Since the President, General Muhammadu Buhari (GMB) has confessed secretly to the state governors that the economy is in terrible shape, fourth year into his own presidency, what remains than for him to resign honourably, if he is a honourable person? It makes no sense treating anyone who revels in carnage and economic destruction of Nigeria as honourable, let alone, excellent.
What is excellent in taking money to the market to share as if you are dealing with a barbaric people, only to turn round and be blaming your predecessors for corruption? If the governors were more patriotic than GMB, they would have asked him: Your Excellency, how much did it cost you to degrade Boko Haram, in human lives and economic resources?
I do not feel any need to commend Peter Obi for flooring Yemi Osinbajo in the debate, because even a brilliant primary school pupil would have floored Osinbajo.
Yet it is good to say: Congratulations! It is not just petroleum and rice; everything is thrice costlier than before the GMB-Osinbajo presidency? Junaid Mohammed spoke sense, saying that GMB is incompetent and has failed woefully to improve Nigerian life.
Worse than that, everything has emaciated under GMB. Only one terrorist group, created by bad leadership, has increased to three: Boko Haram; the ambulant Fulani herdsmen, and the armed bandits. But Junaid is unnecessarily prejudicial against Atiku Abubakar as unfit to replace GMB.
Nobody is fit. But while the fundamental option of GMB is militaristic, that of Atiku is dialogue for peace and progress, and restructuring.
What remains is for Nigerians to rally round Atiku through the legislature, the judiciary, and the fourth estate of the realm. Junaid represents those who want Nigerians to lack a presidential focus.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) is running a cannibalistic and economically wasteful government and covering up with fighting corruption.
Who can be more corrupt than GMB who doubles himself as the Petroleum Minister, increased fuel price from N87 to N145, and is recovering looted funds without accountability for anything to anybody? For which annual budget has GMB accounted? What is the size of Nigeria’s debts under GMB? With the unending war and increased terrorism, where is wisdom in even campaigning for GMB? Those doing so should examine their consciences, if not their brains.
Nigeria will derive immense gain from stopping carnage and economic destruction of Nigeria and from restructuring that will make Nigeria sustainable.
The type of Muslim and Christian imperialisms that brought the Boko Haram crisis on Nigeria must be killed and buried once GMB is voted out in 2019.
Political order and discipline must be established through legalization of rotational presidency. Third term presidency for the northwest will be the height of political injustice and a terrible precedence.
After GMB, Nigeria must specifically outlaw abuse of state power to settle religious scores.
African traditional rulers, emirs, churches and mosques must be forbidden to bribe public servants with chieftaincy titles. Promotion of traditional rulers must also be depoliticized. All such things mess up Nigeria.
GMB makes himself a pall over the petroleum sector; what can be more diabolic? The person who claims to be fighting corruption is obstructing transparency in the oil sector! Barawo bansa, oyinoshi-oyinara, ooolèèè! Yes, Donald Duke and Jerry Gana are among mushroom presidential candidates.
I told Kwarans that those saying Ó tó gẹ́ (Enough is enough) to Saraki-Emirate dynasty are dishonest and as dangerous as GMB committing carnage and economic destruction of Nigeria, unless they say Ó tó gẹ́ to GMB also.
….the questions that Buhari is dodging
When the current President, General Muhammadu Buhari (GMB) lost the presidential election to Dr Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan in 2011, he was weeping. And when asked why, he said it was because he wanted to develop Nigeria. He did not say he wanted to defeat Boko Haram and protect the ambulant Fulani herdsmen.
But what has he been doing since he got power on May 29, 2015? On that day, he paid homage to the Fulani jihadist warrior, Uthman Danfodio. He redeployed the Army for serious war against Boko Haram.
He set aside dollars for those who were going to end the Ramadan of that year in Saudi Arabia. And he himself started going to London for earache and toothache.
One cannot but lament that GMB doubles himself as the Petroleum Minister, increased fuel price from N87 to N145, and he is recovering looted funds, without accountability for anything to anybody.
To justify his own reelection, GMB has been accusing his predecessors of having looted and squandered Nigeria’s wealth.
What happens to all the looted funds he is recovering, 2015 till date? What is Nigeria’s gain from his being the Petroleum Minister? Why was the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) taking contracts to him to sign in his sick bed in London after handing over to his deputy, Yemi Osinbajo?
Moreover, when GMB took over in 2015, he lied that he inherited empty treasury. People then started to ask how he was getting money to deploy the Army, go to London, etc. The former Finance Minister, Dr Mrs. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, denied that Jonathan left the treasury empty.
There are many questions GMB is dodging, including those raised earlier.
What did it cost GMB, in human lives and economic resources, to degrade Boko Haram? Rather than answering critical questions, GMB is weeping like a woman who is seeking undeserved sympathy in Yoruba folktale.
Yes, GMB can only fool fools, and that is the point the former President, General Olusegun Obasanjo (OBJ) was making.
Wise Nigerians do not need GMB to tell them that his predecessors were corrupt, because they knew it.
What they want to know from GMB are: the costs of his own war against Boko Haram in human lives and economic resources; the costs of his own prolonged sojourns in London; what Nigeria lost during the more than five months when he did not install his ministers after his own presidential inauguration; why the ambulant Fulani herdsmen became much more arrogant/defiant and deadly during his own presidency; what is the implication of the fuel price increase on the economy; what is the benefit of his own being the Petroleum Minister; where are the dividends of looted funds recovery, etc? Rather than answering these questions GMB is covering up with weeping over the corruption of his predecessors, even when his economy is worse than under any of his predecessors, 1999-2015.
Like Jonathan, GMB has also been dodging this fundamental question: What did the Boko Haram Muslim community of men, women, and children do, to warrant being attacked in the first instance in 2009? Were Boko Haram and the Shi’ite not in Nigeria during the presidency of OBJ-Atiku? GMB inherited only one terrorist group and increased it to three, including the armed bandits.
The numerous presidential candidates are also fooling themselves, thinking that sweet and brilliant manifesto is all it takes to win election. But if Nigerians vote again for carnage and economic destruction of Nigeria, which GMB represents, it is their choice. Atiku is wise choice.
Prof Abioje wrote from University of Ilorin.
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