Jonathan’s convoy pelted in Gombe

Friday, 11 March 2011 00:00 Mohammed S. Shehu, Muhammad Abubakar & Aliyu M. Hamagam, Gombe

President Goodluck Jonathan(left) with Governor Murtala Nyako of Adamawa State and his counterpart from Bauchi State, Governor Isa Yuguda at the PDP rally in Yola, Adamawa State ,yesterday.
Restive youngsters armed with stones and other objects yesterday pelted President Goodluck Jonathan’s convoy at three different places in Gombe, where he had gone to address a presidential campaign rally. The youths also set bonfires in Bolari and Jekadafari areas of the state capital. Clashes later broke out between the anti-PDP youths and some Yan Kalare gangs known to support the PDP-led state government. The president’s convoy was stoned at the Central Roundabout, along the Emir’s Drive and near the emir’s palace.


According to one youth who refused to disclose his name, they pelted the PDP presidential convoy in order to express their anger at his disregarding the zoning arrangement his party entered into with Northern Nigeria.

President Jonathan had arrived in Gombe in the afternoon from neighbouring Adamawa State, as part of his campaign tour of the North Eastern states.

Yesterday’s altercations in Gombe were the second in as many days. On Wednesday, when Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) presidential candidate General Muhammadu Buhari visited the state and addressed a rally, alleged CPC supporters vandalised Jonathan/Sambo campaign billboards all the way from the airport to the centre of town. They also ripped away PDP campaign posters. When General Buhari paid a courtesy call on state governor Muhammadu Danjuma Goje, the governor complained about the behaviour of the CPC supporters, and Buhari roundly apologised for their action. He made a similar apology when he visited the emir of Gombe, Alhaji Shehu Usman Abubakar.

Public Relations Officer of the state police command ASP Ahmed Doma confirmed yesterday’s incident, saying it was only bonfires that were set along Bolari area, near the Water Board, but that the president’s convoy was not stoned.

He added that no arrest was made and police were on top of the situation as normalcy had since been restored.

Reacting to yesterday’s events, acting National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Dr. Bello Haliru Mohamed challenged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to prove its worth by sanctioning the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) and loyalists of the party’s presidential candidate retired General Muhammadu Buhari over alleged vandalisation of Goodluck/Sambo Campaign office in Gombe.

Mohamed stated this yesterday after President Goodluck Jonathan had inspected the Goodluck/Sambo Campaign office in Gombe. A statement by presidential spokesman Ima Niboro yesterday said the office was “vandalised by supporters of CPC loyal to General Buhari.”

Jonathan inspected the office in company of Haliru, Gombe State Governor Muhammed Danjuma Goje, his Bauchi counterpart Malam Isa Yuguda and other aides.

Niboro said the President inspected the entire premises “which was littered with broken glass from shattered windows as well as damaged railings, billboards and flagpoles.”

The party chairman described the action as “provocative and unacceptable” and called on INEC to investigate the matter and sanction the CPC. He said, “This is provocative and totally unacceptable, a complete deviation from the pact we just signed as political parties towards peaceful and fair conduct of the April general elections. As a law-abiding party we have reported the matter to the authorities and we challenge INEC to prove that it is a fair arbiter by sanctioning the opposition party immediately.”

http://www.dailytrust.dailytrust.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=13874:jonathans-convoy-pelted-in-gombe&catid=2:lead-stories&Itemid=8

These fools are lucky that we have a civilised President for once. In any past govt, they would have been shot and forgoten by the Presidents security men.

Wow! So far Buhari is pulling crowds as far as the eye can see wherever he goes. Dis one go hard for PDP ooooooooo!! Lets see how the abracadabra numbers will materialize!!

@ u dev vex?
Very senseless response,

we need a leader that will carry everybody along without acrymony. buhari is not the messiah let's be wise

kokoA:

@ u dev vex?
Very senseless response,

What is senseless about it? Do you think normal people not high on drugs would attempt throwing stones at the Presidents convoy? Would you do it?
They are very lucky that we have a mature President, and they are lucky to be alive.
The proper way to show dissent is at the ballot box, or by carrying placards, writing articles and letters etc.

my cousin confirmed that security was in full force to checkmate any opposition to his visit.even lobbying the political leaders of the state.yet people came out to say we don't want PDP.As it stands he is not that popular in the NE too.GEJ is losing it and that is a fact.
@u de vex
No,he should shoot them all he wants or lock them up all.the facts remain!!!!!We don't want him!We all want Change!!!!!!!! anyone or party but GEJ/PDP.12 years of nonsense!!!
It is either BB 2011
or RIBADU

kokoA:

@ u dev vex?
Very senseless response,

Don't you know you are talking to Beaf? "Senseless responses" remains his weakness regardless of any latest alias he assumes . He is easy to spot as a 'broken record' and rabid defender of the grossly incompetent man we currently have at Aso Rock .

haka_nai:

my cousin confirmed that security was in full force to checkmate any opposition to his visit.even lobbying the political leaders of the state.yet people came out to say we don't want PDP.As it stands he is not that popular in the NE too.GEJ is losing it and that is a fact.
@u de vex
No,he should shoot them all he wants or lock them up all.the facts remain!!!!!We don't want him!We all want Change!!!!!!!! anyone or party but GEJ/PDP.12 years of nonsense!!!
It is either BB 2011
or RIBADU

Indeed . With Buhari or Ribadu Nigeria will move forward . With Jonathan , we are doomed .

Gbawe:

Don't you know you are talking to Beaf? "Senseless responses" remains his weakness regardless of any latest alias he assumes . He is easy to spot as a 'broken record' and rabid defender of the grossly incompetent man we currently have at Aso Rock .  

So Beaf is the same person as Time2Think, U dey vex?, Potof_soup, and a lot more of other alias.

What a pathetic bum.

Hope Athahiru jega is taking note of these. He mustn't dare let pdp rig this election or else we'll have another cote d'ivoire or even worse, Libya situation in our hands. GEJ's Pdp gets people agitated and you can imagine how brutal and bloody it will be if pdp miraculously conjure the majority votes come next month. Even sambo's kaduna will be voting BB.

dominique:

Hope Athahiru jega is taking note of these. He mustn't dare let pdp rig this election or else we'll have another cote d'ivoire or even worse, Libya situation in our hands. GEJ's Pdp gets people agitated and you can imagine how brutal and bloody it will be if pdp miraculously conjure the majority votes come next month. Even sambo's kaduna will be voting BB.

You have predicted the future even if not accurately. The game plan is surely for this almajiri attacks to continue, regardless of the election results, because of the born to rule mentality. If Buhari cannot control his people, the country is in grave danger of breaking up this year.

beaf is a really sick person - what is the aim of multiple ids going to achieve - The only thing it proves that he is forever a house boy to GEJ.

BB might be pulling crowds, but we all are aware of PDP's magical powers.
They can turn "1" to "1000",

whats with all these aboki boys?

fact remains that gej, is slow and  lacks charisma,how ever the polularity that pdp enjoys ,wheather good or bad will give him some leverage in states like these , ribadu may have the character to rule, but to rule nigeria u need a lot more than this, buhari  duhh, too old.he'll only divide the votes of the north between ribadu and himself , another fact is that most likely these mallams were sponsord to carry ou this attack.

shouting is one thing

voting another

buhari posters are pull down at porthacourt but nothing happen no arrest but when jonathan poster are thorn they arrest innocent

This goes to show the extent of illiteracy and backwardness prevalent in Northern Nigeria.

No sane individual would show his anger by throwing stones at the president just because he is not a Northerner.

Their grouse against Jonathan is not that he is a PDP member. It is simply that he is not a Northerner.

Lagos Boy:

According to one youth who refused to disclose his name, they pelted the PDP presidential convoy in order to express their anger at his disregarding the zoning arrangement his party entered into with Northern Nigeria
http://www.dailytrust.dailytrust.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=13874:jonathans-convoy-pelted-in-gombe&catid=2:lead-stories&Itemid=8

BTW,
If the people of Rivers or Akwa Ibom pelt stones at Buhari's convoy, Nairalanders will say they are PDP-sponsored.
When the people of Nasarawa and Gombe carry out similar actions against the Jonathan, Nairalanders will call them freedom fighters. DOUBLE STANDARD.

Don't you know you are talking to Beaf? "Senseless responses" remains his weakness regardless of any latest alias he assumes . He is easy to spot as a 'broken record' and rabid defender of the grossly incompetent man we currently have at Aso Rock .

Dude I have argued with you on several occasions, you sound learned but I think your loosing it more than beaf that you keep on castigating, If you can honestly condone this ----- shows I was arguing with a dummy all along,

Thats d hand work of Buhari & his radical Aboki brothers. they are lucky dat GEJ is a civilised . If it were to  b IBB OR ABACHA,  THEY FOR SEE SOMETHING

Adanora:

Thats d hand work of Buhari & his radical Aboki brothers. they are lucky dat GEJ is a civilised . If it were to b IBB OR ABACHA, THEY FOR SEE SOMETHING

Those are my exact thoughts. These people are lucky that times have changed, in the past, they would have been in shallow graves and declared missing by their families.

Buhari pulled more crowds in 2003 and 2007--- but whether by hook or crook, PDP outwitted him, I see the same thing happening in 2011-- He is not even trying to show he is a detribalised candidate--not with the lynching comments and brutal attitude of his supporters-- Twice his supporters have pelted the convoy of the president, goes a long way to show even the mentality of their candidate, He should also know that GEJ's supporters abound in the SS and they don't pelt with stones--- they do it with AK47's.

Buhari pulled more crowds in 2003 and 2007--- but whether by hook or crook, PDP outwitted him, I see the same thing happening in 2011-- He is not even trying to show he is a detribalised candidate--not with the lynching comments and brutal attitude of his supporters-- Twice his supporters have pelted the convoy of the president, goes a long way to show even the mentality of their candidate, He should also know that GEJ's supporters abound in the SS and they don't pelt with stones--- they do it with AK47's.

babasoty:

Dude I have argued with you on several occasions, you sound learned but I think your loosing it more than beaf that you keep on castigating, If you can honestly condone this ----- shows I was arguing with a dummy all along,

Thanks for that contribution. Sometimes people don't understand how they come across to others, that guy has been insulting me from thread to thread as if he knows me. I guess morals differ.

The truth is that if PDP declare themselves winner after losing I expect mass action in the North and South-West accompanied by widespread  killing and arson.

The best thing is to declare the true results and if PDP wins they take it and if they lose they accept.

The SE and SS are politically immature and will always accept any results.

IMO,Jonathan and Buhari have equal chances and the key to victory is the SW and North-Central.They should do their homework well especially in the South-West.

babasoty:

Dude I have argued with you on several occasions, you sound learned but I think your loosing it more than beaf that you keep on castigating, If you can honestly condone this ----- shows I was arguing with a dummy all along,

My friend , when will you ever display some fairness? I hope you are not one of those who carry bad belle from one thread to the next . This is what Beaf wrote:

These fools are lucky that we have a civilised President for once. In any past govt, they would have been shot and forgoten by the Presidents security men.

KokoA then respoding by saying that:

@ u dev vex?
Very senseless response,

Is he not right to say it is "senseless" for Beaf to remind us that these guys would have been shot under previous leaders ? Is that response not "senseless" with how it does not recognise where we are today and where we need to get to urgently in comparison to other Nations? We should be greatful just because Jonathan is not sanctioning murder? is that the pathetic low standards we set for leadership? A leader not callously murdering opposition voices is now to be praised for that consideration?

Years back , a student interrupted Tony Blairs press conference to heckle him while he was PM. Blair reponded by saying that in many regimes of the world he would not have the freedom to do that . That utterance lost Blair a lot of support and goodwill. Many quickly reminded Mr. Blair that the UK is not "many regimes" . It is a place of exemplary democracy where leaders must show tolerance of those who gave them their mandate. I would like to remind Beaf that we are no longer under Abacha and , by the Grace of God, we will never be under anyone of his ilk.

U de vex?:

Thanks for that contribution. Sometimes people don't understand how they come across to others, that guy has been insulting me from thread to thread as if he knows me. I guess morals differ.

See the face of liar - The only reason this id exists is simply down to fact that beaf ID was barred by Mukina for Five days.

What happened to Ma j blige , Johndoe, Nsiman,  - Wesley and the rest of the idiotic ids -

Ol boy i think u r losing it .   In the beginning GEJ was popular but as the days go by  the popularity dwindled at a rapid rate

 - GEJ can only win by rigging  - fact

The truth is that if PDP declare themselves winner after losing I expect mass action in the North and South-West accompanied by widespread  killing and arson.

The best thing is to declare the true results and if PDP wins they take it and if they lose they accept.

The SE and SS are politically immature and will always accept any results.

IMO,Jonathan and Buhari have equal chances and the key to victory is the SW and North-Central.They should do their homework well especially in the South-West.

How many of those almajiri's that flock round Buhari are actually registered to vote, how many of them would actually vote for Buhari if offered 1000 naira and told to vote for GEJ, in Nigeria-- Its not the crowd puller that wins elections--- Its he who doles most--- and PDP has got that-- I don't support that but I'm a realist when it comes to this issue, CPC and ACN missed it when they never picked their deputies from the south-east, spiting that region and thinking their votes wont matter, we all would be surprised when GEJ sweeps the whole North---

@U dey vex? Why u con dey vex nah. Atleast d stone no affect gej pr1ck nahh, U can keep getting ur suck on f@ggot.

Their leaders in that region should warn their people. President convoy must not be pelted. They should show their annoyance at the poll.

Is he not right to say it is "senseless" for Beaf to remind us that these guys would have been shot under previous leaders ? Is that response not "senseless" with how it does not recognise where we are today and where we need to get to urgently in comparison to other Nations? We should be greatful just because Jonathan is not sanctioning murder? is that the pathetic low standards we set for leadership? A leader not callously murdering opposition voices is now to be praised for that consideration?

Years back , a student interrupted Tony Blairs press conference to heckle him while he was PM. Blair reponded by saying that in many regimes of the world he would not have the freedom to do that . That utterance lost Blair a lot of support and goodwill. Many quickly reminded Mr. Blair that the UK is not "many regimes" . It is a place of exemplary democracy where leaders must show tolerance of those who gave them their mandate. I would like to remind Beaf that we are no longer under Abacha and , by the Grace of God, we will never be under anyone of his ilk.

I got no bad-belle for you, but know this Nigeria has not gotten to that stage of "exemplary democracy"-- If we have Buhari wont be telling his supporters to lynch election riggers--- would the opposition in the UK do that --- NO.--- would the opposition in UK force innocent motorist to shout "sai Buhari" before they are allowed to go their way or have their windscreen bashed if they refuse-- NO.

Do you want the president to be in harms way before we know he should tolerate opposition, lets be fair and honest here, There was a lot of buzz and anger when Buhari's campaign train was stoned at yenagoa, even the president came out and condemned it, the North made a lot of noise out of that incident-- but here you have them doing the same thing not once.

This is the only campaign he is putting up.

babasoty:

How many of those almajiri's that flock round Buhari are actually registered to vote, how many of them would actually vote for Buhari if offered 1000 naira and told to vote for GEJ, in Nigeria-- Its not the crowd puller that wins elections--- Its he who doles most--- and PDP has got that-- I don't support that but I'm a realist when it comes to this issue, CPC and ACN missed it when they never picked their deputies from the south-east, spiting that region and thinking their votes wont matter, we all would be surprised when GEJ sweeps the whole North---

I doubt he has the capability of winning more than 3 Northern states.Even in governorship and reps,PDP will lose up to 80% of NE and NW.

Goodluck can still win the election just like Buhari but the issue here is to allow the true wish of the people stand.If the people vote GEJ then he wins but if they don't ,let INEC accept and announce the result without being doctored.