"We Must Stop Buhari Before He Sends Us to Jail"- Adamawa Senator

The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, candidate for Adamawa South Senatorial District, Silas Zwingina, has claimed that the Presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Muhammadu Buhari, intends to send public office holders to jail if he emerges president. Mr. Zwingina, therefore, urged his party members to work hard to ensure that Mr. Buhari fails in his bid to become president. Speaking in Yola, the Adamawa state capital, Mr. Zwingina said “we have to stop Buhari and his plan to build more prisons to jail politicians. “You know Buhari, he will send us to jail for between 200 to 300 years and it is the lucky ones among us that will get 50 years. “As you know, there is no way you will hold office in Nigeria and go scot free if the authorities want to get you. “Buhari is determined to send people to jail and even APC governors are not comfortable with him and that’s why many of them are not following his campaign team,” Mr. Zwingina alleged. He said President Goodluck Jonathan is better than Mr. Buhari and needs to be returned to continue his transformation agenda. “Let me tell you, that Jonathan is 1,000 times better than Buhari and that’s why people resolved to vote for our candidate, President Jonathan,” he said.

Fayose: A Man of Controversy

Governor Ayodele Fayose has been more controversial in Nigeria’s political scene than being an instrument of public service and political leader primarily expected of him by the people of Ekiti and Nigerians at large. In less than four months of his return to Ekiti State Government House, the Governor has always been enmeshed in series of verbal controversies that have continued to give right thinking members of the society the audacity to question his ascension to the apex office as number one citizen of the Fountain of Knowledge. continue after the cut............. From the venue of his inauguration as the duly elected governor on October 16, 2014, Fayose fabricated Ekiti State Ministry of Stomach Infrastructure, a ministry that was singlehandedly conceived and birthed by him. According to the governor, the ministry would solely be responsible for the availability of food on the tables of Ekiti people. The idea was greeted by a wide range of criticism by Nigerians as it was widely viewed as a sheer waste of public fund and duplication of offices. For a man who once crucified his immediate predecessor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi for giving 5,000 naira monthly allowance for Ekiti elders without creating employment opportunity for their children, one will definitely expect him to clear the cloud of confusion that trails the superiority of his stomach infrastructure over Fayemi’s effort at banishing hunger among the weak and fragile with a monthly stipends. “Osoko” as he is fondly called by his ardent supporters however began his tenure in Ekiti on a boisterous note. Within a week of governance, he breezed into the state House of Assembly and dismembered its members. Under his tutelage, nine members were considered to be more powerful than nineteen members and consequently dislodged the original speaker, Dr. Adewale Ominrin in what seemed like a military coup. Omirin was not only impeached in Ekiti, he also had his filling station sealed up. Till date, the former speaker and his legion of supporters in the hallowed chambers are still wandering in the political wilderness. For several weeks of his stay in office, Fayose practically abdicated his official duty as governor to the condemnation of the achievement of his predecessor in office. He accused former Governor Fayemi of erecting a befitting government house with an excessive amount without a proof to substantiate his allegation and vowed never to make use of the edifice. If one may ask, can Governor Fayose tell the people where he resides in the state today or does he govern Ekiti from his private home? At the national level, the almighty Ekiti governor continues to hit the major news headline; creating ripples on the political sea of the country. It was Governor Fayose that predicted the impending death of the presidential flag bearer of the opposition party, General Muhammadu Buhari in a newspaper advert where his picture was used alongside late Nigerian heads of state. Fayose in his response blatantly stood his ground and refused to tender a public apology for the widely condemned advert that was credited to him. For a governor who got the mandate of the people by virtue of his perceived identification with poor masses in the society, it is however expected of him to remain nothing but a leading light to the masses on whose votes he sailed to the office. Going by his antecedent that orchestrated his exit from this same office in 2006, governor Fayose who rode back to the office by a dint of destiny is expected to be subtle and diplomatic but unfortunately, the reverse is the case. He still remains the usual blunt and bombastic Fayose Nigerians used to know. If every Nigeria Governor has been trailing the same path like the Ekiti state governor, there wouldn’t have been an entity called Nigeria today. A governor can either be governor for a minimum of four years or a maximum of eight years. What makes or mars his personality after his tenure is the way he governed his people and his contribution to nation building during his tenure in office. Governor Ayodele Fayose should learn from history. When a child slips and falls, he will get up and look ahead but when an elder slips and falls, he looks back to know what led to his fall. Governor Fayose must learn from history!!

PDP Faction Calls For Withdrawal of Jonathan Candidacy As Party Schemes for 6Month Election Postponement Investigation has revealed that a new twist in the desire of some top officials of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for a six-month postponement of polls in Nigeria, with several sources saying a faction of the party would work to replace President Goodluck Jonathan as the party’s presidential candidate. In separate interviews with reporters, numerous PDP officials disclosed that many founding members of the party had lost confidence in Mr. Jonathan’s viability as a candidate, adding that a faction within the party had discussed easing the incumbent president out of the presidential race, and replacing him with another candidate from the Niger Delta zone. “The only obstacle to the plan is that the South-South might kick against it, so we have arrived at a consensus to find another candidate,” one of our sources, a northerner, said. “If elections could be postponed for six months, we will definitely replace President Jonathan as our candidate,” another member of the faction confirmed. In a clear sign that the party was crumbling was within, several high ranking PDP members said they regretted letting President Jonathan carry the party’s flag as a presidential candidate in the forthcoming elections. Some of them confessed to being aware that the party’s prospects looked dire with Mr. Jonathan holding the presidential ticket. “We are the ones who started the push for six months delay in the elections to enable us [to] put in place an interim government which would then enable the party to change its presidential candidate to somebody that is more competitive,” one official confessed. He added that Mr. Jonathan’s faction also sought the extension for their own designs, which was to explore ways of rigging the elections. Our interviews revealed that many PDP governorship candidates in the north and elsewhere in the country were secretly working against Mr. Jonathan’s re-election or quietly distancing themselves from him. One party leader revealed that some candidates in the northern area were all but campaigning for General Buhari, the presidential flag bearer of the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC). However, some PDP officials told Journalists that, while they hoped that President Jonathan could be sidelined to increase the chances of the party in the upcoming elections, they also wished that the APC would also dump Mr. Buhari as its presidential candidate. The party officials claimed that key political figures across Nigeria continue to view a Buhari Presidency with mortal fear because of his stubborn personality and his promise to punish the corrupt. Several of the PDP officials were of the opinion that the rift between Mr. Jonathan and a large faction in the party that wants him dumped was reflected in the responses to former President Olusegun Obasanjo who a day ago dramatically announced his resignation from the PDP, publicly tearing his membership card. Two of the officials disclosed that, while Mr. Jonathan’s aides launched direct attacks on Mr. Obasanjo, the officials at the party headquarters in Abuja adopted a more cautious and subdued tone, regretting that the former president had decided to leave the party. Some officials stated that the party hierarchy viewed Mr. Obasanjo’s public departure from the party as a dangerous signal and as a major threat. “Chief Obasanjo doesn’t just come out swinging the way he has done recently unless he is privy to the existence of some third forces that are against President Jonathan. And to the best of our knowledge, the former president has never fought a battle like this and lost, no matter how long it takes him,” one of the officials said. “The truth is that many senators, honorable members of the House of Reps and governors are loyal to Baba, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo. So they are doing Baba’s bidding even though they are giving Mr. President [Jonathan] the impression that they are with him,” another party official in Abuja said. The party officials acknowledged that the statements of former President Obasanjo in the last three days had caused a major havoc on the party’s plans to work towards an interim national government. Several of the PDP officials attributed the fractiousness within the party to the way Mr. Jonathan and his wife, Patience Jonathan, imposed unpopular candidates on the party in various parts of the country. Even though they agreed that Mr. Obasanjo had imposed candidates on the party in the past, one PDP official said the Jonathans consistently backed candidates who were extremely unpopular within the PDP and unelectable. Asked if President Jonathan was aware of plans to replace him, some of our sources said the president knew that many powerful members of the party were not satisfied with his style and low performance. One source said former Vice President Alex Ekwueme and even the party’s chairman of the board of trustees, Tony Anenih, were far from enthusiastic about Mr. Jonathan’s re-election. “President Jonathan’s candidature and unpopularity are damaging the party,” one official stated. He added that the party’s electoral prospects in the general elections had dwindled dramatically. “We are only sure of carrying about 11 states in the country, according to our internal polls,” one party official disclosed. Party officials also said they were determined to change numerous candidates for governorships, the Senate and House of Representatives in several states if the six-month postponement ever became a reality. “The way President Jonathan and First Lady Patience Jonathan picked many candidates has now weakened the party across the country,” one top official in Abuja complained.

President Jonthan to Speak on Current National Issue Tomorrow by 7pm

President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan will host a special edition of the Presidential Media Chat tomorrow, Wednesday, February 11, 2015. During the programme, which will be broadcast live on the network services of the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN) and the Voice of Nigeria (VON) from 1900 Hours, President Jonathan will respond to questions from a panel of journalists on current national issues. All other television and radio stations in the country may hook-up to NTA and FRCN to relay the programme to their viewers and listeners. Reuben Abati Special Adviser to the President (Media & Publicity) February 10, 2015

Politics of Deception

PDP Government & Nigerian Army have pomised to crush Boko Haram in d North East within the next 6wks. This shows that all their efforts in the last six years were a mere shadow chasing or probably an effort in futility. But my question is, are Nigerians that gullible to our government? For how long will this politics of deception continue? If insurgency had not been politicised in the Noth, it would have been a thing of the past by now in Nigeria. Well, if Boko Haram is finally subdued because of the coming election, then, Nigerians days of trouble are truly ahead.

At 56, Still A Toddler

The United State of America has insisted Nigerians should not postpone the February elections inspite of the wide spectrum of speculation about the possible postponement of the elections. If at 56 we cannot decide for ourselves and it takes a super power country like the US to decide our affairs, then, Nigeria is nothing at 56 but a toddler.

Full Text of Press Briefing By SSA (Dr. Doyin Okupe) Public Affairs

TEXT OF A PRESS BRIEFING BY THE SSA (PUBLIC AFFAIRS) DR. DOYIN OKUPE ON FRIDAY 6TH FEBRUARY, 2015. It has become necessary to address this Press conference to correct some wrong information in the Mass Media concerning the outcome of the Council of State meeting which was held at the Presidential Villa yesterday. Firstly, President Goodluck Jonathan is not interested, neither is he engaged in in any form of subterfuge to pressurize INEC to change the dates of the 2015 Elections. The President, like many Governors and Citizens of Nigeria is concerned about The State of preparedness of INEC for the 2015 Elections ;especially as it concerns the guarantee of the rights of every Nigerian Citizen who has fulfilled the conditions for INEC’s Voter registration , and may still be disenfranchised from the Process of Voting at the General elections The Security situation and the danger that the current war against insurgency in some parts of the country may impose on the conduct of elections in the Affected areas The impact of the situation above on the overall credibility of the 2015 elections Secondly , I wish to state categorically here that at no time during the entire 7 hour meeting did the INEC Chairman , Prof Attahiru Jega insist that the elections must hold on the Feb 14th and 28th 2015 as published by some Electronic / Print Media. Rather Professor Jega gave the Council a report on the Progress so far made by the INEC on its preparedness for the 2015 elections. In all its submissions the only process that was 100% concluded was the preparation and availability of the Voters Register. All other processes including Provision, distribution and collection of PVC’s, printing of ballot papers, distribution of Verification machines and other non –sensitive materials , recruitment and training of ad hoc Staff were as at 5th Feb 2015 all “Works in progress”; with some assurance that all will be ready on or before 14th of Feb 2015. The Chairman also mentioned clearly that given a little more time INEC would be in a better position to perfect these processes and its readiness for the 2015 Elections. Also in his Presentations to the Council the INEC Chairman, stated clearly that for the electoral process to be free, fair , and credible there are other matters which were not under the control of INEC principal among which is the issue of provision and guarantee of Security of Lives and Properties. The Security Chiefs were unanimous in their advice to the Council that it will be impossible for now for them to guarantee security of electoral materials, INEC Staff, and the voting population in the areas currently engulfed by the War against Insurgency. Some opinions were therefore proffered that elections may be allowed to hold on the 14th Feb in the 32 states not affected by the current War against terrorism; while local elections may thereafter hold in those areas after the security situation would have improved. The President made it clear that he cannot in good conscience endorse an electoral arrangement where people from a section of the Country would be excluded from the Electoral process, due to no fault of theirs, or by virtue of just being unfortunate residents of an area under siege of terrorism. According to Mr President, this situation will tend to confirm the deliberate falsehood already being propagated in some parts of the Country that he was encouraging the war in the North East to ensure that voters in the APC states of the North East were not allowed to vote in the 2015 elections. The final conclusion was that INEC should in view of the several submissions made in the Council, by the Former Presidents, State Governors and the Security Agencies, go and consult further after which they should communicate their decisions to the Nigerian People on the suitability or otherwise of the February 14th and 28th dates. For the avoidance of doubt, Nigerians are hereby re-assured that there has never been, and never shall be any plan to cancel the 2015 elections, for any reasons whatsoever. It will not happen, and the May 29th date for the swearing-in is sacrosanct. All talks about interim government arrangement is pure fiction. The consideration behind the possibility of change of date is to allow those who may be disfranchised from voting on the 14th February to have an opportunity to exercise their lawful rights to vote and participate in the general elections. The new wave of successes being recorded by the Military in the War against insurgency, especially with the arrival of new effective combatant equipment and machinery, plus the newly revamped cross border co-operation with Niger, Chad and Cameroonian Military, offer a very genuine hope that in a very short while, the situation in the affected states will be brought under such reasonable control that will guarantee safety of the electoral process and electorates in the war front region of the North –East at a no distant future. We repeat that the only set of people who stand to benefit from a shift in election dates are Nigerians who desire to vote and have not been able to collect their Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) and other innocent citizens living in the war zone who may not be able to vote on the 14th February. We also wish to recollect that in 2003, 2007, and 2011 the elections were held in April, and the hand over date was not affected. We therefore challenge the opposition to tell Nigerians in clear terms, what dangers the change of date from February 14th portends to the electoral process or to the Nigerian electorates. It will also be good if the opposition tells us who stands to benefit or be disadvantaged from any shifting of date and how. This administration remains committed to a transparent, credible all inclusive free and fair elections, and will ensure that it employs all powers available to it to guarantee that this happens without any infringement on our sacred constitutional provisions. Thank You Dr Doyin Okupe Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs

Jonathan Srambles for Election Postponement

In the face of dwindling prospects for his re-election bid, President Goodluck Jonathan has embarked on a renewed three-pronged approach to scuttle the presidential election scheduled for February 14, several sources within the Presidency have disclosed. In a startling disclosure, sources said Mr. Jonathan was willing to entertain a military take-over as one of his options. Over the last two weeks, it had dawned on Mr. Jonathan that his hopes for winning re-election had dimmed significantly. Our sources said the president was deeply distressed to find out that several governors of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had been working quietly with the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) to thwart his re-election. “Apart from Governor Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom, Mr. President is no longer sure that he can count on the support of any of our other governors,” an insider in the Presidency said. Another source said several PDP governors were aggrieved that Mr. Jonathan shortchanged or abandoned them during the party’s primaries. Several of them are reportedly paying the president back by standing aloof from his campaigns or actively mobilizing support for Muhammadu Buhari, the APC’s presidential candidate. Sources revealed that the president and hawks within his administration held a prolonged meeting on Sunday and decided that the elections must be frustrated at all cost. Two of the sources said Mr. Jonathan intends to call a meeting of the Council of State on Thursday to persuade its members to back a proposal to postpone the polls. In place of an election, the president wants to set up “a government of national unity” to be headed by him for 18 months to two years. It is unclear whether the council would endorse the plan to reschedule elections. The council’s membership includes past heads of state and presidents, and some of them have been openly critical of Mr. Jonathan’s record. One source stated that, as part of the broad strategy to scuttle the elections, the Presidency would refuse to pay the balance of the contract for the printing of ballot papers. The contract was awarded when the Nigerian currency, the naira, officially exchanged for N165 to a dollar. The source said the contractor, who claimed to be sourcing his foreign currency from the black market, is now seeking an adjustment to his contract. “The contractor wants to be paid N210 to a dollar, but President Jonathan and his team have refused to help the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) source the balance,” the source revealed. Instead, the president and his team have advised INEC to look for a local Nigerian printer to print the ballot papers. INEC chairman Attahiru Jega and some of his top aides have balked at the idea of using a local printer. They argue that such an arrangement would be a perfect recipe for chaos, allowing the Presidency to use its considerable slush funds to illegally print duplicate papers with which to rig the election, as happened in several states in 2011. A source at INEC discosed that the commission’s chairman and some top officials suspect that the Jonathan administration was working seriously to undermine the commission’s credibility. “There is a lot of internal sabotage going on at INEC,” the source said. He disclosed that some resident electoral commissions were giving contradictory statements and reports about the commission’s preparedness for the February elections, without clearing with the headquarters. “Can you imagine also that even non-essential materials are being stolen from INEC offices, all in an effort to undermine the effort to hold elections,” said the source. The Presidency’s second option is the recruitment of some members of the defunct National Conference to press the case for postponing the elections until Nigerians discuss, adopt and implement the resolutions of the confab. In order to push that agenda, the Presidency has released more than N2 billion to Raymond Dokpesi, the owner of Africa Independent Television (AIT), to coordinate the campaign for postponement of the elections. Using AIT and other willing media, Mr. Dokpesi is expected to press the case for constituting an interim national government headed by Mr. Jonathan. Earlier on Monday in Abuja, Mr. Dokpesi’s AIT aired a live discussion by members of a “post national conference consultative committee”, to begin framing the case for postponement. The live program featured Bolaji Akinyemi, a former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Femi Okurounmu, who headed a nationwide consultation for the national conference, Maurice Iwu, a notorious former INEC chairman, Mike Ezekhome, a lawyer, G.G. Darah, a professor and close associate of jailed former Governor James Ibori of Delta State, and Balarabe Musa, a former governor of Kaduna State whose involvement is perhaps the only surprise. Dokpesi’s group is expected to use its huge war chest to argue that elections are untenable because of INEC’s questionable preparedness as well as the tense security situation in Nigeria’s northeast. The Presidency’s third option is the possible use of the Nigerian military to scuttle the election. Nigeria’s Chief of Army Staff, General Tobiah Minimah, is reportedly a key player in executing the military option. One source reported that General Minimah, who is from President Jonathan’s Niger Delta region, was initially reluctant, but eventually signed up for the scheme to use the military to intervene should the elections proceed and not go President Jonathan’s way. Sources said the president was irate that INEC chairman, Mr. Jega, had been avoiding meetings with him and his presidential aides. “Professor Jega has maintained that he wants to be seen to have conducted a free and transparent election, even if imperfect. He has therefore maintained that there is no point going to Aso Rock to hold meetings exclusively with Mr. President, who is a candidate, and the president’s team,” one source close to Mr. Jega said. Sources at the presidency disclosed that Mr. Jonathan had started looking for ways to remove the INEC chairman from office. “If they succeed in postponing the elections, the president will either suspend Prof. Jega, the way he did to former Central Bank Governor [Sanusi Lamido Sanusi] or ask him to go on compulsory leave pending the end of his tenure. Several sources confirmed that President Jonathan and his co-travelers have moved to the courts as a way of scuttling the elections. At least, five court cases have been filed to either postpone the elections or disqualify the APC candidate , Muhammad Buhari. A reliable source confirmed

that President Jonathan is shopping for a federal high court judge to scuttle the elections with a court order in the next few hours.

Nigeria on the Threshold of History

In few days time, history will be recorded in Nigeria as d country gradually galvanizes towards a new political dispensation. As expected, the political gladiators have been immersed in serial poltical activities that are capable of endearing them to the electorates that will ultimately decide their fate in the coming elections. As Nigerians scheme for their next president, intense political cloud have already gathered in the sky with no one to speculate the kind of rain it will release come february 14th. while president Jonathan six years admimistration has been widely punctuated with corruption, insecurity, unemployment, poor infrastructure to mention but a few which are presently threatening his chance of returning to the villa in May 29, his prominent rival, Gen. Mohammadu Buahri seems to have laid this laspes before Nigerians as his reason for jostling for the apex office, to fix the tattered and dilapidated structure that may have probably be left behind by the Jonathan administration. Buhari, even at 72 seems to have crawled into many hearts with his "CHANGE" mantra. Truly, Nigerians are yearning for change but can Buhari be the agent of change we desire in Nigeria? Where exactly are the younger generation? When will our generation be leaders of tomorrow in Nigeria? When on earth will the Nigeria's Obama emerge? If at 56 years old, Jonathan is already finished and cant figure out a way of putting Nigeria on a straight path, what will happen to Buhari who is already 72 years old. Indeed, Nigeria is in a den of trouble & there seems to be no hope in sight. And until the younger generation rise up to the occasion & fight for their right, the country is sitting on nothing but a keg of gun powder.

What raw talent eluded, passion and determination provided.