims around them for support, that are very ignorant and un Islamic.
Firstly Boko Haram have said that the earth is flat.
It is very sad that the media publishes the nonsense that they say. Islam contributed immensely to the advancement of the human race and technology. We had the Islamic golden ages when Islam was advanced in medicine, engineering, economics, law and the like in Africa(Timbuktu empire), Geda in Kenya, etc, as well as in the Middle East, great cities of knowledge like Baghdad.These have been referred to as the Golden ages, when the Muslim world was in a technological revolution and the western world was in its dark ages of ignorance. Indeed many argue that Europe came and stole these advances from the Muslim world to spur their technological revolution.
Boko Haram are the most different and ignorant Muslims in the entire world. No other place can such ignorance be found, except with the Europeans in the dark ages when the plague overtook them due to their backwardness. Islam does not support such backwardness. Indeed Islam and the Holy Books of the Deen have been found to have a great deal of advanced scientific thinking.
So on the issue of the world being flat that Boko Haram are still so deluded to follow the European ignorant thinking about, indeed it is Boko Haram that is westernized in the sense of the western ignorance of the dark ages. Here is the Islamic position(Allahu Alim):
This is from the Rashad Khalifa translation of the Quranic verse, with the accurate meaning and translation for the Word “dahaha”:
So, we see that Islamic thinking was actually correct, while the old day ignorant European who Boko Haram follow had it wrong. From this advanced knowledge, Islam is credited for having some of the greatest navigators, and for developing the compass. The Muslims developed great astronomical tools, including the Astrolabe, an astronomical computer, and these spurred todays technological advances in these fields.Quran 79:30 He made the earth egg-shaped.
The Astrolabe works on the principle and knowledge of a round earth and round planets.
The history of the astrolabe begins more than two thousand years ago. The principles of the astrolabe projection were known before 150 B.C., and true astrolabes were made before A.D. 400. The astrolabe was highly developed in the Islamic world by 800 and was introduced to Europe from Islamic Spain (al-Andalus) in the early 12th century. It was the most popular astronomical instrument until about 1650, when it was replaced by more specialized and accurate instruments. Astrolabes are still appreciated for their unique capabilities and their value for astronomy education. Link: http://www.astrolabes.org/
Boko Haram are a very annoying problem, and we wonder what they are and what dungeon they come from. It is hard to believe that they are Muslim, except that Abubakar Shekau guy that tries to speak as a Muslim, but from all indications and on the bases of their ignorance, they are not Muslim.
Boko Haram denies rain formation by evaporation
Again this is another most embarrassing and un Islamic statement. This is the misconception of ‘Allah Creates’, and people think that to ‘originate a creation’, is not the same as to create. They are so ignorant that they think in terms of our limited mind, that Allah just makes rain, and they do not understand that He makes rain indeed in a miracle of evaporation-condensation.Noble Quran says:
“ We (Allah) send down water from the sky in measure an lodged it in the ground and we certainly are able to withdraw it “ (Sura 23, 18-19 Verses) the above verses are explaining the complete water cycle i.e., water fall, penetration of water in the soil and evaporation phenomenon.The above verses clarify the processes of evaporation, condensation, fragmentation and rain-cycle.
“ Allah is the one who sends forth the winds which rised up the clouds he spreads them in the sky as he wills and breaks them into the fragments then thou seest raindrops issuing from within them (Sura 30, Verse 48) “
“ We send for the winds that fecundate. We cause the water to descend from the sky we provide you with the water you could not be the guardian of its reserves (Sura 15, 22 Verse)We can go on and on on these grave errors and insults to Islam, to humanity and insults to the brain by Boko Haram. But what is the use? The ignorant people they brainwash need to read and learn more about Islam, they need to read print outs of this information, unfortunately, many can not even read Quran.
—
Link: http://www.irfi.org/articles/articles_51_100/hydrology_or_water_cycle_in_qur.htm
Boko Haram pays them as little as N7000 to kill for them. It is poverty of their minds and poverty of their religion that is affecting them. May Allah(S) help them and lead them to knowledge and the true religion of peace before it is too late for them and they enter hell eternally. Ameen.
Peace to everyone
Yoruba People: The Most Religious Tolerant People On Earth.
Are the Yoruba the number one in religious tolerance?
August 24, 2012 by Azuka Onwuka
When it comes to religion, are the Yoruba people of
Nigeria the most tolerant race in the whole world? It may not be wise to
say yes because of the absence of any endorsement of such a position by
a global body like the United Nations. But having travelled to many
parts of Nigeria and some parts of the world; having read books about
several peoples of the world, I can comfortably say that I have not seen
or heard of any country or people that tolerate one another on the
issue of religion like the Yoruba of Nigeria.
As a child growing up in Igboland, I thought the Igbo
were the most tolerant in matters of religion. For example, the only
mosque in my hometown Nnewi was built right at the gate of the Diocesan
Church Centre of the Anglican Church, which was the central church for
Anglicans in the town when the head of the diocese was in Onitsha. The
mosque was owned by the Hausa-Fulani community. Items like sugarcane,
carrot and kulikuli were sold beside the mosque, and cobblers took care of people’s shoes there. I never missed the sugarcane and kulikuli
any time I had cause to be at the church. Christians never bothered
that Muslims (who were not sons and daughters of the community) situated
their mosque by the gate of the central church of the Anglican
Communion in the town.
There was no Muslim in my primary school; in my
secondary school, there was a Muslim boy – a boy whose father was a
policeman posted to the town. On Thursdays when we had our moral
instruction classes, the chaplain of the school who was also the
vice-principal, always announced that the Muslim boy was the only one
exempted from participating in moral instruction classes because the
school had no Islamic teacher. Other pupils must either be at the Roman
Catholic section or the Protestant section. We all envied the boy for
the preferential treatment he always got as the only Muslim boy in our
school.
With this type of background, I grew up with the
assumption that the Igbo must be the most tolerant in matters of
religion in Nigeria. But there were events that made me have a rethink
later in life. When I was growing up, my community had two major
Christian denominations: Anglicans and Catholics. Almost all the schools
in the town were founded by the two churches. Parents usually sent
their children to these schools based on their Christian denominations,
even after the state government took over the schools. At the close of
school each day, there was usually a point where pupils of the Anglican
Church-founded schools met pupils of the Catholic Church-founded school.
Preachers, church teachers and parents had indoctrinated the children
that only their denomination was the one endorsed by God. So at such
meetings, taunting songs would be sung and a fight would ensue between
Anglican and Catholic children.
But that was not all. Many young men and women could
not marry one another because one was Anglican and the other was
Catholic. Especially from the Catholic community, it was always an
uphill task for a girl to be allowed to be married by an Anglican or a
member of the Protestant Church. But one thing that was shared by all
the Christian denominations was that no married woman was allowed to
attend a church different from the one her husband attended. The few who
insisted on continuing with the church of their birth while in their
matrimonial homes either caused a deep rift in their marriage or even
lost their marriage entirely.
Compare that with a typical Yoruba family. A couple
with six children could have a family like this: the man is a Muslim;
the wife attends the Celestial Church of Christ; the first child started
as a Muslim but converted to Christianity and is now a member of a
Pentecostal church; the second child is a devout Muslim; the third and
fifth children are members of the Methodist or Baptist church; the
fourth child attends no church or mosque but prefers the Yoruba gods
whenever he has any spiritual needs; and the last child is an Anglican.
One would assume that with this seemingly cacophony
of religions in this family, there would be constant religious tension,
hatred, quarrels and fights in it. No. In Yorubaland, no one disturbs
the other because of religion. Interestingly, during Islamic festivals,
Christians join their Muslim relatives to celebrate. Also during
Christian festivals, the Muslims join their relatives to celebrate. For
example, the Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, is a
Muslim, while his wife is a Christian.
In the larger Yoruba society, the issue of religion
is not a factor while considering a candidate for an elective post. For
example, Bola Tinubu, a Muslim, did two terms as Lagos State governor
and handed over to Fashola, a Muslim, who is doing his second tenure in
office now.
Such high level of religious tolerance is not even
obtainable in countries that are known for freedom and rights like the
United States of America and the United Kingdom. In such countries, even
though there is religious freedom, there are certain social and
political positions that some people may never dream of.
This wonderful trait of the Yoruba needs to be
publicised. If such a trait were from an American community, several
documentaries, films and books would have been produced based on it. If
the Federal Government would not publicise such, it behoves the Yoruba
nation to sponsor the production of such materials.
In addition, the Yoruba nation should embark on a
religious-tolerance campaign across the federation and even the world.
That will offer them the opportunity through which they will teach other
races how they have mastered the art of religious tolerance. There is
no denying that religion is a major threat to world peace today. Nigeria
is getting its share of violence. Therefore, any effort that will help
to reduce the threat will be a welcome development.
•Onwuka, a brand management strategist in Lagos, wrote in via azonwuka@yahoo.com2015: Northern leaders’ opposition to Jonathan, a huge joke – Gulak.
By SONI DANIEL
Alhaji Ahmad Gulak, a lawyer and politician is the Special Adviser on Political Matters to President Goodluck Jonathan. He can be described as a sharp shooter because he does not mince words on issues bothering on the administration and Nigeria.
His depth of knowledge of contemporary Nigerian issues, eloquence, fearlessness and outspokenness, especially on matters that seem to touch on his boss, have singled him out as one of the most visible aides of President Jonathan.
In this interview Gulak takes the opponents of the President to task and warned them to desist from distracting Mr. President from concentrating on the job Nigerians elected him to do.
He particularly warns former President Olusegun Obasanjo to stop stirring the political waters ahead of the 2015 poll and describes northern leaders’ opposition to Jonathan’s 2015 ambition as the greatest joke of the century. The interview is explosive and irresistible. Excerpts:
WHAT do you make of former President Obasanjo’s alleged endorsement of Governors Sule Lamido and Rotimi Amaechi for President and Vice President in 2015?
As politician, that does not surprise me because everyone is entitled to their one’s opinions. Everybody has constitutional rights to aspire and to assume leadership of certain positions to anoint or be anointed.
But the President’s position is that we need to use the time at our disposal to work for the overall benefit of the country and desist from dissipating energy on what does not bring any benefit to Nigerians.
And anybody who is deeply involved in 2015 talks now, I think, is not
being fair to this country. If it is true that Obasanjo is fronting
Lamido and Amaechi for 2015, I assume it is not true, I would say that
he has his own right. But the question is in what capacity would he do
that? Is it as the father of the nation or the President of Nigeria or
what?
First, Obasanjo is not the president of Nigeria and secondly, although he is one of our leaders, nobody has arrogated the monopoly of anointing candidates to him. But the fact as I have always said, is that Mr. President’s position is that it is too early to begin to dissipate energy on 2015.
We need to gear ourselves towards working for Nigeria. Anyone who is so involved in 2015 talks now is not fair to this country.
Having said that, if it is true that Obasanjo has done what has been credited to him, then it is safe to say that he is not fair to this country and I believe that what this country needs to do is to deliver on the promises made to the electorate in 2011. When we reach the bridge we shall cross it. But we are only in 2012, just one year after the last election.
Are we therefore telling Nigerians that everything is just about election? Why are we relegating to the background our promises to the nation? Obasanjo was part of the system from 1976 to 1979 and then from 1999 to 2007. Obasanjo should play the role of a father-figure, to advise and not to keep on poke-nosing into the affairs of the nation, to choose people who should run and who should not.
He had played his role, everybody gave him their support. One good turn deserves another. It is therefore incumbent on him to support President Jonathan to deliver on his electoral promises to the people and not to distract the system by stirring the political waters unnecessarily.
But don’t you think that it is the President’s apparent indecision about 2015 that has given the impetus to Obasanjo to make the political move?
You see it must be understood from the context of that particular fact. We say that we should focus on how to move this country forward first before we begin to do politics. Our infrastructure is in comatose: our railway system is not working, our educational system needs turnaround, our power generation is very low. Why don’t we focus attention on these critical areas?
Electricity generation
Why do we have to distract the administration at every turn? As far as I am concerned everything is not all about election.
When the time for election comes, it will be addressed. But for now, let our leaders for God sake, support this administration to focus on electricity generation, distribution and transmission, support the turnaround of the educational system, let us focus on making our railway system functional once more. Everything is not about election.
It is not only Obasanjo who has taken steps towards 2015. Some well-placed northerners have also warned the President not to collect form for the 2015 election because doing so would have kept the region out of power for too long.
That is the greatest joker of the century. For anybody to warn President Goodluck not to pick form or to aspire to lead the nation again is the greatest joke of the century. President Jonathan has that constitutional right and nobody can abridge it; it is left for him to decide whether to contest or not.
But no individual, group or institution can take away that right if we agree we are running a constitutional government, if we agree we are running a democratic government, if we agree it is the constitution that leads us. It is his right to run or not. No individual or group has the right to warn President Jonathan not to aspire to lead the nation as provided by the law of the land.
You can’t ask him not to pick the party’s nomination form. Nobody can intimidate President Jonathan, absolutely nobody because by the grace of God, he is the president of Nigeria. The fact that the man is simple, humble and does not abuse executive powers like some of our past leaders does not mean that he is weak.
Talking about constitutional provision, are you aware of the provision in the law that prohibits a person from being sworn in more than two times? A PDP member has already gone to court to stop the president from contesting in 2015, arguing that he would have been sworn in for the third time, if he wins.
That issue came up in 2003 when Obasanjo was taken to court by Buhari. They said Obasanjo had been sworn in several times and should not have contested the election in 2003. Although the present situation is not the same with that of Obasanjo, it must be made clear that President Jonathan contested election in 2011 for the first time and won. He was given the mandate to run this country for four years, which will terminate in 2015. Do you mean to tell me that if the constitution allows somebody to go for a second and last leg of his office, somebody has any right to attempt to reduce his eight-year mandate to six years?
The argument of his opponents is that he completed Yar’Adua’s remaining tenure.
That argument has no place in law at all. The constitution says eight years. Why should they abridge it to five or six years? If we want our democratic culture to improve, there are certain things we must put in place.
In America for instance, incumbent presidents are not allowed to contest primaries with any other candidate within the party. So, if PDP must put its house in order, they should adopt that system-that an incumbent should be challenged by any other party candidate. The reason is that internal contest in the party, especially when incumbent is involved is so dirty that the opposition party would exploit it at the general election and hammer the party seriously. That is what we want to avoid. My position is that unless a sitting president or governor is incurably bad and non-performing, he should be given the opportunity to go for a second term without any primary election.
But Dr. Junaid Mohammed and Malam Nasir El-Rufai, two prominent northern leaders, recently asked Mr. President to step aside for being unable to provide solutions to the country’s problems. What do you think about the advice?
Let me start with El-Rufai. I will classify El-Rufai as the most disappointing young man in this country. He is so disappointing that a lot of people have lost their respect for him.
The most annoying thing about this country is that once somebody is out of the government, he now becomes an incorruptible person, they become watchdogs of the community, the spokesmen of the society and the people begin to see them as their defenders.
Appointment on return from exile
Nigerians have not forgotten the activities of the Dino Melayes, the el-Rufais. These things are on record. So, if they say this administration has failed, I would not be surprised because of their posture. El-Rufai’s anger is that he is out of government. If Goodluck had given him appointment as minister when he returned from exile, he would not have been saying all these things about the government. During Yar’Adua’s time he was in exile.
El-Rufai returned to this country through the benevolence of President Jonathan with high hopes, he would be made a minister. And when he was not made minister, he now began to criticize the government and the President. It is a shame. It is a very big shame the rate at which people who fail to get what they want from government, try to pull it down. That attitude cannot take this country to anywhere. It is a sordid situation indeed.
So, what do you think Junaid Mohammed wants from the government if not performance to move the country forward?
Junaid Mohammed has what I would call ‘diarrhoea of the mouth’. He enjoys sitting in his comfort zone and criticizing. There is insecurity in this country. We cannot deny it. Everybody believes there are people behind it and all Nigerians should rally round the administration to confront it because it is a national problem.
It is no more politics. Let us put politics out of it and face the reality at hand for the benefit of this country. Lives are being lost and property are being destroyed on a daily basis and if you are a true patriotic Nigerian, you must be concerned and begin to do whatever is possible to find answers to the problems and stop sitting down to criticize president Jonathan. Yes, he is the President but he needs everybody’s support when this type of matter comes up.
As someone who advises Mr. President politically, were you surprised when he said he did not give a damn to making his assets public during a recent media chat? Do you believe Mr. President is serious about checking corruption?
Jonathan is somebody who says what he means and means what he says. There is no law in Nigeria that mandates the President to declare his asset publicly.
Freedom of Information Act
There is none. Therefore, if there is no law that mandates him to declare his asset publicly and if he has done what the constitution warrants him to do, why should people prevail on him to do what the law does not say? With the Freedom of Information Act in place, Nigerians are free to approach the Code of Conduct Bureau and get information on the asset.
But the CCB says the law has to be amended by the National Assembly before they can even make the asset declarations of public officers public. But I insist that we should always work by the law and leave sentiments alone. Whether you like President Jonathan’s face or not, he remains the president and he derives his powers and responsibilities from the constitution of the land.
So,if they want the constitution to be amended, they should go to the National Assembly and the State Assembly to amend the law to give them access to whatever they want in this country. It is not in the president’s powers to amend the constitution to give them what they want. You see, what I hate in this scenario is that Obasanjo was on the saddle for eight years. In spite of his limitations, he did his best and left the scene. He was from the Yoruba extraction of the South-West and a Christian.
People supported him and nobody asked him to declare his assets publicly. Now, Jonathan is on the seat. He did not give that seat to himself: Nigerians voted overwhelmingly for him. In first place, when Yar’Adua passed on,the constitution states that his vice should step in as the President. But you know what we passed through for him to take over as provided for in the law.
There was political upheaval before we could get the now famous ‘Doctrine of Necessity’ to allow Jonathan to take over. Why Jonathan? Is he not a Nigerian?
Doesn’t he have the constitutional right to aspire to the highest office in this country?
People should leave out sentiments in governance. Today it is Goodluck Jonathan, tomorrow it may be Hassan Adamu and all that we want is for all Nigerians to support the President to move this country forward. The support is not about him as a person but about Nigeria and its people. Whether you like Goodluck Jonathan’s face or not he is the President and there is nothing any of those opposed to him can do about it.
Nigerians are still unhappy that the Presidency has not done enough to punish those who squandered the subsidy funds. What is your reaction to that?
Here they come again. We are not running a military regime. You cannot just go and bundle people to the prison because of mere allegations that he has stolen some money or has committed a crime. No, it does not work like that.
If you are alleging that somebody has committed a crime, the first step is to subject the suspect to proper investigation by the operatives of the law or experts. This, the administration has done-the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the police are on the matter.
But as far as some Nigerians are concerned, they would want Mr. President to pack the suspects straight to the prison. No, that will not happen because the court would release them when the cases go on trial. We are doing is to subject the suspect to thorough investigation, amass sufficient evidence to guarantee conviction, then you take them to court.
Do you believe what you are saying will still happen when the sons and close associates of top PDP chieftains are involved in the subsidy fraud?
Let me assure you that President Goodluck Jonathan is not going to spare or support anybody. He has no sacred cows; whether you are the son of Bamanga Tukur or Ahmadu Ali or the son of Gulak. If the current investigation confirms that anyone had committed fraud, they will face the music. That is Goodluck Jonathan for you.
The Christian Association of Nigeria in the North last week lamented that President Jonathan had failed them for not deploying force to deal with Boko Haram. Do you believe the government has done enough to protect Nigerians from Boko Haram?
I have taken time to reflect on that development. It was a misguided statement from the CAN. The insecurity in the country affects everybody-the Muslims, Christians, the Yorbuba, the Igbo, Hausa, Fulani etc. Every Nigerian is a victim. You have heard that there was a bomb blast at the Central Mosque in Maiduguri and the Shehu of Borno escaped by the whisker.
The same thing happened in Damaturu; you have heard that some people planned to go and bomb Kano during the Eid. These are all Muslim communities. So, what is happening is that the President cannot just deploy the tanks to go and kill suspected persons anywhere there is a threat. You have to use intelligence to swoop on those who are actually causing mayhem in this country.
Alhaji Ahmad Gulak, a lawyer and politician is the Special Adviser on Political Matters to President Goodluck Jonathan. He can be described as a sharp shooter because he does not mince words on issues bothering on the administration and Nigeria.
His depth of knowledge of contemporary Nigerian issues, eloquence, fearlessness and outspokenness, especially on matters that seem to touch on his boss, have singled him out as one of the most visible aides of President Jonathan.
In this interview Gulak takes the opponents of the President to task and warned them to desist from distracting Mr. President from concentrating on the job Nigerians elected him to do.
He particularly warns former President Olusegun Obasanjo to stop stirring the political waters ahead of the 2015 poll and describes northern leaders’ opposition to Jonathan’s 2015 ambition as the greatest joke of the century. The interview is explosive and irresistible. Excerpts:
WHAT do you make of former President Obasanjo’s alleged endorsement of Governors Sule Lamido and Rotimi Amaechi for President and Vice President in 2015?
As politician, that does not surprise me because everyone is entitled to their one’s opinions. Everybody has constitutional rights to aspire and to assume leadership of certain positions to anoint or be anointed.
But the President’s position is that we need to use the time at our disposal to work for the overall benefit of the country and desist from dissipating energy on what does not bring any benefit to Nigerians.
Gulak…President needs time to focus on issues
First, Obasanjo is not the president of Nigeria and secondly, although he is one of our leaders, nobody has arrogated the monopoly of anointing candidates to him. But the fact as I have always said, is that Mr. President’s position is that it is too early to begin to dissipate energy on 2015.
We need to gear ourselves towards working for Nigeria. Anyone who is so involved in 2015 talks now is not fair to this country.
Having said that, if it is true that Obasanjo has done what has been credited to him, then it is safe to say that he is not fair to this country and I believe that what this country needs to do is to deliver on the promises made to the electorate in 2011. When we reach the bridge we shall cross it. But we are only in 2012, just one year after the last election.
Are we therefore telling Nigerians that everything is just about election? Why are we relegating to the background our promises to the nation? Obasanjo was part of the system from 1976 to 1979 and then from 1999 to 2007. Obasanjo should play the role of a father-figure, to advise and not to keep on poke-nosing into the affairs of the nation, to choose people who should run and who should not.
He had played his role, everybody gave him their support. One good turn deserves another. It is therefore incumbent on him to support President Jonathan to deliver on his electoral promises to the people and not to distract the system by stirring the political waters unnecessarily.
But don’t you think that it is the President’s apparent indecision about 2015 that has given the impetus to Obasanjo to make the political move?
You see it must be understood from the context of that particular fact. We say that we should focus on how to move this country forward first before we begin to do politics. Our infrastructure is in comatose: our railway system is not working, our educational system needs turnaround, our power generation is very low. Why don’t we focus attention on these critical areas?
Electricity generation
Why do we have to distract the administration at every turn? As far as I am concerned everything is not all about election.
When the time for election comes, it will be addressed. But for now, let our leaders for God sake, support this administration to focus on electricity generation, distribution and transmission, support the turnaround of the educational system, let us focus on making our railway system functional once more. Everything is not about election.
It is not only Obasanjo who has taken steps towards 2015. Some well-placed northerners have also warned the President not to collect form for the 2015 election because doing so would have kept the region out of power for too long.
That is the greatest joker of the century. For anybody to warn President Goodluck not to pick form or to aspire to lead the nation again is the greatest joke of the century. President Jonathan has that constitutional right and nobody can abridge it; it is left for him to decide whether to contest or not.
But no individual, group or institution can take away that right if we agree we are running a constitutional government, if we agree we are running a democratic government, if we agree it is the constitution that leads us. It is his right to run or not. No individual or group has the right to warn President Jonathan not to aspire to lead the nation as provided by the law of the land.
You can’t ask him not to pick the party’s nomination form. Nobody can intimidate President Jonathan, absolutely nobody because by the grace of God, he is the president of Nigeria. The fact that the man is simple, humble and does not abuse executive powers like some of our past leaders does not mean that he is weak.
Talking about constitutional provision, are you aware of the provision in the law that prohibits a person from being sworn in more than two times? A PDP member has already gone to court to stop the president from contesting in 2015, arguing that he would have been sworn in for the third time, if he wins.
That issue came up in 2003 when Obasanjo was taken to court by Buhari. They said Obasanjo had been sworn in several times and should not have contested the election in 2003. Although the present situation is not the same with that of Obasanjo, it must be made clear that President Jonathan contested election in 2011 for the first time and won. He was given the mandate to run this country for four years, which will terminate in 2015. Do you mean to tell me that if the constitution allows somebody to go for a second and last leg of his office, somebody has any right to attempt to reduce his eight-year mandate to six years?
The argument of his opponents is that he completed Yar’Adua’s remaining tenure.
That argument has no place in law at all. The constitution says eight years. Why should they abridge it to five or six years? If we want our democratic culture to improve, there are certain things we must put in place.
In America for instance, incumbent presidents are not allowed to contest primaries with any other candidate within the party. So, if PDP must put its house in order, they should adopt that system-that an incumbent should be challenged by any other party candidate. The reason is that internal contest in the party, especially when incumbent is involved is so dirty that the opposition party would exploit it at the general election and hammer the party seriously. That is what we want to avoid. My position is that unless a sitting president or governor is incurably bad and non-performing, he should be given the opportunity to go for a second term without any primary election.
But Dr. Junaid Mohammed and Malam Nasir El-Rufai, two prominent northern leaders, recently asked Mr. President to step aside for being unable to provide solutions to the country’s problems. What do you think about the advice?
Let me start with El-Rufai. I will classify El-Rufai as the most disappointing young man in this country. He is so disappointing that a lot of people have lost their respect for him.
The most annoying thing about this country is that once somebody is out of the government, he now becomes an incorruptible person, they become watchdogs of the community, the spokesmen of the society and the people begin to see them as their defenders.
Appointment on return from exile
Nigerians have not forgotten the activities of the Dino Melayes, the el-Rufais. These things are on record. So, if they say this administration has failed, I would not be surprised because of their posture. El-Rufai’s anger is that he is out of government. If Goodluck had given him appointment as minister when he returned from exile, he would not have been saying all these things about the government. During Yar’Adua’s time he was in exile.
El-Rufai returned to this country through the benevolence of President Jonathan with high hopes, he would be made a minister. And when he was not made minister, he now began to criticize the government and the President. It is a shame. It is a very big shame the rate at which people who fail to get what they want from government, try to pull it down. That attitude cannot take this country to anywhere. It is a sordid situation indeed.
So, what do you think Junaid Mohammed wants from the government if not performance to move the country forward?
Junaid Mohammed has what I would call ‘diarrhoea of the mouth’. He enjoys sitting in his comfort zone and criticizing. There is insecurity in this country. We cannot deny it. Everybody believes there are people behind it and all Nigerians should rally round the administration to confront it because it is a national problem.
It is no more politics. Let us put politics out of it and face the reality at hand for the benefit of this country. Lives are being lost and property are being destroyed on a daily basis and if you are a true patriotic Nigerian, you must be concerned and begin to do whatever is possible to find answers to the problems and stop sitting down to criticize president Jonathan. Yes, he is the President but he needs everybody’s support when this type of matter comes up.
As someone who advises Mr. President politically, were you surprised when he said he did not give a damn to making his assets public during a recent media chat? Do you believe Mr. President is serious about checking corruption?
Jonathan is somebody who says what he means and means what he says. There is no law in Nigeria that mandates the President to declare his asset publicly.
Freedom of Information Act
There is none. Therefore, if there is no law that mandates him to declare his asset publicly and if he has done what the constitution warrants him to do, why should people prevail on him to do what the law does not say? With the Freedom of Information Act in place, Nigerians are free to approach the Code of Conduct Bureau and get information on the asset.
But the CCB says the law has to be amended by the National Assembly before they can even make the asset declarations of public officers public. But I insist that we should always work by the law and leave sentiments alone. Whether you like President Jonathan’s face or not, he remains the president and he derives his powers and responsibilities from the constitution of the land.
So,if they want the constitution to be amended, they should go to the National Assembly and the State Assembly to amend the law to give them access to whatever they want in this country. It is not in the president’s powers to amend the constitution to give them what they want. You see, what I hate in this scenario is that Obasanjo was on the saddle for eight years. In spite of his limitations, he did his best and left the scene. He was from the Yoruba extraction of the South-West and a Christian.
People supported him and nobody asked him to declare his assets publicly. Now, Jonathan is on the seat. He did not give that seat to himself: Nigerians voted overwhelmingly for him. In first place, when Yar’Adua passed on,the constitution states that his vice should step in as the President. But you know what we passed through for him to take over as provided for in the law.
There was political upheaval before we could get the now famous ‘Doctrine of Necessity’ to allow Jonathan to take over. Why Jonathan? Is he not a Nigerian?
Doesn’t he have the constitutional right to aspire to the highest office in this country?
People should leave out sentiments in governance. Today it is Goodluck Jonathan, tomorrow it may be Hassan Adamu and all that we want is for all Nigerians to support the President to move this country forward. The support is not about him as a person but about Nigeria and its people. Whether you like Goodluck Jonathan’s face or not he is the President and there is nothing any of those opposed to him can do about it.
Nigerians are still unhappy that the Presidency has not done enough to punish those who squandered the subsidy funds. What is your reaction to that?
Here they come again. We are not running a military regime. You cannot just go and bundle people to the prison because of mere allegations that he has stolen some money or has committed a crime. No, it does not work like that.
If you are alleging that somebody has committed a crime, the first step is to subject the suspect to proper investigation by the operatives of the law or experts. This, the administration has done-the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the police are on the matter.
But as far as some Nigerians are concerned, they would want Mr. President to pack the suspects straight to the prison. No, that will not happen because the court would release them when the cases go on trial. We are doing is to subject the suspect to thorough investigation, amass sufficient evidence to guarantee conviction, then you take them to court.
Do you believe what you are saying will still happen when the sons and close associates of top PDP chieftains are involved in the subsidy fraud?
Let me assure you that President Goodluck Jonathan is not going to spare or support anybody. He has no sacred cows; whether you are the son of Bamanga Tukur or Ahmadu Ali or the son of Gulak. If the current investigation confirms that anyone had committed fraud, they will face the music. That is Goodluck Jonathan for you.
The Christian Association of Nigeria in the North last week lamented that President Jonathan had failed them for not deploying force to deal with Boko Haram. Do you believe the government has done enough to protect Nigerians from Boko Haram?
I have taken time to reflect on that development. It was a misguided statement from the CAN. The insecurity in the country affects everybody-the Muslims, Christians, the Yorbuba, the Igbo, Hausa, Fulani etc. Every Nigerian is a victim. You have heard that there was a bomb blast at the Central Mosque in Maiduguri and the Shehu of Borno escaped by the whisker.
The same thing happened in Damaturu; you have heard that some people planned to go and bomb Kano during the Eid. These are all Muslim communities. So, what is happening is that the President cannot just deploy the tanks to go and kill suspected persons anywhere there is a threat. You have to use intelligence to swoop on those who are actually causing mayhem in this country.
Sunday, 26 August 2012
CHANNELSTV: Political Reporter Deji Bademosi Quits After Clash With Owner John Momoh- PREMIUM TIMES.
Deji Badamosi
By Ben Ezeamalu
Mr. Bademosi, who was Head of the television’s Political Desk, tweeted on Friday that he had quit his position at the station.
“My time with Channels Television has now ended. Looking to new challenges,” Mr. Bademosi, a Mass Communication graduate from the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, tweeted on Friday evening.
Both Mr. Bademosi and CHANNELS are reluctant to speak on the resignation of a reporter who won several laurels for self and station.
When contacted on the phone Saturday, Mr. Bademosi, who was also Channels TV’s Head of Reportorial Team, said he’d rather not talk about the matter.
“I can only confirm that I resigned on Friday,” he said. “I don’t want to say anything more because I remain grateful to CHANNELS for providing me the platform to showcase my skills.”
Mr. Momoh too confirmed the reporter’s departure. ”What’s wrong with someone resigning? Mr. Momoh told PREMIUM TIMES. “He’s tired of working here and has gone on to something else. It’s okay.”
Sources, however, say that the relationship between Mr. Bademosi, who had spent almost a decade at the organization, and Mr. Momoh has strained lately.
It was gathered that the last straw was when the management issued a directive, earlier in the week, that editors must get approval from Mr. Momoh, before assigning reporters to any assignment.
“The management ruled that editors must contact the chairman wherever he is in the world before assigning reporters to any assignment,” a highly placed official told PREMIUM TIMES Saturday.
“Things haven’t been rosy between him and the Channels management,” another source said.
"Before then, what led to the memo was a clash between the chairman and Deji.
“Deji had assigned a reporter to go and cover a PDP (Peoples’ Democratic Party) press conference in Ogun State,” the source added.
The press briefing was organized by the Bayo Dayo faction of the PDP, who are at loggerheads with the group led by former president Olusegun Obasanjo.
“While at the assignment, the personal assistant to the chairman called the reporter and asked him to leave the assignment and return to the office.
“The reporter refused,” the source said.
However, after the story, which had been approved by Mr. Bademosi and the controller of news, had been lined up in the bulletin for broadcast; the chairman’s assistant showed up again.
“The PA said that the chairman directed that the tape of the assignment be handed over to him, but they (Mr. Bademosi and the controller of news) refused.
“The chairman then personally came down and ordered that the tape be given to him. He confiscated the tape.
“Deji said that he could not work in an environment where editors do not have powers and must get approval from the chairman before any event is covered,” said the source, who added that Mr. Momoh attends editorial meeting and talks to editors “like babies.”
Mr. Momoh declined to comment on his directive that editors must seek his approval before detailing reporters to cover events.
“I think you should contact the director of news on that,” he said. ”I am the chairman of the company. I think you need to talk to the controller of news on that.”
But when one of the station’s two controller of news, Ambrose Okoh, was contacted, he denied knowledge of Mr. Bademosi’s resignation and the controversial directive by Mr. Momoh.
“I don’t have details of what you are talking about,” he said. “Come to the office on Monday so we can talk about it.”
Before his resignation, Mr. Bademosi anchored one of the most popular programmes on the station, ‘Politics Today’.
TICKER: South African Brewery comes to Nigeria, production plant located in Anambra.
He observed that foreigners’ perception of Nigeria was at variance with the true situation in the country.
“The perception of Nigeria by foreigners is far worse than it is in reality. The truth is issues about Nigeria are usually over exaggerated by foreigners. The South African Brewery, if they show you their report and perception about Nigeria before coming to build their plant in the country, they wouldn’t have invested in the country.
For instance, if you look at Heineken’s global income, 11.5 per cent of their income is from Africa and Middle East. “Out of this 11.5 per cent, six per cent comes from Nigeria. Today, Guinness derives 6.1 per cent of its global income from Nigeria. In fact, Guinness sells more in Nigeria than its home country.
This will tell you that despite the challenges we have, which the Ministry of Trade and Investment is working with state governments to address, Nigeria still remains the best investment destination for genuine investors across the world,” he said.
Meanwhile, SAB operates seven breweries and 40 depots in South Africa with an annual brewing capacity of 3.1 billion litres. Its portfolio of beer brands are Carling Black Label, Hansa Pilsener, Castle Lager, Castle Lite and Castle Milk Stout. Its full brand portfolio includes ten beers and five flavoured alcoholic beverages.
- Vanguard
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