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Buhari has all it takes to defeat Jonathan — Segun Oni
*On Ogun APC crisis: ‘Osoba remains one of us
Engineer Segun Oni is a former governor of Ekiti State. He is
presently the Deputy Chairman, South, of the All
Progressives Congress, APC. He explains, among other
issues in this interview, why General Muhammadu Buhari,
his party’s presidential candidate, if elected into office in the
February general elections, will not run a corrupt
government.
You had a presidential primary that held without
rancour. What would you say was the secret?
Whatever I say now, you may say I am biased, it (the
convention) was a very good thing. I would say that it was
the best thing that ever happened to this country so far in
terms of party primaries. It was a primary that nobody knew
who was going to carry the day. That means that it was free,
fair. It was glaring to everybody. And that is why I think we
have the almighty God to thank for this.
Now your party’s candidate has a strong opposition in
the incumbent president. How do you surmount this
hurdle?
We are very confident that we will overcome. We said one
thing on that day and I want to repeat it here. This primary is
an indication that God is actually involved in the Nigeria
project. This is the finger of God. Everything went right. And
it has been going right, from the primaries all over the place.
It means the change Nigerians have been yearning for and
the answer to their prayer has started coming. For anybody
who can analyze, introspect, you would have seen that this
indeed is the direction God is taking Nigeria. We are a party
that is very heavy on the ground, because we are receiving
everyday converts from other parties.
Your party heavy everywhere or in some places?
Everywhere. You can say we are not sufficiently heavy in the
South-East which is the only zone for now. But everyday, we
are receiving people in the same South –East. If you look at
the party closely, you will see that we are capable of
winning. Look at the states we control. Look at how strong
we are, and I think that is why you journalists should do a
lot of thorough analysis.
APC is seen, for those defecting to it, as the option such
that the party has become a generator of sort to rely
upon when there is no electricity?
Don’t forget that we have our own area of strength. Yes, we
may not be in all states but we have the capability of
winning on our own. But in those places where we don’t
have the capability of winning, we make up with the top
shots of the other parties who are coming to our party.
Because their party mismanaged their fortune, they had to
seek refuge some where else. I always tell Nigerians that
why should the country trust PDP which cannot manage
themselves? Are you surprised that Nigeria is the way it is?
PDP cannot manage itself. We have two former National
Chairmen of the PDP with us now: Chiefs Audu Ogbeh and
Barnabas Gemade. We have a former National Secretary of
the party, Prince Oyinlola, with us as well as a former deputy
National Chairman, Chief Samsom Jaja and a host of other
people. So, if the PDP, despite being in power, does not have
the management capability to put its house in order, should
you then be surprised that its members are decamping to
our party?
Let me tell you, if it was possible for Nigerians to decamp,
most Nigerians would have left it by now. I am a product of
that system, mind you. So, I know the only thing they
thought they could do well is to win elections, and that is
why I am glad now because that would be tested against real
opposition. They have not managed their affairs well.
It is not our fault. If a party is in power and it continues to
lose members the way they are losing it now, it is quite
indicative of their inability to manage. So, the PDP has no
management capability and I am not surprised that they
have managed Nigeria down. They have not been able to
manage Boko Haram. They have not been able to contain
corruption, in fact, that is the only thing they can do well.
Talking about insurgency, it is already established that
it was the creation of you politicians. So it is a class
creation.
It may be a class thing in the head of politicians, but it is a
management thing in the hands of government. And I can
tell you that the principal problem of the security challenge
is corruption. You want some people to go and face enemies
and they are not well taken care of. You are not releasing
their allowances as and when due whereas some people are
there feeding fat on their money. What do you think their
morale will be? Put yourself in their position. But my news
to our security operatives is that hope is on the way. It will
no longer be that some people receive what belongs to the
majority and turn them hapless people.
Given the same platform as incumbent, some have said
the opposition too could even be worse than what you
are ascribing to the PDP.
No. It is not possible. It can not be worse. Now, you have
somebody to compare with. The president once said that
what people are calling corruption is mere stealing. What is
mere stealing? That is corruption. You see him in the mould
of a father whose children are said to be stealing eraser and
the father says, ‘is it not mere eraser they stole? Is that why
you are complaining?’ You should know that that father’s
frame of mind does not agree with normalcy. Therefore, you
can say such father will never discredit stealing.
If a president says mere stealing is called corruption, that
means he does not know what corruption is. If he does not
know what corruption is, then indirectly you are encouraging
it. Nigeria can never get bad in the hands of anybody I know
in our party. There can never be corruption under Buhari’s
watch for the simple reason that, prolifigacy will never be
encouraged. You know the general well. He has lived his
spartan life for more than seven decades, how can such a
person suddenly change? He cannot.
He has passed the age where people can change. APC will
not run a corrupt government. Nigerians, we are too
skeptical to believe that real change is not achievable, it is
achievable. I want to tell you, this one will be achieved. This
is the finger of God and Nigerians should prepare for it and
embrace it.
There are complaints here and there in the states
regarding your party’s governorship primaries. A case
study is that of Lagos State where the eventual
candidate was said to have been imposed on other
aspirants. Many people think this may affect the party
in the general elections.
No, it won’t affect our chances. We are resolving the
disagreement as we speak. But let me tell you, there is
nothing like imposition. The primaries were free and fair.
What Nigerians call imposition, most of the time, is mere
endorsement. In America, they say it is endorsement, they
won’t say Clinton imposed Obama. Or the Kennedy family
endorsed Clinton instead of imposition which we call it here.
They won’t say Bush imposed his son, it is mere
endorsement. Politics is a mind field for goodwill and
influence.
Some people have it, some don’t. Someone who doesn’t
have much of it will go to people who have it. And if those
who have it should throw their weight in a particular
direction, that is not imposition. When the late sage (Chief
Obafemi Awolowo) was alive, anytime he threw his weight in
a particular direction, the answer was usually yes to
everybody. That is endorsement. It does not mean, however,
endorsement from highly placed people is, most of the time,
not challengeable.
In the days of Baba Awolowo, we heard that baba’s
endorsement first went to Deacon Alayande for the Oyo
governorship race but the late Bola Ige worked very hard
among the young turks to tilt it over to his side. Papa
Alayande didn’t go home to bemoan his loss. The lesson we
all have to learn is this, there will always be endorsement,
either openly or in secret. This is the reality of politics. It
happens everywhere. I beg all our aspirants that contested
in all the states that are not happy to see this as an
opportunity for the future. Again, the problem with us as
Nigerians is that our thinking is short term, most times.
So, if something happens now, we must think about how it
can be harvested, no matter how negative it may be, for a
positive future. If endorsement goes against you, you can
harvest it for a positive future. But a lot of us throw our
hands up such that some would want the roof to collapse on
everybody. No, it should not be. I appeal to everybody to
make Ambode the governor of Lagos State.
You said some people are decamping to APC, but some
are also leaving like what we saw in Ogun State.
The Ogun State issue was an unfortunate one. It is not a
problem that just started. It started long time ago. When you
see people leaving, they are all from one source. They are
all Chief Osoba people. They are not satisfied with the
system, not as individuals but as a team. I want to say that
we probably didn’t manage the problem the way we should
have. I am part of the blame. We should have nipped the
problem in the bud. But, it is not individuals leaving. It a
team issue but I hope there is still going to be a common
ground in future.
What are the chances of the APC returning to the Ogun
Government House next year?
Of course, our chances are very bright. This interview will be
in the archives by the time we are through with the elections
and it will be a reference material then. I am sure about our
chances. It will be very interesting though, but our party will
still carry the day. I am not happy though that we lost
members, no, but we are still going to win, and even after
that, we are still going to sit with our brothers and sisters at
the other side. Chief Osoba remains one of us.
Some have said that the restoration of your privileges
as a former governor of Ekiti State by Governor Ayo
Fayose is a political stunt. How do you see it?
It is not. Let me say that there are times we play politics,
there are times we relate as brothers. We are first and
foremost brothers, all of us. Otunba Adebayo, Dr. Fayemi,
Governor Fayose, myself and a host of others, we are
brothers. We play politics when we need to. We relate as
brothers every time there is an opportunity. It would have
been much better for the state if we can reduce the wedge
between us in politics. I am grateful to Governor Fayose. He
did not talk politics with me. He did not even talk with me. I
see this as a show of goodwill. However, that does not
change my politics or change where I belong politically.
What do you make of the crisis in the state House of
Assembly?
Yes, that is politics. How can you say seven people are
superior to 19? That is a huge joke. I wish Fayose will not
look at it from that point of view. I am personally going to
make an attempt to talk to him and his people so that he
can return to reality which is, there is a Speaker who has
principal officers. No voice under heaven will make seven to
be superior to 19. I hope they don’t plunge us into another
chaos. There is no way we can accept that. The governor
must wake up if it is a dream. He should pinch himself and
face the reality which back to status ante.