Politics
Governance And Buhari’s Re-Election Bid
That 2018 is a pre-election year and therefore expected to be loaded with intense political activities is not lost on political watchers and Nigerians in general. However, many Nigerians were jolted when only on the second day of the year news filtered in that President Muhammadu Buhari had re-appointed his Minister of Transportation and former Rivers State Governor, Mr Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi as Director-General of 2019 re-election campaign.
Only last year, the president hinted of his intention to run for a second term in office at least twice. One was in Abidjan, Cote D’Ivore, during a regional security summit hosted by the West African country. The other was during his official visit to Kano, capital of Kano State.
While the president’s action may not be strange or novel as many before him had not acted much differently, there are many Nigerians who are disappointed as they had expected a different standard from him. Of course, apart from removing every shade of doubt around his willingness to seek re-election, news of the appointment marks the kick-off of high level political activities in the country. This, in the estimation of many, will not be without grave consequences for governance.
The displeasure of some other Nigerians about the kick-starting of election campaign activities less than three years into his tenure is anchored on the fact that the development re-enforces the notion that only two years of a four-year tenure are usually utilised for governance in Nigeria – a situation that shortchanges the people.
Reactions have since started trailing the announcement. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo is reported to have declined putting his weight behind President Buhari’s re-election bid at this stage.
Answering reporters’ questions at the University of Oxford, last Monday, Chief Obasanjo who did not hold back anything in his support for Buhari in his 2015 election said it was too early for him to say he would support the President’s 2019 re-election bid or not.
In its own reaction, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has called for the resignation of the transportation minister following the appointment.
According to the publicity secretary of the party, Kola Ologbondiyan “under the constitution of Nigeria, Mr Amaechi cannot combine the job of a minister of the Federal Republic with another responsibility such as the Director General of a campaign organisation.”
He said “Amaechi’s action in accepting the job while still holding office as minister is in clear breach of the oath of office and the oath of allegiance which he swore in line with the provisions of the 1999 Constitution (As Amended). He should, therefore, resign as minister with immediate effect,”.
Mr Ologbondiyan recalled that under similar circumstances, Chief Tony Anenih resigned as Minister of Works under former President Olusegun Obasanjo, adding that the development was an indication that “the APC have not the littlest agenda on governance for our people and do not have the interest of Nigerians at heart. They have shown that all they care for is their selfish political and pecuniary interests.”
Speaking with The Tide on the subject matter in his office in Port Harcourt, a public affairs commentator, Dr Andy Akportiveh expressed displeasure at the turn of events.
According to Dr Akportiveh, the standard of democracy practice in the country was unacceptable in many respects, arguing that it would be best for us to adopt a form of democracy that is best suited for our peculiar situation if we cannot copy wholesale from the developed world.
“In America, for instance, do you see a president who has just finished a second year of a four-year tenure coming out to kick the ball for a second term?” he quarried, stressing that our institutions were too weak to support the system of government we have chosen to operate.
“If you check our electoral law, you will find that there are provisions there that make it impossible for some of the things that are being done today from being done,” he said, pointing out that “this is because we have not had leadership that can give direction to these institutions to work in a democracy the way they should work.”
Dr Akportiveh who is also a medical administrator called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to rise up to its constitutional duties and individual Nigerians and the general public to also closely monitor and call erring government officials to order at all times.
He said it was intolerable that Nigerians have found themselves in “a vicious circle where you have a president who has a four-year tenure and two years into his administration, he has started campaigning again; he has lobbied a few persons to say he is the only one that can lead the country; he is the one that we have not seen before (and) making government and governance weak.”
While urging some public-spirited legal practitioners to challenge some of the issues in court, Dr Akportiveh also charged the general public not to remain docile but rise up and demand accountability from those they have given their mandate. “I’m sure that if Gani Fawehinmi were alive today, he would have tested a lot of these things in court to find out whether an incumbent can spend State fund to run his campaign or even leave his country and going abroad and suggesting that he is interested in running for a second term even though the first term that he was given has not expired. Somebody should go to court and ask the court go give judgement for or against that thing,” he said.
“In another three or four months, you will see that indeed governance has come to a halt. What will be happening is alignment, what will be happening is making travels and this portends danger for the citizens of the country. This insults our collective intelligence as Nigerians,” he lamented.
Opaka Dokubo
The former two-term governor went down memory lane to recall how they founded the APC but were used and dumped.
In his words, “…those calling on us to join APC, we have agreed to join the APC but on clear agreement that protects and respects the interest of my party, NNPP and my political movement, Kwankwasiyya. No state where you go that you don’t have NNPP and Kwankwasiyya. We have gubernatorial candidates, senatorial candidates and others.
“We are ready to join APC under strong conditions and promises. We will not allow anyone to use us and later dump us.
“We were among the founding fathers of the APC and endured significant persecution from various security agencies while challenging the previous administration.
“Yet when the party assumed power, we received no recognition or appreciation for our sacrifices, simply because we didn’t originate from their original faction.
“We are not in a hurry to leave the NNPP; we are enjoying and have peace of mind. But if some want a political alliance that would not disappoint us like in the past, we are open to an alliance. Even if it is the PDP that realised their mistakes, let’s enter an agreement that will be made public,” Sen. Kwankwaso stated.
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has dismissed long-standing claims that he once sought to extend his tenure in office, insisting he never pursued a third term.
Speaking at the Democracy Dialogue organised by the Goodluck Jonathan Foundation in Accra, Ghana, Chief Obasanjo said there is no Nigerian, living or dead, who can truthfully claim he solicited support for a third term agenda.
“I’m not a fool. If I wanted a third term, I know how to go about it. And there is no Nigerian, dead or alive, that would say I called him and told him I wanted a third term,” the former president declared.
Chief Obasanjo argued that he had proven his ability to secure difficult national goals, citing Nigeria’s debt relief during his administration as a much greater challenge than any third term ambition.
“I keep telling them that if I could get debt relief, which was more difficult than getting a third term, then if I wanted a third term, I would have got it too,” he said.
He further cautioned against leaders who overstay in power, stressing that the belief in one’s indispensability is a “sin against God.”
On his part, former President Goodluck Jonathan said any leader who failed to perform would be voted out of office if proper elections were conducted.
Describing electoral manipulation as one of the biggest threats to democracy in Africa, he said unless stakeholders come together to rethink and reform democracy, it may collapse in Africa.
He added that leaders must commit to the kind of democracy that guarantees a great future for the children where their voices matter.
He said: “Democracy in Africa continent is going through a period of strain and risk collapse unless stakeholders came together to rethink and reform it. Electoral manipulation remains one of the biggest threats in Africa.
“We in Africa must begin to look at our democracy and rethink it in a way that works well for us and our people. One of the problems is our electoral system. People manipulate the process to remain in power by all means.
“If we had proper elections, a leader who fails to perform would be voted out. But in our case, people use the system to perpetuate themselves even when the people don’t want them.
“Our people want to enjoy their freedoms. They want their votes to count during elections. They want equitable representation and inclusivity. They want good education. Our people want security. They want access to good healthcare. They want jobs. They want dignity. When leaders fail to meet these basic needs, the people become disillusioned.”
The dialogue was also attended by the President of the ECOWAS Commission, Dr. Omar Touray, Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah of the Sokoto diocese of Catholic Church among others who all stressed that democracy in Africa must go beyond elections to include accountability, service, and discipline.
The Rivers State House of Assembly yesterday resumed plenary session after a six-month state of emergency imposed on the state by President Bola Tinubu elapsed on Wednesday midnight.
President Bola Tinubu had lifted the emergency rule on September 17, with the Governor of the state, Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, Ngozi Odu, and members of the state assembly asked to resume duties on September 18.
The plenary was presided over by the Speaker of the House, Martins Amaewhule, at the conference hall located within the legislative quarters in Port Harcourt, the state capital.
The conference hall has served as the lawmakers’ temporary chamber since their official chamber at the assembly complex on Moscow Road was torched and later pulled down by the state government.
The outgone sole administrator of the state, Ibok-Ete Ibas, could not complete the reconstruction of the assembly complex as promised.
Recall that on March 18, President Bola Tinubu declared a state of emergency in Rivers following the prolonged political standoff between Fubara and members of the House of Assembly loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.
He subsequently suspended the governor, his deputy, Ngozi Odu, and lawmakers for six months and installed a sole administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (rtd.), to manage the state’s affairs.
The decision sparked widespread controversy, with critics accusing the president of breaching the Constitution.
However, others hailed the move as a necessary and pragmatic step.
