..........Here are some truths from an Aso Rock insider who pleaded anonymity for this article. He recounts his experiences and reveals what you may not know about Goodluck Jonathan.
The existence of godfatherism, the wide gap in the number of majority and minority parties in the National Assembly, the obvious domination by one party, the imposition of candidates, lack of system of performance assessment of politicians, the importance of party affiliation or allegiance above individual competence, inexistence of organized selection processes for the electorates, use of crude methods in electoral processes, high number of tribunal cases and rampancy of electoral vices are some of the existing challenges in Nigeria’s democracy.
On arrival of Goodluck Jonathan to the fore national scene, he brought with him new “diseases” such as zoning, national confusion alongside party instability, intimidation of opposition parties, campaign of calumny, ad-libitum governance, ad-hominen politics etc. The way things are presently, I can beat my chest that anything ‘Goodluck Jonathan’ can at the end spark a civil war in the country, he is too controversial and the earlier he goes, the better. Goodluck Jonathan is the father of ad-hominen politics in Nigeria, he knows how to appeal to people’s emotions so as to dodge the issues important to them, when he’s meant to tell how he is going to solve problems, he tries to woo the public by saying he won’t disappoint them, that he is ready to lose gracefully and that he’s not holding issues with anyone. His campaign has been playing tricks with his names ‘Goodluck’ and ‘Azikiwe’ by trying to make the public believe that he actually has luck and that another Nnamdi Azikiwe has emerged, can you just imagine that?, what about the other candidates bearing Pat, Nuhu and Muhammadu, don’t they have luck too? Cruel leaders in history like Adolf Hitler, Benito and Pol Pot all played ad-hominen politics and Goodluck Jonathan is doing the same. It would be a shame on the people of Nigeria if Goodluck Jonathan “wins” the April polls without appearing on a single political debate, he slapped the entire nation by shunning the NN24 debate when a veteran leader like Muhammadu Buhari and his former colleague, Ibrahim Shekarau thinks it’s worthwhile to stand for at least two hours before the good people of Nigeria, is that alone not a sign that Goodluck Jonathan is scared because he knows he has no clue about governance and that he doesn’t have a plan for Nigeria? Apart from the fact that Jonathan has no clear grasp of issues, he gets angry easily and he does not have his way with words. Former president Olusegun Obasanjo once appeared on a political debate in 1999, he didn’t appear on any in 2003 yet “he won” the election, it is not a good example, he’s the one that set such precedence for Jonathan whom he mentored, maybe Jonathan wants to do the same, but no matter what the case may be, the fact is that Chief Obasanjo did appear before. Never again should Nigerians go to the polls without debating with candidates. Goodluck Jonathan said he would attend the NEDG political debate organized by Taiwo Alimi of all people, the debate where they would have hired clappers and have tailored the questions and the best responses before Jonathan, a wise candidate won’t bother to attend.
Have you not noticed that Goodluck Jonathan lacks confidence? He knows inside of him he doesn’t have the stuff Nigerians want to see, if he could have his way, he would not appear in public. Have you forgotten that Goodluck Jonathan was chosen as vice-president not because of merit or competence but to balance the regional equation? He admitted this in one of the wikileaks leakages when he was conversing with the former Nigerian Ambassador to the US. Goodluck Jonathan plans to outsource the educational sector thereby mortgaging the future of Nigeria unlike Muhammadu Buhari who improved the nation’s economy and reduced inflation from about 23% to about 4% with a home-grown economic team. Goodluck Jonathan’s style of government is “money, money, money”, to any problem that faces the country, his regular answer is “give them more money”; this man is a wolf in sheep skin, Nigerians are yet to see his true colour, beware of those who beam with smiles. It is quite clear that Goodluck Jonathan is desperate to win in April, even from his body language in his rallies, you’ll know he really can’t afford to lose. His PDP presidential primary “victory” wasn’t really celebrated because he himself knew the game he played; he knew it wasn’t on merit after offering each delegate about US$7,000, all from taxpayer’s money.
In just nine months, the national treasury has reduced to a record low just as Bayelsa’s treasury was swept dry; remember he was quite reluctant to declare his assets then. His former boss, Diepreye Alamieyesigha was a thief of international dimension, will his deputy say he doesn’t know or have a share in it? Even in an ordinary secondary school class, the class prefect and his assistant have a way they do things, how much more a governor and his deputy. His wife, Patience is said to be a better thief, Jonathan is surely a low quality president, a man can be known from the quality of his wife. Can you compare Patience Jonathan with the likes of Hilary Clinton or Michelle Obama or even Turai Yar’Adua? See these women and the quality of their husband’s leadership, isn’t there a strong correlation? While late president Yar’Adua was struggling for breath on his sick bed, Patience Jonathan was heard saying “ na sidon we dey, dem make us deputy governor; na sidon we dey, dem make us governor; na sidon we dey, dem make us acting president; na sidon we still dey sidon oooo” how can a first lady be praying and expecting the death of her husband’s boss just like a vulture waiting patiently for its prey to die, that is wickedness!; afterall, the story of her husband’s uprising right from his childhood has been mystical, one must fall before Goodluck can rise. Patience Jonathan travels round the world embarrassing the nation, she doesn’t sit properly in public, she can’t speak elementary English Language or even read a speech free of errors, she doesn’t know her followers are sycophants, the Bola Shagayas and the rest, she is yet to catch them making jest of her as she speaks or reads her speeches.
Have you ever heard of the wife of Nicolas Sarcozy or Barack Obama or any other leader in the world, even in Africa alone, campaigning for their husband? It is only in Goodluck Jonathan’s campaign that a wife can run a parallel campaign with her husband. Even as extravagant, fun-loving and attention-seeking as late Stella Obasanjo was, she dared not do that, that is because Chief Olusegun Obasanjo is a prudent man but Goodluck Jonathan allowed his wife because he is not thrifty as a person talk less for a nation. Former president Olusegun Obasanjo cleared Nigeria’s debts and restored our dignity, Goodluck Jonathan incurred debts and destroyed our dignity, even the late Yar’Adua, his former boss, did not borrow. Goodluck Jonathan spends a minimum of 100 Million Naira to organize a single campaign rally, for 36 states minus the FCT mega rally, that makes it 3.6 Billion Naira, then add that of Patience Jonathan’s rally for 36 states, that makes it 7.2 Billion Naira, don’t forget the concerts he paid for, his jingles every minute on radio and television stations, the accommodation and feeding bills for himself and his army of aides, the accompanying visitors, the estacode, the bribe he would give the traditional rulers on courtesy visits, the special events like cocktails, the campaign materials, the hired crowds, his 1000 and something groups he convened and he is funding; in fact, I attended a meeting of one of the Goodluck/Sambo groups I belonged, there’s no way you wouldn’t feel like a cult member, you’ll be amazed at the kind of things we discussed, just imagine how much money is being spent on the overall, whose money do you think he is spending?, and we see innocent Nigerians on TV everyday begging to raise just 5 Million Naira for a kidney transplant, they have to be flown abroad because of a collapsed healthcare system.
The tyrant in him shows in his intimidation of opposition parties, he asked traditional rulers not to receive opposition party candidates who may want to pay courtesy visits, he denied opposing parties the use of public facilities while he doesn’t pay a dime for them. Sometime last year in Abuja, a major road in the central business district was barricaded just because his wife was holding a programme on that route, that led to confusion in the city and a hold-up that the residents of Abuja cannot forget in a hurry, how can a person hold an entire population to ransom?, had it been they are in the good books of the public, why should they feel insecure?. Goodluck Jonathan was never elected so he doesn’t have value for his position, when you don’t earn or work for something, you cannot have value for it. Goodluck Jonathan is not in touch at all with the people, he is clueless about how to handle the simplest of issues, he is a pawn in the hands of the western powers, he doesn’t care so far the money is rolling in, he has already mortgaged the nation’s oil sector, he needs to be edged out before he bargains our individual destinies. In an interview, Jonathan was asked to make comments as ECOWAS Chairman about the crisis in Cote d’Ivoire, and he began with “they said we should............” now, who are the they?, as the ECOWAS Chairman, is he not meant to be the one giving the directives?, it shows that he is clueless and never in-charge, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo can never respond that way, neither would he be intimidated by any foreign power.
A most embarrassing scenario was the Independence Day bombing, the then Information Minister, Dora Akunyili said it was MEND that bombed and MEND itself claimed responsibility for the bomb blasts but Goodluck Jonathan said no, that it wasn’t MEND that bombed that he knows his people; as if he sleeps and wakes with them on the same bed every day, so if it’s not his own people, then it means the Yoruba, Igbos and the Hausas he is ruling are the bad eggs in the country. It was revealed that Henry Okah was persuaded to deny the Independence Day bombings but he refused and that he is being punished in South Africa for his refusal, Okah can never be tried in Nigeria because Okah’s supporters would shame Jonathan over and over again. Goodluck Jonathan offered Dr. Tunde Bakare’s Save Nigeria Group (SNG) US$50,000, if not for the true integrity of the group, no one would know and we would have heard SNG endorsing Jonathan like other “integrity” groups he bought over. The militant in Jonathan is set to show if he “wins” in April, he is constantly being persuaded by his advisers (who are the ones truly ruling the country) to use his presidential powers, his Chief-of-Staff is a major influence on him, his advisers are the ones gingering his weak liver, they were the ones who made him to reshuffle his cabinet when he assumed office nine months ago and now, they are gingering him to clamp down on Bola Tinubu, his major opposition leader. You may not know that the late Yar’Adua did not have faith in Jonathan, Jonathan was a figurehead when Yar’Adua was in office, Yar’Adua preferred the likes of Speaker Dimeji Bankole and Yayale Ahmed to handle issues and attend events that the vice-president should. If Yar'Adua, who is himself weak, could recognise a greater weakling in Jonathan, you can imagine how weak Jonathan is. Yar'Adua had the character but lacked the competence but Jonathan lacks both the character and the competence.
On Goodluck Jonathan’s state-to-state rally which ended in Jigawa, he said he deliberately chose to campaign last in Jigawa and that he dared not begin his rally late in the evening anywhere else in the country, that Jigawa is not like other parts of the country where there are security concerns and that Jigawa people are peaceful people which in turn meant that the people in Ogun, Osun, Kaduna, Imo and the rest of the nation are troublemakers, should a president be talking this way? He also referred to South-West governors as rascals and yet he insisted he would not apologise. Goodluck Jonathan’s craving for alcohol is an open secret. Jonathan was destabilized when the Farouk Abdul-Mutallab’s bomb issue happened, he had no idea of what to do, he was obviously caught off-guard, he eventually embarrassed the nation because he could not take an affirmative action.
Today, terrorist sects are still thriving in the nation. Have you not noticed that Goodluck Jonathan’s words are not coherent at times, he is not in touch with himself, how much more the people of a nation, how can a man few years above the age of 50 be senile already? How can a president be mute after visiting a crisis-ridden state like Ogun State where the state House of Assembly members refused to meet yet are getting paid? Goodluck Jonathan even agreed to commission the newly completed Ogun State secretariat which the late Yar’Adua had commissioned earlier, is that not a sign of disrespect and disloyalty to his former boss? Instead, he chose the widely-hated governor to be the South-West coordinator of his presidential campaign. In the Ogun State presidential rally, Governor Gbenga Daniel was heavily booed, Ogun people are weeping because of Daniel’s evil and fetish deeds. Now, birds of the same feathers surely must flock together, the bond between Daniel and Jonathan is unexplainable. Jonathan offered the wife of a rebel leader, Bianca Ojukwu an appointment to seal his deals with APGA, a party led by the Biafran leader, Odimegwu Ojukwu who sought to divide the nation; the party in turn became the first political party to adopt Jonathan as its presidential candidate. “Goodluck Jonathan’s choice” of Mohammed Namadi Sambo as vice-president was merely to balance the regional equation just as it was done for him three years ago and not that Sambo is so competent or that he complements Jonathan’s inadequacies. By the way, Jonathan wasn’t the one who chose Sambo, where does he want to find the gut? Sambo was the person the PDP cabals chose for him.
On other major presidential candidates, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau of the ANPP is a very sound and intelligent man but he is not known outside of Kano State; infact, Prof. Pat Utomi said he would vote Shekarau hadn’t been that he is running for the presidency too. Nevertheless, one cannot compare Shekarau’s experience with that of Muhammadu Buhari who has been a state administrator six times, a PTDF boss and then a president, Shekarau is a very confident man but his confidence in his intellect makes him a potential autocrat in the ranks of George W. Bush and Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida, the political “maradonas”. The ANPP’s choice of former Edo State governor, John Odigie-Oyegun as Shekarau’s running mate was not a people-oriented decision but also to balance the regional equation, besides, the ANPP family is so small with the likes of Harry Akande, Bashir Tofa and Birmah defecting to the PDP, time was running out on the party and someone had to be chosen as a vice. The ACN is the jester in this presidential contest; Mallam Nuhu Ribadu is one of the poorest and the most undiplomatic orator one can ever encounter, at the NN24 debate, he was the only candidate that asked the moderator to repeat her question, though it is not wrong to do that, I guess he needed more time to boot. The ACN’s choice of Fola Adeola was also regionally-motivated and time was running out on them too, they had to choose somebody, if not, they would not have presented a Muslin-Muslim ticket, they began to use the Abiola/Kingibe sentiment that if a Muslim-Muslim ticket could work in 1993, it can work in 2011, that is, eighteen years after. They don’t know that for such an arrangement to work, one of the personalities must be very strong and must have an excellent reputation but I don’t think the names ‘Fola Adeola’ and ‘Nuhu Ribadu’ combined together can open half the doors the name ‘Abiola’ can open even in his grave. These two individuals made sectoral impacts but M.K.O. Abiola made national impacts, there’s no way two wrongs can make a right. Besides, the Bola Tinubu factor in the ACN is making the party unattractive to the public.
It is only the choice of the CPC candidate, Muhammadu Buhari that was not influenced by any external factor or pressure, it is no longer news that some high profile Nigerians tried to influence Buhari’s choice but he stood his ground, he chose a man who complemented him in and out ignoring all criticisms, the pair of Muhammadu Buhari and Dr. Tunde Bakare is similar to that with the late Tunde Idiagbon, the formula that brought Nigeria glory. Dr. Tunde Bakare is a very disciplined and intelligent man and one of the most articulate men the country has ever produced, he has a background in law, he thrived in a field that requires unwavering integrity, his personal discipline and integrity can make him ensure fiscal discipline in the nation’s economic and financial sector, though I’m not one of his topmost fans, I must be very honest with Nigerians. Muhammadu Buhari is not a rich man because he did not embezzle, he has no corruption allegation traceable to him till date, he acts more and talks less, you may not know he has a great sense of humour and while he is improving on his ability to express his ideas, Bakare can do the talking anywhere in the world. He made his choice truly in the interest of the people of Nigeria. Alhaji Maitama Sule, an elder statesman and an advocate of good governance stated clearly that a blend of the old and the young is what can move Nigeria forward, he said the experience of the old and the vibrancy of the young is what Nigeria needs now in order to be great again. I think the Buhari/Bakare ticket represents Alhaji Sule’s position; afterall, the elder statesman has nothing to lose at his stage in life.
It is only the choice of the CPC candidate, Muhammadu Buhari that was not influenced by any external factor or pressure, it is no longer news that some high profile Nigerians tried to influence Buhari’s choice but he stood his ground, he chose a man who complemented him in and out ignoring all criticisms, the pair of Muhammadu Buhari and Dr. Tunde Bakare is similar to that with the late Tunde Idiagbon, the formula that brought Nigeria glory. Dr. Tunde Bakare is a very disciplined and intelligent man and one of the most articulate men the country has ever produced, he has a background in law, he thrived in a field that requires unwavering integrity, his personal discipline and integrity can make him ensure fiscal discipline in the nation’s economic and financial sector, though I’m not one of his topmost fans, I must be very honest with Nigerians. Muhammadu Buhari is not a rich man because he did not embezzle, he has no corruption allegation traceable to him till date, he acts more and talks less, you may not know he has a great sense of humour and while he is improving on his ability to express his ideas, Bakare can do the talking anywhere in the world. He made his choice truly in the interest of the people of Nigeria. Alhaji Maitama Sule, an elder statesman and an advocate of good governance stated clearly that a blend of the old and the young is what can move Nigeria forward, he said the experience of the old and the vibrancy of the young is what Nigeria needs now in order to be great again. I think the Buhari/Bakare ticket represents Alhaji Sule’s position; afterall, the elder statesman has nothing to lose at his stage in life.
Now, back to Goodluck. Nowadays, I see Goodluck Jonathan beaming with unexplainable confidence as if he is certain he would win in April, have you not noticed that the date extensions and other moves by INEC are all in favour of the ruling PDP? In other words, the nation is not ready until the PDP is ready. No matter the level of neutrality, Jega would have a soft spot for the man who nominated him for his current job and also his party. Against all speculations, the PDP is truly not ready to relinquish power anytime soon, if they do, that means the likes of Chief Tony Anenih, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo and Adamu Ciroma would be out of business, do you think they are ready to be sleeping and waking up every morning doing nothing for at least the next four years?, I doubt if the April polls would be credible. The PDP would remain in power for at least the next 32 years if Jonathan is not voted out now or we allow them to use their next tactics. I will reveal to you their next tactics, they are:
i. Strategic Cross-carpeting: they support a candidate from another party and ask him to crossover to the PDP.
ii. Opposition Ambush: they send their candidate to a strong opposition party and ensure he acquires their ticket. On getting the ticket, the “candidate” does not campaign or do anything so as to give room for the PDP candidate to win.
iii. Strategic replication of party: the PDP army changes name by moving to another party they have a great share in e.g. APGA. Thus, the PDP barons and cartels remain in power but under a different name.
The Nigerian public must be very careful of these tactics; that is why it is important for the people to vote for the personality and not the party; the Nigerian public should always check the character and credentials of individuals before going to the polls.
The Nigerian public must be very careful of these tactics; that is why it is important for the people to vote for the personality and not the party; the Nigerian public should always check the character and credentials of individuals before going to the polls.
From all indications, it is clear that the people don’t want Goodluck Jonathan, on his campaign trail to Nassarawa, the people stoned him and were shouting ‘Sai Buhari!’, in Port Harcourt, people walked out on him but the security men would not allow them go and that led to a stampede and people died, Goodluck Jonathan’s campaign rally has recorded the highest number of casualties and the PDP rallies in general, in Ibadan, he spoke to a sparse crowd, creating a need to hire more crowd. He made promises to the Super Falcons to encourage them to reclaim the AWC title, they eventually did and yet, they have not received a dime after six months, you hear campaign jingles say “Goodluck Delivers”, they were meant to say “Deliver us from Goodluck”. If Goodluck Jonathan could not fulfil his promises to ordinary Super Falcons, how can he fulfil his promises to the entire nation? At least, it is when one is faithful in little that he can be given more. The power sector, the economy, the educational sector etc. are all dead. Because of his campaign, we began to see electricity, which means that if the government truly wants to get it right, they would; thus, the suffering of the masses by the government is rather intentional, if there is electricity, that means that the oil barons and business heavyweights under the name “friends of Goodluck Jonathan” won’t make much profit anymore. Goodluck Jonathan’s campaign teams are out of ideas, a trait characteristic of Goodluck Jonathan himself, copying Rev. Chris Okotie’s ‘I am Chris Okotie’ jingle and Muhammadu Buhari’s slogan ‘Sai Buhari’, now you hear bootlickers chanting ‘Sai Goodluck’. What a team!
Goodluck Jonathan’s nine months in office has been crisis-ridden, he has wrecked the nation, one would know if a government would perform right from its first days in office, ACN’s Babatunde Fashola has achieved more in Lagos State in less than four years than the PDP has achieved in 12 years. Twelve years is no small time, a child that was born 12 years ago would be in JSS 2 by now. Traditionally, when a person is in authority and things go wrong always, it means that he is not meant to be there. Buhari’s regime never witnessed any religious crisis. Goodluck Jonathan is just counting days, enjoying himself while it lasts, he plans to extend the tenure of the president to a single term of 6 years, why is it when he is in office, why can’t he suggest it begins with whoever he hands over to?, if not for greed. Goodluck would have earned the respect of the whole world if he wasn’t running; he would have left a legacy of a free and fair election and become a global example. The likes of Nelson Mandela, Abdulsalami Abubakar and Muhammadu Buhari have a good reputation because they left a legacy within the short time they had the opportunity to serve the people. On my trip to Ethiopia sometime ago, I had the honour of meeting Abdulsalami Abubakar, he is indeed a global figure, he is really enjoying his life travelling round the globe settling disputes, which is what elders do. If Jonathan was indeed sober and truly loyal to his late boss, he would have just helped his boss complete his tenure and then “leave with him”, I’m quite sure that the late Yar’Adua won’t be happy at how his trusted servant betrayed him. Goodluck Jonathan is a mere opportunist. He had a fair chance to put his footprints on the sand of time but he’s just too greedy. Since he chose not to leave honourably, we will push him out with our votes like they did to Gbagbo and the rest. In April, vote for a candidate with integrity and save Nigeria from impending political massacre.
