[size=14pt]Nigerians made a mistake not electing Buhari –El-Rufai[/size]

extract. . . .

The removal of fuel subsidy was greeted with mixed feelings. How do you see the action of President Goodluck Jonathan?

Well, I have already written about this fuel subsidy conundrum and I think that the timing and the deceit that went around the removal of the fuel subsidy is the main reason people are angry. I think the government has missed the point of peoples' anger about the fuel subsidy. It is not an economic argument; it is not a political argument because some of the people in government are accusing some of us in the opposition of being opposed to it for political reasons. It is more than that. It is a trust issue. Nigerians do not trust this government to use the resources well and there is nothing the government can do to earn that trust unless they get the work of the people done. This government has earned $200 billion from the sale of crude oil and taxes in the last four years and it has done nothing with it. Why would another $7 billion make the difference?

If you were President at this moment, how would you handle the situation?

As I said, the issue is one of trust. If another government was in power, let us assume General Buhari was the President of Nigeria, he would not withdraw the subsidy. He will fix the problem. He will audit who is taking the money in the subsidy, who is paying what, how the money multiply three times in one year and fish out the thieves and deal with them.

So, why do you think Jonathan lacks the political will to deal with them?

[b]Because they financed his election. But Buhari would have sorted that out. That is the first thing to do. Now, while you are paying the subsidy, even one quarter of what you are paying is a lot. General Buhari's administration would have ensured that within 12 months all the refineries are working at full capacity. His administration would have built the fourth refinery that will bring our domestic production to the point that we don't need to import a single drop of petrol. And once we can produce our petrol from our own crude oil, at out own cost, we can sell it at any price we like. That is what Buhari's government would have done. Nigerians made a very big mistake for not electing Buhari, and they are learning every day. Many people have told me that they voted for Jonathan and they are regretting it now.
There is no question of Buhari withdrawing subsidy because he has been Petroleum Minister, Chairman of Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF) and so on. He built three out of the four refineries we have in this country. And he built that out of patriotism to ensure that we can produce domestically. So, the question of withdrawing subsidy would not even be on the table.[/b]


Let's talk about the security situation in the country. You are a Northerner and the Boko Haram sect happens to be a Northern group. How do you view its activities?

I don't like thinking of myself as a Northerner. I see myself as a Nigerian that happens to have been born in one part of Nigeria. Now, nobody knows really whether Boko Haram is from the North or from anywhere. Nobody knows for sure because their leaders were killed. Now, anybody can come to my house and plant bomb and say it is Boko Haram.

A few days ago, I saw on the internet pictures of some people covering their faces, wearing jeans and saying that they are Boko Haram; that Southerners should leave the North. I am sure that those people are not Boko Haram. Boko Haram people don't wear jeans. They wear Kaftan and their trousers are like this (folding his trouser to demonstrate the kind of trousers the Boko Haram members wear). There are people that are claiming to be Boko Haram and they are not because nobody knows who is Boko Haram. So anyone can make the claim. I think that what we have in Boko Haram and other insurgencies is not only Boko Haram.

The Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC) paraded through Lagos, shooting in the air and the police ran into hiding. There are kidnappers all over the South-East. Insurgence in Niger Delta; these are all a symptom of the breakdown of the capacity of the state and unless the government stands up and secure the lives and property of the people, they are leading us towards failure. I believe that beyond Boko Haram, which is a metaphor for dissatisfaction with the state, there is something going on. There are forces within the government and outside the government collaborating to try to throw this country into crisis. I do not believe that some of these things in the name of Boko Haram and so on and so forth are (done by) Boko Haram.

That means the issue of Northern politicians sponsoring Boko Haram is baseless?


If Northern politicians are sponsoring them, they should name them. They should stop threatening that we know the sponsors. If you know the sponsors, why are they still working the streets? If you are a real government and you have your information, why are they not in court, being charged for what they are doing to this state?

http://sunnewsonline.com/webpages/news/national/2012/jan/08/national-08-01-2012-005.html

Well, I have already written about this fuel subsidy conundrum and I think that the timing and the deceit that went around the removal of the fuel subsidy is the main reason people are angry. I think the government has missed the point of peoples' anger about the fuel subsidy. It is not an economic argument; it is not a political argument because some of the people in government are accusing some of us in the opposition of being opposed to it for political reasons. It is more than that. It is a trust issue. Nigerians do not trust this government to use the resources well and there is nothing the government can do to earn that trust unless they get the work of the people done. This government has earned $200 billion from the sale of crude oil and taxes in the last four years and it has done nothing with it. Why would another $7 billion make the difference?

thank you sir