Politics
2019: Between Atiku and Buhari (I)
The more the scheduled February 2019 date for Nigeria’s presidential election draws closer, the more it seems the meaning attached to government becomes diverse, at least in the context of the key actors, or their supporters. Thus, government and what it stands for has become relative to what meaning attached to it by each speaker at the particular time.
No matter the meanings attached to it, however, one meaning that seems to have been commonly accepted is that governance in Nigeria is synonymous with corruption: whether or not the one is corrupt, and to what extent the corruption runs deep. This has become the crux of what 2019 is all about.
Government is no more the widely held belief that politics has to do with positive activities relating to influencing actions and policies of a government, or getting and keeping power in a government.
While the emphasis laid on discrediting each other with corruption smear may also amount to an activity seeking to influence people against the opponent, whether this could be seen as ability to govern, and the extent to which it actually convinces potential voters does not seem to matter. There doesn’t seem to be any thought as to the consideration that to a reasonable extent the believability of what is sold to the voters will depend on the antecedents of the accuser.
However, since the norm has become focusing all energy on adorning the opponent with as much corruption costume as possible, rather than truly convincing the populace on practical and empirical abilities to better their lot, it has become pertinent to seek to answer two key questions:
First, between Abubakar Atiku, the Presidential flagbearer of the opposition Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP), and incumbent President, Mohammadu Buhari, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, who is truly clean of corruption?
The Merriam-Webster online dictionary, among other meanings, describes corruption as “dishonest or illegal behaviour, especially by powerful people (such as government officials or police officers)”. In other words, while dishonesty can be individualistic and in-house, in this discourse it is as it concerns public interest by a public office holder.
If the afore-stated can be used as a parameter, the question, therefore, is who between the two prominent 2019 presidential aspirants (Atiku and Buhari) can genuinely say he is not one way or the other corrupt in public office?
For Atiku, he had made the headlines in two key public offices: first as Area Comptroller of Customs in charge of the Murtala Muhammed Airport in 1984 with General Mohammadu Buhari as military Head of State. This was when the infamous “53 suitcases” saga occurred.
The 53 suitcases saga arose during the currency change exercise ordered by the Buhari junta when it ordered that every case coming into the country should be inspected irrespective of the status of its owner.
In defiance to this order, as the Vanguard of March 21, 2011 puts it, “the 53 suitcases were ferried through the Murtala Muhammed Airport without Customs check by soldiers allegedly at the behest of Major Mustapha Jokolo, the then Aide-de-Camp, ADC, to General Buhari”.
Several eyebrows were raised over the issue, but as has become the norm in Nigerian politics, the matter died a natural death. Insinuations were made to the point that the 53 suitcases belonged to Atiku, but it did not go further than that. The widely held belief was that it ended the way it did because since the ADC to the Head of State was fingered, the Principal may not be out of the picture at the end of the day. By Nigerian mode of governance, it is apperent that the Commander-in-Chief let the matter go to avoid opening a can of worms.
Atiku’s alleged involvement in corruption again made the news headlines in his reign as Vice President to President Olusegun Obasanjo from 1999 to 2007. Since then, the Jada, Adamawa State born politician had been severally tagged corrupt at a higher scale, but none of the allegations seem to have gone beyond what many christen as “the rantings of a scared opposition”.
However, the allegation that truly got concerned Nigerians, and indeed close watchers of Nigerian politics at the global level, bothered was the one made by his then principal, President Obasanjo.
Ifeanyi Maduako summarised the Atiku corruption saga under Obasanjo in his piece titled, “How is Atiku Very Corrupt?” published in the Daily Trust of December 14, 2017:
“The allegations of corruption against Atiku solely by Obasanjo have not been substantiated since 2007 when they left office to date. It is instructive to note that Obasanjo has a very big problem of human relationship management. He had issues with the five Senate Presidents, most governors, party leaders etc during his regime. The tag of a “deeply corrupt person” on Atiku by Obasanjo was borne out of the same human relationship management and domineering attitude of Obasanjo.
“How is Atiku very corrupt? The only constitutional role assigned to the office of the Vice President is the Chairmanship of the National Economic Council (NEC) meeting made up of the 36 Governors of the Federation, CBN Governor, Minister of Finance, etc.
“The National Economic Council plays an advisory role just like National Council of States forum as its decisions or resolutions are not binding on the President who is the Chief Executive of the country. Except the chairmanship of NEC, every other role the Vice President plays is at the mandate or discretion of the President.
“Atiku also chaired the Council on Privatisation on the express mandate of President Obasanjo with Nasir el-Rufai, who is the present Governor of Kaduna State, as Director General. Vice President and Deputy Governors are at the mercy of the President and the Governors of the country. They do not have much constitutional roles to play unless assigned by their bosses. How then did Atiku control the economy between 1999 and 2007 and made more money corruptly than Obasanjo?
“Can a Deputy Governor make more money than the Governor through corrupt means in any state? It smacks of weakness and incompetence for a President or a Governor to accuse his Deputy of controlling the economy and making more money through corrupt means than him”, Maduako concluded.
For President Buhari, as far as majority of the Nigerian populace (widely called common people) are concerned, another name for him is “hardship”. The first thing they easily recall is what they call his love for increase in fuel price. Some recall that when he came into power in 1983, fuel pump price rose from #45. In fact, many Nigerians see Buhari as the originator extra odinary of fuel racketeering in Nigeria.
“Immediately he came to power in 2015, fuel price rose from #89 per liter to as much as #350 and more in some states, before finally settling at #145. You cannot compare the level of suffering before 2015 and now, most especially in foodstuffs”, some said.
These and other forms of hardship are credited to one form of corruption or the other perpetrated in Buhari’s government, “and he said he is fighting against corruption. Yet they (APC) say PDP brought Nigeria to the hardship we face now. Meanwhile, most of the key people in APC were people at the helm of affairs in the 16 years of PDP leadership in Nigeria, from 1999 to 2015”.
While allegation of corruption against Buhari as a person is easily explained away as a deliberate attempt to tarnish his good image, the President also seem to be complacent when people around him are involved in what he terms corruption, and hence can hardly exonerate himself from Nigeria’s travails since he assumed office in 2015.
A former Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the APC, Comrade Timi Frank, encapsulated the entire picture in an article he titled “Buhari’s government stinks of corruption”, and published in the Daily Trust of September 11, 2018, in which he described the administration as a stinking can of corruption:
“We know that the allegation of false National Youth Service Corp (NYSC) exemption certificate against the Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun, has since been swept under the carpet.
“The grass cutting scandal involving the immediate past Secretary to the Federal Government (SGF), Babacheer Lawal, remains a no-go-area. The bribery allegation against the Chief-of-Staff to the President, Abba Kyari does not warrant investigation and prosecution by a government claiming to fight corruption.
“Need I talk about the large-scale corruption being perpetuated by officials of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) who have elected to operate varied exchange rates regime to defraud the country with the active connivance of their collaborators in the presidency.
“The corruption in the NNPC rightly exposed by the Minister of State (Petroleum), Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, does not warrant investigation because the presidency is involved in it.
“Only recently, N100 billion tax evasion scam by Alpha Beta, a tax consulting firm owned by a chieftain of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, was exposed. Yet the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) does not deem it fit to commence investigation into the activities of the company simply because an APC chieftain would be put in the eye of the storm.
“The Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, has severally petitioned the EFCC with a call on the anti-graft body to investigate corruption allegations against the immediate past Governor of the State, Rotimi Amaechi, the Minister of Transportation under the Buhari’s administration, yet apart from acknowledging that it indeed received the said petitions, the EFCC has since turned a blind eye to the allegations,” he lamented. He stated further that “while the government has been on asset-freezing-and-loot-recovery-spree, especially from the members of the opposition political parties or those considered to be anti-Buhari accused of corruption, the real looters in government and politicians with corruption allegations against them within the ranks of the APC are sitting pretty at ease enjoying under served amnesty.
Beyond the above, another issue that has put a huge question mark on the Buhari’s fight against corruption is the issue of his certificate. There had been so many inconsistencies, right from when he contested for the presidency in 2015. But, somehow, it has always been explained away.
To be cont’d.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has begun deploying non-sensitive materials to the zones as it prepares for the 2027 general election.
Acting Chairman of the commission, Prof. Rhoda Gumus, disclosed this in Abuja, yesterday at a bench-marking meeting with a delegation of Kenya’s Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).
“Right now, all non-sensitive materials are almost ready. In fact, today as we speak here, the non-sensitive materials have been lifted to some zones now,” Gumus said.
She said the commission had completed nine of its scheduled activities and was preparing for the next phase.
“We are preparing for the election next year and we have activities lined up. So far, we have been able to complete nine activities and we are still preparing for the next level of activities,” she said.
Gumus said the commission’s leadership had just concluded a tour of the country’s six zones to assess their level of preparedness.
“The purpose was to go round the zones to see how prepared we are, assess what the zones have put in place, their challenges and what to do. We concluded last week and we can see from our tour that we are really going towards the election proper,” she said.
On Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs), the acting chairman said production had been completed and distribution to the states was well advanced.
“As of today, we can say that PVCs have been produced and the first, second batches, most of the states have received them. Their PVC collection is ongoing. All those who are supposed to be the voters are supposed to receive their PVCs, and if they don’t have them, it is also another challenge,” Gumus said.
She added that capacity building was under way for staff at the headquarters and in the states, and that the procurement and deployment of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System BVAS devices were also ongoing.
On diaspora voting, Gumus said the commission could not proceed for now because the law did not provide for it.
“Here, because we go by the law, in our electoral law, it is not included there, so we cannot go on for the diaspora voting for now until we amend the electoral law,” she said.
The acting chairman said the commission had arranged for its directors to hold an interactive session with the Kenyan team and present papers on the work of their departments.
Leading the delegation, the Kenyan High Commissioner to Nigeria, Isaac Parashina, said the IEBC team was in Nigeria to benchmark ahead of Kenya’s general election in August 2027.
He said the team was studying how Nigeria handled its diaspora population and special voting groups, as Kenya sought to widen voting rights for citizens living abroad.
“Currently we have about 12 of them who voted in the last general election, but there is intention to expand to around, I think, 26,” Parashina said, referring to the countries where Kenyans abroad vote.
He said the expansion was a constitutional requirement backed by Kenyan court rulings, and would be enforced progressively.
Parashina said Nigeria’s election, which he noted would come in two rounds, would be closely watched across Africa.
“Everyone is looking at what Nigeria will do because it is the biggest democracy in Africa. The success of Nigeria remains a great success to Kenya and indeed to the continent,” he added.
The High Commissioner thanked INEC for receiving the team despite a tight schedule and wished the commission success.
Governor Douye Diri has set a target of at least one million votes for President Bola Tinubu in Bayelsa State in the 2027 presidential election, while charging the newly inaugurated All Progressives Congress (APC) State Campaign Council to prioritise reconciliation, party unity and collective electoral mobilisation.
Governor Diri gave the charge at the inauguration of the 20-member campaign council at the APC secretariat in Yenagoa, where he warned that internal divisions could undermine the party’s efforts to secure victory for President Tinubu and other candidates at the federal and state levels.
Governor Diri urged party members who were not appointed to the council to support its activities by taking the APC’s message to communities, wards and polling units across the state.
He specifically charged the campaign team to mobilise at least one million votes for President Tinubu, arguing that Bayelsa’s voting strength had increased and should be reflected in the 2027 election results.
“I give you a target that in Bayelsa, we must not bring less than one million votes for Mr President. You are going to campaign, and you have a lot to talk about the President. He has done so much for our people,” the governor said.
He listed the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, the second phase of the Nembe-Brass Road, interventions in the power sector, federal appointments for Bayelsa indigenes and the establishment of the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy among the achievements the campaign should present to voters.
The governor particularly praised President Tinubu for the coastal highway project, arguing that it reflected federal attention to the development needs of coastal communities.
“No president, alive or dead, has remembered the coastal people and coastal states to say let us do this signature project from Lagos to Calabar. The first president to think about it is Bola Tinubu, and those were the demands of the Ijaw people,” he said.
Governor Diri also expressed hope that a second term for President Tinubu would provide an opportunity to advance demands for fiscal federalism, greater resource control and state policing, which he described as longstanding aspirations of the Niger Delta.
He said the President had shown indications of addressing some of the demands of younger Nigerians and argued that re-election would allow the administration to consolidate its reforms.
The governor further cautioned campaigners against personal attacks and abusive exchanges with political opponents, insisting that the APC should focus its campaign on issues, policies and achievements.
The governor’s mobilisation directive comes amid criticism from the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which has questioned his commitment to President Tinubu’s re-election campaign, alleging that APC campaign billboards erected across Yenagoa promote other party candidates without featuring the President.
The PDP, through its Publicity Secretary, Mr Ikaebimo Mark, said the billboards showed Governor Diri urging voters to support APC candidates for the National Assembly and State House of Assembly elections without identifying President Tinubu as the party’s presidential candidate.
Mr Mark described the omission as an indication that the governor was not fully aligned with the APC’s national leadership.
“When we said that the governor, Senator Douye Diri, is not supporting President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, we knew exactly what we were saying. Now Governor Douye Diri has erected APC campaign billboards across Bayelsa State without Tinubu’s picture. He is even afraid to associate himself with the photograph of the presidential candidate of his own party. How can this governor claim to be supporting President Tinubu?” he said.
The PDP, however, maintained that the governor’s public campaign posture raised questions about his commitment to the President’s re-election bid. Its allegation over the billboards now places the issue of the relationship between the state APC leadership and the party’s national campaign among the political questions likely to feature in Bayelsa’s preparations for 2027.
The PDP’s allegation has introduced a fresh political dimension to the APC’s preparations in Bayelsa, even as Governor Diri publicly called on party leaders and members to close ranks and mobilise support for all its candidates.
“Every person picked as a member of this campaign council was carefully scrutinised. I want to tell you that our campaign team is loaded. We parade the best candidates among all the parties in Bayelsa State, and there is no doubt about that,” he said.
He urged members to remain focused and united, warning that political opponents could exploit any divisions within the party.
“Our unity is very important because they would want to feast on our disunity. We will not give them that opportunity. Please, as you carry out this assignment, do not take your eyes off the target,” Hon. Ogoriba said.
SP Edafe explained that during the meeting, the organisers were briefed on the identified security threats and advised against embarking on an open-road procession.
Instead, the police reportedly recommended that the political activities be conducted at a designated venue where adequate security arrangements could be provided.
However, the Command alleged that the organisers disregarded the security advice and proceeded with the road procession.
Meanwhile, the Delta State Government has condemned the political violence that erupted in Asaba, the state capital, on Saturday, confirming that one person was killed while four others sustained serious injuries.
The government described the incident as unfortunate and unacceptable, warning political parties and their supporters against actions capable of threatening public peace, security and democratic participation in the state.
In a statement issued by the Commissioner for Works (Rural Roads) and Public Information, Mr Charles Aniagwu, the government reiterated its zero tolerance for political violence, intimidation and other forms of political misconduct.
Mr Aniagwu said the government had repeatedly cautioned political parties against engaging in activities capable of disrupting the peace, insisting that the incident could have been avoided if the organisers had followed security advice.
According to him, the police had advised the organisers to cancel the proposed street march and instead conduct their political campaign at a designated venue where adequate security arrangements could be provided.
He expressed concern that the advice was allegedly disregarded, resulting in a confrontation that claimed one life and left four other people seriously injured.
The government subsequently called on the police to conduct a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding the violence and ensure that anyone found culpable is brought to justice.
Mr Aniagwu further warned that the state government would not tolerate politically motivated attacks against any individual, regardless of political affiliation.
He maintained that Delta State remained safe for residents and visitors, stressing that the government would not allow the actions of individuals or groups to undermine the prevailing peace and security in the state.
The government also urged political parties, their leaders and supporters to conduct their political activities within the confines of the law and demonstrate respect for human life, public order and the rights of other citizens.
The latest development follows an attack on supporters of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) during a political procession in Asaba, which reportedly left several participants injured and campaign vehicles vandalised.
The government’s condemnation comes amid growing concerns over political violence and the safety of opposition supporters as political activities intensify ahead of the 2027 general elections.
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