There appears to have been a spike in violence following the victory of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Presidential Candidate, Muhammadu Buhari, at the February 23 polls.
Buhari was announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, as the winner of that election. He has since been given his certificate of return.
Initially, there appears to be deafening silence after the elections, such that in the social media, there were worries that the celebrations were either low keyed on nonexistent. But that soon changed.
In Abuja, as soon as Buhari received his certificate of returns, supporters took to the streets in celebrations. Reports reaching the Magazine indicated that those living around Lugbe area, along Airport road were thrown into panic when supporters of the president trooped into the roads, blocking vehicles and harassing residents. Armed with sticks and brooms, they were said to have made vehicular movements difficult. Parents were rushing to bring back their children from school for fear of total breakdown of law and order. They were forcing people to do the “four +four” sign, and to shout “Sai Baba” before people can pass, after setting up a burn fire on the road.
In Lagos, the celebrations went awry when violence broke out as miscreants went on rampage in Okokomaiko area of Lagos. A policeman and two other people are feared dead in the ensuing crisis. In Alaba Rago, another Policeman was attacked when the same hoodlums took over the roads. An eye witness account, who said he was on his way to Agbara, said that the injured policeman has been rushed to the hospital. According to him, many people sustained varying degrees of injury.
According to him, trouble started when another group opposing their actions confronted them and fights ensued.
As a result of these attacks, which spread to Lagos Island, many Igbo traders were forced to close shops and go home. This has been going on for some time now.
In Ibadan, reports indicate that some Area boys were going around houses and shops belonging to Igbos and making them to swear to vote for APC in the forthcoming governorship elections. This has not been independently confirmed.
The Lagos state commissioner for information has sued for calm, saying that adequate measures has been put in place to protect non indigens. This was as residents of Ago Palace Way complained of the security situation in the town, saying that people could be forced not to come out and vote on election day.
Beside election issues, attacks seem to have increased in volatile areas of the north. Herdsmen attacks have ben renewed in Kaduna state and Zamfara state with heavy casualties being reported.
There’s no end to the misfortunes of Senate President, Bukola Saraki’s in his home state, Kwara. Barely one week after he lost his senatorial seat to the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC has backed out of the March 9 governorship election in the Harmony state.
The APC won in all the 16 local governments in the state.
In a swift reaction to the electoral defeat suffered by the PDP, the former governor has instructed his supporters not to participate in the coming election in two weeks.
His candidate for election and Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Rasak Atunwa has said he will not participate in the election.
According to a statement, the PDP governorship candidate said it was no longer necessary to participate in the election in view of what happened during the presidential and national assembly election on February 23.
The statement signed by the Kwara PDP Campaign Directorate said “the withdrawal is in regards to the wishes of Kwarans as widely expressed last Saturday.”
The PDP said the people of Kwara, by that decision, decided to usher in a new era into the state’s politics and so” after extensive consultations with leaders and members of our party, we have concluded that it is no longer necessary to participate in the ongoing transitional process.
The outcome of the last Saturday’s exercise had clearly indicated the choice of Kwarans.
As a people and a party that had benefitted from this choice in the past. It is our unanimous desire to respect the people’s choice,” the party said.
The PDP however urged the people of the state to participate in the election.
“As a result of this, we urge Kwarans to go out enmass to vote for candidates of their choices and wish the incoming government well,” the statement also said.
Meanwhile, the magazine learned that the decision to back out of the election may not be unconnected with rumor that supporters of the two major political parties are prepared for a bloody clash during the election.
it was learned that Saraki and PDP have got wind of plan by the ruling APC to intimidate their supporters, using the state’s security apparatus like the police and army ” in view of this, we decided that there was no need to shed the blood of our people needlessly” a PDP stalwart told the magazine in Ilorin, following the announcement.
For two days, I battled, with myself, whether to write on the unbelievable routing of Senate President, Bukola Saraki, in the February 23 Presidential/ National Assembly Elections or not. It was the same way I battled before my write-up on the uncommon fall of Godswill Akpabio, former Akwa Ibom state governor, former PDP Senate Minority Leader and, soon to be former Senator in the same election. The difference: While Saraki’s took me the whole of 48 hours to decide, Akpabio’s was less than 20 minutes. Even the choice of the title above was not easy too.
The caption I first fancied was: “The Humbling of Bukola Saraki.” But I sighed, and perished the thought.
Here is why.
I find myself, always, taking sides with the persecuted. And, sincerely, I believe that Saraki has been a victim of unnecessary political persecution from the minute he emerged as the Senate President. Still, the urge to write on his defeat was irresistible.
You know, I had caught myself asking nobody in particular: Of all the big names who failed in their bid to go to the Senate, and they are many (Governors Abiola Ajimobi, lbrahim Dankwambo – Oyo & Gombe – former Governors George Akume & Emmanuel Uduaghan – Benue & Delta – Senators Andy Uba & Shehu Sani), why the fascination with Saraki and Akpabio? Why pick on them? Here is the answer:
It’s not that those others don’t matter. Ah, big boys, they matter. I mean, look at Akume for example – a two-time governor, Benue’s political godfather whose ambition was, allegedly, the office of the Senate President, since 2015, the man who installed both Governors Gabriel Suswan and Samuel Ortom, and the man who, in the past one year, has fought Ortom every inch of the way and declared him a one-term governor. Big guy. But it’s just that Akpabio and Saraki are special in a couple of ways. So, their failure, even if temporary, is a big deal.
Akpabio is one of the most boastful men on mother- earth. And Saraki? Well, to him and his many followers, he is God’s gift to Kwara state!
But life, who would ever have thought that Saraki could be politically defeated in Kwara?
Saraki’s enormous political powers and influence go beyond him. A medical doctor, like his father, the late former Senate leader(PDP) and Kwara strong man, Dr. Olusola Saraki, power and influence were Bukola’s inheritance from his father. The senior Saraki, while alive, was a tin god in the state. Most Kwarans, both the rich and the poor, groveled before him. He made and unmade people. He installed and uninstalled governors and other political office holders at will. As soon as he got tired of them he dumped them. When he, one after the other, lost faith in the successive governors he installed, he remembered the saying: “charity begins at home.”
Dr. Bukola Saraki
So, he dragged out his son, Bukola, from their family bank, the now defunct Societe Generale, into politics, and installed him governor. In same breath, he installed his daughter, Bukola’s younger sister, Gbemi, a Senator. Eight years in office, and, perhaps, unknown to his father, Saraki junior built his own political structure. He also, acquired power and influence, and was the Chair of the powerful Nigeria’s Governors Forum. Meanwhile, his father had gotten used to being called Papa Governor, Papa Senator, and wanted no end to it. What to do? Simple. An exchange in offices between his two beloved children. Gbemi, as governor and, Bukola as Senator. The old man didn’t reckon with the new Bukola who had grown wings. He disagreed with his father, something that was near unheard of in Kwara. Those who dared failed woefully. But not Bukola.
He backed another person, Abdulfatah Ahmed, the now out-going governor, against his sister and, their father. The old man was forced to quit the PDP, and founded another party from where Gbemi contested. She lost woefully.
That marked the beginning of a crack in the Saraki political dynasty. Bukola and Gbemi have since then, remained political enemies. They smile at each other’s political misfortune. But, it never subtracted anything from the Saraki political dynasty in Kwara. Saraki overtook his father, protocol-wise. The senior Saraki stopped at being the Senate Leader. But the junior became Nigeria’s number three man – Senate President. Anywhere Bukola went, Kwara followed.
He defected from the PDP to the APC, and Kwara, including the governor, followed. That marked the first death of the PDP in Kwara. When he, again, defected from APC to the PDP, the party resurrected in Kwara. But, unlike before, he had acquired dangerous political enemies. They decided to give him the fight of his life. They decided to demystify him; to cut him down to size.
It began with his objection to Asiwaju Bola Tinubu’s ambition to be President Buhari’s running mate in 2015. A Muslim-Muslim ticket, he, and a few others, argued, is a no-no. A patriotic stand, given the sensitivity of Religion in Nigeria, but hurt, Tinubu never forgave Saraki. He withdrew his promise to support him to be the Senate President. A question of “do me I do you, God no go vex.” But, Saraki out-smarter Tinubu, and became the Senate President, beating Senator Ahmed Lawan, who Tinubu convinced the APC leadership to back. Since then, nothing has been the same for Saraki.
He goes down in history as Nigeria’s most humiliated Senate President. He was dragged and docked before the powerful Code of Conduct Tribunal. After months of that humiliation, he survived it. The worst came when the police asked him to appear before its investigation panel to answer to charges of, beat this, armed robbery and murder. And, the Police, as if in celebration, inexplicably made a sing-song of those allegations. He survived that. A number of times, he managed to thwart impeachment plots against him.
But the real first sign that that he is gradually being demystified was a couple of months ago when his candidate lost the bye-election for the House of Representatives, in Kwara. The APC in the state, led by the Minister for Information, Lai Mohammed, celebrated no end. Don’t blame them, it had never happened before.
Now this. Saraki, has not only lost Kwara state, woefully, to the APC in the Presidential / NASS elections, he also lost his own bid to return to the Senate. Something, hitherto, unheard of.
And not a few people are celebrating and laughing. Lai Mohammed compared Saraki’s defeat to the fall of the Berlin Wall. Another said “it is the end of an era, the emancipation of the people. Somebody even suggested that February 23, of every year, be declared a public holiday in Kwara to mark the defeat of Saraki’s political empire.
How did Saraki lose the magic wand? Whatever happened?
Some people insist it is the law of Karma. He demystified his father, they say. In Nigeria, nobody, no matter how old, dies naturally. So they allege that his demystification of his father, contributed, largely, to the old man’s death. Others say it is a fitting pay back to his betrayal of President Goodluck Jonathan and the PDP in 2015.
Whatever, they finally got Saraki. What the CCT and the Police and Tinubu couldn’t do, Kwarans have done in a manner akin to a tsunami. Saraki says he was rigged out. Perhaps. But who will listen to him? In this election, he faced the FG and its might, not his opponent. And, a more serious loss than the NASS could follow.
If his candidate does not win the Governorship election on March 9, then, a final nail would have been driven into his political coffin.
Will he recover one day if that happens? Not soon. At least, not in the next four years, especially, as his party has, not a few people say, unbelievably lost the presidential seat. That’s where Akpabio is a luckier guy than him. Inspite of Akpabio’s senatorial loss, he has hope. His target of becoming the Senate President has been dashed, but he may be given a Ministerial position or the Chairmanship of a money-spinning Board or Commission.
Finally, Saraki is a medical doctor. So, while in the Secondary school, he may not have read James Hardly Chase’s “The Way The Cooky Crumbles.” I still have a copy of it in my book shelf. And I read it now and then when things don’t add up for me. I, hereby, recommend it to Dr Saraki.
For more than three years Ibrahim Magu was blocked from becoming the substantive chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC by the Nigerian Senate.
This will likely change now that President Muhammadu Buhari has been returned for another four years in office by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
The case of the EFCC boss is one of the factors that will determine Buhari’s second term presidency, close watchers of the nation’s politics say.
Nigeria Stocks Exchange Suffered A Hit
Just few hours before Buhari was declared winner of the election the Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE suffered a hit, indicating what to expect in the next four years, financial analyst said.
A member of the US Congress, Chris Smith said there clear are evidence that the election was rigged by the ruling party.
“I am very concerned by credible reports that the vote is being tampered with. To avoid any manipulation of the tally, it is critical that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) announce without delay actual results — which are certified by party agents and observers — at each polling unit as the vote is tabulated,” Smith said
This suggestion seems to suggest the anxiety that now pervades the nation since Buhari was announced winner, particularly after his opponent, Atiku Abubakar rejected the results announced by INEC.
For instance, stocks at the Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE fell by N85b in response to the declaration.
Reno Omokiri, a popular critic and aide to former President Goodluck Jonathan has warned that the nation’s economy will face hiccup with Buhari as president for another four years.
Just today alone, the Nigerian Stock Exchange lost ₦85 billion ‘celebrating’ your #NextLevel. Wait until tomorrow, those who were ‘sleeping’ will celebrate by taking their investment elsewhere. You seem not to understand the true state of Nigeria right now!” Omokiri said in a tweet.
President Buhari has promised to intensify war against graft even as his government has recently put the Chief Justice of the Federation, CJN Walter Onnoghen on trial for failure to fully declare his assets to the Code of Code Bureau.
Magu will be very instrumental to President Buhari war on corruption, critics say.
Announcing the results few hours ago, Professor Mahmoud Yakubu, chairman of INEC said President Buhari scored over 15,191, 847 votes while his closest rival in the election Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples’ Democratic Party, PDP scored over 11,255, 978 votes.
“That Muhammadu Buhari having satisfied the requirement of the law and scored the highest votes is hereby declared the winner,” Yakubu said
The president and his vice, Yemi Osinbajo received the certificate of return from the INEC chairman few minutes ago.
Magu Will Be Confirmed EFCC Chairman
With Buhari second term in office, critics say the coast has now cleared for the EFCC boss, particularly now that APC has majority senators in the Upper legislative chamber.
The President has vowed to intensify the anti-corruption war in his new term.
He also promised to send more people to jail on corruption charges.
Justice Onnoghen May Be Jailed
One of the likely casualties is Justice Onnoghen who has been put on trial by the CCT.
Justice Onnoghen was removed from office after he was accused of acquiring shell of offshore properties which he failed to declare as required by law.
It’s widely believed that the administration will try to use Justice Onnoghen case as an example to prove that it’s serious about its anti-graft battle.
He may not have much problem achieving these goals considering that he’s likely to work with a friendly National Assembly dominated by lawmakers from his party.
Ahmed Lawan To Emerge Senate President
The magazine learned that the current Senate Leader, Ahmed Lawal will likely emerge Senate President to replace Bukola Saraki who lost the election to return to the senate.
Ibrahim Oloriegbe of the APC will replace Saraki as Senator representing Kwara Central having won the senatorial election last Saturday.
Dogara Will Lose Speakership
The same is likely to happen in the House of Representatives where Yakubu Dogara is not expected to be re-elected Speaker, though he won the election to return to the lower chamber.
Both Saraki and Dogara have been accused of working against the party’s interest after they were elected in 2015 to lead the two chambers.
Saraki Will Be Punished
Apart from losing his position as the number three in the nation’s political hierarchy, the Kwara strongman should expect worst, critics say.
The ruling party will punish Saraki for his “treachery” against the party, an APC stalwart in Lagos told the magazine in the aftermath of the election.
According to him, Saraki will be stripped of immunity as Senate President by the time Buhari is sworn in for second term.
“That will open up more legal battle against crimes he allegedly committed,” the politician said.
One of such cases is his alleged involvement in a robbery operation in Offa, Kwara state last year.
Police have arrested some suspect who allegedly indicted the senate president.
Even though the Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami has written to the police on the issue exonerating Saraki, the belief is that the case may be brought back as punishment for his rebellion against the party.
Melaye Too
His protégé, Senator Dino Melaye may also suffer same fate, sources in APC told the magazine.
Melaye has won election returning him Senator representing Kogi West, having defeated the candidate of ruling APC, Smart Adeyemi.
But that will not be enough to save him because he has been penciled down for punishment, sources also told the magazine.
Melaye is facing two counts bordering on giving false information to the Police in 2017.
Why has the announcement of President Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as winner of the February 23, 2019 presidential election by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) brought about a situation that can best be described as graveyard silence instead of the loud rejoicing that accompanies such announcement? Why are many Nigerians rather wearing long and gloomy faces?
Lamenting to the Magazine, Peter Oladipo, an unemployed father of three said his current ordeal began with the announcement of President Buhari as winner of the presidential polls. “ Following the announcement, my wife went haywire. Her behaviour is near madness.
“ She first began by weeping, before she started asking me of the next move because I lost my job about two years into this administration. Since then, I have not been able to secure another, and my hussles have not been able to improve things at home. She even threatened to take the children to her people.”
For Chinedu Okonkwo, a businessman, “what can someone who re-elected himself by intimidation and the butt of the gun offer Nigerians which he was unable to do in first last four years? He is administration and those he worked with have been questionable and full of controversies, translating in pathetic economic conditions. Only God can help us,” he said.
In his reaction to the Buhari victory, James Victor, a student, congratulated President Buhari not because he won the 2019 presidential election as the people’s choice, but “for rigging yourself into a 2nd term after benefitting from Democracy in 2015. Your first tenure took us back to your military regime. Since you are a professional in backwardness, Please do take us back to 1914, so we can destroy this amalgamation called Nigeria,” he said.
But, the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has congratulated President Muhammadu Buhari, on his ‘well-deserved’ victory, following his declaration as winner of the 2019 Presidential Election by INEC.
The Public Relations Officer of the students’ body, Bestman Okereafor, gave the congratulatory message in a statement in Enugu.
“The leadership of the apex students governing body, NANS, heartily congratulates President Buhari over his well-deserved victory following his declaration as winner of the 2019 Presidential Election by the INEC Chairman Prof. Mahmood Yakubu.
“This movement to victory had been made possible through the large turnout of Nigerian students and youths who are obviously the major determinants of the 2019 Election,’’ Okereafor said.
He, however, said that NANS was calling on other contestants and political parties, especially the candidate of the major opposition party the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, to be honourable and concede defeat.
“Atiku and other contestants should congratulate the President-elect in the spirit of true sportsmanship and in the best interest of our democracy,’’ he noted.
Further, he said NANS was not unaware of some few hitches in some parts of the country before, during and after the elections ranging from violence, killing of ad-hoc staff, burning of INEC offices, malfunctioning card reader among others.
“We believe all these will be addressed in subsequent elections, Even as we pray to God to grant the families and loved ones all those who sacrificed their life’s during the cause of the election, you will forever be remembered as heroes and heroines of our democracy, he added.
Meanwhile, the PDP had from the beginning contested verified results being announced by INEC, in Abuja, two days after the vote to the final result which said Buhari polled 15,191,847 votes to defeat his main rival Atiku Abubakar who scored 11,262,978 votes. That is a difference of 3.9 million votes.
At a press conference in Abuja on Monday, February 25, 2019, PDP Chairman, Uche Secondus said: “All results currently been announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, is incorrect, this is unacceptable to our party and the people.
“Secondly, officials of both President Buhari’s government and All Progressive Congress, APC, working with INEC officers, have tried to alter the course of history and disenfranchise our people through the cancellation and manipulation of figures for results already announced at polling units.”
Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), former vice President Atiku Abubakar has rejected the result of the February 23, 2019 election, declaring that he will challenge it in court. The former vice president who described the election as a sham, said he has never seen the country’s democracy so debased in the over 30 years of his sojourn in politics.
In a statement he personally signed yesterday morning, Atiku vowed to resist the emasculation of democracy in the country. However, while defending his decision to reject the outcome of the election the PDP candidate said it was statistically impossible for states ravaged by the war on terror to generate much higher voter turnouts than peaceful states. He also pointed out the suppression of votes in areas of his stronghold, stressing that he is ashamed as a Nigerian that such could be allowed to happen. Atiku however noted that if he had lost in a free and fair election, he would have called the victor within seconds of being aware of his victory.
“I thank the Nigerian people who trooped out in their millions to perform their civic duty this past Saturday. The patriotism of Nigerians is heartwarming and affirms my oft-repeated statement that we are brothers and sisters born from the womb of one mother Nigeria. With regards to the Presidential elections that took place on February 23, 2019, it is clear that there were manifest and premeditated malpractices in many states which negate the results announced.
“One obvious red flag is the statistical impossibility of states ravaged by the war on terror generating much higher voter turnouts than peaceful states. The suppressed votes in my strongholds are so apparent and amateurish, that I am ashamed as a Nigerian that such could be allowed to happen. How can total votes in Akwa-Ibom, for instance, be 50% less than what they were in 2015? Another glaring anomaly is the disruption of voting in strongholds of the Peoples Democratic Party in Lagos, Akwa-Ibom, Rivers and diverse other states, with the authorities doing little or nothing and in some cases facilitating these unfortunate situations.
“The militarization of the electoral process is a disservice to our democracy and a throwback to the jackboot era of military dictatorship. In some areas of the country, such as, Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Imo states, troops deployed for the elections turned their guns on the very citizens they were meant to protect. This is condemnable and should not be associated with our electoral process in the future.
“I am a democrat and there are democratic avenues available to present the truth to the nation and the watching world. Already, many international observers have given their verdicts, which corroborate our observations. I am sure more will come in the coming hours and days.
“If I had lost in a free and fair election, I would have called the victor within seconds of my being aware of his victory to offer not just my congratulations, but my services to help unite Nigeria by being a bridge between the North and the South. “However, in my democratic struggles for the past three decades, I have never seen our democracy so debased as it was on Saturday, February 23, 2019. 2007 was a challenge, but President Yar’Adua was remorseful. In 2019, it is sad to see those who trampled on democracy thumping their noses down on the Nigerian people.
“Consequently, I hereby reject the result of the February 23, 2019 sham election and will be challenging it in court. I want to assure my supporters and the entire Nigerian people that together, we will not allow democracy to be emasculated. I hope and pray Nigerians will someday summon the courage to defend democracy. That is the only way we can move away from being the world headquarters for extreme poverty,” he said.
This is another test of Nigeria’s judiciary which will determine whether Nigeria is truly a democracy.
In Calabar, the capital of Cross River state, gloom reigns. Depression and helpless are the order of the day. These started 24 hours before the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, declared President Muhammadu Buhari, the winner of the very hotly contested February 23 Presidential election. Buhari had scored over 15 million votes to defeat Atiku Abubarkar of the PDP, who scored over 11million votes. Buhari won in 19 states, while Atiku won in 17 states and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
Before the piecemeal announcement of the results started, Calabar residents were upbeat about PDP’s Atiku Abubakar. They insisted that the entire country, in their words, “has been Atikulated” and, therefore, the candidate’s victory in the polls was a fait accompli.
However, as results of the election trickled in and President Muhammadu Buhari shot into lead, an uneasy calm pervaded the city, with many wearing gloomy face. At a variety store in the Parliamentary Extension area of the Cross River state capital, two young women, supporting their chins with their palms spoke in hushed tones as they bemoaned what they described as “another four traumatic years under Buhari”.
When reminded that nobody has been declared winner of the presidential election yet, one of the women dismissed the suggestion with a wave of the hand, asking rhetorically, “Oga, can’t you see it yourself? Are you not seeing the rigging going on ?
A male shop owner at MCC Road who said he hails from Akwa Ibom state didn’t bother to hide his anger over the unfolding presidential results. In one breathe he claimed his preferred candidate (Atiku) would be president “whether the cabal likes it or not” and expressed his readiness to fight to restore Atiku’s stolen “mandate”. The shop owner was quick to add that he was happy with the result of the presidential and National Assembly election in his home state, especially the ouster from the Senate of Godswill Akpabio.” That man(Akpabio) think say him be God. Thank God dem don show am pepper for Akwa Ibom”, he said in a thick Efik tone.
A young female fruits seller who claimed she is an ardent Atiku supporter and had voted for him in the election rained curses on those she said rigged the PDP candidate out.
Akpan, a cab driver plying between MCC Road and Etta Agbor, waxed philosophical saying: “ Stolen good is stolen good.No matter how you admire it, your conscience will continue to flog you because it is not your own and you will live with a burden in your heart all your life. Victory and defeat do not bring an end to life”.
Meanwhile, the PDP cleared virtually all the National Assembly seats in the state with former Senate Leader, Ndoma Egba who flew APC’s flag for Cross River Central as one of the biggest casualties.
Feelers from those close to former Vice President and Waziri of Adamawa, Atiku Abubakar, are that he has been under pressure to congratulate President Muhammadu Buhari after the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, announced Buhari winner of the 2019 presidential elections.
Recall that INEC had, after three days of vote collation and announcement, certified Buhari as duly elected President of Nigeria amid controversial circumstances.
But Atiku, who has been mute since the collation of the results started, has rejected the elections saying that Democracy will not be emasculated in Nigeria.
Following is the full text of the statement lpersonlay signed by Abubakar and entitled Democracy Will Not Be Emasculated in Nigeria
“I thank the Nigerian people who trooped out in their millions to perform their civic duty this past Saturday. The patriotism of Nigerians is heartwarming and affirms my oft-repeated statement that we are brothers and sisters born from the womb of one mother Nigeria.
“With regards to the Presidential elections that took place on February 23, 2019, it is clear that there were manifest and premeditated malpractices in many states which negate the results announced.
“One obvious red flag is the statistical impossibility of states ravaged by the war on terror generating much higher voter turnouts than peaceful states. The suppressed votes in my strongholds are so apparent and amateurish, that I am ashamed as a Nigerian that such could be allowed to happen. How can total votes in Akwa-Ibom, for instance, be 50% less than what they were in 2015?
“Another glaring anomaly is the disruption of voting in strongholds of the Peoples Democratic Party in Lagos, Akwa-Ibom, Rivers and diverse other states, with the authorities doing little or nothing and in some cases facilitating these unfortunate situations.
“The militarization of the electoral process is a disservice to our democracy and a throwback to the jackboot era of military dictatorship. In some areas of the country, such as, Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Imo states, troops deployed for the elections turned their guns on the very citizens they were meant to protect. This is condemnable and should not be associated with our electoral process in the future.
“I am a democrat and there are democratic avenues available to present the truth to the nation and the watching world. Already, many international observers have given their verdicts, which corroborate our observations. I am sure more will come in the coming hours and days.
“If I had lost in a free and fair election, I would have called the victor within seconds of my being aware of his victory to offer not just my congratulations, but my services to help unite Nigeria by being a bridge between the North and the South.
“However, in my democratic struggles for the past three decades, I have never seen our democracy so debased as it was on Saturday, February 23, 2019. 2007 was a challenge, but President Yar’Adua was remorseful. In 2019, it is sad to see those who trampled on democracy thumping their noses down on the Nigerian people.
“Consequently, I hereby reject the result of the February 23, 2019 sham election and will be challenging it in court.
“I want to assure my supporters and the entire Nigerian people that together, we will not allow democracy to be emasculated.
“I hope and pray Nigerians will someday summon the courage to defend democracy. That is the only way we can move away from being the world headquarters for extreme poverty.
Everything about Godswill Akpabio, former PDP two-term governor of Akwa Ibom state is uncommon – or so he says.
As a governor, he gave himself that name. An uncommon governor. A man of uncommon touch. An uncommon performer. An uncommon organiser. Indeed, he is also an uncommon husband.
Married to a beautiful Igbo girl, Unoma, both are a spectacle to behold in public. As a governor, each time Akpabio was giving a speech in public and, Unoma was present, she would, like a police orderly, stand behind her husband. The difference: A police orderly stands to protect his principal. Unoma stands to fan her husband, as if, and, I don’t blame her, ward off any intruder. And the feeling is mutual. When she spoke, as a First Lady, her husband usually stood behind her, a white handkerchief in hand, wiping any sweat that dared spring up away.
As a governor, Akpabio bestrode Akwa Ibom like a colossus. His word was law. You know, dictatorial, almost. And he brooked no questions, or contrary views. I can’t confirm these, but, I can confirm that he was not very tolerant of a couple of his subordinates, even though quite a number of them were, still are, fiercely loyal to him. He dropped his first Deputy, Engineer Patrick Ekpeuto, his loyalty notwithstanding, after the first tenure. But, it is hard to forget the manner in which he sacked Ekpeuto’s successor, Nkere Nsima. He, it was, who pushed Nsima out of the PDP, to the APC. Lucky guy, Nsima was to be rewarded with a plum job by the APC-led FG as the Managing Director of the money-spinning Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC.
Godswill Akpabio
Then, there was an Umana, Akpabio’s very powerful SSG. The story was that Akpabio had penciled him down as his successor. Umana was already carrying on as a would-be governor. He displayed a combination of power and swagger. Too soon.
For, one day, everything came crashing down like a badly packed cards. Akpabio sacked Umana in a very humiliating manner. In his place, Akpabio brought in Udom Emmanuel, a Zenith bank Executive Director. An uncommon imposer, uncommon poser, and uncommon loud mouth, with an uncommon sweet tongue, Akpabio quickly rail-roaded Emmanuel as his successor. And campaigned no end for him to become the governor. He won. There is no point repeating his praises for Emmanuel then. Emmanuel’s Campaign Organisation is putting those into good use.
When rumours were rife that Akpabio and Emmanuel were gradually falling apart, not a few people found it unbelievable. I cannot confirm the many stories behind it but, Akpabio, it was said, was breathing down Emmanuel’s neck. No breathing space was given to him. Most political godfathers fall out with their political sons.
So, finally, both men not only fell apart, they fell into the gutter, fighting. The godfather swore to unseat the godson in 2019. Seeing that he couldn’t do it in the PDP, he jumped into the APC in a most inelegant manner.
Here is a man who was PDP’s two time governor; he was also the party’s first Senate Minority Leader, a position that was given to him above his PDP colleagues, he, being a first term Senator.
But he was still not satisfied. He stabbed the PDP at the back. When Senate President Bukola Saraki, who like the Biblical prodigal son, returned to the PDP from the APC, was warmly welcomed, and quickly anointed the PDP leader, Akpabio took offence.
Preparatory to his defection to the APC, he travelled to London, where President Muhammadu Buhari was at the time, and in a photograph that went viral was, almost, on his knees, head bent, as he shook Mr President with both hands. Back home, he visited Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, and took a photograph with him. In that photograph, Akpabio was grinning excitedly like a baby who has just found his lost candy. Shortly after, he joined the APC, a party he had pettily chased both Umana and Nsime to. One of the reasons he cited for defecting, without mentioning Saraki’s name, was the excited welcome accorded Saraki. He said the PDP does not reward loyalty.
Now, this accusation, coming from a man who, on PDP’s flag, was a two-time governor, and, was made the party’s Minority Leader above his seniors, was most uncharitable.
But Akpabio was just unfolding. He faced PDP head-long. He criticized the party no end. He called it useless. And, dismissed its 16-year leadership as a waste. He, like a few others, clean forgot, that he was in one leadership position, or the other, for those 16 years – State Commissioner, Governor, Senator/Senate Minority Leader. Meaning: he himself achieved nothing and, only wasted Akwa Ibom’s money. He said that in 2015, even though he was in the PDP, his heart was with Buhari. No jokes.
He swore PDP would fail in Akwa Ibom . He swore Emmanuel was as good as gone. He went back to Nkere, his vomit, and became his chief campaigner. He declared him the next governor of Akwa Ibom, and literarily declared a war in the state. He immediately became the Senatorial candidate of the APC. He took his victory for granted. And was already, allegedly, positioning himself as Saraki’s successor. Well, good for him.
But politics is weird. Two plus two is not always four. Akpabio’s balloon is punctured. The PDP has shot him down. He has lost his Senatorial bid. The sweet part: Akpabio was defeated by a former Deputy Governor under Governor Victor Attah, Chris Ekpenyong. At the time, Akpabio was one of Attah’s Commissioners. The story is that Akpabio allegedly treats both his former principals with indifference. Now Ekpenyong’s victory couldn’t be sweeter than it is now.
The day Akpabio was received into the APC by its leadership, Chairman Adams Oshiomhole described it as an uncommon defection.
Dear readers, I submit that Akpabio’s defeat in his Senatorial bid is an uncommon defeat. It is an uncommon fall. And not a few people are laughing at this uncommon situation.
Prior to Saturday February 23rd, 2019 polls, Governor of Oyo State, Senator Abiola Ajimobi was optimistic and confident that he will return to the Senate after finishing his tenure as the governor on 29th May, 2019.
Unfortunately, he was living on the crest of illusion and fantasy, as the electorates had another mission and intention in stock for him. Which is simply denying him their votes at the poll.
Ajimobi had been a senator, representing Oyo South Senatorial District before contesting for the gubernatorial seat and winning in 2011. He was however re-elected for second term as governor to complete his eight years. He felt returning to the Senate would make him still relevant politically.
Sadly, he has lost his popularity in the state.
When the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, tsunami struck, it consumed the aspiration of other parties’ candidates, including Governor Ajimobi, seeking senatorial bid in Oyo south, with PDP’s Kola Balogun defeating him
Ajimobi has been at loggerheads with top APC chieftain in the state.
Former Minister of Communications, Adebayo Shittu, blasted Ajimobi when he (Shittu) declared his intention to run for the governorship of the state in the 2019 poll, Ajimobi made sure that Shittu was not given the ticket.
Ajimobi was said not to be accommodating and using the party as a structure to demystify some members who are not in tandem with his policies.
Reacting to this then ,Ajimobi said: “Those of them saying Ajimobi is not accommodating, which of them can say God did not use me to elevate them? Some of them are angry because they wanted a second term, but I felt I should give opportunities to others, some are annoyed because they are regular fighters.”
Apparently referring to Shittu, he said: “As for the one, who is a regular fighter, he always fights those who help him. That was how he fought with our past leaders like late Chief Bola Ige. Even if he becomes the governor, as he desperately wants to, he would carry placards against himself forgetting that he is the governor. He wants to become governor of Oyo State”.
Ajimobi had many wars he was fighting with different groups and people in the state, with some boldly saying they regretted voting for him in 2015.
Days before the election after its postponement, hundreds of traders, artisans and professional bodies from the 33 local government areas in Oyo state on Wednesday 20th February 2019, declared that they are now regretting their support for the second term aspiration of Governor Abiola Ajimobi of the state in 2015, and they will make sure he loses his bid to become senator.
The angry men and women said that they regret the use and dump syndrome infected with the myriad of unfulfilled promises and marginalization of its members by the Abiola Ajimobi-led administration.
They expressed their displeasure during the swearing ceremony of the state executive officers of Itesiwaju-Oyo Coalition Movement which was held in Ibadan, the state capital.
The artisan however went ahead with their threat to deny him the senatorial seat he yawns for.
Adeolu Akande, a Political Science lecturer at Igbinedion University, Okada, Edo, was Chief of Staff to Ajimobi during his first term in office.
Akande said recent actions of the government suggest that some elements in the Ajimobi-led administration had forgotten that the administration emerged in 2011 with a promise to protect the welfare of the people.
“Many recent actions of the government are at variance with its disposition at inception in 2011.
“This suggests that some forces who are not privy to the pledge of Ajimobi to the people have made ascendancy in the government to the detriment of what the government stood for at inception,” he said
He said no administration without the element of compassion would go down in history as successful.
Akande said that the primary responsibility of any government was to protect lives and property, adding that the sacredness of private property comes after preservation of life in terms of importance.
“A government has a duty to make all necessary measures to protect the property of private citizens just as it has a duty to protect their lives,” he stated.
He said that the furore generated by the demolition of the property of Yinka Ayefele, a popular musician, must have demonstrated to the government by now that it was an unpopular decision.
“Government is about the people and not the anger and emotions of the people in government.
“ The Yoruba captures this truism when they say a ruler rules with wisdom and not with stubbornness.
“The Ayefele saga has once again brought to the fore the need for the governor to rethink his government and review its personnel and focus as he embarks on his homestretch so that history can be kind to him,’’ he said.
Akande said he was pained that the lofty ideals that endeared the governor to the people in the early years had been abandoned and replaced with practices that could wipe out such achievements.
“It is more painful that many of the personnel who encourage controversial government decisions and actions claim innocence in private conversations and never identified themselves with those decisions, even in public,” he said.
He recalled how the governor directed all government agencies to protect Ayefele’s building from demolition in 2012 during the dualisation of the Challenge-Toll Gate road in spite of persuasion from some forces to demolish it.
He advised Ajimobi to extend the same sense of compassion to the handling of the subsisting issues at LAUTECH and the closure of tertiary institutions occasioned by the reduction in subvention to the institutions.
“I make this appeal because the governor is on the homestretch of his administration and there will not be such auspicious opportunity for him to etch his name on the positive side of history.
“Those who encourage the governor to embrace hard-line positions in his last months in government are not his friends and do not mean well for him and Oyo State,” Akande, a governorship aspirant, said.
Political observers are of the opinion that Ajimobi was the cause of his own political demystification, because he was fighting so many wars with his people, including students, both secondary and tertiary students with his policies that was against the populace.
Nigerians came out in their numbers on Saturday 23rd February, 2019 to cast their vote. It would be noted that the Presidential, Senatorial and House of Representatives election was scheduled for 16th February, 2019 but was postponed to 23 February, 2019. These were the sixth quadrennial election since the end of military rule in 1999. Following are some pictures captured By Uche Nwosisi
President Buhari casting his vote in DauraAtiku and wife, Titi casting their votes at Ayila north local govt area AdamawaSenator Bola Tinubu at his polling booth in Alausa IkejaSenator Oluremi Tinubu(middle) being flaked by JournalistCross-section of voters queuing for accreditation and votingPeter Obi casting his vote at AguluCross-section of police officers at workVice President, Yemi Osibajo during accreditation at his polling unit 033A voter casting his voteSome electorates waiting to defend thier votes
