There is a difference between doing 'nothing' in the South and being biased towards the North.

There have been deliberate attempts to deny Lagos state of funds, especially during OBJ's era, did the presence of Lagosians in the center prevent that from happening?

There was a clear bias of the PTF towards the North, that is why the greatest clamour against it came from the North.

^^^^^

  Read this:

[size=18pt]
Something you don't know about Buhari[/size]


Muhammed Kabir
A Rejoinder to “Buhari, Atiku, Go and Rest” written by Naiwu Osahun: a response from MK Hassan

Dear Naiwu Osahun,
I read your article with the above caption and was compelled to write a rejoinder because of the inaccuracies it conveyed. The article only succeeded in exposing your ignorance of what has been happening in Nigeria, not surprising to me because you have stayed too long in the West and have no clue or is it due to some deliberate intellectual mischief? It may be better if you start writing on Memphis Tennessee, the civil right movements and how Dr. King was assassinated in Memphis since you know that place very well to have been given the city’s key before you get enlightened on local politics back home in Nigeria and start writing. I am really disappointed with that article and other ones you have previously wrote. It is obvious that your article wanted to attack the personality of Buhari but it ended up with bunch of contradictions and lack of scholarship. I cannot defend both Atiku and Jonathan because they all have case files before EFCC. While Atiku has one with respect to PTDF, Mr. Jonathan’s wife has a case file involving 12 million dollars when he was Governor of Bayelsa and she was arrested by EFCC then. Jonathan became Vice President and now Acting President and the case has since died silently. However, on Buhari I need to put the records straight point by point, I hope my rejoinder will be given the same publicity as your initial write up.

1. [size=18pt]Mitary Training[/size]: Buhari does not fit in to the profile you wrote. In case you don't know Buhari graduated as a military officer (lieutenant) in Aldeshot UK. He went to the US National War College Carlisle in Pennsylvania from 1980 -1981. That is where the most respected officers of the US army such as Collin Powell attended to become generals. He was at the Defense College of India as well. By all military standards, his training is superb and the best any general can get in the world. Buhari was not some idle sitting General on baboon tree as you stated in your write up when he was in the army. In 1982-1983 when Chad took over our land with more than 19 villages like what the Cameroonians did with the support of France in the case of Bakassi, he then Brigadier Buhari led a successful operation as the GOC to push back Chad and reclaim our territory. If it was Buhari, there is no way as President, he will hand over Bakassi to Cameroon, that is true patriotism. I am not Buhari's relative and I have never met him in my life. But I have taken the pain to know a lot about him by reading facts because I believe among all the possible candidates vying for the Presidency now that may end up ruling Nigeria, he is the best qualified. Someone challenged me on the comments section of Sahara Reporters that I must compare General David Petreaus (The General Commanding Central Command in the Middle East of the US Forces) and Buhari; that is a tall order. They did not serve in the same army but still you have to give it to Buhari. Buhari as Lieutenant after graduating from the UK royal army fought in the Congo in 1964-65 as part of the first mission forces to stabilize the country during it first civil war and won the Congo Medal. He is comparable to Petreaus of US in terms of war command and strategy training. Petreaus Attended the US War College, Pennsylvania to become a General, Buhari went to the same college from 1980-1981 to be General even though Petreaus did, Buhari is his senior even by the US army rankings. Buhari fought a dangerous battle in Congo as a Lieutenant and won the Congo medal, Petreaus did not. Buhari fought in the Biafra civil war as a captain; Petreaus has not fought in a civil war. Buhari commanded an army division to defend his country against Chad, Petreaus commanded an army division to destroy a country Iraq. Now anyone who wants to can compare them.

2. [size=18pt]Buhari's family background[/size]: Buhari came from a poor family in Daura. He is not the typical northern prince that you may think of. He lost his father Mallam Dauda, when he was young and his uncle took care of him and sent him to school and after secondary school, he joined the army and went to train in the UK royal army. You should have found out about all that before you write your article. It is because of his kind of background and the suffering he went through that he has no sympathy for corruption and the northern traditional ruling families fear him. Quite unlike Atiku, IBB, Yar'adua, Abdussalam etc, he has no traditional title, he refused to accept one from any emir even though they want to give him one even today. The masses in the north have decided to give him one. They call him Baba Buhari Shugaban talakawan Nigeria (Meaning our father, Buhari the leader of the masses).

3. [size=18pt]Buhari, the so called Jihadist[/size]: Buhari was the first person to fight religious extremism in Nigeria. Anyone can go and find out about a group called Maitatsine in the north that took up arms in 1984 in the name of Jihad in States like Kano, Maiduguri, Bauchi and Adamawa and what he did to them. You also need to read about his refusal to allow every tom manliness and harry to become a pastor or imam in Nigeria like what is happening today. That is why we have so many religious crisis in the country because illiterates are parading themselves as Mallams and Pastors and fomenting trouble in the land. In respect of Nuhu Ribadu, Nasiru El Rufai, two of the most recent distinguished northerners anyone likes to mention, I would like to let you know that they have learnt a lot from Buhari as well. Nuhu got the opportunity to fight his first battle of corruption when he was doing his NYSC in 1984 when Buhari was investigating the 1984 thieves, Nuhu served in the Ministry of Trade where the import license scams took place and it is there, he told us on one occasion while delivering a lecture, that he got the inspiration to fight corruption and decided to join the police after his NYSC. In the case of El-Rufai, he also worked as consultant for PTF when Buhari was its chairman. Not surprising that they are hard working and distinguished. However, just before the 2003 elections, mischief makers like Atiku went to the south to misinformed people that he is a jihadist and support Sharia. If that is the case distinguished southerners both Christians and Muslims alike will not have supported him and I am talking of people like late Gani Fawehimi, who invited him to his house and raised Buhari’s hand before the media for all of us to see. People like Olu Falae, Tam David West and the like who still say a lot of good things about him and are supporting him. The truth must be told this time.

4. [size=18pt]IBB's Coup against Buhari[/size]: Buhari refused to accept IMF loans and refused to devalue the naira then and I am glad you acknowledge that in your article and because of that he had to go because the west didn't like him so they used IBB to bring SAP that scuttle our econo y and put us in 18 billion dollars debt even though we sell oil. Meanwhile, he has retired General Ali Gusau in 1984 because of disagreements regarding work and defense contracts as reported along with Babangida, the duo planned the coup and when they succeeded, Babangida recalled Ali Gusau back to the army and made him his chief of Defense Intelligence. By the way, I would like you to know that Buhari sent Gusau on training to UK and US in intelligence and security while he was head of state. He made IBB his chief of army state but IBB is nothing short of a traitor to Buhari just the same way Dimka and Bisalla were traitors to Murtala in the 1976 coup.

5. [size=18pt]Buhari planned a coup because of missing oil billions[/size]: He planned a coup against people like Umaru Dikko the then transport minister who were giving themselves import licenses for rice and skimming Nigerians and the like of Dr Tahir, the communication minister, who were importing horses and their food from Argentina. I met late Dr. Tahir who became Buhari's supporter in 2003, when I visited him in 2002 he told us that what Buhari did then was right, because they have lost their direction as a government. Dr. Tahir was a man of high intellectual capacity with a Phd in sociology from Cambridge, he spoke the truth. What Buhari did as a petroleum minister was the successful supervision and construction of three of the nation refineries, over 4000km of pipelines and 28 depots that we have failed to maintain today and so we import oil. How much has been stolen in just the turnaround maintenance of the refineries between Obasanjo and Abdussalam and still the refineries are not working? Over 4 billion dollars from 1999 to date. Infact before Obasanjo left, he auctioned one of refineries to Dangote at about 250 million dollars, something worth more than 3 billion dollars, Yar’adua reversed that sale.

6.[size=18pt]Buhari and PTF[/size]: It is obvious you have not been home for long and so you are writing on what you don't know. On PTF, Buhari rehabilitated universities in Nigeria, provided textbooks for libraries and I am a witnessed, I used them for my final year project with PTF written on them. He supplied buses to the universities that time universities have no means of transportation. He built lecture theaters that I have studied in. We were happy to drive in the PTF buses and go for excursions to Kainji and Ajaokuta. What happened in PTF was after Obj won election even before he was sworn in and seeing the PTF records, he said he is going to ban PTF because it has no constitutional backing in a democracy. Because constitutionally all revenues must go to federation account and allocated by RMFAC. So when he was sworn in, he appointed a sole administrator, Dr. Haruna Adamu to investigate PTF hoping he will find something against Buhari. But it ended with Haruna going to jail for stealing $100 million dollars and it is in the records and newspapers in case you don’t know.

7.[size=18pt]Missing PTF Money[/size]: . Let me tell you if that money you are talking about was missing in PTF, in both 2003 and 2007 elections, PDP and OBJ will have used that against Buhari just like he did to Atiku and PTDF and how he intimidated IBB on Glo by arresting his son, but OBJ cannot because he knows the man is so clean and that is who we need today in Nigeria. You can accuse Buhari for high handedness when he initially came in to power in 1983 by sending the politicians to Kiri Kiri with long life sentences but not corruption. Looking back to the 1980's , I can say Buhari was even compassionate. During that time, in Ghana and Congo and several African countries where they were coups, people like Rawlings in Ghana executed the government officials by firing squad or hanging but Buhari just jailed them. Some Nigerians are now even clamoring for a revolution or the Rawlings style.

8.[size=18pt]Buhari and Democracy[/size]: Since the time he joined partisan politics, Buhari has conducted himself in the most admirable manner to anyone who knows what African politics is. Whenever, he lost, he went to court to follow due process. He has been in court for more than 20 months in one occasion making his case. He refused to mobilize his follows to rise against the Government or become unruly. If you don’t know he has such a large following but even if you think he doesn’t look at what is happening in other African countries. Raila Odinga and Kenya, they almost went to civil war because of elections. Morgan Tseveingire and Zimbwebwe, the country is now in shambles.

9. Let me be categorically clear, I am not saying Buhari is Saint Buhari and has no faults. I have my own different opinions on him as well but given our circumstances and the practical reality we are facing the main options we have in 2011 are BUHARI, ATIKU, BABANGIDA, GOODLUCK, the rest of the candidates are not yet out and I have not seen someone with their political heavy weight, we may be left with only the option of electing Buhari if we want to move this country forward. In a real political fight, Jonathan may not survive the intrigues. I don’t have anything against him but I am waiting for him to prove himself on electricity. I am even helping him because I have given his government a plan on how to fix it in the next one year, I hope he can deliver on the electricity promise to prove to us that he can lead and solve our problems.

Finally, if you think my points are not correct or I am being dishonest, I think we have no other option than I challenge you to a debate on your write up perhaps with Sahara reporters and informed journalists and historians as panelists. You are in Tennessee, I am in Pennsylvania, so we can meet in the neutral middle state of Ohio in a city like Cincinnati for the debate. I can pay for your travel fare from Memphis if you want me to. After the debate on Buhari with facts and defending the trash you wrote, then we can put it in on Youtube and Sahara reporters that way Nigerian’s will be more enlightened. I am not intimidated by the bunch of acronyms and titles after your name. It is dangerous to be writing silly stories and misleading people, it is not helping the situation in Nigeria.

MK Hassan can be reached at mk.hassan@hotmail.com

[size=18pt]Some more Facts about Buhari:


In 1.5 years of Government he brought down inflation from 24% to 5%


He refused to pay Fraudulent debt and paid off the genuine debt.


When Buhari was overthrown my Babaginda (Obasanjo's friend and fellow thief), the Naira and Dollar were 1:1

Buhari had almost eradicated corruption and had hundreds of corrupt politicians and businessmen in kri kri on long sentences which would only be reduced on return of their loot.

When Buhari was overthrown by IBB crime levels were very low and people and property were  safe.

When Buhari was overthrown by western stooge IBB, life expectancy was higher than it is today.

Buhari's wife is a born again christian

Buhari's vision if elected is to rapidly industrialize Nigeria, starting with the power sector.

Buhari says he is humbled and in awe of our leaders of the First Republic (Awo, Zik etc) and no leaders since (including himself), have come close to their performance.[/size]

[size=24pt]Buhari-bin-Laden, is a coup plotting Jihadist who should be in jail for crimes against the state.[/size]

^^^^

Boring, say something else mr bot.

[size=18pt]Buhari has a Christian wife[/size]

GenBuhari:

[size=18pt]Buhari has a Christian wife[/size]

Its a lie. [size=21pt]Buhari's wife is a born again Muslim[/size].
The only Christian close to Buhari is his driver.
But so what if his wife is Christian or born again? Is that a leadership quality that makes him more eligible than others? What is your exact point?

[size=14pt]Fresh Air 2011!!![/size]

BB 2011
every honest Nigerian knows that

Beaf:

Its a lie. [size=21pt]Buhari's wife is a born again Muslim[/size].
The only Christian close to Buhari is his driver.
But so what if his wife is Christian or born again? Is that a leadership quality that makes him more eligible than others? What is your exact point?

[size=14pt]Fresh Air 2011!!![/size]

Are you confused? you said it was a lie that his wife is a born again Muslim and at the same time says "but so what if his wife is a born again christian"?

I hope you are not a bi-polar patient?

That his wife is a born again christian goes to show that he's more tolerant religiously than most of the so called Christians calling him a jihadist.

You being your normal self forgot that his running mate is A FULL TIME MESSENGER OF THE CHRISTIAN GOD.


So quit this your fanatic rubbish and move to more reasonable debate about what they both have to offer ok?

honeric01:

Are you confused? you said it was a lie that his wife is a born again Muslim and at the same time says "but so what if his wife is a born again christian"?

I hope you are not a bi-polar patient?

That his wife is a born again christian goes to show that he's more tolerant religiously than most of the so called Christians calling him a jihadist.

You being your normal self forgot that his running mate is A FULL TIME MESSENGER OF THE CHRISTIAN GOD.

So quit this your fanatic rubbish and move to more reasonable debate about what they both have to offer ok?

Who cares if Buhari is married to a Buddhist, native doctor or Muslim? Nobody gives a damn, Osama Bin Ladens son is one hell of a fashionable, non-Muslim dude; his niece poses semi-unclothed all over the place and his family are big business people into the high life. Has any of that stopped Osama from being the devils darling?

Una no get sense, next thing we will start hearing he is about to marry a cow, therefore he doesn't eat meat. Daft.

Beaf:

Who cares if Buhari is married to a Buddhist, native doctor or Muslim? Nobody gives a damn, Osama Bin Ladens sons is one hell of a fashionable, non-Muslim dude; his neice poses semi-unclothed all over the place and his family are big business people into the high life. Has any of that stopped Osama from being the devils darling?

Una no get sense, next thing we will start hearing he is about to marry a cow, therefore he doesn't eat meat. Daft.

Lol, now you're sounding like the real beaf hehehehehhehe, very clueless and rascal like his boss

Beaf:

Who cares if Buhari is married to a Buddhist, native doctor or Muslim? Nobody gives a damn, Osama Bin Ladens son is one hell of a fashionable, non-Muslim dude; his niece poses semi-unclothed all over the place and his family are big business people into the high life. Has any of that stopped Osama from being the devils darling?

Una no get sense, next thing we will start hearing he is about to marry a cow, therefore he doesn't eat meat. Daft.

But can Osama himself ever marry a Christian?

doyin13:

But can Osama himself ever marry a Christian?

That is left for him to decide.

For your info, Buhari is married to a Muslim, nobody is taken in by the lies told here that he is married to a Xtian. Its only his driver thats a Xtian.

i heard buhari has more than one wife, so maybe one of them is christian.

sheesh.

[size=18pt]Buhari wife became a born again Christian![/size]

^
Damn!
How does that qualify him to become the President of Nigeria?

. . .Anyways, why does she still dress in hijab? Is she a born again Muslim as well? Lol

GenBuhari:

[size=18pt]Buhari wife became a born again Christian![/size]

And he is fanatical muslim but not asking for her to be stoned??

something is definitely off here . . .

The Crimes of Buhari

By Wole SOYINKA

This intervention has been provoked, not so much by the ambitions of General Buhari to return to power at the head of a democratic Nigeria, as by declarations of support from directions that leave one totally dumbfounded. It would appear that some, myself among them, had been overcomplacent about the magnitude of an ambition that seemed as preposterous as the late effort of General Ibrahim Babangida to aspire yet again to the honour of presiding over a society that truly seeks a democratic future. What one had dismissed was a rash of illusions, brought about by other political improbabilities that surround us, however, is being given an air of plausibility by individuals and groupings to which one had earlier attributed a sense of relevance of historic actualities. Recently, I published an article in the media, invoking the possible recourse to psychiatric explanation for some of the incongruities in conduct within national leadership. Now, to tell the truth, I have begun to seriously address the issue of which section of society requires the services of a psychiatrist. The contest for a seizure of rationality is now so polarized that I am quite reconciled to the fact it could be those of us on this side, not the opposing school of thought that ought to declare ourselves candidates for a lunatic asylum. So be it. While that decision hangs in the balance however, the forum is open. Let both sides continue to address our cases to the electorate, but also prepare to submit ourselves for psychiatric examination.



The time being so close to electoral decision, we can understand the haste of some to resort to shortcuts. In the process however, we should not commit the error of opening the political space to any alternative whose curative touch to national afflictions have proven more deadly than the disease. In order to reduce the clutter in our options towards the forthcoming elections, we urge a beginning from what we do know, what we have undergone, what millions can verify, what can be sustained by evidence accessible even to the school pupil, the street hawker or a just-come visitor from outer space. Leaving Buhari aside for now, I propose a commencing exercise that should guide us along the path of elimination as we examine the existing register of would-be president. That initial exercise can be summed up in the following speculation: “If it were possible for Olusegun Obasanjo, the actual incumbent, to stand again for election, would you vote for him?”

If the answer is “yes”, then of course all discussion is at an end. If the answer is ‘No’ however, then it follows that a choice of a successor made by Obasanjo should be assessed as hovering between extremely dangerous and an outright kiss of death. The degree of acceptability of such a candidate should also be inversely proportionate to the passion with which he or she is promoted by the would-be ‘godfather’. We do not lack for open evidence about Obasanjo’s passion in this respect. From Lagos to the USA, he has taken great pains to assure the nation and the world that the anointed NPN presidential flag bearer is guaranteed, in his judgment, to carry out his policies. Such an endorsement/anointment is more than sufficient, in my view, for public acceptance or rejection. Yar’Adua’s candidature amounts to a terminal kiss from a moribund regime. Nothing against the person of this – I am informed - personable governor, but let him understand that in addition to the direct source of his emergence, the PDP, on whose platform he stands, represents the most harrowing of this nation’s nightmares over and beyond even the horrors of the Abacha regime. If he wishes to be considered on his own merit, now is time for him, as well as others similarly enmeshed, to exercise the moral courage that goes with his repudiation of that party, a dissociation from its past, and a pledge to reverse its menacing future. We shall find him an alternative platform on which to stand, and then have him present his credentials along those of other candidates engaged in forging a credible opposition alliance. Until then, let us bury this particular proposition and move on to a far graver, looming danger, personified in the history of General Buhari.



The grounds on which General Buhari is being promoted as the alternative choice are not only shaky, but pitifully naive. History matters. Records are not kept simply to assist the weakness of memory, but to operate as guides to the future. Of course, we know that human beings change. What the claims of personality change or transformation impose on us is a rigorous inspection of the evidence, not wishful speculation or behind-the-scenes assurances. Public offence, crimes against a polity, must be answered in the public space, not in caucuses of bargaining. In Buhari, we have been offered no evidence of the sheerest prospect of change. On the contrary, all evident suggests that this is one individual who remains convinced that this is one ex-ruler that the nation cannot call to order.

Buhari – need one remind anyone - was one of the generals who treated a Commission of Enquiry, the Oputa Panel, with unconcealed disdain. Like Babangida and Abdusalami, he refused to put in appearance even though complaints that were tabled against him involved a career of gross abuses of power and blatant assault on the fundamental human rights of the Nigerian citizenry.

Prominent against these charges was an act that amounted to nothing less than judicial murder, the execution of a citizen under a retroactive decree. Does Decree 20 ring a bell? If not, then, perhaps the names of three youths - Lawal Ojuolape (30), Bernard Ogedengbe (29) and Bartholomew Owoh (26) do. To put it quite plainly, one of those three – Ogedengbe - was executed for a crime that did not carry a capital forfeit at the time it was committed. This was an unconscionable crime, carried out in defiance of the pleas and protests of nearly every sector of the Nigerian and international community – religious, civil rights, political, trade unions etc. Buhari and his sidekick and his partner-in-crime, Tunde Idiagbon persisted in this inhuman act for one reason and one reason only: to place Nigerians on notice that they were now under an iron, inflexible rule, under governance by fear.

The execution of that youthful innocent – for so he was, since the punishment did not exist at the time of commission - was nothing short of premeditated murder, for which the perpetrators should normally stand trial upon their loss of immunity. Are we truly expected to forget this violation of our entitlement to security as provided under existing laws? And even if our sensibilities have become blunted by succeeding seasons of cruelty and brutality, if power itself had so coarsened the sensibilities also of rulers and corrupted their judgment, what should one rightly expect after they have been rescued from the snare of power” At the very least, a revaluation, leading hopefully to remorse, and its expression to a wronged society. At the very least, such a revaluation should engender reticence, silence. In the case of Buhari, it was the opposite. Since leaving office he has declared in the most categorical terms that he had no regrets over this murder and would do so again.



Human life is inviolate. The right to life is the uniquely fundamental right on which all other rights are based. The crime that General Buhari committed against the entire nation went further however, inconceivable as it might first appear. That crime is one of the most profound negations of civic being. Not content with hammering down the freedom of expression in general terms, Buhari specifically forbade all public discussion of a return to civilian, democratic rule. Let us constantly applaud our media – those battle scarred professionals did not completely knuckle down. They resorted to cartoons and oblique, elliptical references to sustain the people’s campaign for a time-table to democratic rule. Overt agitation for a democratic time table however remained rigorously suppressed – military dictatorship, and a specifically incorporated in Buhari and Idiagbon was here to stay. To deprive a people of volition in their own political direction is to turn a nation into a colony of slaves. Buhari enslaved the nation. He gloated and gloried in a master-slave relation to the millions of its inhabitants. It is astonishing to find that the same former slaves, now free of their chains, should clamour to be ruled by one who not only turned their nation into a slave plantation, but forbade them any discussion of their condition.



So Tai Solarin is already forgotten? Tai who stood at street corners, fearlessly distributing leaflets that took up the gauntlet where the media had dropped it. Tai who was incarcerated by that regime and denied even the medication for his asthmatic condition? Tai did not ask to be sent for treatment overseas; all he asked was his traditional medicine that had proved so effective after years of struggle with asthma!



Nor must we omit the manner of Buhari coming to power and the pattern of his ‘corrective’ rule. Shagari’s NPN had already run out of steam and was near universally detested – except of course by the handful that still benefited from that regime of profligacy and rabid fascism. Responsibility for the national condition lay squarely at the door of the ruling party, obviously, but against whom was Buhari’s coup staged? Judging by the conduct of that regime, it was not against Shagari’s government but against the opposition. The head of government, on whom primary responsibility lay, was Shehu Shagari. Yet that individual was kept in cozy house detention in Ikoyi while his powerless deputy, Alex Ekwueme, was locked up in Kiri-kiri prisons. Such was the Buhari notion of equitable apportionment of guilt and/or responsibility.



And then the cascade of escapes of the wanted, and culpable politicians. Manhunts across the length and breadth of the nation, roadblocks everywhere and borders tight as steel zip locks. Lo and behold, the chairman of the party, Chief Akinloye, strolled out coolly across the border. Richard Akinjide, Legal Protector of the ruling party, slipped out with equal ease. The Rice Minister, Umaru Dikko, who declared that Nigerians were yet to eat from dustbins - escaped through the same airtight dragnet. The clumsy attempt to crate him home was punishment for his ingratitude, since he went berserk when, after waiting in vain, he concluded that the coup had not been staged, after all, for the immediate consolidation of the party of extreme right-wing vultures, but for the military hyenas.



The case of the overbearing Secretary-General of the party, Uba Ahmed, was even more noxious. Uba Ahmed was out of the country at the time. Despite the closure of the Nigerian airspace, he compelled the pilot of his plane to demand special landing permission, since his passenger load included the almighty Uba Ahmed. Of course, he had not known of the change in his status since he was airborne. The delighted airport commandant, realizing that he had a much valued fish swimming willingly into a waiting net, approved the request. Uba Ahmed disembarked into the arms of a military guard and was promptly clamped in detention. Incredibly, he vanished a few days after and reappeared in safety overseas. Those whose memories have become calcified should explore the media coverage of that saga. Buhari was asked to explain the vanished act of this much prized quarry and his response was one of the most arrogant levity. Coming from one who had shot his way into power on the slogan of ‘dis’pline’, it was nothing short of impudent.



Shall we revisit the tragicomic series of trials that landed several politicians several lifetimes in prison? Recall, if you please, the ‘judicial’ processes undergone by the septuagenarian Chief Adekunle Ajasin. He was arraigned and tried before Buhari’s punitive tribunal but acquitted. Dissatisfied, Buhari ordered his re-trial. Again, the Tribunal could not find this man guilty of a single crime, so once again he was returned for trial, only to be acquitted of all charges of corruption or abuse of office. Was Chief Ajasin thereby released? No! He was ordered detained indefinitely, simply for the crime of winning an election and refusing to knuckle under Shagari’s reign of terror.

The conduct of the Buhari regime after his coup was not merely one of double, triple, multiple standards but a cynical travesty of justice. Audu Ogbeh, currently chairman of the Action Congress was one of the few figures of rectitude within the NPN. Just as he has done in recent times with the PDP, he played the role of an internal critic and reformer, warning, dissenting, and setting an example of probity within his ministry. For that crime he spent months in unjust incarceration. Guilty by association? Well, if that was the motivating yardstick of the administration of the Buhari justice, then it was most selectively applied. The utmost severity of the Buhari-Idiagbon justice was especially reserved either for the opposition in general, or for those within the ruling party who had showed the sheerest sense of responsibility and patriotism.



Shall I remind this nation of Buhari’s deliberate humiliating treatment of the Emir of Kano and the Oni of Ife over their visit to the state of Israel? I hold no brief for traditional rulers and their relationship with governments, but insist on regarding them as entitled to all the rights, privileges and responsibilities of any Nigerian citizen. This royal duo went to Israel on their private steam and private business. Simply because the Buhari regime was pursuing some antagonistic foreign policy towards Israel, a policy of which these traditional rulers were not a part, they were subjected on their return to a treatment that could only be described as a head masterly chastisement of errant pupils. Since when, may one ask, did a free citizen of the Nigerian nation require the permission of a head of state to visit a foreign nation that was willing to offer that tourist a visa.?



One is only too aware that some Nigerians love to point to Buhari’s agenda of discipline as the shining jewel in his scrap-iron crown. To inculcate discipline however, one must lead by example, obeying laws set down as guides to public probity. Example speaks louder than declarations, and rulers cannot exempt themselves from the disciplinary strictures imposed on the overall polity, especially on any issue that seeks to establish a policy for public well-being. The story of the thirty something suitcases – it would appear that they were even closer to fifty - found unavoidable mention in my recent memoirs, YOU MUST SET FORTH AT DOWN, written long before Buhari became spoken of as a credible candidate. For the exercise of a changeover of the national currency, the Nigerian borders – air, sea and land – had been shut tight. Nothing was supposed to move in or out, not even cattle egrets.



Yet a prominent camel was allowed through that needle’s eye. Not only did Buhari dispatch his aide-de-camp, Jokolo – later to become an emir - to facilitate the entry of those cases, he ordered the redeployment – as I later discovered - of the Customs Officer who stood firmly against the entry of the contravening baggage. That officer, the incumbent Vice-president is now a rival candidate to Buhari, but has somehow, in the meantime, earned a reputation that totally contradicts his conduct at the time. Wherever the truth lies, it does not redound to the credibility of the dictator of that time, General Buhari whose word was law, but whose allegiances were clearly negotiable.



On the theme of double, triple, multiple standards in the enforcement of the law, and indeed of the decrees passed by the Buhari regime at the time, let us recall the notorious case of ‘Triple A’ – Alhaji Alhaji Alhaji, then Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance. – Who was caught, literally, with his pants down in distant Austria. That was not the crime however, and private conduct should always remain restricted to the domain of private censure. There was no decree against civil servants proving just as hormone driven as anyone else, especially outside the nation’s borders. However, there was a clear decree against the keeping of foreign accounts, and this was what emerged from the Austrian escapade. Alhaji Alhaji kept, not one, but several undeclared foreign accounts, and he had no business being in possession of the large amount of foreign currency of which he was robbed by his overnight companion. The media screamed for an even application of the law, but Buhari had turned suddenly deaf.

By contrast, Fela Anikulapo languished in goal for years, sentenced under that very draconian decree. His crime was being in possession of foreign exchange that he had legitimately received for the immediate upkeep of his band as they set off for an international engagement. A vicious sentence was slapped down on Fela by a judge who later became so remorse stricken – at least after Buhari’s overthrow that he went to the King of Afro-beat and apologized.

Lesser known was the traumatic experience of the director of an international communication agency, an affiliate of UNESCO. Akin Fatoyinbo arrived at the airport in complete ignorance of the new currency decree. He was thrown in gaol in especially brutal condition, an experience from which he never fully recovered. It took several months of high-level intervention before that innocent man was eventually freed. These were not exceptional but mere sample cases from among hundreds of others, victims \of a decree that was selectively applied, a decree that routinely penalized innocents and ruined the careers and businesses of many.



What else? What does one choose to include or leave out? What precisely was Ebenezer Babatope’s crime that he should have spent the entire tenure of General Buhari in detention? Nothing beyond the fact that he once warned in the media that Buhari was an ambitious soldier who would bear watching through the lenses of a coup-d’etat. Babatope’s father died while he was in Buhari’s custody, the dictator remained deaf to every plea that he be at least released to attend his father’s funeral, even under guard. I wrote an article at the time, denouncing this pointless insensitivity. So little to demand by a man who was never accused of, nor tried for any crime, much less found guilty. Such a load of vindictiveness that smothered all traces of basic human compassion deserves no further comment in a nation that values its traditions.



But then, speaking the truth was not what Buhari, as a self-imposed leader, was especially enamoured of – enquire of Tunde Thompson and Nduka Irabor both of whom, faithful to their journalistic calling, published nothing but the truth, yet ended up sentenced under Buhari’s decree. Mind you, no one can say that Buhari was not true to his word. [size=14pt]“I shall tamper with the freedom of the press’ swore the dictator immediately on grabbing office, and this was exactly what he did. [/size]And so on, and on, and on….



The argument of those who say that, by endorsing Buhari, they are settling on someone who can be guaranteed to give Obasanjo and the NPN a good fight, is one of the most depressing excuses I ever encountered for placing a political noose around a nation’s neck. Buhari owes a debt to this nation, not the other way round. If Buhari wishes to rehabilitate himself in the eyes of the citizenry whom he has so cruelly wronged, he should first scuttle his ambitions, then place whatever following he has garnered in the meantime at the disposal of a consensus candidate among the opposition. To insist on another taste of power, after such a history of gross abuse of power is an insult to any nation that values freedom and human dignity. Buhari should sit with the opposition and coordinate strategies to defeat the most unscrupulous act of political gerrymandering that, we all know, is about to be inflicted on the nation by a desperate incumbent seeking for a clone to secure his exit from power. The nation has more than sufficient time and strategic intelligence to organize behind a common choice, publicize his or her qualities and defeat the arrogance of incumbency.



What is being eroded, through the power of suggestion, is a people’s confidence in itself, and this is the beginning of mass suicide. Without that confidence, no powers on high or on earth, external or internal, can rescue the community from both the palpable and symbolic chains of slavery. To invite back into power a man who did so much to destroy a people’s self-esteem, dignity, and faith in law and justice, is a sign of self-abasement, lack of self-esteem, a slave mentality that dooms, not only the present, but succeeding generations.

I wish to declare, unequivocally, that those of my party, the ARP/DFPF shall not participate in such a degrading surrender.


http://www.saharareporters.com/news-page/crimes-buhari-wole-soyinka



[size=16pt]This is the lunatic we should elect to office? Please I would rather throw my vote away.[/size]

Jonhdoe

Please throw it away. we will be happy as long as you dont waste it on your inept Jonathan!

Genbuhari3:

Jonhdoe

Please throw it away. we will be happy as long as you dont waste it on your inept Jonathan!

You and I both know that PDP will win the election. Have they removed the rule that you must win 25% of the votes in 2/3rds of the states? How will your lunatic do this?

On Politics and Governance

CPC believes that our politics is broken. Our nation urgently needs fundamental political reform and improvement in governance to make it more transparent and accountable. If you elect us in April, we will:
1. Initiate action to amend our Constitution with a view to devolving powers, duties and responsibilities to states and local governments in order to entrench Federalism and the Federal spirit;

2. Strengthen INEC to reduce/eliminate electoral malpractices;

3. Attract the best and brightest into our politics and public service by aggressive recruitment of private sector people, academics and professionals within Nigeria and in the Diaspora through internships, fellowships, executive appointments and special nomination to contest elective offices;

4. Prevent abuse of executive, legislative and public offices through greater accountability, transparency and strict enforcement of anti-corruption laws whilst strengthening the EFCC and ICPC;

5. Amend the Constitution to remove immunity from prosecution for elected officers in criminal cases;

6. Restructure government for a leaner, more efficient and adequately compensated public service;

7. Require full disclosure in all media outlets of all government contracts over N100m prior to award and during implementation at regular intervals;

8. Reform and Strengthen the Justice System for efficient administration and dispensation of justice along with the creation of special courts for accelerated hearing of corruption, drug trafficking, terrorism and similar cases of national importance;

9. Enact the Freedom of Information Bill so that government held data sets can be requested and used by the public, and then published on regular basis;

10. Seek to amend the Constitution to require local governments to publish their meeting minutes, service performance data and items of spending over N10M.

CPC -On the Economy

we will:

1. Maintain sound macro-economic policy environment and run an efficient government and preserve the independence of the Central Bank;
2. Restore financial confidence by putting in place a more robust monitoring, supervising and regulating of the financial institutions;
3. Make our economy one of the fastest growing emerging economies in the world with a real GDP growth averaging 10% annually;
4. Embark on vocational training, entrepreneurial and skills acquisition scheme for graduates along with the creation of Small Business Loan Guarantee Scheme to create at least 2 million new jobs by 2015;
5. Integrate the informal economy into the mainstream and prioritize the full implementation of the National Identification Scheme to generate the relevant data;
6. Expand domestic demand and consider undertaking associated public works programmes;
7. Embark on export and production diversification including investment in infrastructure; promote manufacturing e.g through agro based industries and expand sub-regional trade through ECOWAS and AU;
8. Make Information Technology, Manufacturing, Agriculture and Entertainment key drivers of our economy;
9. Balance the economy across regions by the creation of 6 new Regional Economic Development Agencies (REDAs) to act as champions of sub-regional competitiveness;
10. Put in place a N300bn regional growth fund (average of N50bn in each geo-political region) to be managed by the REDAs, encourage private sector enterprise and support to help places currently reliant on the public sector;
11. Amend the Constitution and the Land Use Act to create freehold/leasehold interests in land along with matching grants for states to create a nationwide electronic land title register on a state by state basis;
12. Create additional middle-class of at least 2 million new home owners by 2015 by enacting a national mortgage system that will lend at single digit interest rates for purchase of owner occupier houses.

On Agriculture

we will:

1. Modernize the sector and change Nigeria from being a country of self-subsistence farmers to that of a medium/commercial scale farming nation/producer;
2. Create a nationwide food inspectorate division with a view to improving nutrition and eliminating food-borne hazards;
3. Inject extra N30bn to the Agricultural sector to create more agro-allied jobs by way of loans at nominal interest rates for capital investment on medium and commercial scale cash crops;
4. Guarantee a minimum price for selected crops and facilitate storage of agricultural products as and when necessary

On Infrastructure

we will:

1. Undertake an urgent review of the PPP enabling environment with a view to addressing the legal, regulatory and operational challenges including introducing enabling legislation where necessary. In addition, we shall create a National Infrastructural Development Bank to provide loans at nominal interest rates exclusively for this sector;
2. Generate, transmit and distribute from current 5,000 – 6,000 MW to at least 15,000 MW of electricity by 2015 and increasing to 50,000 MW by 2019 with a view to achieving 24/7 uninterrupted power supply by 2019 whilst simultaneously ensuring development of sustainable/renewable energy;
3. Embark on a National Infrastructural Development Programme as a Public Private Partnership that will ensure the (a) construction of 3,000km of Superhighway including service trunks and (b) building of up to 4,800km of modern railway lines – one third to be completed by 2015;
4. Enact new legal and regulatory frameworks to establish independent regulation and incentives to accelerate public and private sector investment in seaports, railways and inland waterways;
5. Embark on BOT schemes with a view to ensuring that at least one functioning airport is available in each of the 36 states

On the Oil and Gas Industry

we will:

1. Make the industry and Nigeria one of the world leading/cutting edge centres for clean oil and gas technologists, scientists, mega structure installation, drilling, processing, production engineers supported with best services and research facilities;
2. Fully develop the sector’s capacity to absorb more of the nation’s new graduate in the labour market. The sector will produce more home-grown world class engineers and scientists;
3. Modernise the NNPC and make it the national energy champion. Consider breaking it up into more efficient, commercially driven unit and strip it of its regulatory powers and enable it tap into international capital market;
4. Enforce the government master plan for oil companies to end flaring that pollutes the air and damages people’s health and ensure that they sell at least half of their gas production within Nigeria;
5. Speedily pass the much-delayed Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) and ensure that local content issues are fully addressed;
6. Make Nigeria the world’s leading exporter of LNG through the creation of strategic partnerships.

CPC- On National Security and Defense

we will:

1. Urgently address capacity building of law enforcement agents in terms of quantity and quality as this is critical in safeguarding the sanctity of lives and property;
2. Establish a well trained, adequately equipped and goals driven Serious Crime Squad to combat kidnapping, armed robbery, militants, ethno-religious and communal clashes nationwide;
3. Begin widespread consultations to amend the Constitution to enable States and Local Governments to employ State and Community Police to address the peculiar needs of each community. This would mean setting boundaries for Federal, State and Community Police through new Criminal Justice legislation to replace the Criminal Code, the Penal Code and the Police Act.
4. Push for more support in the security and economic stability of the sub-region [ECOWAS] and AU as a whole and maintain a strong, close and frank relationship with West Africa, South Africa, UK, USA, Canada, and other African countries.

On Conflict Resolution, National Unity and Social Harmony

we will:

1. Establish a Conflict Resolution Commission to help prevent, mitigate and resolve civil conflicts within the polity;
2. Bring permanent peace and solution to the Niger Delta and other conflict prone areas such as Plateau, Taraba, Bauchi, Borno and Abia in order to engender national unity and social harmony;
3. Initiate policies to ensure that Nigerians are free to live and work in any part of the country by removing state of origin, tribe, ethnic and religious affiliations and replace those with state of residence.

On Foreign Policy

we will:

1. Make regional integration a priority within ECOWAS including free trade with a view to ensuring that common tariff and currency are achieved by 2015 under Nigeria’s guidance and leadership;
2. Maintain a strong, close and frank relationships within the Gulf of Guinea, South Africa and the rest of the world;
3. Establish a new special relationship with the leading emerging markets like Brazil; Russia, India and China (BRIC) and other strategic partners around the world.

CPC- On Education

we will:

1. Fully implement and enforce the provisions of the Universal Basic Education Act with emphasis on gender equity in primary and secondary school enrolment whilst improving the quality and substance of our schools;
2. Targeting up to 15% of our annual budget for this critical sector whilst making substantial investments in training quality teachers at all levels of the educational system;
3. Implement performance based education as against the current certificate based qualification;
4. Enhance teacher training and improve the competence of teachers along with vigorous national inspection;
5. Make learning experiences more meaningful for children and make education more cost-effective;
6. Develop and promote effective use of innovative teaching methods/materials in schools;
7. Ensure a greater proportion of expenditure on university education is devoted to Science and Technology with more spaces allocated to science and technology oriented courses;
8. Establish at least six new universities of science and technology with satellite campuses in various states;
9. Establish technical colleges and vocational centres in each state of the federation;
10. Provide more conducive environment for private sector participation in all levels of education;
11. Establish six centres of excellence to address the needs of special education;

On Healthcare

we will:

1. Prioritize the reduction of the infant mortality rate by 2015 to 3%; reduce maternal mortality by more than 70%; reduce HIV/AIDs infection rate by 50% and other infectious diseases by 75%; improve life expectancy by additional 10 years on average through our national healthy living program;
2. Increase the number of physicians from 19 per 1000 population to 50 per 1000; increase national health expenditure per person per annum to about N50,000 (from less than N10,000 currently);
3. Increase the number of tertiary health care university teaching hospital from current 8 to 36 by 2015;
4. Invest in cutting edge technology such as tele-medicine in all major health centres in the country through active investment and partnership programmes with the private sector;
5. Provide ante-natal care for pregnant women; free basic care for babies and children up to school going age and for the aged;
6. Boost the local manufacture of pharmaceuticals.

On Youth, Sports & Culture

we will:

1. Provide the opportunities for youth to realize, harness, and develop their full potentials and to facilitate the emergence of a new generation of citizens committed to the sustenance of good governance and service to the people and the country;
2. Establish world class sports academy and training institutes and ensure that Nigeria occupies a place of pride in global sports and athletics;
3. Revive the Nigerian football league and put incentives in place to make it as competitive as other national leagues;
4. Put in place measures to identify talents early and ensure their participation in local and international games to enable them become professionals;
5. Mandate schools and communities to create playgrounds/sports-centres with needed equipment to develop skills;
6. Assist Nollywood to fully develop into world class movie industry that can compete effectively with Hollywood and Bollywood in due course.

Women Empowerment

we will:

1. Ensure the rights of women are protected as enshrined in our Constitution;
2. Guarantee that women are adequately represented in government appointments and provide greater opportunities in education, job creation and economic empowerment;
3. Recognize and protect women empowerment and gender equality with special emphasis on economic activities in development and in rural areas;
4. Promote the concept of reserving a minimum number of seats in the National Assembly for women.

On The Environment

we will:

1. Ensure compliance with policies and measures to halt the pollution of rivers and waterways in the Niger Delta and other parts of the country;
2. Create shelter belts in states bordering the Sahara Desert to mitigate and reverse the effects of the expanding desert;
3. Support and accelerate the implementation of regional water transfer initiatives across the country;
4. Adopt a holistic approach to erosion and shoreline protection across the country;
5. Create teams of volunteers to plant and nurture economically viable trees in arid regions;
6. Restructure the Ecological Fund Office to enable it meet today’s environmental challenges;
7. Regulate the timber industry to ensure that double the number of trees felled are planted by the loggers;
8. Ensure full compliance with town-planning and environmental laws and edicts.

Aside from being a Nobel Laureate,how has Wole Soyinka transferred this achievement to the development of a better Nigeria. Holding brief for Ebenezer Babatope, I laugh. No wonder he was ask to head FRSC and yet could not perform. Talk is cheap. Let Wole Soyinka also right an article about the other side of Buhari, his achievement and lets compare.

Afterall, Wole Soyinka was happy when IBB overthrew Buhari. Was he not wrong supporting IBB? Did he not accept offer to work with IBB?

TALK IS CHEAP.

ayubam:

Aside from being a Nobel Laureate,how has Wole Soyinka transferred this achievement to the development of a better Nigeria. Holding brief for Ebenezer Babatope, I laugh. No wonder he was ask to head FRSC and yet could not perform. Talk is cheap. Let Wole Soyinka also right an article about the other side of Buhari, his achievement and lets compare.

Afterall, Wole Soyinka was happy when IBB overthrew Buhari. Was he not wrong supporting IBB? Did he not accept offer to work with IBB?

TALK IS CHEAP.

Yes, talk is "cheap." But have you ever placed your life on the line for the betterment of Nigeria the way the likes of Wole Soyinka, Tai Solarin, Gani Fawehinmi, Fela Kuti etc have done REPEATEDLY?
Talk is indeed "cheap."

Be simple, honest, dedicated and humble in your approach; recognise great men for what they are.

[size=14pt]Fresh Air 2011!![/size]

The argument of those who say that, by endorsing Buhari, they are settling on someone who can be guaranteed to give Obasanjo and the NPN a good fight, is one of the most depressing excuses I ever encountered for placing a political noose around a nation’s neck. Buhari owes a debt to this nation, not the other way round. If Buhari wishes to rehabilitate himself in the eyes of the citizenry whom he has so cruelly wronged, he should first scuttle his ambitions, then place whatever following he has garnered in the meantime at the disposal of a consensus candidate among the opposition. To insist on another taste of power, after such a history of gross abuse of power is an insult to any nation that values freedom and human dignity. Buhari should sit with the opposition and coordinate strategies to defeat the most unscrupulous act of political gerrymandering that, we all know, is about to be inflicted on the nation by a desperate incumbent seeking for a clone to secure his exit from power. The nation has more than sufficient time and strategic intelligence to organize behind a common choice, publicize his or her qualities and defeat the arrogance of incumbency


I love Buhari for the fact he has the capacity to instill discipline and by and large he is a good man. But the fact still   remains that he is tainted. His human rights records are not encouraging.

More often than not people normally behave the same way in future like they have done in the past. Based on this:

Goodluck presidency will give immunity to looters like OBJ and OGD, killers like Folarin will be made minister. Nigeria might start importing pure-water from UK. It is going to be a looting competition. Break-fast in ASO ROCK will cost 150 million per day. All criminals that have looted this nation blind will be honored with medals in Aso Rock amidst pumps and pageantry. Millions will be spent on world tours bringing nothing but embarrassing interviews on CNN and BBC.

Buhari presidency will make OBJ,IBB, OGD, Odili, Turaki etc uncomfortable. No time for world tour without purpose. Most likely going to change his mind and bring all past looters to book. He will not invest 16 Billion Naira in d power sector without result and keep quiet. Will be respected by most people for almost always being upright and above board.

Ribadu presidency will bring radical changes in the polity though some may be unnecessary. He will most probably go after all the thieves including his benefactors like OBJ and Tinibu. I have the feeling he is going to spend more time putting looters behind the bars than tackling economic development.



I prefer Ribadu but my vote is for Buhari to add to the millions that will kick GEJ and PDP hegemony out of Nigeria for once in donkey years.


[size=24pt]BUHARI/BAKARE 2011[/size]_{for the future of our children}

all these digging out of dusty articles against buhari

oya please tell us, where are the icons endorsing gej?

soyinka, falana, and the likes, why have none of them voiced support of a gej administration?

why is it only the likes of akala, lamido the silencer (who the gej supporters have suddenly stopped spamming nl with) that support gej?

why is it glaringly obvious that our men of conscience are giving him a wide berth?

Dear legis-looters,representa-thieves and all other corrupt politicians and govt officials, run now that you can,before we take over bey May 29th,no one will be spared,a word is enough for the wise. . .