By Chioma Onuegbu
Group Capt. Samuel Ewang (retd) is a member of the Board of Trustees of the All Progressives Congress, APC and a former military governor of Ogun State. He is presently the Akwa Ibom State Coordinator, of the Buhari Campaign Organization. In this interview, he speaks on issues relating to the presidential election and his candidate. Excerpts:
What is the guarantee that if APC takes over power, it will bring the so much talked about change?
We have said, and said it again. You see corruption is the main problem of the Nigerian society and it is a fact that when we budget three or more trillions we only put about one sixth of that in the economy and the rest go to the pocket of people. But the guarantee APC offers is that we are bringing a man, a group of human beings that are determined to serve Nigerians, to cleanse the society; that are prepared to use every kobo as budgeted. And we know that if that happens, that Nigeria has more than enough for all the promises. That is the guarantee.
But some are now questioning the records of your candidate, Muhammadu Buhari?
I don’t know about the past records such speculators have but our own past records which is real and true is different. He has been a governor, he has been the head of state; he has held several ministerial portfolios and in each of the occasions that he came up he left something behind. He is the man that built the whole refineries in Nigeria.
He is the man that institutionalized discipline in the body polity of Nigeria. He is the man that can show by his actions that what he says he does and that he can lead by example. For example I am a witness. I have been to his home town in Daura. He has a bungalow, his old family house which he has taken over. He also has another house which is also a bungalow in Kaduna. Aside these two houses he has no other house.
But remember that he had opportunities to amass wealth but he did not do each time he had opportunity. He is a Muslim remember and by his religious offering which is also a culture, he is allowed to marry four wives, but he is married to one wife.
And why are they so strongly trying to ensure that he does not come in? As far as they are concerned the moment Muhammadu Buhari comes in they are in jail. Unfortunately he is not that man he was and I don’t believe he is going to put everybody in jail.
The only problem is that that is their fear. And they have done everything, from certificate to health. Ok, in the case of certificate I can tell you one thing. I came through the same process. Unfortunately when he went into the military it was not Nigerians that were managing the military, it was Britain. So nobody could have said, oh when he came in he was favoured so he did not submit his certificate. He did.
So the issue of certificate doesn’t come in. Now they are talking about health and I have been laughing at them. When I sit down with my friends I will say no problem, you don’t need to worry about whether he is healthy or not.
There is something we do in the military every year to find out whether somebody is healthy or not. You go on 10 kilometer jog. And since they call Buhari an old man, so he is sick, let them bring the young president and keep and let him start 10 kilometers jog with Buhari. If the President can go 10 kilometer jog at the given time we will find out who is healthy. This is the test of health and endurance, so you don’t worry about whether he is sick or not please bring President Jonathan and bring our presidential candidate let the whole world watch them go on a 10 killometer jog.
Give them time whoever returns is the healthy man isn’t it and whoever did not return is either going to die or be taken to the hospital because that has always been the case. That is how we select a healthy man in the military and I can assure you that Mohammadu Buhari even as at his age will return on time.
With your experience as a one time military administrator, do you support the idea of using the military for the elections?
No you are not supposed to bring in the military. It is not constitutional. Even the police, it should be one police to a polling unit and should not hold any arms. Nobody that day should carry arms. See, what is election? We are in democracy. Election is a celebration of democracy; that is the day you celebrate democracy so are you coming to kill your people with arms during the democratic celebrations?
So you don’t need the military. Provided elections are allowed to be free and fair Nigerians are very law abiding. And you will agree with me that Nigerians are very law abiding. They work by the rules, so we don’t need the military. But the consequence is that the government is going to use the military to cause mayhem that is where the problem lies and I hope it does not happen.
But that is contrary to views that the military would help to maintain peace and security during the elections?
The military is not for internal security. The military has a constitutional responsibility to defend the territorial integrity of the country, even though, it also provided that if there is any uprising in the country the military could be used in limited provisions, very precisely stated, to handle internal security, but they are not constitutionally to maintain law and order.
That is the duty of the police. In this case there is no war. We should wait after election if there is violence you then bring in the military but not before that violence. That is what the constitution provides. The first line of action is to deploy the police. Where the police cannot maintain law and order then you call in the military.
Why do you think some in the PDP are calling for the removal of Prof. Jega as chairman of INEC?
Let us see how they are going to do that. See their intention was that the time of extension will give them time to send away Jega and to stop the use of card reader. Let us see how they will succeed in doing that. The whole world is watching them, how PDP having released money from the budget that was budgeted by INEC and INEC has gone to order for the card readers which they approved of.
Of course Jega’s tenure is constitutional and everybody knows that he will go in June. We want to see how they will remove Jega before June. The world is watching how they will stop the use of the card reader and use the old voter cards which they want so that they will rig.
They were the ones who ordered for it and now they calling for change and that have only made us believe the more that the card reader would make the elections credible. It is only going to be used for the accreditation of voters and we think that is good enough.
And we only believe that they should allow INEC to do their job. Jega was the one that put Jonathan in office in 2011. And he is only a figure head. He is the head of the team. I am sure that Jonathan employed all the INEC Commissioners so why do you now disbelieve in your institution.
VANGUARD
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