Between President Jonathan And Obasanjo (1)

Former President
Olusegun Obasanjo on Saturday, February 14, 2015 said he doubted the ability of the Nigerian military to dislodge Boko Haram in the North-East in six weeks, a feat, he said, they couldn’t achieve in six years.
It will be recalled that the elections were shifted to March 28 and April 11 to allow the military flush out insurgents in the North-East zone, coupled with the inability of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to adequately prepare for the elections before the original dates.
Former President Obasanjo had also alleged that President Goodluck Jonathan was scheming to perpetuate himself in office. Speaking with newsmen in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, Chief Obasanjo alleged that Jonathan, the Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) presidential flag bearer was bent on creating a constitutional stalemate that would abort the conduct of the forthcoming general elections. He likened Jonathan to former president of Cote d’Ivoire, Laurent Gbagbo, who was forced to abdicate office through popular revolt and wondered how the military intends to tame the insurgency in six weeks, a feat, he said, they could not achieve in the last four years.
Obasanjo’s comments elicited reactions from different quarters. In his reaction, President Joanthan expressed disappointment over comments of prominent Nigerians, saying that Nigerians could sleep well because of the military sacrifices. President Jonathan who made his displeasure known at the maiden presidential dinner for the widows and family members of the military men who died in active service while engaging Boko Haram noted that he was angry when some unexpected utterances were made of the military.
Addressing newsmen on February 16 in Abuja, the Director of Media and Publicity of the PDP Presidential Campaign Organisation, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode accused Chief Olusegun Obasanjo of raising false alarm and challenged him to substantiate his weighty allegations with concrete proof.
Also reacting to Obasanjo’s insinuations, the Governor of Ekiti State, Mr Ayodele Fayose, in a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Public Communication and News Media, Lere Olayinka, questioned what has actually happened that Obasanjo had changed his love for Jonathan, saying that Jonathan played a key role in helping to restore democracy in Coted’Ivoire and stability back to that country.
Fayose asserted that Obasanjo had always benefitted from the misfortunes of others and he was living with the impression that he was the wisest person in the world.
The people of any country owe it a duty to make decisions that affect every citizen of the nation. A country decides what sorts of rules to set for the citizens, how to balance a budget, how to live and how to manage its economy, what allies to seek out in war, how to raise revenue by taxing its citizens, how to care for the helpless, and many other things. Each of these requires the setting of common policy that affects all members of the country.
Nigeria has national policies, interests, rules and regulations that affect the citizens, but they are not part of a common national policy. The actions that contribute to the making of a common policy for a country constitute politics and political questions or issues about those policies. The political and non-political distinction is not always easy to draw.
Even though the present administration under President Goodluck Jonathan tolerates and allows the freedom of expression as entrenched in the constitution that should not be taken for granted.
In 2011, INEC postponed elections by two weeks under Professor Attahiru Jega and the electoral body still conducted the exercise and record shows that this is not the first time INEC has postponed elections. During the National Assembly Elections, INEC not only cancelled the elections just after they started, but also postponed them by two weeks and the heavens did not fall then and no one raised eyebrow since it was within the powers conferred on the electoral body. Did Obasanjo or anyone question INEC? One may ask, what has actually happened that Obasanjo has changed his love for Jonathan?
Just as the Jonathan administration succeeded Obasanjo’s via the late Yar’Adua, so Obasanjo took over from his successor, but he (Obasanjo) was not given  the heat he is unleashing on Jonathan. Why? When Murtala Muhammed was murdered in 1976, Obasanjo was the beneficiary. In 1993, Obasanjo said the acclaimed winner of the June 12 Presidential election, the Late MKO Abiola, was not the Messaih Nigeria needed. Instead of joining the clamour  for the actualisation of Abiola’s mandate, he was canvassing for an Interim National Government, which he schemed to head.

Shedie Okpara